College of Nursing Entrance Letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

College of Nursing Entrance Letter - Essay Example I always sought to help others who were injured or in need of my assistance at a very young age. I became inclined to enter the field of medicine during my high school years. At the time, my counselor enrolled me into the two-year dental assistant program. This program contributed to the discovery of my passion to help others. During the two years, I learned how to make dental models, mount and develop x-ray films, take impressions, follow dental procedures, and most importantly employ my knowledge as an allied healthcare professional. My dental assistant teacher referred me to physicians and dentists who helped me to expand my hands-on experience. I advanced my education by attending the Institute of Health Education and acquired my X-Ray license. Upon receiving my X-Ray license, I attended the Certified Dental Assistant program to increase my knowledge of oral hygiene techniques and preventive healthcare methods. The dental field became a transition to enter the nursing field after a trip to Peru. My aunt, an Obstetrician /Gynecologist, found out that I had an interest in providing healthcare to patients and she recommended that I shadow her. Throughout the week, my aunt gave me information concerning the various fields in nursing and its vigorous lifestyle. During that period I noticed that my aunt devoted herself to her patients. Thus, my interest in the medical field and my aunts ambition to achieve wellness for others influenced me to continue the nursing field. I was convinced and I knew that as I was capable, willing, and desiring to fulfill my ambitions to help others. I also realized, that as I fulfilled all the requirements to become a nurse, I would not only deliver proper healthcare in the United States, but also around the world. As we know, mankind is not liberated from diseases, therefore applying my knowledge would help others. I am a sociable, friendly, and patient person. I am responsible, self-disciplined, and attentive. I recognize

What it means to be an American Essay Example for Free

What it means to be an American Essay The United States of America is a wonderful country where there is equal opportunities, rights and freedoms, and justice. America’s founding fathers like George Washington saw the potential of America being the greatest country of all. They created the constitution. The constitution created a stronger federal government and gave citizens rights. It wasn’t until 1865 that the United States Constitution ended slavery. America has prospered so much since then and now in the 21st century everyone wants to come to America where there is work and you can live a better life. Sometimes Americans take these rights for granted and end up in prison losing their right of freedom and close all their opportunities. Americans should cherish all their rights. I believe that an American is someone who has liberty, has opportunities to become successful, and can vote. Can you imagine not having freedom or the freedom of speech and religion? In Saudi Arabia there is no freedom of religion their religion is only Sunni Islam. If you don’t follow their religion the people face limited employment and educational opportunities. Their government executed someone for charges of witchcraft. American’s have the right to practice whatever they want and this makes me feel happy to be an American. My mother and father have taught me that if you’re a hard worker than you can achieve whatever you want. America is full of opportunities but it all starts with school you have to get good grades and try your best. In America you can get scholarships that pay for your college education. This is an excellent opportunity available to Americans. There is a lot of places where you can go to get a job because there is a lot of businesses. America is a democracy were Americans decide what they want for their country. This is good because in other countries there are monarchies where the citizens don’t have a say in the future of their country. Whatever the king or dictator want’s he gets. This is a form of protection of our rights. In conclusion, it is great to be an American and live in America. An American is someone who has liberty, has opportunities to become successful, and can vote. Americans can express their opinion with freedom of speech.

Weber’s Formal and Substantive Rationality

Weber’s Formal and Substantive Rationality Weber’s Rationality Concepts and Scientific Management and Human Relation Theory Introduction Max Weber (1864-1920) was a German sociologist, philosopher and economist. His work of rationalization and rationality has influenced the entire sociology discipline. His work of rationality introduces four kinds of rationality, including theoretical, practical, formal and substantive rationality. This paper focuses on the formal and substantive rationality. Weber made distinctions between formal rationality and substantive rationality in his works. Formal rationality mainly refers to rational calculation determined by rules, regulations or laws, and the extend to an action occurs as an outcome of quantitative calculations. In terms of formally rational systems, the primary concern within the system is maximize profitability, this often results into disregardful humanity. On the other hand, substantive rationality is defined as choice of means to ends guided by a set of human values. It concerns several criteria of final ends and disregards whatever they are, it measures the outcomes of the economic-oriented action. This paper is to introduce Weber’s formal and substantive rationality concepts, then to analyze how these two concepts are related to scientific management and human relation theory. Formal rationality Weber defines formal rationality as the degree to an action happens as a result of quantitative and appropriate calculations (Weber, 1987). Formal rationality involves the rational calculation of means to ends that are founded on laws, rules and regulations apply in general (Kalberg, 1980). It also relates to a structure including legal, economic, scientific spheres and the bureaucratic domination with industrialization (Karlberg, 1980). Weber suggests an action is rational because it has a consistent structure, all of its elements point at one direction, no one counteracts another. Therefore, there exists a consistency in its structure, and this is aided by formalization. Formalization can render several contradictions visible through a mechanical form of simplification. Thus, formal calculation is a kind of rationalization which focuses on the process not the result, it emphasizes how the decision is being made rather than how the results are achieved (Rona-Tas,2007). Formal rationality exists in large-scale structures such as bureaucracy and capitalist