Tourism Tour Guide free essay sample

I am Nurul Hasanah, your tour guide for today. I am willing to guide and assist you all. And now we’re going to explore and see the beauty of Makassar. Okay, Makassar formerly called Ujung Pandang is the provincial capital of South Sulawesi and the largest city in Sulawesi Island. Makassar has become the primary port and airline hub of the eastern archipelago, the thousands of remote islands being developed and incorporated into the mainstream of Indonesian society and economy. Makassar also famous with the Phinisi Ship as a symbol and the time is in GMT+7. Okay, Ladies and Gentlemen our first destination is Fort Rotterdam. Fort Rotterdam also knows Benteng Makassar or La Galigo. This is a historical artifact of the greatness of the past kingdom of South Sulawesi. During the Dutch colonialism, the fort was rebuilt and renamed Fort Rotterdam. During the period the fort and its area started to be the center of governmental and commercial activity. We will write a custom essay sample on Tourism Tour Guide or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page During the Japanese colonialism the fort functioned as the center of agricultural and language studies. The shape of this building is like a turtle want to go to the sea because fort Rotterdam located near of sea. To enter the Fort Rotterdam, it is about Rp 5000,-. In there you can find many things about the history of South Sulawesi like the culture until the government. In this place you also can buy a book which helped you to get more information about the history of fort Rotterdam. Well, we move to the next destination is Karebosi Square. This is one of the famous soccer field in Makassar. Under the ground of the soccer field, there is a shopping center called Karebosi Link. There, you can buy many things such as shirts, skirts, shoes from the famous brand until many kinds of food. Near from the K-Link, also there is shopping center again called Mall Trade Center. First floor for shoes and bags, second floor for many kinds of shirt , third floor for hand phone and accessories, fourth floor for computers, accessories computer and camera. And the top of the building is food court, the place that you can rest and eat. Third destination is Phinisi Tower UNM. The concept this building is based on the Phinisi as Buginesse people famous as excellent sailor. This building as a new icon of South Sulawesi and become the pride of UNM society. In this place of course you can take a picture and walk around in this area and you can see miniature of UNM. Next destination is Somba Opu is a fort but now the function of this building as a miniature of traditional houses from every regency in south Sulawesi like Bugis, Toraja and Mandar. Not too far from here you can find water park called Gowa discovery. To go in the water park you have to pay about Rp 50. 000,-. And in there you can buy some traditional souvenir like t-shirt or others. Ladies and gentlemen, now welcome to Trans World Studio which located in the Regions and the Global Tourism Business Tanjung Bunga Makassar, the area of integrated tourism object in Makassar. Trans Studio was built of 12. 7 hectares with investment of 1 trillion more rupiahs. Facilities built in the shopping center which includes the Trans Walk and Rodeo Drive, and Studio Trans, Trans Hotel with the best hotel amenities, office of Bank Mega. Trans Studio building was built around 22. 000 m? ith 20 meters high which is the largest indoor amusement park in eastern Indonesia. But at this time, it becomes as the second large indoor theme park after Trans Studio Theme Park Bandung. If you want to play in there you have to buy the tickets about Rp. 150. 000,-. In theme park you can buy some souvenir like dolls, glass symbol of mascot Trans studio theme park. Well ladies and gentlemen this is the last destination, th e famous waterfront in Makassar, Pantai Losari. There is Mesjid terapung and statue of hero of south Sulawesi where they were built recently. Near of losari waterfront you can walk around for the leisure to buy special souvenirs of south Sulawesi. Around the Losari waterfront, you can eat Pisang Epe, Pisang ijo, es kelapa until the famous coto from Makassar, Coto Daeng. Okay, Ladies and Gentlemen, that is the end of our city tour today. I am very glad to see you all enjoy the wonderful vacation today with our tour and travel and see you next time.

