Critical Thinking Discussion and Summary Essay Example for Free

Critical Thinking Discussion and Summary Essay I dont know if there is a universal correct definition of critical thinking. I think this a very individualistic tool used by humans to break down different problems and situations and the best way to go about coming up with the best resolution in a non-biased manner. Gathering a thought process that is reasonable and with demeanor. This is simply how I would personally define critical thinking. Thinking things over more than once, second guessing yourself here and there, seeing things from multiple perspectives, and most importantly thinking if your thoughts would be different from the other side of an argument or situation. I think critical thinking is important for us to fully understand ourselves and our situations as well as others and their situations. Critical thinking is considering multiple angles and viewpoints and trying to understand them and where they come from, as well as why they exist. In my life personally, critical thinking has always been something I would like to think Ive had due to being raised in a very diverse atmosphere and a very diverse community. Ive seen racism towards more than one race, Ive seen both sides of different biases, and I have lived in a small town closed minded community as well as the middle of a large densely populated city. It makes you think differently than most around you. It seems like you feel differently than most around you. There isnt much that surprises you so there arent many situations that you are uncomfortable in. You think before you act, you think before you speak, and you take time and consideration to realize the type of environment you are in and the people you are surrounded by. Things like this dont go through every young persons mind before acting or speaking. You slow down, you react calmer, and you try not to get too high or too low. From this course I dont think Im looking for how to think critically as much as why some of us do think critically and some of us dont. I think Im looking for more reasoning for the differential than a definition of critical thinking.

Inventory Management in a Multinational Company

Inventory Management in a Multinational Company Inventory may be desirable, even necessary, for smooth operation and good customer service in many situations. For instance, inventory can be used to reduce the lead time to respond to customer demand, to smooth out the production rate when there are variations in demand, and to protect the company from underestimates of demand (forecast errors) or shortage of supply. Reasons such as these, plus the fact that inventory is considered an asset on a companys balance sheet, have led many companys to carry excessive amounts of inventory. Some companies for example, the Japanese manufacturer Toyota, have become known for their ability to operate with low inventories and to achieve a high inventory turnover. (Inventory turnover is basically the ratio of sales to the average inventory level, both measured at cost or retail price.) The Japanese approach is to keep in process inventory low and to achieve quick flow of the product through the production cycle. Being able to respond quickly to d emand, companies can work from a shorter range forecast, which is more accurate, so they need less safety stock to protect from uncertainty. [1] 2. Aims and objectives Inventory management is an important concern for managers in all types of businesses. For companies that operate on relatively low profit margins, poor inventory management can seriously undermine the business. The challenge is not to pare inventories to the bone to reduce costs or to have plenty around to satisfy all demands, but to have the right amount to achieve the competitive priorities for the business most efficiently. [2] Aims and objectives of this thesis are as follows: Deciding where to position inventory Determining when to replenish inventory Calculating how much to order Determining the placement of safety stock Refacilitating the use of business resources for profitable business results Ensuring the target level of inventory is available to support demand. 3. INVENTORY Inventory is defined as the stock of any item or resource used in organization [3]. An inventory system is a collection of people, equipment and procedures that function to keep account of the quantity of each item in inventory and to determine which items to buy or produce in what quantities and at what times. Even very simple method that accomplishes these functions cost money to operate. Some inventory system requires transaction reporting to keep track of every instance in which units are added to or taken from the existing inventory. This perpetual inventory records can be expensive, but the additional expense can be justified for products that are relatively expensive to hold in inventory 3. 