Free

Free Trade In Society Essay How does the society benefit from an economy built on free trade where both the labor and the buyer only seek personal gain?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On an economy that is built of free trade, society will run like clockwork because of the various incentives that the various sectors of the economy provide.   It is human nature for individual to act upon incentives.   Children are commonly disciplined by their parents with the use of incentives. It is the same in the case of the laborer and the buyer.    Both of them seek only personal gain.   It is highly uncommon that either buyer or laborer will act for the greater good of the nation or for world peace.   They work because they want to earn a living.   They want a nicer car, a bigger home, a good education for their children, and a trip abroad for the summer perhaps.   All their efforts are targeted to their personal goals, all of which is quantifiable in terms of money.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The laborer will always look for a place where there is a higher monetary yield for a lesser amount of work.   He will work harder if he knows that there is a promotion ahead. The buyer, on the other hand, will always search for a good bargain for any of his purchases.   All in all, everyone wants more for their money and time.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Society benefits from this system because it creates more competition in the markets of both buyers and laborers, resulting in more options and better options for both sectors.   With this equilibrium, society benefits because the economy benefits, thus increasing the standard of living. If however, there is an oversupply of labor, wages will go down and unemployment will go up, distorting the balance.   This is the same for buyers. A lack in competition will increase prices and decrease their purchasing power.   It is therefore necessary to maintain a good equilibrium in both labor markets and buyer markets which will result in a better economy, and which will eventually result in a higher standard of living for society.

Analysis of Economies of Scale

Analysis of Economies of Scale GONZALO PARENTE QUESTION 1: ECONOMIES OF SCALE: Shipping is an immense industry requiring huge financial investments and continuous development. Therefore, it has become an ideal game field to find and implement economies of scale. Any minor achievement on this will mean an impressive extra benefit in terms of cost reduction and efficiency gains. However, when economies of scale are managed under wrong market perspectives it can generate catastrophic results affecting for example ports flexibility and their commercial feasibility (e.g. congestion at terminal, hinterland) (P. Rodrigue, 2014). It is important to highlight that different shipping segments require different strategies due to variations on operations and infrastructure. Therefore, it can be found different shipping niches where economies of scale can be applied: Bigger capacity leads to lower costs per unit: Benefits, in terms of costs per unit, increase with ships capacity. If a comparison, in terms of operating costs, is made between a TTT class and a New Panamax vessel, it can be seen that megaships would be 30% cheaper than medium size vessels ($100/TEU) (P. Rodrigue, 2014). Bigger ships carry less fuel consumption: It is known that fuel consumption counts around 45%-50% of operating costs. Modern ships have led to a reduction on fuel consumption turning the shipping industry into a more profitable business. Under normal conditions, megaships consume 164 tons of fuel per day, being 35% lower than a medium size vessel (P. Rodrigue, 2015). Low speed (Slow steaming) also reduces fuel consumption: During the crisis of 2008-9 a new sailing approach came up, Slow steaming, reducing the speed to 18-20 Knots aiming to lower the fuel consumption. It enabled the market to absorb the over-fleet capacity during periods of slack demand, without impact in port congestion thanks to keep the fleet port call frequency. While a Post Panamax consumes 230 tons per day sailing at 24 Knots/hour, at 21 Knots/hour it would burn 150 tons per day (33% less) (P. Rodrigue, 2015). New shipbuilding techniques mean vessels being built rapidly: It has let ship-owners increase their fleets in a much reduced time at very low prices, taking advantage of the market conditions at all times. It is economy of scale applied to ship design. For example the new ships price fall between 2008 and 2009 was due to the appearance of revolutionary techniques offering new ships at very low prices (Stopford, 2009). Vessel ´s specialization leads to market flexibility: Not only economies of scale but also economies of scope are encompassed by ship specialization. Case: In order to fight against the inefficiency generated by bulk carriers sailing in ballast, a new specialized vessel came up called Multi-purpose. In terms of economies of scale, a multi-purposes vessel was an innovated idea due to the wide range of goods that it can accommodate at the same time, adapting it to the market conditions at all the moments without concerning about the port features, season, trends etc (Stopford, 2009). New technology and handling equipment speed up port operations: Operating mega vessels under high levels of productivity/efficiency requires sophisticated handling equipment. TTT vessels can be operated by 7 cranes at once (251 TEU/hour); while NewPanamax vessels need 6 cranes to handle 140 TEU/hour (Stopford, 2009). As a conclusion, the application of economies of scale to the shipping industry has led to a positive impact on the global economy. QUESTION 2: COST ELEMENTS OF SHIPPING: When talking about shipping costs, two main types of costs must be always taken into account: voyage related costs and no-voyage related costs. However, a better way to understand how different costs work in the shipping industry is by classifying them into capital, operating and voyage costs (ICS 2012, 2103; Plymouth university -Mr Adkins, 2014). The capital costs are fixed costs directly related to the vessel ´s purchase. These costs are part of the owner ´s responsibility. Some of these costs are Pre-delivery costs: the cost of transporting the vessel from the shipyard (e.g. japan) to the delivery point (e.g. Rotterdam). Loan repayment: it involves all the money that the shipowner must pay back to the bank. Leasing charges refer to the cost that shipowners must pay to the lessor e.g. TC for capesize, 5 years = $10500 per day. Depreciation: it refers to the decline in value of the vessel or any other infrastructure. Depreciation depends on the cost of the asset, the expected salvage value of the asset, the estimated life of the asset. Vessels life aprox. 25 years. Operating costs can be divided into four groups: crew costs, repair and maintainace, insurance and administration. Crew costs include the seafarer`s wages (Not the same for Philippines, American or Greeks), the travel costs (Not the same from UK to Rotterdam than UK to Italy), crew training (Depends on flag state/ship registries), medical inspections, recruitment process, insurances for crew accidents. Repair and maintenance costs include the maintenance of engines and other equipment, replacement of vessel ´s parts. For old vessels, it counts even 14% of operating costs. Insurance costs: The two compulsory insurances that every vessel must have are the 2/3 hull and machinery and the 1/3 third party liability. Administration costs consists of communication costs agents in port, or shore based administration and management charges. The voyage costs are one of the most important costs that shipowners must take into account when planning voyages. It is usually known as voyage estimation. Fuel charges: include the fuel price, the engine power and efficiency, the design and state of hull and the ship ´s speed. Port charges include the port dues which is the general use of port facilities (depends on volume of cargo, weight of cargo, gross tonnage and net tonnage). Service charges which include the pilotage, towage and cargo handling. Canal charges refer to the price vessels have to pay to ship across these short cuts. Please see below a good example of voyage estimation: (Private data from Shipbroking firm) Vessel: 8.000 TEU Route: Shanghai-Rotterdam (12.000 miles and 100% load factor). Bunker price = $650 Ship cost = $100m Containers = $20m Operating costs = $8.500 Value of cargo = $60.000 per TEU Annual interest rate = 3% Emission cost = $30 per tonne of fuel consumed Freight rate = $800 per TEU A ship is considered profitable when after taking into account capital, operating and voyage costs, still generate profits for the shipowner. This profit directly depends in the market level and