One page summary 2011 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

One page summary 2011 - Essay Example The scatter diagram simply provides graphical evidence that there is an existing relationship and will also provide some idea regarding the strength of the relationship. A scatter diagram is constructed by plotting the values of one variable on the horizontal axis, and the corresponding value of the other variable on the vertical axis. The strength of the relationship is determined by the variability of the cluster of points relative to a mathematical expression describing the association. A run chart is a time-ordered chart, that is, individual measurements are plotted in the order in which they occur, and then connecting the points for ease in interpretation. It is best used to identify sustained shifts or trends in the process average. A control chart is a run chart with control limits. These limits represent the maximum and minimum allowable values for any individual plotted point. Any point that exceeds these limits provides statistical evidence that the process average has changed and that the chart’s centerline is no longer a reliable approximation. Thus, a control chart tests the statistical stability of the

Ict Unit 30 Essay Example for Free

Ict Unit 30 Essay Section B Hardware: Graphics Card Graphics cards processes all your graphics in your computer. All Graphics Cards have memory, these come in 128MB, 256MB and 512MB. The more memory your computer has, the faster it will run and combine it with a good processor. Internal Memory Cache memory is a added memory system that temporarily stores frequently used instructions and data for quicker processing by the central processor of a computer. RAM Random Access Memory is the working memory in a computer. Processor – The chip inside the computer that performs all of the calculations and operations necessary to make your computer run. Software: Vector based – CorelDraw is a vector graphic design software package. Other examples include: Adobe Illustrator, Computer Graphics Metafile and Shockwave Flash. Raster based Photo Raster is an advanced online photo editor software. Bitmap based Paintshop Pro is an image manipulation software, it allows you to work with Vectors and Rasters. Photo Manipulation Adobe Photoshop is a graphics editing program. Other software Image viewers and photo galleries. File formats: TIFF file A TIFF file stands for Tagged Image File Format. TIFF files are a common format for images, especially those used on graphic design. GIF file – GIF files are a format commonly used for graphics presented on websites. GIFs can contain a maximum of 256 colours, and are therefore best for images that contain simple shapes. JPG file JPG files, also known as JPEG files, are a common file format for digital photos and other digital graphics. When JPG files are saved, they use lossy compression, meaning image quality is lost as file size decreases. M1: A raster graphic or image is made up of pixels. Pixels are small squares of information. Raster graphics are wonderful for rich, full-colour images such as photographs. Raster graphics are rendered images on a pixel-by-pixel basis and they are fantastic when handling shading and gradients. Raster graphics are great when creating rich and detailed images. Every pixel in a  raster image can be a different colour therefore you can create a complex image with any kind of colour changes and variations. Also almost any program can work with a simple raster file. The most recognized application that handles raster graphics is Adobe Photoshop however there are also several other image editing software options out there for you to choose from. However raster images cannot be scaled up in size very well. If you do try to enlarge a raster image, it will look grainy and distorted. This is because raster images are created with a finite number of pixels. When you increase the size of a raster image, the image increases in size however, because there are no longer enough pixels to fill in this larger space, gaps are created between the pixels in the image. The photo editing software that you are using will try to fill these gaps the best they can however, the resulting image is often blurry. Another disadvantage is raster graphics are not great for embroidery. Because raster images are based on square pixels, your embroidery may look like it has jagged edges. If you want to embroider an image with smoother edges, it is best to use vector graphics instead of raster graphics. A vector graphic is made up of a series of small points that combine together to make lines and images. The most recognized applications which handle vector based graphics are Adobe illustrator, Macromedia freehand and Corel draw. Vector graphics are generally used for line art, illustrations and embroidery. Vector files are small because they contain a lot less data than raster files. Also vector graphics are more flexible than raster graphics because they can be easily scaled up and down without any loss to the quality of the image. As well as vector graphics having smoother lines when compared to square, pixel-based raster graphics therefore, they are better with straight lines and sweeping curves than raster graphics. However Vector graphics are generally filled with a solid colour or a gradient. They can’t display the lush colour depth of a raster graphic. Comparisons: A CD-ROM is a CD that can be read by a computer with an optical drive. The ROM part of the term means the data on the disc is read-only, or cannot be altered or erased; they can hold up to 700 MB. A hard drive however is the computers main storage media device that permanently stores all data on the computer. A flash card is a small data storage device that uses a flash  memory chip to store data. Flash cards can be quite small in size, with a capacity of many gigabytes of storage. And a USB storage device is a portable device that holds users data and files. USB storage devices include external hard drives and flash drives. A graphics tablet is an input device which allows you to draw a picture onto a computer screen without having to use a mouse or keyboard. It consists of a flat, touch-sensitive pad and some sort of drawing device, usually either a pen or stylus. However a computer mouse is an input device that is most often used with a personal computer. Moving a mouse along a flat surface can move the on-screen cursor to different items on the screen. A digital camera on the other hand is a