MC's Profile

I was surprised by the question on whether “Iran Air coordinate Airbus and Boeing’s support to effectively have European governments address American congressional concerns directly”. In my view, Airbus has little to gain from helping Boeing. On the contrary, they have a lot to gain if Boeing is prevented from fulfilling their contract – i.e. more business from Air Iran if sanctions in EU are not re-instated.

Moreover, I would be careful with media coverage. I would be worried about the backlash that it might create for Boeing, if strong campaign is developed around the issues that cause the sanctions in the first place. We all know that masses respond strongly to strong messaging even if it is in the form of fake news.

I think the best way how to solve the problem of wasting fresh or recycled water for the purpose of fracking would, in this case, be to stop fracking. As much as I appreciate that Pioneer is trying to lower their costs by using brackish or reused water, I think they should question the environmental damage their operations are causing (e.g. green house gases emitted to the atmosphere, contaminated drinking water).

However, I am realistic and realize this is not going to happen until fracking becomes unprofitable. Until then, I hope they will try to lower their costs as much as possible (along with their competitors) and will try to figure out how to recycle the water used in their production.

What a fascinating article! It was great to learn about the Navy from this perspective which is otherwise rarely brought up.

In regards to your questions I can see how having one system rather than 15 different systems increases the risk of a cyber attack, but I would argue that the benefits outlined in your article far outweigh the risks associated. Moreover, I would argue that if someone manages to get into one of the systems, it would not be that hard to get into another one or the attacker would pick the one with most sensitive information (i.e. replenishment of weapons), but I might be wrong (you should probably ask Zeya).

As it often is with “older” firms, transition to using data effectively is not easy but L.L. Bean seems to be on a good track. However, L.L. Bean’s next steps should definitely be operational improvements enabled by this digitization rather than moving further along with the digitization itself. Especially when trying to create value for its supply chain. Combining this with another megatrend, digitization can be used to support sustainability improvements along the entire supply chain, while increasing profitability. A proposition hard to refuse.

Hopefully for the sake of Goodyear and the rest of America, Trump will not last long enough to do too much damage. Although there are arguably certain benefits to protectionism, the obvious disadvantage of driving prices up for consumers will hopefully keep the current Trump administration away from too much protectionism and Goodyear’s move to Mexico will turn out to be a profitable one. Instead of putting up barriers and restriction, America should focus on the root causes of its loss of competitiveness and try to compensate for higher wages with lower manufacturing costs through innovation and automation.

Hopefully more and more companies will embark on such journeys towards sustainability. As pointed out, doing this can lead to a market advantage and elimination of certain regulatory risks, but I would like to believe that a big part of this effort is done based on the recognition of how serious climate change issues are. So although there will always be companies that will choose the easiest and cheapest way how to make money (gaming any regulations there already are or might be in the future, or just doing the bare minimum), I think more and more companies will organize their operations in sustainable ways in the future.