Products in the automation industry have traditionally been sold with “cost-based” pricing—selling price is based on manufactured cost, with target gross and net profit margin multipliers.

  A select group of industrial equipment companies are executing a formula for success that peers may want to take note of, if they plan to remain competitive in the emerging global market.

 Paul was a conscientious employee. He would do a little extra and try to save the company money.

  In order to improve your manufacturing performance, you should put in a manufacturing execution system (MES) system and integrate to your enterprise resource planning (ERP)—right?

  We have not changed our outlook—the economy should avoid slipping into a broad-based recession for most, if not all, of 2008.

  Somewhere between enterprise resource planning (ERP) and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) you will find the manufacturing execution systems (MES) layer.

  In order to reach their maximum potential, manufacturing companies must be efficient at coordinating and controlling personnel, materials and equipment across different operations and control systems.

  Many people think that the automation industry is quickly developing a “skills shortage,” which will occur after the current generation of engineers retires.

  Miami is a great place to spend part of February. Especially when you’re looking over the famed Blue Monster golf course at Doral.

 New and less-expensive technologies for electric-power measurement using wireless mesh networks should be on the market in the near future.

  Research shows that globally integrated operating models are the key to value creation and high performance in the industrial equipment industry.

 For current market circumstances, swapping short-term interest rates for lower long-term rates on a short-term line of credit can provide significant, immediate savings.

 Network security expert Eric Byres pulls no punches when speaking about information technology (IT) security. Hacking on control systems is serious, “a problem that costs companies millions of dollars,” says the chief technical officer of Byres Security Inc. (www.byressecurity.com), located in Lantzville, on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. “That’s usually kept very quiet. So no one believes it can happen until it does happen.”

 Future robot systems cannot be a mere extrapolation of today’s technology, but should generate whole new application arenas.

 Recently, I met a production manager who told me that she wanted to purchase a manufacturing execution systems (MES) solution.

 When it comes to minimizing waste and rejections, keeping up with the latest technology advances can look like a costly proposition.

 Bruno Kisala, managing director of The Automation Federation, recently talked with Automation World Editor in Chief Gary Mintchell about the new directions and goals of the organization. 

 The IC-DISC is attracting renewed interest as an opportunity for companies engaged in export sales to benefit from lower corporate taxes.

  Mark Morgan is currently chief executive officer of Stratex Advisors, Shingle Springs, Calif. He was formerly chief learning officer at IPSolutions Inc. and practice director of the Stanford Advanced Project Management Program. He was also co-author with Raymond E. Levitt and William Malek of “Executing Your Strategy: How to Break It Down & Get It Done,” published by the Harvard Business School Press. He recently met with Automation World Editor in Chief Gary Mintchell to discuss the ideas behind the book.

  “There are only two problems in life,” says productivity guru David Allen, in a white paper titled “Make It Up and Make It Happen” (found at www.davidco.com). So, what are the two problems?