buy custom Children Obesity essay

buy custom Children Obesity essay Obesity is a health condition that results from excess accumulation of excess fats in the body. Obesity is a common ailment in this century and is most prevalent among children. Due to obesity, the life expectancy of children is significantly reduced. This is because it causes a lot of health problems; for example, diabetes, heart failure and breathing difficulties due to accumulated dietary calories among other complications. Many people assume that obesity is caused by excessive eating; however, this is not always the case. Obesity is sometimes caused by genetic inheritance, medication, slow metabolism and endocrine disorders (Kiess Marcus, 2004). Although previously viewed as a symbol of wealth and fertility, obesity has disastrous effects on society and should not be taken lightly. Over the years, the number of obese children has risen due to the changed lifestyle and genetic integration. The greatest and most traumatic effects of obesity in children are the risk of heart failure among other ailments. This is because it limits the lifespan of these obese children, hence wiping out future generations in the society. As a result, only the weak and old are left to enhance development and growth economically in the society. The problems that are likely to occur in these childrens livs is; early puberty, cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes and other eating disorder like asthma and anorexia. Moreover, the obese childrens parents are forced to incur massive medical bills to tender to their medical conditions (Pa%u0159zkov Hills, 2005). Due to overweight in obese children, they feel isolated and are not involved in activities such as sports and music. These children grow with a negative attitude towards life, and unless there is help from a psychologist the child may end up hating himself/herself forever. There have been several reports of obese children committing suicide (Waters, Seidell Swinburn, 2010). One of the pressure facing obese children is the fact that they are considered abnormal and that they deserve exceptional treatment. This makes them feel as if they are living in their own world. The attitude in obese family is linked to their children making them give up on life at a very tender age. This has contributed to the increase in number of the obese people since they do not take responsibility of fighting obesity by taking the required measures to control it. Socially, obese children have issues with their self esteem, and this denies them their childhood happiness as they are stigmatized by their peers. This makes themm withdraw socially from others in the society. Researchers surveyed over 15000 children under the age of 8-11 and discovered that most of the obese children are nervous and sad. This has profoundly affected their psychological growth and lead to their loss of appetite. People usually think that obesity is an abnormal health condition caused by excessive eating but this is not the case. Obesity is the condition where the body has accumulated too much fat because of an unbalanced diet or taking too much carbohydrate (Flamenbaum, 2006). Although scientists have invented medication for children over the age of 16, they have still not yet discover drugs to cure obesity or control the rate of obesity for children under the age of 16. In conclusion, research studies the weight of a person rely heavily on genes, social class, environmental condition, cultural beliefs, and behavioral element in a person. It is also proven that, obesity is as a result of energy imbalances in the body. Majorly, people eating a variety of food full of calories and not engaging in any physical activity to burn the calories are more likely to pass obese genes to their children. However, families with a history of obese conditions are advised to control it by exclusively breastfeeding their children and providing a balanced diet to the children at their early age. Buy custom Children Obesity essay

buy custom Children Obesity essay

buy custom Children Obesity essay Obesity is a health condition that results from excess accumulation of excess fats in the body. Obesity is a common ailment in this century and is most prevalent among children. Due to obesity, the life expectancy of children is significantly reduced. This is because it causes a lot of health problems; for example, diabetes, heart failure and breathing difficulties due to accumulated dietary calories among other complications. Many people assume that obesity is caused by excessive eating; however, this is not always the case. Obesity is sometimes caused by genetic inheritance, medication, slow metabolism and endocrine disorders (Kiess Marcus, 2004). Although previously viewed as a symbol of wealth and fertility, obesity has disastrous effects on society and should not be taken lightly. Over the years, the number of obese children has risen due to the changed lifestyle and genetic integration. The greatest and most traumatic effects of obesity in children are the risk of heart failure among other ailments. This is because it limits the lifespan of these obese children, hence wiping out future generations in the society. As a result, only the weak and old are left to enhance development and growth economically in the society. The problems that are likely to occur in these childrens livs is; early puberty, cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes and other eating disorder like asthma and anorexia. Moreover, the obese childrens parents are forced to incur massive medical bills to tender to their medical conditions (Pa%u0159zkov Hills, 2005). Due to overweight in