Recent orders

Connecting Logistics and Financial Performance.

For this discussion, you will play the role of a logistics analyst who is creating a report on the
contributions of logistics activities to a company’s overall business performance.
Select any publicly traded company. Research this company’s website and relevant business
documentation to evaluate the company’s performance and profit models, such as inventory
turnover, return on assets, or other models that the company uses to measure its performance.
Possible sources of information include the company’s annual report, income statement, or other
financial documents that report the company’s revenues, expenses, and profits. These are usually published on the company’s Investor Relations page on their website. Additionally,
Ashford University Library’s MergentDatabase is an excellent source for business information. To
access the Mergent database:
Click on the “Find Articles & More” link in the purple banner at the top of the library home page.
Select “Databases by Subject.”
Choose “Business & Economics,” then click on “Mergent” on the following page.
Once in Mergent, enter the name of your company into the search box to get to the company
overview page. Note that the search might show you multiple options, so click on the specific
company you are searching for if a list is offered.
Select the “Company Financials” tab.
Identify two logistics-related activities the company utilizes to achieve its business goals. You
may select, for example, the company’s inventory management system, warehousing operations,
order management, transportation management, international logistics, or any other activities.
Your 200-250 word post must include the following:
Name the company that you chose and identify and describe the two logistics activities you
selected that support the company’s supply chain and business strategies.
Explain how the company uses the total cost approach to coordinate the selected logistics
activities in a cost-efficient manner.

Identify the tools and/or methods (as described in Chapter 4 of your textbook) that the company
uses to measure the quality of its logistics performance. Describe one tool/method, and briefly
explain what it measures and how it works.
Support your report with credible sources, citing from the company’s websites, business
publications or articles,

Supply Chain Management: Inventory Management Paper

You work for a manufacturer in the automotive industry. The company has been in existence for
ten years and is not doing very well. You know if you can get a contract with Ford Motor
Company things will greatly improve from a financial stand point. However, before the company
can approach Ford about doing business you must take close look at your company and make
improvements to reduce costs and improve quality. You know you are losing money and your
outdated processes and management practices are contributing to your problems. You brought
in a management consultant to assess you situation. The consultant made the following
observations.
Inventory – The consultant found that you are carrying a 3 month supply of your most expensive raw material. You have two weeks supply of the shop floor, 2 weeks in the main warehouse and
2 month supply in a rented off site warehouse. He analyzed the inventory costs associated with
this raw material. Costs are as follows:
Annual Usage – 16,000 units
Ordering Cost – $50 per order
Carrying Cost- $2.50 per unit
Products and Manufacturing Processes – The consultant took a look at your product line and
your production process and made the following observations. The company produces one main
product for the automotive industry. That product is the aluminum luggage rack that are on the
top of certain SUV’s. No other products are produced. The plant is using simple metal bending
and stamping equipment. The fixtures used to create the product on this equipment are
inexpensive. The plant also has an anodizing tank where one of two colors, gold or bright
aluminum is applied. The plant operates one shift per day, five days per week. Productivity is low
due to the time it takes to change colors in the anodizing tank. The plant has been modified and
added on to numerous times in the past ten years. As business grew walls were knocked and
space added. Because of this the manufacturing flow is disrupted and excessive work-in-process
inventory is built up. This addition inventory is taken to storage by a forklift.
The company utilized an assembly like process in making the product. The workers are in a
union and there are tensions with management. The main source of this tension is due to the
unwillingness of the union to allow workers to be crossed train for other jobs in the factory.
Quality Assurance – The company has one person in quality control. This person is an Industrial
Engineer and has had training Statistical Quality Control methods. The most important step in the manufacturing process, coating thickness, uses control chart to monitor the process. This
process is in control and has a calculated standard deviation of .05. The process mean is .8.
Ford has set an upper specification limit of 1.0 and a lower specification limit of .7. Ford also
requires a Cpk value of equal to or greater than 1.33. This is the only process in the plant that
uses statistical process control. Other process including bending and hole punching are
experiencing defect rates of 1%. That equates to 10,000 defects parts per million produced.
YOUR ASSIGNMENT – You have been assigned the task of addressing the issues found by the
consultant. These issues must be addressed in the form of a report to management – just listing
answers to these questions is not acceptable. Charts can be inserted if necessary.
1. What is the most economical quantity of inventory to order? How many orders will you need to
place each year?
2. Are you carrying the proper amount of inventory of your main raw material? Why or why not?
3. How can proper inventory management save the company immediately?
4. What recommendation would you make regarding product mix? If you expand the line, what
type of product would you add and why?
5. What would you recommend to reduce the time it takes to change colors in the anodizing
process.
6. Where do you find waste that can be eliminated to make the process leaner?
7. What can be done to improve labor relations in order to allow management to redesign the
manufacturing process?
8. How would you improve the manufacturing process to improve productivity?
9. What quality tools area available to improve the defect rates at the bending and hole punching process?
10. As it currently stands can the company produce product that meets Ford’s specifications?
Why or why not?
Grading Criteria – Each item is worth a maximum of ten points. Be as detailed and specific as
possible with you answers.

