The Thomas Blog

Cybersecurity In Today's Interconnected Supply Chain: Don't Build An Apartment. Build A House.

Take a moment to consider all of the components of your organization’s supply chain. Commonly, quite a few capital assets come to mind: raw materials, machinery, warehousing, logistics, distribution centers, brick and mortar sites, office locations, point of sales, and so much more.

Whether it’s keeping employees connected to one another, interacting with customers, or generally exchanging data from one system to another, interconnectivity is a crucial, but risky, component of supply chain management.

And, in a world where millions of cyberattacks happen each day, companies can no longer afford to approach cybersecurity with an “if this happens” mindset, rather establish the proper structure and protocol for when it does. 

Thomas Index Report: Private Label

More B2B buying activity takes place on THOMASNET.com than any other resource on the planet. In fact, a buyer evaluates a supplier every 2 seconds on our platform.

To help buyers and suppliers stay ahead of the latest shifts and emerging trends in the digital industrial economy, we constantly analyze all of the buying activity taking place on the platform. This powerful, proprietary data fuels the Thomas Industrial Index.

Here’s what we’re seeing on the Index this week:

Video: Soldiers Will Get A Boost With Exoskeletons

Soldiers are about to get a big upgrade courtesy of engineers at the U.S. Army Research Lab. The engineers are creating a DARPA-funded exoskeleton suit that will help soldiers carry heavier equipment, march longer distances and improve mental acuity. 

The suit is made of pulleys and gears that help prevent and reduce musculoskeletal injuries, which is a common occurrence for many soldiers. The suit is already making major impacts as servicemen and women have reported improved endurance and reduced stress on their joints during tests. 

Hyperloop One's First Pod Test Is A Success

The future of high-speed transportation blazed one step closer to reality last week. Hyperloop One, based in Los Angeles, just tested its pod for the first time, and the test was a big — and really fast — success.

Video: Space Tourism Gets Closer To Becoming A Reality

Zero 2 Infinity, a space tourism company headquartered in Spain, just unveiled the final design of its Bloon pod, which will launch people to the edge of the Earth's atmosphere.  

Thomas Index Report: Printed Circuit Board Sourcing Trends

More B2B buying activity takes place on THOMASNET.com than any other resource on the planet. In fact, a buyer evaluates a supplier every 2 seconds on our platform.

To help buyers and suppliers stay ahead of the latest shifts and emerging trends in the digital industrial economy, we constantly analyze all of the buying activity taking place on the platform. This powerful, proprietary data fuels the Thomas Industrial Index.

Here’s what we’re seeing on the Index this week:

Video: Fruit And Animals Will Pave The Way For Safer Industrial Equipment

Safety on the shop floor is about to get better, and you can thank fruits and animals for their help. Groundbreaking research from BMW's Bio-Inspired-Safety Systems (BISS) Consortium is leading the way to create new safety prototypes based off of natural models. 

Manufacturing Industry Jobs Update: June 2017

At THOMASNET.com, we are big champions of American manufacturing and reshoring. In fact, we work with suppliers who produce amazing products made in America every day, and we play an instrumental role in helping small- and medium-sized suppliers grow.

But how can we measure growth for the industry overall? A good barometer is the state of the manufacturing workforce. That’s why we will be regularly diving deep into the latest information from the Bureau Of Labor Statistics to take the pulse of hiring in the industry and to highlight sectors that are growing.

Here is our Manufacturing Industry Jobs Update for June 2017 (scroll down for previous releases):

Video: The Best Metro Areas For Manufacturing Jobs

Think it's tough to get a job in the manufacturing industry? While that may be the common perception, the truth is that the manufacturing job market offers more opportunities than you think. 

In fact, Forbes recently looked at the state of the hiring within the industry and found that all but 18 of the country’s 70 largest metropolitan regions have seen an uptick in industrial employment since 2011. They also ranked all 357 metropolitan areas to determine the locations with the best, most thriving manufacturing employment situations.