Riots in Urumqi, China this week have killed at least 156 people and injured over 1,000. The conflict stemmed from a violent confrontation between ethnic minority Uighur workers and their Hong Kong-owned factory management in the Guangdong Province, which left 2 workers dead and dozens of other injured. As with many events in this semi-autonomous [...]

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Cost savings may be job number one today, but the current economic crisis portends an equally disturbing storm brewing on the horizon: heightened supply risk. Volatile commodity prices, credit shortages, 23consolidation and bankruptcies are combining so that companies - regardless of their size or the industries in which they operate - will face some form [...]

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You did your Prework before going onsite and then had an enlightening, informative supplier site visit. Now what? Clearly you gained some insights into cost drivers, potential process efficiencies and even personalities. But a lack of follow through at this stage in the game could make all that hard work for naught.
The “Post Analysis” phase [...]

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Last week, we looked at some of the benefits of supplier site visits and the Prework steps you should take before going onsite. Whether you are truly looking for greater collaborative effort or evaluating the relationship from a cost/value standpoint, there’s nothing as effective as seeing the operation in person, meeting key people face to [...]

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No matter how good your relationship may be with your suppliers, there’s always room for improvement. That improvement may be in the form of greater process efficiency, product development collaboration, minimizing supply risks, or a host of other areas. But at the end of the day, what you’re really looking to do is reduce costs [...]

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