freight rates. It is not the same to fix a vessel for WS50 than for WS80.Sometimes, it happens that freight rates vary for the same vessel size. One of the main factors is the geography. Depending on the demand for vessels in those specific markets, some shipowners will be willing to accept higher or lower freight rates. . For example: A vessel operating in Cross-MED for WS50 and a vessel operating UKC-ARA for WS80. In order to make your vessel more profitable, some strategies can be applied to seek economies of scale. Nowadays, one of the most popular seems to be slow steaming. QUESTION 3. WORLD MERCHANT FLEET, STRUCTURE AND COMPOSITION: As seen, shipping is a global industry formed by a sum of different sub-markets. This question is focused on the bulk market and the main differences between three of the biggest segments: tanker, dry bulk and containers. When looking at different shipping segments, it is important to analyze not only the routes of each segment but also the type and vessel size used in each of the markets. For liquid bulk cargoes, the type of vessel used is known as tanker vessels. Tankers are divided in two main groups: crude oil tankers and product tankers (ICS, 2015). Crude oil tankers range from 80.000-120.000 dwt (Aframax), 120.000-200.000 (Suezmax), to 200.000-500.000 dwt (VLCCs-ULCCs). The main routes are AG-USG, AG-China, AG-Japan and AG-ARA-UKC (ICS, 2014). Product tankers range from 10.00-42.000 dwt (Handy), 42.000-60.000 dwt (MR), 60.000-120.000 dwt (LR1-LR2). The main routes are USA-UKC for Diesel, NE to USG-N. America for gasoline and AG-China/Japan/ARA for Naphtha. For the product industry it is important to take into account the refineries location (ICS, 2015). The main features of crude oil and chemical products are that must be stored into tanks, handled by pumping and in some cases can be corrosive and toxic. For dry bulk cargoes, the type of vessel used is known as dry bulk ships. Some of the main features of this cargoes are that are shipped in large quantities and handled with automated equipment like belts and conveyors. The size of the vessel usually varies with the commodity transported. These are the most important commodities in the dry bulk industry (ICS, 2013; E. Branch, 2012). Iron ore: Main routes: Brazil to China-W. Europe (Panamax)- Australia to Japan/China (Panamax). Raw material of steelmaking. Major importers, it changes with countries development. China, Japan and USA are considered the three bigger consumers. Major exporters, Australian, Brazil, India or South Africa. Key players: Vale, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, ArcelorMittal, Metalloinvest, Anglo American. Ports/Terminals: Itaqui, Tubarao, Sepetiba, Ponta do Uba, Dampier, Port Walcott. Coal: Main routes: Australia to Japan/W.EU S.Africa to EU (Handymax), Columbia to W.EU (Panamax). Raw material of steelmaking as well as fuel for generating power. There are two main types: Cocking coal and steam coal. Coking coal: Australia is the worlds largest exporter. Steam coal: Australia Indonesia larger exporters. Major coal importers are Europe and Japan (43% of the world ´s coal imports). Grain: Main routes: US to S.America/Japan/Asian countries (Panamax), Argentina to Brazil (Handysize). Wheat, maize, rice, barley, soya etc. They all seasonal and irregular in volume and route. Major importer: Japan, China, Russia, EU, N. Africa, Brazil, Middle East countries. Main exporters: Canada, N.S. America, Australia. The last group are the containerships. Containerships have been positively affected by technologic improvements such as containerization or automization. Vessels range from: -1000 TEU (Small feeder), 1.000-2.000 TEU (Feeder), 2.000-3.000 (Feedermax), 3.000-5.000 Panamax, 5.000-10.000 TEU (Post Panamax), 10.000-15.000 TEU (New Panamax), +14.000 (ULCV) (ICS, 2015). The main routes for containerships are from F.EAST to EU and US (Panamax, Post Panamax), USA to China (Panamax and Post Panamax) and from USA to EU (Post Panamax and smaller) (ICS, 2015). It is interesting to highlight that companies are struggling on the return voyage from West to East. It makes operators to find different ways to optimize the empty containers in order to avoid the loss of marginal profit. QUESTION 4. SUPPLY AND DEMAND AND ITS IMPACT ON FREIGHT RATES: (Based on my dissertation) The shipping industry is a global-scale industry ruled by a combination of factors in charge of determining market trends, market levels and cycles. The supply and demand for vessels will establish the shipping market balance. The mechanism used to link the supply and demand in this industry is known as freight rates. Freight rates reflects the balance of ships and cargoes available in the market at a certain time (Stopford, 2009). Too many ships usually mean low freight rates, and too few ships usually mean high freight rates. Once freight rates are established, charterers and shipowners adjust to them, bringing the supply and demand into balance (Stopford, 2009). The Baltic Exchange is the organization in charge of providing, in co-operation with top shipping companies, daily reports for different markets and vessels sizes (BDTI TD1, TD6à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦). In terms of the shipping market model, 5 supply and 5 demand factors strongly influence the freight rates. On the demand side, one of the most important variables is the world economy and, especially, the global business cycles and local development trends (emerging economies-Nigeria). World economy plays an important role when determining the price of commodities and also when setting the freight rates that buyers and sellers are able to pay to transport them. Another two key factors to achieve economies of scale are the average haul distance and the amount of cargo shipped per voyage. Random economic shocks (2008 crisis) have also a great weight in shipping demand. As these shocks affect demand and people economic power, freight prices are reduced as the demand for these commodities is considerably reduced. And, last but not least, transport costs encompassing capital, voyage and operational costs (ICS, 2015; Stopford, 2009; Lectures given by Jonathan Challecombe: International Shipping and Maritime Management and Markets). On the supply side, the new buildings and scrapping activities are essential to adjust the market balance. New buildings increase the fleet supply, lowering freight rates. Scrapping reduces the fleet supply, increasing freight rates. Fleet productivity is another factor which is focused in vessel ´s efficiency. In a fast pace market, speed and waiting times are crucial for business profitability. The last variable is the freight revenue. For example in markets with strong trends, shipowners may extend their vessel ´s life or purchase second-hand vessels to take advantage of the market; while in markets ruled by weak trends, old ships are scrapped 10 or 15 years before their commercial life ends (ICS, 2015; Stopford, 2009; Lectures given by Jonathan Challecombe: International Shipping and Maritime Management and Markets). For example it is good to understand what is going with the current dry bulk and container markets. The very low freight rates experienced during the last few months are caused by the extreme difference in terms of fleet growth (+) and the fleet demand (-). This situation has led to overcapacity. As a conclusion and in order to become again a balanced industry, shipping companies should follow a new tool developed by BIMCO known as Zero supply growth. It mainly require shipowners to neutralize the delivery of new vessels every year by scrapping an equal amount of capacity from the existing fleet (BIMCO, 2016). Mergers and acquisitions are also great strategies although will lead to a more monopolized market. QUESTION 6. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GLOBAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND SEABORNE TRADE: As a derived demand, maritime shipping is shaped by worldwide macroeconomic conditions. Although shipping market is very complex we can say that there are five major factors which rule the demand for shipping: transport costs, seaborne commodity trades, average haul, random shocks and world economy, which is the most important one (Stopford, 2009). World economy impacts on the demand for shipping mainly through the business cycle and the trade development cycle. Business cycle lays the foundation for shipping cycle, so that fluctuations in the rate of world economic growth cause a cyclical pattern of demand for shipping. There is a close relationship between the growth rate of shipping and the world GDP, what becomes clear if you see how both parameters have closely changed over the recent history. It is not surprising given that world economy generates the most of demand for shipping by importing raw materials for manufacturing or exporting manufactured products. Another side of the relationship between macroeconomics and shipping is the seaborne commodity trades, which can be divided into short-term and long term. Seasonality of some trades is an important cause of short-term volatility. For instance, many agricultural commodities are linked to seasonal reasons, caused by harvest. But in the oil business there also is a cycle that reflects the seasonal fluctuation in energy consumption in western countries. Seasonality has a great impact on spot market (Dry and wet bulk) (ICS, 2015). The flows of raw materials (mainly ores and crude oil) follow a shipping pattern from developing countries towards developed countries. Transports terminals in developing countries are specialized in loading raw materials while developed countries unload are focused on unloading. On the other hand, the flows of manufactured goods mainly concerned developed countries, but it is changing due to the effects of globalized manufacturing processes. We have a new geography of global trade, which can be depicted quite accurately by maritime shipping routes. Developing countries are no longer just the suppliers of high volume-low value raw materials, but instead now also import large volumes of oil, iron ore, and participate in global value chains and the globalized production of manufactured goods (Stopford, 2009). As a result, developing countries are emerging as major world exporters and importers. They have also become main players in globalized manufacturing processes. As an instance we can mention that the growing energy needs of developing countries and the expansion of South-South trade are contributing to recharging tanker shipping and trade maps, supported by the US strategy to get its energy independence. QUESTION 7. ESTIMATING AND FORECASTING It is said that information is the most important variable that make shipping companies win or lose. Currently, technology has enhanced companies to get information from the market, global economy and many other factors in order to make an accurate market estimation and take advantage of it (Stopford, 2009). However, it is said that not all information is reliable, creating uncertainty among shipping players. It is why not only shipowners but also charterers, traders, operators and even brokers must have a clear network to get daily outlooks of what is going on in the market at every stage. Some of the most common information sources are: Shipping institutions: BIMCO, IMO, ICS, BALTIC EXCHANGEà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Broking companies: PLATEAU DAILY REPORTSà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Newspapers, magazinesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ QUESTION 9. RISK MANAGEMENT: A popular strategy used in the shipping industry to reduce the effects of volatile markets is known as bunker hedging. It consists in a fuel price analysis and it is used with the purpose of reducing the company ´s exposure to volatile bunker costs and eliminating the risk of companies ´ bunker budgets getting out of control (Mercatus, 2016). Swap is one of the most popular uses when bunker hedging (Mercatus, 2016). It allows the buyer to hedge his bunker exposure by fixing the price he pays for fuel at a predefined level, over a predefined period of time. Two different scenarios can be found: Scenario 1: It is when fuel prices move from below the swap execution price. As a financial compensation, the shipping company has to pay back the difference between the market price and the swap price to his trading counterparty in order to offset low prices in the market (C, Cheetham, 2013). Scenario 2: It is when fuel prices move above the swap execution price. As a financial compensation, the shipping line has to receive the difference between the market price and the swap price from his trading counterparty in order to offset high prices in the market (C, Cheetham, 2013). A great forecasting job must be done before entering into a bunker hedging agreement. Shipping companies need to be sure in terms of future bunker prices trends. Related factors such as new oil fields, global trade and international regulations must be always taken into account. When properly managed, bunker hedging can lead companies to generate bigger profits as the exposure to fuel prices fluctuations is removed. A freight derivate contract is defined as a financial contract between two different parties, where future prices for transporting goods by sea are agreed. Freight derivate contracts are usually divided into two main groups: Forward Freight Agreement (FFA) and Freight Swap Agreement (FSA) (Baltic Exchange, 2016). These derivate contracts are used by charterers and shipowners in order to hedge against fluctuations in freight rates. The main difference between the FFAs and FSAs is the assumption of risk. With FSA risk for both parties, with FFA risk assumed by the counterparty. FFAs cover the route, settlement date, contract size and contract rate. Lastly, the main difference between hedging and speculation is that speculation involves an activity to make profit and hedging only attempts to reduce economic business risk. QUESTION 10. OTHER SEGMENTS AND SPECIALIZED CARGOES: LNG stands for Liquefied Natural Gas and it is considered the third major energy source carried by sea, after oil and coal. It is one of the most environmentally friendly energy source which is mainly used for power generation and for the domestic use. LNG is considered a hazardous cargo which requires coated tanks and isolated facilities at port in order to safely handle its extremely low temperature (ICS, 2015; Stopford, 2009; Energy Annual Reports, 2016). LNG is usually transported by Very Large Gas Carriers for very long voyages. LNG can be also transported via pipelines, although for that liquefaction is needed. The transport of LNG includes four different activities: Transportation of LNG from gas fields to plants, via pipeline. Methane gas is separated from other substances and stored for sea transportation. LNG loaded into ships. Receive and store LNG at delivery terminals. The LNG costs are divided in the following proportions: 15% production, 40% liquefaction, 25% sea transport, 20% regasification. It is important to highlight that LNG trade is conducted with long-term contracts (Bareboat or Time Charters) with fixed prices. Main exporters: Iran, Qatar and Russia in less scale: Africa, Asia, North and South America and the EU. Main importers: USA, EU, Japan, S. Korea and China. QUESTION 11. PORT DEVELOPMENT: In order to better understand how ports and terminals develop, it is fundamental to focus in a specific port. In my case, the Port of Rotterdam has been chosen as it was one of my research topics at university. As shipowning companies, ports and terminals are in continuous development process where technology and efficiency improvement are always sought. Time reduction when loading and unloading, port accessibility, hinterland connections and the ability of create economies of scale in terms of cargo handling and cargo storage are some of the main reasons why ports have evolve from individual specialized terminals to huge multipurpose shipping hubs where not only shipping but also logistics activities are carried out(Notteboom and Rodrigue, 2004). It has led to improve the supply chain and the instalment of strategies such as JIT (Just in time). Spatial relationships between terminals are key points in port competition. In order to explore how terminals should interact with each other, two main concepts are highlighted: centrality intermediacy (Notteboom and Rodrigue, 2005). Centrality places terminals as a point of origin and destination traffic. It involves intermodal activities and gene rates economic activities in its vicinity. Intermediacy sees terminals as an intermediate point in the flow of freight. It could also be a good point to exploit transshipment (Notteboom and Rodrigue, 2005). The main reasons why some ports stop developing when they reach a certain stage are: lack of green fields to build new terminals (Eg, Southampton Port or the ICTT Terminal, Vallarpadam-India) and the strong competition from terminal global terminal operators such as Dubai Ports World and APM (Venugopal, 2014). For example, the Port of Rotterdam has been working for a long time in two main expansion projects. Firstly, Maasvlakte I which was completed few years ago, and Maasvlakte II which is still on-process. In terms of space, the Port of Rotterdam will gain a total of 20%-22% extra space to allocate the forecasted rising number of containers and enhance a more viable multimodal system. Economies of scale are achieved by the great number of containers that it is able to handle. Thanks to