economy. And these structures and their regulations and laws determine the means to ends (Ritzer, 2005). Since formal calculation is determined by rules, regulations or laws, formal rationality often leads to decisions that are without regard of the needs and values of persons, it may imply that substantive rationality is unnecessary (Ritzer, 2005). An action oriented to rules, regulations or laws is a formal calculation in reference to enacted regulations and opposed to decision making in reference to the personal values (Kalberg, 1980). For instance, the needs of a formally rational economic system are emphasized on actors who can outbid others not because their needs are more important or contain more personal values, but because they have lots of money. In this economic system, making money is the major concern rather than humanity concerns (Ritzer, 2005). Weber (1968) argues, â€Å"decisive are the need for competitive survival and the conditions of the labor, money and commodity markets; hence matter-of-fact considerations that are simply nonethical determine individual behavior and interpose impersonal forces between the persons involved (pp. 1186).† Therefore, capitalistic system is a formally rational economic system, as the major concern of an organization within the system is to make profit constantly. The entrepreneurs disregard the workers’ basic human values and dominate them by enslaving them in the formally rational economic system (Weber, 1975). Formal rationality dominated in industrialized, modern and especially Western world. Weber foresaw that formal rationality would replace other kinds of rationality in the Western world. He also argued that substantive rationality would fade away and people would march forward to formal rationality instead. So, people’s actions are no longer guided by personal values but simply follow the regulations, rules and laws (Ritzer, 2005). Substantive rationality Substantive rationality refers to the clusters of values that lead people in their everyday lives, particularly in how they choose the means to ends. It involves the choice of means to ends guided by a set of human values. For example, Calvinism is when one feels one is fulfilling a duty and Calvinism attempts to rationalize the world in ethical ways and consistent with God’s commandments (Weber, 1958). Other examples include friendship, communism, hedonism Buddhism etc (Ritzer, 2005). When the clusters of values are consistent with particular value postulates that actors prefer, they are considered to be rational (Kalberg, 1980). In terms of economy, on the opposed side of formal rationality, Weber sees substantive rationality as an action that emphasizes on outcomes, an action can be rational also because it reaches successful ends. Therefore, substantive rationality means the success or failure that due to actions are driven by economical orientation in order to achieve final objectives that can be economic or non-economic, for instance, justice and equality (Weber, 1987). That is to say, substantive rationality is relevant to economic action in particular. So, substantive rationality involves a choice of means to ends leaded by some larger system of human values (Ritzer, 2005). Substantive rationality orders action into patterns directly on the basis of a past, present or potential value postulate, instead of just a calculation of means to ends and solutions to routine problems (Weber, 1968). Unlike formal rationality which has just a single value, such as making profit or fulfilling duties, substantive rationality relates to a value postulate which connotes clusters of values that are different in terms of comprehensiveness, content and internal consistency. Therefore, substantive rationality is a manifestation of a person’s capacity for value-rational action (Kalberg, 1980). Substantively rational system do not limit itself to purely follow formal and unambiguous fact or act according to goal-oriented rational calculation with the technical method, it concerns several criteria of ultimate ends regardless they are ethical, utilitarian, feudal etc, it measures the outcomes of the economic action, whereas formally rational emphasizes correct calculati on that may against substantive or value rationality (Weber, 1978). However, Weber did not make it clear that whether certain kinds of results might compound formal calculation, or some ends are more tend to be formal rationality than others. Scientific management Formal rationality Scientific management theory was originally proposed in the book of Fredrick Taylor’s (1856-1915), which was published in 1991 and called ‘The Principles of Scientific Management’. The fundamental goal of scientific management was to maximize workers’ productivity and profitability ultimately. This principles of scientific management theory is accordance with Weber’s formal rationality concept. For instance, Taylor (1991) argues workers should be trained and managed under scientific methods, in order to improve their efficiency. Taylor (1991) also explains this scientific management method in details, that is: managers should abandon the old rule of thumb method and adopt a scientific method for every task; they must use scientific method to train workers, and use rules and regulations to ensure workers follow the instructions of the scientific method they develop. Taylor’s scientific management methods can be considered as the concept of Webe r’s formal calculation, and the objective of that concept is to achieve great profitability. Also, Taylor (1991) thinks the best management should be supervised and ensured under regulations and rules. This is also a formally rational system according to Weber’s point of view of formal rationality. In addition, Taylor (1991) assumes that workers can be motivated and only can be stimulated by economic drives. He designed a salary structure and principle, that was to pay a high salary to a worker who accomplishes his work more efficiently or faster. Furthermore, Taylor (1991) suggests to pay a worker with extra bonus or premium, if the worker finishes his work successfully and productively. Henry Ford implemented Taylor’s scientific management methods and developed a model based on economic expansion and mass production with technological mechanisms (Tolliday and Zeitlin, 1987). Therefore, scientific management theory is driven by achieving great profitability, which is aligned with Weber’s formal rationality concept. Weber saw the triumph of formal rationality in the American system of ‘Scientific management’, as Weber (1978) argues, scientific management uses suitable measurement methods to calculate worker’s productivity and maximize profitability, the way these measurements calculate worker’s productivity is like that of any material means of production. He argues that scientific management was based on rational calculation and improvement of work performance