When the customer changes options on the vehicle, it in turn changes pieces of the supply chain.

reply to 6 students using 45 words or more and ADD a direct question to each reply.Ensure each name is with its corresponding reply.1st Student Teshon EarlThe American system of government is designed to give a great deal of autonomy to the state departments and local government while still keeping civil liberties and freedom. When the crisis set in the country, all the government agencies are expected to come in and offer help where necessary (Abu-Nimer, 2018). This, therefore, calls for robust interdepartmental coordination and collaboration. During shipment and inter-country trade, the state departments are supposed to coordinate and bring on board a robust security protocol to ensure the safety of the traders and the American people. Emergency response protocols like those dealing with terrorism require a multi-agency action prompting the sharing of information between the agencies at all times (Abu-Nimer, 2018). The efforts to improve information sharing include the demand by the federal government to commission the unilateral operations of the security departments in an attempt to fight terror. Removing the burden of logistical operations from one department helps induce intense concentration and adequate progress. Terrorist attacks and bombings in the past confirmed that a multi-agency team was more effective in helping the country restore order and return to normal.The United States of America has worked hard to protect its borders and to ensure that only safe goods are authorized into the country (Abu-Nimer, 2018). Improvement of border security localizes entry of most cargoes to the ports so that the rampant thefts, infiltration and terror or disruptions are eliminated as much as possible. The government has employed several border violation rules that include interdictions and outright deployment to the causes of border security threats. The government developed mechanisms to cushion itself from enemy infiltration into the country (Abu-Nimer, 2018). The border has been pushed to include foreign countries where the USA uses security agencies to investigate, intercept and diffuse threats as far away from the USA border as is possible. Goods are first cleared in the foreign lands before being allowed for shipment to America so that dangerous products are kept at bay.ReferencesAbu-Nimer, M. (2018). Alternative Approaches to Transforming Violent Extremism. Transformative Approaches to Violent Extremism, 1.2nd Student Christopher NealAs we know, 9/11 prompted the invention of numerous government organizations: the transportation safety administration “TSA” and the Department of Homeland Security “DHS” to name a few. With the addition of these groups, the chore of information and intelligence sharing between these and other three letter agencies i.e. CIA, FBI, CBP, etc. became an even more difficult task than it had already been. Jarmon, (2014) explains in part 1 of the text that after the terrorist attacks in 2001, the internal investigations into the “how” the attacks were carried out without the right people being made aware of their impending nature were revealed. One of the more shocking findings was that the framework designed to guide the United States through the Cold War, including the strategy had not changed or been heavily modified to suit the threats that the nation faced. This led to the largest restructure of the United States national security community since 1947(Jarmon, 2014, p. 9). As far as information sharing is concerned, the internal investigation after the 9/11 attacks also concluded that a need existed for an office of the Director of National Intelligence. The Intelligence Reform and Terrorist Prevention Act of 2004 created the billet(Jarmon, 2014, p. 9). The creation of the position replaced the Director of the CIA as the principal advisor on intelligence matters. While this sounds good in theory, in practice it is yet to be seen as to how it has worked. Like all intelligence, the public sector is not privy to the substance of a program and rightly so. The framework is laid out in such a manner that hopefully the intelligence will be common to all parties who need it as long as they have a valid need to know.When it comes to securing cargo internationally. After the 9/11 attacks the United States realized it would be necessary to secure cargo that was inbound to the United States. The government knew that it could not mandate this happen in other countries, so, in order to get traction on the issue they sought help from the private sector. Thus, C-TPAT was born. This public / private program seeks to secure cargo by allowing overseas companies, ports, and in some cases governments themselves to be able to trade more freely with the United