obese children, they feel isolated and are not involved in activities such as sports and music. These children grow with a negative attitude towards life, and unless there is help from a psychologist the child may end up hating himself/herself forever. There have been several reports of obese children committing suicide (Waters, Seidell Swinburn, 2010). One of the pressure facing obese children is the fact that they are considered abnormal and that they deserve exceptional treatment. This makes them feel as if they are living in their own world. The attitude in obese family is linked to their children making them give up on life at a very tender age. This has contributed to the increase in number of the obese people since they do not take responsibility of fighting obesity by taking the required measures to control it. Socially, obese children have issues with their self esteem, and this denies them their childhood happiness as they are stigmatized by their peers. This makes themm withdraw socially from others in the society. Researchers surveyed over 15000 children under the age of 8-11 and discovered that most of the obese children are nervous and sad. This has profoundly affected their psychological growth and lead to their loss of appetite. People usually think that obesity is an abnormal health condition caused by excessive eating but this is not the case. Obesity is the condition where the body has accumulated too much fat because of an unbalanced diet or taking too much carbohydrate (Flamenbaum, 2006). Although scientists have invented medication for children over the age of 16, they have still not yet discover drugs to cure obesity or control the rate of obesity for children under the age of 16. In conclusion, research studies the weight of a person rely heavily on genes, social class, environmental condition, cultural beliefs, and behavioral element in a person. It is also proven that, obesity is as a result of energy imbalances in the body. Majorly, people eating a variety of food full of calories and not engaging in any physical activity to burn the calories are more likely to pass obese genes to their children. However, families with a history of obese conditions are advised to control it by exclusively breastfeeding their children and providing a balanced diet to the children at their early age. Buy custom Children Obesity essay

Health Care and Intellectual Property Laws Essay

Health Care and Intellectual Property Laws - Essay Example In a knowledge economy where knowledge is considered private property and is thus deserving of full protection under the law, Intellectual Property laws play a fundamental role in ensuring stability and predictability. However, it has been suggested that these laws undermine public health by tending to put the cost of essential medicines far beyond the reach of those who desperately need it most. Intellectual property ownership is a relatively new concept of ownership with staggering social implications. For large pharmaceutical companies investing billions of dollars to continually develop new medicines against diseases, it provides the necessary incentives in the form of patents to provide wider latitude in the development, promotion, and distribution of new drugs to recoup their investments and earn significant revenues for years of research and hard work. It also serves as an incentive for pharmaceutical companies to develop new products for the prevention or treatment of common as well as dreaded diseases. But for low-income countries struggling to provide basic healthcare services and affordable drugs to their citizens, intellectual property is an onerous imposition that threatens to wreck lives in the wake of killer diseases. The law on intellectual property rights allows pharmaceutical companies unrestricted rights to manufacture and distribute medicines at prices they command. Recent free trade agreements have extended extremely generous patent rights to multinational pharmaceutical companies, and have limited access to generic equivalent drugs. Analysis The first level of analysis is to ask whether or not it is actually necessary to prioritize patients' rights, and if the current system has indeed been inadequate in arresting the problem. Without access to the drugs in the treatment of HIV, for example, to combat the spread of the dreaded disease, people from many countries in Africa experiencing an HIV/AIDS pandemic will die in record number. AIDS has killed more than 25 million people since it was first recognized on December 1, 1981, making it one of the most destructive pandemics in recorded history. According to current estimates, HIV is set to infect 90 million people in Africa, providing an enormous market for an anti-HIV medicine. There is currently no vaccine or cure for HIV or AIDS. The only known method of prevention is avoiding exposure to the virus. However, an antiretroviral treatment, known as post-exposure prophylaxis is believed to reduce the risk of infection if begun directly after exposure. Current treatment for HIV infection consists of highly active antiretroviral therapy, or HAART, an expensive procedure that many poor countries in Africa are forced to take. The second level of analysis is whether or not pharmaceutical drug companies can afford to take the pay cuts. It has been argued many times over that these drug companies need the money to innovate and to develop new techniques and new formulations. The evidence, however, militates against this. According to a paper written by Oxfam International: In 2000, for example, the ten biggest companies in the US spent more than twice as much on marketing and administration (34%) than on R&D (14%). Pfizer spent $22.2 billion on dividends and share buybacks in 2003 and the first half of 2004, over twice the amount spent on research. Merck returned $7.3 billion,