with scientific training methods, and the worker is totally adjusted to the demands of the machines and is shorn of his inherent rhythm through creation of an optimal economy of physical effort. Human Relations theory Substantively rational Human relation theory proposes that an organization is a social system, people in an organization are interdependent. Human relation theory argues that best management is to focus on encouraging people to work, to give workers psychological and social needs and comforts, that way, they would work with more efficiency and effectiveness. Human relation theory is substantively rational as it emphasizes to maximize efficiency and productivity through a set of human values. The basic suggestion of human relation theory was developed through experiments and interviews, the most famous researcher is Elton Mayo, who identified the importance of human values in organizations. Through Hawthorne experiment, Mayo found out that the fundamental factor affects productivity and efficiency is the worker. The workers who engaged in the experiment realized they were concerned by managers and colleagues, and that increased their belongingness, this belongingness changed the worker’s entire value concept, encouraged them to improve their working efficiency. Therefore, Mayo suggested that workers also want social needs and interests, and they cannot be seen as being economically motivated anymore as how they were regarded by Taylorism (Rose, 2005). Thus, human relation theory is an implementation of substantive rationality in We ber’s point of view. Then, human relation theory is related to substantive rationality as it suggests that there is informal communication within an organization. In the study of bank wiring room, a small group of male workers were to produce electrical components. That group emerged to set informal norms that were enforced by peer pressure and an informal leader. The study indicates that workers were not only motivated by economic force but also the informal norms and communications within the organization. Thus, it is more important than just following formal side such as regulations, rules and official hierarchy that formal rational system does (Rose, 2005). However, the human relation theory is argued to be formal rationality as well. The initial impetus for the Hawthorne experiments was to improve worker’s efficiency and productivity and its management was to control physical variables, the idea was informed by the tradition of scientific management (Rose, 2005). It is also argued that human relation theories are embedded with connotation of rational organization and preference of scientific method (Ross-Smith and Kornberger, 2004). This could be understood since Weber did not clarify whether certain kinds of results might compound formal rationality. Conclusion This paper explains Weber’s formal and substantive rationality, and uses these two concepts to analyze scientific management and human relation theory. The paper summarizes that scientific management theory is with preference of Weber’s formal rationality concept, as scientific management theory focuses on managing organizations with scientific methods and formal calculations to improve workers’ productivity and to maximize organizations’ profitability. Whereas human relation theory is relevant to both substantive and formal rationality, because human relation theory emphasizes on principles guided by sets of human values such as social needs and psychological comforts etc. In addition, because within organizations adopts human relation theory, there exists informal norms and communications, which are more important than rules, regulations or hierarchy. At last but not least, human relation theory was originally designed to maximize efficiency and producti vity, and to control physical variables, that was in line with the idea of scientific management theory. Reference List: Kalberg, S. (1980). Max Webers Types of Rationality: Cornerstones for the Analysis of Rationalization Processes in History. The American Journal of Sociology, vol. 85, no. 5, pp. 1145-1179 Muchinsky, P. M. (2006). Psychology Applied to Work. Eighth edition. Boston: Cengage Learning. Ritzer, G. (2005). The Weberian theory of rationalization and the McDonaldization of contemporary society. In: Peter Kivisto (ed.) Illuminating social life: Classical and contemporary theory revisited. Sage. Rona-Tas, A. (2007). The Three Modalities of Rationality and Their Contradictions in Post-Communist Consumer Credit Markets. In Jens Beckert, Rainer Diaz-Bone and Heiner Ganssmann eds. Mà ¤rkte als soziale Strukturen. Campus Verlag, Frankfurt/New York. Rose, N. (2005). Human Relations Theory and People Management. European Management Journal, vol. 34, pp. 43-62. Ross-Smith, A., and Kornberger, M. (2004). Gendered Rationality? A Genealogical Exploration of the Philosophical and Sociological Conceptions of Rationality, Masculinity and Organization. Gender, Work and Organization, vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 280-305 Taylor, F. W. (1991). The Principles of Scientific Management. New York, NY, US and London, UK: Harper Brothers Tolliday, S. and Zeitlin, J. (1987). The Automobile Industry and its Workers: Between Fordism and Flexibility. New York: St.Martins Press. Weber, M. (1958). The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. Translated by Talcott Parsons. New York: Scribners. Originally: (1920) 1972. pp. 1-206 in Gesam- melte Aufsaetze zur Religionssoziologie (hereafter GARS). Vol. 1. Tubingen: Mohr. Weber, M. (1968). Economy and Society. Edited by Guenther Roth and Claus Wittich. New York: Bedminister. Originally: (1921) 1976. Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Edited by Johannes Winckelmann. Tubingen: Mohr Weber, M. (1975). Roscher and Knies: The Logical Problems of Historical Economics. Translated with an introduction by Guy Oakes. New York: Free Press. Originally: (1922) 1973. pp. 1-145 in WL Weber, M. (1978). Economy and Society. Berkeley: California University Press

Furniture manufacturing companies