its dimensions, total costs are divided over more than 11.5 million TEU they handle every year. The provision of customer focused services as well as 24/7 cargo handling and storing activities enhance the port to provide a reduction on vessel ´s turnaround times what leads to better productivity. Last but not least, the proximity of the dry bulk and tanker terminals to key production and storing points give the port an important comparative advantage. It minimizes costs and increases safety and effi ciency in terms of time. The great connections with the hinterland and foreland makes this port a global shipping choke point (Notteboom and Rodrigue, 2004). In order to remain globally competitive, attract foreign trade and increase the total volume of exports and imports, countries have to encourage private operators to invest in national ports infrastructure including port configuration, handling equipment and port connectivity. QUESTION 12: THE CONTAINER SHIPPING MARKET: Over the years, container shipping lines have placed increasing amounts of hope in the notion that the trading growth being experienced in emerging markets would improve the demand of containerships. However, as a large number of Super-Post Panamax containerships (ULCV) of size between 13,000 19,000 TEUs being introduced to the market, increasing the current total capacity of world containership in service to 18.2 million TEUs; the overcapacity issue looks set to continue in 2015, although less severe than year 2009. Currently, the largest containership recorded in the industry are the sister vessel MSC Oscar and MSC Oliver with the size of 19,224 TEU (Lloyds List, 2016). The market is expecting to see more of such vessels magnitude being built and deliver in the near future. In terms of global trends ruling the container`s supply and demand, some facts can be highlighted: 1. Container ´s overcapacity: Timing is one of the main factors when referring to the shipping supply and demand. As great expectations were placed into the current market, many shipowners purchased bigger and more sophisticated vessels, which nowadays can ´t be employed. 2. Emerging economies power demand for shipments: Containerships owners can still find a glimpse of light for this market in emerging economies. For example, Nigeria will see its population grow by 275 million by 2050. It gives an idea of the shipping potential of this emerging economies/countries. 3.Cargo adaptation to the container shipping method: containerization. Cargo can be directly shipped from the mill to the consignee, or even to the customer, making the shipping industry more efficient and safer. 4.Sustainability and environmentally friend: New trends have come up concerning about environment issues. It has radically affected the cost for carriers and consequently the vessel ´s supply and demand (CSR). 5.Customer focus and new technology: Development in technology mainly seeks compliance with new regulations and cost-efficiencies. The current lack of transparency along the supply chain can affect either supply as demand due to wrong market forecast or unforeseen constraints. The East-West trade is mainly driven by the import demand of products from China and India to Europe. However, companies are struggling on the return voyage from West to East. It makes operators to find different ways to optimize the empty containers in order to avoid the loss of marginal profit. In order to remain competitive, operators will have to follow some tendencies which will shape the container industry (ICS, 2015) Cost reduction and vessel optimization can be achieved through forming shipping alliances between containership operators. The alliance agreements generally cover areas such as the type and size of vessel to be employed on each route; itineraries; port rotations, chartering of ships; feeder services and the coordination of inland services. 2M, O3, G6 alliance and the CKYHE. Slow steaming can be also applied (Lloyds List, 2016) Another way is the slot chartering: By leasing out part of the vessel ´s slot during the return voyage from Europe to Far-East, operators can obtain optimum efficiency of fleet operation and to maximize slot utilization (Lloyds List, 2016). And last but not least, cost-savings measure adopted by operators is through the use of longer routes in the East-West trade. For instance, instead of using the Suez Canal, ship operators may choose to travel by a longer sea route through the Cape of Good Hope enabling operators to accommodate additional ships with a similar frequency of port calls and reducing the overcapacity issue. Reference List: Alan Jugovic (2015 ) Scientific Journal of Maritime Research 29, 23-29 BIMCO (2016) BIMCO market analysis: 31 May 2016. Available: file:///C:/Users/gonzalo/Downloads/BIMCO_Road_to_Recovery_for_the_dry_bulk_market_FINAL%20(1).pdf Baltic Exchange (2016) FFAs. Available: https://www.balticexchange.com/ffa/ C. Cheetham (2013) Introduction to Bunker Hedging Tools: Swaps. Available: http://shipandbunker.com/news/features/risk-management/120043-introduction-to-bunker-hedging-tools-swaps E.Branch (2012) Elements of Shipping: Routledge: 7th edition ICS (2012) Dry Cargo Chartering. 2012 edn. Livingston : Witherby Shipping Business. ICS (2013) Shipping business. 2013 edn. London : Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers. ICS (2015) Tanker chartering. 2015 edn London. Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers IMO (2016) International shipping: carrier of world trade. Available: http://www.imo.org/en/KnowledgeCentre/ShipsAndShippingFactsAndFigures/TheRoleandImportanceofInternationalShipping/IMO_Brochures/Documents/Internatioinal%20Shipping%20-%20Carrier%20of%20world%20trade.pdf Lectures given by Jonathan Challecombe, Philip Rogers: International Shipping and Maritime Management and Markets (2014,2015,2016). M. Stopford (2009). Maritime Economics. 3rd ed. New York: Routledge. Mercatus Energy Advisors (2016) Bunker Fuel Hedging Price Risk Management Swaps. Available: https://www.mercatusenergy.com/blog/bid/74900/an-introduction-to-bunker-fuel-hedging-updated Notteboom, T.E. and Rodrigue, J. (2005) Port Regionalization: towards a new phase of development. Maritime Policy and Management. Vol: 32(3) 297-313. Notteboom, T. (2004). Container Shipping and Ports: An Overview. In: Review of Network Economics. Vol: 3(2) 86-106. Paul Rodrigue. (2014). Economies and Diseconomies of Scale in Container Shipping. Available: https://people.hofstra.edu/geotrans/eng/ch3en/conc3en/contchipecoscale.html Paul Rodrigue. (2015). Transport Costs and Spatial Inequalities. Availab

Marketing Strategies For Toys 4 U Marketing Essay

Marketing Strategies For Toys 4 U Marketing Essay India, is one of the oldest civilizations in the world. Its rich traditions embedded in the very core of common Indian man, and its large cultural diversity are well known worldwide. The Indian toy industry, as old as this nation itself, has been nurtured and enriched under this intellectually rich background. Indian toys, which are manufactured all over the country, reflect the Indian cultural diversity in the range of items manufactured. India has expertise knowledge regarding toys making , gone are those days were people used to say India is underdeveloped country but now India has developed a lot from the past and started using all new kind of technologies with innovative ideas. The toy industry emphasises on Play with Safety and Learning. II ) A BRIEF HISTORY OF OUR COMPANY : We had a humble beginning in 1978, as a small scale unit U R TOY established at Raichur, a small town in Karnataka(India) by using local raw materials and procuring some vital inputs from Hydrebad, a capital city of Andra Pradesh, a neighbouring state. We employed 9 workers, 4 being women. Initially we marketed our products in our town and neighbouring areas within the vicinity of 100kms. A year later our products were known to the customers in the state of Karnataka and gradually we moved into the neighbouring states and then the entire nation. The Govt of Karnataka recognised our company and honoured us as one of the Best Entrepreneurs of Karnataka which motivated us to enter the national market. By the turn of the century, our company in order to expand, has renominated the Board of Directors, restructured the personnel by appointing designers, researchers, marketing experts, quality control department was also established and marketing strategy was reoriented to suit the need of the hour. For effective production and marketing and business promotion we moved to Mumbai, the Business City of India. Our companys name was changed as Toys 4 U pvt ltd. After moving to Mumbai our business expanded domestically and also overseas. The demand for our toys increased rapidly in leaps and bounds as a result of offering good