Morality and Humanity In Kants View Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Morality and Humanity In Kants View - Essay Example Second, recast that maxim as a universal law of nature governing all rational agents, and so as holding that all must, by natural law, act as you yourself propose to act in these circumstances. Third, consider whether your maxim is even conceivable in a world governed by this law of nature. If it is, then, fourth, ask yourself whether you would, or could, rationally will to act on your maxim in such a world. If you could, then your action is morally permissible. Throughout his moral works, Kant returns time and again to the question of the method moral philosophy should employ when pursuing these aims. A basic theme of these discussions is that the fundamental philosophical issues must be addressed a priori, that is, without drawing on observations of human beings and their behavior. Once we â€Å"seek out and establish† the fundamental principle of morality a priori, then we may consult facts drawn from experience in order to determine how best to apply this principle to huma n beings and generate particular conclusions about how we ought to act. Kant's insistence on an a priorimethod to seek out and establish fundamental moral principles, however, does not always appear to be matched by his own practice. The Groundwork, for instance, makes repeated appeals to empirical facts (that our wills are determined by practical principles, that various motivations are variable in producing right actions, and so on). Later ethical works rely even more heavily on empirical generalizations. Kant did not take himself to be employing these assumptions in seeking out and establishing the fundamental moral principle, only in applying it to human beings. Nevertheless, it is not always easy to tell whether Kant's arguments gain their plausibility only by relying on ideas established by observations of human being and the world they inhabit. Kant's example of a perfect duty to others concerns a promise you might consider making but have no intention of keeping in order to get needed money. Naturally, being rational requires not contradicting oneself, but there is no self-contradiction in the maxim "I will make lying promises when it achieves something I want". An immoral action clearly does not involve a self-contradiction in this sense (as would the maxim of finding a married bachelor). Kant's position is that it is irrational to perform an action if that action's maxim contradicts itself once made into a universal law of nature. The maxim of lying whenever it gets what you want generates a contradiction once you try to combine it with the universalized version that all rational agents must, by a law of nature, lie when it gets what they want. Here is one way of seeing how this might work: If I conceive of a world in which everyone by nature must try to deceive people any time it will get what they want, I am conceiving of a world in which no practice of giving one's word could ever arise. So I am conceiving of a world in which no practice of giving one's word exists. My maxim, however, is to make a deceptive promise in order to get needed money. And it is a necessary means of doing this that a practice of taking the word of others exists, so that someone might take my word and I take advantage of their doing so. Thus, in trying to conceive of my maxim in a world in which no one ever takes anyone's word in such circumstances, I am trying to conceiv

Superfund Sites in Picher Oklahoma Essay Example for Free

Superfund Sites in Picher Oklahoma Essay Superfund Sites in Picher Oklahoma Introduction            The Tar Creek superfund site which is also known as Picher lead and zinc mining district is found in the far northeastern part of Oklahoma near its border with Kansas. The site was part of the Tri-state mining district that included areas of Missouri and Kansas and was one of the largest lead and zinc mining areas in the world. The Tar Creek site is considered to be one of the largest superfund site in America covering a geographic area of about 50 square miles and costs a total remediation fee of about 540 million dollars to 61 billion dollars. Tar Creek is a small stream that is characterized by still pools and is the major drainage system for the in the Picher field area, and it flows to the south passing between the towns of Picher and Cardin. Despite efforts that were put to prevent further contamination, there was minimal improvement in the surface water quality. The measures taken to divert the water were seen to be only partially effective (State Oklahoma report). As part of action to remedy the situation, eighty-three wells abandoned wells were refilled, dikes were constructed to divert surface water around collapsed mine shafts and the mines. The first operable unit cost ten million dollars.            