Question

With the increase of lean and JIT popularity, the number of attempts to implement them has increased. At the same time, a significant portion of these attempts have not been successful. Some of the well-known reasons for these failures are _____________ and ________________.
Fill in the blanks correctly. (1). Relatively strong supplier power (2). Geographical dispersion of suppliers (3) Differences in national culture (4). The lack of information technology employed

a. (1) and (4)
b. (3) and (4)
c. (1) and (2)
d. (2) and (3)

Answer 1

Answer:

The correct answer is A)

JIT is affected most when there is strong supply power and inadequate information technology capacity.

Explanation:

JIT refers to Just in Time which is a supply chain-related manufacturing technique/strategy which allows a business to produces an item only after the buyer has made the order. The objective is to keep low, inventories and the costs associated with it as well.

First, for JIT to work, all the processes involved in the production (starting from the acquisition of raw materials to delivery of raw materials, production, packaging, etc must be monitored and coordinated seamlessly. This is only possible with investments in technology that are able to automate communications across the supply chain.

Second, the JIT production model rests on the assumption that the suppliers will be able to meet up with any kind of demand for raw materials whether large or small at any time is demanded by the manufacturer. This places a huge reliance on the supplier. That is if anything goes wrong on the suppliers' side (intentionally or circumstantially) the entire model falls apart.

For instance, if the supplier is China and they have shut down the economy due to the Corona Pandemic, it means the country where the manufacturing operations is supposed to take place will automatically shut down as well.

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