1. CYCLE INVENTORY The portion of total inventory that varies directly with lot size, is called cycle inventory. Determining how frequently to order, and in what quantity, is called lot sizing, two principles apply. The lot size, Q, varies directly with the elapsed time (or cycle) between orders. If a lot is ordered every five weeks, the average lot size must equal five weeks demand. The longer the time between orders for a given item, the greater the cycle inventory. At the beginning of the interval, the cycle inventory is at its maximum or Q. at the end of the interval, just before a new lot arrives, cycle inventory drops to its minimum, or 0. the average cycle inventory is the average of these two extremes: Average cycle inventory = This formula is exact only when the demand rate is constant and uniform. However, it does provide a reasonably good estimate even when demand rates are not constant. Factors other than the demand rate also may cause estimating errors when this simple formula is used. 3.2. SAFETY STOCK INVENTORY To avoid customer service problems and the hidden costs of unavailable components, company holds safety stocks. Safety stocks inventory protects against uncertainties in demand, lead-time, and supply. Safety stocks are desirable when suppliers fail to deliver the desired quantity on the specified date with acceptable quality or when manufactured items have significant amounts of scrap or rework. Safety stock inventory ensures that operations are not disrupted when such problem occur, allowing subsequent operations to continue. Figure 1: Various types of Inventory To create safety stock, a farm places an order for delivery earlier than when the item is typically needed. The replenishment order therefore arrives ahead of time, giving a cushion against uncertainty. Inventory used to absorb uneven rates of demand or supply, which businesses often face, is referred to as anticipation inventory. Predictable, seasonal demand patterns lead themselves to the use of anticipation inventory. Anticipation inventory also can help when supply, rather than demand, is uneven. A company may stock up on a certain purchased item if its suppliers are threatened with a strike or have severe capacity limitations. 3.3. ANTICIPATION INVENTORY Inventory used to absorb uneven rates of demand or supply, which businesses often face, is referred to as anticipation inventory. Predictable, seasonal demand patterns lead themselves to the use of anticipation inventory. Anticipation inventory also can help when supply, rather than demand, is uneven. A company may stock up on a certain purchased item if its suppliers are threatened with a strike or have severe capacity limitations. 3.4. PIPELINE INVENTORY Inventory moving from point to point in the materials flow systems called pipeline inventory. Materials move from suppliers to a plant, from one operation to the next in the plant, from the plant to a distribution center for customer, and from the distribution center to a retailer. Pipeline inventory consists of orders that have been placed but not yet received. Pipeline inventory between two points, for either transportation or production, ca be measured as the average demand during lead time, , which is the average demand for the item period (d) times the number of periods in the items lead time (L) to move between the two points, or Pipeline Inventory = = dL. [2] 4. BATB Inventory Management There are some standard management theories as we described earlier in chapter two. The operational environment varies firms to firms, companies to companies. Based on the different varying conditions most companies do manage the inventory at their own. They do not follow exactly what the theory implies but analyzing the theories they go for the decisions that suit them most effectively and efficiently. The goal should not be to minimize inventory or to maximize customer service but rather to have the right amount to support the competitive priorities of the company. 4.1. BATB Inventory System BATB inventory system can be compared with a two-bin system in which an items inventory is stored at two different locations. Inventory is first withdrawn from one-bin. The two-bin system implies that if the first bin is empty, the second bin provides backup to cover demand until a reenlistment arrives [2]. BATB has the flexibility to locate their inventory at different points from supplier to warehouse at supplier premises which is very good advantage for a company. The demand manager and the MPS manager reviews the inventory positions on the daily basis and then go for receiving the lot from the pipeline inventory. This indicates that they are maintaining the pipeline inventory. It helps them reduce the lot size to be stocked at warehouse. BATB Inventory includes: Finished goods Bled sets Filter rods Wrapping materials Leaf Tax stamps Bandle rolls The study is mainly focused on the leaf. Because this is the major concern in any cigarette manufacturing company as it holds the maximum cycle time. We will work with the raw materials inventory. Mainly BATB has two types of materials. These are wrapping material and Tobacco. They receive raw materials from both local and foreign suppliers. Foreign suppliers are mainly from Brazil, Argentina, Canada, South Africa and Zimbabwe. For local suppliers average lead-time is 10 to 15 days and for the foreign suppliers lead-time is 90 to 120 days. Leaf is supplied by both the local and foreign supplier. But ignoring the local leaf as it takes less time, we will take the imported leaf in account to analyze. Leaf Strategy Leaf is an agricultural plant, which must be cultivated, and it needs certain period to get matured. Therefore the ordering policy of leaf is very time consuming. They have to place the order very early of the time it is needed to arrive. Suppose they need 1000-ton leaf in the month of April 2008, they inform their supplier right now that is in the month of April 2007, so that they can cultivate the leaf and then deliver. In addition, it is to be mentioned that just after the arrival in the warehouse the leaf is not as ready as to be used for production. It goes under another certain period of time for maturation and then is under for production. But if we talk about the lead-time it will include only the days between order placements to arrival at warehouse. 