camera that stores images digitally rather than recording them on film. Once a picture has been taken, it can be downloaded to a computer system, and then manipulated with a graphics program and then printed. Finally a computer scanner is used to convert a hard copy, that is a document you can hold in your hand, into data that your computer can read. Output media: The output medium involves a printer, monitor, mobile phone, PDA and a plotter. The way in which the development of output medium has had an impact on the design and the creation of the graphic images is by having vector images that look real life so it is clearer and appealing for people to look at. The reason for this is that before there used to be older monitor cases that were not as thin, because it is around 30cm deep and are Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) monitors. Whereas now there are modern monitors that are thinner which means that the case isn’t more than a few centimetres deep and are generally LCD which is also known as the Liquid Crystal Display or thin Film Transistors (TST). The way in which the development of printers has had an impact on the design and the creation of the graphics is, because if people wanted to receive good quality printing then they would have to buy a printer that is more expensive. Whereas now people don’t have to buy an expensive printer to receive good quality graphics. Another way in which the development of the printers has had an impact on the design and the creation of the graphics is, because there are new features available on one machine so the specific needs of the customers are being met as they are able to do everything themselves. Mobile phones have also had an impact on the design and the creation of graphics is, because people are able to take a picture  from their phones and edit it onto the computer. Whereas now people are able to edit it on their phones and Bluetooth it to the computer or printer which is not time-consuming and more efficient. Section C D2: The file format is basically the way in which the layout of the image is known as, in order for it to be stored on the computer. Therefore this shows us that due to there being different types of file formats they can be reduced, so that they are easily recognised and accessed by the file. JPEG/ JPG also known as the Joint Photographic Experts Group and it is used for photos and the continuous tone images. This specific format is mainly for the web applications and it is quite similar to the GIF file, however the only difference is that the JPEG files store all of its colour data and doesn’t need transparency whereas the GIF files don’t store the colour information. In addition the reason as to why I would not use this file format for my images that I have got from Google is, because when I try to print the image or change its size for example increase it e.g. stretch it, then the image can become degraded or pixelated. This means that the image quality is lost, does no t look as efficient and it is not clear to see. There are two different types of compression techniques and these are Lossless compression and Lossy compression. Therefore the compression techniques are used to reduce the disk size of the file. So if the file size is reduced then there is more storage space. However it could also be that the file needs to be moved to a different location. For example a small file size arrives more quickly that a file with more capacity and information. Lossless compression is when the images can be rebuilt from the compressed image. Whereas lossy compression is the opposite so this means that the original image cannot be rebuilt from the compressed image. Image resolution is when the amount of detail the image includes. Therefore it could be for digital images, such as vector or bitmap images, film images and other types of images etc. However if an image has a higher resolution then there is more detail within it and it can be measured in many different ways. This means that the resolution of images just shows how close the lines are to each other and be visibly resolved. In addition the resolution units can be  viewed as the physical sizes, such as the lines per image the inch or to the overall size of a picture for example lines per picture height. The reason why colour depth is important is, because it controls the file size and the overall quality of the image. To conclude looking at the different factors of the images, such as file formats, compression techniques, image resolution and colour depth they each have their own role in maintaining a good quality image and different methods to do so. Section C P6: Copyright is when people create the different types of media which is in a form of information for example images, software and books. Therefore the owners have the right on how they would like the work to be used or copied. However when people want to reuse the image they need to get permission first, because the images could have copyright. This stops someone from copying an idea therefore the business will have enough time to develop and manufacture the idea. This can then be sold at a high price to begin, in order to recover some of the development costs. Copyright free is when the images can be used by anyone so these images can be found on web pages for example Google. This is because they are easily recognised as copyright free which could be included from the graphics software. Whereas there are some images that are not easily identified as copyright free so this means that the person needs to gain permission from the owner in order for it to be used, as it could result in th e image having copyright. Generally when someone asks permission from the owner it could result in paying a sum of money for the image to be reused. As well as when someone takes photos of other people then he or she will need to ask them to sign a model release form which gives the photographer permission to use the image. This is because there are some people who don’t find using someone’s photos appropriate without their permission. Whereas for non-commercial use for example education schools then it is suitable for them to copy the image and use it for their education as they might need it for their project and there is no other purpose for using the information. However if the students require a lot of information then they might need to get permission for using the information and stating the name of the copyright image and the owner of the piece of information.

