Lead suppliers

While true single-sourcing strategies are the exception rather than the rule, the concept of the lead supplier is now widely accepted. Over the past 10 years many large companies have consolidated their supplier base. In some cases this has seen the number of suppliers reduce from around 1,000 to 200 or so. However, many of the original suppliers still contribute to the OEM s products, but from lower tiers. The responsibility for managing them now lies with the suppliers left at the first tier. For some of them, this responsibility is new and has had to be learnt. 

Has the position of your selected organisation changed in the supply chain If it has risen up the supply chain, or remained at the same tier whilst others were demoted, what new capabilities had to be developed If it was demoted, why did this happen Was it a good thing or a bad thing to happen  

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Ericsson is the world s leading supplier of telecommunications with the largest customer base, including the world s top ten operators. Four out of every ten mobile calls are handled by Ericsson equipment. The company has been in business since 1876 and now operates in more than 140 countries, employing 100,000 people. Ericsson is split into five business divisions one of these is known as the Consumer Products Division and presents the focus of this case study. 

One leading supplier, LKB, is discussed below. Others are reviewed in Appendix 1. 

Phosphorites are hydrogenous precipitates with phosphorus concentrations greater than 5% w/w P2O5. Concentrations as high as 40% have been observed. In comparison the phosphorus content of most sediments is aroimd 0.3%. Phosphorites represent an important economic ore deposit as shown in Table 18.3, supplying phosphorus for fertilizer use. The United States is the leading supplier of processed phosphates in the world, accounting for about 45% of world trade. 

Several companies ship edible insects to patrons in America. For example, Grubco, Inc. from Fairfield, Ohio, is one of the nation s leading suppliers of edible insects. They tell me that human consumption is rising. Every week, company president Dale Cochran sells over 10,000 crickets, mealworms, and waxworms to people who eat insects. Why should we consider this weird Many of us enjoy shrimp, lobsters, and other insects of the sea that belong to the same biological phylum, Arthropoda, that includes land insects. 

U.S. production of titanium dioxide in 1993 was 1.16 x 106 t, an increase of about 2.2% over 1992 (15). The annual production increased on an average of 5.4% in the 1980s (16). There are approximately 50 wodd producers of titanium dioxide pigments. The wodd s leading suppliers are Du Pont ( 24% woddwide share), Tioxide (the U.K. Co. owned by ICI), and SCM Corp. Other producers include Kerr McGee, Tiwest, Kemira Oy, Kronos, and Bayer AG (see Titanium compounds, inorganic). 

Johnson Matthey is believed to be the leading supplier of these membranes. In 1996, Generex (Tryon, NC) licensed newly developed palladium membrane... 

The leading suppliers are Novamont, NatureWorks, BASF and Rodenburg Biopolymers, which together represent over 90% of the European market for biodegradable plastics. 

Italian company Novamont has since emerged as the leading supplier of starch-based polymers. Novamont started its research activities in 1989 as part of the Montedison group and its Mater-Bi polymers were commercialised in 1990 with the opening of a 4,000 tonnes per annum plant at Terni in Italy. Novamont further consolidated its leading position in starch-based polymers in 1997 with the acquisition of worldwide patents belonging to Warner-Lambert and has continued to grow the business very successfully since then. 

Leading suppliers such as Metabolix and Procter Gamble have also formed collaboration agreements with strategic partners to speed up the commercialisation of PHA biodegradable polymers (Section 7.5). 

Innovia Films is the world s leading supplier of speciality biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) and cellulose films for speciality packaging, labelling and graphic arts and industrial products. Innovia has annual sales of over 350m and employs some 1,400 people worldwide. Total annual film capacity is more than 120,000 tonnes. The company has production sites in Belgium, UK, USA and Australia and sales offices throughout Europe, the Americas and Asia. 

Vertex is the leading supplier of plastics-based packaging products in New Zealand and is rapidly establishing a strong market presence in Australia. 

The research for the report is based on various information sources including the Rapra Polymer Library, trade press, Internet/company web sites, and interviews with some of the leading suppliers. The opinions expressed and the data presented are those of the author. 

After two years experience with various prototypes, a commercial SAM unit has now been designed using only components which, with the exception of the mixer, are normally used in conventional mixing plants. This unit has been built by a leading supplier of equipment for pavement construction and has the following features ... 

Derwent Information. A division of Thomson Scientific, Inc., Derwent is the leading supplier of value-added patent information. The Derwent databases, which are maintained online, include the following ... 

These special fabrics plus information on various laminating and vacuum molding techniques are available from WA Clark, the leading supplier to the white water boat trade.(see figure 6) When contacting or ordering from Clark, be sure to specify that the materials are for boat or kayak... 

The ancient Greeks knew of asbestos as early as the first century A.D. the name comes from the Greek word for inconsumable. But asbestos did not find commercial use until it was used for packing and insulation when the steam engine was invented. Currently the world s leading suppliers of asbestos are Canada and the former Soviet Union. 

Table 12-43 shows some of the operational parameters associated with specific and typical products. For each of these product groups and any other product, successful drying depends on the proper selection of a plant concept and proper selection of operational parameters, in particular inlet and outlet temperatures and the atomization method. These parameters are traditionally established through pilot-scale test wont, and leading suppliers on the spray diying market often have extensive test stations to support their sales efforts. 

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