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3D printing is streamlining the automotive industry

(BUSINESS) 3D printing has been booming and it doesn’t stop at tangible products. 3D printing is now being used in automotive manufacturing.

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Steve Jobs said, “Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.” Although Americans may not recognize the Czech car manufacturer Škoda, the company produced its first car in 1905. Today, over 100 years later, the automotive company announced it’s using 3D printing to streamline the car manufacturing process. The Czech Republic recognizes Škoda as an innovator in auto manufacturing for their commitment to new technologies that make it easier and quicker to design and produce cars.

How Škoda uses 3D printing

The newest push at Škoda is to use 3D printing to “manufacture components and tools faster,” said by Michael Oeljeklaus, Škoda’s Board Member for Production and Logistics.  New designs can be produced more quickly because the company doesn’t need to invest in molds or manufacturing lines to print prototypes for R&D. 3D printing reduces reliance on third-party manufacturers, which should be cost-saving. Škoda can also use 3D printing to print tools and parts to make repairs on the line.

3D printing in the automotive industry

According to Formlabs, a full-body 3D printed car is a long way off, but 3D printing is changing the car industry in other ways. Škoda is not the only manufacturer using 3D printing to change how they produce cars. Bentley Motors used the technology to create detailed parts for their concept car, the EXP 10 Speed 6. Volkswagen combined 3D printing with traditional manufacturing to recreate the iconic 1962 Microbus. 3D parts gave the van some improvements and the gas engine was replaced with an electric one.

3D printing reduces the need to keep inventory on hand. Instead of keeping a multitude of parts on hand, manufacturers can print parts as needed. The aftermarket parts industry benefits from 3D printing as well. If you have an older model, you may be able to get a part that is custom printed. As more manufacturers embrace the technology, the possibilities are endless.

Dawn Brotherton is a Staff Writer at The American Genius, and has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Central Oklahoma. Before earning her degree, she spent over 20 years homeschooling her two daughters, who are now out changing the world. She lives in Oklahoma and loves to golf. She hopes to publish a novel in the future.

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Supply chain ripple effect: Early warning signs if your sector is next

(BUSINESS) Baby formula is the newest supply chain shortage, causing “crisis” levels, affecting families across the US. Is your business sector next?

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Baby formula is the latest casualty of the supply chain crisis.

According to Fox News, Target, Walmart, Walgreens, and CVS have limits on how much baby formula that customers can purchase at one time. Supply chain issues had already created a shortage. In addition, Abbott Laboratories recalled some of its baby formula after two infants died, exacerbating the problem. This led many parents to stockpile formula, which hasn’t helped the situation. CNN reports that “manufacturers are producing at maximum capacity.” Abbott is hoping to resume operations at its Michigan plant, which was shut down because of the recall. In the meantime, parents are struggling to find baby formula, which is much harder to find alternatives to than toilet paper.

 Why should a baby formula shortage concern business owners?

Wondering why your business should be aware of this if you don’t have babies or toddlers? This particular supply chain issue may not affect you or any of your staff. But supply chain issues are impacting every industry. We can joke about the toilet paper shortage that occurred early in the pandemic, but the shortages are stacking up. It’s no longer just pasta, but eggs, beef, pork, and more when you’re at the grocery store. Building supplies are more difficult to find. Computer chips are in short supply, impacting car repairs and offices both.

Business owners should be paying attention to items in their own industry that may be impacted by supply chain issues. While we don’t want to encourage stockpiling, it is important to keep your customers aware of potential problems. If you are seeing items that are being delivered slower than normal, find in-house solutions or workarounds. Communicate to your consumers. It might be time to make product changes or use tools that boost productivity. Maybe you need to make new relationships with other suppliers. Supply chain issues aren’t going to go away overnight. Don’t let your company’s reputation suffer because you can’t solve your customer’s problems.

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Why some company owners are returning to outside employment

(BUSINESS) Some business owners may find themselves wanting to revert. If so, what steps come next in order to sell the company off?

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The following is the thoughts and analysis of Frank Williamson, the CEO of Oaklyn Consulting, a consulting firm that helps closely held businesses and nonprofits with a company’s sale, mergers, acquisitions, capital-raising, investor relations, succession, and other strategic corporate finance decisions.


It’s good to be the boss. Or is it? Despite the freedom that leading a company offers, the work of a small business owner can be exhausting — and might feel unending.

Owners who manage their businesses need to maintain a constant focus on keeping existing clients and employees happy, maintaining a pipeline of new prospects, and continuing to turn a profit, all on top of the various other little responsibilities that inevitably pop up. While they might aspire to do the serious long-term planning that might help to grow their business, it can be understandably hard to find the time.

