CERTIFIED INC.
January 15, 2015 Leave a comment
Global Pet Expo, the pet industry’s largest annual trade show, is presented by the American Pet Products Association (APPA) and Pet Industry Distributors Association (PIDA).
In 2015, Global Pet Expo will take place March 4-6 in Orlando, Florida. Global Pet Expo is open to independent retailers, distributors, mass-market buyers, and other qualified professionals.
January 8, 2015 Leave a comment
National Retail Federation NRF 2015 Big Show NYC
January 11-14, 2015
Jacob K. Javits Convention Center | NYC
NRF’s Annual Convention & EXPO earned the nickname “Retail’s BIG Show” years ago and because the name was so appropriate, it stuck. Today, Retail’s BIG Show is NRF’s flagship industry event held annually in New York City. The four day event offers unparalleled education, collegial networking, and an enormous EXPO Hall full of technologies and solutions.
After more than a century, Retail’s BIG Show is still the place – the only place – where you can see and experience all things Retail. It is truly one-stop-shopping for industry professionals from the around the world.
January 5, 2015 Leave a comment
By Michael Kling
Updated By Adam Reiser
John Ratzenberger on FOX NEWS Neil Cavuto
The lack of young people entering the manufacturing field threatens the future of the U.S. manufacturing renaissance, warns a new study.
Older workers, who dominate manufacturing, are leaving the work force in droves, but few young people are entering the field to replace them, according to the study from information and technology company ThomasNet.com. The study included responses from 1,209 engineers and purchasing agents, business owners and managers and sales and marketing executives from manufacturers, distributors and service companies.
Over three-fourths of manufacturing employees are 45 and older, the survey indicates.
“With Generation Y (18 to 32 years old) expected to make up 75 percent of the work force by 2025, and older employees exiting in droves, manufacturing’s ‘biological clock’ is ticking away,” the report notes.
Yet most manufacturers show a lack of urgency to fill their pipeline with skilled workers.
Three-quarters of companies surveyed say 25 percent or less of their work force are in the Generation Y age group. While 29 percent say they will increase employment of Generation Y workers in the next two years, almost half expect their numbers to stay the same.
Manufacturers say negative perceptions about work in their industry prompts young people to avoid the sector. But instead of being dirty, boring work, modern manufacturing is a high-tech world of computer-aided design and production. Half of survey respondents say a career in their industry provides satisfaction as well as competitive wages and benefits.
The shortage of skilled workers comes at a time when the industry is rebounding. Over half of manufacturers grew in 2012 and nearly two-thirds expect to grow this year. Nearly seven out of 10 will introduce new products this year.
“Considering that many companies (42 percent) are increasing employee headcount this year, the time to cultivate a new work force is now,” the study stresses.
Lack of basic skills in young workers is a drawback.
Manufacturers are developing partnerships with schools to help improve training and increase their emphasis on science, technology, engineering and mathematics. “The jury is out on whether these efforts alone will be enough,” the study says.
The United States is well-positioned to revitalize its manufacturing sector, says Philip Odette, president of Global Supply Chain Solutions, in an article for ManufacturingNet, an industry news site.
“The only thing missing is enough skilled workers to maintain the momentum.”
Companies must work to educate young people about the advantages of a career in manufacturing, he explains.
“Even something as simple as recording yourself demonstrating a process can boost the credibility of your company and increase its presence in the minds of students and teachers in your local area,” he advises. “Videos of new equipment or an impressive process don’t have to be reserved to sales pitches — they can be investments in attracting a new work force.”
Source: http://www.moneynews.com/Economy/manufacturing-skill-workers-US/2013/11/07/id/535317
December 30, 2014 2 Comments
This is an interesting little story, about how Walmart is encouraging manufacturers to produce within the US for the company. Read more of this post
December 23, 2014 Leave a comment
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Imaginechina/REX (4301626b)
19-year-old worker Wei wearing a face mask and a Christmas hat covered in red powder.
There’s red on the ceiling and red on the floor, red dripping from the window sills and red globules splattered across the walls. It looks like the artist Anish Kapoor has been let loose with his wax cannon again. But this, in fact, is what the making of Christmas looks like; this is the very heart of the real Santa’s workshop – thousands of miles from the North Pole, in the Chinese city of Yiwu. Read more of this post
December 12, 2014 Leave a comment
The Chinese regime nearly got its hands on new designs for America’s latest fighter jet. New designs that could cut costs in producing the F-35 advanced fighter jet were found in the luggage of a Chinese national who was traveling from New York to China. Read more of this post
December 12, 2014 Leave a comment
China’s emergence as a manufacturing powerhouse over the last decade was quite the debut. Besides surpassing the United States as the world’s largest producer of manufactured goods in 2011, China also managed to double their GDP per capita and in turn, greatly improve the nation’s standard of living. To put this into perspective, this is a feat that took the United Kingdom 150 years (McKinsey). Read more of this post
December 9, 2014 Leave a comment
Recent data show relative strength in demand and output in the manufacturing sector, with activity levels reflecting improvements since earlier in the year. In particular, the latest Institute for Supply Management’s purchasing managers’ index has reflected robust growth in new orders and production since the summer, and employment and pricing pressures appear to be moving in the right direction. The forecast for real GDP and industrial production for 2015 also show promise, both of which are anticipated to expand by roughly 3% next year. Read more of this post
December 9, 2014 Leave a comment
Reshoring is the hottest trend in U.S. manufacturing. According to a recent study by Boston Consulting Group, 54 percent of all United States companies over $1 billion in revenues are planning or considering bringing at least some of their manufacturing back to the U.S. Read more of this post
December 3, 2014 1 Comment
Maple Landmark Woodcraft, a Middlebury toy company, got a boost in 2007 when toys imported from China were found to contain lead. Many Vermont manufacturers believe that if goods sold online were labeled with their country of origin, business would grow.
NINA KECK VPR
If you pick up an item in a gift store, chances are, you’ll find a little label telling you where it was made. U.S. law requires it for nearly every imported good.
But shop online, and country of origin information is much harder if not impossible to find. Read more of this post
