The supply chain was hit hard in 2011. It’s unclear whether 2012 will bring a reprieve.

A cloudy global economic forecast is causing uncertainty among many corporations, even those in the electronics industry. While last year’s worries were caused by natural disasters, 2012 fears are manmade.

Options abound, but the paradigm of where and how to proceed has changed.

As I begin focusing on the New Year, I can’t help but reflect at least a little on the year just ended. I spent a lot of time in various meetings, workshops, presentations and industry gatherings focused on supply-chain issues.

You might say humans are predisposed to chatting. The art has taken a few twists and turns over time: In the past 50 years the back-fence gossip session gave way to party lines (for some), then to online means so popular and ubiquitous it made AOL for a time one of the most valuable companies in the US.

How design miniaturization drives Lean manufacturing and prevailing industry trends.

Anyone with a smartphone, tablet or digital camera recognizes that electronic devices are getting smaller. And, consumer delight with smaller electronics drives miniaturization trends in other industries.