Brother's Case

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European Logistics: Brother International Introduction On 10 January 1993, Martin Crossley, recently appointed European Parts Manager for Brother International, arrived at his office early, told his secretary that he did not want to receive any telephone calls or visitors that day, took off his jacket and settled down to work. On his desk were two documents, one a report summarizing his recently completed review of the company's European parts operation, and the other a spreadsheet he had completed the previous day showing an analysis of the parts inventory situation at the company's largest European sales office, which happened to be in Britain. In four weeks' time he had. a meeting with -the company's European Chairman to outline his preferred strategy to improve and develop the company's parts supply system, and although he did not know what proposals he was going to make, he did know that he had an awful lot of work to do. Company background Brother International is a major Japanese manufacturer supplying a wide range of electrical and electronic goods. It is a leading producer of word processors, laser printers, personal computers and colour copiers, which are supplied from factories in Japan. In Europe the company has one manufacturing plant located at Ruabon in Wales which produces typewriters and microwave ovens. The European market is served through 20 sales offices located in 13 European countries (Exhibit 2.1). Brother International Europe (BIE), based in Manchester, UK carries out a coordinating role for the sales offices but has no direct line responsibility. The sales offices are each independent profit centres and report directly to headquarters in Japan. One area for which BIE does, however, have responsibility is the co-ordination of the procurement of spares and parts required by the European sales offices. Exhibit 2.1.

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