My New Car Exists

On April 16 I posted an article about the new BMW I had purchased after finally giving up on shipping my Mini Cooper to Europe from New York. When I purchased the car I was pleasently surprised to learn that on a regular basis I could inquire about the manufacturing status of my new ride. Last week it went into production, later in the week it was painted and as of today it's finished and ready for pick up.

I'll be picking it up myself at BMW Welt the automakers spiffy new manufacturing and customer center in Munich, Germanhy on May 30th. At the site I'll be given a tour on the manufacturing process and you can bet that I'll document the entire thing. So stay tuned.

Cargo Ship Balance Loading Can Save Fuel Costs

Internally at IBM we recently hosted a green innovation video contest where employees submitted ideas that IBM could bring to market to reduce waste. As a participant I rated a few of the videos and came across this one that has a significant supply chain angle.

It's no surprise that cargo ships are gas guzzlers. They make a Hummer look like a Prius, which is why shippers need to squeeze as much as they can out of each drop of fuel. One way to do this to to properly balance the containers. Check out this video to see what I am talking about.

My new car comes with 18 inch rims and real time manufacturing updates

If you have been following the drama unfold on my blog you read about the ups and downs of my attempt to ship my beloved Mini Cooper from New York to Austria. In the end I sold it for $7500, money of which I recently put to use to buy a new BMW 1 Series, like the one to the left, actually exactly like it. Unlike in the US, where we have massive new car lots and you point and pick your new car, I discovered in most of Europe you order your car and it built taking of average 5-7 weeks. For Americans, who have little patience, build to order probably won't work as it does for PCs. But obviously for the manufacturer not having all your inventory sitting in a lot, aging under the sun and rain, is a good thing.

So BMW is build to order, which is fine, because I'm in no rush. My new car is made in Munich, Germany at BMW Welt and the company actually offers you the option to pick it up at the plant, where you'll get a tour of the manufacturing site and you'll be presented your new car as if you won it on the Price is Right. Another unique feature is my salesperson can provide me with next to real time updates of the stage of manufacturing. So each week I can find out if its been painted, if the interior is done or if its sitting idle. Which I thought was cool. They could kick it up a notch and offer a live video feed specifically on my car. Either way, I'll be sure to take lots of photos when I pick it up on May 31.

The Bizzaro Supply Chain

My dad never outgrew his comics, even to this day, he is a huge fan of Superman. Which made me a fan and thinking back Superman had an arch nemesis called Bizarro Superman, who would do the opposite of everything superman would do. After reading the NY Times article last week with the headline "Supplier Under Scrutiny on Arms for Afghans" I think I discovered the bizzaro supply chain.

One of the key staples of any successful supply chain are partners you work with. Any supply chain worth a damn has a procurement team that established a secure, reliable and trusted partner network. It's just a must. But in the bizzaro supply chain, its just the opposite. For example, the NY Times reports that the US Military is procuring $300 million in ammunition from a 21 year old in Miami, that is buying old Soviet era equipment and reselling it to them. I mean this is procurement 101. But the bizzaro supply chain doesn't stop there, apparently, some of the ammo arrived to the troops in paper bags! Hello logistics team, where are you? Can you imagine the look on the troops when they receive a paper bag of ammo that they are suppose to then depend on with their life?

My suggestion to the US Military, stick to your core competency of organizing strategic military attacks and outsource your supply chain to a trusted expert.

IKEA and the Supply Chain Super Hero

For the past several weekends I have been spending countless hours at IKEA as I furnish my new flat in Vienna, Austria. IKEA has four locations in the region, not to mention one in Brno, so its very convenient. As I assemble everything from tables to chairs to desks I am somehow drawn to the "Made in" stickers that are located on each product. I don't know if there is a such thing as "supply chain instincts", but what else would force me to search for these tiny stickers each time I complete the assembly? I digress, but if I did have these so-called "supply chain instincts" perhaps I should put them to good use and become a supply chain super hero? Let me ponder this some more and get back to you. But in the meantime, I've just revealed my secret identity, so I am not off to a good start.

Anyway, back to IKEA. As I peeled off the "Made in" stickers I began to keep track of all of the countries that IKEA sources from and the list is mind boggling. My shelves were from Russia, the computer desk Poland (pictured above), the chairs Thailand, the screws from China and the carpet from India. And despite what Lou Dobb's says on CNN, its not that they make cheaper shelves in Russia compared to Poland. It's about the supply chain, being close to the suppliers and the natural resources. I wouldn't be surprised if IKEA in the US sources the same shelf unit from Canada for example.

The point is, just like in outsourcing and services delivery, you go to where the talent and skills can be found or to complete my analogy you can get the best natural resources. And IKEA seems to have a very good understanding of that, because if they didn't they would be shipping everything out of China and Sweden, which would have a serious impact on quality and cost.