#supply-chain
125 episodes · Page 3 of 6
#3231: Hand-Painted Signs: The Lost Art of Enamel and Ruling Pens
Why enamel paint and ruling pens dominated sign painting for a century—and where to find them today.
#3167: DeFi vs Microlending: What Actually Works?
DeFi's $180B locked vs 1.7B unbanked. Where does credit actually help?
#3112: Life on the Logistics Bubble: Supply Chains That Can't Fail
How planners keep Antarctic stations, submarines, and remote outposts alive when resupply is impossible for months.
#3103: Refillable Markers: Industrial Ink Chemistry & Nib Selection
How Molotow's modular marker system saves thousands on factory floors with lacquer and oil-based inks.
#3099: How Car Mechanics Master 50 Vehicles a Week
The hidden systems thinking that lets mechanics fix any car and how you can apply it.
#3094: Surface Prep for Markers That Last
Why 70% isopropyl is the benchmark and what to use when you can't get it in Israel.
#3079: NFC vs UHF RFID: What Actually Works on Fabric
Why NFC tags peel off fabric and how UHF RFID solves it — plus what hardware you actually need.
#3075: Paint Marker vs Alcohol Marker: Which Lasts Longer?
Paint markers chip. Alcohol markers fade. Which one actually survives longer on your inventory?
#3066: Paint Markers That Actually Stick to Oily Steel
Markal, Dykem, Uni Paint — which survives on oily steel vs wet concrete? The chemistry is completely different.
#3047: Frankincense in Your Laundry: Scent Chemistry Explained
How ancient temple resin ended up in detergent, and the chemistry that makes it work.
#3009: How IKEA Decides Where Everything Goes in Its Warehouses
Inside the science of slotting optimization that determines where your BILLY bookcase lives in IKEA's massive warehouses.
#3006: Rail vs. Truck: The Real Modal Split
Why rail carries 50% of freight in China but only 8% in the US — and what that means for logistics.
#2994: Lentils: The 10,000-Year Staple You Don't Know
Brown, green, red, black — and why split lentils aren't "processed" food. A complete tour of the world's most underrated legume.
#2992: The Three Lives of Za'atar: Plant, Spice, Identity
A wild herb became a global spice blend. Now overharvesting threatens the hillsides where it grew for millennia.
#2990: How 20 People Run a 400-Meter Container Ship
Twenty-four thousand containers, twenty crew members. How does global trade actually work at sea?
#2977: Why Bread Costs Triple in Richer Countries
Why do poorer countries like Portugal have cheaper bread than wealthier Israel? It's not price controls vs. free markets—it's market structure.
#2976: Industrial Supply vs Hardware Store Secrets
Why industrial suppliers sell better products for less money than hardware stores — and how anyone can shop there.
#2972: How Pallets Make Global Trade Work
The humble pallet is the unsung hero of global trade. Here’s how consolidation works from factory floor to container ship.
#2966: When Did We Stop Making Our Own Clothes?
Mass-produced clothing is only about 150 years old. Your great-great-grandparents likely wore handmade clothes.
#2963: The Forgotten Grains That Could Feed a Hungry World
Millet, sorghum, and teff feed half a billion people. So why don't we grow more of them?
#2953: Marker Ink vs. Synthetic Fabric: The Real Test
Oil-based vs. water-based markers on neoprene and nylon — which ink actually survives rain, flexing, and UV?
#2917: Decoding the Spec Sheet: MPN vs Model Number
MPN, model number, SKU, GTIN — which identifier actually gets you the right part?
#2915: The Barcode That Changed Everything
MPNs, UPCs, ASINs, and the secret hierarchy of product codes that engineers use to buy the right thing.
#2910: The Quiet Chemistry of Xylene-Free Markers
What’s really in your permanent marker? The hidden chemical revolution happening on the hardware store shelf.