http://forums.industryweek.com Discuss the latest goings-on in Washington, Brussels, Beijing and the rest of the world that are shaping manufacturing. en Sat, 04 Jul 2009 03:48:15 GMT vBulletin 60 http://forums.industryweek.com/IWImages/misc/rss.jpg http://forums.industryweek.com http://feeds.penton.com/~r/IWFinancialForum/~3/jHWplFwNs5k/showthread.php Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:26:45 GMT According to the financial reports released by global industrial PC suppliers as of May 31, EVOC remains in the rank of the world's top three. In Q1 2009, most IPC companies showed a 20-30% negative growth. As one of the only two companies to achieve growth in the industry, EVOC grew by 11.48%, ranking No. 1 in growth rate.

Statistics in April and May indicated that compared with the same period of last year, most IPC companies experienced negative growth, and the whole industry is suffering from the combined effects of a general economic downturn. On the one hand, the direct impact of financial crisis on IPC industry is about increased difficulty in funding and getting loans, which has made some companies run out of cash. On the other hand, almost all the down-stream industries of IPC (including transportation, industrial automation, medical care, electric power, environmental protection, petrol chemical, banking, network security and video surveillance) are suffering from ripple effects of the crisis, and have reduced production and demands for industrial computing products.

Despite the impact of the global financial crisis upon the IPC industry, both Kontron and EVOC showed optimistic views on their current situation and future development. CEO of Kontron Ulrich Gehrmann said, “Particularly in times of crisis, cost-effective and high-performance innovative systems such as those developed by Kontron can be worthwhile investments for industry. This is because outsourcing offers benefits, can result in rapid savings in companies' unit costs, and cut working capital, thereby resulting in higher liquidity and equity ratios, which are very important factors in these times.”

The sales revenue of EVOC in the first quarter of 2009 was US$29,870,000, 11.48% up from last year’s US$26,790,000. The two-digit growth rate achieved during the crisis greatly inspires people in the industry. Ms. Amy Pan, Global Sales Director of EVOC Group said, “This achievement can be attributed to the interaction and integration of EVOC’s R&D effort and global marketing. EVOC always focuses on product innovation, and fine-tunes its R&D plans and strategy according to the market feedbacks. These two points secure EVOC’s position as the market leader in terms of product R&D and technological innovation. In addition, EVOC’s exploration in overseas market is progressing smoothly, and EVOC has established its name in Europe, North America, Middle East and South-east Asia. Increasing demands for EVOC products from some incremental markets and improvement in market conditions are the positive factors that can explain EVOC’s sales performance.” ]]> saiyo http://forums.industryweek.com/showthread.php?t=6051 http://forums.industryweek.com/showthread.php?t=6051 http://feeds.penton.com/~r/IWFinancialForum/~3/nVQyiRrofps/showthread.php Fri, 26 Jun 2009 20:07:21 GMT http://www.ceasespin.org/ceasespin_blog/ceasespin_blogger_files/fox_news_gets_okay_to_misinform_public.html This all fits in to the ever greater role of corporations shaping public perception to shape the political landscape in order to regulate the economy in their favor and thereby transfer... http://www.ceasespin.org/ceasespin_b...rm_public.html

This all fits in to the ever greater role of corporations shaping public perception to shape the political landscape in order to regulate the economy in their favor and thereby transfer wealth from the rest of society into their own coffers. ]]> rbrooku http://forums.industryweek.com/showthread.php?t=5941 http://forums.industryweek.com/showthread.php?t=5941 http://feeds.penton.com/~r/IWFinancialForum/~3/XGeoDJPYdX4/showthread.php Wed, 27 May 2009 13:14:56 GMT I just read this very interesting story about generic drugs in, of all places, SELF magazine -- and found it quite alarming. http://www.self.com/health/2009/06/d...-generic-drugs I've known from personal experience that generic drugs are not always "the same" as their branded "equivelant -- but, stupid me, I hadn't given much thought to their place of manufacturer or their ultimate safety.

It would appear that the majority of these drugs are now manufacturered overseas -- China and India were named as top spots in this piece. And that the FDA -- no surprise here -- isn't as vigilant at testing. It says the rules for determining dosage -- which translates to safety -- are different than for the branded drugs.

Hmmm....certainly leads me to question here whether globalization is the answer for all types of manufacturered products...whether "lower prices" should be our primary objective. And why is this issue not being written about and talked about in a much more visible way in our "news" journals? Where is WSJ and NYT? ...too busy covering our president's honeymoon...?

I hope we don't see a tragedy in this area like we did with "toys from China"...but this story hints that our nation's new found love affair with overseas-manufacturered generic drugs is like a ticking time bomb. And no...before anyone asks me...I do not work for a pharmacuetical company, or an ad agency that represents one (and neither does my husband.) I publish craft books.

Curious as to what you all you manufacturing mavens think about this? ]]> tmollison http://forums.industryweek.com/showthread.php?t=5191 http://forums.industryweek.com/showthread.php?t=5191