Walmart Green Supply Chain Will Target Manufacturing and Raw Materials

to drive goal eliminating 20 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from its global supply chain. Walmart will implement a program to drive action in the supply chain processes. ...

... "Action -- For a project to be included as part of this goal, it must reduce GHGs from a product in either the sourcing of raw materials, manufacturing, transportation, customer use or end-of-life disposal. Walmart must demonstrate it had direct influence on the reduction and show how that reduction would not have occurred without Walmart’s participation. " ...

Via Walmart Stores: http://bit.ly/daVXIu

Walmart Product ecoRatings Initiative for Manufacturers

Walmart suppliers will be required to provide eco information on products so that an eco-rating can be created for consumers. ...

... "WalMart's demand in recent years that suppliers reduce their packaging to reduce their environmental impact has rippled throughout the retail and manufacturing industries. " ...

Via Associated Press: WalMart product eco-ratings

JAKKS is Walmart Vendor of the Year

JAKKS Pacific is recognized by Walmart as its Vendor of the Year for a second time. ...

... "Berman continued, The WalMart Vendor of the Year Award is about excellence in all areas of business and we strive to exemplify all the qualities that are key to making our business a success - professionalism in service, on-time shipping, and consistently high quality products. We look forward to working with Wal-Mart for many years to come. " ...

Via JAKKS Pacific: Vendor of the Year by WalMart

Operational Efficiency Limits?

Will high-efficiency enterprises reach a point of diminishing returns when it comes to operational efficiency? ...

... "Logistics experts with a Six Sigma background may argue that point is never fully realizable, although a retailer (or any business) must know when to cut and run when the costs expended to save money cost more than the eventual money saved. " ...

Via BloggingStocks: Limits of Efficiency

Six Sigma Home Depot Style ...

Home Depot must respond to competition and is using Six Sigma to transform the organization ...

... "After running Six Sigma programs at GE's Consumer Products unit, followed by a stint at Circuit City Stores Inc., he took over Home Depot's stores in the U.S. and Mexico in 2004. Now, with Lowe's and Wal-Mart picking off Home Depot's customers, Liebert is moving quickly to whip the troops into shape. " ...

Six Sigma Home Depot Style: Via Business Week: Renovating Home Depot ...

Execution Key to Innovation

Book review explores the importance of execution in converting ideas into reality. ...

... "Govindarajan and Trimble remind readers that strategic innovation isn't the same as continuous process improvement (such as that of GE through Six Sigma), process revolution (as in Wal-Mart with the help of RFID tags), and product/service innovation (like what consumer product manufacturers and toy companies often do). " ...

Via The Hindu Business Line : Capacity for innovation is the product of creativity and execution ...

Aerospace Industry: Lean Manufacturing and Supply Chains ...

Company founder challenges aerospace companies to operate their logistics and supply chain processes like WalMart suppliers. ...

Aerospace Industry: Lean Manufacturing and Supply Chains: Via Flight International: Broken chain ...

... "That makes perfect sense as long as this lean manufacturing is matched by lean distribution. With the widget passing through half a dozen layers of the supply chain before it ends up on the end-user’s aircraft, it only needs one kink, one missed deadline, to stop the process in its tracks. " ...

Six Sigma in Retail: AMR Research Six Sigma Retailing Quotient Helps Retailers Find ...

Six Sigma in Retail: AMR Research Six Sigma Retailing Quotient Helps Retailers Find ...

From PR Newswire (press release) ... AMR Research has created a self-assessment tool called the Six Sigma Retailing Quotient, which is a set of metrics that helps retailers realize these lost ...

... In the hyper-competitive retail industry, merchandising and promotional plans that are not consistently and properly executed in every store result in billions of dollars in lost sales. Out-of-stocks and unknowledgeable store associates are only a few of the complaints that cause customers to shop elsewhere. According to AMR Research, such issues cause an average customer to not return after three negative
experiences. Wal-Mart claims that each lost customer represents over $200,000 in lifetime lost sales. Even though retailers have hints of why problems exist, 80% have not measured their store operations. AMR Research has created a self-assessment tool called the Six Sigma Retailing Quotient, which is a set of metrics that helps retailers realize these lost profits. ...

AMR Research provides world class research and actionable advice for executives tasked with delivering enhanced business process performance and cost savings with the aid of technology. 5,000 leaders in the Global 1000 put their trust in AMR Research's integrity, depth of industry expertise, and passion for customer service to support their most critical business initiatives, including supply chain transformation, new product introduction, customer profitability, compliance and governance, and IT benefit realization. AMR Research's Six Sigma Retailing methodology and quotient is being adopted by retailers worldwide. Retailers interested in measuring the effectiveness of their store operations can access AMR Research's quotient by visiting http://www.amrresearch.com.