Reference no: EM133904622

Assignment:

I. You are going to export a product called Tetrachloroethylene by container. The product is moved in standard 55 gallon drums, and there will be 4 drums per pallet. There are 88 pallets to be moved and the pallet size is 48" by 48". All costs are in US$.

1. Define the packaging of the drums on the pallets so they are secure and can withstand loading, and movement within the container. The value of each drum is $825, and they weigh 540 pounds full. The pallet weighs 30 pounds.

2. Define the number of containers required to move this product as one shipment using either standard 20' or 40' containers. Consider the weight, and inside dimensions of the container to minimize the number of containers. Use a spreadsheet with formulas (not a calculator at all) to determine the restrictions imposed by the container, and to work out the maximum number of pallets that can be carried in the containers.

II. There is a case study on Incoterms as part of this course. It describes a situation of sale of vehicles from Italy to the USA, and contains both financial and trade aspects. It does have some questions in the case, please use them to think through the issues, but answer the following questions for the assignment.

Questions

Part one

The case requires calculations and recommendations to be made for the following questions:

1. Calculate the price to quote to the customer for each Incoterm option so that the expected contribution margin stays the same regardless of the Incoterm. Show these in the spreadsheet you must use for submission. Remember the requirements for spreadsheets and formulas.

2. Define the risk / responsibility implications for each Incoterm, and give practical and sensible ways to mitigate them. Mitigation should be bullet points to show you have clear understanding of how to achieve these, not a full write up.

3. Which criteria should you use to choose the Incoterm that is the most appropriate for your company? This requires research of an academic standard.

Part two

We will assign groups to specific roles of either a seller or buyer, and these will take place in class. These groups will perform a 10 minute negotiation in class, and class points will be given for

· Skill in negotiating with all the group participating, with a win-win outcome evident

· Correct reasoning and convincing arguments for the choice of the Incoterm.

Before the start of the negotiation, the group must submit to the adjudicators which Incoterm they will be negotiating for, and which is their fallback choice, with 3 bullet points for each defining why they want these Incoterms.