IBM introduced several new products at its recent Smarter Commerce Summit in Orlando, Fla.

Armstrong + Associates Inc. has released the 20th edition of Who's Who in Logistics, the consultancy's guide to third-party logistics providers.

You'd expect to see headlines like this - 'Launch of New Apple iPhone Causes Riots - when consumers beat down doors and trample each other, yet these riots were in China, among workers at Foxconn, a major supplier to Apple and other U.S. companies.

Daniel F. Lynch, director of international trade and transportation at Dalhousie University, reveals the importance of two-way trade between the U.S. and Canada - while offering a frank appraisal of the challenges that stand in the way of an ideal relationship.

The business of helping people live longer, healthier lives is not taken lightly in any regard. Suppliers to Boston Scientific must guarantee extremely high quality and delivery, because the smallest imperfection or delay could be life-threatening. For this reason, the entire supply chain depends on efficiency and quality. The global indirect sourcing and procurement (GISP) organization at Boston Scientific is responsible for all strategic and tactical procurement of indirect materials and services, using a center-led operating model to organize sourcing around the world.

Dan Cassler, assistant chair of the Information Logistics Technology Department at the University of Houston, offers an update on supply-chain sustainability - and details both the benefits and pain to be derived from such efforts.

Challenge: A large consumer products company faced demand volatility and increasing costs of holding inventory.

Downtime is the enemy of lean. Downtime is, in fact, waste. Idled lines do not add value. Restarting production after unplanned downtime requires more effort, usually expended with less efficiency and worker productivity. This reintroduces waste, which creates added costs that customers do not pay for, yet must be absorbed into cost of goods sold.