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#1
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"Disposable" products commentary
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...AGB4DOT0Q1.DTL
is the link to an article printed in the San Francisco Chronicle today. It describes the fact that there are fewer repairmen of appliances today due, primarily, to the fact that appliances are not built to last as long as in past years and are not cost effective to repair. An interesting read, but not exactly breaking news for people who use, among other things, computer printers. The only thing in this article that one might take issue with is the equating of "made in China" with poor quality. As companies push for a "price point" for their products, many skimp in areas that affect longevity or functionality. This may happen regardless of the country in which the product is made. Case in point - Some GM and Ford products when compared to their Japanese counterparts, some of which are produced in the US. |
#2
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On 16-Jul-2005, "Burt" wrote: It describes the fact that there are fewer repairmen of appliances today due, primarily, to the fact that appliances are not built to last as long as in past years and are not cost effective to repair. In corporate terms it makes excellent sense, if it can't be repaied you have no choice but to buy a replacement. Economies (and companies) would collapse if there was a long product life. The aim is for things to last until the warranty expires. You also make sure that replacement parts are not available. Ever tried to buy a replacement Epson print head, stepper motor, or main PCB? Eventually oil and minerals will run out, then what? |
#3
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Then we will start "mining" the landfills.
It's all pretty base-ackward, but so are many things when accountants and bean counters get at them. Art wrote: On 16-Jul-2005, "Burt" wrote: It describes the fact that there are fewer repairmen of appliances today due, primarily, to the fact that appliances are not built to last as long as in past years and are not cost effective to repair. In corporate terms it makes excellent sense, if it can't be repaied you have no choice but to buy a replacement. Economies (and companies) would collapse if there was a long product life. The aim is for things to last until the warranty expires. You also make sure that replacement parts are not available. Ever tried to buy a replacement Epson print head, stepper motor, or main PCB? Eventually oil and minerals will run out, then what? |
#4
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"Burt" wrote in message ... http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...AGB4DOT0Q1.DTL is the link to an article printed in the San Francisco Chronicle today. It describes the fact that there are fewer repairmen of appliances today due, primarily, to the fact that appliances are not built to last as long as in past years and are not cost effective to repair. An interesting read, but not exactly breaking news for people who use, among other things, computer printers. The only thing in this article that one might take issue with is the equating of "made in China" with poor quality. As companies push for a "price point" for their products, many skimp in areas that affect longevity or functionality. This may happen regardless of the country in which the product is made. Case in point - Some GM and Ford products when compared to their Japanese counterparts, some of which are produced in the US. Lets also not forget that the average labor rate at a repair center has gone from approximately $25 per hour to approximately $70 per hour in the past 10+ years. Things have gotten easier to repair yet labor rates have nearly tripled. So a combination of the two (reduced product cost + increased technical support charges) are what is creating the disposable society. |
#5
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wrote in message ... On 16-Jul-2005, "Burt" wrote: It describes the fact that there are fewer repairmen of appliances today due, primarily, to the fact that appliances are not built to last as long as in past years and are not cost effective to repair. In corporate terms it makes excellent sense, if it can't be repaied you have no choice but to buy a replacement. Economies (and companies) would collapse if there was a long product life. The aim is for things to last until the warranty expires. I think you are over-dramatizing a bit here. Economies and companies would hardly colapse. Now what may happen is the executives of these companies may have to go back to the days of their predecessors when they simply became well-off and had comfortable lives as opposed to todays standards of felling they deserve an income equal to or greater than the GNP of most third world countries. You also make sure that replacement parts are not available. Ever tried to buy a replacement Epson print head, stepper motor, or main PCB? This is a result of trimming bottom line and micro-managing inventories. If you have even a slight increase in expected failure rate on a product that uses a unnique part, you will soon be in short supply of replacment parts. |
#6
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Arthur Entlich wrote:
Then we will start "mining" the landfills. Speaking of "landfills", Art. I went for a pleasant bike ride around my quiet suburban town in a section where there were some apartments. Outside one, I noticed a mountain (not quite Grouse Mountain), of at least 100 or more units of computer towers, most with some parts still in them. I did notice power supplies, etc., though I didn't stop to examine more closely. Perhaps I should have, you never know what you can find. It was a strange sight, something you don't expect to see in a residential area. This isn't the first time I've noticed tons of computer parts outside this apartment. I don't know what goes on in there and don't know who will pick up this collection of "yesterday's computers" come collection day. But if anyone needs a part . . . (kidding, so don't anyone even ask!) ;-) -Taliesyn |
#7
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Burt wrote:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...AGB4DOT0Q1.DTL is the link to an article printed in the San Francisco Chronicle today. It describes the fact that there are fewer repairmen of appliances today due, primarily, to the fact that appliances are not built to last as long as in past years and are not cost effective to repair. An interesting read, but not exactly breaking news for people who use, among other things, computer printers. The only thing in this article that one might take issue with is the equating of "made in China" with poor quality. As companies push for a "price point" for their products, many skimp in areas that affect longevity or functionality. This may happen regardless of the country in which the product is made. Case in point - Some GM and Ford products when compared to their Japanese counterparts, some of which are produced in the US. Contributing to this is fact everyone wants more for less and this has brought on automation in manufacturing. You'll find a lot of manufacturing operations where humans are only there so insure machines keep running and do qlty audit. Manual repair can't compete with this. and as for spare parts it places a burden on Co's to stock and dist spares for anything other than the most common parts in any one product. End user in need of parts end up paying for the added cost and for some products it is cheaper to replace than repair. As inventory is controlled to a greater extent, having to stock same part in shipping container and possibly instructions and then take orders and dist on onesy twosy basis to individual "customers" adds greatly to the cost for repairs. As for "made in china", for many it does equate as poor qlty but that is not necessary especially for large international Co's with production in China. I've been to China several times on business and have seen operations that range from junk to world class. I worked in the medical electronics business and I can assure you any medical equipment made in china has to meet and is inspected by the FDA. "Made in China = junk" isn't necessarily true. Mickey |
#8
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Maybe one of the charitable "computers for schools" groups is running
from that location... You should have taken a picture of it... when your kids are all grown up and have their own kids you'll be able to show them how badly we dealt with e-trash back in 2005! Art Taliesyn wrote: Arthur Entlich wrote: Then we will start "mining" the landfills. Speaking of "landfills", Art. I went for a pleasant bike ride around my quiet suburban town in a section where there were some apartments. Outside one, I noticed a mountain (not quite Grouse Mountain), of at least 100 or more units of computer towers, most with some parts still in them. I did notice power supplies, etc., though I didn't stop to examine more closely. Perhaps I should have, you never know what you can find. It was a strange sight, something you don't expect to see in a residential area. This isn't the first time I've noticed tons of computer parts outside this apartment. I don't know what goes on in there and don't know who will pick up this collection of "yesterday's computers" come collection day. But if anyone needs a part . . . (kidding, so don't anyone even ask!) ;-) -Taliesyn |
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