Jacqueline Emigh

For better communications between the shop floor, other company divisions and trading partners, SAP AG is working on a number of manufacturing-oriented enhancements to mySAP ERP and NetWeaver, including at least two new capabilities expected to be released in 2005. “Manufacturing can still be a black box, but it really doesnt need to be one […]

With the threat of terrorism continuing to cast shadows over airports, seaports and border crossings, the United States will require better physical security technology in 2005, according to some analysts. For vendors, homeland security opportunities loom large in areas ranging from “smart containers” to gamma rays and specialized gadgets for finding bombs and biological weapons. […]

The automotive fuel cell industry now stands out as a glimmering beacon in the supply chains vertical landscape. Driven by factors ranging from homeland security to diminishing natural resources, the fuel cell supply chain market will explode to somewhere between $1 billion and $2 billion by 2012, according to analysts at ABI Research. “And thats […]

As the year 2004 winds down, many product suppliers are looking to launch their first implementations of RFID sometime in 2005. But full-fledged RFID deployment—across outbound shipments, inbound deliveries and manufacturing for a whole product lineup—could easily take not just one year, but a full decade or more, according to one early user. “This is […]

Hewlett-Packard Co. is eyeing the creation of an “overlay network” for connecting enterprise computers with existing wireless RFID solutions, as well as with other emerging sensor technologies for package tracking, building security and managing computer data centers, for example. HP first started researching sensor technologies at least 15 years ago, according to Salil Pradhan, chief […]

Every industry has its ups and downs, but the supply chain business twisted and turned in some particularly contradictory ways in 2004. Products got simpler, while customer and regulatory demands grew tougher. Big companies merged, but the overall SCM/L (supply chain management/logistics) market stayed fragmented. Many feared an outbreak of terrorism on the supply chain, […]

For businesses that want to save money next year by beating the rising costs of freight, Manugistics Inc. plans to release a new, licensable version of its NetWorks Transport RFQ in early 2005. “Fuel prices are going up, and freight capacity is getting tighter. This is forcing companies to rethink their relationships with [freight] carriers,” […]

Next Monday, initial plans for a comprehensive RFID certification program will be unveiled by CompTIA (Computing Technology Industry Association) and AIM Global (Association for Automatic Identification and Mobility). Actual RFID skills training and certification testing are expected to start in mid-2005. The vendor-neutral program will be geared to meeting an anticipated shortage of professionals trained […]

Cooper Cameron Corp., a multibillion-dollar maker of oil and gas pressure equipment, has inked a multiyear deal with ICG Commerce for e-procurement across materials, telecommunications and many other areas, and for integration of its own RealExchange online procurement platform with Coopers SAP ERP (enterprise resource planning) system. Financial terms were not disclosed. The main driver […]

Not to be outdone by IBMs colorful new $250 million sensor arm, Oracle is somewhat discreetly at work on a new Sensor-Based Services initiative. Like IBMs effort, Oracle Corp.s program rolls together RFID with other sorts of sensors. Hewlett-Packard Co., Sun Microsystems Inc., SAP AG and other big vendors are also collaborating with users and […]

Beyond its more publicized impacts on shareholders and consumers, the astonishing merger of Kmart and Sears cant help but spawn bewilderment among product suppliers and IT vendors. That initial period of confusion is bound to last for a while—up to a couple of years, some say. After that? A lot will hinge on whether the […]

Snapping back from a string of financial and legal woes, supply chain player i2 Technologies is now working on product enhancements with longtime users such as Daimler-Chrysler, while adding new customer wins such as Bed Bath & Beyond, often through integrator partners. i2 plans to add 100 to 200 new features in the next edition […]