Theater in the 1920s Essay -- Plays

In the 1920s, the theater was considered the scene of a curious conflict between world and a freer form of theatricality. (MacGowen, viii) There were many famous playwrights of the era. Among these were Thornton disorderly and, probably the most prominent playwright, Eugene ONeill. These two authors used many of the same themes in their writing romanticism was a popular one. However, they each also used themes and styles of writing that set them apart from other writers.The values that were promoted in the works of Thornton Wilder included those of Christian morality, the community, the family, and the appreciation of everyday pleasures. (Wilder, Discovering Authors) Wilder was more of a realist than a romantic, though in his writings emotions run deeper than wild, a romantic quality. (Grebanier, 5) His plays were meant to bring fresh life and meaning to the terms of the spiritual life. (Burbank, 21) Some other themes include faith, love, humility, sacrafice, and the role and resp onsibility of the artist in society. (Burbank, 22)Eugene ONeills plays consistent...

Wuthering Heights- Is Heathcliff a man or a devil? Essay -- English Li

Wuthering Heights- Is Heathcliff a man or a devil?Wuthering Heights was written by Emily Bront and was first published in 1847, it was written during the romantic period, it isa story of love, lust and sorrow all held together by extreme passion,love and hate.One of the principal(prenominal) characters in the book Wuthering Heights isHeathcliff, he was a orphan who lived in Liverpool, we find verylittle about Heathcliffs past before he is follow by the Earnshaws,which makes Heathcliff a mysterious character. When Heathcliff comesto live at Wuthering Heights after being adopted by the Earnshaws, hefeels displaced as he does not do where to fit in with the familywho seem to have tight knit family system. In the beginning it isclear that Heathcliff is rejected by his older step pal Hindly andturns to Catherine for affection, but Heathcliff feels he is notworthy of the affection shown to him by his step father and the familyand this causes problems with members of the family. Hindlya utomatically feels threatened by Heathcliffs presence and his hatefor Heathcliff grows as Heathcliff gets the heed from therefather that Hindly feels he deserve and this causes friction betweenthe two characters. But Heathcliff has needs and one of these is to beloved which he feels only Catherine peck do even from a very schoolgirlish age,they become the best of friends and feel wild together running infields and playing together, and it shows when Heathcliff is youngCatherine is his sole source of self esteem.When Mr. Earnshaw dies Catherine takes comfort with Heathcliff, andHindly comes back from university to attend to the funeral after awhile Heathcliff was degraded by Hindly because of Hindlys jea... ...raded and running awayfrom Wuthering Heights isolate himself from his past only returningwhen he knows his revenge can be had, Heathcliff is also filled withdark qualities which make him return to seek revenge, but a Byronic gunman is usually passionate about a particular i ssue, this particularissue for Heathcliff is Catherine and we see this as he seems to beaddicted to her. A Byronic hero exhibits several characteristictraits, and in many ways he can be considered a rebel. The Byronichero does not possess heroic virtue in the usual sense instead, hehas many dark qualities. With regard to his intellectual capacity,self-respect, and hypersensitivity, the Byronic hero is larger thanlife, and with the loss of his titanic passions, his pride, and hiscertainty of self-identity, he loses also his shape as atraditional hero (Thorslev 187).

Terry Kays To Dance with the White Dog :: Dance White Dog Terry Kay Essays

Terry Kays To Dance with the White Dog In the allegory To Dance with the White Dog, Sams daughters were constantly bothering him. Sams daughters thought that he could not do a single thing without them because their pascal was getting older. Sam lost his wife of fifty-seven years, Cora, to a heart attack. Sam needed a companion, someone who could look at him and not gauge that he was losing his mind like his family did. One day Sam discovered a dust coat wienerwurst running around his property. Sam did not sine qua non to support another stray dog like he did in the past. The white dog was something very special to him though. The white dog reminded Sam of a cute white fluffy dog that him and his wife had around the period they were first married. Sams daughters thought that the white dog was a romance of his imagination. White dog is real because of the physical proof present from the time Sam discovered white dog to the time when white dog go forth him. Sam found white dog on the steps of his back porch licking up grease spots on the cement. Sam yelled at the white dog, Get Get(26). Sam then newr saw strings of blood from where white dog was licking the cement. One night as well Sam fell on the floor in pain because of his hip. One of Sams daughters knew something was wrong because her father was never up that late at night. So, she sent her husband to check and see if everything was okay. When she looked out the window she saw the white dog running from the house with her own eyes. That was the first time that anyone was able to see the dog because white dog never went out of her way for anyone to see her until Sam was in desperate need of help. White dog would also run along the side of Sams truck to the graveyard to visit Coras final resting site. White dog was real because of her physically running after Sams truck. White dog was a special companion to Sam Peek. Sam was a lonely man and white dog kept him company. White dog was consider ed a figment of Sams imagination because no one could see her. There was physical evidence present that white dog was real.

Far From The Madding Crowd :: essays research papers

Thomas HardyFar From The Madding Crowd centers around the beautiful Bathsheba Everdene, and the tether who love her and strive to win her over. Gabriel oak, Mr. Boldwood, and Sergeant Francis Troy find them selves intertwined in their quest to win Bathsheba. Bathsheba is headstrong, feminine, and beautiful. She inherits her uncles farm, and tries to run it herself. As all of theme were farmers, they didnt think that she icy do it. Although she had a few things go wrong like fires she overall handles her farm very well and became a good farmer. But, her love life was something else. She had three men after her at the same time. The first suitor she met was Gabriel Oak.Farmer Oak was dependable and caring and wise. Without him, Bathsheba couldnt have taken care of the farm. Oak did have his own sheep, but they were killed in a freak accident when they ran off a cliff. Oak is one with nature. He knew just by looking at his shes tails that it was going to rain. He would do anything for Bathsheba (and he did), even thought she denied his first attempt at marriage. In the end thought, Bathsheba did splice Oak. Troy first met Bathsheba as they were walking through the woods. Bathsheba became tangled in the brambles with Troy. He made a few comments to her about how lovely se was and how he would love to stay tangled up with her. Instantly, Bathsheba was in love. Little did she know that Troy was deeply in love with a girl named Fanny Robbins, who was a maid of Bathshebas. Troy ended up marrying Bathsheba, but it was a bad marriage and didnt last for long. Bathsheba was in love with Troys attribute and he loved her for her money and appearance. The final straw for their marriage was when Fanny died. Troy lost his true love, an unborn child, and in the end, his own life. Ironically, his death was by the hands of Bathshebas suitor Boldwood.Boldwood was introduced to Bathsheba when she sent him a valentine. Soon, his pleasure turned to obsession for Bathsheba. She constantly denied his advances, but he wouldnt give up. Boldwood eventually implant himself on the brink of insanity. When Troy returned, after allowing everyone to believe that he had drowned, Boldwood became enraged when he tried to take Bathsheba away.

Longer School Days Essay -- Education School Teaching Essays

Longer School Days Schools are so much a part of our society, so the accurate length of school days is highly important. Public opinions on the length of the school days are different. There are a lot of parents and professors concerned that it is hard for children to go to school former(a) in the morning and stay there the whole day. On the other side, some professors try to force students into a nine hour school day. not so many years ago, school was a main part of my life, and the school days structure and length affected my social life and expertness to study. From my own experience and some studies that I have seen, students benefit if school days are long. Lengthened school days help to create a supportive environment for studying. After school, it is difficult for children to concentrate on preparation. Many childrens homes are too crowded, and they are usually distracted by parents, friends, TV, or games. There are many other interesting things that they can do out of school, so students forget about what their teachers told them to study. Also, parents cannot help too much with their homework and only waste childrens time or give incorrect answers. My father tried to help me with a math course. I could not deduct his explanations, because he was not a professional tutor. Finally, he confused me even more, and I had to make an appointment with my math teacher. In contrast, if children do their homework in school, there are fewer people and objects that distract their attention. Teachers and other hardworking students offer encouragement. At school, children have access to tutors and teachers aids. There is ceaselessly somebody who can help to complete their homework and answer questions. ... ...e adults get an opportunity to find full-time work. In this case, the tax base could increase, and welfare obligations could decrease. almost importantly, students would get better knowledge that they would be able to apply in the f uture. There are many opinions and studies about reforming school days. Some people are concerned that longer school days would bring more difficulties. However, there are numerous studies and practical examples that prove that we improve students performance by increase school days. Finally, the economy and our society will benefit from expanding school days.Works CitedBrett, Jennifer. 8 to 5 Some Educators Like Barnes Latest Plan to Improve Schools by Lengthening the Day. The Atlanta Journal Constitution 30 Nov 2000 F1+.Madison, Alta. In School Every Day, Year - Round? New York Times 14 Jan 2001 16.

Longer School Days Essay -- Education School Teaching Essays

Longer School Days Schools are so much a part of our society, so the accurate length of inform days is extremely important. Public opinions on the length of the school days are different. There are a lot of parents and professors concerned that it is hard for children to go to school early in the morning and stay there the whole day. On the other side, some professors try to force students into a nine hr school day. Not so many years ago, school was a main part of my life, and the school days structure and length affected my neighborly life and ability to study. From my own experience and some studies that I have seen, students benefit if school days are long. Lengthened school days sustain to create a supportive environment for studying. After school, it is difficult for children to concentrate on homework. Many childrens homes are likewise crowded, and they are usually deflect by parents, friends, TV, or games. There are many other interesting things that they can do out of school, so students forget about what their teachers told them to study. Also, parents cannot help too much with their homework and only waste childrens time or give incorrect answers. My father tried to help me with a math course. I could not understand his explanations, because he was not a professional tutor. Finally, he confused me even more, and I had to make an appointment with my math teacher. In contrast, if children do their homework in school, there are fewer people and objects that distract their attention. Teachers and other hardworking students offer encouragement. At school, children have access to tutors and teachers aids. There is always somebody who can help to complete their homework and answer questions. ... ...e adults get an opportunity to find full-time work. In this case, the tax habitation could increase, and welfare obligations could decrease. Most importantly, students would get better knowledge that they would be able to apply in t he future. There are many opinions and studies about reforming school days. around people are concerned that longer school days would bring more difficulties. However, there are numerous studies and practical examples that prove that we improve students performance by lengthening school days. Finally, the economy and our society will benefit from expanding school days.Works CitedBrett, Jennifer. 8 to 5 Some Educators Like Barnes Latest formulate to Improve Schools by Lengthening the Day. The Atlanta Journal Constitution 30 Nov 2000 F1+.Madison, Alta. In School Every Day, Year - Round? New York Times 14 Jan 2001 16.

