NEWBURYPORT, MA – Fronetics Strategic Advisors, a global strategic advisory firm focused on driving value in high-tech supply chains and integrated logistics, today announced the launch of Fronetics Interim Retained Management Service (FIRMS), a management as a service offering. FIRMS is designed to provide specific executive, management, sales or operational expertise when and where an…
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At $100 per barrel, crude oil is an extremely valuable resource, but even more prized to members of the supply chain these days is data — or rather, big-data. The term big-data does not describe how much information is resident in a database or IT system, but rather, it defines a category of data derived…
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The counterfeit electronic component issue is serious. Most don't want to admit it, but the facts have been accumulating for years. In 2011, there were nearly 1,400 reported instances of counterfeit parts. This does not include unreported cases. The issue can't be “swept under the rug” anymore. Finally, enforcement agencies are getting tough: There have…
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THIEF RIVER FALLS, Minn. – Global electronic components distributor Digi-Key Corporation, recognized by design engineers as having the industry’s largest selection of electronic components available for immediate shipment, today announced the signing of a global distribution agreement with Kionix, Inc., a top provider of MEMS inertial sensors. Kionix, based in Ithaca, NY, provides industry-leading 3-axis…
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More than two years after the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act was signed into law, the US Securities and Exchange Commission has issued rules on the act's conflict minerals provision. The provision is intended to encourage companies to do more to make sure the tantalum, tungsten, tin, and gold in their products…
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{complink 4750|Samsung Corp.} has to be feeling a little picked on these days. Mere weeks after it lost a patent battle with {complink 379|Apple Inc.}, a watchdog agency has reported that Samsung is violating workers' rights. According to Wall Street Journal and BBC reports, China Labor Watch found incidents of forced overtime, underage workers, and…
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When a company moves into volume production, the part-inventory requirements increase both in quantity and aggregated value. Some of the parts used are off-the-shelf components, while others are custom, or programmable, parts. While program code is being developed and tested, an engineering lab will often buy or rent an EEPROM, PROM, or other type of…
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You've seen them coming and going, and perhaps occasionally conferred with them, but are they out in the world talking for your company and industry or just signing off on news release quotes? This commentary is about executive spokespersonship (a gender-neutral term). How often is the CEO, or any of your top executives, booked as…
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Based on some of the replies to my blogs and conversations with customers, I have noticed that some individuals are confused over single and sole sourcing. I will start with definitions and then share some observations and thoughts on the subject. (See: Single Source Premium: Unnecessary Cost and Purchasing: Risks in ‘Virtual’ Second Sources.) Sole…
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As the US prepares to choose its next president, there's a lot of analysis being done on what the current administration has accomplished in the past four years. One of the platforms of the first Obama campaign was a commitment to renewable energy. High tech was to be a beneficiary of government investment in alternative…
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