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Tuesday, March 31, 2009 |
We're approaching half way of the Packaging Automation Forum. Lively discussions. Lots of discussion over working with IT. Last year we had a couple of IT people. Maybe we need a couple again.
Mark Hanley of Kraft showed how a good data collection system used in a well thought out OEE system can drive good Lean manufacturing practices -- and improve profitability. Allen Moore of Lance told the story of 12 years of continuous control evolution, adding PLCs then PACs and networking then adding data collection. He pointed to the pitfalls and challenges of working with IT (especially noting that IT has lots of turnover making relationship building difficult). He brought a word of warning to users. Lance implemented a huge data acquisition software project buying a big, complex software product without the proper foundation laid. It bombed. So he learned to start small and simple and build it up.
12:39:20 PM 
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Life just presents events and situations. How we respond is a choice. Here are some thoughts for life from Successful (and Outstanding) Bloggers. Five ways to mine gold when it's raining.
6:10:26 AM
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From Mr. Magazine, What Recession, Magazine Launches Up.
6:07:29 AM
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(Apologies to Dire Straits, but some companies are in it) I'm at the new Intercontinental hotel in Rosemont, IL for the fourth annual Packaging Automation Forum jointly sponsored by Packaging World magazine and Automation World. It's a mod, European style hotel. Very nice--but no coffee in the room. I woke up early and am catching up on my over 600 RSS feeds and unknown number of Twitter feeds while going through caffeine withdrawal. By the way, attendance is down at the PAF this year (not surprisingly) but still not bad. There will be some excellent speakers on various topics of interest to machine builders and end users alike.
I guess that some people (GM, Chrysler, et. al.) thought government money was free. "Gee, the money truck is coming from Washington, let's ask for a free delivery," they must have thought. Oops, there's no free lunch. Wagoner is out at GM (about time, how long can a board of directors put up with incompetence?). Government "advisors" are setting mandates for the companies if they want the money. This whole fiasco is, so I am reading, the reason for the stock market tumble yesterday. Meanwhile, Om Malik writes about the difference between Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos and the "big" company CEOs who thought government bail out money would bail them out of their failures.
Someone at the reception last night was upset that the government would extract so much out of the car companies and not demand the heads of the AIG and bank executives. He thought it was picking on manufacturing. But look what's happened to the car companies over the past few years. They do less and less manufacturing. They've spun off their component manufacturing arms--who all have had problems learning to live in the real world without the benevolance of Papa Corp. Even EDS saw its corporate culture changed so much by GM that it couldn't survive. An an ex-EDS executive couldn't make it in the industrial world. The U.S. car companies have evolved into product design, marketing and sales organizations who also assemble cars. Most of the manufacturing is done elsewhere.
GM and Chrysler execs were concerned that if they had to enter bankruptcy (which they probably should) that they'd go out of business. Maybe that's not bad. Although it would be bad for thousands of retirees and others (and the taxpayers who would have to pick up some retirement benefits in order to avoid further deepening the recession), it would also pave the way for entrepreneurs who could build a new kind of car company. A new Soichro Honda who bucked the Japanese bureaucracy to start a new car company. People are still going to buy cars--but no one said that they'll always buy whatever Detroit says they should buy.
5:54:30 AM
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© Copyright 2009 Gary Mintchell.
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