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What’s Delaying New Chip Fabs to Reinforce the Supply Chain? Yep…The Supply Chain

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chip shortages bedevil the supply chain
[Photo: AFP/Jiji]

Ever since supply chain shortages hit many industries, particularly in relation to the availability of integrated circuits or chips, there has been a massive scramble to increase capacity and to build new chip fabricating facilities (fabs) or factories. There has been a series of announcements from huge companies like Intel, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), Samsung, and others launching massive multi-billion projects to add more chip production facilities.

There’s just one problem…the equipment they need to build these facilities are themselves delayed.

See more on the supply chain shortages delaying new factories to help the supply chain

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As Companies Have Employees Return to Office, Is This the End of Remote Work?

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Google hybrid workspace for return to office
An experimental hybrid workspace and meeting in progress at Google

What Will the Impact of This Trend Be on Custom Integration?

With COVID now seemingly in decline, on Monday Google employees (Googlers?) began the process of returning to work at the company’s various headquarter and other office locations around the country. The company is requiring they work at least three days a week in the office, continuing to work remotely for the other two.

Google is hardly alone in pulling employees back to the office, Apple employees return next week and most major companies have announced dates for office life to begin again. Will this kill remote work and have an impact on the custom integration business?

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AAMP Global Acquires AudioControl

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AAMP Global, a leading global manufacturer of a wide array of technology products for the personal and commercial vehicle markets, announced today the strategic acquisition of AudioControl – the well-known specialty manufacturer of electronics products for the automotive, residential, and commercial audio channels. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed, but AAMP says that AudioControl’s Seattle, WA-based operations and team will continue to operate as an independent facility under the AAMP Global umbrella.

I spoke with top executives of both companies to learn more about what drew the parties together and just what is meant by a “strategic” acquisition.

See more on the AAMP acquisition of AudioControl

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New CEDIA CEO Part 2: Keeping Focused and Making an Impact

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CEDIA CEO Daryl Friedman sharing a laugh

When Daryl Friedman was hired to become Global President and CEO of CEDIA, he was already aware of the fact that the organization was facing some heavy challenges and really needed someone ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work. It was a challenge he says he was both ready for and was uniquely qualified to address, based on his previous association experience. Then he went to work digging up more evidence of the challenges ahead.

In order to get a sense of Friedman’s thinking and process, I spoke with him via Zoom for nearly an hour. It was a wide-ranging discussion on many key issues for an association that I’ve had some issues with over the years. This article is Part 2 of that interview.

See Part 2 of my interview with the new CEDIA CEO

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New CEDIA CEO; Ignoring Distractions & Getting Down to Business

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CEDIA Global President and CEO Daryl Friedman (L) looks positively terrified, doesn’t he? [Click to enlarge]

PART 1: Identifying Membership ‘Stress Points’

In a Zoom interview last week, I sought to take more of a measure of the man who now runs CEDIA, its new Global President and Chief Executive Officer Daryl Friedman. We first met, and I first told you about Friedman, back when his selection was first announced to the world just a little over 100 days ago. Friedman was in a series of round-robin press interviews and we only had a few minutes to interact. Now, 106 days later (at the time of this interview) he’s traveled the country, gotten his feet wet, and had much more depth of thoughts to share with Strata-gee readers.

See more on Friedman and his plans for CEDIA

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Amazon Retreats: Will Close 68 Brick & Mortar Stores in U.S. and U.K.

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[Photo: REUTERS/Brendan McDermid]

Company Exiting Bookstores, 4-Star Stores, and Pop-Up Stores

Yesterday Amazon announced it will close all of its non-grocery bricks and mortar locations, ending its foray into physical store locations. The company had previously entered the physical bookstore business – a business that many feel its online business destroyed – as well as pop-up stores and its 4-star shops that carried a selection of its best-selling online products. However, the company will keep its grocery stores and a department store concept.

See more on Amazon exiting bricks & mortar retail stores

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Emerald on the Road to Recovery as Live Events Restart, But It’s Bumpy

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Photo from CEDIA Expo 2021
CEDIA Expo 2021

Emerald Holding Inc., [NYSE:EEX] parent company to Emerald Expositions, which itself is the parent company of CEDIA Expo, and CE Pro (and other former EH Publishing properties) announced this morning their financial results for both their fourth quarter and full year, fiscal 2021. As the company has begun to restart their live in-person events, they reported a revenue gain over fiscal 2020 – a year of almost total lockdown and the absence of live events.

But the gain seems surprisingly small.

See more on Emerald’s results for fiscal 2021

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Biden Administration Announces Major Supply Chain Mining Initiative

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The Salton Sea is believed to hold essential minerals needed to boost the supply chain
The Salton Sea in California is believed to be a site rich in essential minerals [Photo: Gabriella Angotti-Jones for The New York Times]

Boosting Local Supply of Essential Minerals

The Biden Administration announced on Tuesday a comprehensive public/private mining initiative that is designed to boost the local supply of essential minerals. These minerals are required in a wide range of strategic products and the administration’s new programs will achieve several goals: they will use new technology to boost the mining of the minerals in new areas of the country, create a large number of good-paying American jobs, and reduce our reliance on China. What looks to be a savvy program, this new initiative partners with key American companies to improve the U.S.’s supply chain structure in order to make it more robust to “build a future that’s made in America.”

See more on the Administration’s plan to improve the supply chain

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Supply Chain Kills Exogal, CEO Says

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‘If You’re Watching This…We’re Dead’

If you try to go to the website of Exogal, a high-end digital electronics manufacturer, you’ll end up at a YouTube video titled, “If you’re watching this, we’re dead.” The video consists of Exogal CEO Jeff Haagenstad looking directly into the camera and explaining to viewers that the company has died..and why that happened. It’s a cautionary tale for all manufacturers who are universally buffeted by supply chain issues – especially the worldwide, multi-industry chip shortage.

See more on how the supply chain took down Exogal

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Onkyo Announces Two Subsidiaries Will Cease Operations & File for Bankruptcy

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One of the products to be sold in Onkyo’s new direct-to-consumer business

Onkyo Home Entertainment Company Ltd. (formerly Onkyo Corp.) has announced that two of its consolidated subsidiaries will cease operations and file for bankruptcy. It is yet another dramatic development in the company’s effort to stop the bleeding and stabilize the company. But substantial concerns exist about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern.

Learn more on these shuttered Onkyo subsidiaries

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