Hassle maps reveal the steps that cause a customer to have a negative experience with a business. The map can be literal or a simple mental construct and should play a key role in determining strategies for engineering, design, marketing, partners and competitors.......Read More

Staying competitive in today’s complex and dynamic automotive market requires automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to balance their demand-supply equation. This makes it possible to not only meet customer demand, but also optimize overhead and keep capital expenses under control.......Read More

Millennial purchasing power is staggering, and the segment’s ability to influence product success is unlike anything businesses have seen before. Understanding how millennials think is critical especially if you can gather this essential insight before launching a new product or service.......Read More

Back in 2015, I wrote about how my organization, New York City Transit (NYCT), was implementing enterprise asset management as part of an initiative for the entire Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). The goal was to apply enterprise asset management strategies to transit systems, the Metro-North and Long Island Railroads, and bridges and tunnels in order to comply with the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21). MAP-21 was signed into law in 2012 and mandated the development and use of enterprise asset management systems in order to receive federal funds.......Read More

In the July/August 2007 issue of APICS magazine, the “Relevant Research” department was titled “Mass Customization’s Many Faces.” In view of the fact that nearly eight years have elapsed since then, it seemed appropriate to update how mass customization is looking today.......Read More

Zara, a division of Inditex, has become a worldwide success in the high-fashion clothing business and an example of one of the top supply chains in the world. The credit for this success often is attributed to the company’s highly integrated, quickly responsive network. ......Read More

APICS magazine managing editor Elizabeth Rennie speaks with Peter H. Clonts, CPIM, and James W. (Jim) Tilton, CPIM, of Rolls-Royce Global Repair Services to learn more about their company's reverse logistics and sustainability practices. ......Read More

R&D environments have a rich array of tools, options, and talent made specifically for invention. In contrast, a production facility must be a lean, efficient asset primarily designed to produce, not invent. ......Read More

New product launches are critical to the success of a company—and a major challenge. Nothing is easy, and there is no place to hide when things go wrong. ......Read More

High-velocity maintenance is an approach that strives to take assets out of service more frequently, but for much shorter durations. When practiced effectively, the primary goal of increased asset availability is realized. ......Read More

A growing number of manufacturers are combining product life cycle management with conventional sales and operations planning by enhancing it with analytics to reduce the cost and labor of new product introductions. ......Read More

Getting a handle on maintenance, repair, and operating inventory not only meets the goal of reducing costs, but also presents an opportunity to boost productivity, capacity, safety, and quality. ......Read More

Paired-cell overlapping loops of cards, or POLCA, was created as an alternative to kanban. Kanban is not intended to operate in environments of low volume or custom products, but POLCA is designed specifically to meet these needs.......Read More

The traditional product life cycle has four phases: start-up, growth, maturity, and decline. Company leaders are becoming increasingly aware of two additional product life cycles they must consider in designing new products: post-sale service and recovery. ......Read More

Information and feedback on products should be collected from all personnel and customers. The challenge is making sure the data are fresh and are gathered in a cost-effective manner.......Read More

Inventory turnover is a key statistic often used to signal supply chain management effectiveness. Turnover and days’ sales represent vital data used to evaluate category performance, but other statistics are needed to provide a fuller picture of financial performance. ......Read More

The key to long-term growth and profitability is the ability to develop, design, and introduce exciting products into the marketplace. Unfortunately, many senior-level supply chain professionals fail to realize the importance of new product development. ......Read More