5. SAFETY STOCK Usually one does not know precisely the number of units that will be demanded each day during the lead-time. The duration of lead-time may have unexplained or unexpected variation. Demand can be thought of a probabilistic variable with some expected amount of demand during a period of time and unexplained variations about the expected value. If inventory could be replenished one a moments notice there would be no reason to be concerned about demand uncertainty. Whenever inventory reached zero, stock would be held again. With some lead time between the placement of an order an its arrival, however there is a chance that demand will be greater than expected and loss will be incurred due to stockout. When stockout costs are high and demand is very unpredictable, the financial risk is sizable. Safety stock is a means of protection against this risk. Safety stock (SS) is established simply by raising the reorder level above the expected lead-time demand. For probabilistic demand during le ad-time, the reorder level is given by the following equation where represents the mean demand per unit of time. [1] RL= ( ÃÆ'- LT) + SS Safety stock is the average amount one hand when replenishment orders arrive. Sometime demand during the lead-time is less than expected extra stock is on hand. Sometimes demand is greater than expected and some of the safety stock is used. 6. Methodology Step 1: Conducting a primary survey. Step 2: Preparing primary questionnaire Step 3: Modification of the questionnaire Open-ended questions: This type of questions found out the view of the decisions makers out for gathering information regarding the subject topic. Close-ended questions: These types of questions were designed to extract information which are related to the preparation of a realistic forecast: Step 4: Performing the case study and conducting the interview Step 5: Data processing and analysis 6.1 Demand Forecasting Strategy Demand manager receives the sales history of the previous 4/5 years. He observes the trend that every month undergoes. There are some seasonal impacts in the cigarette market. But overall the market is a stable one. Following the trend of previous 4/5 years and considering the marketing activities, the demand manager goes for a rolling forecast over the next 18 months. The term rolling here implies that the forecast is updated every month for the next 18 months. Stable Trend-up Trend-down Figure 2: Trends of Demand By this, the demand manager feels flexible enough to consider any new promotional activity or any assumption from the marketing department and any seasonal impact, which has not been included earlier. The main focus of forecasting is based on the trend. If the trend is decreasing the forecasted sales goes down and vice versa. 6.2. Findings Imported leaf stock: Year end 2008 imported leaf stock was 317 million Taka Average 2008 leaf stock was 334 million Taka (~ 4 months duration) Currently, they are following an inventory policy of maintaining a 90 day safety stock which varies in quantity and value terms over the year with fluctuation in demand. 7. ANALYSIS The assumptions presented in the chapter two have been considered applicable to develop the EOQ for the imported leaf. Considerations: Grade: AN30/104S Demand in Kg/Month: Annual Demand = 152000 Kg Holding Cost = 32 TK/ Kg Ordering Cost = 700 TK (Assumed) EOQ =à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã… ¡ (2DS/H) = à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã… ¡ ((2*152000*700)/32) =. 75Kgs Kgs 7.1 HOW MUCH TO ORDER The analysis shows that the company should order 2579 kg for the particular grade each time, a quality that should be result in 58.93 cycles per year. Actually, the equation derived doesnt result in actual lot size that must be ordered. This will help to manage lot size and inventory control. The current moves towards the inventory cost and quantities, stress the importance in reducing lot size. That means to reducing lot sizes is to reduce setup time and cost. When smaller lots are run, holding cost is reduced. The point is to understand the logic and where to apply it. The effect on order size resulting from reducing setup cost is shows in the following figure. When the setup cost is reduced, the total cost curve shifts from TC1 to TC2. Correspondingly, the EOQ is reduced from EOQ1 to EOQ2 and the maximum total cost is reduced from TC1min to TC2min.