Autonomy in Products: Sensors, Software, and Robotics

Cars, airplanes, and now farm equipment are autonomous, see details on farm equipment using robotics for autonomy here.

"The driverless system is fully controlled by advanced software and is capable of performing a complete workflow during the harvest process. This includes locating a moving harvester in the field, synchronizing with it, collecting its grain and delivering that grain to trucks near the field for transportation."

I believe the products designed for human control will fundamentally change when the human is not physically managing the system.

China replaces Germany to become world's largest exporter

Via Tony Tsai - "China replaces Germany to become world's largest exporter; US experts: Chinese companies are not powerful on their own:  China has replaced Germany to become the world's largest exporter in 2009, according to a Wall Street Journal report citing data from Global Trade Information Services. Scott Kennedy, a China expert and political scientist at Indiana University, says that the high volume of China's exports "is not speaking to how important and powerful Chinese companies are on their own" because 60% of China's exports were generated from foreign-controlled enterprises. [ifeng.com, 2010.01.06]"

Innovation in Manufacturing

Good friend Mr. Tony Tsai passes along "The Manufacturing Institute – Accenture: Innovation Roundtable Report" here. Practices called out as common among the participants of the roundtable for the report:

• Focus on more structure, less serendipity
• Evaluate multiple innovation dimensions
• Bring greater discipline to managing innovation portfolios
• Cultivate innovation in people

It is a good report for tenured and seasoned corporate managers now assigned the task of running innovation organizations. Lots of good material in the survey conducted for direct application to their strategies.

I have stated before that - "Satiated people do not innovate". For me, the report seems to have focused more on corporate innovation organizations and associated portfolios. Breakthrough innovation remains the domain of the entrepreneur while incremental innovation is the approach of the corporate, something that has to be converted to a process for measurement. Both have to exist, neither should try to act as the other!

China - Zero Taxation on Exports?

Friend and colleague Mr. Tony Tsai, currently Chief Executive Officer - BHG Retail Innovation Institute and Executive VP Operations - The BJ Hualian Hypermarket Co. forwards impactful business news from China:

"Liao Xiangqi and Zhang Zhigang, former vice directors of the Ministry of Commerce, and Zhang Xiaoji, director general of the Foreign Economic Relations Department of Development and Research Center under the State Council, put forward a joint proposal about further expanding the product range covered by the export tax rebate and making zero export duties a reality. Chinese export-oriented companies account for 40% of total employment. If 10% of them close, approximately 10m people would lose their jobs. If the government hopes to increase employment, it should ensure the growth of the export market."

Manufacturing Renaissance

In The Economist's, The World in 2009, Sir John Rose, Chief Executive of Rolls Royce writes:

"... manufacturing brings huge benefits. It penetrates the economy of the whole country... It pays well... stop treating manufacturing as a relic of the industrial revolution.High value-added but avoids bewildering distortions of income. It drives and enables a broad range of skills and stimulates the growth of services. In short, it creates wealth."

Even though Sir Rose speaks specifically to the British economy, yet his excellent article "Made in Britain" here applies to all the developed countries with lessons for the developing ones.

It is also interesting to note that Sir Rose specifically calls out the nuclear industry as ripe of breakthrough stating specific to Britain:

"If we can become a nuclear "first mover" we will develop our nuclear capability and supply chain, enabling us to benefit from a growing global market."

Manufacturing Excellence Awards

With a focus on British manufacturing industry, the MX Awards (website here), provide a an insight on what are the key evaluation criteria in manufacturing in this early part of the 21st century. I am confident there will be change and in short order when economics may trump "ease of use" in favor of "fulfillment of need", or vice versa when the health of the global financial markets returns and credits begins to flow again.

The Manufacturing Awards magazine 2008 is an excellent read here.

The list of the award categories are:

• PricewaterhouseCoopers Award for Customer Focus
• Autodesk Award for Product Innovation
• Institution of Mechanical Engineers Award for Process Innovation
• WMG Award for Logistics and Resource Efficiency
• DMG Award for Business Development & Change Management
• Professional Engineering Award for People Effectiveness
• BP Award for Best Partnership between Business and Education
• National B2B Centre Award for Integrated e-Business
• ERIKS Award for Financial Management
• Arup Award for Sustainable Manufacturing
• National Skills Academy for Manufacturing Award for Manufacturing Excellence Best Small or Medium Enterprise
• BERR Manufacturing Advisory Service Award for Manufacturing Excellence Overall Winner