Supply Chain by the Numbers
   
 

- July 27, 2012

   
  Supply Chain by the Numbers for Week of July 27, 2012
   
 

How Many US Manufacturers are Coming Back Home? Caterpillar Strike a War of Attrition; Walmart Amazing Store Count; UPS Flying a Bit Lower Out of Asia

   
 
 
 

13+%

 

Number of companies that so far have said they are definitely going to move some production back to the US, according to early results from the on-going MIT-SCDigest survey on US manufacturing. That according to MIT's David Simchi-Levi at the Supply Chain Innovation forum this week. About one-third of companies said they were consdiering reshoring. We are still seeking more respondents - please learn more about the survey here. MIT-SCDigest US Manufacturing Research.

 
 



 
 
 

95

Number of workers Caterpillar says have cross the picket lines and gone back to work, out of 780 who had first gone on strike three months ago at a plant in Jolliett, IL, as the bitter dispute lingers on. Some have called the strike a sort of "labor's last stand," as the weak economy and potential to outsource continue to weaken labor's hand in the US. The Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers vows to keep fighting in this war of attrition, against a company known for taking a tough stand against the unions.

 
 
 
 
 
10%

Amount of air cargo capacity UPS said this week it is taking out of Asia, as exports out of the region to the US and Europe continue to drop. That is the second 10% decline UPS is taking in its Asian air network in the past year, after making a similar move last October. Company officials cited the weak European economy as a key factor, but earlier CEO Fred Smith noted the lackluster global economy is causing many companies to opt for slower ocean shipper over express.

 
 
 
 
 
4400

Approximate number of Walmart US retail locations (Walmart and Sam's Club stores), well up from the 1 store the chain had when it opened its first one in Rogers, Arkansas 50 years ago this month. Walmart now also has some 5600 stores outside the US, in 26 different countries, meaning it has more than 10,000 outlets in total.

 
 
 
 
 
 
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