[3] Figure 6: Effect of reduced set up cost on order size and total cost 7.2. Reorder level The order quantity and reorder level are interrelated. A large order quantity causes fewer replenishment cycles with fewer exposures to stockout, so the reorder level can be reduced, and vice versa. Theoretically, we would have to find simultaneous solutions to equations for Q and RL to find their normal values. The value of D, S and H are only estimates, and the value of the EOQ will be approximate whether or not an adjustment is made for the expected stockout cost. Consequently, as often as done, we disregard the interrelationship between Q and RL. We solve for the EOQ, ignoring its effect on stockout cost, and then we find the best reorder level for this value of Q. Assumptions: Highest Service Level Factor corresponding to 99.99% satisfaction level used though recommended maximum level is usually 98%; this results in a more than 50% higher safety stock ii) Safety Stock calculated using standard deviation of actual demand rather than variance between forecast and actual giving higher levels of safety buffer. iii) Lead time taken to be 4 months for all grades whereas actual lead time is considerably less providing greater safety stock to cover variation in demand during lead time. Calculation: RL = L + z Where, RL =Reorder Point in Units, =Average Demand Per Time Period, L = Lead Time,Z = No. of Standard Deviation for a Specified Service Level,= Standard Deviation of Usages during Lead Time Annual Demand =152000 kgs Average Demand/Per Month =12666.66 L= 4 Months Z = 99.99% = à Ã†â€™d = à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã… ¡ (à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ (di-dà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢) 2/12), in a range from i-1 to 12 =à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã… ¡ (31066666.66/12) =1609.00 Therefore, = =1609* =3218 From the above calculation RL can be determined as follows: RL = 12666.66 * 4 + 4*3218 =50666.64 + 12872 =63538.64 This says that when the stock on hand gets down to 60610.26 kgs order should be placed. 7.3. Level of Safety Stock Safety stock= =4*3218 =12872 It results to a safety stock of 31 days, as the daily demand is 416.43 kgs. But theoretically it is applicable for the particular grade. Though the other grades do not involve so much variation in their demand, considering some logistic capabilities for the overall improved leaf the proposed safety stock is 50 days. This will allow for flexibility during roll out of new safety stock polling while guarding against unanticipated changes in sales and supply scenarios. The reason for proposing this amount of safety stock is to protect much against the uncertainty of demand. Because there may be a situation that for a sudden change in demands the system may not be flexible enough to meet the change from the calculated safety stock. This is due to demand forecasting that takes place over a long period and the order is placed for a particular month very early of the situation it experiences the change in its demand. So immediately it is not possible for the system to respond the sudden change in demand. For this, proper level of safety stock should be placed in a company for its smooth operation. Another fact is that the lead time from order placement to arrival at warehouse involves some events over which the proper control is not possible. The following section represents the impact of reduction of safety stock and then the analysis of lead time is shown. It is to be mentioned that the more the lead times the more the level of safety stock. Therefor e the lead time calculation is an important factor for the placement of safety stock. 7.4. BENEFITS CALCULATION GRADE: AN30/104S Annual consumption = 152000kgs 90 days safety stock = 38000kgs 50 days safety stock = 21111.11 Therefore, WC Reduction = (38000-21111.11)*165 =2.78 million Taka 7.5. OFFSHORE STOCK COST CALCULATION Reduction in safety stock = 16888.89 kgs This amount of excess stock will be held at supplier premises for a maximum additional period of 12 months. Holding cost at BATB @ 12% = 16888.89ÃÆ'-135.11ÃÆ'-12% =273823 Taka Holding cost at supplier @ 7.2% + Excess Duty =16888.89 ÃÆ'- 135.11 ÃÆ'- 7.2% ÃÆ'- 1.22 =200439 Taka Therefore, Savings =73384 Taka 8. IMPACT OF REDUCED LEVEL OF SAFETY STOCK ON WC Proposed Safety Stock based on lead-time, variability in demand during 2006 and desired service level indicates a substantially lower requirement of safety stock even with very conservative assumptions Using 2007 volumes this would translate to reducing imported leaf stock from an average of 322.60 Million TK. to about 179.18 Million TK. Jan 08 Feb08 Mar 08 Apr 08 May 08 Jun 08 Aug08 9. LEAD TIME ANALYSIS It has been already mentioned that the more the lead time the more the safety stock. Lead time involves the total time from the order placement to arrival at warehouse Figure 7: Supply Lead Time We can develop a pie chart highlighting the time taken on a percentage basis by different events that take place from order placement to arrival at warehouse. Symbols Events Average % A TIME TAKEN BW ORD PLACE PRO INVOICE REC 14.75 7 B TIME TAKEN BW LC REQUIEST 10.93 5 C NO. OF DAYS SPENT B/W LC SHIPMENT DATE 38.90 19 D ARRIVAL IN CTG (ACTUAL SHIPMENT ETA CTG) 35.10 17 E DAYS REQD CTG TO ICD 6.05 3 F DAYS REQD ICD TO WAREHOUSE 8.58 4 Table 1: Lead Time Analysis The pie chart shows that a major part of the time from order placement to arrival at warehouse involves the events C and D over which the control cannot be held so easily. They involve some complex as well as time taking procedures. But in case of the rest of the events different action can be issued very effectively. Figure 8: Events placed on Warehouse (Percentage basis) In addition there are some recommendations for reducing the lead-time in the next chapter. 