Dell: A Global Leader in Computer Manufacturing - Essay Sample

Introduction

Dell Inc. is one of the biggest computer manufacturers in the world. Based in Round Rock, Texas, the company manufactures computer hardware and has numerous suppliers in various parts of the world as its supply chain is based in the US and Latin America, Europe, and Asia (DELL, 2018). The company assembles its personal computers and use the direct-to-consumer model to ensure its products reach the customers directly. The company uses mail order to allow customers to purchase its products, and this grants lower costs, inventories, and generate higher profit margins.

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a.) Dell's First Tier Suppliers: Since 72 percent of Dell suppliers come from Asian countries like China, Japan and Singapore, among others, most of its first tier suppliers come from there (DELL, 2018). Dell's first tier suppliers include Final assembly suppliers, Direct material suppliers and Original Design Manufacturers, all of which the company has close relationships. Some of these supplier categories, which provide most parts to Dell, include Quanta Computer, Hon Hai Precision industry, Wistron, and Compal Electronics. In 2007, Quanta Computer won orders worth 60 percent of all Dell supplies and remains its biggest laptop supplier (DELL, 2018).

b.) Dell's Second-Tier Suppliers: Dell has over 200 Sub-tier suppliers from which the company outsources most of its parts (DELL, 2018). Both first and sub-tier suppliers supply the Hard Disk Drive (HDD), chips, and other metallic components. In terms of HDD supplies, Dell gets its components from Toshiba, Fujitsu, Hitachi, Western Digital, Samsung and Seagate/Maxtor. These companies are all part of Dell's supply chain. Other sub-tier suppliers include Acbel of Philippines, Amphenol of China, AU Optronics of China, Avago, BOE Global, broad technology, and Catcher technology among others who supply parts and components, batteries, networking hardware, and storage (DELL, 2018).

c.) Conflicting Objectives between members of the supply chain: Procurement is an integral consideration when talking about the supply chain. Because the procurement chain is usually complex, there are no prompt agreements when it comes to decisions among the suppliers. The reason behind that norm is the conflicting procurement objectives that greatly touch on costs, shipment logistics and value of the goods and services supplied. For Dell, one of the many conflicting objectives is that some suppliers have delivery schedules that do not match the company's competitive and procurement strategies. For instance, if Dell's competitive edge is product delivery within seventy two hours, and the supplier of the inventory takes seven days, then the company cannot meet its competitive strategy.

d.) Risks of Rare and Unexpected Events on the Supply chain: Supply chain risks that come abruptly and on rare occasions can cause various disruptions. One of the possible rare and unexpected chains of events is the damaging environmental problem (Dwivedi, 2016). For instance, if one of the suppliers is found not to have complied with the environmental policies, and the information gets blown, it spoils the reputation of the supplying company and the company's that it feeds. Dell, as a business, for example, adheres to the principles of the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) which sets the standards to be followed in terms of environmental consciousness (DELL, 2018). If this fails, the supplier becomes a liability and the supply chain breaks. Another problem is that related to a lack of transparency with supplier dealings and this can create an undesirable business environment.

e.) Ensuring Timely Delivery over Long Distances: Long distances between local companies in North America and suppliers in Asia can create problems for delivering products on time. Ensuring timely delivery with low-cost inventory between long distance supplies can be done with proper packaging, secondary warehouse distribution, and tracing or tracing technologies (Dwivedi, 2016). To keep costs low, a company like Dell can also install warehouses in countries located within the supply point and the origin to help maintain the flow.

Question Two

a.) Departments needed to review and redesign a company's logistics network: Switching to a new logistics network can be a complex initiative that requires a united front from crucial company departments for a collective decision-making process. Numerous departments are needed to participate in the fixing the logistics network but the core includes Information and Communication Technology(ICT), marketing department, finance, procurement department, Core company management(General, store, and logistics managers), and human resource department(Coltman, n.d. ). Each of the departments has a role to play in the change of the logistics network.

b.) Roles and Responsibilities: The ICT department is involved in the collection, analysis, and presentation of logistics data while the marketing department reviews regional marketing strategies and the possible impacts of the new system(Du, n.d.). The finance department reviews the financial implications of implementing a new network. The general and store/warehouse managers in each state must be available to know how they will operate the warehouses using the new system. The procurement department must be present to offer insights on the impacts on transport. The human resource department offers insights on the right profiles of the personnel needed to steer forward the new project.

c.) Qualitative and Quantitative Data: To better serve the clients concerning increasing or decreasing the number of warehouses in certain areas, particular qualitative and quantitative data must be reviewed(Du, n.d.). The qualitative data involves the objectives of the warehouses, such as the market they serve, whether or not they are part of a network, the lifespan, and much more. The quantitative data includes the volume of goods that can be stored, functional requirements, the number of customers to be served by the warehouses, the demand for the stock, the costs of maintaining the warehouses with the goods, and costs for paying workers.