Furniture manufacturing companies EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The main challenge of furniture manufacturing companies is to provide innovative products in shorter time cycles, at reduced cost, and with improved quality. The furniture industry is driven by demands for products that are affordable and better than the ones they replace. In order to meet market requirements, industry has been moving to Asia, which is now the primary source of furniture. All countries in EU find themselves facing rapidly rising incomes and living standards that are pushing up labour costs and taxes. To maintain competitiveness, companies are rapidly transferring labour-intensive operations into countries like India, Malaysia, China, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia and Pakistan. As the benchmark for low-cost manufacturing, Malaysia is encouraging all the countries to move into higher value-added products and to invest in capital-intensive businesses. Malaysia consistently ranks highly on global and regional rankings for its attractive corporate tax rates, ease of hiring and well developed infrastructure. Malaysia was rated at eighteen for most attractive environment for highly-skilled foreigners according to the IMD World Competitiveness Year book. Malaysia has become the leader in the Asian furniture manufacturing industry. Malaysia consists of three federal territories and thirteen states in Southeast Asia. Bordering nations include Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei and the Philippines. The population of Malaysia is more than 27 million and covers an area of more than 127,000 square miles. KHAN Furnitures prides on the dedication and commitment to supply the high quality furniture with affordable price and for your total customer satisfaction. We have been growing to become one of the leading providers of desks and tables to schools, universities, and offices in U.K and the business development has been hard work but enjoyable one and has given us a solid reputation for efficiency of service, product knowledge and quality. Our company currently does its business in UK with the name KHAN FURNITURE intends to set up a manufacturing unit in Johor (Malaysia) as part of the mission and vision to be the leading provider of Dining table in the EU and has named the new manufacturing site as a KHAN MANUFACTURING UNIT. The main competitive advantages in locating the factory in Johor is the availability of the main raw material i.e., Mahogany hardwood, close proximity of suppler, low labour costs. Now the main task for the Company is to find a supplier who can supply good quality Mahogany hardwood, Staff Recruitment, staffing costs and approval of required licenses to set up the company. Our products are made by talented furniture craftsmen who lovingly pay great attention to each detail. High attention and consideration go into choosing the finest hardwoods; preparation of the wood; and hand-shaping, sanding, staining and rubbing. The finished products are then exported to Rotterdam (Europe) through shipping for sale. A Warehouse is leased at Rotterdam for the storage of Dining Table and sends to all the distribution networks when required. The company has chosen four distribution channels to sell the products to gain maximum market share. This project will not only enhance our current business but also will be increase the profit in future. 1. 0 INTRODUCTION The main concept of setting up KHAN Manufacturing Unit in Malaysia is based on offering a wide range of well designed and good quality mahogany dining tables at low prices so that as many people as possible will be able to afford them. The KHAN furniture makes it possible to serve the many by providing affordable products that contribute to helping more people live a better life at home. The project is about to setting up factory in Malaysia to produce mahogany dining tables for sale in Europe. The report begins with the main objectives concerned in setting up the factory in Malaysia. In doing so number of relevant issues is being considered this includes production process, customer issues and supply issues. Additionally it looks at the aspects relating to location, staffing and other supporting functions like the purchase, finance and information technology and also looks at the environmental issues, health and safety issues and further dimensions concerned with the competitive adv antage. 1.1 VISION AND MISSION The vision and mission is to be the leading provider of dining tables to the public in the EU within the next ten years at a profit. 1.2 OBJECTIVES To setup a factory in Malaysia to produce a range of Mahogany dining tables To offer our customers superior quality and unique designs furniture at affordable prices. Expand our product lines to meet customer demand and produce the best quality mahogany tables The new factory will enable us to cost effectively expand our product lines to meet European Union customer demand. The following are the three key goals that the KHAN Company aims at fulfilling by opening the new manufacturing unit at Malaysia can be summarised as: enhancing the international profile of the company controlling the quality of products (dining table) managing growth in order to ensure that it strengthens the financial position. 2.0 LOCATION OF MACTURING UINT Selection of the location is the main task of our project. 2.1 GEOGRAPHICAL VIEW OF MALAYSIA Malaysia is one of the largest countries in the Asia-Pacific group which has the predominantly forested areas of Sabah and Sarawak, across the South China Sea on the northern coast of Borneo. Its climate is tropical and often humid. Malaysia currently has 32.8 million hectares of land area, of which 24.8 million hectares 75.5 per cent of total land are classified as forest and tree cover. Of these, 19.5 million hectares are forest cover and 5.3 million hectares are tree cover. Of the total forest cover, 9.2 million hectares (47.4 per cent) are found in Sarawak, 5.9 million hectares (30.1 per cent) are found in Peninsular Malaysia and 4.4 million hectares (22.5 per cent) in Sabah. Malaysia exports furniture to more than 160 countries worldwide. Today, Malaysia is ranked as the 10th largest furniture exporter in the world; 3rd in Asia and 2nd in the ASEAN region. 2.2 SELECTION OF MANUFACTURING SITE Our manufacturing unit will be located in Johor which is in the southern portion of peninsular Malaysia. It is one of the most well developed states in Malaysia and has got all the facilitating conditions for the company to operate like the close proximity to port, airport and hotels. The location of the plant at Johor results in reduced overhead and supply costs. For example, lease rates, labour costs are low if compared to other places in Malaysia. There are many suppliers in this place who supply different types of mahogany hardwood for us to manufacture mahogany tables. This close proximity of our suppliers means lower transportation and shipping costs. 