10. RECOMMENDATION As the analysis shows that the company can reduce the level of safety stock, the first phase of recommendation represents how it can be carried out and the later phase defines the steps, which should be proper monitored and controlled with a view to, maintain an optimized inventory management system. This will enable to obtain an effective safety stock level. Allowing Inventory Policy Exceptions for certain grades to satisfy requirements for blend changes and brain launches. Reviewing and improving the order tracking process as necessary. Monitoring orders, delivery performance and safety stock policy adhere continually. Gradually moving to safety stock of 2.5 months and then to 50 days, with 6 months duration difference. Holding the excess stock at the supplier premises. Locating the inventory at different points in the pipeline rather to hold much in the warehouses. The following steps should be performed in order to implement the recommend actions: Developing operational excellence in demand forecasting so that there will be fewer surprises. Cutting the lead-time to reduce the demand uncertainty during lead time. Reducing the supplier uncertainty. Supplier reliability can be increased by sharing the production plans with them, permitting them to make more realistic forecast. Improving the logistics capability by planning the infrastructure to meet demand, then implementing and controlling the physical flows of material and final goods from points of origin to points of use. 11. CONCLUSION It has been revealed that the traditional inventory management system needs some modification depending on the situation or the operating environment, while inventory is management by a company. The different inventory models provide a different set of capabilities and opportunities to exploit different competitive priorities. Some members of different industries and consulting firms have already started to criticize classical inventory models seem fashionable. But prior to the operating conditions different classical inventory models can be considered as the decision making tools that will enable a company to take its step under conflicting pressure. All the system needs is proper integration of operation and business. This will smooth the flow of information and thereby implementation of such models would be openhanded.

Human Cloning Essay -- Science Biology Genetics Genes Essays

Human Cloning Ever since the cloning of the first mammal, the sheep Dolly, in 1996 by Ian Wilmut of the Roslin Institute, people have been begun to consider how they feel about human cloning. Is it possible? Should we do it? The overwhelming answer seems to be "yes" to the first question, and "no" to the second. "Yes," because cloning a human is not much different from cloning a sheep. The cloning procedure is actually so surprisingly non-technical that laboratories could easily begin conducting their own research on human embryos today. In fact, one physicist who researched fertility sciences in the 1980's, Dr. Richard Seed, says he can already do it, and is setting up a clinic. His clinic probably won't succeed, however, because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration would have to approve such a clinic before it could operate, and they probably won't (World Book 13). If he did set up a clinic, the result would most likely turn out the same as a similar event in 1993, when researchers used well-known techniques to begin artificially twinning humans. They immediately became "embroiled in a firestorm of public scrutiny," and they were "criticized by other researchers in the field for jumping ahead without scrutinizing the ethical ramifications" (Bohlin 4). Clearly, although we have this technology right at our fingertips, the general community doesn't feel right about using it. In a CNN poll taken of 1,005 American adults in 1997, 89% feel that cloning humans is morally unacceptable, 69% are afraid of the possibility of cloning humans, and 74% believe that human cloning is against God's will (Robinson 8). More recently, the Vatican condemned human cloning as being "perverse" (Been 1). The scientists who cloned Doll... ...es, but only if we take the dangers seriously. Works Cited Bailey, Ronald. The Twin Paradox. Reason Online. May 1997. Beddington, Rosa. Cloning. 1997. Been, Jennie. Can we and should we clone humans? Bohlin, Dr. Ray. Can Humans Be Cloned Like Sheep? 1997. Deltapoint, Inc. Human Cloning and Re-Engineering. 1996 Green, Ronald M. I, Clone. Scientific American. September 1999. Hawley, Aaron. Cloning. March 2, 1998. Kilner, Dr. John F. Cloning Around. Life Advocate. July/August 1997. National Bioethics Advisory Commission. Executive Summary - Cloning Human Beings. June 1997. Ramey, Cathy. Cloning: A Theological View. Life Advocate. July/August 1997. Robinson, Bruce A. Ethical Aspects of Human Cloning. January 15, 2000. Slouching Towards Creation. Time. World Book v 1.4 Cloning: Are Humans Next? 1999.

