Posts Tagged ‘computers’


Hey You, Get Off of My Cloud – There’s a New Type of Business Now!

Friday, December 28th, 2012

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The only constant is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be. — Isaac Asimov – “My Own View” in The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (1978)

There has been much discussion lately of the need to reinvent your business model. Everyone from the Harvard Business Review Entrepreneur Magazine  and American Express consistently post articles dealing with corporate reinvention. They tout successful examples such as Apple, PayPal and Burberry.  Unsuccessful companies that used to dominate their respective industries  litter today’s landscape and bankruptcy courts, including such household names as Hostess, Polaroid and Borders.

Here at Maxi Container we have taken a long slow look at corporate reinvention and have made over our company significantly in the last 10 years. In doing so we have focused on our core competencies, looked for new markets, addressed bottlenecks in our management and operation, strengthened our fiscal controls, upgraded our truck and trailer fleet and adopted a wide range of new technologies to allow us to work smarter, faster and mobile with an emphasis on enhancing the customer experience and adding value to our products and services.

Some of the changes are internal and there is no need for discussion. Two of the biggest, our entry into new markets with our mirainbarrel and miwinebarrel subsidiaries, will be discussed in future posts. Our new e-commerce platform, which will debut in the future is another major reinvention.

However, one of the most interesting, challenging and rewarding changes has been cloud computing. This is a much overused term and can be defined in many ways. Here we use a combination of private and public  cloud storage, networking, desktop virtualization, and  software as a service to tie all of our various desk top computers, smart phones, tablets and laptops into a coherent whole. Furthermore, all of  our data is encrypted for privacy, protected from viruses and continually backed  up.  The service is scalable so as we add personnel or locations it is easy to tie them into the existing cloud and network infrastructure. Much of the credit for our adoption of this technology goes to my son, Joshua Rubin, Creative Director at Maxi Container, Inc.

As a result, any Maxi Container sales person or operations person has complete access to any and all information necessary to do their jobs at all times from anywhere. We use our private cloud and various apps such as, shared Outlook Calendars, Evernote, Dropbox, Adobe EchoSign and Kibits (a new collaborative app for android and iPhone) to create a truly collaborative workplace that increases our efficiency and creates additional value for the customer.

Quotes for unique products can be electronically signed and archived and are available 24/7, not just during office hours. Sales personnel have complete access to customer pricing and purchase history whether in the office, their vehicle, or on-site at a customer’s location. Purchase Orders can be processed in a variety of ways including email or Electronic Data Interchange. Payments can be made on mobile devices, PayPal or Credit Card . Several customers are using Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) to place orders and receive invoices and ACH transactions for payments. Checks are scanned in so they are credited to the customer’s account and deposited in the bank the same day as received. Our goal is to eventually equip drivers and warehouse personnel with mobile devises that move this efficiency and customer value throughout our supply chain.

This move has not been without bumps and bruises along the way.  There were the inevitable glitches, issues with data capacity and learning curves. We are still experimenting with how best to use our new tools and collaborative environment. However, every day brings more and more examples to light of how we can enhance the customer experience through collaborative work and cloud computing. You may never see it, but it will affect every aspect of our business as we move forward with our reinvented business model.

(Note: my apologies to the Rolling Stones for the use of their lyric from their 1965 hit, “Hey You Get Off of My Cloud” in the headline of this post. I just couldn’t resist, especially as it speaks to the encryption and privacy necessary for cloud computing to work. I am sure that this was the furthest thing from Keith Richards mind when he wrote the song.)

E-Waste: What to do in a disposable Era

Monday, October 31st, 2011

I am old enough to remember a time when appliances and electronics were expensive, big and lasted a long time. Due to their cost, you fixed things that broke and they did not quickly become obsolete. Every neighborhood had a TV Repair Service or a Handy-man who could fix TV’s, radio’s, phonographs, appliances, vacuum cleaners, etc. A recent AARP article (see, I am old) updated the old 50% rule. In essence, if the repair cost less that 50% of the replacement cost of an item, then repair it.

Sadly, this old rule is at odds with our current digital age and Moore’s Law. Moore’s Law is named after Intel co-founder Gordon E. Moore, who described the trend in a 1965 paper.  He noted that the number of components in integrated circuits had doubled every two years from the invention of the integrated circuit in 1958 until 1965 and predicted that the trend would continue.

I bought my first “personal” computer, a Commodore Vic-20  in 1980. I still have it sitting in our basement. I bought my second PC in 1985, a Tandy 1000.  Since then, the number of computers I have bought are t00 numerous to mention. It seems, like Moore predicted, that I would be replacing a computer every few years.  Sometimes it is because something went wrong with it, but often, it is just because I need (or want) a newer, more powerful and faster computer. It is even worse with cell phones. I had drawers filed with close to twenty old cell phones. Often they worked fine, but I received a newer phone with better features by re-signing another 2-year contract with my wireless provider.

As mentioned in the My Life Scoop Blog, the United Nations Environmental Program estimates that each year, 20-50 million tons of e-waste is dumped into landfills around the world, ranging from old phones, TVs, microwaves, computers and more – but most of the time it’s not because these gadgets are defunct; they’re being dumped in favor of new releases. They go on to say that most people fail to properly dispose of their unwanted electronics, carelessly trashing them without regard to the hazardous materials they contain, including PCBs, lead and mercury. Many of these chemicals are known to cause cancer, respiratory illness, and reproductive problems, and damage the earth by seeping into the soil and ground water.

My wife finally had enough of this e-waste build up and in no uncertain terms told me to find a home for all these gadgets. Fortunately, we live in Farmington Hills, MI and our local recycling authority, RRRASOC accepts e-waste at its Southfield location.  They also accept e-waste at the various Household Hazardous Waste Collection Events that they hold throughout the year.

RRRASOC points out that e-waste:

“…is the fastest growing portion of the municipal waste stream. As those products reach the end of their useful life, it is important to remember that many of these products are reusable, recyclable, or pose a concern if not handled properly.”

It is important to use an e-waste recycler that you trust. There are some e-waste recyclers out there that say they recycle the e-waste in an environmentally sustainable manner, but in reality do not. A recent Waste & Recycling News article stated that for the first time criminal charges have been filed against electronic waste recyclers accused of duping customers and sending e-waste abroad to developing countries.

According to the article:

“…the indictment says the company developed a scheme to falsely represent that it would dispose of all e-waste in an environmentally friendly or green manner. The company also said it would recycle the items in the U.S., not overseas… Executive Recycling was the subject of a “60 Minutes” report in 2008 which tracked containers from its facility to Hong Kong.”

Executives for the company could spend up to 20 years in prison, if convicted on the most serious charges. An even better way to get rid of functional e-waste is to donate them. Most schools, charities and places of worship run on very tight budgets. What appears to you as an obsolete computer or printer, may be a step up for them or one of their clients. At this years Plymouth Green Street Fair, unwanted e-waste was donated to raise money for Beaumonts’ Chidren’s Hospital. Another exhibitor collected used cell phones to be turned into prepaid phone cards for US Soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan to call their families.

Despite these efforts, the e-waste at both my home and office continues to grow. If you have a good suggestion for a way to recycle or donate e-waste, please let us know in the comments.

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