Global Manufacturing & Supply Chain Management

Which term refers to the network that links together the different aspects of the value chain and coordinates materials, information, and funds from the initial raw-material supplier to the ultimate customer?

Sourcing and procuring refer to ______ .

Jordan, a manager at an MNE, is responsible for supervising the transportation and storage of materials and final goods. Jordan is most likely a manager involved with ______ .

Logistics is also known as _______ .

Which of the following BEST describes a major difference between supply chain management and logistics?

In a global supply chain, suppliers must be part of the manufacturer's organizational structure.

Logistics is also known as materials management.

Supply-chain management refers to activities in the value chain that occur inside the company, whereas logistics management refers to external activities.

What is a supply chain? How does a supply chain differ from materials management and logistics?

In the context of manufacturing strategy, the degree of consistency between the foreign investment decision and the company's competitive strategy is known as ______ .

Burron Manufacturing is striving to improve its performance reliability, speed of delivery, and product reliability. Burron is most likely focusing on a(n) ______ strategy.

The ability of the production process to make different kinds of products and to adjust the volume of output is known as ______ .

The need for greater efficiency, which is closely linked to ______ , forces MNEs to align their overall strategy with operations.

When GM moved some of its manufacturing operations to Mexico to be closer to the American market, they were doing what's known as ______ .

The relocation of a business process or entire manufacturing facility to a foreign country is known as ______ .

Bocce Shoes, an Italian firm, set up a production facility in Vietnam to manufacture the firm's line of athletic shoes. Bocce is most likely using a(n) ______ strategy.

When a company has improved its operations efficiency so much that it decided to move back to its home country, this is called ______ .

Which of the following is NOT one of the three basic configurations that MNEs consider when establishing a global manufacturing strategy?

Ronald Enterprises, an American company, has a manufacturing facility in France in order to serve customers throughout Europe. Ronald is most likely using a ______ manufacturing strategy.

A multidomestic configuration is most important when ______ .

Deciding whether to establish production facilities in many different countries or in one centralized location is called ______ .

Once a firm has determined what its manufacturing configuration will be, and has coordinated its supply chain, it must create a(n) ______ system to ensure that the firm's strategies are carried out.

______ is the linking or integrating of activities into a unified system.

______ is the measuring of performance so that companies can respond appropriately to changing conditions.

The success of a global manufacturing strategy depends on compatibility, configuration, coordination, and control.

Configuration is the linking or integrating of activities into a unified system.

Strategies to reduce operational costs are linked to efficiency.

Innovation is the ability of the production process to make different kinds of products and to adjust the volume of output.

Nearshoring implies moving the supply chain closer to the home market.

Offshore manufacturing is attractive because it offers high labor costs, cheap materials and components, and proximity to markets.

______ is the process of a firm having inputs supplied to it for the production process.

Alta Designs is considering the idea of global sourcing. What would be the most likely result for Alta Designs?

All of the following tend to be more expensive when sourcing abroad, EXCEPT ______ .

ACE Computers established an assembly operation in Malaysia so that it would be close to its key suppliers. ACE is most likely engaging in ______ .

Which of the following would most likely be reduced by vertical integration?

Rapid Technologies owns its entire supplier network, which means that the firm most likely uses ______ .

Japanese ______ are groups of independent companies that work together to manage the flow of goods and services along an entire value chain.

In deciding whether to make or buy, MNEs should focus on those parts that are ______ to the product and that they are ______ at making.

Which of the following is one of the biggest barriers to expanding the use of outsourcing?

Onshoring is also knows as reshoring.

Japanese keiretsus are groups of independent companies that work together to manage the flow of goods and services along the entire value chain.

Utilizing vertical integration is an alternative way to reduce transportation and transaction costs.

If MNEs outsource parts instead of sourcing them from internal production, they need to determine the degree of involvement with suppliers.

The purchasing agent is the link between a company's outsourcing decision and its supplier relationships.

Conflict minerals are certain minerals that come from warring areas, principally the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, that generate revenues to fund conflicts.

Contract manufacturers are companies that enter into a contract with the hiring company, to assume the entire manufacturing process.

A comprehensive global sourcing strategy should include inventory management.

The use of JIT does not depend on the quality of incoming parts or the time of their arrival.

JIT is the process of sourcing raw materials and parts just as they are needed in the manufacturing process.

What is a just-in-time (JIT) inventory system? What are the implications of JIT for firms that use foreign sourcing?

Most U.S. companies have moved from a total quality management (TQM) approach to an acceptable quality level (AQL) approach.

Six Sigma is an effective statistical approach to quality management developed by Motorola and popularized by General Electric.

A comprehensive supply chain strategy should include good inventory management.

An element of total quality management (TQM) that focuses on continuous improvement by identifying problems and enlisting employees to help eliminate them is known as ______ .

Fortis Manufacturing Systems uses a highly focused system of quality control that takes a statistical approach and scrutinizes the firm's entire production system. Fortis most likely uses ______ .

What are the three levels of quality standards?