Romanticism and Realism in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown :: Free Essay Writer

Romanticism and Realism in â€Å"Young Goodman Brown†Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Herman Melville in â€Å"Hawthorne and His Mosses,† (The Literary World August 17, 24, 1850) has a noteworthy comment on Hawthorne’s romantic style:    And now, my countrymen, as an excellent author, of your own flesh and blood,--an unimitating, and perhaps, in his way, an inimitable man--whom better can I commend to you, in the first place, than Nathaniel Hawthorne. He is one of the new, and far better generation of your writer. The smell of your beeches and hemlocks is upon him; your own broad prairies are in his soul; and if you travel away inland into his deep and noble nature, you will hear the far roar of his Niagara.    Nathaniel Hawthorne’s â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† includes both the â€Å"inimitable,† nature-oriented style of romanticism as well as elements of realism.    M. H. Abrams defines romantic themes in prominent writers of this school in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries as being five in number: (1) innovations in the materials, forms and style; (2) that the work involve a â€Å"spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings†; (3) that external nature be a persistent subject with a â€Å"sensuous nuance† and accuracy in its description; (4) that the reader be invited to identify the protagonist with the author himself; and (5) that this be an age of â€Å"new beginnings and high possibilities† for the person (177-79).    Let us examine â€Å"Young Goodman Brown† in light of the above. First of all, Hawthorne was a real innovator in his use of the psychological approach to characters within a story. A. N. Kaul considers Hawthorne â€Å"preeminently a ‘psychological’† writer – â€Å"burrowing, to his utmost ability, into the depths of our common nature, for the purposes of psychological romance. . . .† (2). Q. D. Leavis says: â€Å"Hawthorne has imaginatively recreated for the reader that Calvinist sense of sin. . . . But in Hawthorne, by a wonderful feat of transmutation, it has no religious significance, it is as a psychological state that it is explored† (37). The reader experiences most of the story through the eyes and feelings of the protagonist, Goodman. In the following passage the reader is allowed, as is typical, to read his thoughts:    "Poor little Faith!" thought he, for his heart smote him. "What a wretch am I, to leave her on such an errand! She talks of dreams, too.

Lets Not Forget the Importance of Family Essay -- Research Essays

The Importance of Family My generation is one who emerged from a society of the eighties and through the nineties that has experienced amazing discoveries of countless measures. Over the last twenty years, we have watched our world evolve into a place decorated for its strengths economically. Many of us in the later years of our childhood became members of a group given the name the latchkey kids. Due to the needs of our economy as well as our home lives, both parents found it important to become members of the working class. The American culture of the United States puts a very large emphasis on a person’s sense of individuality. We are told from the time that we are born that we can be whatever we want to be and to set our goals high. Doctors, Lawyers, Teachers are some of the common careers that a young child chooses. They set a path for them to achieve this, and along the way may make sacrifices for this choice of career. They want only the best for themselves and would never dream of selling themselves sort. This very idea of self-sacrifice has sparked a curiosity in my own mind. When you ask a young child what they want to be when they grow up, you expect them to reply with an answer such as a doctor. What if that child said that they just want to be a mommy or a daddy? Do you think that the general feeling for this response would be a positive one? I have often wondered if due to the high emphasis on careers in our society, do people, or more specifically, my generation still consider having a family as important to their future? Or does their future only include their career? I, for instance, am a person of more personal than economic goals. I wanted to see if th... ...d it is comforting to know that my peers are reaching for their goals but not forgetting their personal lives. As with any research, there were limitations. If I had more time, I would have liked to interview and survey persons in my parent’s generation to find if when they were my age, did they feel they would have a family? I did everything that I believe I could to find the truth-value in my research, but I think that to look into the future it would have been beneficial to look at the ones who are already there, meaning our parents. My generation is the future, this I knew before this paper. But what I didn’t know, is that my peers have gone from children wishing to be doctors, to young adults following that path to get there. They haven’t sold themselves short. They have kept their dreams alive, and haven’t forgot the importance of family.