How Time is expressed in Bill Viola’s ‘Room for St John of the Cross Essay

This video and sound installation by Bill Viola, Room for St arse of the Cross, speaks of the concept of time in a number of divergent ways. It consists of a black cubicle in the centre of a darkened space. A small window reveals the interior of the cell which is a softly well-lighted space containing only a table with a pitcher, a water glass and a video monitor. Projected behind the cell is a woful image of mountains with storm clouds accompanied by the sounds of a storm. A voice whispers in Spanish some of St Johns poem.St John, a poet and mystic was jailed for 9 months in 1577 in a cell so small he could not stand within it. During his imprisonment he wrote mystical poetry concerned with overtakeing events and barriers in search of the Son of God, poetry that has been handed down to us in the modern day, so his poetry could be said to transcend time. The cell a three dimensional object, flirts the fourth dimension, that of time, 9 months of his life-time. This is the per iod a child spends in the womb, curled and unable to stand, before birth. The mountains would perhaps represent eternity as they are so unchanging.The moving clouds show that time is passing, but the storm may signify chaos of the earliest period of creation. The clouds could similarly represent an ability to rise above the events of each day which included regular beatings. The water and the light within the cell could represent the eternal life giving power of God, which St John found each day. God moved upon the face of the waters freshly each day, creating order stunned of the chaos in which he found his life to be. In The Dark Night which may be one of the poems composed during this period he wroteall things ceased I went out from myself, leaving my cares. (as translated by Kieran Kavanaugh and Otilio Rodriguez,) Despite severe oppression, deprivations and physical difficulties, he was in ecstasy and time was forgotten.Works CitedElectronic Sources Kavanaugh K, an d Rodrigu ez, O. ( translators) Carmelite. com Our Saints, The Collected Works of St John of the Cross http//www. carmelite. com/saints/john/works/cn_6. q 6th February 2008 Room for St John of the Cross 1983 http//www. sfmoma. org/espace/viola/BV05. html 6th February 2008

Marketing a New Product Internationally Essay

Marketing is the field which deals with commercialize. By defining the meaning, market is a place where people gathered and contact with matchless another, build relationship between two, in broad terms after the globalization world become a village and in this global agate line era merchandise is the system of globalized promotional activities of a business which take place to achieve the organizational and financial goals The circle of trade revolved close to the market implys, product development, and reasonable simile which can learned to instigate a market research that clarify the needs and demands of customer.Although focal process for a product promotion is market research, relying on that a producer can easily plan and develop his product well crafted, innovated, according to the socio economic factors, reflect the social and cultural ethics and will meet the consumer demands. Target Market and Product InformationDefining marketing on macro-level the macro-level mar keting is extremely challenging for an organization to market their product Unique TV outside(a)ly even seted by Philips, in particular in Indian market which is a multi-cultural alliance clear many social and religious boundaries, but economically emergent country and have great potential and competition in electronic media which reserve up a huge space for television industry as well as competition.Marketing of a television product that is particularordinary and modern with incorporate fingerprint scanner, and an innovative crafts of modern technology, the exceptional fingerprint technology allow phthisisrs to customize the idiosyncratics settings, for instance when a person turns the TV on via their fingerprint the individual can set his own customized profile which contains his favourite channel, recordings and so forth It is also ideal for parental control, parents can set the TV to only display the channels they choose for their Childs individual fingerprint as wel l as the time they allow their child to watch TV. alone the sensed quality, emotional constructs, and a concomitant justification of the purchase can only impact the customers decision to purchase a brand. Target Market, Society and Culture Before the air and cable network Indian had only one state owned channel broadcast, but after the influx of satellite and cable network a huge expansion in the electronic media industry has been witnessed, as well as great competition established in the television products.By find out broadly the rapid ontogeny of Indian television industry since inception to expansion the social practices, including politics and democracy, sport and identity formation, cinema and popular conclusion has influenced on the daily lives of Indians. Today the electronic media cater immense involvement in the social and cultural lives of Indians, as well as India become a very potential market for the innovative and modern television products. Local Economic Deve lopment India has traditional economy largely based on village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, modern industries, and a massive heart and soul of services.The emerging sector of Indian economy is service sector which has expended remarkably in last decade. But a large force of human resource has attached with the agricultural economic activities, this sector retains the backbone of the Indian economy. Foreign direct investment is change magnitude especially in the telecommunication and information technology sector, but the privatization of government owned industries and entities is still debateable in the government avenues. The economy has posted an average growth rate of more than 7% in the decade since 1997, reducing poverty by most 10 percentage points.India achieved 8. 5% gross domestic product growth in 2006, and again in 2007, significantly expanding production of manufactures. Software industry is the emergent sector of Indian economy government is capitalizin g on the human resource especially English literacy for a competent force to raise the exports of software products and services to western world. This economic growth facilitates India to reduce the fiscal deficit, but the boom in speculative real state business and increased interest rates have influenced the inflation in 2006 to 2007.But a huge problem set about by India is growing population. (Central Intelligence Agency, 2008) Regional Economic Development Asian economy comprises on the 4 billion people living in 46 different states (60% of the world population). Asia is largest continent of the world and six fourth stats of the world lie in Asia with worlds second largest economy China. The wealth and economic activities of Asia are distributed in different states of Asia as others which is because of its large size and multiple states differing cultures, environments, historical ties and government systems.In term of nominal gross domestic product the large economies in Asia are Japan, China, India, and South Korea. By measuring the economically Asia pertains China, the second larges economy in the world by nominal GDP, to Cambodia one of the poorest. The GDP of china in term of purchasing power parity to be the largest economy in Asia and the second largest economy in the world, followed by Japan and India as the worlds third and fourth largest economies respectively. Market CompetitionAs Indian retains the third largest economy of the world, and massive social and cultural influence on the television industry generates enormous competition in the television industry. India now producing diversity of television products locally, as well as international products is also there. With these warlike forces it is very hard for a new product to attract the audience, but not as much hard for a product with some extra ordinary and exceptional features, to mesmerize and accomplish the needs of the users.As compare with the other products the new and innovativ e product Unique TV can make a difference, because of its fingerprint scanner which can help the user to control and customize the profile of every individual. After the creation and deep study of international and regional scenario the producer and marketer follows second challenge to market the product with new scientific methodologies, which can effectively get the quick and excellent chemical reaction of the customer. Brand MarketingThere are enumerated factors that affect the barter foring intentions of customers as quality of services, equity, perceived value, satisfaction, past loyalty, perceived cost of changing supplier and brand perception. Most of them variables are inter-related and they impinge upon customer purchase behaviour cumulatively. High quality products can be created without input from marketing. However, in practice, it has been established that products that make market success received market or customer research support. There are several determinants th at contribute to the success of a brand.The ideas of brand marketing deuce-ace to the recognition of the research as being based on consumer perception. This leads to the question if different ethnic backgrounds impact the consumer perception of the brand strategies. Marketing Methodologies Questionnaire Survey- The field of study questionnaire was chosen for its cost effectiveness. The telephone questionnaire allows for a sample population to be easily reached with responses documented and easily dissected using data entry and statistical analyzing methods.Because of their widespread use, questionnaires are non-confrontational to the sample population and do not force opinions or options, allowing for accurate and viable responses to be gathered with little bias or influence from the researchers or complicated research equipment. The questionnaire development will take into consideration possible defects in the question distribution and has made all attempts to use common languag e and word organisation that is not technical or industry based with the hopes to remove the larger concerns in relation to comprehension and cognition.However, it is weighty to note that in any research methodology that is dealing with human responses to qualitative or quantitative questions remains the possibility of language bias. Advertisement- ad is any paid form of no personal presentation of ideas, products, or services by an identified sponsor. Most advertising media are mass media e. g. newspapers, magazines, television, radio, billboards, etc. Thus rather than transmitting messages to one buyer, most ads communicate to thousands or even millions of buyers this makes each contact for less expensive than personal sales presentation. sales Promotion- Like personal selling and advertising, sales promotion stimulates consumer buying and middlemens effectiveness, but with a wide variety of means. Sales promotion simulated military operation are expected to supplement salespe ople and advertising to make them more effective. Retail store window displays, product sampling, premium offers, and coupons are all examples of sales promotion. In contrast personal selling and advertising, many sales promotions are non-continuing, such as exhibits at fairs or contests.Manufacturers and retailers have substantial control over their sales promotions. Publicity- In contrast to Advertisement, Publicity may be defined as any Unpaid form of non-personal presentation of ideas, goods or services. personalized selling advertising and sales promotional are all direct forms of promotion, whereas publicity is indirect a firm cannot just go out and buy it. Publicity has been defined as non-personal stimulation of demand for a product, service, or business firm by planting commercially significant news about it in communications media.Some publicity about companies and brands is of course not solicited by sellers indeed, it may even be negative. Conclusion In brief we have re ached on the conclusion that the most important activity in the business and to promote a brand is marketing. From above literature, it can be stated that marketing in general is based on the consumers perception of the brand, regional and local economical factor, social and cultural manners and the methodologies applied to market the product.The perceived quality, emotional constructs, and justification of the purchase impact the customers decision to purchase a brand. This research demonstrates that market research cater foci point of marketing strategy, then identifying the organizational and products potentials for the effective product understanding, the marketing consultant and organization should analyze the product strengths and weaknesses to cover it with appropriation.To determine the supply and demand identify the main competitors, and craft a good and competitive piece of product which can compete according to the economical and technological factors prevailed in the mar ket. hence the identification of distribution options is to be the major decision to market the product, a great establishment of distribution channels will pertains a great proportion in successful marketing of a product. Marketing and advertisement campaigns play pivotal role in the success of any product.However, a significant amount of money, time and resources have to place behind marketing to the ethnic (or minority) masses and that was many years on the making when an organization advocated for that initiative, that too was looked upon as radical. approaching off the heels of that accomplishment, painting the picture of a viable affluent ethnic consumer might be easier. Ultimately, relevant, comprehensive and actionable insight will lead to advised business decisions and the implementation of marketing best practices. If the world has changed so must a brands attitude and actions towards marketing to new target audiences.

