Red Sea / Houthi rebels situation

[Nasher]

Supply chains cannot be upended and moved quickly.

Getting quotes from a supplier can take up to 6 weeks. Then there is tooling manufacturing, depending on complexity is anywhere from a few weeks to 6 months. Or you can ship your tool from your old supplier if you own it. After all that you still need to test and validate the product they are delivering and then ramp up production.

It would take a 2-3 months minimum to move suppliers. By the time you’ve finished this situation might be over and we are onto the next global issue. What are you going to do in the mean time?

Side note It is a false belief that the Chinese cannot manufacture items that are of “good” quality.
They will make it to the specifications that you give them. iPhones are made in China and I don’t think anyone in their right mind would say that an iPhone feels like a low quality product. (In a physical sense)

The biggest issue you will face with the Chinese is them secretly changing the production method to save money for themselves while charging you the same which can cause issue with the final product. But even that can be controlled.

Edit: Also where is all this spare manufacturing capacity going to come from?

Iphones aren't great quality. Didn't they have big issues with them bending a few years back lol. Also the screens crack if you sneeze near them to hard.

 

[SPG]

China is cheap due to labour costs, from a quality point of view if your specification is 100% clear you will get **** back. Even then you need to 150% on the ball using them. But they also do good stuff, where they lack is the traceability and to that degree accountability as failure is quite a big no no in their culture.

Had a quick look on google maps but their is google image of the beach front..... and we thought our beaches were bad from litter.... Blackpool looks a top venue.

 

[Sankari]

Side note It is a false belief that the Chinese cannot manufacture items that are of “good” quality.

True. They just typically don't.

They will make it to the specifications that you give them.

Provided with the right incentive and/or coerced with sufficient leverage, yes.

There are many, many well documented cases of Western companies tearing their hair out while trying to get decent products out of Chinese suppliers who change ingedients, sizes, materials, and other specxfications arbitrarily without consulting the cllient.

I have read (and recommend) this excellent book: Poorly Made in China: An Insider's Account of the China Production Game.

In this entertaining behind-the-scenes account, Paul Midler tells us all that is wrong with our effort to shift manufacturing to China. Now updated and expanded, Poorly Made in China reveals industry secrets, including the dangerous practice of quality fade―the deliberate and secret habit of Chinese manufacturers to widen profit margins through the reduction of quality inputs.

U.S. importers don’t stand a chance, Midler explains, against savvy Chinese suppliers who feel they have little to lose by placing consumer safety at risk for the sake of greater profit. This is a lively and impassioned personal account, a collection of true stories, told by an American who has worked in the country for close to two decades.

Poorly Made in China touches on a number of issues that affect us all.

Bottom line: Chinese manufacturers will save money any way they can, to increase their own margin, even at the expense of their clients; and they will do so without any regard for the law.

 

[Stu999]

Two US Navy SEALs presumed dead in a mission to intercept weapons bound for Yemen. RIP.

Navy Seals presumed dead after anti-Houthi mission

The commandos were part of an operation to seize Iranian-made missile parts bound for Yemen.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Richard - London]

Two US Navy SEALs presumed dead in a mission to intercept weapons bound for Yemen. RIP.

Navy Seals presumed dead after anti-Houthi mission

The commandos were part of an operation to seize Iranian-made missile parts bound for Yemen.

www.bbc.co.uk

The yanks won't like that,

 

[Stu999]

The yanks won't like that,

No, although it sounds like more of an accident (swept into the ocean) rather than them being shot or something.

 

[Chuk_Chuk]

Iphones aren't great quality. Didn't they have big issues with them bending a few years back lol. Also the screens crack if you sneeze near them to hard.

That was a design issue not a manufacturing issue as far as I am aware. Not sure about the screens comment though. Are iPhones screens easier to break than other phones?

 

[Chuk_Chuk]

Bottom line: Chinese manufacturers will save money any way they can, to increase their own margin, even at the expense of their clients; and they will do so without any regard for the law.

Thank you for expanding and providing evidence for the final paragraph I wrote.

 

[NickK]

China is cheap due to labour costs, from a quality point of view if your specification is 100% clear you will get **** back. Even then you need to 150% on the ball using them. But they also do good stuff, where they lack is the traceability and to that degree accountability as failure is quite a big no no in their culture.

Had a quick look on google maps but their is google image of the beach front..... and we thought our beaches were bad from litter.... Blackpool looks a top venue.

Buyer beware. I have known procurement teams thay will only function by doing their own Q&A (western team in china) for manufactured goods before accepting the product prior to shipping.

 

[SPG]

I totally agree but not every company that deals with China in terms of manufacture is not a huge multinational that can afford to have permanent or semi permanent team in China. With my experience using them you need to be 100% clear on spec and be upto speed on your internal QA inspection processes. They do make mistakes its manufacturing but in general when your up and running its ok (ish)

 

[Roar87]

Two US Navy SEALs presumed dead in a mission to intercept weapons bound for Yemen. RIP.

Navy Seals presumed dead after anti-Houthi mission

The commandos were part of an operation to seize Iranian-made missile parts bound for Yemen.

www.bbc.co.uk

The second then entered the water to try and save the first, as is taught during training.

Tragic and sad.

 

[NickK]

The second then entered the water to try and save the first, as is taught during training.

Tragic.

Indeed.

 

[Stu999]

More US / UK strikes on the Houthis underway: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-68064422

 

[Sankari]

Thank you for expanding and providing evidence for the final paragraph I wrote.

You're welcome. Thank you for agreeing with me.

 

[Grim5]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1749568374861091194

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1749572175575540029

 

[Tefal]

Maybe this is my ignorance showing, but wouldn't Ansar Allah need minelaying ships to deploy mines? As far as I know, they don't have any -- or any real navy to speak of at all. And, even if they did, minelayers would surely be a soft target for Western forces wishing to prevent their actions.

Fishingboat should be able to tow one though?

 

[SupraWez]

Fishingboat should be able to tow one though?

Dont slam on the brakes eh

 

[potatolord]

This is kinda relevant.

Somaliland has a long sea border in the region. If it kicks off with Egypt and Ethiopia, that's going to be big.

Egypt backs Somalia in dispute over Ethiopia-Somaliland deal

Somalia mobilises regional support as Ethiopia considers recognising breakaway region to gain sea access

www.theguardian.com

 

[Malevolence]

This is kinda relevant.

Somaliland has a long sea border in the region. If it kicks off with Egypt and Ethiopia, that's going to be big.

Egypt backs Somalia in dispute over Ethiopia-Somaliland deal

Somalia mobilises regional support as Ethiopia considers recognising breakaway region to gain sea access

www.theguardian.com

Egypt are still sore over the Ethiopian dam on the Blue Nile. Will be interesting to see if that's amongst the first targets hit if it does kick off.

 

[Mr Jack]

Egypt may be unhappy, but it's surely unlikely they'd attempt to kick off a full military response. Unless Eritrea joins up they'll seriously struggle to deploy their forces, apart from anything else.