Earlier quoted context omitted.
My concern is the rush to acquire PPE, rules be damned, a decent amount of counterfeit masks will make it into circulation, and will provide a false sense of security.
I bet someone could develop a simple mask test everyone could even do at home. (Let’s present solutions, HN. Don’t just tell people things won’t work.)
Interview with German Ventilator Manufacturer
141–150 of 182 posts
Re: Interview with German Ventilator Manufacturer
#142Earlier quoted context omitted.
Maybe read the last 2 sentences of my comment.
Both are kind of true. The air freight / train / sea freight part would ve easy enough to solve. Getting the masks distributed locally is already a little bit trickier,but I am working on something right now. Basically a regional hub, supplied by air train or sea, and a couple of Kanban loops to local distribution centers (hospitals, practices, whatever). Maybe I can convince someone to give it a try. If not, I'll ju…
That is completely fair. I have little insight into the local issues. The country level issues are fairly easy to bypass with war level rules. From real level experience with Turkey, Germany, Belgium, Denmark, etc.
Re: Interview with German Ventilator Manufacturer
#143Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not so sure. We have an ongoing toilet paper crisis that is in it's third week now and the government is unable or unwilling to do anything about it, despite ensuring everyone that there's plenty of toilet paper somewhere in some storage of some company. If a somewhat trivial problem like coordinating a few trucks is beyond their ability, I have no hope for coordinating planes and import/export. You might say "bu…
People aren't pooping more than usual and toilet paper production is not lower than usual. There is just an irrational run on toilet paper. There is no crisis.
There may be enough toilet paper somewhere but it's not where people want it: on the shelves.
People aren't rational actors, and by saying "they don't really need toilet paper", you're not solving the issue that is people seeing empty shelves for toilet paper, bread and soap and thinking that the system is failing.
You don't want the public to become nervous, ever. Nervous people make terrible decisions. And for a government to look uncaring/impotent is the way to make the population nervous.
Re: Interview with German Ventilator Manufacturer
#144Earlier quoted context omitted.
That doesn't surprise me culturally. I lived in Germany for a couple of years, and the deference to "rules that matter" was completely different than my US experience. Even for trivial stuff like waiting in line/queues. The Germans were much more literal in following the rules, versus my US and UK peers.
Which funnily contradicts my experience as a German in the US (interesting how cultural perception differs). I've been told in very harsh words to go in line in the US several times, once in a line for the IKEA ferry to Manhattan where I was threatened to be left behind if I do not go to the back of the line. Once in the Metropolitan museum in NYC when I skipped the ropes of an empty queue and was told to go back and…
I don't think that's a contradiction: Germans police themselves so there is not as much of a need to police each other. And perhaps we subconsciously assume that someone who permitted themselves[1] to violate a rule did so for a good reason.
[1] I don't think that's idiomatic English, which illustrates my point.
Re: Interview with German Ventilator Manufacturer
#145Earlier quoted context omitted.
People aren't pooping more than usual and toilet paper production is not lower than usual. There is just an irrational run on toilet paper. There is no crisis.
There may be enough toilet paper somewhere but it's not where people want it: on the shelves. People aren't rational actors, and by saying "they don't really need toilet paper", you're not solving the issue that is people seeing empty shelves for toilet paper, bread and soap and thinking that the system is failing. You don't want the public to become nervous, ever. Nervous people make terrible decisions. And for a go…
It doesn't really make sense to increase toilet paper production though. There's no long-term increased demand, so the problem will probably sort itself out in a couple of weeks once everybody who has been panic buying already has a stockpile.
Re: Interview with German Ventilator Manufacturer
#146Earlier quoted context omitted.
Have you ever gotten oN Or off a airplane on Germany? It is gage ring how un-orderly they are - much worse then any other place I have every been.
Quite a lot, actually, Though, in the early 1990's. Perhaps something has changed.
Same in the UK, we would often see queues of orderly lines on the Waterloo city line, past decade or so, that has gone and just all for themselves :(.
Re: Interview with German Ventilator Manufacturer
#147Earlier quoted context omitted.
Not saying a case like this, but don't forget that West and East Germany were supposed by the strategists to be main battlefield in eventual non nuclear WWIII ...
That is a long time ago, 30 year now. Neither the attitude nor the infrastructure from that era are still in place.
But the legacy is still apparent.
Re: Interview with German Ventilator Manufacturer
#148Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not so sure. We have an ongoing toilet paper crisis that is in it's third week now and the government is unable or unwilling to do anything about it, despite ensuring everyone that there's plenty of toilet paper somewhere in some storage of some company. If a somewhat trivial problem like coordinating a few trucks is beyond their ability, I have no hope for coordinating planes and import/export. You might say "bu…
People aren't pooping more than usual and toilet paper production is not lower than usual. There is just an irrational run on toilet paper. There is no crisis.
Exactly, it's akin to a run on a bank - if all account holders of any bank withdraw all their money at once - NO bank would cope with that. Though a run on toilet paper just hit the supply chain, so you get these bumps. Come mid to end of summer, there will be a surplus of toilet paper due to the run of panic buyers fueling panic buyers all over-stocked.
Re: Interview with German Ventilator Manufacturer
#149Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not so sure. We have an ongoing toilet paper crisis that is in it's third week now and the government is unable or unwilling to do anything about it, despite ensuring everyone that there's plenty of toilet paper somewhere in some storage of some company. If a somewhat trivial problem like coordinating a few trucks is beyond their ability, I have no hope for coordinating planes and import/export. You might say "bu…
Where do you have a toilet paper crisis? In north Germany at least shelves are refilled all the time. I’m back from groceries, Edeka, Lidl, and Rewe had all their shelves full.
Same in UK, least form my experience - was a blip and all those who overstocked now saturated and with that, not an issue - just the run hit supply chain demand and gave the impression of a shortage when it was only a short-term shortage due to panic buyers over-stocking.
But people worried about non-fire safe cladding seemed equally happy to fill their homes with flammable paper - the hypocrisy of madness plays out in many ways.
Re: Interview with German Ventilator Manufacturer
#150Earlier quoted context omitted.
Where do you have a toilet paper crisis? In north Germany at least shelves are refilled all the time. I’m back from groceries, Edeka, Lidl, and Rewe had all their shelves full.
Friends from Berlin tell me they still have empty shelves, so do the super markets in (western) Hamburg. They get refilled every few days early in the morning and are empty an hour or two later, only to sit empty for another day or two. It's gotten so bad where I live that Aldi has apparently decided to just give up and use the space for potting soil. The pasta shelves are re-stocked though, as is bread. Berlin isn't…
Cause and effect, it will settle down in week or two and those who overstocked won't be buying more and those who are responsible and now short due to the hoarders of panic are slowly getting back to normal.
But certainly an insight into the culture and humanity of some people. Alas we have a society that seems to always see good responsible people suffer at the hands of the irresponsible.