How important is that we are certain about what we claim as knowledge? Essay

How important is that we are certain about what we claim as knowledge? According to my opinion, it is crucial to identify what we claim as knowledge. The world has a lot of information but not all of them can be claimed as knowledge that is suitable to. Everything from your opinion to the life changing decisions you make are dependent on the knowledge that you identify as your own through your own perspectives and also through your experiences. To me, unnecessary knowledge is something a person does not have to have and does not need to be claimed by a person. To distinguish between necessary and unnecessary knowledge one must know what he or she believes in and would need to be steadfast to that topic. By doing this your knowledge will be refined, rather than flooded. By saying this, it does not mean that the knowledge you can collect should not be collected it is just that the knowledge that is refined to your stature is definitely going to help you better than any other knowledge that you collect that does not come under your scope. The importance of what we claim as knowledge differs from person to person and in the end the basic background and culture the person is from, will determine what knowledge he identifies and adores. All in all the knowledge that you have does not merely state what you know, it describes what kind of a person you are and how your life has been and will be! How important is that we are certain about what we claim as knowledge? According to my opinion, it is crucial to identify what we claim as knowledge. The world has a lot of information but not all of them can be claimed as knowledge that is suitable to. Everything from your opinion to the life changing decisions you make are dependent on the knowledge that you identify as your own through your own perspectives and also through your experiences. To me, unnecessary knowledge is something a person does not have to have and does not need to be claimed by a person. To distinguish between necessary and unnecessary knowledge one must know what he or she believes in and would need to be steadfast to that topic.

Nucor at Crossroads Essay

In 1986, three distinct segments defined the U.S. steel industry; integrated steel mills, mini-mills, and specialty steel makers. The integrated mills have the capacity to produce a maximum of 107 million tons of steel per year, mini-mills produced a maximum of 21 million tons of capacity a year, and the nation’s specialty steel makers could produce a maximum capacity of 5 million tons of stainless and specialty grades of steel. This leads to a total capacity of 133 million tons of production per year. In 1986, the market consumed only 70 million tons of steel, leaving 33 million tons unused. Nucor is at a crossroads. It faces a saturated market suffering from significant overcapacity. Nucor’s only opportunity for growth seems to be to expand into the production of flat sheet metal. However, to compete in that area, Nucor would need to invest in a very risky new technology, a thin-slab casting plant that, if successful, would allow Nucor to manufacture flat sheet metal with a low minimum efficient scale and a low marginal cost of production. This case will examine Nucor’s history, the impacts of entering the thin-slab casting business, the advantages Nucor would reap, and whether they should build the new thin-slab casting plant. Looking at the business landscape of the steel industry, it is amazing to see how well Nucor has done considering the industry is so competitive and has relatively low profitability. Using Porter’s model, the threat of rivalry is high due to weak domestic demand, excess global capacity, a maturing industry, low switching costs, high exit barriers, rising operating costs (increasing raw material prices), and more than 5 comparable competitors. The threat of entry is low due to high barriers to entry (economies of scale have been achieved and high capital requirements), growth and profitability are modest at best, and most viable candidates are already present in the industry and are looking to expand into other markets. The threat of substitutes is moderate because buyers have the option of choosing other materials (aluminum, plastics, ceramics, etc.), and new materials technologies are currently being developed and sought after. The threat of suppliers is moderate because iron ore and scrap metal prices are currently high, energy prices are increasing, Nucor pays for transportation of its raw materials to its plants, there is no easy substitute to take the place of iron ore/scrap metal, and there is currently an overabundance of buyers of scrap metal and iron ore. Lastly, the threat of buyers is weak to moderate, because there is excess capacity, low switching costs, few high volume buyers, many low volume customers, strong demand from China, and rising feedstock prices. With the difficult business landscape in the steel industry, Nucor had to develop competitive advantages over its rivals to achieve its success. These advantages included differentiating itself by being an early adopter of computerized order tracking and allowing customers to make short