States by working with the United States Customs and Border Patrol. They accomplish this by performing security assessments which are meant to point out deficiencies in the total or overall cargo security. In turn, ports or customers receive a security rating that is used in determining future risk level of cargo. There are more pieces to this program but essentially this is how it works. The goal of the program is to ultimately secure cargo overseas before it’s even enroute to a port here in the United States, thus holding foreign shippers and receivers accountable for their security practices.Reference:Jarmon, J. A. (2014). The new era in U.S. national security: An introduction to emerging threats and challenges. Rowman & Littlefield.3rd Student William PaaseweThe effort to improve & strengthen information sharing actually kicked-off in 2002, following the 9/11 attacks. Prior to the attacks, information was stagnant and merely considered as national security information. According to Ritter, Barrett, & Wilson (2007), state & city officials had no access to classified information, even though there were initiatives in place, but these initiatives were not coordinated with other entities.Since the terrorist attacks, both the administration and congress have focused on the performance of the intelligence community and whether intelligence and other information is effectively shared-between federal agencies, with state and local law enforcement and other officials, and with private entities to prevent or respond to terrorists attacks. A report (GAO, 2002) posits that, today, governments at all levels, as well as private sector entities, recognized that they have greater role to play in protecting the nation from terrorist attacks. To achieve this goal, the report (GAO, 2002) indicates that homeland security stakeholders must more effectively work together to strengthen the process by which critical information can be shared, analyzed, integrated & disseminated to help prevent or minimize terrorist activities.Long before September 11, 2001, Bach (2005) claims, strategists recognized that prevention was a priority among concepts of national security, but it wasn’t until after the 9/11 attacks that the nation’s leaders were forced to accelerate existing border programs aimed at prevention. The US Government has done many things to improve its border security, and that includes the security of cargo that comes through ports.We fully understand that cargo coming through ports, is incredibly susceptible to theft, infiltration, or any number of other forms of terror and disruption. Hence, it is imperative that we get to know what’s inside those maritime containers before they reach our shores, and whether they posses a risk.ReferencesBach, R. (2005, June). Transforming border security: Prevention First. Retrieved from https://www.hsaj.org /articles/181GAO. (2002, October 1). Homeland security: Information sharing activities faced continued management challenges. Retrieved from https://www.gao.gov/news.itemsRitter, L., Barrett, J. M., & Wilson, R. (2007). Securing global transportation networks. New York: McGraw- Hill Companies 4th Student Carl TuckerHello Class,I chose to describe the complexity of Powerade because it is one of my favorite sports drinks and I feel that it works better than Gatorade. In 2013, it was some controversy about the ingredient, brominated vegetable oil being used in Powerade drinks. A teenager in Mississippi started a petition about Powerade advertising their drink as an athlete’s healthy conscious drink but they were using vegetable oil as one of their ingredients. It was found that the “ingredient was linked to a flame retardant and is not approved for use in Japan or the European” (Choi, 2014, para 2).Coca- Cola stated that the ingredient was used as a stabilizer for other ingredients in the drink. They later phased it out and no longer use the ingredient. Powerade has water, high fructose corn syrup, salt, Potassium citrate, Phenylalanine, Sucrose acetoisobutyrate, Sodium citrate, malic acid, potassium phosphate, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B2 and sugar. Must of the ingredients in Powerade is well known and familiar to most people. Let’s look at the less familiar ingredients. Potassium citrate is used to treat kidney stones and a urinary alkaline. It is made up of potassium bicarbonate. Some side effects of Potassium citrate can include “uneven heartbeat, muscle weakness or limp feeling, severe stomach pain, and numbness or tingling in your hands, feet, or mouth” (Drugs, 2020). One argument people have a about Powerade is that it is high in potassium in which Gatorade does not have any in the regular Gatorade. It has also been said that kids can become addicted to energy drinks. Do you all think that sports drinks can become harmful for children?ReferencesPotassium citrate Uses, Side Effects & Warnings. