What Manufacturers Need To Know About The Defense Production Act

On January 21, 2021, President Biden signed a series of executive orders including invoking the Defense Production Act to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. The order directs federal agencies to make use of the act to increase production of materials needed for vaccines, masks, and testing kits. 

Many manufacturers and engineers have volunteered to address the shortage of supplies to combat the coronavirus pandemic throughout last year but some supplies are taking a long time to produce. Invoking the Defense Product Act (DPA) allows the federal government to direct U.S. manufacturers to ramp up production of emergency medical supplies immediately.

Last year, FEMA confirmed using the DPA for the first time during the coronavirus pandemic to order about 60,000 test kits and 500 million personal protective masks. However, FEMA then announced later that same day, “At the last minute, we were able to procure the test kits from the private market without evoking the DPA.”

The uncertainties of today's crisis coupled with manufacturers' exempt status from state-wide closures signal that the industry should remain prepared for the enactment of the DPA. Here’s what it means for U.S. manufacturers and how they can prepare.

A 2022 Ecommerce Website Checklist For Distributors

According to IBM, 80% of B2B buyers now expect the same buying experience as B2C customers. 

Earlier this month, we showcased six B2B ecommerce website examples to help you get more sales and create a better online experience for customers. To take your lead generation efforts further, we’re outlining a beginner’s ecommerce website checklist to make sure your customers give you repeat business.

3D Printing And Additive Manufacturing Challenges And Opportunities

The outlook for additive manufacturing and 3D printing is promising. Back in 2017, Thomas reported on the increased sourcing activity for additive manufacturing. Although the base technology of additive manufacturing was developed in the 1980s, its use has become more prevalent in the last few years as advancements grow and prices drop. Sourcing activity sessions for additive manufacturing systems in 2020 was up 37.8% compared to 2019. And according to Statista, the global market for 3D printing and services is expected to grow to almost 50 billion U.S. dollars by 2025.

New and Noteworthy Categories on Thomasnet.com for January 2021

Start off the new year with our new sourcing categories to zero in on what you need, from vaccine freezers to silicone spray lubricants to cold chain data loggers. We've added more than 40 new categories to Thomasnet.com® over the past month to help your sourcing all through this next year, and we're showcasing our 13 favorites below.

New Suppliers on Thomasnet.com for January 2021

If your professional new year's resolution is to find more suppliers, you're in luck: we added roughly 13 new companies to our platform every day over the past month, and we continue to add more in the new year. Before you go on to tackle your other resolutions, check out our most interesting new suppliers that can help your company fulfill its procurement goals in 2021. 

How To Get More Sales With Optimized Product Webpages

All roads lead to your product pages. They are, arguably, some of the most important pages on your entire site.

You’ve already attracted and educated prospective buyers, you’ve had positive interactions with them — now they’re on your product page, on the verge of transitioning from “prospect” to “customer.” But will your product page, as it is, secure the conversion?

Luckily, as with all things in the digital realm, your product pages can be optimized. There are several best practices for product pages that will help you to increase conversion rates — here are three that you can implement immediately:

Get Your Dream Customers This Year With Account-Based Marketing (For Manufacturers)

Establishing a truly effective B2B marketing plan can be challenging in today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape. There are many components to an effective digital lead generation strategy, and since buying habits can change quickly, and with technologies quick to advance, how can a growing manufacturer get started?

6 B2B Ecommerce Website Examples To Help You Sell More In 2021

Today, if you want to sell direct to consumers, you need to create a smooth online user experience that instills feelings of trust in your products and services. For industrial distributors, this means designing their website to include a comprehensive, digital product catalog. Engineers and sourcing professionals expect the websites they do business with to provide the same experience as personal shopping websites like Amazon or Target.

The Evolution Of 3D Printing

From reducing costs to increasing efficiency to spurring innovation, many people are excited about the impact that 3D printing will have on the future of manufacturing. However, the truth is, it already has made a significant impact on the industry.

Take a look back at the evolution of 3D printing to see how the phenomenon started and how it has helped the manufacturing industry evolve.