首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
考研
"The great manufacturers in the Yorkshire and Lancashire districts tell me that, under modern conditions, they have got into the
"The great manufacturers in the Yorkshire and Lancashire districts tell me that, under modern conditions, they have got into the
admin
2013-12-10
29
问题
"The great manufacturers in the Yorkshire and Lancashire districts tell me that, under modern conditions, they have got into the habit of laying in supply not for a period of two to five months but they are dependent week by week on the importation of the raw material. " So Sir George Parkin described the alarming business practices found in Britain at the dawn of the 20th century. As a leader of the Imperial Federation League, he sought to replace the British empire with a bigger group of trading partners, so as to guarantee supplies. A hundred years on, Sir George would have marveled at globalization, but been aghast that today’s manufactures measure their inventories in only a few hours of production.
The great manufacturers now have amazingly lean operations. They have outsourced business to contractors that can do the work more efficiently, often in places where wagers are low. A huge logistics(物流)industry has sprung up to move stuff around the world at dazzling speed.
Containerization(集装箱运输)has slashed the cost of shipping. Express air-freight has made overnight delivery possible to most places on earth. Moreover, such services are within the grasp not just of the supply departments of giant multinationals but also of anyone trading on eBay from the spare bedroom.
The logistics business is one of the marvels of commerce, but it is not without its risks. Supply chains have become ever more complex and extended. Some great manufacturers and great service companies may have become too lean in their relentless drive to reduce costs, outsourcing not just their non-core activities but essential ones too. If one link of a company’s supply chain snaps, the consequences can be grave. Ericsson and Nokia found this out when they both relied on the same supplier for a special chip in their mobile phones. After the chipmaker’s factory was hit by lightning, Nokia swiftly locked up all the alternative supplies whereas Ericsson suffered a severe parts shortage and later quit making handsets on its own.
A company’s best protection from its own supply chain is to expect failure, not to hide from it. Toyota last year narrowly escaped a parts shortage when an American supplier went bankrupt. The carmaker has now introduced an early-warning system in Europe to try to detect any looming problems with suppliers before they bring production lines to a halt.
The good news is that many companies are now trying to identify the choke points and weak links in their supply chains. What about Sir George’s concern — the wider threat to national economies? With so many people worrying about oil supplies and a bird-flu epidemic, the prospect of supply chains collapsing around the world can seem a scary idea.
It shouldn’t be. There are a few industries where it makes sense for governments to keep some emergency stocks of a few essentials such as energy, munitions and medicines. But the logistical disruption is not a good way for politicians to think about everyday life, let alone to start interfering in markets.
Natural disasters are not, in fact, a common cause of supply-chain disruptions. Most are the result of humdrum internal problems, like bad planning or the choice of an unreliable sub-contractor. That can be terrible for a particular company, but hardly poses a threat to society at large. After all, if Ericsson and Nokia cannot supply you with a mobile phone, Samsung would be only happy to get one to you tomorrow.
选项
答案
G
解析
根据左栏信号词Ericsson and Nokia可回文定位到第四段第四句Ericsson and Nokia found this out…(爱立信和诺基亚都注意到了这点……),鉴于例子所证明的对象往往出现在例子的上文,故考生要重点关注本段主题句(段首句):The logistics business is…,but it is not without its risks(物流业是……,但也并非没有风险),由此可知,爱立信和诺基亚这两个例子出现在本段是为了证明“物流行业存在风险”,因此正确选项为G。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/t1O4777K
0
考研英语一
相关试题推荐
(46)TelevisionhastransformedpoliticsintheUnitedStatesbychangingthewayinwhichinformationisdistributed,byalterin
【F1】Eachnationhasitsownpeculiarcharacterwhichdistinguishesitfromothers.Butthepeopleoftheworldhavemorepoints
Oncewethoughtofpollution【C1】______meaningsimplysmog—thechoking,stinging,dirtyairthathoversovercities.Butairpoll
Forthepasttwoyears,Ihavebeenworkingonstudentsevaluationofclassroomteaching.Ihavekeptarecordofinformalconve
Forthepasttwoyears,Ihavebeenworkingonstudentsevaluationofclassroomteaching.Ihavekeptarecordofinformalconve
Forthepasttwoyears,Ihavebeenworkingonstudentsevaluationofclassroomteaching.Ihavekeptarecordofinformalconve
Ifthework______bytheendofthemonthisdelayed,theconstructioncompanywillbefined.
Dinosaurswerereptileswhichbecameextinctabout65millionyearsago.Themost【C1】______questionaboutdinosaurshasalwaysb
Dinosaurswerereptileswhichbecameextinctabout65millionyearsago.Themost【C1】______questionaboutdinosaurshasalwaysb
“Thisisareallyexcitingtime—aneweraisstarting,”saysPeterBazalgette,thechiefcreativeofficerofEndemol.Heisre
随机试题
关于MHC工类分子,下列选项中正确的是:()
患者,女,48岁。接触性出血1个月,检查:宫颈糜烂重度。要排除宫颈癌,首先应进行的普查方法是
依UCP600的规定,如受益人按照信用证的要求完成对指定银行的交单义务,出现下列哪些情形时,开证行应予承付?()
下列对HPB300钢筋的技术要求的表述中,不正确的是()。
下列公式中,属于会计等式的是()。
发行人公司应当在其可转换公司债券上市前5个工作日内,将上市公告书全文刊登在至少一种由中国证监会指定的报刊及中国证监会指定的网站上。()
干燥的冷空气和富含水蒸气的暖空气相遇,发生大规模碰撞时形成的极端天气现象是()。
请结合实际,论述法律实现的概念、意义以及影响法律实现的因素。
设A为n阶非零矩阵,且A2=A,r(A)=r(0<r<n).求|5E+A|.
Idon’tknow_________gethishaircut.
最新回复
(
0
)