When the molds used to manufacture aluminum engine blocks are built, visibility into the entire assembly process can help ensure that any defects are caught before the finished block is shipped to a customer. With that in mind, automotive components manufacturer Nemak has automated its work-in-process (WIP) tracking, with a radio frequency identification system supplied by Balluff Inc. that writes sensor data from automation equipment to ensure that any defects in the mold are caught before molten aluminum is poured into it.

At the Smarter Commerce Global Summit, IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced a study that says companies with high-performing procurement organizations are driving better bottom line results, according to an IBM study. These organizations report profit margins of 7.12 percent as compared to just 5.83 percent for companies with low-performing procurement organizations. Also, companies with top-performing procurement organizations report profit margins 15 percent higher than the average company - and 22 percent higher margins than companies with low-performing procurement organizations.

A country of only 66 million people doesn't become the 17th-largest global manufacturer without careful planning. Thailand is the second-largest producer of light pick-up trucks. Carefully constructed strategies along with tangible incentives created this robust manufacturing economy.

Typically bound by short-term leases, displaying products made by others, and run by first-time entrepreneurs with limited capital, shopping mall carts and kiosks have long been considered an unsophisticated small-business underclass. More recently, however, these small-footprint retailers have come to be seen as possessing surprising potential.

The International Housewares Association (IHA), responding to a call from the housewares industry, has created a template for social responsibility issues.