quality and renovated products. Our neighbouring countries like Srilanka, Pakistan and Bhutan were impressed and our minds opened for International penetration. Our company manufacturers toys from diverse raw materials like plastic, wood, rubber, metal, textile etc different kinds of products like Wooden toys, Teddy bears, Police patrol, Military patrol , Trick stuffs, Boats, Automobile and Locomotive, our automobile include Action set, Pop-up boats, Coin banks, Science fiction, Toy bank,  wolf, Letter box, Huge boats, Mini recycle, Recycled Extra space, Balls, Kit bags, Floor ludo, Trick lock, Puzzler, Magic box, Shock diary, WWE champions toys, Adventurous toys, Robots, Remote control cars and bikes and many more. Our company is making use of Indian skills of master craftsmanship and creative designing and predominantly labour intensive. Our strong points are skilled work force, diverse range of products, focus on innovation and creativity with emphasis on learning and education. being a leading and long established toy making company in India which has major share in domestic and asian toy market, wishes to go global with special penetr ation into the UK toy market, with our high reputation and goodwill in the national and asian market, where we have treated our customers as kings and offer them high quality products at a justified price, without exploiting the customers. We wish to convert all our research findings and also production expertise wish to manufacture innovative and eco-friendly toys and offer them at the UK toy market. III ) MARKET EXPANSION: Now we are more focused to export our products to UK. UK comprises of 4 Main countries viz: 1)England 2)Scotland 3)Wales 4)Northern Ireland. United kingdom or Great Britain is located in Northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is a unitary state consisting of four countries England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales U.K. has a Constitutional Monarchy System . The head of the state is Queen Elizabeth 2. It is a developed country with one of the largest economies in the world- (www.friendzline.com). Data UK England Scotland Wales Northern Ireland Area (km2) 242,514 130,281 77,925 20,732 13,576 Population* 59.8 50.1 5.1 2.9 1.7 (millions) (www.friendzline.com) Our Company wish to reap the benefits of globalisation as participating, in international business is easier, safer and also profitable. Our Government has been promoting exports of toys to our trading partners, the UK being one. The Sports Goods Export Promotion Council (SGEPC), a Government of India sponsored organisation looks after the promotion of exports of Indian toys from India. With our Price competitiveness, quality and Innovative products, we have a strong belief to have effective penetration into the UK market and assured promising future for our toys. The response we received from the visitors at Spielwarenmesse International Toy Fair, the largest toy fair shows in the world, held at Dubai recently has boosted our morale to go international and the feedback we received from the visitors was very positive and our mission to offer toys of global standards was achieved. Hence, we piously hope that our entry into the UK market will yield bountiful results. Our company by going global, can benefit from economies of scale, division of labour and specialisation , extended marketing will help us to spread our risk and also make best use of advanced transportation and communication. as both The UK and India being members of the WTO and staunch followers and staunch believers of globalization philosophy, our company will definitely benefit by spreading our wings into the UK. IV ) ECONOMIC FACTORS WHICH WILL HELP US TO ENTER THE UK MARKET. The buying power of a Britisher is far better than Indian, hence marketing our products will not be a problem. The toy market will be favouring our products as the macro economics variables are showing a positive potential growth, of the entire UK market. The exchange rate stability between Pounds and Rupees is a sign of assured profits for our company and customers in the UK are offered at stabilised prices. As a true follower of WTO norms, both the countries trade policies are not vindictive against each other. Customs imposed on exports and imports will not have remarkable effect on the sale of our toys in the UK. Historically, our country was a colony of Britishers and there has been a lot of exchange taking place in terms of our culture, tradition, and heritage. English is part of our life, hence language barrier is not a major hurdle in pursuing ourselves into the UK market. The International property Rights has assured our brands a safe and smooth sale in the UK market. Thanks to TRIPS(Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights).There is no corruption, nepotism, red tapism which is very important area of cost cutting for our products. Clean and Transparent administration in the UK, efficient bureaucrats and sensible trade transactions, the political stability and political will for stronger trade ties with India is an added booster dose for our company to enter the UK market. The needs of our home market and the UK market are to some extent may vary, as the maturity level of British children are at comparatively lower age, our products must cater to these needs. The UK market is more competitive as top toy makers of the world already in the market. The customers preferences changes very quickly when compared to Indian market preferences. So we must cater to these changes and also we wish to break the products homogeneity. For ex:- Robot toys with command sensors may prove to be a better product for the children of the UK. We should be aware of our competitors product strategy and offer novel products at buyers price without affecting our profits and we should go slow with penetrating pricing to have a say and stay in the market. We are also aware of the need for price cutting if need arises, as we want to grow slowly in our new marketing destination like rural and semi urban areas. V ) TOYS 4 U S MARKETING SRATEGIES ON 4PS OF MARKET. 4 Ps of Marketing- Product Price Promotion Place. Product- So here the product is Toys, our company has many innovative ideas to restructure these toys and attract the customers as much as we can and have an ability to top the chart. We are more concerned about customers needs and wants. Price- Our company is not much aimed to get huge profits, our main aim is to satisfy the customers by rendering them good service with good quality toys. Price varies from one toy to the other but the price of toys is not that expensive, all class of people can afford and buy our products. We try our best to exceed customers expectation and customer satisfaction will be far more than the price they pay for our toys. Promotion- Our Company wish to promote our products through effective Advertising, Direct Marketing, Sales Promotion and Publicity. As we are making our maiden effort in selling toys in the UK market, it is very important to make our product known to everybody in the UK market, which can be done through advertising our products in all means possible. T.V ad is the best way to make the customer know about our company and our toys, more funds are allocated for this area. Advertising about our company and toys in magazines, newspaper and radio is also a important area to create awareness about our product. Direct and net marketing where we will directly contact the customers by telephone, e-mail, newspaper and magazines, will add to promote sales of our products. Place- Our Company is very keen that all the customers in the UK must get our products at their doorsteps, Among all the four Ps which I have discussed above plays a vital role in reaching the customers easily and quickly, Our toys can be bought in all super market, departmental stores and big malls all throughout the UK and even our company wants to exploit untapped markets ( Rural areas, semi urban areas remote and inaccessible areas) VI ) HOW IS FRIENDLY WITH CUSTOMERS. Above all our mission is to keep our customers safe and secure. Toys 4 U manufacturers are very much keen regarding environment, so we are manufacturing eco friendly toys which will not harm the environment. All complaints and suggestions are honoured. Best satisfaction is rendered to all the customers, Customer is a king in the market we the manufacturing units are their saviours. Our team is dedicated and honest to provide A class customer service. Our team strives to find out customers difficulties and problems. Our service to the customers is 24/7 with a toll free number 1800-123454 and e-marketing to solve problems online for the benefit of the customers. Customers can feel free to return the product back if they are not happy with a valid cash paid bill. VII ) SWOT ANNALYSIS OF TOYS 4 U. Strengths- à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Our Toys 4 U manufacturing unit in Mumbai (India) is the largest toys manufacturing and selling unit in the nation. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ More than 350 trusted employees. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Our Company is serving since 1978 which is the positive point, 32 years old company with lots of expertise knowledge in toys field. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ It has been popular brand among the people in India and other asian countries. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Our manufacturing company is eco-friendly Save Earth Save People. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Customer service is A-1. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ All our customers are guaranteed with new, different toys and renovated toys. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ People can order or purchase our products online through www.toys4u.com Weakness- à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ There are some obsolete and worn-out equipment. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ It is difficult to capture and dominate the foreign market. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ It is hard for the company to gain the No. 1 position in the market. Opportunities- à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Arrival of new technologies à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢Ã‚  Manufacturing and Marketing of  existing product in current and new markets. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Joint ventures and mergers with other companies help us to capture international market. Threats- à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Keen and tough competition in the market from Hal-mart, ToysRus, Amazon and others. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Tariffs and taxes keep on changing. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ New player entering into the market. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Television, Computer games, online games and networking sites like Face book, Twitter and Orkut may divert the interest towards toys. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Japanese and Chinese companies manufacture low cost toys and export those in different part of the world. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Increased trade barriers, new rules and regulations. pvt ltd. VIII ) CONCLUSION The success of an entrepreneur depends on his commitment to his enterprise. We are committed to our business and our success story hitherto is a motivating force towards achieving our business goal of having a strong stay in the UK toy market. We have tried our best to understand what the UK customers needs are and how best the UK market has to be catered to, which will also be our top business priority. In converting our dreams into reality we wish to follow a practical approach and reach the destination of the sustained stay in the UK market and gain the confidence of the UK customers. IX ) REFERENCES. Toy market, (2010), available online from the source (www.friendzline.com), [accessed on 28th October 2010]. Toy images,(2010),available online from the source (www.google.com),[accessed on 27th October 2010].

Gender Roles in Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Essay

Though usually viewed as a violent play about turbulent marriages, Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? should be regarded as an early feminist text. Bonnie Finkelstein writes that the 1962 play portrays and analyzes the damaging effects of traditional, stereotypical gender roles, particularly for women; the play serves to point out how unrealistic, useless and extraordinarily damning they ultimately are. Finkelstein notes that the 1963 publication of Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique unofficially began a re-evaluation of gender roles in the United States (Finkelstein 55). Friedan explores the idea that women need more fulfillment in their lives than can be provided by the drudgery of childrearing and housekeeping. The book also carefully lays out what society has determined to be the ideal gender role requirements for women: â€Å"They could desire no greater destiny than to glory in their own femininity. Experts told them how to catch a man and keep him, how to breastfeed children and handle their toilet training†¦how to dress, look, and act more feminine and make marriage more exciting†¦They learned that truly feminine women do not want careers, higher education, political rights†¦All they had to do was devote their lives from earliest girlhood to finding a husband and bearing children.† (Friedan 15-16) And, more specifically: The suburban housewife†¦she was healthy, beautiful, educated, concerned only about her husband, her children, her home. She had found true feminine fulfillment.† (Friedan 18) Albee echoes this, noting by contrast what the ideal men and women in 1962 should be. In other words, his characters have failed at living up to gender roles and the play shows us how this quest has destroyed th... ...s flawed, proof that these gender roles are impossible to emulate. As Finkelstein notes, all four characters are afraid of Virginia Wolf, because she is, in 1962, the only icon of female equality society had. (Finkelstein 64) Works Cited Albee, Edward. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? New York: Atheneum House, 1962. Finkelstein, Bonnie Blumenthal. â€Å"Albee’s Martha: Someone’s Daughter, Someone’s Wife, No One’s Mother.† American Drama (5) no. 1, Fall 1995. pg. 51-70. Friedan, Betty. The Feminine Mystique. New York: WW. Norton & Company, 1963. Julier, Laura. â€Å"Faces to the Dawn: Female Characters in Albee’s Plays.† Edward Albee: Planned Wilderness. Interviews, Essays and Bibliography. ed. Patricia De La Fuente. Edinburg, Texas: Pan American University Print Shop, 1980. Vogel, Paula. How I Learned to Drive. New York: Dramatists Play Service, 1998. Gender Roles in Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Essay Though usually viewed as a violent play about turbulent marriages, Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? should be regarded as an early feminist text. Bonnie Finkelstein writes that the 1962 play portrays and analyzes the damaging effects of traditional, stereotypical gender roles, particularly for women; the play serves to point out how unrealistic, useless and extraordinarily damning they ultimately are. Finkelstein notes that the 1963 publication of Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique unofficially began a re-evaluation of gender roles in the United States (Finkelstein 55). Friedan explores the idea that women need more fulfillment in their lives than can be provided by the drudgery of childrearing and housekeeping. The book also carefully lays out what society has determined to be the ideal gender role requirements for women: â€Å"They could desire no greater destiny than to glory in their own femininity. Experts told them how to catch a man and keep him, how to breastfeed children and handle their toilet training†¦how to dress, look, and act more feminine and make marriage more exciting†¦They learned that truly feminine women do not want careers, higher education, political rights†¦All they had to do was devote their lives from earliest girlhood to finding a husband and bearing children.† (Friedan 15-16) And, more specifically: The suburban housewife†¦she was healthy, beautiful, educated, concerned only about her husband, her children, her home. She had found true feminine fulfillment.† (Friedan 18) Albee echoes this, noting by contrast what the ideal men and women in 1962 should be. In other words, his characters have failed at living up to gender roles and the play shows us how this quest has destroyed th... ...s flawed, proof that these gender roles are impossible to emulate. As Finkelstein notes, all four characters are afraid of Virginia Wolf, because she is, in 1962, the only icon of female equality society had. (Finkelstein 64) Works Cited Albee, Edward. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? New York: Atheneum House, 1962. Finkelstein, Bonnie Blumenthal. â€Å"Albee’s Martha: Someone’s Daughter, Someone’s Wife, No One’s Mother.† American Drama (5) no. 1, Fall 1995. pg. 51-70. Friedan, Betty. The Feminine Mystique. New York: WW. Norton & Company, 1963. Julier, Laura. â€Å"Faces to the Dawn: Female Characters in Albee’s Plays.† Edward Albee: Planned Wilderness. Interviews, Essays and Bibliography. ed. Patricia De La Fuente. Edinburg, Texas: Pan American University Print Shop, 1980. Vogel, Paula. How I Learned to Drive. New York: Dramatists Play Service, 1998.