3.0 COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE Our competitive advantages include our unique furniture design and quality, a competitive pricing strategy, a strategic location close to suppliers and already existence of the company in the UK. TIME FACTOR The time is most important factor in any business nowadays because of our main U.K Office whom reaches the customer first for product marketing and getting the order and Our Malaysia Manufacture unit whom meets the customer orders most quickly. HIGH QUALITY We are using the Mahogany wood only for providing the quality dining table for long-term success of our business. The close proximity of our wood suppliers also gives us better control on getting the best quality of Mahogany. COST BENEFIT The mass production of dining tables gives us high economies of scale which makes us more cost efficient and low labour cost. FLEXIBILITY Our flexible manufacturing system to offering customized greater variety of products besides standardised products which enables us to cost effectively and the increased productivity which result to generate high revenue. PRODUCT AND MARKET KNOWLEDGE We have been in furniture business since many years and we know better about the style and demand of EU Customers and other processes of furniture manufacturing. Now to move in Malaysia Furniture market is another forward step and edge. 4.0 RECRUITMENT AND STAFFING We will recruit both internally and externally for the Malaysia manufacturing unit. . We have decided to select top management from the existing staff so as to maintain the strong element of the companys culture. We will first send internal emails to all members of staff with details of available positions and number of spaces available, highlighting the benefits of working in Malaysia such as lower tax deductions from pay, less expensive cost of living compared to UK and a stable political economy. The whole management team at manufacturing unit is approved by the UK Office and rest of the staff like Line Managers, supervisors other labour staff will be recruited locally. High skilled staff is essential for quality assurance at offshore manufacturing unit. With regard to product quality in manufacturing process, onshore managers as well as local staff will be employed at merit. This method of staffing is beneficial in the sense that local staff has an understanding of the local place, people and how the system works well. Primarily, most production workers like craftsman, operators/ manipulators will be recruited locally to save cost while those from the home company staff define the company standards and those working closely the work can be done more efficiently. Furthermore, main U.K company staff can support the development of local staff so that the reliance on parent staff can be gradually reduced. This can in turn help the company in cutting down costs in the long run. However upon enhancing their abilities and passing the quality audit, local staff will be delegated greater responsibilities and the scope of their work expanded. 4.1 MANAGEMENT STAFF It includes the Production manager, operations manager, Marketing Managers, Finance Manager, engineers etc. They will control their departments and give updates to main U.K office. 4.2 LOCAL STAFF The production force can be classified as forestry engineers and qualified for work in furniture production. The qualified labour force includes: wood converters ( mainly carpenters and tuners ) Manipulators/operators of the machine 4.3 EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS The following is educational requirement for our selection and recruitment: We prefer to hire production workers who have a minimum high school / vocational school education. For managerial position a minimum college education and some specific knowledge about furniture is needed. 4.4 EXPERIENCE CRITERIA We prefer our plant workers to be highly skilled craftsman with extensive experience in wooden furniture manufacturing. 4.5 TRAINING We will ensure our staffs undergo regular trainings in their fields to make sure we deliver best quality products and to increase the potential of the staff and raise the human capital of the company. 4.6 WORKING ENVIRONMENT We believe that we all are one family. We offer a flexible benefits programme, training and development programmes, discounts on products and services and participation in Company share scheme offers. The company has a proposal of implementing a procedure (whistle blowing policy) for employees to report any concerns confidentially.Workers need both manual dexterity and mechanical ability for many jobs .working conditions vary from job to job. Usually numbers of working hours in a week is forty but this may vary and there may be layoffs during slack periods. In addition to providing core remuneration benefits (including annual incentive schemes), holidays, sick pay, life assurance and pension provision. 5.0 MANUFACTURING PROCESS/CORE PROCESS We are only going to Malaysia for cost efficient and better production process and our product quality and customer satisfaction depends on our manufacturing ability. 5.1 BASIC EQUIPMENTS Basic and main Equipments in the plant includes a spindle shaper, table saw, wide belt, Sander, dust collection system, sprayer for finishing, hand tools and work benches. 5.2 DINING TABLE MANUFACTURING STEPS The following is the manufacturing steps to make the dining table from Mahogany wood: STRUCTURING AND DESIGNING MAHOGANY WOOD TABLE First Special computer programmes to optimize the layouts for each dining table. This provides the maximum yield of the material which lowers the cost of the dining table. Our furniture designers create specific designs of furniture. The designers make sketches and diagrams of their ideas. Drafters prepare blueprints of the designers plans. Highly skilled model makers build a piece of the furniture by working on the blueprints. Managers and engineers check the design and quality and then approve it for the mass production of that piece of furniture. SIZING THE PARTS Individual parts are cut from the mahogany wood using a panel saw, crosscut saw, planers and carefully labelled. MOULDING AND SHAPING THE PARTS WITH MACHINE We machine properly each part and use only the highest standard for machining the wood. SURFACE FINISHING FOR PERFORM FLAT WITH LAND SANDING The surfaces of the table are sanded before assembling the parts. ASSEMBLING / JOINING PARTS The components of the dining table are assembled. The face frame and mouldings are applied eventually. PERFORM FINISH SANDING The final finish sanding will be done for shining and better quality. CHECK DINING TABLE AND COMPONENTS FOR QUALITY The integrity of the dining table is verified and the finish sanding is also carefully inspected. FINAL ASSEMBLING OF THE TABLE All other accessories are installed e.g. Metal legs, Locks RUB OUT THE TABLE Finished piece is rubbed out to bring the piece to its final showcase condition before being delivered. (PACKING) WRAP AND DELIVER The dining table is carefully wrapped in preparation for delivery. Careful wrapping delivers the product without any damage to the destination point. CUSTOMIZATION: We know the importance of customization because it gives more help to capture the market and generate the profit than as usual. The products which are manufactured at our unit are available in a variety of resilient finishes and colours so that customers have the flexibility to customize the furniture to their individual tastes and order through any of our distribution channels. This added facility in long-term will give us a better