The superfund program by the Environmental protection Agency has been highly criticized and praised over the years since the beginning of its implementation. There are some superfund sites that were cleaned successfully and reclaimed, however, others like the Tar Creek superfund site, which has been listed in the National Priorities List for several years. The Tar Creek has witnessed minimal notable improvement since the cleanup efforts began. The purpose of this research document is to investigate the difference between sites that have been cleaned and reclaimed successfully and those that have not seen any meaningful change. The paper will also determine the factors that influence speed and ease of the cleanup, suggest changes that can be made to the current process of superfund cleanup that will be beneficial to all sites. Overview and Analysis of Risks Involved            Tar creek is a region that is found at the northwest of Oklahoma near the town of Picher and is part of land segments in the southeast Kansas and southwest Missouri. It totals about 1,200 acres and 40 square miles in size. The area was part of the Tri-state Mining District between 1900 to late 1960s. Excessive mining carried out in the area produced pollutants of lead, zinc and cadmium that resulted in highly acidic water flowing into ponds and streams on the surface while some seeped into ground water. Other specific affected towns apart from Picher include Miami, Hockerville, Cardin, and Quapaw.            The problems found in Tar creek site, and Picher have historical beginnings in long time mining of zinc and lead in the area. Mining in the area began in 1900 and went on through to the late 1970s. The process of mining lead and zinc creates large quantities of unused mining materials which pile up above the ground and are always known as â€Å"chat† piles. These chat piles can be quite huge and may resemble hills. Over time, mining companies disposed of the chat by creating large piles above the ground and tailing ponds or dumping it into flotation. Some chat piles could rise as high as 200 feet, and all of it had increased level of lead and other heavy metals.            It is approximated that about 1.7 million tons of led was generated from the mining of about 181 million tons of lead deposits, giving rise to a significant amount of lead contaminated waste. It was posited that at during the time of clean up, there were thousands of acres (Fifty square miles or two thousand nine hundred) and more than 265 million tons of chats that are lead contaminated (Hu, Shine and Wright, 2007).            The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Geological Survey estimate that Tar Creek has 75 million tons of chat piles. The Environmental Protection Agency listed Tar Creek on the National Priorities List in 1983.This made it subject to Comprehensive Environmental Compensation, Response, and Liability Act. Environmental Protection Agency found that tailings were found all over residential properties in the Tar Creek, with the foundation of business units and homes built on chat. Apart from that, another by-product arising from the mining operation is highly acidic mine water. The zinc and lead mines were that abandoned began to fill with surface runoff. During the late 1970s, the drainage of the acid mines containing heavy metals started to discharge into Tar Creek from boreholes, natural springs and open mine shafts.            Several public health problems are presented by the superfund site that include mine shaft hazards, acid mine drainage, poor air quality due to dust laden with lead. Others include soil contamination linked to chat piles and mine waste and exposure of young children and vulnerable population to contaminated materials. More health risks are attributed to human consumption of wild food and fish from the Tar Creek superfund site and including the Spring River and Neosho river watershed.            All these environmental and human health problems are still being examined by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Human Health Services and other local state agencies. In 2003, several federal agencies (the Environmental Protection Agency, U. S. Army Corps, and the Department of Interior) signed a memorandum of understanding facilitating cooperation of the agencies to achieve a holistic approach to the risk posed from the Tar Creek superfund site. Federal, private and state efforts are implemented and coordinated by the Department of Environmental Quality in Oklahoma to ensure that a comprehensive solution to the health and environmental problems is achieved in the area. Several tribal authorities are conducting additional solutions to restore their environment and protect the health of community members. Possible Solutions to the Problem            Superfund is currently not set up to handle complex and large areas like Tar Creek. Superfund is focused on site remediation as a permanent solution to the problem. However, in situations such as Tar Creek it is not easy to achieve a permanent solution within a short time. Therefore, the residents of this area and the surrounding areas are exposed to contaminants for a substantial period, which increases risk human health effect on the environment.            Solving this problem requires separate cleanup process are included where the complexity, size or government restrictions in the area will lead to prolonged cleanup time or significant delays. For superfund sites like Tar Creek, two cleanup approaches should be used. The first approach should aim at getting a permanent solution, as is the current goal of the superfund process. The second approach should be a temporary solution which will minimize exposure of people, environment and wildlife to the contamination while a permanent solution is lookedfor. An example of this is covering contaminated soil using a capping system (United States Environmental Protection Agency).            