once upon a midnight dreary :: essays research papers

â€Å"Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary†, is one of the most famous poetry lines in America. Edgar Allan Poe had a life most people would think of as crazy. He wrote a famous poem called â€Å"The Raven† that is very strange like most of the poems he wrote.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Edgar Allan Poe had a devastating childhood and a dark life as an adult. He was born January 19,1809, under the name of Edgar Poe. His father soon abandoned Poe and his fate is unknown. When Poe was two years old his mother died. John Allan who was part of the Ellis and Allan Tobacco Merchants then adopted him. Poe attended many schools because he could never manage to stay in one school very long. In 1826, he went to the University of Virginia for not even one year and was kicked out because he never paid his gambling debts. Poe started living a dark life after he was kicked out because he had to live on the streets. He married his 13-year-old cousin Virginia Clemm in 1836. He was happy until 1847 when Virginia Clemm died. He was so unhappy that a year later he attempted suicide. The circumstances of Poe’s death remain a mystery. But after a visit to Norfolk and Richmond for lectures, he was found in Baltimore in a pitiable condition and taken unconscious to a hospital where he died on Sunday, October 7, 1849. He was buried in the yard of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Baltimore, Maryland.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The Raven† is a very great poem that has many literary devices and has great meaning. Edgar Allan Poe wrote many poems but â€Å"The Raven† is probably his most famous poem. â€Å"The Raven† was chosen because in 4th grade my teacher read it to the class and since then it has had a lot of meaning. This poem is about a †rapping at my chamber door† and then he realizes a raven causes the rapping on his chamber door. The raven is always saying â€Å"Nevermore† and then he goes so crazy he kills himself. He dies because the speaker says â€Å"And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor/ Shall be lifted- nevermore!† â€Å"The Raven† contains many literary devices such as symbolism, metaphors, sensory images, and personification. The raven symbolizes the character conscious. A metaphor in â€Å"The Raven† is the raven being a â€Å"a thing of evil† which is represented through out the poem.

The Research of Ground Services, Airlines and Airports Relationship

The research of ground services, airlines and airports relationship Abstract The purpose of this report is to investigate the airport ground services, the relationship between airports and airlines, and the scope of ground services. The results indicated that airports are multifunction service center that offer a large range of services to airlines and their passengers, airports and airlines are highly interdependent. However, the relationship between airports and airlines become competition, privatization, and globalization within the industry. 1. 0Introduction Airports are an essential part of the air transport system. They provide all the infrastructure needed to enable passengers and freight to transfer from surface to air modes of transport and to allow airlines to take off and land’(Anne 2012, p. 1). It is argued that the elementary airport infrastructure are composed of runways, taxiways, apron space, gates, passenger and freight terminals, and ground transport intercha nges. In order to be capable of fulfilling their role within the air transport industry, airports aggregate many different of facilities and services (Anne 2012).These services could include ‘air traffic control, security, fire and rescue in the airfield’ (Anne 2012, p. 1). Handling facilities are provided to passengers with their baggage, transport between aircraft and terminals, and handling within the terminal. On the other, airports also provide a large range of commercial services consist of shops and restaurants to hotels, conference services and business parks (Anne, 2012). This report will analyse the crux ground services to the airlines at airport, it will also illustrate the relevance between airport and airlines.Finally, it will state the process and activities of ground services. 2. 0Findings 2. 1 Key ground services The crux ground services of airport are ground services. Ground handling activities at airports are extremely significant to airlines (Anne 201 2). They influence both to an airline’s expense and the quality of service which airports offer to their passengers. Ground handling services could divide into ‘passenger handling, baggage handling, freight and mail handling, ramp handling, fuel and oil handling, and aircraft services and maintenance’. Anne 2012, p. 126) These activities are often provide between ‘terminal or traffic handling, which is passenger check-in, baggage and freight handling, and airside or ramp handling, which covers activities such as aircraft loading and unloading, cleaning and servicing’ (Anne 2012, p. 126). Occasionally, these services are provided by the airport operators, however, most of airports are provided by airlines or handling agents (Anne, 2012). 2. 2 The relationship between the airports and airlinesTyler (2011), IATA’s director general and CEO argues that ‘airports and airlines share a common interest in making aviation safer, more secure, user- friendly, operationally efficient and environmentally responsible’. It is argued that ‘an airport and an airline at one airport are, by nature of the business, jointly making a business project at the airport’ (Hihara 2010, p. 2). Airport is to provide related service to airlines, in exchange for landing fee, at the same time, airline provide air transport service to the airport, with or without stimulative money from the airport.These two services are not separable in one sense that each service may not exist without the other. ‘Also they are in a strategic complementary relationship, where one side’s effort could improve not only its own but also the other side’s contribution to the value of the joint project’ (Hihara 2010, p. 2). For instance, airport aims to improve airport services for purpose of increasing the charm of the airport and help airline’s isolated achievement to bring more passengers, as a result of both ending u p in enjoying more incomes. Therefore further efforts arising from such contractual relationship in addition to such interdependent relationship could have the potential to significantly enhance the values of the project both sides are participating in’ (Hihara 2010, p. 2). However, Anne (2012) argues that ‘airline–airport relationship is changing, being driven by trends towards greater competition, privatization, and globalization within the industry’.At the same time, ‘the airline–airport relationship is starting to become much more to do with the linking of two privately owned international companies, rather than two state owned organizations operated within the limits of national laws and regulations’ (Anne 2012, p. 132). 2. 3 Ground Services Model There are three kinds of ground handling models, historically; ground handling services may often controlled by the national airline or airport operator. Some airport operators such as Mi lan, Rome, Vienna, and Frankfurt airports, which have been heavily involved in such activities, earn very significant revenues from such activities – sometimes over half the total income of the airport’ (Anne 2012, p. 126). On the other side, the airlines operator will just pay rental fees and perhaps a small concession fee to the airports, and airlines or third party ground handling companies would provide the handling services. ‘Countries in Europe where the national airline has had a handling monopoly include Spain with Iberia and Greece with Olympic’ (Anne 2012, p. 26). It is believed that ‘European airports showed 44 per cent of aircraft movements were handled by airport operators, 27 per cent were self-handled by the national carrier, 8 per cent were handled by the national carrier for other airlines, 7 per cent were handled by independent ground handlers, and the remaining 14 per cent were self handled by other airlines. By contrast, in terms of passenger numbers, only 16 percent were handled by the airport operator, again 7 per cent by independent ground handlers and the rest by airlines’ (Anne cited in Deutsche Bank, 2012).Furthermore, ‘the relationship between airports and airlines in the United States is unique and so is worthy of special consideration’ (Anne 2012, p. 129). Anne (2012) also argues that ‘the airports and airlines enter into legally binding contracts include airport use and lease agreements which detail the fees and rental rates which an airline has to pay, the method by which these are to be calculated and the conditions for the use of both airfield and terminal facilities’.The key reason for the existence of these agreements is private bondholders need a formal relationship between the airports and airlines before investing in the airport. 2. 