Devry GSCM520 week 1 assignment

Case Study
The Tao of Timbuk2
Review the The Tao
of Timbuk2 case study on page 43 in the textbook. You can find the questions
for this case study in Doc Sharing.
Compose an
APA-formatted Word document, no more than three pages in length; please answer
each of the questions in the presented case study.
You might want to
use Microsoft Visio software for the final question of this case. See the
Syllabus for tips on using MS Visio. You may already have Visio installed on
your computer; if not, you can access the software from the iLab under Course
Home.

Case: The Tao of Timbuk2*

“Timbuk2 is more than a bag. It’s more than a brand.
Tim-buk2 is a bond. To its owner, a Timbuk2 bag is a dependable, everyday
companion. We see fierce, emotional attachments form between Timbuk2 customers
and their bags all the time. A well-worn Timbuk2 bag has a certain patina—the
stains and scars of everyday urban adventures. Many Timbuk2 bags are worn daily
for a decade or more, accompanying the owner through all sorts of defining life
events. True to our legend of Indestructibility,’ it’s not uncommon for a
Timbuk2 bag to outlive jobs, personal relationships, even pets. This is the Tao
of Timbuk2.”

What makes Timbuk2 so unique? Visit their Website at
www.timbuk2.com and see for yourself. Each bag is custom designed by the
customer on their Website. After the customer selects the basic bag
configuration and size, colors for each of the various panels are presented;
various lines, logos, pockets, and straps are selected so that the bag is
tailored to the exact specifications of the customer. A quick click of the
mouse and the bag is delivered directly to the customer in only two days. How
do they do this?

This San Francisco–based company is known for producing
high-quality custom and classic messenger bags direct to customer order. They
have a team of approximately 25 hardworking cutters and sewers in their San
Francisco plant. Over the years, they have fine-tuned their production line to
make it as efficient as possible while producing the highest-quality messenger
bags available.

The local manufacturing is focused on the custom messenger
bag. For these bags, orders are taken over the Internet. The customers are
given many configuration, size, color, pocket, and strap options. The bag is
tailored to the exact specifications of the customer on the Timbuk2 assembly
line in San Francisco and sent via overnight delivery directly to the customer.

Recently, Timbuk2 has begun making some of its new products
in China, which is a concern to some of its longstanding customers. The company
argues that it has designed its new products to provide the best possible
features, quality, and value at reasonable prices and stresses that these new
products are designed in San Francisco. Timbuk2 argues that the new bags are
much more complex to build and require substantially more labor and a variety
of very expensive machines to produce. They argue that the San Francisco
factory labor cost alone would make the retail price absurdly high. After
researching a dozen factories in China, Timbuk2 found one that it thinks is up
to the task of producing these new bags. Much as in San Francisco, the China
factory employs a team of hardworking craftspeople who earn good wages and an
honest living. Timbuk2 visits the China factory every four to eight weeks to
ensure superior quality standards and working conditions.

On the Timbuk2 Website, the company argues they are the same
hardworking group of bag fanatics designing and making great bags, and
supporting our local community and increasingly competitive global market. The
company reports that demand is still strong for the custom messenger bags made
in San Francisco and that the new laptop bags sourced from China are receiving
rave reviews. The additional business is allowing them to hire more people in
all departments at the San Francisco headquarters—creating even more jobs
locally.

Questions

1. Consider the two categories of products that Timbuk2
makes and sells. For the custom messenger bag, what are the key competitive
dimensions that are driving sales? Are their competitive priorities different
for the new laptop bags sourced in China?
2. Compare the assembly line in China to that in San
Francisco along the following dimensions: (1) volume or rate of production, (2)
required skill of the workers, (3) level of automation, and (4) amount of raw
materials and finished goods inventory.
3. Draw two diagrams, one depicting the supply chain for
those products sourced in China and the other depicting the bags produced in
San Francisco. Show all the major steps, including raw material, manufacturing,
finished goods, distribution inventory, and transportation. Other than
manufacturing cost, what other costs should Tim-buk2 consider when making the
sourcing decision?