There are various measures that can be implemented at the Tar Creek superfund site that can provide immediate and significant benefits. The first action should be extensive community education program. The Environmental Protection Agency should take measures to inform the community about the dangers and hazards that are linked to the pollution and inform them of measures they can take to protect their health. People need to be informed of the importance of regular hand washing. Measures should be put in place to inform residents of the risks that can result from playing on the piles of chat and the area creeks. Warning signs and fences to prevent people from entering the polluted areas should be erected. The education program can help to decrease the blood lead level of people living in the area (United States Environmental Protection Agency). Public education programs are beneficial; however, it is not a requirement for superfund sites. It is up to those charged w ith overseeing the site to initiate such programs. Individuals living in the areas that are polluted deserve the right to know the nature of pollution they are exposed to and the measures they can implement to protect themselves. Immediately a problem is identified, education and public awareness programs should begin. Public education programs should begin as soon as the site is listed in the National priority list.            Another measure that can be beneficial at the Tar Creek is the removal of chat from residential properties. Chat coverings such as roads, driveways and playground surfaces should be removed and replaced. Apart from this, some of the chat in the chat piles can be used as an aggregate for asphalt, reducing the volume of chat over a number of years. Asphalt made with the chat can be used to plug mine shafts and pave roads while containing the heavy lead and zinc metals and decreasing their mobility. Removal of chat can result in a reduced blood lead level in the people living in the area. The removal process is projected to have more positive outcomes as progress continues. For example, piles of chat shrink exposure of community members to dust as a result of wind will reduce. In addition to that, contamination of ground water by rainwater runoff will reduce as the chat piles shrinks.            The surface water quality should be improved through construction of passive treatment projects while harnessing the filtration capability of the surrounding ecosystem. To reduce exposure to lead dust, the amount of chat used in asphalt mixes needs to be increased, chat roads should be paved and chat piles and millponds near residential areas should be re-navigated. In addition to this, the state can alleviate mine hazards by locating and mapping vent holes and mine shafts and filling them with chat. The other method is to reclaim the land by removing the chat, re-vegetating and re-contouring the land.            In addition to this, state governments can easily manage awareness and education programs, without interrupting the federal cleanup work. If the area is very complex, local governments, and the state can focus on smaller or projects that are less complex like the chat removal. At the same time, federal resources should be used on the most complex areas of the cleanup exercise. Federal agencies have a tendency to control the state and local governments rather than working together with them. Measures should be added to the current superfund program to enable greater state and local government participation. More funds and high awareness could quicken the cleanup process.            The superfund process should change the way threats to the environment and health are viewed. In general, measures should be taken the moment an imminent threat to human health and the environment has been identified. (US EPA). In Tar Creek exposure over a day or several days will not have any notable impact on a person’s health. However, over a period of years, exposure to contaminants in the area may affect the reproductive, cardiovascular, and central nervous system for people who are exposed. It can also cause hyperactivity and retardation in young children (Church). The people residing in Tar Creek area had been exposed to contaminants for several years, their health was seriously at risk due to the chronic threat affecting the people for over fifty tears (Brock et al., 1995).            To reduce the threat to human health due to exposure contaminated materials, a new classification system should be introduced to the superfund process. Conditions that that would create a significant threat to human health as a result of repeated exposure can be classified as a chronic threat. A timeline can be established, based on the nature of the contaminant, the duration of time over which the environment and the public had were exposed, and the extent of contamination. This timeline will determine the acceptable period to improve the situation. If significant improvement is not realized within the period, the situation should be classified as an immediate threat. Conclusion            Even though the superfund process has been successful in many cases, it can be improved upon. Measures that include mandatory education programs, testing for cross-contamination at the beginning of the site investigation, implementation of temporary remedies for particularly complex or large cleanup sites can be used to encourage greater state intervention. Addressing chronic threats has not improved substantially over time and is a measure that should be taken to improve the current cleanup processes. However, these means are not the only means for improving effectiveness and efficiency of the Superfund process.            