New York Must Increase the Minimum Wage Essay -- Minimum Wage Essays

Living in Bushwick commuting to school four days a week to Coney Island, and going to work four days a week at Rite Aid in Sunnyside, Queens, is more overwhelming than what it sounds. Working overnight from Monday to Friday, earning minimum wage and being taxed on top of that isn’t enough due to prices of gas, food, and necessities sky-rocketing. The job pays $7.25 per hour but I make a $0.75 differential for working the night shift. It’s difficult to be a student and work when you only have yourself as a form of financial support. There are days I don’t sleep and hours before I get a meal, because I get trapped by my living expenses, its long before I am able to splurge on luxuries and wants. Nevertheless, it has become challenging to keep my GPA up and my academic performance to its capability, but there isn’t an alternative. Before the late 1930’s, there was not a federal minimum wage. Minimum wage is the least amount an employer can pay to their employees. The current federal minimum wage is $7.25. In the early 1900’s, during industrialization, employees worked for little up to no money. The working conditions during this era weren’t regulated and there weren’t any labor laws that instated the ethics of working conditions. In New York City, there were just over 500 sweatshop garment factories in where the working conditions were very hazardous and in one case, deadly. On March 25, 1911, 146 garment workers died in a fire. The victims were mostly young immigrant women but among them were also immigrant men and children too. These women and men across New York City had had a protest in 1910 in where they demanded unionized workplaces. Unions helped these workers protect their rights. They deserved the right to have respectab... ... double digit wage and not some dollars and a few cents an hour. Fixing the way financial aid is distributed, the money available, and the cost of college education would be a solution due to the criterion to qualify for full financial aid coverage is ridiculous. I'd first want to start with making public school something more year round. This would eliminate teaching as a "seasonal" job. Requiring more hours in school, less holidays and by focusing on the â€Å"No Child Left Behind† policy, it would benefit students to learn what’s necessary including circumstances where they’d face the real world. It is crucial and necessary in building a better New York so that our fellow New Yorkers do become our future. Pushing them into to succeeding in essential subjects like math and science, it would prepare the future of America for college and not discourage them from career.

Women Characters in Midsummers Nights Dream by William Shakespeare Ess

Women Characters in Midsummers Night's Dream by William Shakespeare In Williams Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream," many of the play's female characters have strong similarities and differences among one another. Although many of the main female characters in the play come from dissimilar backgrounds, their similarities are brought together by common problems associated with society and love. Of the four main female characters, Hippolyta, Titania, Helena, and Hermia, both Hippolyta and Titania are royalty while Helena and Hermia are commoners. However, a common theme associated with Hippolyta, Titania, Helena, and Hermia, regardless of their social caste, is their similarities and differences in dealing with love in a patriarchal society. Nevertheless, the patriarchal society in which Hippolyta, Titania, Helena, and Hermia live in struggles to hinder the feelings and attitudes which provide them with a distinct conception for love in a male dominated society. Hippolyta is a strong yet silent amazonian beauty who is the love of Theseus, Duke of Athens. Although Hippolyta is largely silent in her dealings with love in the patriarchal society, her physical presence speaks for the untold voice she might profit from. Of the four main female characters Hippolyta is the more silent of the four. However, since Hippolyta is the maiden of Theseus she bears heavy in the decisions Theseus makes about the love quarrels within the play. From the words of Theseus the reader can associate that Hippolyta has a strong impact on the actions he takes when dealing with love and marriage: For you, fair Hermia, look you arm yourself To fit your fancies to your father's will, Or else the law of Athens yeilds you up-... ...) Although Helena fails at wooing Demetrius, the fight for Demetrius's love is not hidden behind the patriarchal community of Athen's. Both Hippolyta and Titania, as well as Hermia and Helena, share common interest in defying the laws of a patriarchal society. The foremost problem associated with a male dominated society in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" was love. Therefore, a common focus associated with Hippolyta, Titania, Helena, and Hermia, in spite of their social standing, is their likenesses and contrasts in handling the idea of love in a patriarchal society. Still, the patriarchal society in which Hippolyta, Titania, Helena, and Hermia reside in strives to impede the feelings and attitudes which make up their idea of what love should become in a patriarchal society. Bibliography: The Bedford Introduction to Literature. By: Michael Meyer