Why I deserve FoR Scholarship?

Why I deserve the FOR scholarship Im criticized, however all your bullets ricochet , this is a line from the song Titanium by David Guests. ground on our teachers, the point of view of almost half of the people, including them, is that we dont deserve to be here, to be In this particular Science Class. They said that there be more Intelligent students In the star sections who deserve more to be called as the cream of the crop. They keep on believing that It Is only luck that brought us here, but In fact, we are here because we deserve to be.SC Is no Joke, because the entrance examinations are already a real deal sweat and blood. So It hurts like theres a knife bully us In front, hearing those words coming out from them, from our teachers who should be the wiz to encourage us but now theyre the one whiffs lowering our self-esteem. An Intelligent person has an open mind. He knows how to accept criticisms. And as a student who belongs In the supernumerary science class, we us e their criticisms as a determination, a key to prove them all wrong.They shoot us down, but we get up. Special science students are special thats why we are called special. But what sets us apart is the curriculum itself. I mean, we are trained to be scientists and mathematicians of the batch. Its like our final training ground for college thus making us special. Being an SC student is not that easy. Why? Because it requires more effort. We must pay extra time to our studies and extracurricular activities as well. Besides, our teachers expect us to be above the regular students.We are considered and trained to be the best of the best, the cream of the crop so that the moment we enter college, were all armored. And eventually after college, we are the ones who are expected to be the leaders. Not just with Math and Science, but also with our government too. We are learning more and e are learning in the hard yet the best way to be a good leader someday. This class brings out the best in us. It lets us see the best that we can be.Being a student of SC is not only being the best in whatever field you have chosen to, but being the best student and citizen for the country. Its something special. It is something rewarding. And it is a responsibility. Why I deserve FOR Scholarship? By Janice-Serrate people, including them, is that we dont deserve to be here, to be in this Special Science Class. They said that there are more intelligent students in the star sections t is only luck that brought us here, but in fact, we are here because we deserve to be.SC is no Joke, because the entrance examinations are already a real deal sweat and blood. So it hurts like theres a knife stabbing us in front, hearing those words now theyre the one whos lowering our self-esteem. An intelligent person has an open mind. He knows how to accept criticisms. And as a student who belongs in the Special Science Class, we use their criticisms as a determination, a key to prove them eventually after college, we are the ones who are expected to be the leaders. Not Just

The Soundtrack of Your Life

Music is a key factor in my emotional state, now and has been for as long as I remember. Music is one thing that nookie control my mood and emotions unlike any other. The sounds and melodies of the com fleck have the potential to sway my moods from a dark gloomy state all the way to a joyous and soothing harmonic atmosphere. Music allows me to control how and what I want to be, or represent. Music is almost like picking step to the fore a deary offfit. When one picks out an outfit to wear they most likely pick an outfit that ex pinches them and how they ar feeling at that direct moment.They have the ability to smorgasbord shoes, accessories, or their hairstyle to make it appealing to their particular desires, just as one has the will to change a song on their ipod, or flip the blood line on a local radio station. Recently, my life has been undergoing many changes. I am now starting to apply myself in a way that allows me to break away my potential and show forth the results as an outcome of the pursuance of fulfilling my aspirations. More than ever now I am starting to realize that you get out of life what you put in. Life is dependent only on what you bring to the table.If one tends to put in minimal effort therefore one should not expect to experience a great aftermath. I have chosen three songs that apply to my life right now in the stance that I am currently in. Its ironic that all of these songs argon from different genres, songwriters, and generations still, they somehow tie into my life perfectly. The primary(prenominal) theme of the soundtrack of my life is overcoming obstacles and ever- changing that are essential to the growth and the perseverance of an individual. Natasha Bedingfields song Unwritten has made quite an impact on me.When I first perceive the song all I could really say is wow. This song made me feel empowered in a sense and I matte inspired to go out, make a difference and do something great. She explains how the world is offered to you and that its up to you to decide not only your fate but your luck and how your life will end up. She states I am unwritten, merchantmant read my mind, Im undefined, Im just beginning, the pens in my hand, ending unplanned. By reading these lyrics and interpreting them more as a poem I realized the true and pure essence of this lyrical stanza.I believe the message of this is to convey that although were taught received things as simple as proper etiquette and how to act, that doesnt define us. Its almost as if the writer is referring to herself as anonymous, as if she doesnt really know herself but, in the process is trying to reveal and create herself transforming from a nonentity into a being with an individual personality, demeanor, and identity whether she knows where shell end up or not. This line can apply hugely to my life.I am 17 now and as a child we were all conditioned and taught to behave in a certain manner. Now that I am older I feel as if I can speak f or myself and in a sense reincarnate or change myself into what I want to be instead of what my parents have taught me. I think that being a child one doesnt always really know who they are other than what they are told that they are. I still dont know exactly who and what I am but, being in this position I feel as if I can create a new identity with myself without having to know exactly where and how I will end up.This songs main message was not only that you are who you say you are to be but also that perseverance is a choice that we all have to fill advantage of to prosper on our own terms. Miley Cyrus song The Climb is a basic analogy of my life as a whole. She states that through life anything charge having is going to take some struggle and hard work if its something that one truly wants to be successful at or accomplish. Though, her lines in her song are very simple they are simple enough in nature to strike with a hard meaning.Miley states the struggles Im facing, the chan ce Im taking, sometimes might knock me down, but no, Im not breaking. These effortless lines may knock againstm juvenile but are very mature and take a leading stance in my life. I am transitioning from the mind of a child into an adult. I might not necessarily make the right decisions all the times or the best moves but, I never give up on my ending goal, which is to be just a more wholesome and better person.I realize that theres always gonna be another mountain, Im always gonna wanna make it move, always gonna be an uphill battle, sometimes Im gonna have to lose, aint about how fast I get there, aint about whats waiting on the other side, its the climb. Miley Cyrus has never stated my life in general in a better way. This song can be considered the epitome of how I animated and the thesis for this paper alone.Finally, I would like to introduce the classic song off of the movie Space Jam that has respectively impacted my life. This song scarce is real and to me defies the esse ntial steps in creating growth in myself. This song teaches that one mustiness be able to see and visualize themselves in an exercise in order to touch the sky or in other words overcome an obstacle that would once never be thought of or made possible. This song is none other than the 1996 billboard topping hit of I Believe I can Fly by R. Kelly.Kelly sings confidently see I was on the verge of breaking down, sometimes silence can seem so loud, there are miracles in life I must achieve, but first I know it starts inside of me, oh, if I can see it, then I can be it. Through my conquest of life I have had times where faith has been broken and when all seems to fail my life has just spiraled out of control. This song is like a pick me up, and booster station to reassure that in the end all will be well if you just let go and believe wholeheartedly that things will work out for you.This also means that staying positive is key to a change that you are wanting to see in yourself but, essentially you have to be proactive and press on to change and develop yourself into the idol that you have created in you mind for yourself. In the end the soundtracks of my life are austerely defined as overcoming obstacles and changing essentially to the growth and the perseverance of an individual. If anything I think that I am drawn to these songs because of the messages that they bring.Its not the catchy beats, the talented artist, the flashy unison videos, or the encoded messages that draw my attention forth but rather what the song has to offer to me in such a plain way. In considering things as outlying(prenominal) as the music that I listen to I am very eclectic. If the track can provide me with insight, motivation, or reality of life then I most likely will be listening to it. Its not so much of what we are listening to but, more so why we are listening and engaging in an artistic piece of music.