As a result, some entrepreneurs begin to ponder whether being an employee wasn’t so bad after all — and how they might go about selling their business if they decided to take that leap. One option is to accomplish two tasks at once: finding a buyer for their company who would also hire them in a management role.

For a buyer who is already interested in the company, hiring a talented executive, or even an entire management team, might be an unanticipated bonus. It’s not uncommon for companies large or small to have gaps in their leadership team, and experienced people with deep industry knowledge aren’t always easy to come by.

Necessary steps for the owner

While a management team can contribute to the sales process by keeping the company running smoothly, the lion’s share of the work of selling an owner-managed business falls to the business owner — often in collaboration with outside consultants.

First, before they go too far down the road with a prospect, owners might need to do a mental check-in to make sure they’re truly comfortable with the loss of control that they’ll experience as an employee. Some people pursue company ownership because they don’t like taking orders, and as the boss, they’re as essential as they want to be. Returning to outside employment means that somebody else will be calling the shots, and the decisions made might not always be the ones the former owner would choose. As a list of serious prospects starts to develop, one important factor to consider is how well buyer and seller get along personally, since the sale would initiate an ongoing working relationship.

Owners can play an important role in making prospective buyers aware of their interest in being acquired. This can be made easier if they have a talent for networking or are already on a friendly basis with their competitors. They can also cast a net toward large clients or companies they themselves are clients of, either of whom might see the strategic benefit of a business combination.

Once conversations with prospective buyers begin, owners also need to participate actively in the sales process. This isn’t always as natural a transition as one might think. Although successful entrepreneurs generally don’t get to where they are without some sales abilities, not all of them are able to view their business with the necessary level of detachment to craft a compelling story to potential buyers. If they’re able to do that, owners can often be their business’s best advocate, combining a big-picture vision with important specifics drawn from their deep experience — including who their customer base would be and how their deal pipeline would work.

The role of the management team

If an owner has made the decision to sell their company, the executive team, to some degree, is just along for the ride. But they can still play an important role in making the company sale go as well as possible, and potentially also affect what happens next.

An experienced, well-oiled management team might be one reason an acquirer looks to buy a company. So, if an owner expresses a desire to sell the company, the most helpful thing team members can do is to think imaginatively about how they can contribute to the company’s ongoing success throughout the sales process. By working together as a high-performing unit, team members can help the company owner make a strong case for bringing them along as part of the deal.

After the sale

After locating a serious buyer and agreeing on the terms of a deal, the now-former company owner, maybe along with her management team, will be stepping into a new and unfamiliar work environment — one that could remain stable for years, or might be short-lived if the new owners are in the practice of buying and selling frequently.

The owner will likely be walking away from the sale with enough financial flexibility to maintain their standard of living, even if a new job is short-lived. That financial situation might not be true of other executive team members, so they should factor that into their decision to continue along with the owner in the newly combined company. However, if the conditions are right, a company sale could offer both the owner and executive team an opportunity to move into a rewarding new phase of their careers.

Frank Williamson, CEO of Oaklyn Consulting

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Business News

Age discrimination lawsuit filed against Chinese company that hires Americans

(BUSINESS) Taiwan’s iTutorGroup Inc. is under fire for alleged age discrimination practices during hiring, including American tutors and applicants.

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The EEOC filed suit against iTutorGroup in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York for age discrimination for how iTutorGroup processed online job applications. According to the lawsuit, iTutorGroup’s software was programmed to automatically reject female applicants over the age of 55 and male applicants over the age of 60. The EEOC alleges iTutorGroup violated federal laws.

What is iTutorGroup?

iTutorGroup, Inc. hires thousands of American tutors each year to provide online tutoring to students around the world. The iTutorGroup is based in Taipei, T’ai-pei, Taiwan. According to Crunchbase, Ping An, an insurance holding company, acquired the company in 2019. Ping An is a Chinese company. Although neither company is based in the United States, because they recruit employees from the U.S., these companies are subject to The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA).

How the EEOC views age discrimination

The EEOC attempted to reach a settlement with iTutorGroup prior to the lawsuit being filed. The ADEA prohibits employers from discriminating based on age. The EEOC’s position is that age discrimination is unlawful, even when technology automates the process. According to an EEOC press release, EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows said, “This case is an example of why the EEOC recently launched an Artificial Intelligence and Algorithmic Fairness Initiative.”

What businesses should know

Not only is the EEOC seeking back pay and liquidated damages for over 200 applicants who were denied jobs, but they are also seeking “strong injunctive relief” (fines) that will prevent discrimination in the future. Don’t think this is a unique case…In 2019, Facebook settled age discrimination lawsuits for only showing job ads to younger candidates. The takeaway is that businesses cannot use technology to get around age discrimination laws. Check your software to make you are not discriminating against applicants over 40. The EEOC is watching.

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3D Printing in Automotive Industry