Paul Patterson's Page

Hi All,

Over the next couple of weeks, I will be doing a series of Blog entries taking a look at the cost of quality to the consumer by looking at all of the costs associated with owning and maintaining a car.

I will be comparing two cars a Lexus LS430 with 106k miles and a Mercedes E320 with 108k miles. Both cars have single owners (one is my fathers, one is mine), been in CA their entire lifespan, and have been maintain only by the dealership. I will be looking at the cost/mile of each car t… Continue

All,

I am excited to say that ManufacturingCenter.org has kicked off its guest blogging program. As the site develops, I am looking for new ways to add value to you, the members of the site. As you can see, we have two recent blog posts from experts in different areas of the business.

Jason MacKenzie will be sharing his experiences in using IT and technology to improve a manufacturing business. As you all know, IT is becoming an ever increasing way to gain efficiencies.

Pam S will be sharing… Continue

ISM released the Index of Purchasing Managers today. While the numbers indicated that contraction is still going on, it was much better than analysts had expected.

Most believe that the US Manufacturing sector is holding up is due to the weak dollars and an increase in exports. I think that this is a very fair assessment. In my last company. we saw revenues surge internationally without additional investment in Marketing. This is a good opportunity to shrink the trade deficit that the US has be… Continue

Hi all,

While we have had better than expected uptake on people joining ManufacturingCenter.org. We wanted to offer incentives to spur on discussions and participation. We will now be offering $10 Starbucks gift cards (monthly) for the following:

- Most people invited to the site. Invite your friends. If you like the site, they probably will too!
- Most discussions added to the forums. Ask your questions. Share interesting stories.
- Most comments on one of your discussions.

Please engage and… Continue

In the latest APICS Magazine (www.apics.org), there is an article written by David Jacoby of Boston Logistics titled "Can Western Manufacturers Beat the Competition?" Full article: http://www.apics.org/NR/rdonlyres/092CE456-0959-42EB-A595-1DAF2CD53971/0/4044_MayJune08.pdf

The article emphasised that offshoring and outsourcing are not new phenomena to Western Manufacturing. It has been going on for years, though in the last 5 years, the trend has accelerated. Not a surprise.

To me the article w… Continue