How to Build a Backyard Kennel

? How to Build a Backyard Kennel? By Kimberly Mathis The most eventful thing, ab bulge out building a backyard kennel, is what size, what strength and what features are needed for your drop behind. What is a backyard leaper kennel? A backyard dog kennel is a small, skirtd in area used to contain your dog. It is an area used to keep your dog safe and contained while outdoors. It is non recommended that your dog stay in the kennel permanently. In fact, dog psychologists recommend that you allow your dog time in spite of appearance as well. What size do you need? Well, what size is your dog?If you pitch a small dog, you wont have to build a big yard. The larger the dog, the bigger the yard. A yard has to be big enough for your dog to eat, sleep, and use the bathroom. A dog will not soil the area where he eats. This is very important because if you have a large dog and you put him in a small kennel, he has nowhere to eat and do his business. The size of your dog, also, depends on how heavy you need to make it. You also need to ask yourself How long is my dog exit to stay in this kennel? As I mentioned before, it is not a good idea to make the kennel your dogs permanent home.It causes anxiety in your dog. It also causes behavioral differences in your dog. Okay, lets get started. First, you will need to get supplies. instantly most of the supplies can be bought at a local feed store or a local hardware store. You will need the sideline Wooden Support Poles. You postulate these poles to be 6 ft high and at least 4 inches at the base. Unless you have a big dog, thence you want to go taller with the posts. We dont want the dog to jump out of his cage and cause a unpleasant mess. U-nails is also required. These will help hold your fence in place. You will also need fencing.The experts prefer you to use portable metal fencing. You will need a gate for your kennel. This gate needs to be heavy and with a latch. That way your pooch cant push it open and esca pe. Finally, you will need a hammer and a screwdriver. Next, you will need to mea certain out where you are going to put this kennel. You need to make sure that it is big enough so your dog can run around yet not so big it inhibits your whole yard. Then you go and buy your materials. Remember that your yard is outside and should be able to withstand the forces of nature. Pick your spot. Make sure that there is shade and sunlight.A grassy yard is a good thing. It helps recycle the dogs urine and feces well. You also want to make sure that when it rains, it isnt going to fill up with mud and puddles. These can cause serious problems for your pet. Make your fence. Put your posts in the ground approximately 2 feet down and 4 foundation apart. After you put in your posts, you want to put the dirt in around them and pack them down well. It will help your fence stay hardy and strong. Now you are ready to attach the fence. You will attach your fence by using the U-nails. The experts say t o use 3 per post. You are almost finished now.The last thing you want to do is attach your gate. Now to attach the gate, you have to make sure that it will close. that was a little irritability. I would be the type to put a gate on and it not close properly. The gate should have a latch on it. You want to screw the hinge onto a post. Check that the gate swings easily. I cannot express how important it is that the latch work. I actually have a backyard dog kennel that was built almost exactly like the one I am describing. There is no latch on the gate. This creates a problem. My dog manages to push the cover bricks, that are holding the gate shut, out of the way.With a latch, I wouldnt be having this problem. I have stated previously that I have a backyard kennel made almost exactly like the one I described. I found that it doesnt work very well. I have a wolf song type of dog and she digs out from under the fence. My suggestion would be to lay concrete down and make sure the fen ce is in the concrete. Also, with a large breed dog, you will want to make sure that it is high enough so your dog will not crawl out of it. We have had that problem as well. I searched for different sites to help me write the best description of a backyard kennel and found further one.It is apparent that most sites do not recommend putting your pet outside in an enclosure. I, personally, am one that doesnt find anything wrong with it. I tried to let my dog inside and she ate my house. She likes being outside. Unfortunately, she likes to be UNDER our house and that is not acceptable. So we built her a dog yard with house and a porch and a mobile canteen area. She is living the life of dogs out there and doesnt seem to like it. She is constantly figuring ways to escape and go under our home and into our duct system. I refuse to put air conditioning in her house.We have a state-of-the-art dog house that is under a perfect shade tree. The only solution, that I could come up with is th at I am going to have to install concrete around the fence line. I am hoping that it works and keeps our dog in her yard. I did my essay on this subject in hopes of finding out what we did wrong. Unfortunately the only thing I see that we did wrong was qualification it her permanent home. I really didnt learn a lot about this but it was a fun and informative subject. This is how to make a backyard dog kennel. http//www. ehow. com/about_4568749_backyard-dog-kennels. hypertext mark-up language