Petra Malmo Essay

AfricaPetra malena moe or more commonly known as Malla moe, was a missionary for about 28 years. Malla moe was born on September 12, 1863 in hafslo, Norway. In those years she had to overcome the struggle of some hard times. Malla moe ‘s mother Brita Lonhiem moe gave birth to nine children . Out of the nine children only six lived and Malla moe was one. She was a survivor from the beginning. When she was about 12 years old she started to go to evangelistic meetings. When Malla Moe’s aunt was on her death bed she asked Malla moe to come with her to heaven. Malla moe began to want a deeper walk with God. Later after her father’s death it made her realize that our actions must follow beliefs even if it was different than the â€Å"normal† religious behavior. Malla moe made a promise to her mom on her death bed to take care of her little sister Dorothea after she had peace and assurance of her own salvation. This is when Malla moe began to want to serve God and tell people about God’s word. Karin (Malla Moe’s sister), invited Malla moe and Dorothea (Malla Moe’s other sister) to come live with her in Chicago. When Malla moe was there she attended trinity Lutheran church, but more importantly she attended moody church led by Reuben Archer Torrey. Torrey was a man that challenged Malla moe to become a missionary. Even though she desired to become a missionary she lacked in the education to do so. In 1891 the conflict became more heated when she attended Fredrik Franson’s evangelistic meetings. In June a group of missionary’s arrived to begin there langue’s study with East Africa Free mission in ekutandanei, natal. The reality of the African life quickly tested the faith and commitment of the missionary’s. Many missionaries could not take the harsh conditions of Africa. Malla moe had to go through intense langue study because of her lack in education. As a supplement to the program she spent short periods of time in African tribal kraals (camps). Malla moe joined in African work with a native, mapelepele gamede. They were both baptized together but Malla got baptized then for the second time. mapelepele gamedes inability to read was a stumbling block, but after a long time in the forest he returned with a great gift of immediate literacy. Malla Moe thought it was truly a miracle from God. He was renamed Johane, then he became Malla’s life long companion and a great helper as she faced problems with her language and cultural background. He also became a national helper that would accompany her into the kraals (camps) and help her train native converts. In 1898 a permanent mission site was built, named bethel. That is where Malla spent most of her time for the next fifty six years. She was a driving and forceful leader where ever she worked. After the three-year furlough in 1902 Malla begun to gather financial and spiritual support. A group called Afrika Gruppen in Minnesota, sent fund to help support Malla Moe from 1904 until her death. One of Malla’s three years were spent in Norway. When Malla was in chapel she was forbidden to speak because of her loud outburst, and her blunt way she spoke to people, which was appropriate in Africa but not in Norway. In Norway they had a very conservative chapel service compared to the African Service she was used to. In 1916 a furlough extended the next six years. At that time Malla worked in Chicago, east and west coasts and in Canada. When she was in Norway she had more successful visits then the pervious one and she helped in some of the revivals. During that time she was disabled with a hip injury for the second time. In October 1992 she returned to Africa. Because of Malla moes dominating behavior and her disregard of others’ feeling and responsibilities. But because of the head of a new bible school dropped the request of eliminating her from the staff. Malla Moe’s term begun and lasted the following thirty-one years until her death.  in 1927 Malla moe began a wagon missionary when she was sixty five years old. With the help of a driver, a leader of the donkey team of eight pairs and girls to do the cooking, Malla moe began journeys into untraveled and unevangelized areas. They would set up camp and work within an eight mile radius. The wagon ministry traveled through Swaziland, and then to Tonga land. Her life-long helpe r joined her on the journeys she took. This lasted ten years until 1938, because Malla moe was operated on at Nazarene Hospital in Bremersdorp for a severe attack of boils. The need to consolidate her efforts resulted in a â€Å"circularly† letter sent to friends and supporter started in 1932 with the help of jenson. The number began with 132 and then grew to hundreds. A new church