With a diminishing number of welding and gas distributors throughout the world, finding success more than ever depends on finding a niche in which a business can specialize and excel to become a valued member of a supply chain that provides profits to all of the links in the chain.

Welding equipment manufacturers have been adjusting their distributor ranks and rankings, and the have been regularly revising the conditions and terms that define their relationships with distributors in light of the mergers and acquisitions that have consolidated the industry.

The independent distributors that remain continue to hone their operations to find their sweet spot — the place in which their best efforts provide the greatest gain — and finding and keeping that spot in the value chain is a challenge.

Alongside the work of finding and improving the niche that your company defines for itself, is the need to stay aware of the changes in the market that act to shift focuses and make a what could otherwise be thought of as a good position less defensible.

We have in this issue a feature article that talks about the issues that a small business should consider to maintain its competitive position in the marketplace.

This article was derived from a report that was written, presented and copyrighted by The Manufacturing Institute, the National Association of Manufacturers and RSM McGladrey, Inc. The overall report provides an in-depth view of how a small business maintains a position in an ever-changing value chain, and the primary issues that a company faces are here:

Global competition, the development of new strategies and new ideas, maintaining a competent work force, ensuring an adequate supply of finance for the company, and forging new partnerships — with suppliers, customers and, when necessary, competitors — can go a long way toward helping a company to maintain its role as a valued team member for the customers in its niche.