customer retention rate. 5.3 COMPREHENSIVE SUMMARY OF CORE PROCESS We will receive the mahogany wood (after warping drying) from suppliers, the machine operators using their machinery like crosscut saws, planers, ripsaws etc cut the mahogany into different sizes and shapes as advised by the designers/engineers and the cut pieces are sent to the next department by conveyer belts or mill trucks. Machine operators then shape the wood into legs and top part of the dining table. Drill holes are used to make grooves in the wood. Stock handlers take the shaped wood pieces to the sanding department, where the workers smooth the surfaces. The sanded wood pieces are put together by workers in assembly and sub assembly departments. The surface is later smoothed down by hand sanders. Finally the furniture is send to the finishing department where finishers apply various finishing coats to color and seal it. Sometimes when there is a customized order the finishing is done by using special techniques such as distressing, which means processing furniture to make it look old and worn. The finished tables are then wrapped and send to the export target market to the distribution channels via shipping for sale. 6.0 QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT The main objective of our company is to give guarantee to our consumers of a perfect product and level of quality, which fulfils with strict requirements for material and workmanship. We will measure quality at every step including staff recruitment, marketing, purchasing, inventory management and site location. It is crucial to identify the typical quality issues related to quality of mahogany hardwood etc. Six Sigma Improvement model is a comprehensive and flexible system for achieving and maximizing business success by minimizing defects and variability in processes. We will define the characteristics of processs output that are critical, getting picture of the current process by documenting it using flow charts and process charts and identify data sources and preparing data collection plan. Using data on measures to perform process analysis, applying tools such as Pareto charts, scatter diagrams, cause and effect diagrams and the statistical process control (SPC) tools. Improving existing methods to meet the new performance objectives and implementing changes. Controlling and monitoring the process to make sure that high performance levels are maintained. All the products manufactured go through the above process and any defects identified are rectified and are dealt immediately to deliver the best mahogany tables. We ensure that the requirements for materials and workmanship are observed partly by unannounced visits to factory and partly by testing of randomly choose furniture. Quality control label of KHAN furniture will be a guarantee for the consumer and an assurance that the furniture will be able to live up to all reasonable expectations. We will obtain a certificate from the standards and industrial research institute of Malaysia- SIRIM which is the body accredited by the Malaysian Administration for the development of the activities of standardisation and certification. 7.0 SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT My teacher Alan Parkinson always said supply chain is very important for your Manufacturing Unit Project so I make the given below picture only for his satisfaction. RAW MATERIAL (MAHOGANY) Mahogany is a very large canopy tree, sometimes reaching over 150 feet in height, with trunks sometimes more than 6 feet in diameter above a large basal buttress. Mahogany is a generally open-crowned tree, with gray to brownish-red fissured bark. Mahogany is perhaps the most valuable timber tree varies from yellowish, reddish, pinkish, or salmon coloured when freshly cut, to a deep rich red, to reddish brown as the wood matures with age. It is fine to medium texture, with uniform to interlocking grain, ranging straight to wavy or curly. SUPPLIER Fair and effective Working with suppliers adds significant value to the products of the firm. We will buy the Mahogany from one Supplier so we get good quality wood but we also consider some other suppliers to avoid any shortage of supply. INBOUND LOGISTIC Malaysia has about 64,328 km road network which consist of main roads and highways. 90% of the goods and passengers traffic use this mode of transport in Malaysia and Malaysia has also good rail net work of more than 2,000 km and urban train project is under development with full speed. We will try to make arrangement with supplier to deliver the raw materials at the manufacturing unit. WAREHOUSE FOR RAWMATERIAL To avoid any shortages or to meet any last minute orders we need a massive warehouse which is located within the manufacturing unit. PRODUCTION PROCESS Production process has been explained above in detail. WAREHOUSE FOR FINISHED DINING TABLE It is important to keep the finished dining tables in stock carefully and send them when required by the distribution networks. To save the transport cost we have to careful about the weight of shipping container so we keep the stock till the required container weight. OUTBOUND LOGISTIC The strong growth in exports implied the increase of the harbour capacities. The main ports of Malaysia are Kelang, Penang and Johor. Our furniture is moved from Malaysia to Europe in containers by Shipping from Johor Port because it is the most cheap transport system for the furniture export and also environmental friendly. TOTAL DELIVERY TIME We are going to provide the furniture to whole Europe Union so the company has chosen Rotterdam port (the largest port in Europe) which is in Netherlands as the delivery point for finished goods in Europe. Rotterdam being the largest harbour in Europe and which is very near to our target markets gives us synergy and reduces transportation costs. The processing time for 20 ft container order is 6 weeks and 40 ft container is 8 weeks. For 20 ft container the space available is 30 Cubic Meter/ CBM, 40ft is 60 CBM and 40ft HC is 75 CBM. The total items that can fill into the container depend on the size of Dining table. The Finished goods are then delivered to the distribution networks through roadways, airways and railways throughout Europe. 7.1 INVENTORY MANAGEMENT ISSUES Excessive inventory or lack of inventory control can lead to wasted materials, either by using more than needed or purchasing materials deteriorate before use Our Purchase Manager will work closely with suppliers to provide just in time material delivery so that optimum raw material can be ordered. We will use a multipurpose solvent which can reduce our costs of managing wasted and facilitate recycling. We try to make arrangements with supplier to return unused materials. 8.0 CUSTOMER ISSUES For improvement of our quality and the success of our company depends on the satisfaction of our customer. 