was started in 1944, seeded by a personal gift from Malla moe and it was completed five years later. By 1950 Malla Moe’s health had been broken by a mountain climb to visit a kraal (camp) when she was not well. Although the physical difficulties were hard for her to bear she would often say â€Å"all grace of god. † Malla moe died at the age of ninety on October 16, 1953. So Malla moe had to overcome some hard times but she always trusted and put her faith in God . She became known as a strong women of God. Through reading Malla Moe’s story it’s made me want to become a stronger person in God. Seeing all the things Malla moe went through for God. It has made me realize all the things we go through does not compare to what some missionary’s go through to serve god. She gave her whole life to the African people and it made me see that she was not a selfish person. Thinking about how Malla moe changed the world I would have to say she became a Strong persistent women of God . She lived all the days of her life trying to teach people the word of God . Malla moe tried to life her life showing the world a perfect example of how God would want us to live. She was a truly dedicated women of God until the day she went to meet Jesus in heaven . She must of changed the people in Africa’s life the most. She showed them dedication to God . She also taught them that the love of God is worth living for. The people of Africa also learned to trust in God especially in the harsh conditions many people where exposed to in Africa . We will never know how many people that this one woman touched and changed their lives . I am sure in Africa her name is still known among many . Her stories are handed down throughout generations . If only we can live our lives with a servants hart we to could touch many lives. She died in Africa. Her story told of hardship, long treks in the bush, sacrifice, and love for Jesus. Heaven will only reveal how many people came to Christ because of her. In my report I talked to you about Petra malena moe and how she got through her hard times.

Endeavors of Envy- A Separate Peace Essays

Endeavors of Envy- A Separate Peace Essays Endeavors of Envy- A Separate Peace Essay Endeavors of Envy- A Separate Peace Essay Endeavors of Envy- A Separate Peace BY sabYGtng19 Endeavors of Envy William Penns quote that the Jealous are troublesome to others, but a torment to themselves illustrates the deleterious effects of suppressing Jealousy. Enw, when suppressed, corrupts an individuals perspective, creating the alternative. It can trigger a corroding of the mind, causing impulsive actions. John Knowles A Separate Peace analyzes Gene Forresters inability to prevent himself from harboring Jealousy within, thus resulting in a thin line between hallucination and reality. Finnys athleticism and humility embed a seed of Jealousy within Gene. Genes bafflement becomes evident when he realizes Phineas endeavors are mere perfection; however, he refuses to boast his accomplishments. Phineas humility towards his feats infuriates Gene, causing him to see himself as the epitome of inadequacy and Finny as the essence of good (Flum 6). Once this feeling is developed, envious thoughts begin to overtake Gene. Phineas accomplishments [take] root in [Genes] mind growing] rapidly in the darkness where [he is] forced o hide the raging emy to which Gene is beginning to succumb (Knowles 44). Gene realizes Phineas has never been Jealous of him, causing Gene to seek revenge. Upon the realization that Phineas is not Jealous, Genes subconscious mind leads him to believe he is not of the same quality as [Phineas] (Knowles 59). Gene is adamant in his refusal to the truth, and this begins to fuel his shadow self. Envy begins to boil over inside of Gene causing impulsive action s. His action is to physically bring down the idol, to test the limits of Finnys incredible athletic ability, nd because Phineas fails the test, Gene becomes confused and must now reevaluate himself and his idol. Genes enw leads to a metaphoric death which in turn becomes a rebirth of his identity. Idealizing and de-idealizing Phineas forces Gene to transform into an utterly confused false self. In order to forge his own identity and be free, Gene must confront reality, and the walls [he and Phineas] have erected around themselves [must] crack (Flum). The rebirthing process is difficult because Gene continues to ave Jealous thoughts, taking over the vast span of his mind and controlling him. Resulting from Genes Jealousy and impulsive actions, Phineas dies along with his vitality and humility. Finnys literal death doubles as a metaphoric death for Gene where he cannot escape the feeling that this [is his] own funeral (Knowles). John Knowles A Separate Peace illustrates how Gene is his own worst enemy, causing him to lose himself in the process of idealizing Phineas. His challenge is depicting what is reality and what is a hallucination. His idols humility to his feats causes Gene to seek revenge for self pleasure in order to test the idol; however, his failure results in a literal death to the idol and a metaphoric death to himself. Flum, et al. Relational processes and identity formation in adolescence: The example of A Separate Peace. Genetic, Social General Psychology Monographs 121. 4 (1995): 1-11. Academic Search Premier. Ebsco. 28 Aug. 2013.. Knowles, John. A Separate Peace. New York: Scribner, 2003. Penn, William. Brainy Quote. 6 Sept. 2013

