Drew and I tried to venture out and buy simple souvenirs to bring back to friends and family and maybe buy a little something for ourselves along the way. The markets and open stores were frustrating because there weren't finished goods available to buy off the shelves. Shops had raw materials like fabric displayed to purchase by the meter and have fitted accordingly. Which by the way is not fair. I am only 28.5 inches tall from the hip down, I shouldn't be charged a full meter for fabric. Having fitted tailored clothes is nice but let's get real, I am American. I like tangible, immediate, finished goods now. Frankly, we should have had Shopping in India 101 as a course before touching down in Bangalore.
Waiting time is the bottleneck according to my standards.
Our class discussion focused on India's efficient logistics and supply chain management (SCM). Our visit to the Axel Automotive Limited. manufacturing plant was indeed unforgettable. Tire tracks of Castrol grease, beads of sweat drip down your profile, deafening sounds of heavy machinery pounding on steel put the plant in to perspective.
The success of AAL is based on their ability to take advantage of low labor costs and conveniently adopt efficiency methods to increase product output along with satisfying and exceeding customer preferences. The CFO made a comment stating how AAL uses lean manufacturing as a process of meeting consumer preferences; however, after I asked how they do it without overproducing and increasing costs he stated AAL uses "Just in Case, not Just in Time."
AAL's success measure is partly due to the fact they only use 3% of their costs of operating on labor and 70% on raw materials whereas in the US it would be the opposite. It may explain the cultural norm of India versus the US. America places a high value on the individual rather than the collection of individuals. In India, the norm of collectivism is partly true. India prides itself on being socially aware and philanthropic but there are some individuals who pride themselves on their wealth according to Varma ie. establishment of palaces. All in all, I commend AAI's ability to outperform competitors while taking into account the multi dimensional market India integrates.
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