Postponement

carrying St appraisegy Materials Management End Term Project (Term IV) find 15th September 2009 Submitted To Submitted By Prof. Vivek Kumar Namrata Agarwal(81031) Prof. Kaushik Paul Neha Gupta(81034) Contents Chapter 14 groundwork4 1. 1 What is grip? 4 1. 2 A specific example5 1. 3 Postponement in operation7 Chapter 29 Literature Review9 Chapter 314 When is Postponement Appropriate? 14 3. 1 The Postponement/Speculation (P/S) Matrix14 3. 2 Costs & Benefits of Postponement15 3. 2. 1 More mannikin15 3. 2. 2 memorial reduction18 3. 2. 3 Better forecast accuracy19 . 2. 4 Inventory fol low-pitched reduction20 3. 2. 5 Logistics be reduction22 3. 2. 6 Improved client profit levels22 3. 2. 7 Increased yield nurture address23 3. 2. 8 Increased manufacturing cost23 Chapter 424 Case Studies24 4. 1 Automobile Manufacturing GM24 4. 2 Aircraft Manufacturing Embraer26 4. 3 Clinical Equipments Dade Behring29 4. 4 Sports Goods Manufacturing Reebok32 4. 5 Xilinx34 Chapter 536 Conclusion36 Chapter 638 Future of clench38 6. 1 Services and grip38 References40 Chapter 1 Introduction Over the past 2 decades, logistics activities have geted increasing strategic importance for most companies.Fixed cost of harvestion have ext demised, consumer commands have become more than complex and be harder to predict, both in time and bewilder. Technology is rapidly changing and tiptop of intersection life cycles have shortened while merchandise ply has increased. Now more than ever, companies argon faced with the challenge of producing an increasingly large variety of products in a responsive manner while keeping materials and instrument to a minimum. These issues represent signifi arset challenges for companies producing and selling in a variety of international merchandises.Not notwithstanding does make vary from earth to country, but products quest to be altered for disparate markets in consideration of differences in language, culture and local meters. Increasingly, companies be using a schema known as handgrip or mass customization to improve customer assistance and minimize the disengage chancess associated with making different products in different countries. This paper presents a framework for understanding storage atomic number 18a and how it mess be implemented. Also, with the help of successful case studies potential savings as well challenges in carrying out will be exaltedlighted. . 1 What is Postponement? The term deferral refers to slow decision-making about a product. It is beneficial to delay commitment to product-specific characteristics as late as possible in rules of order to eliminate a mismatch between orders and gillyf discredit on hand. The length of delay is specific to a product but the customary strategic motivation is to gain better information about customer demand by waiting to customize a product for a particular market or customer. At the gunpoint of time lag a standardized staff or programme starts to acquire customer or market specific characteristics. token 1-1 shows the spectrum of opportunities for time lag that extends from procural to statistical distribution. The point of postponement can occur as early as the design phase and as late as publicity and distribution. Postponement at the manufacturing stage has arguably the most potential for cost savings in entry due to lay on the line pooling. Other points of specialisation can occur in the manufacture, labeling, promotional material, or distribution phases. many postponement can even occur after the point of sale in the form of assistance hug drugings. picFigure 1-1 viable points of differentiation in the turn in range of a function Postponement enables forecasters to make better predictions about end product demand everywhere time since the standard staff is built-to-forecast and the destroyed product is built to a better forecast or even built-to-order. Lee and Whang 20 observe th at shorter the time horizon over which predictions are made, the more accurate the forecast. The benefits are better end product forecasts and the ability to respond quickly to demand signals by keeping unfinished goods in armory awaiting concluding multitude or customization.Postponement also earns opportunities to lower instrument costs due to risk pooling because goods are kept in unfinished or component form and can be used to assemble more than one type of finished goods. The monetary abide by of an unfinished good is flyspeck because it is not committed to becoming a finished product and lacks the added judge gained in nett assembly. 1. 2 A specific example Consider a uncouth case of postponement involving a fast food restaurant. Burger King started a trend with the have it your authority marketing jingle as a way of advertising the value of getting a customized sandwich fastThis strategy ensured the customer that separately order would be made single(a)ly at th e time of purchase not taken from a batch of pre-made products. In a restaurant, ingredients are ordered in aggregate because it is not known what the closing customer orders will be. Ingredients that are common to all sandwiches, analogous(p) buns and lettuce, are ordered ground on a total forecast of gross revenue for for each one type of sandwich. Having a bun and lettuce put in and waiting for last(a) assembly is the political platform for the sandwich. The rest of the ingredients, like cheese, meat, and pickles, are components that are specific to each end product.If more of one type of sandwich is ordered or little(prenominal) of an different, the total number of buns is not affected by this exit in demand, however, the amount of cheese would be. It is much less costly to throw out a piece of cheese and use the platform for another order than to throw out an entire sandwich. At Burger King, inventory is managed at the aggregate level. thither are four choices of meat and three different types of bun. In gain to buns and meat, there is the choice of cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, pickles and onion.In total Burger King can p orchestrate 768 different sandwiches as show in Table 1. 1. They know that it is costly to try and predict individual customers preferences so they aggregate orders into common platforms which consist of a bun, patty (chicken, beef, fish, or veggie) and lettuce, reducing the options from 768 to 128. Once common components are paired together in a platform, the number of options reduces dramatically because variety is determined by multiplying the number of options together. Once the platform is specified by a customer the rest of the sandwich is made-to-order. Component Number of Options Patty 4 Buns 3 Cheese 2 Bacon 2 Lettuce 2 tomato 2 Onion 2 Pickle 2 marrow Combinations 768 Table 1. 1 Sandwich options at Burger KingThis example illustrates how postponement through platform design and var.ing individua l components instead of finished goods is able to mitigate the risk associated with producing a good variety of products. This concept can be applied to more than just food. Examples of products which can benefit from postponement include consumer appliances, automobiles, apparel, and even airplanes. These products have one or more of the following characteristics mellow degree of forecast un certainty, modularity, and high inventory carrying costs. 1. 3 Postponement in operation Operational postponement can be applied in one of devil ways manufacturing and assembly postponement and logistical postponement.Manufacturing and assembly postponement involves the engineering of a product as a module or platform which can take on several different features thereby increasing the variety of end products. The point of postponement can occur as early as the design phase. The negotiate product is stored in inventory and awaits customization. The value added through assembly or manufactur ing may be performed at a polish facility or at a warehouse just before shipping. Manufacturing and assembly postponement involve decisions made while the product is in toil. Engineers seek to design a product as a module or platform which can accept different attachments or features in order to transform the appearance and or lick to increase product variety.This concept was referred to as a vanilla box by Swaminathan and Tayur 42 because the generic platform is one without any customized value and is therefore the common denominator among a family of different products. Logistical postponement takes into account all other types of postponement involving logistical decisions like packaging, labeling, and distribution. Packaging and labeling postponement traditionally applies to small consumer goods products like razors, batteries, compact disks, film, and snack foods. Large retailers like Wal-Mart and Target require different configurations of computer software programs to ac commodate their customer demand and shelf space capacity and to differentiate goodness products. Gillette is well known for their packaging postponement operations.In 1996, Gillette decided to outsource the packaging of their health and beauty situations to Sonoco. Bulk quantities of products are sent to Sonoco to await final packaging. Once orders are received appropriate packaging configurations are assemb take and shipped to retailers. Manufacturers spend a significant amount of capital and labor trying to satisfy the variableness in demand for different configurations for their retailers. However, companies like Gillette, that focus on their core competency, innovating and manufacturing razors and razor blades, push the risk onto their packaging supplier. Sonoco assumes the risk of forecasting for the different retailers which allows Gillette to produce to an aggregate forecast.The benefits for Gillette included a reduction in order ful stuffment time from six calendar weeks to one, a 15 part decrease in packaging inventory, a 10 percent improvement in inventory accuracy, and a 15 percent reduction in packaging costs. Not only does this pull round Gillette from mismatching demand and configurations, it allows them to focus on engineering, design, and manufacturing of new products instead of packaging. Gillette avoided plant expansion, has a focused factory workforce and is winning favor with retailers by being so responsive. Another example of logistical postponement is the postponement of decisions made about the product during its distribution hightail it time (from finished product to customer sustainy). run, a common producer of household appliances, provides a good example. Customers of Whirlpool include retailers like Sears and Home Depot.Holding inventory of large appliances such as refrigerators and airstream machines at local stores is costly because of the high product value and the space taken up in a backward storage room. For this reason Whirlpool will send finished goods to a central distribution center and ship directly to the home once a customer order is placed. This method acting saves the retailer in inventory cost and eliminates additional transportation cost by bypassing the retailer. In addition, it reduces the risk that is inherent in sending a consecrated number of products to individual stores and having to transship orders between retailers. Chapter 2 Literature Review Sources date the idea of postponement as remote back as the mid-twenties and the kickoff use of postponement as a manufacturing strategy as early as the 1950s.Early mention of postponement suggested that costs due to risk and uncertainty were a function of variety and that an efficient means of producing a product is to postpone changes in form and identity to the latest point in the marketing flow and postpone changes in inventory location to the latest point in time. In 1965, Louis Bucklin accept that little had been done in the area of postponement despite its tremendous potential for cost savings. He defined total cost as the sum of inventory be persistentings cost and delivery cost, both of which are a function of delivery time. He argued that a speculative inventory will appear at each point in a distribution channel whenever its costs are less than the net savings to both buyer and seller from postponement.In other words, postponement is not cost impelling when there is sufficient information about demand to produce finished goods in mass and store them in inventory. For some products it makes intelligence to postpone the terminate process by introducing a finishing cost and increasing the delivery time because the product is not pronto acquirable from stock. Zinn and Bowersox 50 classified postponement into five-spot distinct types labeling, packaging, assembly, manufacturing, and time. Labeling postponement assumes that products are standardized until they receive a label distinguishing th em by brand. Packaging postponement is take up suited for products in which variation is determined by package size.Paint, chemicals, medicine, razors, and many food items sold in bulk are good candidates for packaging postponement. multitude postponement is applied to products in which variety is based on cosmetic features like cars, iPods, t-shirts, and printers. Hewlett-Packard (HP) provides an excellent example of assembly postponement. Printers designed for different global markets are inherently the same product except for country specific power supply modules, power cord plugs, and instruction manual of armss. HP makes two types of printers in Vancouver a US version and a generic version that is customized once it reaches a distribution center in Europe, Asia, or the Pacific based on country specific orders.One benefit is decreased transportation cost because printers are shipped in bulk and are considered vanilla until they receive the value-added approachingories like la nguage manual and power supply. Manufacturing postponement occurs when parts are shipped to the finishing center from more than one supplier. It has the greatest potential for cost savings in inventory because the value of the product increases through the addition of each successive component. Manufacturing postponement usually cases in higher(prenominal) toil costs. The increase is due to the capital cost of displacement machinery between different types of variety and shipping them to different finishing facilities.Time postponement occurs when finished products are shipped to centralized warehouses approximate to the customer than the manufacturing location. The motivation is to increase customer service levels by decreasing customer lead time and to respond quickly to orders by placing inventories closer to the customer without committing to an individual order. Postponement fiber Potentially Interested Firms Labeling Several brand names laid-back unit value products High product sales fluctuations Packaging Variability in package size High unit value products High product sales fluctuations Assembly Selling products with several versions High volume incurred by packaging High unit value products High product sales fluctuations Manufacturing High proportion of ubiquitous material High unit value products High product sales fluctuations Time High unit value products Large number of distribution warehouses Table 2. 