Back in the day, when factories served as the templates for developing business processes, the distinction between direct and indirect procurement spending was pretty straightforward: direct spend was focused on the things that went into your product – raw materials, components, subcontracted manufacturing services, and so on. Indirect spend, which some have leeringly referred to…
Anyone familiar with Foxconn/Hon Hai Precision Industry retained a healthy dose of skepticism when Foxconn announced it would build advanced liquid-crystal displays (LCDs) in Wisconsin. To put it charitably, Foxconn is not renowned for honoring its contracts. More than 20 years ago, when I was working for Electronic Business magazine, one of our editors spent…
In the highly competitive, fast-moving semiconductor manufacturing industry, strategic procurement is essential. When sourcing new and used chip equipment and parts, multiple factors must be considered, including reliability, ability to meet shipping dates, volume and price. The “best” supplier could be a major well-known name or a new provider that you haven’t purchased from yet.…