Sports Facility Site Visit

You are to come up with a sports facility of your choice and follow the rubric and notes provided
to write the paper efficiently

Facility Site Visit (1) Evaluation

To successfully complete this assignment, each student will conduct and report results for a Sport or Recreation Site Visit Evaluation. The evaluation will consist of four components:

  1. Site Identification. Select one sport facility that is most similar to the setting in which you wish to advance your career or a facility that is similar to the type of facility in your facility project. Be prepared to indicate the criteria by which you selected this cite. After selecting a site, identify and contact the facility manager to schedule a site visit.
  1. Site Evaluation Components & Tool. Research primary sport site evaluation components to discuss as well as to develop and utilize an evaluation tool (evaluation form). You may not utilize a pre-existing tool.
  1. Facility Needs. Based on the information obtained during your site visit you will identify a minimum of two needs of the facility based upon your own observation as well as to inquire about two needs identified by the facility manager (e.g., increase profit, increase awareness of features or services, attract new customers, updating of equipment, legal concerns, etc.).
  1. Report & Recommendations. Students are to coordinate a review of the identified sport facility evaluation components, a description of the tool utilized to evaluate the facility, and an overview of facility needs. These components should be coordinated into a report that includes recommendations that will address the specific needs that were identified. This reported is to first be evaluated by your peers and second to be submitted to the facility manager. You are to write this report as if you are an independent assessor hired to come in and evaluate the facility and make recommendations for improvement.

The report should be written in the following format:

Introduction. Please review the APA Manual for considerations for writing an introduction. The introduction should state the purpose of the research and/or “the specific problem [or concept] under study and describe the research strategy” (APA Manual, 7th ed., 2020). Please also address the following questions: why is the process of a facility evaluation valuable and the significance of the research. You are justifying the need to conduct a site visit evaluation and should demonstrate potential benefits to the facility.

Overview of Primary Site Evaluation Components   

 

Description and Justification of Site Evaluation Tool

 

Overview of Facility Needs

 

Recommendations

Conclusion

 

Other grading criteria:

 

Adherence to Guidelines:

 

Your sport facility evaluation report should be 5-10 typed pages, should be single spaced, and pages should be numbered. The paper should be typed in Times New Roman, Cambria, Arial or Calibri at 12 font and saved as a word document entitled:

LastName.SiteEvaluation.docx.

 

Overall Quality & Structure:

 

Your site visit evaluation should be free of spelling and grammatical errors. It should flow properly and be clear, concise, and written in a professional manner. You should use headings and subheadings as described above. You should include a reference page in APA 7th edition format. The reference page does not count toward your pages. You should write for quality and clarity rather than quantity.

APA 7th edition/Use of Sources:

 

Your paper should be formatted in APA 7th edition formatting. You should document your text as a source and include a minimum of 5 additional sources.

Site Visit Report Evaluation Form

Reviewers should utilize the following rubric for evaluation. Please rate the report on all categories below.

  Poor Marginal Adequate Good Excellent
Purpose and Objectives 2 4 6 8 10
Relevance and Significance 2 4 6 8 10
Review of Relevant Literature 2 4 6 8 10
Description and Justification of Evaluation Tool 4 8 12 16 20
Facility Needs 6 12 18 24 30
Recommendations 6 12 18 24 30
Conclusion 2 4 6 8 10
Adherence to Guidelines 2 4 6 8 10
Overall Quality and Structure 2 4 6 8 10
Referencing & Sources 2 4 6 8 10

Total Points:              /150