Forecasting – OM in the News

Can California’s Power Grid Support New Mandate?

The entire Western U.S. faces a heatwave over the Labor Day weekend.

During the six-to-seven-day streak of extreme temperatures, California’s 40 million person population is being asked to not charge electric vehicles from 4-9pm and to set air conditioners at 78 degrees or higher. They have also been told not to use other major appliances and to turn off any “unneeded” devices.

While conservation is certainly a helpful concept, many Californians are frustrated by the ongoing capacity shortages of the power grid. […]

By Lisa M. Spencer|2022-09-05T19:27:16+00:00September 5, 2022|Tags: capacity planning, forecasting, sustainability|

Tesla’s Shanghai Gigafactory Revs Up

Tesla is preparing to upgrade its Gigafactory in Shanghai to produce 21,000 electric vehicles per week.

The upgrade will run from July to August, and is intended to increase Tesla’s weekly output of its Model Y SUV and Model 3 sedan by 5,000 and 2,200 respectively. Vehicles produced at Shanghai will be exported to other Asian markets, Oceania, and Europe, meeting a market demand of over 1 million electric vehicles per year.

Video Spotlight:

Tesla Gigafactory Shanghai […]

By Anita Lee-Post, Ph.D.|2022-07-22T17:06:33+00:00July 22, 2022|Tags: automation, capacity management, demand forecasts, facility location, strategic capacity planning, supply chain technology|

Toyota’s July Production Shortfall Due to Parts Shortages

Facing the challenges of semiconductor shortages and parts supply disruptions, Toyota lowered its July production forecast in Japan by 50,000 vehicles.

Toyota is expecting part shortages to be stabilized later in the year and will run additional shifts to meet the projected annual vehicle production volume of 9.7 million.

Read previous OM in the News posts about effects of the semiconductor shortage on the automotive industry, including some creative solutions.

Video Spotlight:

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By Anita Lee-Post, Ph.D.|2022-07-19T02:01:24+00:00July 18, 2022|Tags: aggregate planning, capacity strategies, forecasting, supply chain disruption|

Excess Retail Inventory

The COVID-19 pandemic has had lasting disruptions on inventory levels and supply chains for retail stores.

A combination of changes in demand for certain items based on being quarantined, as well as disruptions in shipping and production, led to inventory shortages. In many cases, inventory was delayed and arrived late and out of season.

Demand then changed due to a re-opening of the economy. This fluctuation resulted in combinations of shortages and excess inventories.

Now, add in the inflation on essential items, such […]

By Ross L. Fink, Ph.D.|2022-06-27T22:16:11+00:00June 30, 2022|Tags: covid-19, forecasting, inventory, inventory management, pandemic, retail|