Recent Posts by John Klinke

Previously in this blog we’ve discussed emerging technology topics such as how artificial intelligence (AI) is impacting manufacturing and how manufacturers are modernizing their factories by leveraging IoT.  Today I’d like to share with you some results from a survey Oracle conducted that reached out to 700 finance and operations professionals to get their insights into how emerging technologies are impacting their business. The survey covered a lot of ground to understand...

AirBorn is a manufacturer of specialized connectors and electronic components based near Austin, Texas.  Their products are used for mission-critical applications across many industries including aerospace and space exploration. NASA, Raytheon, and Lockheed Martin are just some of the customers that leverage AirBorn’s technology for use in planes, satellites and other spacecraft. With hundreds of thousands of different product variations, AirBorn faced a challenge in making it...

Guest Author:  Paul Dennies, Director, Industry Strategy Group, Oracle. The semiconductor market has always been very cyclical, so after a relatively weak 2019, companies were projecting and hoping for good results for 2020.  In the first half of 2020, there was increased usage of cellphones, tablets and computers during the lockdown, and now an increase in sales is occurring as economies have started to re-open.   The Covid-19 shutdowns and trade embargoes and tariffs between...

Duplicate applications across your business due to acquisitions. Different supply chains for every business unit. Highly customized legacy applications that are showing their age.  Maybe you can relate to this scenario.  It was the situation faced by Cohu, a leading manufacturer of semiconductor and PCB test and inspection equipment. They operate a worldwide business with engineering spread across the U.S. and Europe, multiple manufacturing sites in Asia, and partners and...

In today’s challenging business environment, manufacturers that have invested in digital transformation have a leg up on the competition. They are able to digitally connect their operations to better understand their supply chain, manufacturing operations, and customers.  By taking advantage of the latest technologies including artificial intelligence (AI), IoT, and predictive analytics, smart manufacturers have instrumented their business to provide enhanced visibility...

Guest Author: Brian McDonald, Global Director, High Tech Industry Strategy Group, Oracle. The Manufacturing Leadership Council, a division of the National Association of Manufacturers, issued a press release announcing the list of world-class manufacturing companies and individual leaders that received recognition as winners of the 2020 Manufacturing Leadership (ML) Awards. ML Awards winners will be recognized at the Manufacturing Leadership Awards Gala, which will take place...

Guest Author: Surya Kommareddy, Director, Industry Strategy Group, Oracle. Today’s manufacturer cannot function efficiently if they have silo’ed operations, broken communications, or inconsistent product information. And optimizing one line of business (LOB) within their operations does not solve all their efficiency problems. Manufacturers need to adopt a holistic digital transformation strategy. Though it is not practical to transform the entire value chain activities in one...

ArcelorMittal is a leading steel manufacturer based in Luxembourg that ships over 84 million tons of steel annually to customers in the automotive, construction, household appliances, and packaging industries. It employs over 190,000 people around the world while generating annual revenues of $70 billion.  ArcelorMittal was interested in improving its recruiting, people management, and other human resources systems. They had a patchwork of outdated recruiting, training, and...

Guest Author: Enrique Lopez-Tello, VP, Industry Strategy Group, Oracle. Given the current business environment, it’s easy to see that you need to be diligent in watching out for unexpected events that can impact your company’s performance. The time it takes to analyze and decide on the best course of action after one of these events is what we call business decision latency. As time goes by after a critical event has happened, your ability to optimize the results of your...