The Rules of the Fashion Industry The WritePass Journal

The Rules of the Fashion Industry Introduction The Rules of the Fashion Industry IntroductionTraditional Supply Chain Issues in Fashion Apparel Industry1. Changing Customer Tastes Unmet Due to Long Lead Time   3. Inflexible Supply Chain Hindering   Control4. Ineffective Information Flow Impacting Operational Efficiency Countering Traditional Supply Chain Issues The Fast Fashion Supply Chain Practices1. Quick Response to Shifting Consumer Tastes and Demands2. Increased Flexibility of   Supply Chain Through Vertical Integration3. Better Inventory Management Through Controlled Production4. Use of   Efficient IT Infrastructure   for Rapid Information DisseminationLimitation of Fast Fashion Supply Chain Practices1. Vertical Integration v/s Economies of Scale2. Centralised Distribution Centres v/s Global Expansion3. Vertical Integration in New Markets v/s High Labour and Production Costs  The Best Fit Supply Chain Practices   for a Fast Fashion Retail Company1.   Seamless Integration of Design Cycles with Inventory Control2.   Make Them And   Buy S ome3. Negotiate Shipping Contracts for Overseas Expansion E-Retailing4. Use   Efficient IT Systems for Seamless   Information FlowConclusionBibliographyRelated Introduction The rules of the fashion industry have changed. Fashion is no longer the diktats of seasonal fashion houses. Fashion today is ever evolving, ever changing. What’s hot today is not tomorrow.   The definition of haute couture (high fashion) and prà ªt-a-porter (ready to wear) no longer bear the exclusive association of highly-priced designer garments or expensive boutiques available to the cream of society. The average person be it a teen , college student, guy or   girl next door, mums and dads with toddlers, or people in their 40s and 50s ageing like fine wine, just about everyone wants to be trendy, fashionable, well dressed and smart.   Affordable, fast-changing fashion is driven by customer needs and demands and not supply.   Making affordable, fast-changing styles of fashionable clothes to the consumer is the key success driver of the fashion retailers. Consequently, the choice of a supply chain management (SCM) model and the supply chain practices adopted by fashion companies are also keeping the customer at the helm.    Traditional Supply Chain Issues in Fashion Apparel Industry As I begin to research the best possible SCM model for the fast-fashion retail company I’ve been hired for, I first seek to understand the limiting factors in the traditional supply chain management in apparel industry. My analysis of the broad issues are as follows:   1. Changing Customer Tastes Unmet Due to Long Lead Time   In any retail operation, particularly of fashion garments, there is variability in consumer demand due to changing tastes. For example tunic tops last quarter, jeggings this quarter and so on. Changing consumer tastes and long lead time from design to production render ordering of fashion garments risky. The long lead time also hinders offering variety to consumers in terms of styles and range.   As consumer tastes become more diverse and fast changing, increasing the fashion range and decreasing the garment lifecycle, whilst managing inventory becomes exponentially challenging. 2. Unpredictability in Demand Resulting in Inventory Costs The problem of selling fashion garments due to demand uncertainty has grown enormously for fashion retail houses. Adding to this problem is the level of SKUs (stock keeping units), which raises the level of uncertainty if a particular range of fashion garment will sell or not in a given season. This means the retailer carrying a range of fashion garments that don’t sell or overstock and also that sells beyond expectations resulting in running out of stock. Delays in replenishment for not having an inventory of fashion garments in high demand will result in stock-out costs. Therefore, inventory is not always undesirable. Three types of costs are typically incurred in inventory: Enforced markdown of unsold overstocked garments Loss of sales due to stock outs of high-demand clothes   Warehousing costs The level of inventory will depend on forecasted demand, frequency of orders, lead time and cost to receive replenishment. 