NAM Study Says Ports Stoppage Would Be Devastating Hit to Manufacturers
Stoppage Would Cost Economy Half a Billion Dollars a Day, Destroy 41,000 U.S. Jobs
As negotiations between the Pacific Maritime Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union near a critical deadline, the National Association of Manufacturers released a statement on the potential impact of stoppage based on analysis commissioned by the organization utilizing the Inforum LIFT economic model to quantify the impacts of a potential 15-day closure at the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports.
According to the study by Inforum Economics, a 15-day disruption would cost the US economy nearly half a billion dollars a day — for a total of $7.5 billion — and destroy 41,000 jobs, including more than 6,100 in manufacturing. As the industry continues to grapple with historic supply chain challenges, inflationary pressures and rising transportation and energy costs, manufacturers are calling on the parties to reach an agreement immediately to avoid this continued uncertainty.
Inflation and Supply Chain Impact on Gordon Brush
Ken Rakusin, President and CEO, Gordon Brush Mfg. Co., Inc. was interviewed by reporter Renee Ing from Spectrum News 1 on how inflation and supply chain issues are affecting brush manufacturers.
“Everything is backlogged because we are having trouble getting the material needed to make our brushes and something that used to cost $5.00, is now $15.00,” says Rakusin, “The backlog has slowed my entire business down. We used to be able to quote and deliver in a one to two-week time period, now, we can’t do that anymore, we don’t know whether it’s going to be four weeks or six weeks.”
How Businesses Can Thrive During Inflation
By Lisa Anderson
According to the Wall Street Journal, consumer prices are the highest in 40 years. It certainly doesn’t seem to be letting up. In fact, with the Russia-Ukraine war, there will be continued inflationary pressure on products related to oil, gas, commodities and food at a minimum. Clients and colleagues are seeing record increases in the costs of raw materials, components and supplies. Strong companies are prepared to thrive during these inflationary times. They are resilient and willing to take action as conditions change.
Business Planning Strategy Process to Grow and Scale
By Lisa Anderson
According to FactSet Insight, revenue growth is predicted at 7.5 percent for 2022 which is substantial when considering it is following record-breaking growth in 2021. Clients and colleagues are seeing record increases in sales revenues and pricing. The companies that have product and can satisfy customer needs are continuing to grow faster than the average as they take market share from the competition, whereas the companies struggling and waiting for supply chain disruptions to ease are deteriorating. The strong are getting stronger, and the weak are getting weaker.
There are several operational and supply chain priorities required to be ready to absorb additional sales. A critical one is to have base planning and scheduling processes with an eye to collaborative and concurrent planning processes with programs such as SIOP/ S&OP (sales, inventory and operations planning), what-if scenario planning and advanced insights into down-the-line impacts. In essence, the best way to say “yes” to profitable revenue growth is to have the ability to rapidly assess capabilities and impacts and be assured of your ability to execute.
Manufacturing Resurgence Creates Opportunity
By Lisa Anderson
There will be a resounding resurgence of manufacturing near-term. According to a new report from The Reshoring Initiative®, reshoring broke records in the US in 2020 and exceeded foreign direct investment (FDI) for the first time since 2013. Not only did it beat FDI, but it beat it by nearly 100 percent! Also, according to the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), the vast majority of US manufacturers (88 percent) expect sales, production, and prices to increase next year despite the supply challenges. Clients across the board are experiencing these same trends. Thus, there will be organic growth as well as reshoring growth. Why has this resurgence taken off by leaps and bounds?
Kickstart Your Business Intelligence Roadmap
By Lisa Anderson
According to McKinsey surveys of global Supply Chain leaders (May 15-May 22, 2020, n=60), 85% struggled with insufficient digital technologies in the supply chain. One of the key digital technologies is business intelligence (BI) and analytics. According to Tableau, the projected return on investment of BI in a three-year period is 127%. Clients and colleagues are seeing the importance of adopting BI and predictive analytics to proactively manage the company and make critical decisions. Are you on a roadmap to adopting BI?
Post Pandemic Skills Gap
By Lisa Anderson
According to Prudential’s latest Pulse of the American Worker Survey, one in four workers plan to look for a job at a different company once the pandemic has subsided. Additionally, a recent Robert Half survey found that 38 percent of workers feel stuck in their careers, and an EY survey found that more than half of employees globally would quit their jobs if not provided post-pandemic flexibility. Clients and colleagues are starting to see a surge of employees “on the move.” What are you doing to retain your top talent and attract new talent?
Post Pandemic: People or Robots?
By Lisa Anderson
According to Statista Research Department, the global market for robots is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of around 26 percent to reach close to $210 billion by 2025. To back that up, Automation World reports almost 45 percent of respondents to their adoption survey currently use robots in their assembly and manufacturing operations and almost 25 percent expect to add robots in the next year.