time orders thus reducing their inventory. Second, it invested in modernization of its plants at an average of 2.9 times its depreciation expenses vs. an ave raged of 1.6 of its competitors through the 1970s and 1980s, and refurbished on average a plant a year. Third, Nucor strategically located its plants closer together to share orders for minimal cost and maximum sales, and building new plants in smaller rural areas with access to railroads, low energy costs, and a plentiful water source allowed Nucor to keep labor costs relatively low and made sure that COGS remained competitive. Fourth, base wages were lower but incentives were higher than average, and direct communication on expectation vs. performance provided feedback on compensation. Also, during down times, officers and CEO pay dropped dramatically while average workers did not. This led to lower employee turnover 1-5% vs. 5-10% for competitors. Fifth, Nucor’s hiring practices focused on making sure that they focused on hiring people based on potential, not experience. Finally, Nucor’s business hierarchy was different- mostly flat, resulting in less bureaucracy and more productivity per worker. In short, many of these advantages led to Nucor becoming the second most productive steel maker per employee in the world due by 1985. Thin-slab casting was a proposed technique for mini-mills to fill orders for flat sheet steel, a segment that accounted for approximately half of the U.S. steel industry. To expand its steel market share, Nucor needed to enter the flat sheet segment. In the thin-slab casting business, Nucor would initially compete with international firms from Canada and Japan that provided high quality flat sheet steel, and cheap flat sheet steel providers in newly industrialized nations. Barriers to entry would include large capital expenditures making new entrants cost prohibitive, but not impossible as the barrier is small comparative to the overall costs for steel manufacturing. While new rivals may not pop up immediately, new entrants from existing rivals will dilute Nucor’s competitive advantage. Nucor needed an innovative technology to be profitable in this segment as a new entrant. However, innovative technologies are risky due to development costs, unknown long-term operating costs, and the unknown quality of future products. Also, as a first mover, increased costs will be realized. Increased maintenance above forecasts, the risk that production will not keep pace with the small-scale model, the risk that the new tech will not be fully understood by the employees and harder to run. Also, an increased likelihood that other companies will benefit from their mistakes as SMS has not made any offer to keep information gleaned from a large-scale operation confidential. However, the benefits of being a first time mover would be realized as well. The expected profit from the thin slab minimill would be $81.50 per ton, which is 26% higher than from a modernized hot rolled sheet produced in an integrated mill and 226% higher than the margin from an unmodernized integrated mill. For cold rolled sheet, the expected profit advantage remains with minimills, with an expected profit of $107.50 per ton, which 1.9% greater than a modernized integrated mill and 115% higher than an unmodernized integrated mill. If Nucor enters the thin-slab casting business the lasting advantages may be reduced over time as others in the industry may imitate them so long as the model is proven to deliver the targeted results. If Nucor works out the kinks, then other companies will join up and the competitive advantage window will shrink, making the overall scheme too costly. If the program does not work, it is likely the other companies will not follow suit, while Nucor pays the cost for other companies â€Å"R&D† offsite. However, if the investment into the new technology proves successful, Nucor would have a significant cost savings over integrated mills initially, both in terms of entry costs and in terms of operating costs and profit margin. This will provide Nucor with a significant competitive advantage over the integrated mills, which already provide flat-rolled steel products, but will not provide sustainable competitive advantage over the long term, as it will be easy for competitors to duplicate this technology. Many of the companies that do steel would imitate the path that Nucor is taking. They have done an excellent job of lowering cost while leveraging their competitive advantages. Furthermore, CSP is a step in the ultimate industry goal of direct casting of sheet at strip. However, it seems as though Nucor would only gain a head start of two to three years since SMS held the CSP technology and Nucor couldn’t block others from using it. This head start doesn’t seem very advantageous as it would require almost 5 years to break (see attached chart) even and the other companies would be able to use lessons learned from Nucor’s first mover and apply it to lower their breakeven point. Overall this would be a very risky undertaking for Nucor to undertake at this time as the technology is not at an adequate tech readiness level, the initial cost to implement, as well as it could move Nucor away from its competitive advantages.