3. Inflexible Supply Chain Hindering   Control Supply chain includes different requirements and roles from its participants. The typical participants include Supplier, Manufacturer, Distributor, Retail Merchant and Consumer. The fashion manufacturer’s success hinges on their ability to maintain relationships between each of the entities in the supply chain. In a way, the participants of the supply chain foster dependency and a slight slip at the supplier end has the capacity to bring operations in the supply chain to a grinding halt. This dependency of the manufacturer on various entities of the supply chain necessitates weighing the option of make v/s buy. The strategy involves decision on activities that can be performed in-house versus those that can be outsourced. Control, quality and speed of the activities within the supply chain are key determinants in choosing make or buy, produce in-house or outsource. 4. Ineffective Information Flow Impacting Operational Efficiency The IT infrastructure or lack thereof has a direct impact on the information flow between entities, which in turn impacts the operational efficiency of the supply chain. A bullwhip effect at the downstream has a significant impact on forecasting, production and inventory at the upstream. Even if apparel companies install IT systems, it is challenging for companies to obtain sales data that do not own their sales channels. It becomes difficult to refine manufacturing according to sales data. Countering Traditional Supply Chain Issues The Fast Fashion Supply Chain Practices Some of the key words that have stood out from my analysis of the traditional supply chain are changing customer tastes leading to uncertain demand, long lead time, inventory costs, ineffective information flow, IT infrastructure, make or buy strategies. How did some of the high-velocity fashion retail houses conquer these challenges? An analysis of the supply chain practices at two such fast fashion retail companies Zara and HM provide key insights. 1. Quick Response to Shifting Consumer Tastes and Demands The retail clerks and store managers at Zara determine the new styles to manufacture by feeding sales data back to the manufacturers. Store managers and staff relay customer feedback to regional managers on styles, fabric, cut and colours. While most fashion houses create designs for the public, it is the public that creates Zara’s designs.HM‘s design team too bring to the stores clothes that customers are demanding. HM adopts a customer-driven approach to production. By making use of traditional research methods as well as street trends, HM’s central staff and national offices channelise a lot of their effort into research and prediction of emerging trends. The new high velocity retailers require frequent shipment in small batches as an ongoing replenishment determined by ongoing sales data as well as customer preferences at sales outlets in contrast to traditional apparel supply chain model where manufacturers made typical bulk shipment per season. Both HM and Zara long renounced the traditional industry practice of spring/summer and autumn/winter collections. Their seasonless cycle involves bringing new clothes on a rolling basis throughout the year, which enables designers to receive customers’ reactions to their new line and incorporate them into more new lines rapidly. Zara has the fastest lead time with a catwalk to rack time of just 15 days. 2. Increased Flexibility of   Supply Chain Through Vertical Integration The success of Zara’s fast production is in its vertically integrated supply chain model providing total control of its process from design to sale. Zara owns most of its manufacturing capability and is thus able to maintain flexibility of the manufacturing process enabling it to respond to rapidly changing consumer tastes. About 50% of Zara’s clothes are manufactured in its state-of- the art factories. Zara uses a hybrid manufacturing approach with high demand trendy, highly perishable clothes being produced in its factories in small batches, whereas low demand variability items such as T-shirts and jeans are produced by contract manufacturers. HM does not have factories but relies on a network of 750 external suppliers with flexible lead times and low production costs.   HM also pioneered vertical integration with the distribution network. This vertical marketing enables HM to directly gain and exploit information about sales and customers and accelerate its response to the market. Vertical integration enables cost savings due to reduced tiers in supply chain. 3. Better Inventory Management Through Controlled Production At Zara, if a particular range or style of clothes sells out, it simply makes more of them. If it doesn’t, then it stops production. This approach coupled with Zara’s bi-weekly shipment to retail stores minimises overstock and inventory enabling Zara’s clothes to be sold at full retail price with high profit margins.   Zara limits each design to 3 sizes and 3 colours. Zara is efficiently able to move inventory owing to its up-to-the-minute design, just-in time production and delivery. HM, which relies on its suppliers aims to find the optimal time and supplier to order each item of clothing. On an average, HM is able to get supplementary orders in a few weeks for clothes that are selling well. At HM, the stock management is primarily handled internally.   