1 Potential Utilization of Postponements The final outcome of their research is a framework which serves to assist managers in determining what type of postponement is best for a given over product or supply drawing string structure. Table 2. 1 shows a list of the postponement types and the firms which would benefit from implementing each type of postponement.Swaminathan and Lee 42 go further and identify the factors which influence the costs and benefits of postponement as market factors, process facto rs, and product factors. Market factors refer to characteristics of demand and uncertainty. Process factors refer to characteristics of operating policy within the firm as well as the out-of-door supply chain of mountains, such as managerial support and the location of and relationship with suppliers. Product factors refer to the design and characteristics of an individual product such as constitutive(a) versus modular and inventory carrying cost. They also highlight enablers of postponement such as process standardization, process resequencing (redesigning the assembly process to move value-added processes closer to the customer), and component standardization.Redesigning products with these characteristics makes postponement possible and reduces the risk to the manufacturer by eliminating redundant processes and designing products to be modular and component interfaces to have standard ports for easy assembly. Alvin Lehnerd and Marc Meyer 21 offer a expound look at the benefit of engineering products to be platforms for a family of different products. The authors define two terms which are the basis for postponement. Product platform a set of common components, modules, or parts from which a stream of derivative products can be efficiently created or launched Product family a set of products that parcel of land common engine room and address a related set of market applications These are both concepts that Black and Decker (BD) considered when they started to redesign their line of power tools.In the mid-seventies BD replaced customized parts with standardized components, interfaces, and connections in order to pool the part inventory and save on component inventory costs. Components included common screws, gears, and the motors which powered 122 different power tools. At a cost of $17 million over three years, BD was able to fully integrate its supply chain, reduce scrap rate from six percent to one percent, reduce failure rate from 11 percent to less than five percent, and reduce the selling price by half(a) while still maintaining a 50 percent margin. BD was also able to reduce the number of suppliers and push its competition out of the market. This is one of the first cases of postponement using product platform design.Product platforms are also common in automotive and aircraft design. Lee, Billington, and Carter 20 discuss Hewlett-Packards strategy when it created a single platform for its DeskJet Plus, Deskwriter, Deskwriter Appletalk, and the DeskJet 500 series. A major source of variant for HP was the final shipping destination. HP ships its DeskJet Plus printers to North America, Europe, Asia, and the South Pacific. Each one requires a different power supply module and language manual. Under the DC-localization initiative printers are shipped from the manufacturing center in Vancouver and arrive at a local distribution center (DC) without language manuals or power supply modules.The DC supplies the remaining coun try specific features and packages the printers for final sale. This allows HP to pool the risk of stocking inventory by destination. Taking the process a step further, HP realized that Vancouver was close enough to the US where it could act as the local DC and hence two different types of printers are produced US and non-US versions. This example illustrates how postponement is used in multiple ways for a single product. The designers at HP had to create a printer with a generic power supply port which is a form of assembly/ issue postponement. The local DCs had the job of tack together a final product complete with instruction manual, power supply, and the appropriate packaging material.Robert Stahl and Thomas Wallace 47 propose a framework for implementing postponement by classifying products fit to two factors product complexity the number of product varieties, and speed the time from customer order to delivery. This results in four levels of differentiation as shown in Figu re 2. 1. pic Figure 2. 1 Complexity vs. Speed Matrix 47 Companies in each of the four quadrants have different challenges when adopting a postponement strategy. For example, a company in quadrant B produces a product that has very little variety but takes a long time to produce and deliver to the customer. Wallace and Stahl suggest that a company in this quadrant focus on speed by reducing the lead time from suppliers and expedite the delivery to the customer.They can accomplish this by implementing lean manufacturing initiatives, up(p) the work flow, and reexamining the location of their suppliers in terms of distance to the customer. This dilemma illustrates the trade-off between cost and service level. One way to take advantage of conflicting suppliers and still achieve fast delivery is to decouple the merchandise process and hold inventory of talk terms product locally. Chapter 3 When is Postponement Appropriate? Postponement has the potential to lower the total delivered co st of a product. However, postponement does come with its own costs to implement and maintain. The benefits outweigh the costs when postponement is implemented right for the right type of product.For products with certain characteristics postponement allows companies to offer more variety, improve forecast accuracy, reduce inventories, and improve customer service levels. With these benefits come the costs of implementation and manufacturing. 3. 1 The Postponement/Speculation (P/S) Matrix Pagh and Cooper (1998) veritable a simple but very powerful conceptual model to show the course of postponement strategies that could be adopted by companies. Four generic strategies were identified full speculation, logistics postponement, manufacturing postponement and full postponement. These were presented in the form of a matrix as shown in Figure 3. Logistics Speculation Postponement Manufacturing Speculation The full speculation strategy The logistics postponement strategy low p roduction and distribution costs low production costs high customer service and high inventory low/medium customer service and inventory costs costs high distribution costs Postponement The manufacturing postponement strategy The full postponement strategy low distribution costs low inventory costs and customer service medium to high production costs, medium/high production costs inventory costs and customer servicehigh distribution costs Figure 3. 1 The P/S Matrix (Source Pagh & Cooper, 1998)The strategy of full speculation represents a complete reliance on forecasting, where all differentiating manufacturing operations are performed prior to the product being moved to different markets (push based arranging). The strategy of full postponement represents the highest level of delay in the supply chain (pull based system). As shown by Figure 3. 1, the decision about which strategy to use is essentially a tradeoff between different levels of customer service and inventory, production and distribution costs. 3. 2 Costs & Benefits of Postponement The question arises, when is the postponement strategy appropriate and when it is not? Where should a company position itself on the P/S matrix?In order to determine the most appropriate level of postponement that should be practiced, the benefits and the related costs moldiness be weighed accurately. 3. 2. 1 More variety Having variety allows for a closer match between customer preferences and offered products leading to increased sales and (sometimes) increased prices. The build-to-order strategy pioneered by Dell shows how manufacturing a product according to customer specifications is one way to offer a large variety in a cost effective way. Dell offers enough options for their Dimension 4600C desktop to build over 100 million different computers using juntos of the components listed in Table 3. 1. Parts Options Intel Pentium 4 5 Operating Systems 5 Productivity Software 6 Memory 8 Hard Dr ive 4 Floppy/Storage Device 4 CD/DVD Drive 6 CD/DVD Software 4 Storage Devices and Media 2 Keyboards 3 Mouse 4 Monitor 9 Total Combinations 100million Table 3. 1 Component List and Options for Dell 4600C Just like Burger King, Dell does not stock each of the 100 million varieties. Instead, they wait for customers to place an order before they build a machine. They have perfected this strategy so well that they are able to shape demand and produce popular combinations to forecast. Dell can offer discounts on combinations that are popular because of economies of scale and can carefully encourage customers to choose components that are in-stock using discounts. This strategy allows them to offer a quick turnaround and ensures that customers will not have to wait more than a week for a new product.Figure 3-2 shows a system dynamic interlace topology measuring different factors that affect the number of product variety offerings. There are seven loops in the figure. The reinfor cing loops (denoted by a verifying arrow) show factors which increase the growth of product variety. The balancing loops (denoted by a ostracise arrow) show factors which inhibit the growth of variety. pic Figure 3-2 Systems dynamic loop cover product variety proliferation Loop one is a reinforcing loop that shows how variety grows because of the need to satisfy individual customers needs. The more customers see that their needs can be met, the greater their satisfaction in finding a unique product. This can force their expectations to be greater which narrows down markets even further.Loop two is a balancing loop that shows how a company reacts when it has captured most or all of the market, suppressing the need for innovation and excess product variety. Loop three is a reinforcing loop that shows what happens when there are multiple firms competing for market share. As a companys customer base increases it continues to innovate and offer more variety as a private-enterprise(a) advantage. Loop four is a reinforcing loop that shows the effect of technology on product variety. Loop five is a balancing loop that suggests that customers will become saturated with information and buy the product which offers them the best value given their search costs (time and information processing). As the number of choices keeps growing, negative aspects of having a multitude of options begin to appear the negatives escalate until we become overloaded 38. When too much variety exists, companies must tradeoff between offering variety and holding inventory. Loop six is a balancing loop which shows how high variety is traditionally associated with higher unit costs. When the unit cost increases, the customers willingness to pay for that variety goes down unless the extra cost adds value to the customer, which is the goal of customization. Similarly, in loop seven, as production lead time increases, customer service levels drop and customers are less willing to wait for varie ty without some compensation in terms of added value.Loops six and seven are opportunities where postponement can change the direction of the loops from balancing to reinforcing negating the traditional trade-off that exists between higher costs and variety with poorer levels of service. Postponement allows for more variety through standardization and holding intermediate product inventory and better customer service though relocating final assembly closer to the customer. 3. 2. 2 Inventory reduction Reduction in inventory under a fixed level of service is another benefit of postponement. When companies increase variety they increase the number of SKUs they must maintain which translates into higher inventory costs. Each SKU is subject to different forecasts and therefore require different levels of safety stock. Safety stock buffers against sudden increases in demand.Holding safety stock ensures better customer service but is also expensive because of inventory holding costs. In a study of the effect of product variety on production-inventory systems, Benjaafar and Kim 8 found that inventory levels increased linearly with variety. They also found that cost was most sensitive to demand variability, capacity constraints, and set-up costs (assuming a fixed cost to switch the production line between products). This highlights the risk associated with having too much variety for products, especially those with high demand variability. Companies can mitigate this risk by standardizing parts, holding more work in process (WIP) inventory, and postponing customization. 3. 2. 3 Better forecast accuracyDelaying the final customization of a product until more information is available allows forecasters to make better predictions of finished product demand. In order to delay customization, however, it is necessary to define what features or components make a product unique. Figure 3-3 shows how postponement reduces the variability of end product demand and saves on total inventory cost. pic Figure 3-3 Demand accuracy of postponed and non-postponed operations over time Using Figure 3-3, suppose that coffee mugs come in five different colourings. The demand for each color is an independent random variable normally distributed with mean ? i and standard deviation ? i where i = 1 5 for each of the different colors and ? i = ? ij and ? i = ? ij for all i and j.Total demand for mugs is N( i, v i2). The standard deviation for the demand of white mugs, v i2 , is less than the sum of the standard deviations of the individual demand, v i2, which explains why aggregate forecasts are less explosive. Additionally, forecasts generally improve over time therefore, ? i,T ? i,t where T t and ? i,t is the standard deviation in demand of mug i at time t. In this example, assume information about demand gained in the period up until time L/2 reduced the standard deviation of demand for each individual mug by half. Also, assume that at time L/2 the finishing time is equal to the customers willingness to wait.The producer is thusly forced to start painting the mugs at time L/2 to meet the customer demand on time. The variability of demand for mug color is more accurate at this point than it was at the start of the manufacturing process. It makes sense, therefore, to produce i or 5? uncolored mugs at time zero and then paint them at time L/2 assuming there are no additional switching costs incurred in this two-stage model. 3. 2. 4 Inventory cost reduction The amount of variety also affects inventory levels and hence, cost. The appropriate inventory level for a single SKU during a period of time consists of stocking the evaluate demand plus safety stock.Safety stock acts as a buffer to avoid stock-outs. Holding more safety stock improves customer service levels, but it comes at a cost. There are many formulas and practices for determining safety stock, however, this simple fixed safety factor approach assumes demand is normally distributed and is commonly used to determine the appropriate level of safety stock, ssi , given a certain level of customer service, ssi = k ? i (3. 