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.drugs.com/mtm/potassium-citrate.htmlPowerade Dropping Controversial Ingredient. (2015, November 3). Retrieved from https://www.manufacturing.net/operations/news/13232579/powerade-dropping-controversial-ingredient5th Student Charles MooreClass, For this week’s post I have chosen to explain the complexity of a cell phone, because they are pretty much in everyone’s hands today. A cell phone is practically a requirement in today’s society. They can be used for so many things like navigation, talking, texting, phone interviews both voice and video, internet access, news updates and so much more. “On a “complexity per cubic inch” scale, cell phones are some of the most intricate devices people use on a daily basis” (Tyson, et al, 2000). Now a cell phone, while it conducts so many tasks in a moments notice, that years ago would have required a room full of equipment, today can do it all in seconds. It is all possible due to a few components: a circuit board or brain; antenna, a screen display; integrated keyboard; microphone, speaker; and a battery to give it the power.So, what makes a cell phone so complex you ask? Well the parts needed to make a cell phone are not just ordered from one store and then arrive in the mail a few days later. No, the parts for the screen come from China, the parts to make batteries come from countries like Australia, Chile, China, Tibet and Argentina. The electrical components come from Congo, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Europe, China, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia. So, as you can see all of these parts or materials to make them come from all over the world and then must be sent to a central location to be assembled. All of this takes time, resources, coordination, and a strong supply chain. With that being said, the next time you hold your cell phone in the palm of your hand, look at it and remember how many countries it took to make that little gem, and appreciate it.v/rChuckOlingo, A. (2015, June 4). Minerals in your mobile phone. Retrieved from https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/business/Minerals-in-your-mobile-phone-/2560-2739730-jj0785/index.htmlTyson, J., Layton, J., & Brain, M. (2000, November 14). How Cell Phones Work. Retrieved from https://electronics.howstuffworks.com/cell-phone6.htm6th Student Joseph Miller All manufacturers, producers, or makers of a product must rely on multiple companies to get them the individual products to assemble/make/produce merchandise in order to sale a finished product to a customer. The complexity in that supply chain can be extensive in a car or simple in something as small as a nail. “Compared with retailers or assemblers of simple products, manufacturers of complex products are much more sensitive to supply chain delays” (Inman, 2013). An example of a complex product is a BMW. Each BMW can either be stock or assembled according to a customer’s desires. When the customer changes options on the vehicle, it in turn changes pieces of the supply chain. On a large factory scale, these changes affect millions of possible bills of materials (BOM) to put together each unique BMW (Stark, 2007). BMW has over 21 manufacturing locations worldwide and additionally several partner plants and contract manufacturers. Each location adds value to the BMW Group but also adds continued complexity in the production and movement of various pieces of the BMW. BMW continually works to find improved performance parts and technologies. Each time this occurs, a variance adds to the complexity of their supply chain. One of the newest technologies is the automatic car-park parking. “The fully-automated Remote Valet Parking Assistant links information with a digital plan of a car park and is then able to use the data to independently drive the car to an empty space” (BMW Group, n.d.) Imagine the individual pieces of the supply chain that must work together to make this work. References: BMW Group. (n.d.) The Future In Our Sights: The Major Issues That Concern Us. Retrieved from https://www.bmwgroup.com/en/innovation.html Inman, R. (2013). Product Complexity and Supply Chain Design. Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00207543.2013.787495 Stark, J. (2007) Global Product: Strategy, Product Lifecycle Management and the Billion Customer Question. Retrieved from https://books.google.com/books?id=yuZvpWQ7aEUC&pg=PA74&lpg=PA74&dq=where+does+each+product+for+a+BMW+X3+come+from?&source=bl&ots=PK7wko1kGS&sig=ACfU3U3Rq7d6G4_iOTiQ7kW0BT9JJiQFog&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiK2M265Y3pAhV_lXIEHS5vBrgQ6AEwDnoECAcQAQ#v=onepage&q=where%20does%20each%20product%20for%20a%20BMW%20X3%20come%20from%3F&f=false