d.) Steps of Data Analysis: The first step of analyzing qualitative data is the explanation of each component collected. The data has to be broken down into elements that can be understood. The next step is the interpretation of the same data and how the data can be applied in the decision-making concerning warehousing. Analyzing quantitative data involves transforming the information into numerical form(Du, n.d.). The quantity of stored products can be measured and compared to the number of customers and their shopping behaviours. The information can be used to suggest whether increasing or decreasing the number of warehouses is valuable. The cost of maintaining one warehouse can be calculated to find the overall maintenance costs including payments and maintaining goods. The resultant costs can be examined to guide decision-making.

Question Three: Push-Pull Supply Chain Strategy

a.) Circumstances of Moving Push-Pull Boundary Early and Later: A push strategy involves producing and supplying products according to long term market demands. A pull strategy involves manufacturing supplying good customer demand (Dev, Caprihan & Swami, 2014). A push-pull strategy involves both. It can be beneficial to move the push-pull boundary early when the demand for a certain product is high. For instance, when the demand for kindles or ebooks is high, the products can be supplied more. Later, the push-pull strategy can be stopped when the demand decreases to save possible slow sales or losses. For example, when schools close, the demands for ebooks or kindles go down and so their supply can be halted.

b.) Possible Change in the Product's Life Circle: The boundary of the push-pull strategy can also change in the products life circle, and this depends on various factors in the market, and certain conditions within the producing company. The favourable market conditions for this change include the demand for certain features or improvements in certain products (Dev, Caprihan & Swami, 2014). For example, when tablets require, say, new security features, the product can be redesigned to include the new requirement to augment security. This change can also be done when the product is targeting new markets, and the customers can be given reasons and options also to change.

c.) Solving problems of being in the Push-pull boundary: If a firm is stuck in the push-pull boundary of the supply chain, certain objectives are not met for both the firm and its supplier(s). When a firm uses a pull strategy, and its supplier utilizes a push strategy, the firm cannot provide products to the customers on time because they will not have arrived at the time when the demand is high (Dev, Caprihan & Swami, 2014). To solve this problem, the firm can manage its inventory by using economies of scale when producing and distributing merchandise to customers. This technique ensures that the holding cost of the inventory remains low.

Question Four: Supplying to A Market in Canada

a.) Cars Made in the US: Cars made in the US can be shipped to Canada because shipping is relatively cheaper as compared to warehousing. The shipping costs depend on the season, and from which part of the US the cars are being shipped from. The number of cars can also determine whether shipping costs will be expensive or cheaper (Garside & Rusdiansyah, 2010). If shipped in bulk, the costs can be a little lower than just one car. If door-to-door shipping is used, then pickups have to be planned at certain points before the cars are delivered to the province of choice in Canada. Cars are bulky, and shipping is the most secure and cheaper way to transport bulky products.

b.) Jeans Made in China: Transporting jeans from Asia to Canada has been made easier by the use of technology. Canadian based firms can use cross-docking to transport jeans from China. The advantage in this mode of transport is that goods arriving find ready trucks onto which they are loaded and transported (Dwivedi, 2016). Cross-docking ensures that the cloths take less time in reaching the destinations for which they are intended. Cross docking is one of the fastest methods of transporting goods. The products are also sorted at one site and distributed to other destinations. Most apparel companies in Canada receive their fabric through cross-docking.

c.) Vegetable from South Africa: The most suitable method of transporting vegetables to Canada from South Africa is through freight shipping because of the geographic locations between the two countries. Ocean shipping is economical despite and efficient(Dwivedi, 2016). The goods can be kept fresh by setting the appropriate shipping conditions, packaging and handling. While vegetables are perishable goods, they can be transported within specific periods and kept at the right conditions to prevent damage.

d.) Book from the UK: Warehousing can be a great choice when transporting bulky books from the UK to Canada. Books cannot go bad like foodstuff, meaning they can be kept at warehousing and shipped to readers in Canada without spoilage. Warehouses can be used as distribution centres from which boos from the UK are packed into trucks are sent to numerous destinations in Canada. Warehousing allows the supplier to control the stock effectively and also track the inventory(Dwivedi, 2016). Products like books can also be tracked by ordering firms to locate the status of the shipment.

Question Five: Managing Global Risks

Small scale auto manufacturers from Canada can export to the US markets if the chosen global strategies can work well. The most suitable strategy can depend on what is chosen by the management, but as the...