yahoo ive done all my task 1-7, will submit my assignment tomorrow nite to my dearer lecturer miss NINA.. dpt uda nyaman tdo ni..wawawa :p

Struggling doing my Eco friendly assignment..what a Ez task..ada g yg labih payah ka? ehee

Chapter 5

Question 1

Define "direct materials" and "indirect materials". List reasons for a large company having two separate departments to manage the purchasing of each.

Direct material are those material which are easily identified, conveniently measured and directly charged to the cost of production. It is also part of the finished product. Example of direct materials are Timber in cases of furniture making, Leather in case of shoe making, cotton in case of shirt making etc. Materials, purchases and supplies used in the operation of the business, not directly associated with production and are part of in use expenses. As opposite to direct material

                                                              

                                                Figure1

Indirect Material are those materials which cannot be conveniently identified & allocated to the cost centre or cost unit. It does also not form part of the finished product. Example of indirect material are bottom in case of shirt making, Thread in case of shirt making, pin & paste in case of furniture making etc. Raw materials and other purchases that become a part of the units produced and incur expenditures that are easily traced to the units of output and included in the costs of goods sold. As opposite to indirect materials, such as office supplies.

The large companies used to have the separate departments for the direct and indirect material because large companies used to have much amount of direct material and indirect material on daily basis so it is very impossible for one department to carry out functions on the two. 

In conclusion, for the companies success they must need to have online and manual databases, so it is very important to have two different departments for these two materials to maintain proper cash books, receiving books etc.

Question 2

In about 200 words, describe the reasons a buyer might have for wanting to participate in an industry consortium marketplace instead of setting up its own private company marketplace.

An industry consortium marketplace is when a group that has similar goals comes together to rise above others. An industry consortium can also be known as a partnership. These partnerships can be very easy to establish. At the same time, an industry consortium marketplace can also have its disadvantages, such as disagreements or even some partners getting greedy and wanting more than others but in a partnership, each owner has the same amount of ownershipOn the other hand, a buyer might also want to participate in an industry consortium market instead of setting up its own private company marketplace because an industry consortium is a greater way to gain competitive advantage. Many buyers might want to participate in an industry consortium market because they feel that things will be cheaper than purchasing them individually. When buyers participate in a consortium, they will also have least work to do. The most important reason for participating in a consortium marketplace is because there comes more ideas with people and the better off that particular marketplace will be. The process of setting up own private company marketplace can be very expensive and it takes a lot of work. Some people have no idea where to start when setting up their own private company marketplace. Therefore, joining an industry consortium marketplace would be a lot easier and cheaper.A private company marketplace allows vendors to compete for a single buyers business. In this type of marketplace there is one single buyer and many sellers. This allows buyers to set the price that they want to pay and requires sellers to out bid each other to win the buyers business. In some case however, a company does not have enough negotiation power to force a supplier to deal with them in a private marketplaces. In these cases company's began to form industry consortium marketplaces. An industry consortium marketplace is a marketplace that consists of several large buyer in a particular industry.

The major reason a buyer would want to participate in a industry consortium marketplace is to increase their bargaining power. If several larger companies team up then it would attract more suppliers to that particular marketplace. This would effectively raise the supply while reducing demand which in turn would reduce prices.

There are actually 5 types of marketplaces, seen in the image below.

  Figure 2        

There are major differences between industry consortium marketplaces and private company marketplaces. In a industry consortium marketplace there are few buyers and many sellers since there are few buyers and many sellers prices are flexible. In a private company market place there is only one buyer and many sellers this has its advantage too because since there is only one buyer and many sellers the buyer can pretty much control the price they want to pay.In a industry consortium marketplace the buyers have control it is totally opposite for private company marketplaces the seller bids on major buyers instead of the buyers bidding. This is the major difference between the two in industry consortium marketplaces the buyer can choose what ever seller he wants. In the private company marketplace the seller chooses which buyer they want to sell to instead.

In conclusion, industry consortium marketplaces the prices are fixed. In private company market places prices are not fixed since the company is private they have control over every aspect of the sale.

562 words

Question 3

Which industries were the first to establish standard RFID technology? In about 100 words, state why, in your opinion, these industries were more interested in RFID tag technology than other industries.