Superfund should be treated as work in progress. The process should be reviewed for problems and flaws on a continuous basis. In addition, unsuccessful and successful sites should be reviewed for particular activities that led to their success or failure. Information that is acquired from these reviews should be used to come up with new procedures and policies that can be added to the existing superfund process. The Superfund process can never be perfect, but continuous monitoring and revision of the process will help make the system very efficient. References Brock, F. V., K. C. Crawford, R. L. Elliott, G. W. Cuperus, S. J. Stadler, H. L. Johnson, and M. D. Eilts, (1995): The Oklahoma Mesonet: A Technical Overview. J. Atmos. and Oceanic Techno. 12, 5-19. Church, Thomas W., and Robert T. Nakamura (1993).Cleaning Up the Mess: Implementation Strategies in Superfund.Washington D.C. The Brookings Institution. Oklahoma State Department of Health. Retrieved December 2014 from:http://www.health.state.ok.us/PROGRAM/envhlth/sites/ottawa.html. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Ohio River Park: Current Site Information.Retrieved on December 2014 from: http://www.epa.gov/reg3hwmd/npl/PAD980508816.htm. United States Environmental Protection Agency. The Superfund Program, Ten Years of Progress.EPA/540/8-91/003. December 2014. Source document

Amazon strategies to manage its inventory

Amazon strategies to manage its inventory Amazon .com called itself Earths Biggest Bookstore because it has been ranked as the best consumer e-business. It sells books, music over the internet. From both market and supply chain management point of views, Amazon has some challenges and strengths. Managing inventory is one of the company opportunities to overcome its financial barriers regarding the warehouses and shipping costs. Amazon follows some strategies to manage its inventories. It had the decision to outsource its inventory to reduce its inventory costs and to sell competitors products on its site to achieve both managing its customer relationship and sustaining its competitive advantage. As its competitors estimate that Amazon.Com has the highest percentage of the e-business bookstore. So, Amazon tries to share its information and outsources this area of its business to improve inventory cost and customer service levels. 1- Amazonstrategies to manage its inventory: Amazon found the decision of stocking the stores with all the possible products was not the right one. Although that the customer might choose not to purchase if there are not enough goods in the stock, It decided to manage its inventory in the season of 2000, following certain strategies. It started from reducing the warehouses, concentrating more on the quality of the products and the manufacturer or the publisher of the products. Then it had to decide the center of distribution it can send its products to and know how to receive and track the product once it was in the warehouse. Amazon also decided to buy its products directly from the manufacturer to sustain its vendors relationships to gain the best deal from them. Amazon.com developed a distribution infrastructure to provide its customers with the fast delivery from the company directly. Its distribution facilities have the great impact on increasing its products that are delivered and shipped very fast to the customers. The quick shipping process comes out of the great availability of the goods to achieve its customer satisfaction. This network distribution is called manufacturer storage with direct shipping which is one of the six distinct distribution network designs. It has advantages and disadvantages. Through this network, manufacturer storage with direct shipping can be appropriated for a large variety of low demand, high value items with several partial shipments. Drop-shipping model is also suitable if it allows the manufacturer to postpone customization, and there should be few sourcing locations per order. Drop shipping is not be suitable to be used if there are multiple locations that have to shipped directly to customers on a regu lar basis. Amazon can centralize inventories at the manufacture and then save inventory costs. Also, Drop shipping offers the manufacturer the opportunity to further lower inventories by postponing customization until after the customer order has been placed. However, when a customer orders several items from several manufacturers such as Ingram and Amazon, this include multiple shipments to the customer and thus increase costs. Also, this business model can has negative effect on Amazons competitive advantage by making no entry barriers for competitors because of its popularity and better margins (Chopra, 2001 ) . In terms of handling costs because the manufacturer has to deliver the order directly to the customer, Amazon developed its software to manage the split shipment if multiple items are ordered. So Amazon needs to share its information with the suppliers to provide the customers with the product availability and order processing to save time and reduce inventories. However, Cachon and Fisher point in their paper Supply Chain Inventory Management and the Value of Shared Information that information technology or software give the retailer the chance to share demand and inventory data faster and cheaper. They investigate how information sharing whether it is traditional information sharing or full information sharing between the retailer and the supplier affects supply chain inventory management regarding reducing lead times and increasing delivery frequency by reducing shipment batch sizes. The result of the study they have done is that the average of full shard information policy in supply chain costs is lower than of traditional information policy. But from Chopras and Meind perspective IT must be fully shared between all the stakeholders; suppliers and retailer. Amazon.com provides its customers with experience from beginning to end and own the whole data which gives them all the