Tti Case Study Essay TTI is located in Fort Worth, Texas and operates as a specialty distributor of passive, interconnect, and discrete components. “TTI’s mission is to be the most preferred electronics distributor for their customers and suppliers, deliver the right parts exactly on time, and to exceed their internal and external customer requirements through continuous improvement, while providing a home for hardworking, dedicated, knowledgeable, and ethical people who believe in this Company and this philosophy. †(TTI, Website, 2011) Within this case study we are reviewing the potential effects that TTI would be faced with if they decided to place a Distribution Center (DC) in Asia. From the case study we learn that TTI saw two separate marketing trends on the horizon. The two trends Craig Conrad, Vice President of Sales for TTI, toiled with were that of globalization and customer demand for local inventory to just-in-time objectives. Paul Andrews, founder and president of TTI, and Conrad both were aware that some customers believed TTI needed a foreign presence. Globalization within TTI’s customer base was rapidly growing as was the expectation from the customers for TTI to become global distributor. Andrew’s main concern with placing a DC in Asia was that TTI would stretch their resources to thin leading to damaged customer service. In the 1990’s TTI had opened sales branches in Europe, Canada, and Latin America. A DC was opened in Munich, but did not share the same success as the Fort Worth DC. This caused management to rethink the potential of opening other international DC’s. During this time the auto replenishment process was on the rise, but TTI management feared that this process could not service customers overseas. The case study specifically sites these three concerns management had: 1. How much would the new facility and personnel cost? 2. Would TTI’s culture of excellence be maintainable in the foreign market? 3. Would the local market support the cost of the new facility? In particular, how much business required a local presence (VMI) as opposed to how much could be done form Fort Worth or Munich? TTI was seeing Asia quickly become the fastest growing electronics market during the 1990’s and customers wanted to carry their operations overseas while maintaining the VMI and auto replenishment process that TTI had developed in this US. Because of the limited success TTTI had experienced in the previously mentioned ventures this caused great concern. However, as stated in the case, VMI and Auto replenishment made up 50% of TTI’s business and it was critical that they weight their options carefully. TTI knew that customers were moving toward globalization and that Asia was a hot spot for this move. This forced TTI to evaluate the possibility of creating a DC in Asia which had the potential to eventually generate 20% of TTI’s overall sales. Some strategic suppliers TTI had long standing relationships with had already moved to China and the Philippines. If TTI did not set up a local DC in Asia this meant the company was looking at accruing an additional 10% shipping charge per product and that was just for a one way shipment. The challenge for Conrad was to make sure that the overall expense of opening the new DC would not cost more than overseas shipping charges. The other concern Paul Andrews had was whether or not the locals in Asia could operate under the same cooperate structure that was established in the US. If the same cooperate culture could not be met then Andrews would not consider opening the DC in Asia. The three locations TTI considered for establishing this DC were Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia. Each location had different benefits. Hong Kong was most favorable due to its logistical location. Singapore also had a very favorable location and English was the primary language for the locals. Malaysia was the least expensive of the three, but had the worst logistical position. Selecting the right location was critical to the future success of TTI. In an article written by Karl Heil, he explains the importance of proper location selection. “If a company selects the wrong location, it may have adequate access to customers, workers, transportation, materials, and so on. Consequently, location often plays a significant role in a companys profit and overall success. A location strategy is a plan for obtaining the optimal location for a company by identifying company needs and objectives, and searching for locations with offerings that are compatible with these needs and objectives. Generally, this means the firm will attempt to maximize opportunity while minimizing costs and risks. †(Heil, 2011) Based off of the comparison chart provided in the case study the location that best maximized the opportunity as well has minimized the cost was the Singapore location. The comparison chart clearly showed Singapore to have the most cost effective location. Hong Kong was competitive, but what really set the two apart was the overall facilities cost. Malaysia’s facility cost was half that of Singapore, however the logistical costs were extremely high. The other benefit that I felt set Singapore apart was the native language. Creating a new DC location was going to be enough of a challenge without having to overcome a language