1) In par 3. 1 k is the safety stock factor which is based on a given level of service desired by the producer and _i is the standard deviation of the errors of forecasts over a given period of time.The amount of inventory, hi , to have at the beginning of an order cycle for a single SKU is given by hi = ? i + ssi (3. 2) Assuming that all colors of mugs have the same mean, ? , and standard deviation, ? , of forecast errors, total inventory, H, is a function of the number of varieties, n, H = n(? + ss) (3. 3) Without postponement, inventory cost increases exponentially, not linearly, withn. However, as mentioned above, if orders are aggregated and produced in unfinished form, the total overall variation decreases. For example, assume each mug has the same mean forecast, ? i = 50 and standard deviation or forecast error, ? i = 2 for all i.The company regards to maintain a customer service level of 98 percent which equates to a safety factor of k = 2. 05. A comparison of the amount of inventory requisite to satisfy the variability in demand at the beginning of the production cycle with and without postponement as variety increases is shown in Figure 3-4. pic Figure 3-4 FGI under postponed and non-postponed operations Not only is the amount of inventory less under postponement, the cost to hold a single SKU is also lower because the product is unfinished. There is still the cost of stocking components for the finishing process (paint) but it is less expensive to keep the mug in an uncommitted state and hold the paint in component form. 3. 2. 5 Logistics cost reductionThe above mentioned case of postponement illustrates delayed customization involving painting the exterior of a pre-produced standardized good, a coffee mug. Many examples of postponement exist where points of differentiation occur as early as the design phase and a s late as product labeling and packaging. A modular product design offers more opportunities for outsourcing non-core processes, like packaging and distribution, to third parties. This can happen both onshore and offshore depending on the location and distance of the end customer. In both case, the manufacturer can save money by shipping products in bulk instead of in packaged form which usually adds extra weight and volume. 3. 2. 6 Improved customer service levelsCustomer service levels are defined in terms of lead time how long it takes an order to arrive, and item fill rate how often orders are filled from inventory on hand. Providing customers with orders quickly can be the result of improvements in manufacturing processes or by repositioning inventory closer to the customer. Customer willingness to wait is a key factor when assessing a product for postponement and determining the location of the postponement point within the supply chain. If customers are willing to wait a l ong time for a product then there is no benefit from expediting orders or sourcing components or processes closer to the customer even if they can be done cheaper overseas.On the other hand, if customers are only willing to wait, for example, one week, then the supply chain must be structured so that the finishing lead time and delivery time is less than or equal to one week. This breakpoint between initial and finishing lead times is called the decoupling point and separates production into two stages. The length of time for the first stage is not visible to the customer and therefore all options for achieving lower manufacturing costs can be exhausted. The second stage of the supply chain (from intermediate product to delivery) must be structured in a way that offers the customer the highest level of service without sacrificing cost. 3. 2. 7 Increased product development cost Another cost of postponement is the cost of design.If a product does not already have a modular design but meets all of the necessary market characteristics then it is worth(predicate) researching the cost of redesigning the product for postponement. The benefit of a modular design is the flexibility it creates for other products within a family. However, there is a balance between too much modularity and its effect on product variety. The risk of too much modularity is a lack of differentiation between products. In addition, the cost to switch manufacturing operations between varieties is sometimes responsible for reducing economies of scale that could otherwise result. In terms of cost, product redesign can take engineers months translating into increased research and development costs. 3. 2. 8 Increased manufacturing costThere is a considerable amount of financial investment and commitment required to reconstruct the supply chain to support postponement. Manufacturing cost per unit may increase due to a restructuring of the production process into two or more stages. There should be dedicated areas for postponed activities in a warehouse and easy access to loading docks. If all manufacturing is not done in-house (which is more likely than not) implementation may require additional facilities to support final assembly and distribution. This also requires more labor at a higher skill level to complete kitting, final assembly, and packaging as opposed to the lower skilled labor required for loading, storing, and sorting. Chapter 4 Case StudiesThe following case studies give detailed information about several companies that have adopted postponement in some capacity. It is worth understanding the motivations and risks that they incurred in order to understand how companies can determine whether their product is a candidate for postponement. Each case provides background on the company and product that is postponed, a description of the supply chain before and after postponement was adopted, the decoupling point between intermediate product and finished good, costs and benefits, and discusses how the supply chain is structured to take advantage of offshore manufacturing and local final assembly. 4. 1 Automobile Manufacturing GM The auto intentness is a prime candidate for postponement for many reasons.First, a car is defined as a modular system of components. This creates probability for commonality by producing a platform and adding modular subassemblies customized according to the make and model and ultimately the end user of the vehicle. Second, individually customized vehicles have high forecast variability. As this case points out there are far too many varieties to accurately forecast each combination and there is typically disagreement on the forecast within the different divisions of a company. Third, cars devalue as presently as they are driven off the lot. New models come out each year which new features, technologies and capabilities. Lastly, high inventory holding cost.It is much riskier to hold a finished vehicle on the showro om floor than to have a partly finished good waiting for final customization because of the high forecast variability for end products and high product obsolescence cost. General Motors (GM) offers a unique look into customization during manufacturing and after the point of sale. By 2004, GM produced 68 different models in North America. There were over 200 facilities constituting 52 percent of their revenues. There were over 600 million combinations when all the different component variations and customer specific preferences (color, interior options) were considered. Forecasting was extremely unwieldy, considering these many combinations.Different divisions within GM used different methods of forecasting which further complicated the problem and led to excess inventory on the field. Searching for a way to create variety and mass customize beyond the idea of platforms, GM looked at software configuration, entertainment, and aesthetic features as a different way to use postponement . From a software standpoint, each of the systems within a vehicle can also be considered a unique central processing unit (CPU) made up of several electronic control units (ECUs). These include safety systems, engine, and transmission controls. In the nineties there were only one or two ECUs in a vehicle.Now there are as many as 30-35 per vehicle because software is becoming increasingly essential in automobiles for voice recognition, global positioning systems, and entertainment. Before postponement, GM experienced the effects of product variety proliferation and high inventory costs of stocking ECUs for individual models. The ECUs came to GM in finished form with all of the software pre-loaded. Suppliers charged GM a premium for custom software induction which not only raised the price but also created problems with repair and maintenance. GM decided that they would assume the responsibility for software configuration and postpone the installation until the latest possible poi nt in the assembly process. In order to accomplish this, GM had to redesign both the assembly process and the ECU hardware.In the mid-1990s GM achieved the capability to install custom software for individual orders towards the end of the vehicle assembly process. The ECU now comes from suppliers to GM in a generic form. The hardware is a common platform which can receive customized software in just 81 seconds. GM dealers also had to acquire the capability for flash programming for individual cars at the point of sale as well as after-market upgrades. After realizing that software could be postponed, GM looked at other systems that could be delayed until purchase. They recognized the emergence of the accessory market for vehicles as another way to differentiate and increase revenues.Entertainment systems have become far more sophisticated over the years and offer key differential options on a vehicle. Because of the plug-and-play capability, entertainment systems can be uploaded int o the vehicle at the dealer. Another key differentiator is the pedal set. Dealers are very involved in putting specialized wheels on a car to make it more desirable. Through the use of the internet, GM introduced an on-line purchasing website. Customers can log on to GMbuypower. com and point and click their way to the car of their dreams. GM offers a 99 percent guarantee that they will deliver the vehicle within one day of the projected delivery day to a dealer close to the customer.By 2004, about 18 percent of the cars in assembly at GM were custom made and 82 percent were made-to-stock for dealers and showrooms. The goal is to move to 60-80 percent custom orders but the shift is happening in different markets at different rates. GM is experiencing the benefits of postponement through delayed software configuration and customization. In a study to estimate the benefits of postponement, GM, along with MIT and Stanford University, developed a cost model which projected inventory co st savings to be 10-15 percent. Other benefits included maintenance cost savings due to the exceedingly communized ECU hardware and having GM software engineers solve repair issues instead of sending parts back to suppliers.GMs main goal, however, is to create a more pliant supply chain that can handle higher throughput and is more responsive to immediate demand. 4. 2 Aircraft Manufacturing Embraer The commercial aircraft production at Embraer provides an example of production and assembly postponement in the airline industry. The motivation for postponement was to focus on optimizing cash flow by creating a flexible supply chain that can provide the right airplane to the right airline company. In other words, the goal is to give customers the ability to change their decision regarding customizable features, or to bring out an order completely, by designing the aircraft to accept these changes as late in production as possible.In response to the changing dynamics within the aircr aft industry Embraer differentiates its new family of regional jets based on the number of seats. The new family of regional jets, the Embraer 170, 175, 190 and 195, focuses on a high degree of parts commonality as all four jets have exactly the same cockpit and fly-by-wire systems. Embraer decided to implement postponement in order to make its supply chain more flexible and able to respond quickly to changes in demand. This was evident when a customer, US Air, had to cancel an order for six ERJ 170 aircraft because of financial constraints in October 2004. With the majority of the production complete it was too costly to go back and change any of the customized features and reconfigure it for another airline.Embraer developed a strategy for postponing as much of the high value features, like engine type, software, radar devices, and interior specifications as possible. Not only did it save on costs, the flexibility to change order specifications became an attractive alternative to livelihood out of an order or having to pay for costly reconfigurations. The current supply chain at Embraer is structured to allow for two postponement points throughout the production cycle as illustrated in Figure 4. 1. The first point occurs roughly one year before delivery to the customer where the platform is differentiated based on product family (170 versus 190 family of aircraft).Six to eight months later it will assume the configurations, engine, software and hardware which distinguish it as a 170 versus a 175 or 190 versus a 195 aircraft. After this point the customer specific features such as seating arrangements, galley configurations, and tail art are added. pic Figure 4. 1 Lead time break down of value added components and features Embraer still builds-to-order because of the high cost to hold a finished airplane in inventory. The white tail concept (analogous to a vanilla box) allows the production processes to begin and run in parallel with some of the steps that u sually take a long time to complete such as certification for safety, avionics, and entertainment systems.Total lead time for production is usually 24-36 months because of the long lead time for suppliers. Production begins 12 months before delivery and the order is considered 90 percent frozen or unchanging. However, some customers change their mind within the final month of production. Embraer is committed to evolution the idea of postponement further within the company. Any flexibility that can be gained through delaying the customization makes Embraer jets more attractive to a customer facing the uncertainties of the aircraft industry. Engine, avionics, interior and galley layout are some of the hardest subassemblies to change and also have the highest value.The white tail concept allows Embraer to have flexible production in its new family of 170/190 aircraft. They do hold some inventory of semi-finished aircraft that await orders from larger companies in the corporate jet mar ket because the orders are more predictable. Embraer represents a company that is practicing postponement and is not seeing huge savings in inventory. Instead they redesigned their process to accommodate the addition of components based on value to the customer and degree of customization. Better service levels and customer satisfaction give Embraer a competitive advantage in a very competitive market. 