information they need about the product availability though the invent ory is located at the manufacturer. At the same time the buyers should have a clear idea about the order processing that is placed at the retailer. By owning such a system, Amazon could achieve high level of customers services because the information is directly linked to the customers in the system. As the company expands its operations, these systems are replicated across the distribution centers. Amazon.coms case is a good examples that illustrates how evolving industry standards can affect data-sharing strategies between customers and suppliers because it does not stock all the books advertised on its site, but shares customers order data with suppliers to speed customers orders.. This system solves the problem of inventory costs because Amazon. com spent US300m in 1999 to outfit the 3 million square feet of warehouse space. Finally Amazon does not need to stock every single item in the warehouse. Instead of that, the retailers or their vendors will send the products without eve r being stocked on the shelves of the warehouses. So, it started to develop its software to increase competitive pressures on all on line retailers in general and to rearrange its warehouses in different regions in particular. Amazons unique strategy is described as change and growing intense competition. Its systems and network infrastructure increase the traffic on its Web site and expanding sales volume through its transaction-processing systems. Amazons main concern regarding its network distribution and software is to avoid the unanticipated system disruptions, slower response times, weakens customer service and impaired quality and speed of order fulfillment, or the postpone in supporting the customer with the accurate financial information. 2) Outsourcing its inventory management: I think Amazon had taken the right decision to outsource its inventory management. In the case of Amazon did not outsourced all of its inventories but it keeps its popular ounces. This was a good decision for many reasons; the major ounces are to cut down its costs and give particular concern on it core activities. It partnered with other distributors for shipping the inventory like Ingram Micro and Cell Star. At the time the partners shipped the items, Amazon concentrated on its e-commerce expertise. Also, Amazon managed order fulfillment while Toys R Us managed the supply processes. Amazon outsourced much of its fulfillment. Although it acquired more than 4.5 million square feet of warehouse space worldwide by the end of 2000, it is using only 40 percent of its warehouse space. Through outsourcing; Amazon increases its efficiencies in distribution. From a another perspective there are Some risks of outsourcing because of the complexity, confusion or unclear decision making, and bro ken information flows in decentralizing, which can be corrected by redesigning processes and improving information technologies. Others thinks that small companies only can get benefit from outsourcing or third party because they need experience and supports in technology. However outsourcing leads large companies to have complex supply chains and many distribution managers (Razzaque and Cheng 1998). Amazon outsourcing inventory contributes to profits through providing its employees and users with the methods and strategies to maintain the firms competitive advantage, adding value to the goods, enriching customer service and assisting in opening new markets. One of the benefits of third party logistics is providing provide their customers experience that otherwise would be hard to acquire in-house. An company should consider certain criteria in outsourcing process such as quality, capacity, labor, scheduling and skill to be important in a make-or-buy decision (Razzaque and Cheng 1998). In Amazons case, it had an agreement with Ingram Micro Inc be cause it is one of the largest wholesale of electronic goods to provide logistics to services for computers at Amazon. com. Moreover, it has great experience in distributing process and customer satisfaction. 3- Selling others products on its website The idea of selling other competitors products on Amazons site is very profitable because the clients can be aware of the prices of others product compared with Amazon. This provides the company with more profits without making advertising to their low price products. It opens new stores on its site to give greater availability of the products and draw more customers. IT gives the customers the chance to turn to Amazon to buy more than books and music especially because Amazon handled the site orders, while the third party company handled the inventory. It may seem at first that a customer always wants the highest level of performance along all these dimensions. In practice, however, this is not always the case. Customers ordering a book at Amazon.com are willing to wait longer than those that drive to a nearby Borders store to get the same book. Customers have the advantages to find a variety of books at Amazon compared to the Borders store. On the other hand, firms that target cust omers who value short response times need to locate close to them. These firms must have many facilities, with each location having a low capacity. Thus, a decrease in the response time customers desire increases the number of facilities required in the network. For example, Borders provides its customers with books on the same day but requires about 400 stores to achieve this goal for most of the United States. Amazon, on the other hand, takes about a week to deliver a book to its customers, but only uses about 5 locations to store its books.