This is one of the great barriers to lean implementation: Concepts of lean are both counterintuitive and counter-cultural. Hence, if you wish to be a lean leader, you must go back to the basics and make sure you have a clear understanding before you are able to teach others.

As the U.S. looks to forge a path for sustainable economic growth for the nation, there is a powerful business tool that can help U.S. industry to fuel business performance and drive growth. It's called standardization. This tool can help tap into new and expanding technologies. It can help businesses out-innovate competitors in the global market. And it can help you cut costs and boost your bottom line.

Innovation is a popular word today, with plenty of books supporting it. Most pundits promote big innovation programs with innovation departments and innovation plans. But unless you happen to have hired the next Nikola Tesla, this is hardly a sustainable strategy.

If the time is right for U.S. manufacturers of all sizes to consider modernizing their operations, it is important to first look at modernizing their supply chain and logistics operations in order to optimize potential investments. Manufacturers must think holistically about their business before making these decisions, and this includes looking at their supply chain and distribution models and the impacts of these investments on their operations.

The U.S. relies on a single Chinese company for buta-netriol (BT), the chemical needed to produce the solid rocket fuel used to propel Hellfire air-to-ground missiles. Hellfire missiles are launched from attack helicopters and unmanned drones. The last U.S. producer of BT, Cytec Industries, discontinued production in 2004.