The first disturbing fact is that RFID is not a new technology. It was first used over sixty years ago by Britain to identify aircraft in World War II and was part of the refinement of radar. It was during the 1960s that RFID was first considered as a solution for the commercial world. The first commercial applications involving RFID followed during the 70s and 80s. These commercial applications were concerned with identifying some asset inside a single location. They were based on proprietary infrastructures.The third era of RFID started in 1998, when researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Auto-ID Center began to research new ways to track and identify objects as they moved between physical locations. This research, which has a global outlook, centered on radio frequency technology and how information that is held on tags can be effectively scanned and shared with business partners in near real time.

                        

Figure 3

The (not so brief) History of RFID (Source: Deloitte Consulting: Lawrence Huntley, RFID - Why Now?, RFID Forum June 2004, Deloitte)

But what is RFID? RFID is the reading of physical tags on single products, cases, pallets, or re-usable containers that emit radio signals to be picked up by reader devices. These devices and software must be supported by a sophisticated software architecture that enables the collection and distribution of location-based information in near real time. The complete RFID picture combines the technology of the tags and readers with access to global standardized databases, ensuring real time access to up-to-date information about relevant products at any point in the supply chain. A key component to this RFID vision is the EPC.

Tags contain a unique identification number called an Electronic Product Code (EPC), and potentially additional information of interest to manufacturers, healthcare organizations, military organizations, logistics providers, and retailers, or others that need to track the physical location of goods or equipment.

In conclusion, all information stored on RFID tags accompanies items as they travel through a supply chain or other business process. All information on RFID tags, such as product attributes, physical dimensions, prices, or laundering requirements, can be scanned wirelessly by a reader at high speed and from a distance of several meters.

Reflective Writing 7

Summary what ive learned this week:-

Supply Chain Management

Topic covered:

• Creating value via the supply chain
• Benefits of using web technologies in supply chain management
• Materials tracking technologies
• Ultimate consumer orientation
• Building and maintaining trust

1. Supply Chain
2. Supply Chain Mangement
3. Supply Alliances

Key factors in successful , Supply Chain Management

• Clear communications
• Quick responses to these communications
• Ability to reduce costs and increase value of the product or service to the customer

Materials Tracking Technologies:-

• Optical Scanners and barcodes
• Integration of barcodes and EDI
• RFID (radio frequency identification device

Building and maintaining Trust:-

• Trust is a major issue in forming supply chain alliances
• eCommerce technologies provide excellent ways to communicate and share information
• Offer new avenues to build trust
• Vendors can stay in contact with customers cheaply and more easily
• Instant access to comprehensive information helps to create trust

Reflective Learning 6

eCommerce Business to Business Strategies

This week i learn  about topic covered:

• Purchasing activities 
• Logistics activities 
• Support activitites
• eGoveernment
• Electronic data interchange (EDI)
• Value-added networks (VANS)

Companies can use eCommerce to improve:

• Purchasing and logistics processes
• Support processes:

1. Finance 
2. Administration
3. Human Resources
4. Technology development

Reflective Learning 5

Emarketing Strategies

Topic covered:-

• Product-based marketing strategies
• Customer-based marketing strategies
• Market segmentation
• Customer behaviour
• Acquisition, conversion and retention of customers
• Customer relationship management (CRM)

1. Marketing Strategies
2. Product-Based Marketing Strategies
3. Customer-Based Marketing Strategies
4. Communicating with different Market segments
5. Market Segmentation
6. One-to-One Marketing
7. Usage-Based Market Segmentation

Personal Reaction

I have done my reflective learning this week.

Reflective writing 4

Emarketing Strategies

Topic covered:-

• Product-based marketing strategies
• Customer-based marketing strategies
• Market segmentation
• Customer behaviour
• Acquisition, conversion and retention of customers
• Customer relationship management (CRM)

1. Marketing Strategies
2. Product-Based Marketing Strategies
3. Customer-Based Marketing Strategies
4. Communicating with different Market segments
5. Market Segmentation
6. One-to-One Marketing
7. Usage-Based Market Segmentation

Personal Reaction

I have done my reflective learning this week.