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Tariff torment: China’s retaliation on US trade
Delany Martinez ManufacturingThe escalation of tariff tension between the United States and its allies is reaching a fever pitch, with a growing tit-for-tat list on both the Chinese and American sides of a very public disagreement. The Trump administration’s steel tariff mandate — a hefty 25 percent on imported steel — earlier this year appears to be the proverbial spark that landed on a powder keg of inter-country trade issues. Canada became one of the first allies to make its displeasure known, but China wasn't far behind.
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Harley-Davidson move shows the consequences of EU tariffs
Seth Sandronsky ManufacturingTo counter the rise of European Union (EU) tariffs from 6 percent to 31 percent on U.S.-made products, including Harley-Davidson motorcycles, the famed company is shifting some production overseas. "These tariffs, which became effective June 22, 2018, were imposed in response to the tariffs the U.S. imposed on steel and aluminum exported from the EU to the U.S.," Harley-Davidson announced in a filing. In early May, the Trump administration announced the tariffs of foreign-made aluminum and steel to enhance U.S. economic and national security.
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Frozen-out north? The chilling of US-Canada trade
Delany Martinez ManufacturingOf all the potential trade war scenarios that forecasters murmured over in the current administration, the prospect for Canada to be involved was, at the very least, low on the list. After an unprecedented announcement of a 10 percent tariff on imported aluminum and a staggering 25 percent tariff on imported steel by U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross back in May, Canada's nigh-legendary reputation of politeness began to slip a bit.
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Automotive lightweighting technologies from NAIAS 2018
Don Rosato EngineeringThe North American International Automotive Show (NAIAS) is an annual, 6-day automotive trade show in Detroit focusing on the latest mobility innovations, including industry-shaping announcements, global reveals, and policy and industry conversation on an autonomous future. Many plastics technologies build forward and evolve out of this annual, early-year event. Let’s take a look and highlight some emerging plastics and related competitive to plastics technologies from the recent NAIAS 2018.
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The importance of career and tech education in today’s schools
Brian Stack EducationOn the afternoon of their certificate ceremony from the Seacoast School of Technology in Exeter, New Hampshire, a couple hundred soon-to-be Career and Technical Education (CTE) graduates from my high school as well as some of the surrounding high schools filed into the school cafeteria for what they thought was a pizza party and a raffle drawing for a new pair of workboots from the local Timberland corporate office. This was a follow-up to the survey that Timberland gave students a month earlier, asking for their shoe sizes. What happened next shocked not only the students, but also the teachers and administrators of the CTE school.
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Preparing your business for hurricane season
Scott E. Rupp Facilities & GroundsPerhaps the following bit of guidance only applies to approximately one-third of the United States, but with another storm season upon us, one can never be too prepared. The 2018 Atlantic Hurricane Season began on June 1, and with deadly subtropical storm Alberto having moved through the Gulf Coast and the Midwest already, and an extremely deadly storm season only a year behind us, preparation now could save lives and facilities.
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10 things businesses need to know in uncertain times
Dr. David Hillson Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementEveryone knows that "business hates uncertainty." Uncertainty poses a clear threat to business, but it also contains significant opportunity. Sources of uncertainty must be understood so that these threats and opportunities can be effectively managed, avoiding and minimizing unnecessary problems as well as capturing and maximizing benefits. In the current uncertain business climate, it has never been more important for businesses to assess and manage their risks. But how do we do that when we are surrounded by uncertainty?
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Is the US a nation of nontraditional workers? Not yet
Seth Sandronsky Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementDo not believe the hype of a boom in gig jobs. Such nontraditional work arrangements reveal a pattern that has remained largely unchanged over the past 12 years, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics survey. The survey, called Contingent and Alternative Employment Arrangements, found that 5.9 million Americans or "3.8 percent of workers...held contingent jobs" in May 2017 vs. 1.8 percent to 4.1 percent of the workforce in February 2005. The BLS also surveyed other workers in alternative work arrangements.
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The road to ruin: How US infrastructure is hurting logistics
Delany Martinez Distribution & WarehousingFrom crumbling, aging bridges that failed to pass any but the most basic of structural tests to endless waves of patch-fixing on the torn-up highways traversing them, many of the 4 million miles of roadways in the United States have seen much better days. For everyday drivers, this amounts to an inconvenience, and perhaps a pinch of worry when ugly weather is tossed into the mix. For logistics professionals, however, the situation is much more dire.
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Developing a sustainable cooling industry for the future
Andrew Gaved ManufacturingThe present view from the cooling industry in Europe has something of an air of déjà vu about it. There are tightening markets, and therefore significantly rising costs for higher-GWP refrigerants like R404A. The industry is dealing with general consternation from end-users that they are having to pay more than they forecast even a year or two ago, and mild panic from AC contractors that R410A is no longer available from some wholesalers. These views were all represented, or reported, at RAC’s recent F-Gas Question Time.
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