I think my lack of panic angered the lady...she hit our area hard. We just got cable, Internet and phones back...power came back on late last night. She also took down a big tree in our backyard--didn't hit anything or anyone, thank goodness. We were also spared the flooding.
Good news on the supply chain, though--stores were well-stocked, and in spite of the hurricane, a massive delivery I was expecting arrived on-time! Kudos to transit gods.
I was thinking: Didn't we love hurricanes, storm, other natural disasters when we were kids...it meant no more school and all the time to play. Although i do not want anyone to get hurt (literally) but such things do give us some talking points or even nice stories to share.
Irene came in. Tossed a few trees around and tore down some lines and made a general mess of routines before heading on out. The worst of it afterward, no power in some areas and that means some confusion at several major intersections. So if anyone's running prototype samples around for customers, take care.
I have heard so many times that weather today has undergone a significant change. Now there are those scientists that say it is all explainable and does not constitute a new shift but where I live it definitely is warmer and wetter. Thankfully we have never seen major quakes or twisters etc. but we never see a continuous spell of decent weather for more than a few days at a time. We seem to be permanently stuck in (comparatively) warm, wet, goo. On the very rare occasion we do get snow the whole transport and supply infrastructure collapses into one huge mess. It is scary how fragile our existence is and yet how blissfully ignorant we are of it.
I live right next to the neighborhoods that were ordered to evacuate, particulalry those on barrier islands and those near the shore. Technically, we were told to evacuate, as well. But we didn't. We're a good mile in from the shore here. I avoided a flood in the basement by putting towels under the door where water tends to seep in during heavy rain. Nothing really happened here, though one tree fell down a block away. Power went out for a second in the night, and that was it. But because people had been anticipating much worse, nearly all the local stores were closed on Sunday, despite the fact that the roads around them were clear and the electricity was on.
Disaster can cause its own disturbance in any supply chains. If it’s by any of the natural calamity, the after effects are unpredictable. In most of the cases, we may prepare to face such situations either by using alternate sources or by backing up with excess quantities. I think now citizens in US are well aware about heavy rains and storms, so they used to take care about such things in advance.
@prabhakar_deosthali: Your conclusion "sometimes in the anticipatory action there is a tendency to hoard the things which creates an artifical scarcity and the real needy suffer in such circumstances" surely summarizes the consequences of the media information overload.
I understand the key responsibilty of the media to share information, but like everything in the US, the news coverage is often done with a lot of hysteria. Unfortunately this turns the populace into hypervigilant and extremely terrified zombies, instead of an informative medium.
Barbara, just by reading this article you can start thinking about getting better prepare, I wish the best luck and hopefully the expected damages are only material.
in regards to Supply Chain we have some cable supliers on that area that already closed their factory and they protected their inventory based on their recovery disaster plan.
Some I want to mention here, is that I've been reading some articles about Japan and when they lost electricity they walk out of the store empty hand waiting until energy was restored, I don't remember the amount of money that has been returned to the families found on the wallets of missing people.
From everything I read so far, the damage seems to be minimal compared to what might have been. The most affected so far are the coastal cities across eastern US, which is of-course expected.
That being said, I live in NJ on the very western edge, very far away from the coast. We got the predicted wind and several inches of rain. We have power - Yay! However, I do live very close to the Delaware river which is expected to crest to 33 feet by tomorrow morning. Who knows if we've seen the worst of Irene's effect.
EBN Dialogue enables and encourages you to participate in live chats with notable leaders and luminaries. Not only editors and journalists, but the entire EBN community is able to comment and ask questions. Listed below are upcoming and archived chats.
Archived Dialogues
Thailand Stages a Comeback Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Euro-Crisis: What It Means for High-Tech Firms Join EBN Editor in Chief Bolaji Ojo and Contributing Editor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday, July 12, at 10:00 a.m. EDT for a Live Chat on high-tech and Europe's economic difficulties.
Microsoft Surface: Potential Winners & Losers What are the implications for the electronics industry supply chain of Microsoft Corp.'s decision to launch its own tablet PC? Join industry veteran and EE Times' systems and OEM expert Rick Merritt on Tuesday, July 3, at 12:00 pm EDT for a Live Chat on this subject.
Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Peter Drucker famously said "Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window." Yet in the razor's-edge world of electronics—with a lean supply chain and just-in-time demands—the need to know the future is vital.
While no one really can accurately predict the future, we can take guidance from another Drucker saying which is the best way to predict the future is to create it.
You've heard the saying "the No. 1 supply chain risk is your people." That hasn't always been the case. But today's complex global supply chain requires a new type of multitalented employee. It's one who understands, finance, marketing, economics, is savvy with technology, graceful with relationships and can think analytically.
Where are these people? Are universities properly preparing the next generation supply chain professionals? How do train your existing workforce for these new, demanding positions?
Brian Fuller, editor-in-chief of EBN, will lead a 60-minute Avnet Velocity panel discussion that will ask and answer these and other questions swirling around today's supply-chain talent challenges.
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