| dc.description.abstract | Information technology, specifically computer mediated communication (CMC), will revolutionize the pump industry, from selection through installation, operation, and maintenance. There will be winners and losers. It will change not only the way business is done, but with whom business is done. It will also dramatically change the way that jobs are done, the tools that are used, and the support that is expected from vendors. Other changes will involve the information manufacturers will expect from user-some of which is now considered proprietary. In fact, the very concepts of “proprietary information” and “intellectual property” will undergo profound changes as information is made available and shared over the internet. Computer mediated communication is simply the exchange of information using computers. This can be done over the internet, or, using the same programs and protocols, it can be done over intranets within companies. As the exchange of information between trading partners increases, it will become increasingly difficult to know where internal communication ends and external communication begins. And as alliances and partnering agreements expand, it will become difficult to know where organizations end and supplies’ and customers’ organizations begin. The companies who embrace this technology will lead the industry. Those who do not will find productivity and profitability lagging, and their very existence threatened. The cost for these improvements is not new equipment-most users now have the necessary hardware. The changes will be in operating philosophy, how will business be done in the twenty-first century. Change is always a little unsettling, and the technology of CMC promises to dramatically change the way all jobs are done. The pump industry can wait for change and try to adapt, or become the agents of change. A look at the life-cycle of a typical API pump will be instrumental in examining the opportunities that are available to users and specifiers who choose to command technology and let it work for them. | en |
