Is there an "ideal profile" for inspectors? Is it enough to write and read English, and have previous experience on the job? I don't think so. Research, and our daily observations, show that every human's brain is "wired" in a specific way. It means they tend to prefer (and be good at) different types of activities. For example, a typical graphic designer likes to be "creative" and forget about all the rules that limit our action/imagination. BUT ask him/her to do an inspector job … [Read more...]
Why is the “China price” so low? And other insights about Chinese industry
I just finished reading Managing the Dragon, by Jack Perkowski. It is a great book for anybody trying to understand modern China, its opportunities and challenges. Here I want to reproduce his description of two very interesting things ignored by most foreigners: -1- The local governments' incentives A 17% value-added tax (VAT) has been levied on most manufactured goods since 1994. Local governments get a quarter of the VAT collected in their area, so they have a strong interest in attracting … [Read more...]
Chinese factories closing: more facts, please
All through the 2nd half of 2008, hundreds of blog posts and newspaper articles mentioned the closing of numerous factories, most notably in the Guangdong province and in the toy industry. Government statistics seemed to confirm this. But these figures are so unreliable (only about properly-filed bankruptcies) and general (about all exporters mixed together) that I won't even reproduce them here. From my observation, the starting point of all these articles was the much-mediated closing of a … [Read more...]
Securing the quality of imports at an acceptable price
Twenty-five years ago, the companies that imported from Asia were mostly large structures. Some have set up local offices to conduct quality control. Others have secured the quality of their imports by working with large 3rd party QC companies. Together, buyers and QC firms have organized the supply chain to fit their needs: Most of the inspections take place at the end of production, just before shipment. These large buyers can afford to put pressure on their suppliers. If an inspection … [Read more...]