8.1 CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP AND FEEDBACK We undertake regular consumer surveys, which include questions about ethics and respond to the results of these surveys when developing our products. We also obtain feedback from staff serving customers in our stores of their perception of issues that mainly affect customer satisfaction and build this feedback into our plans. 8.2 AFTER SALES SERVICE The complaints of the customer are handled centrally and we are proud of the process we have established. All the complaint investigations will be started within 24 hours of receipt and we attempt to resolve each one to the satisfaction of our customers. Our policy is to communicate with our customers in most of the languages spoken in Europe. All complaints are recorded to undertake a detailed analysis, monitor trends and identify key issues to improve our performance. We repair or replace any item if there is a justified compliant. 9.0 MARKETING STRATEGY Our target market is EU which consists of 27 countries :France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Cyprus, Finland, United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Spain, Sweden, Austria, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovenia and Slovak Republic. European Union is big market for furniture and demand of Malaysia furniture is increasing with time so market strategy is main point of our success. Last year, according to Malaysian furniture export statistics report, it exported 12.6% to Europe of its total exports. The companys marketing strategy is based mainly on making the right information available to the right target customer. The marketing conveys the sense of quality in every picture, every publication, and every promotion. We cant afford to appear in second-rate catalogues with poor illustrations that make the product look less attractive than it is actually. We also need to leverage our products using specialty distributors and high-quality catalogues. This catalogue will be developed on each product line that will be distributed to interested consumers through all our distribution channels. The wood finish samples show customers the actual finishes and stains available with our product lines. Our dining tables are priced competitively and take into account production costs, competitive pricing strategies and consumer price sensitivity. 9.1 CHANNELS OF DISTRIBUTION Published research indicates that 51% of the total sales volume in the market goes through the retail channel, most of those major national chains. Another 23% goes through the direct sales channel, although in this case direct sales include sales by distributors who are buying from multiple manufacturers. Most of the remainder, 18%, is sold directly to buyers by catalogues. KHAN furniture has chosen four channels for selling its products in Europe to gain maximum market and be the leading provider of the dining tables in the next ten years: These are our distribution channels which will help us to sale our dining table in EU at every level: Retail Outlets Direct sales Franchises Corporate sales 10.0 SUPPORTING FUNCTIONS The following three functions are the supporting functions of our manufacturing unit: 10.1 PURCHASING THE RAW MATERIAL All the purchases made by the company are done fairly which means we treat our suppliers fairly by paying a reasonable price for their products. The purchase manager employed at the manufacturing unit has a wide experience in purchasing and also a good negotiator. The purchase manager is also trained in other areas such as supplier support that give him a powerful insight into the cost drivers in the price equation. However his brief is not to focus exclusively on price but on the future potential of supply relationships and generation of capacity. If price is a problem he will work to reduce the cost rather than looking for a different supplier. 10.2 FINANCE The projected cash flow statement and other financial statements shows that the company has sound liquidity which means that the company has got enough available funds to invest in the new manufacturing unit in Malaysia. It appears that company had a very successful year. 10.3 INFORMATION SYSTEMS The companys sophisticated information technology (IT) software enables collaborative planning and scheduling. The technology allows synchronized supply chain execution and design collaboration, which enables our company to respond better and faster to changing market needs and tastes. A update IT system will help helps us to sale the dining table directly on website and keep in touch with customer. 11.0 ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE MANAGEMENT We will follow standards according to the ISO 14001 which is about implementing, maintaining and improving the environmental management system. Our company will demonstrate its commitment to sustainability through initiatives focused around resource conservation and responsibility. We will optimally take advantage of the triple-bottom line approach of sustainability which incorporates economic, social and environmental components of responsibility. We ensure ethical, social and environmental standards are maintained throughout the supply chain by auditing and visiting of our suppliers on a regular basis. Our main concern is manufacturing of furniture (dining table) but our audits also review ethics, health and safety, employee pay, employment conditions, use of child labour and environmental policies and practices. The main impact on the environment is waste management and energy use and our priorities lie in improving our environmental performance in these areas. Our usage of wood, electricity and cardboard is regularly monitored, as is our waste recycling and landfill performance. Sub meters for all utilities are installed throughout our manufacturing unit which will further improve our monitoring and aid us to target specific areas for improvements. Cardboard generated in our Retail outlets is returned to our warehouse site at Rotterdam in the returning empty lorries. We encourage staff to recycle general office consumables including paper and printer toners. Currently ocean transport has a growing demand because it is considered as the most environment-friendly way of moving goods around the world .As a company we are dedicated to reduce the impact on environment caused by our business so we choose ocean transport to export our goods to Europe (target export market). 12.0 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY KHAN Furniture Company is committed to the welfare of our colleagues, customers, suppliers and the communities in which we operate. The company has a firm commitment to social policies, not just for the company employees but also the supplier have to conform IWAY and they are audits to ensure that they comply with IWAY. IWAY provisions include commitments to high standards of health and safety, employee working condition such as access to rest areas and toilets, working hours and a minimum wage or basic salary. Employees and their families have access to confidential counselling and legal assistance helpline which operates 24 hours, 7days a week. 13.0 CONCLUSION This Malaysia Manufacturing Unit Project is very suitable and important to achieve the company vision of leading provider of quality dining tables with aim of profitability. All these factors and innovative operational strategies such as the JIT paradigm and the Total Quality Management (TQM) view of design and production, Production efficiency, well-planned cost structures, manageable size, attention to underserved markets, lower overall labour costs prove that the project is viable and the long term vision of the company can be achieved. 14.0 REFERENCE Scholes , k ., 2008. Exploring corporate strategy .8th ed. ch 5.pp 177-212.FT prentice hall. Bryde, D.J., 2003. Modelling project management performance. Internatio

