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=="Kanban" Just in Time: Interdependent Fragility of the Store Distribution Systems==
=="Kanban" Just in Time: Interdependent Fragility of the Store Distribution Systems==
[[Retail]] store chains of [[supply]] are lengthy and [[fragile]]. Most [[American]] and [[Europe]]an store [[business]] models are based on a "[[just in time]] delivery" or "JIT" or "Kanban" as the [[Japanese]] inventors called it in the [[1960s]].<ref>The [[Japan]]ese invented the "[[just in time]] delivery" or "JIT" inventory control system called "kanban" in Japanese.</ref> The JIT inventory control of the [[retail]] and [[food distribution system]] is both [[interdependent]] and [[fragile]].
[[Retail]] store chains of [[supply]] are lengthy and fragile. Most [[American]] and [[Europe]]an store [[business]] models are based on a "[[just in time]] delivery" or "JIT" or "Kanban" as the [[Japanese]] inventors called it in the [[1960s]].<ref>The [[Japan]]ese invented the "[[just in time]] delivery" or "JIT" inventory control system called "kanban" in Japanese.</ref> The JIT inventory control of the [[retail]] and [[food distribution system]] is both interdependent and fragile.
The world's biggest chain of stores, [[Wal-Mart]], is proof that we live in a fragile [[society]]. The kanban or "[[just in time|Just in Time]]" [[inventory]] system was developed in [[Japan]] and became popular in [[America]] starting in the 1970s. It is now ubiquitous in nearly every [[industry]]. The concept is simple: Through close coordination with subcontractors and piece part suppliers, a manufacturer can keep its parts inventory small. Kanban is a key element of lean [[manufacturing]]. Manufacturers order batches of parts only as needed, sometimes ordering as frequently as twice a week. Companies now hire Six Sigma consultants and Kaizen gurus, they buy sophisticated [[computer|data-processing]] systems, and they hire extra purchasing administrators, and these expenses actually save them [[money]] at the bottom line.
The world's biggest chain of stores, [[Wal-Mart]], is proof that we live in a fragile [[society]]. The kanban or "[[just in time|Just in Time]]" [[inventory]] system was developed in [[Japan]] and became popular in [[America]] starting in the 1970s. It is now ubiquitous in nearly every [[industry]]. The concept is simple: Through close coordination with subcontractors and piece part suppliers, a manufacturer can keep its parts inventory small. Kanban is a key element of lean [[manufacturing]]. Manufacturers order batches of parts only as needed, sometimes ordering as frequently as twice a week. Companies now hire Six Sigma consultants and Kaizen gurus, they buy sophisticated [[computer|data-processing]] systems, and they hire extra purchasing administrators, and these expenses actually save them [[money]] at the bottom line.
Just In Time inventory systems have several advantages: less [[warehouse]] space, less [[capital]] tied up in parts inventory, and less [[risk]] of parts obsolescence.
Just In Time inventory systems have several advantages: less [[warehouse]] space, less [[capital]] tied up in parts inventory, and less [[risk]] of parts obsolescence.
The downside is that lean inventories leave companies vulnerable to any disruption of [[supply]], for instance in the [[food distribution system]] or [[food production system]]. If [[transportation]] ([[UPS]], [[post office]], [[Fedex]], [[truck]]s, [[ship]]s, [[railroad]], and [[airplane]]s) gets snarled due to a [[Labor strike#Trucker Strike|trucker strike]] or bad [[weather]] or a [[disaster]], or if [[communication]]s get disrupted, or a parts vendor has a [[strike]] or a [[production]] problem, then [[assembly line]]s grind to a halt. Just one missing part means that no finished products go out the door.<ref>[https://www.amazon.com/Christopher-Steiner/e/B001UO7HUG/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1 Christopher Steiner], ''20 Per Gallon: How the Inevitable Rise in the Price of Gasoline Will Change Our Lives for the Better'', https://www.amazon.com/20-Per-Gallon-Inevitable-Gasoline/dp/B0046LUJCS Accessed December 15, 2014</ref>
The downside is that lean inventories leave companies vulnerable to any disruption of [[supply]], for instance in the [[food distribution system]] or [[food production system]]. If [[transportation]] (UPS, [[post office]], Fedex, [[truck]]s, [[ship]]s, [[railroad]], and [[airplane]]s) gets snarled due to a trucker strike or bad [[weather]] or a disaster, or if [[communication]]s get disrupted, or a parts vendor has a [[strike]] or a [[production]] problem, then [[assembly line]]s grind to a halt. Just one missing part means that no finished products go out the door.<ref>[https://www.amazon.com/Christopher-Steiner/e/B001UO7HUG/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1 Christopher Steiner], ''20 Per Gallon: How the Inevitable Rise in the Price of Gasoline Will Change Our Lives for the Better'', https://www.amazon.com/20-Per-Gallon-Inevitable-Gasoline/dp/B0046LUJCS Accessed December 15, 2014</ref>
The kanban concept has also been taken up by most of America's [[retail]]ers (with [[Wal-Mart]] leading the way), most notably its [[grocery store|grocery sellers]].
The kanban concept has also been taken up by most of America's [[retail]]ers (with [[Wal-Mart]] leading the way), most notably its [[grocery store|grocery sellers]].
===Threats to the Store System of Distribution===
===Threats to the Store System of Distribution===
Some examples of [[threat]]s to the modern grocery store "JIT" style goods and [[food distribution system]] include:
Some examples of threats to the modern grocery store "JIT" style goods and [[food distribution system]] include:
* [[Labor strike#Trucker Strike|Trucker strike]]
* Trucker strike
* [[Labor union]] [[strike]]
* [[Labor union]] [[strike]]
* Prices of a barrel of [[crude oil]] and hence the price of [[gasoline]] and [[diesel]]
* Prices of a barrel of [[crude oil]] and hence the price of [[gasoline]] and [[diesel]]
* [[Man-made disaster]]s such as [[war]] and [[terrorism]]
* Man-made disasters such as [[war]] and [[terrorism]]
* [[Natural disaster]]s such as [[storm]]s, [[tornado]]s, [[hurricane]]s, [[earthquake]]s, etc.
* [[Natural disaster]]s such as [[storm]]s, [[tornado]]s, [[hurricane]]s, [[earthquake]]s, etc.