Transportation Logistics Management

Please respond to original forum with a minimum of 250 words

answer both students on separate page with a minimum of 100 words each 

please follow directions or I will dispute!!

page 1- original forum with references 
page2- student Response with references 
page 3- student Response with references 

Original forum

This week you will discuss transportation and logistics management policy. What impact does policy (local, state, and/or federal) have on transportation? For example, how does policy affect a retailer in trying to get their product from a port to their retail store? What policies affect this retailer? Why? You will have to conduct online research to determine local, state, and federal policies currently implemented as well as its relation to your mode of choice (pipelines, water, motor, rail, air). Discuss in detail and provide sources to support your thoughts, insights, ideas, and statements. 
Complete this Forum by providing a discussion of the overriding national and international policies that effect or impact your project topic. The policy analysis can be federal, state, or local policies. Provide sources to support your statements. 

Student  Response 

Christopher

There are a few business environments that impact business in general. One of the business environments is the political and legal environment. When it comes to this weeks discussion, it covers a lot of that. Policies from all levels can make an impact on the business whether its all about safety, security or just money in general One example of policies that affect the retailer is the minimum wage gap. There are federal, state and local policies that are enforced. Here in Washington state, they made a policy to raise minimum wage to 15 dollars an hour by the year 2020. You could slowly see how retailers are getting affected by their price raising or even just shutting down because they can’t afford to stay running anymore.  Transportation is one of the most affected industry because of their handling of freight and personnel as well. Safety and security is a huge issue especially since the 9/11 attacks so being able to get into certain port facilities can be a very slow process which hinders the overall operation times making it inconsistent. I deal a lot with motor transportation in my job and there are so many issues everyday because of the different policies that come in between our warehouse to the overall destination whether it is labor, security or products that come with Hazmat or things that are consumed. It seems like the list of policies is growing so the best option for a business is to adapt and implement new techniques.

Micheal

This discussion could be as simple as saying politics and taxes are two of the biggest obstacle factors for logistics, and end the statement there.  While some of this is true both will have effects at different levels of the transportation and logistics management system.  At each level, local, state, and federal there are taxes and procedures that each may levy different requirement on the production and the movement of product.  There are multiple different optics on this, are they trying to ensure that products are made and manufactured in a specific local, this may be why they charge tariffs and additional taxes on items that come from outside a specific region. This can also be to ensure that funding is created, via taxes, to ensure that the transportation nodes stay secure and useable also.  From the political aspect I have seen both approaches utilized and it doesn’t always come out the way that they like.  This is where organizations need to stay flexible and innovative to ensure that they are able to be productive, yet meeting the requirements at each level of government. Due to political fights and disagreements issues arise at ports and other points of entry to the US, that can cause serious delays or back logs and these backlogs reverberate through the entire supply chain.  Would being able to produce and manufacture everything we need in the US reduce this problem, most likely not as we are dependent on outside products and parts.  The US cannot create everything that we need. Even when as a country we an produce something four ourselves, oil, we have internal politics that create infighting amongst ourselves that drive the cost up or prevent ourselves from taking care of ourselves.  This stems from the environmental protection that as a country we are trying to enforce on ourselves but are also a detriment to our livelihood.  With these restrictions rules and policies we are forcing the utilization of international resources which with political driven policies drives up the cost of the products being imported and the price that companies have to pay.  This then drives up the cost of the product for the consumers and then puts them in a bind to find employment to pay for these said products.  This spirals into the consumers having to have the right paying jobs to afford their minimum level of living.  However, with many of the jobs and production being able to be done outside the country for cheaper, minus the import cost there are less jobs for the American consumer to have within their living region. Policy, regulation are going to drive how organization have to operate, and what they have to follow to be in compliance with the rules and regulations.  Along with this they are also doing what they have to do to remain relevant within their filed and to also make a profit. This becomes a tricky balance with more regulation and policy on the manufacturing and transportation networks. Take the change on the transportation driving restrictions, they are down to eight hours a day.  So this forces companies to spend more money on additional trucks, drivers, or double up their drivers.  The cost of additional trucks cost money, the addition of additional drivers will either drive the cost up or cut the cost between two drivers to operate one load.  A dangerous cycle that will cause problems for a field that is already a short qualified pool.  Drivers cannot make enough to support families or even be home enough to be with a family.  With the wage coming down and less available drivers, the next problem comes, timeliness of deliveries. I say all of this to say, that yes, policy at the local, state, and federal level have massive effects on the transportation and logistics field.
With respect to my project, which I am still not positive that I have approval for the topic, will have effects also from the local, state, and federal policies.  In respect to manufacture of specific items outside of the United States, due to cheaper workforce, there are gaps within the supply chain that can and have proved detrimental to the security of the supply chain as well as the country. Exactly how to correct this issues I am still searching for those as I type this in order to have a majority of the paper complete this week. There, as much as I hate to say it, may need some additional policy and regulation build into the import process of specific items that are coming into the country.  The problem that I have right now is at what point in the process, and what cost it could have on the organization’s and the transportation chain.  Then again, is there really a price or cost so high as it would not be preferred over security of your products and the security of the nation?  These are the things that I hope I will be able to answer in the comings week(s).
Mike