Trotskys Contribution to the Success of the Bolsheviks up to 1922 Essa

Without contribution from crucial individuals politically involved in Russia at the time, the success of the Bolsheviks and the proceeding (ideally) Communist government may have been less then what we know today. One such individual was Trotsky.Trotsky made a vital contribution to the success of the Bolsheviks up to 1922. As Lenin made clear in 1918 Trotsky was in his view the only person able to save the revolution. Trotsky was a member of the Social Democratic Party and was living in exile in America. Surprised by the February revolution in Petrograd in 1917 he returned to Russia arriving in May 1917. In this revolution, he was the one who persuaded Lenin to hold off the attack until he was sure that the Bolshevik?s had a much more secure hold on the country. This led to the abdication of the Tsar and the establishment of a Provisional Government led by Kerensky. Although he had been a Menshevik (a branch of the Social Democratic Party which believed that there would be a workers uprising leading to a revolution) he was rapidly convinced by Lenin?s views to become a Bolshevik (a branch of the Social Democratic Party that believed a small organised party was needed to spearhead a revolution) and by June 1917 he was regarded by Lenin as the ?number 2? in the Bolshevik party. Trotsky had exceptional leadership qualities that helped the Bolsheviks to success. He was an opportunist, intelligent, pragmatic and persistent. Trotsky was a very effective public speaker and because of this ability, could get huge amounts of support on his side. He used real life comparisons so as to engage his audience. He was able to store confidence and trust in the public and the army, which was a massive contribution to the Bolshevik?s success... ... travel to the points where the fighting was the fiercest to provide support. By doing this he was able to boost moral, rally and inspire his men in a way that other leaders, especially White leaders, could not. What's more, it was Trotsky who decided to save Petrograd when it was under threat from Yudenich, when Lenin had lost all other hope. People were most impressed with Trotsky?s skill to turn the Red Army, which started off as barely anything, into a fighting army of around five million by the end of 1920. Trotsky was the main negotiator with the German when the peace treaty was made. Although Russia lost huge amounts of land, Trotsky decided that it was best to get out of the war, whatever the cost. The situation was that of such poverty in Russia at the time. In this treaty, Russia lost 54% of its industry, 26% of the railways and 89% of their coalmines.

Red Dress by Alice Munro Essay -- Red Dress Alice Munro

"Red Dress" by Alice Munro The short story "Red Dress" by Alice Munro is about a young girl's first high school dance. Her home and school environment determined her attitude towards the dance.This girl's home life was bad. She was constantly put down mentally by her mother, even in front of her friend Lonnie, to the point that the narrator envied Lonnie on account that her mother died and she lived alone with her father. "'I doubt if she appreciates it.' She enraged me, talking like this to Lonnie, as if Lonnie were grown up and I were still a child." Her mother was obscene in the house; the description that is given would make one sick. It is said that she did not take care of herself in the house, and exposed her lumpy veins to the in-house public. This probably made the narrator t... Red Dress by Alice Munro Essay -- Red Dress Alice Munro "Red Dress" by Alice Munro The short story "Red Dress" by Alice Munro is about a young girl's first high school dance. Her home and school environment determined her attitude towards the dance.This girl's home life was bad. She was constantly put down mentally by her mother, even in front of her friend Lonnie, to the point that the narrator envied Lonnie on account that her mother died and she lived alone with her father. "'I doubt if she appreciates it.' She enraged me, talking like this to Lonnie, as if Lonnie were grown up and I were still a child." Her mother was obscene in the house; the description that is given would make one sick. It is said that she did not take care of herself in the house, and exposed her lumpy veins to the in-house public. This probably made the narrator t...

Chemistry Experiment Essay

How did your proposed procedures or flow charts at the beginning of this experiment compare to the actual procedures of this lab exercise? I had to change the process I did things a little to allow adequate time for the sand and the benzoic acid crystals to dry on the paper towels, and for the water in the paper cup to evaporate from the salt. 2. Discuss potential advantages or disadvantages of your proposed procedure compared to the one actually used. The advantage of my original proposed procedure was less time consuming. see more:chemistry matriculation notes semester 1 The disadvantage compared to the one actually used would be the reliability of the information. Giving adequate drying time on an experiment in which you are weighing something is crucial. 3. How would you explain a sand recovery percentage that is higher than the original sand percentage? The sand absorbed some of the water and expanded, or some of the components in the sand is part of another mixture and you did not extract all the components from the original sand correctly. 4. What were potential sources of error in the experiment? Several things could go wrong with this experiment. I think the hardest part and biggest source of error is extracting each substance from the mixture and weighing it by itself. You have to be careful to extract each substance correctly or you will get the wrong weight. Conclusion: Weighing all the substances as one should weight the same as weighing them each separate and adding them together.