barrier. The fact that English was the native tongue is invaluable for this process. With Singapore being the selected location the next logical step would be to implement a road map on how to set up the new DC. Gross Associates is a firm that specifically helps companies through this process. On the web-site of Gross Associates define the following five steps to assist with the process. “Determine the requirements the new facility must satisfy. Determine the feasible alternatives to satisfy the projected business requirements. Analyze the viable alternatives, including both quantitative and qualitative aspects. Make and document the rationale for decisions and finally implementation. †(Donald J. Derewecki, 2033) With the rapid growth of globalization I would absolutely have to consider opening a DC in Asia. With suppliers making the move over seas as well as customers it is a natural fit for distribution companies to also make the move. Competitors of TTI were making the jump and if TTI did not follow they were poised to lose a lot of business. Going back to TTI’s mission statement at the beginning of this case study the term “continuous improvement†was stated. For TTI to continually improve they needed to open the Asian DC. Bibliography Donald J. Derewecki, C. (2033, Unknown Unknown). GRAND OPENINGS: PLANNING A NEW DISTRIBUTION CENTER. Retrieved November 14, 2011, from Gross and Associates: http://www. grossassociates. com/articles/design. htm Heil, K. (2011, unknown unknown). Location Strategy. Retrieved November 13, 2011, from Reference for BusinessEncyclopedia of Business, 2nd ed. : http://www. referenceforbusiness. com/management/Int-Loc/Location-Strategy. html
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1/14/2020 0 Comments The People of Metropolis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 wordsThe People of Metropolis - Research Paper Example The fertility of Uruk was enhanced by the existence of the town near River Euphrates, which provided the town with household and farming water2. The inventions made in Uruk spread to other kingdoms in Mesopotamia, for example, Akkadia and Babylon. The bronze period is, therefore, said to be an era of civilization because humans made use of their intelligence to create tools that made work easier. This indicates that, the innovation of the early pioneers of the city of Uruk undeniably made Uruk the cradle of sophisticated practices and the greatest city of the Bronze Age. 1.2 Problem Statement Uruk, the cradle of civilization was a peaceful city where people were governed by laws that were created after the invention of writing. The laws governed trade, agriculture, and social classes in the town during the bronze period. The iron wheel that was discovered in Uruk made the city more favorable than other towns in Mesopotamia. The invention of weapons in Uruk led to the rise of cities such as the Akkadia Kingdom. These inventions indicate that Uruk that is presently Iraq has an enriched history, but it has been forgotten because of the war in the country. The remains of Uruk are presently located in Warqa in Iraq. Today, Warqa is characterized by low population, dry land, and insufficient laws that govern the society3. Presently, the war in Iraq has led to the rise of terrorism in the country, which poses insecurity. Terrorism has increased in the country to the extent that militants possess weapons of mass destruction. The world focuses on the war and terrorism in Iraq, and the society tends to forget the rich history of the country. A review of the history of Iraq is essential because it will shift the focus and attitude. The shift will be desirable, and it will help citizens of Iraq to appreciate their history. 1.3 Objectives i. To find out whether the innovation of early pioneers led to the sophistication of Uruk. ii. To find out how Uruk influenced the rest of the Fertile Crescent. iii. To determine whether Uruk was the greatest city of the Bronze Age. 2.0 Literature Review 2.1 Innovations of Uruk The major innovation that was made in Uruk is the potter’s wheel that has a wedge shape. The Potter’s wheel has four jars and five helms that enable the machine to rotate and move from one place to another. The rotating wheel was made from bronze, a metal that was made by mixing and heating tin and copper. The discovery of the wheel helped the inhabitants of Uruk to save time that they used to move pottery across different regions. The wheel also facilitated trade between Uruk and other cities such as Ur. The two cities traded goods such as ceramics and agricultural products. Before the discovery of the wheel, the communities did not trade, and whenever they did this, traders had to transport goods for extensive distances. This was tiring, and most traders gave up the business. The wheel played a major role of transporting weapons across states, for example, it was used to draw warriors and weapons across the Akkadia Kingdom4. The kingdom arose as a result of the invention of the wheel and weapons in Uruk. Metal plows were also invented in Uruk to facilitate farming in the city. The tools were made of bronze that was common during that period. The plows were pulled by oxen along wheat and barley farms in the city5. The innovation made farming easier
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