Electronics OEMs know that emerging markets offer an opportunity for growth. They may not know that success or failure can depend greatly on the organization's supply chain practices. Only about 40% of companies feel that they have captured the growth they expected in emerging markets, a new Accenture survey found. The problem may be with…
The iPhone 6 has been big news for consumers, who are anxious to get their hands on the newest tech toys and are debating the value of a larger screen size. In fact, the product introduction broke all records, with pre-orders hitting 4 million units in 24 hours. However, the effort that went into putting…
Consumers are the last stop in an increasingly complex supply chain, and their wishes often impact important sourcing decisions. It's interesting then to note how the features and functions of the popular Apple iPhone have evolved since the company's first iPhone launch in 2007. Alex Hillsberg from Finances Online shared an infographic that clearly illustrates…
The electronic industry may, at times, take packaging for granted. However, poor-quality boxes result in damaged products. Meanwhile, using more packaging is a poor choice for the planet. A recent peer-reviewed study, commissioned by the Corrugated Packaging Alliance (CPA) and conducted by the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement (NCASI), finds that corrugated materials…
The thriving consumer electronics industry is good news for OEMs and consumers alike. At the same time, e-waste continues to be a challenging problem. The average laptop or notebook computer, cellular phone, or digital camera is made up of a huge variety of different elements: glass, metals, and plastics. Recyclers reclaim these elements for further…
Consumer shifts are bound to radically change the electronics supply chain and logistics. Today, the home automation market is set to make such a stellar shift. In 2012, the home automation market was valued at USD 3.6 billion, according to Transparency Market Research. The market research firm anticipates that that number will explode to reach…
The only thing that is certain is that compliance is more easily mandated than achieved. It always takes time, and a lot of it. The RoHS2 (also called the RoHS Recast) was drafted in 2008 with an eye toward restricting hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment sold in Europe. “Improving implementation and enforcement of…
If you thought smartphones, tablets, and laptops were the only items targeted by criminal gangs robbing delivery trucks and cargo containers, think again. Metals are also top-choice products to steal, and they are becoming even more appealing as metal commodity prices increase. As Velocity, a sister publication, noted last month, the electronics supply chain already…
If you look around your daily life, from what's beside our roads to what's in our offices to what's running our supply chains, electrical engineers have been the ones pushing innovation to the newest frontiers. When the telegraph was invented, few people could have imagined how developments would continue to evolve over the decades, coming…
Even if the best anti-counterfeiting measure ever invented could be adopted overnight across every electronic component category, the problem of counterfeit components would be slowed rather than stopped. In reality, the newest parts coming into the supply chain are only half the problem. The other half of incidents include obsolete and end-of-life parts. Adding to…