4 The scope of airport ground services Ground handling as the most significant services to airlines at airport, it could be div ided into three aspects, passenger handling, cargo handling and ramp handling. Passenger handling †¢ Ticking: ticket reservation, ticker sales, cancellations, and rebooking †¢ Check-in: check-in service and issue boarding cards Boarding: check boarding card, cross-checking passenger list, check identification and call missing passengers †¢ Flight information: flight timetables, passenger and baggage information †¢ Pick-up service: baggage tracing and delivery †¢ VIP and individual service: provide special service to VIP, child, disabled and elderly †¢ The other services: seating, restroom, toilets, duty-free stores, finance, etc. ( Munich Airport, 2013) Cargo handling †¢ Document handling: mail and necessary paper handling ( Munich Airport, 2013) †¢ Baggage handling: it could be divided into two parts . Departure baggage handling: deliver baggage to check-in, tagging and weighing, transport of baggage to airside, arranging and packing, deliver baggage to planeside and loading onto aircraft (Ashford, N. , Stanton, H. , and Moore, C. ,1997) 2. Arrival baggage handling: unloading from aircraft, deliver to terminal, arranging and loading onto claim devices, transport to reclaim area, announcement of baggage reclaim, and transport from reclaim area. (Ashford, N. , Stanton, H. , and Moore, C. 1997) Ramp handling †¢ Towing: towing of aircraft †¢ Maintenance: flight inspection, air conditioning, ground power supply, and deicing. †¢ Replenishment: fueling, catering †¢ Sanitation: fuselage and cabin cleaning. ( Munich Airport, 2013) 3. 0 Conclusion Based on findings, it can be found that the crux ground services of airports are ground handling, airports and airlines are highly depend on each other, they are multifunction service center that provide a large range of services o airlines and their passengers on the medium or marginal site of an air trip. However, the relationship between airports and airlines beco me competition, privatization, and globalization. References Ashford, N. , Stanton, H. , and Moore, C. 1997 , Airport Operations, 2nd edn, McGraw-Hill, New York. Anne, G 2012, Managing Airports, Taylor and Francis publishing, London, UK, viewed 10 April 2013, RMIT University library database. Hihara, K 2010, Analysis on Airport-Airline Relationship with Risk Sharing Contract, viewed 10 April 2013. lt; http://www. pp. u-tokyo. ac. jp/research/dp/documents/GraSPP-DP-E-10-001_ITPU-DP-E-10-001. pdf>. Munich Airport 2013, business and partners, ground handling services, viewed 10 April 2013. < http://www. munich-airport. de/en/business/branchen/gh/index. jsp>. Tyler , T 2011, ‘Innovation in Airline-Airport Cooperation’, Press room, 2 November, viewed 10 April 2013. < http://www. iata. org/pressroom/pr/pages/2011-11-02-01. aspx>.

HP Case Study Essay

The company Hewlett Packard (HP) was founded in 1938 by William Hewlett and David Packard, two electrical engineers from the Stanford University. They initially started it in a garage behind Packard’s home in the state of California, manufacturing only electronic instruments at that time. Their first product was a resistance-capacity audio oscillator, an instrument used to test the sound equipment. The biggest customer of that product was Walt Disney Company. In 1940, HP was formed, with the establishment of Hewlett and Packard’s own factory in Palo Alto. By the end of this year, HP’s revenue exceeded $2 million and the company employed 166 employees. During 1950’s HP gained popularity as a producer of innovative measuring and testing equipment of premium quality. HP first acquired the F. L. Moseley Company in 1957, which was the producer of quality graphic recorders. After this, HP started to globalize its Business. In 1959, it opened the first Marketing office in Switzerland and a manufacturing plant in Germany. Realizing the need to sustain the synergy in the organization Hewlett and Packard formulated the values and objectives of the organization, these values and objectives formed the basis of the management style at the company, referred as ‘The HP Way’ nowadays. (Moganty, n. d. ) Thus HP transformed into a democratic organization where every employee has the autonomy to talk to his immediate boss and other employees having different hierarchical positions. The company continued to diversify its business and entered the Asian market in 1963 forming a joint venture with a Japanese firm. In 1968, HP invented the HP 9100 desktop scientific calculator, after that many innovative computing products in the 1970s, hence, till 1980s HP’s business portfolio was filled with a wide array of products and to strengthen its position HP acquired Apollo Computers, which was then the leading manufacturer of workstations. By 1990s HP had 92,000 employees and earned revenues of approximately $13. billion. External Environment With the recession in PC industry of the United States in 1990, HP started to lag behind, and significantly loss a share in innovative products, it was not able to cope with the changing conductions in the industry due to its old fashioned organizational culture. Employees started becoming dissatisfied with the way the company was managed. According to a poll conducted among HP employees, HP lacked in clear directions and was said to have become too product oriented. In order to deal with this situation, HP decided to focus on its computer business and spun off its measuring, testing and medical equipment division into a new company. This was done in early 1999 and a new company named Agilent Technologies Inc. was founded, which only dealt with the devices other than those related to computing. As a consequence, HP was left with only four main divisions; Personal computers, inkjet printers, laser printers and servers. Despite the measures, taken by the company to reduce costs and drafting a new internet strategy, it was believed that what HP actually needs is a change in leadership. So a CEO named Carly Fiorina was hired. Soon after becoming the CEO, she started a mass marketing program for HP, new advertisements were made in which the employees of HP were referred as ‘A fearless collection of inventors,’ many of those advertisements had Fiornia herself. But all of this went in vain, and on the top of it the merger between HP and Compaq Computers Corp. made the conditions even worst for HP. As a consequence, the company’s culture change and new rules were set which were in the favor of the company according to Fiornia. But the laying off of approximately 17,000 HP employees was beyond the level of understanding of all the people. Ever since the merger took place HP was having disappointing earnings which indicated the epic fail of Fiornia’s leadership. HP was facing continuous losses and the estimated sales forecasts also turned out to be lower than what was expected. HP’s share price also fall up to 13% and Fiornia was blamed for all this. According to critics, she was unsuccessful in managing the company well because during her tenure she behaved like a celebrity, travelling in limousine and not communicating with the employees face to face. Fiornia was terminated for not being able to delegate the firm’s strategies. (Paul, 2005) Industry Analysis Based on the Porter’s framework of industry analysis the following results are most likely to occur for HP: Threat of New Entrants Since HP only has two major competitors, Lenovo and Dell, the threat of new entrants is not as a matter of concern for HP now-a-days. Because the products of HP are unique and are innovative and are not easy to copy by the rival companies or any new firm that is trying to enter in the PC industry. Even if the products of HP are copied they would not be as reliable as of HP. Bargaining Power of Suppliers HP believes in providing its customers with products that are of premium quality, and since there are only few suppliers in the computing market, they may have an effective bargaining effect on HP to give them high charges for assembling or providing parts for their computing devices. Bargaining Power of Suppliers Customers are the main priority for any company and so for HP. In order to retain its customers, Hp made a number of efforts. It had provided its customers with innovative and unique products that no one else in the industry provided before. Threat of Substitutes Substitutes are available in the market for HP products, but as discussed earlier, the quality of HP products is much higher. Since, different technologies were introducing at the time of Fiornia’s tenure, HP was not able to keep up with its traditional image of producing innovative computer, so as a result the customers switched to other brands due to which the company started to get in losses. Vyomesh, 2005) Rivalry Dell and Lenovo are major rivals of HP; these companies gained the most when HP was facing different kinds of leadership crisis. When people started switching to these brands, the companies started to make the most of it and increased their prices, while disappointed customers of HP were ready to purchase other brands because HP was not performing up to the mark. (Novelguide, n. d. )