| After the 2011 Japan earthquake automakers ran into a the same problem, they ran out of a pigment called Xirallic made by Merck >After the earthquake, automakers worldwide were forced to stop making cars of certain colors because they couldn't get the aluminum-flaked Xirallic pigment that makes the paint sparkle. Merck was making the pigment at only one plant worldwide -- its Onahama plant in the quake zone -- and kept significant stocks of the product only at the same factory. It took months to restart the plant and resume deliveries.[1] The Verge did a really good profile of the perils of just-in-time manufacturing in respect to Apple that highlights how highly efficient JIT in reducing costs but that it ultimately leads to more fragile supply chains.[2] >Just-in-time manufacturing is highly efficient, but it’s not resilient.This style of manufacturing cuts costs — but it also means that if the supply chain is disrupted, there will be shortages.[2] I really like this insight >To make a more resilient system, a lot of companies may have to rethink just-in-time manufacturing. Resilience doesn’t show up as clearly on balance sheets as cost reduction, but it’s crucial for surviving disruptive events. Lowering costs by creating economies of scale and volume looks good most of the time, but once there’s a failure, companies don’t have many options.[2] [1]https://www.autonews.com/article/20130715/OEM10/307159926/pi... (Paywalled)
Archive: https://archive.md/Yoqe2 [2]https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/13/21177024/apple-just-in-ti... |
I'm not even sure I'd want that as a consumer. Mostly I'd rather wait than pay more (although obviously not for food).