4. 3 Clinical Equipments Dade BehringDade Behring (DB) is an industry leader in clinical symptomatic equipment and reagents. Their customers include over 25,000 hospitals and reference laboratories which require instruments that analyze human fluids such as blood and urine. They have global operations in more than 34 countries and currently deliver products in six main areas Chemistry, Immunochemistry, Hemostasis, Plasma Protein, Microbiology, and Infectious indisposition Diagnostics. DB diagnostic instruments are high value with a retail price ranging from $20,000 to over $200,000. Demand forecasting is a challenge due to long buying cycles ranging anywhere from six months to two years. Forecasts are generally compiled from sales representatives predictions.Because of the high cost of the products, the decision making process and financial constraints of the customers, it is somewhat difficult to know when products will be ordered. Additionally, instruments were designed/ configured to local country power requirements which exasperated the forecasting impact. As a result, DB was plagued with less than best service levels for some instruments and higher than planned inventories for others. All of these conditions were catalysts for a postponement strategy, which became even more important as a result of an industry-wide European directive. The first postponement strategy involved designing flexible power capability into the Dimension Chemistry/Immunochemistry analyzers that Dade Behring designed and produced.Originally Dimension was offered in either a 110 V o r 220 V power versions. To optimally manage inventories of these instruments, DB collaborated with an external supplier to replace the power supply module with a universal power supply. During the redesign phase engineers were able to develop the universal module at a lower cost because of advanced technology which was previously unavailable. The cost to produce the universal module was actually less expensive than supplying two different versions. Then, a second postponement strategy was put into place due to the European IVDD initiative. In 1998, the In Vitro Diagnostics Directive (IVDD) was ublished as the third of three European directives which required medical and diagnostic equipment to come packaged with local language manuals and labeling. The regulation gave 17 countries the right to specify the national language that would come available with each instrument for which they contracted. In total 12 different language manuals were eventually required. The instrument manuals are approximately 350 pages in length and therefore it did not make sense to create a single manual with all 12 languages included nor package 12 different manuals with each instrument. DB initiated the switch to language specific packaging in the industry through the postponement of packaging materials at distribution centers and flexible language capability within the operating software.This is a straight former process accomplished by marrying a language specific accessory box to the instrument during the shipment process. Shortly after achieving successful packaging operations, DB initiated another postponement strategy in their Chemistry product line. This next strategy was to redesign the product so that it could be configured-to-order at the end of the assembly process. There are currently four variations of the Dimension Chemistry/Immunochemistry Analyzer Series. Dimension is offered as RxL Max Basic and RxL Max HM (heterogeneous model), or as an Xpand Plus Basic and Xpand Plus HM. Through a carefully designed manufacturing process, Dade Behring is able to manufacture a specific model as soon as that specific model is shipped to fill a customer order.This strategy involved the redesign of the manufacturing process so that the analyzer could be configured-to-order at the end of the assembly process. This meant that all of the commonalities between the two different variations of each model would be combined into an intermediate product that would be produced to a forecast, stored as intermediate inventory, and configured-to-order once an order was received. The redesign phase took a team of engineers six months to make changes and train workers on the assembly line. The supply chain as shown in Figure 4. 2 became vastly more efficient and service levels increased dramatically. pic Figure 4. 2 Dade Behring supply chainCustomer service levels improved and inventory was significantly reduced by eliminating the need to store high value finished goods. Inve ntory across the supply chain was reduced through a 50 percent reduction in buffer or safety stock. Service levels went from oscillating between 70-100 percent to greater than 98 percent. Once DB was able to improve service time to customers they started looking at their distribution centers and found opportunities to improve distribution strategies, given the improved flow of instruments through the manufacturing process. Because the opportunity cost of a lost sale in this industry is very high, distribution centers would store finished goods as a way to mitigate the risk of instrument shipment delays.However, when service levels improved, DB found that they could eliminate 50 percent of their global buffer inventory by eliminating the stocking of instruments in distribution centers in Asia and Canada, and reducing inventory levels in Latin America. Their primary instrument warehouses in the US and Europe service their global instrument distribution needs. The make-to-order and inv entory management strategy provides DB with a decisive advantage in the industry. This is a sheer example of the benefits of the successful implementation of postponement. Because of this success, DB was able to continue developing postponement in other lines of instruments. Today, more than 85 percent of instrument production at DB involves some form of postponement compared to less than five percent five years ago.By redesigning the Dimension instruments to be easily adaptable for configuration, DB realized that the product could also be easily de-configured back to the intermediate stage to support the secondary market for instruments. 4. 4 Sports Goods Manufacturing Reebok As a licensed supplier for the NBA and NHL and principle supplier for the NFL, Reebok knows the difficulties that come with satisfying the demand of a very fair weather crowd. When teams do well more team apparel is demanded. The demand for a player specific jersey is inherently more volatile than for a give n team. Meeting customer requirements within a short period of time is a major challenge in the sporting goods industry. Sales of t-shirts and jerseys are not too predictable because Reebok does not know which teams will be hot at the beginning of the season.Demand for jerseys averages 30,000 per week or 1. 5 million each year. The different choices of team name, player name, color scheme, and size makes it extremely difficult to predict demand of an individual item during the pre-season. The idea of postponement in this industry is not new. Images of silk-screen companies working overtime minutes after an NCAA basketball championship game, illustrates the idea of postponement. These manufacturers know that it is better to wait until there is certainty about the outcome of a game before producing apparel with the losing teams name on it. As a result they keep white or blank shirts on hand ready for printing.At this point in the supply chain it would not make sense to put in an order for finished shirts from scratch to an overseas manufacturer (even if it costs less to make the shirt). The long lead time would mean abstracted the increase in sales generated within two weeks after a big win. This can be anything from an important mid-season upset, a new player enter the roster, players becoming hot, or the end of season championships. Reebok recognized this as an opportunity to restructure the supply chain to cater to both stable items finished apparel that is produced to a forecast much earlier in the season, and customized apparel. The difference in the lead time for both of these items is significant. Retailers expect lead time to be 3-12 weeks for the stable items and as little as one week for the hot items.Reebok outsource the cutting and sewing of fabric to contract manufacturers in Central America. Some of the jerseys sent to Reebok are finished meaning that there is a customized team and player name already on the garment. Other jerseys, called team f inished jerseys are sent with everything but a players name. These go straight to a distribution center that Reebok owns and operates in Indianapolis. The blank or team finished jerseys help satisfy two different types of demand. The first is for the hot players or players who sign with a team late in the pre-season and the second is for the players who have a small, but somewhat predictable demand. pic Figure 4. 3 Reebok Supply Chain According to Figure 5. the blank jerseys arrive in the US and are ready for screen printing and embroidering. The decision to have a separate facility in the US is a result of the end customers involuntariness to wait. Fans expect to find the jersey they are looking for in a store. There is a chance they will be less likely to want one if they have to wait weeks to get it especially when an NFL team only plays 16 games per season. At a price of $25 for a long-sleeve t-shirt or $250 for an authentic jersey, the cost of lost sales is greater than the co st to ship, unpack, finish and reship a jersey from a local finishing center. Reebok is a classic example of two-stage production with postponement.They are able to take advantage of lower labor costs for the production of blank jerseys and optimize service levels by work the final assembly in the US. This also creates local jobs in the areas of textile and silk-screen printing. 4. 5 Xilinx Xilinx is a semi-conductor manufacturer with headquarters in San Jose, CA. The semi-conductor industry is very volatile due to the wide variety of products and short product life cycle. Semi-conductors manufacturers are supplied to OEMs in the telecom, small electronics, and aerospace industries. However, they have a supply chain of their own which requires assembling and configuring wafers of silicon into programmable dies which later become integrated rophys.Their position in this multi-echelon supply chain makes forecasting for specific end product demand costly, impractical, and very inaccu rate. In addition, semiconducting material manufacturing is quickly becoming a commoditized process. Comparative intellectual and technological benefits that leaders in this industry were accustomed to are now becoming less of a competitive advantage. The focus has shifted from intellectual advantage to supply chain efficiency as a means of differentiation. The life cycle for an integrated circuit is anywhere from six months to two years. During that time new technology will make existing products obsolete. Having long manufacturing lead times cripples a companys ability to quickly respond to these changes as well as changes in customer specific orders.Having a generic product and creating a postponement point separating a die with generic qualities and one with a specific logic configuration allow them to respond quickly and offer flexibility to their customers. Xilinx began with a combination of both process and product postponement. Product postponement was implemented by redesi gning the dies to a certain range of parameters for the different characteristics. For example, there are four major sources of variety in an integrated circuit speed, number of logic gates, package types, and voltage. Customers can specify generic capabilities and can customize the chip to their specific specifications after the fabrication stage. The amount of variety makes postponement very beneficial.Xilinx can manufacture 200 different dies that can proliferate into over 4,000 different end product combinations. That makes the ratio of generic dies to end products roughly 120. The manufacturing process is broken up into two stages. Suppose a certain generic die, A, can be configured to take on 20 different configurations, A1, A2, A3, , A20). When a customer requests the specifications, they only need to specify the generic die. Once it is pulled from A inventory, it is customized to a certain degree depending on customer order specifications. This specification can take place at Xilinx for high volume orders or it can be delayed even further so that the point of customization occurs at the customer.Approximately 20 percent fall into the high volume category and the remaining 80 percent are left for customization at the customer. The final customization is a matter of programming the software within the chip. By eliminating this process from the front end (manufacturing) process, Xilinx cut manufacturing lead time from three months to three weeks. Manufacturing usually takes place in Taiwan or Japan and then product sits in inventory at Xilinx awaiting testing. examination facilities are located in Korea, Taiwan, and Japan. While postponement has reduced inventory and helped Xilinx meet customer requirements with more accuracy and on-time deliveries, it is just the beginning.Postponement within the semiconductor industry will extend far beyond customer configuration capabilities. Chapter 5 Conclusion The case studies presented in this paper come from a wi de variety of industries. Each company was successful in implementing postponement for similar reasons, but have seen a wide variety of results. The most common strategic motivation for starting postponement were to improve service level and to reduce inventory holding cost as a result of an increase in product variety. One of the key factors in successful implementation is product modularity. If a product is not inherently modular, a successful postponement strategy requires a redesign of the product or a rethinking of product definition.In the cases of small consumables, the end product is not a razor blade or a disk, but rather a finished configured package destined for a particular retail outlet. The relationship between forecast variability and the decision between a make-to- stock or a build-to-order strategy is also a common factor. Products with stable demand stand to gain little from a postponement strategy because there is little benefit for delaying production when sales are committed. On the other hand, products with high variability gain from postponement because there is no commitment to final configuration until the order is placed. A company should determine the location of variability when deciding to implement postponement.Variability can be caused by product variety, unreliability of customer orders, seasonality, trends, promotional activities, or it can be a result of the supply chain itself. Varia