coronavirus – OM in the News

Why Murata’s Plant Closure Did Not Disrupt Supply Chains

Previous OM in the News posts have discussed shortages of semiconductor chips caused by the leaning of supply chains. Supply chain disruptions of even a few days can lead to shortages if companies run too lean. During the pandemic, planning for supply chain disruptions has assumed increasing urgency.

Murata Manufacturing supplies about 40% of the world’s multilayer ceramic capacitors. MLCCs are used in everything from smartphones, appliances, cars, to data centers. The company closed its Fukui plant for […]

By Anita Lee-Post, Ph.D.|2021-10-31T07:26:44+00:00October 30, 2021|Tags: aggregate planning, chase demand strategy, coronavirus, covid-19, lean production, pandemic, supply chain disruption|

Operation Warp Speed

Not since World War II and the Manhattan Project, has a project been so important to the world as Operations Warp Speed. Its goal was to take a process that normally takes years to complete, and bring the COVID-19 vaccine to the world.

As a result of its importance, a public-private effort using many resources sped the development of the vaccine. Under less urgent circumstances, vaccine development may take up to 10 years, billions of dollars, and have a high failure […]

By Ross L. Fink, Ph.D.|2021-03-16T04:03:21+00:00March 15, 2021|Tags: coronavirus, covid-19, crashing, logistics, project management, projects, vaccine|

Airlines Analyze Summer Capacity

European airlines must soon make critical decisions about summer flight schedules, but with the pandemic still raging and a slower-than-expected vaccine rollout schedules are being made and scrapped at a dizzying pace.

Consumers, unsure of what the future holds, now favor last-minute bookings, making it difficult for airlines to forecast or identify patterns to help them plan summer schedules.

Video Spotlight:

Travel In 2021: What To Know About Flying And More (Jan 1, 2021, Today)

By Lisa M. Spencer|2021-03-08T03:09:26+00:00March 7, 2021|Tags: aggregate planning, capacity planning, coronavirus, covid-19, forecasting, pandemic, scheduling|

Repurposing Unused Capacity for Vaccination Sites

Mall retail store vacancies are at historic highs of 10.5%. Meanwhile, vaccination sites require significant parking spaces near major transportation routes, with room for a large number of vaccinated patients to wait the required 15 minutes after treatment while under observation for allergic reactions. Colder weather makes indoor facilities ideal for this 15-minute waiting period.

Empty mall space is an ideal solution for local health departments to utilize for vaccine administration. As such, mall owners across the country have been partnering […]

By David Little, Ph.D.|2021-02-17T04:21:11+00:00February 17, 2021|Tags: capacity, coronavirus, layout, location, pandemic, service processes, vaccination|