The store stockroom within HM called the ‘Call-Off warehouse’ replenishes stores with clothes that are in high demand on item level. 4. Use of   Efficient IT Infrastructure   for Rapid Information Dissemination High-velocity operation depends on rapid information flow to a large extent. All of Zara’s stores are linked to its headquarters electronically. The entire supply-chain operation at Zara from design to retail is digitally controlled. Information flow binds the entire pieces of Zara’s operation together. Information is shared openly across business units that are highly adaptable with decision making capacity. IT is a crucial component of HM’s value chain. IT integrates HM stores with the logistics, procurement departments and the central warehouse. An intelligent procurement system processes sales data gathered from central departments. Communication on design and new product development occurs electronically between departments. Limitation of Fast Fashion Supply Chain Practices Clearly, some of the supply chain practices of Zara and HM have been a break-through in the traditional supply chain apparel industry. While the advantages of their practices are undisputable, it is important to be aware of some of their limitations. 1. Vertical Integration v/s Economies of Scale While vertical integration has several advantages, it is important to note some of the limitations. As seen from Zara’s vertical integration model from design to sale and HM’s vertical integration in distribution, flexibility and control are the key drivers. However, vertical integration doesn’t enable acquiring economies of scale. Low lead times of Zara and HM does not give them the cost advantage of high volume discount manufacturing or buying. 2. Centralised Distribution Centres v/s Global Expansion Both Zara and HM are quickly able to replenish garments in their numerous retail stores across Europe.   Although both Zara and HM have scaled up their distribution systems, the centralised logistics will be subject to diseconomies of scale as newer stores are opened in new markets and continents. Shipping garments from their single distribution centre may work well within Europe. However, short lead times and low operational costs may be impacted as they branch out in new territories. 3. Vertical Integration in New Markets v/s High Labour and Production Costs To have state- of- the art factories and replicate the manufacturing, distribution process in new countries may be challenging. Potential economic and regulatory variables such as minimum wages or unions may render manufacturing in new countries impractical.   The Best Fit Supply Chain Practices   for a Fast Fashion Retail Company Taking the best supply chain practices of fast fashion houses Zara and HM and at the same time covering the gap for some of their identified limitations forms the basis of my recommendation. 1.   Seamless Integration of Design Cycles with Inventory Control Integrate design cycles seamlessly inventory control and thereby control short term expenses with long term performance goals. Customers can be compelled to revisit stores for new designs and catering to their varied tastes through rapid response through effective inventory management 2.   Make Them And   Buy Some The advantages of vertical integration are far too many. But vertical integration as seen is not without limitations. The costs associated with rapid manufacturing maybe suitable for fast forward apparel. However, for clothes with low demand variability, a long lead time with materials and manufacturing costs savings may be more efficient.   Low variability garments also enable acquiring economies of scale with bulk manufacturing or buying. 3. Negotiate Shipping Contracts for Overseas Expansion E-Retailing Thinking ahead, as part of overseas expansion and e-retailing strategy, setting up manufacturing and distribution centres overseas can involve significant costs. It would be prudent to set up contracts with 3rd party logistic companies that enable negotiations of transportation costs based on volume and frequency by acquiring economies of scale 4. Use   Efficient IT Systems for Seamless   Information Flow Invest in Enterprise-wide IT systems such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) to integrate all entities of the supply chain. Use of other IT systems such as personal device applications (PDAs) by sales clerks to feed in real-time sales data and customer feedback linked to ERP systems will be a key success driver in dissemination of information which in-turn will positively aid in rapid production. Conclusion As a concluding note, emulating the success of fast fashion houses may or may not prove to be the most beneficial approach. Ultimately, the long term goal, positioning and vision of the fast fashion retail company holds the key to adopting the best fit supply chain strategy and practices. Bibliography icmrindia.org/casestudies/catalogue/Operations/HM%20Supply%20Chain%20Management%20Practices- Marketing % 20 Case % 20 Study .htm#Idea _ Generation _ and _Design