Today, Thursday June 5th, we took a short trip to a Costa Rican business by the name of Makol. Makol is a company in one of Costa Rica's Free Trade Zones that specializes in the Distribution of medical Supplies in Latin American and other places around the world. From the visit I learned a lot about the medical supplies industry in CR, which happens to be a very large player in their economy. Makol specializes in mostly ER, cancer detecting, and surgical equipment.
The biggest surprise to me was the difficulty Makol goes through to run its business successfully. Problems arise in all sorts of areas including, tenure bids with the governments, terms and contracts with their customers, and the changing prices in the world today. Competition to win bids is usually very fierce and it is difficult to meet the exact wants and needs of customers which usually results in losing the contract. None the less, last year Makol did 1.2 million U.S. dollars worth of sales and hope to grow that figure to 1.5 million this year.
Due to rising costs of oil, both transportation costs and in some cases product costs are rising. This creates difficulty in submitting bids too far into the future. Since accepted bid prices must be honored for up to 4 years, according to Costa Rican law, companies like Makol are very cautious in the amount of cost in their proposals. Secondly, when dealing with Costa Rican hospitals and other various regions, where the government controls the health care market, it is very difficult to win contracts. When the government awards bids, it demands that their exact needs be met and they always choose the lower price. Makol stated that they have lost contracts before when their product was less per ounce but because their bottles were 11 ounces and the government requested 6 ounces, they did not win the contract.
Another problem that Makol expressed was that Costa Rican law is different from those in America and Europe where they gwet a lot of their products. Because of this, many times shipments do not have the required documentation to be legal in CR. This is just another kink in the way business is performed. If shipments from these countries are late to Makol, Makol has trouble getting their orders out to their customers. If an order is late in Costa Rica, by law, Makol must pay up to a 10% fine of the sales amount which can be devastating to the bottom line.
Makol strives to keep inventories as low as possible but realize that getting them to zero is almost impossible. Due to reasons like the vacation month in the EU and Costa Rican hospitals routinely requesting orders in short amounts of time, some inventory must be kept on hand. I asked if inventory was kept electronicall or manually. The answer is that everything has a bar code but that their reader does not work, which results in manual inventory.
As far as Makol's relationship with sustainability, they did not believe that they hurt the environment. But with the shipping they do, based mostly of fossil fuels, their is room for improvement.
Overall, being able to see a piece of the medical supply industry in CR was very educational. It opened my eyes to another thriving part of Costa Rica's economy and enlightened me of the difficulties the industry faces. Makol seems to be successful by attempting to predict the future in terms of cost. To continue to grow, companies like Makol must continue to be able to work with corporations and countries around the world.
Showing posts with label Life in San Jose. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Life in San Jose. Show all posts
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Friday, May 23, 2008
Pics of Host Family and Roomate
Bottom to Top:
Viviana (my host mom), Edgar, and myself.
Viviana, Nate (my roomate) and myself.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Meeting my host family and the first few days...
After what seemed like a very long trip, due mostly to the build up of anticipation, I arrived in Costa Rica late Saturday night. Passing through imigration and customs was exciting for me because I got the first stamp in my passport. As soon as I walked out of the airport, I noticed a difference from back home. Hundreds of Ticos were waiting with signs for people they were expecting. It was unlike anything I have ever experienced at an airport before.
To reach downtown San Jose and Veritas University, where we would be staying, we had to take about a half hour bus ride. Darkness kept me from seeing the mountains around us and from just riding around, San Jose seemed pretty similar to American Cities. When we arrived at the University, I met my host mother. Her name was Viviana and she had a tiny Toyota Paseo that myself and my roomate Nate barely fit into with all our luggage. Her house ended up being 3 blocks away from the University and a great location in terms of some things to do in San Jose. I really was expecting a big family with a mother that was older, but Viviana lives mainly by herself except when her mother or boyfriend stay as well and she is only 26 years old. She is a preschool teacher and has been to L.A. and Orlando and speaks english very well which is great because I do not know any spanish.
That first night was very interesting. We went to Subway for dinner which I really did not expect to do in Costa Rica. Then Viviana took us to 2 bars where we met her friends, her boyfriend, and I had my first Imperial, the main domestic beer in Costa Rica. Here, you can buy a beer for as littler as $1.50. The first bar was more relaxed and was part of a restaurant. Oddly enough the bar had pictures of Hilary Clinton, The Beatles, and other famous works of art. The second bar was more of a dance bar and it played a lot of Elvis music.
My room is actually its own littler apartment that she usually rents out and is in the back yard. To get up the stairs to my room I must pass her dog which is very friendly, thankfully. Viviana also has a pet rabbit, it seems that she is an animal lover. My room has two beds, one is a double which will be nice. I have begun to unpack and get myself situated. My room will be very nice because it will be very private and it also has its own bathroom with a shower. So far, I have not been able to get a hot one, but I am still hopeful.
Sunday was also an eventful day. When I awoke, breakfast was already on the table. It was Guyo Pinto, eggs, and bacon. Gallo Pinto is a mixture of rice and beans and every Tico seems to make it their own way. Viviano´s Gallo Pinto was delicious. After breakfast, the group I am with from Miami had an orientation and tour of Veritas University. We then departed by bus for a narrarated tour of Costa Rica which also included some walking of the streets of San Jose. The city seems to be very young and busy, the parks and shops were all very crowded. That afternoon, we ate lunch at a local restaurant. Again, I had rice and beans but also had a salad and a steak whcih was all very good. I have learned that Costa Rica always seems to have fresh fruits to eat and juices to drink. At this particular restaurant, they had a juice that was made from rice and pineapple. It was quite refreshing and quinched the thirst I had from walking around in the heat. After lunch we traveled to a Souvineer shop where there were handmade Tico masks and other things that are native to Costa Rica. We were supposed to head to a mall but it began to rain so we went back to Veritas.
Sunday night, Viviano took Nate and I to the Multi Plaza which is a mall just outside of Costa Rica. Though most of the stores were closed, we were able to get dinner in the food court. I had rice and beans and chicken. I believe that rice and beans will be a recurring theme in my diet while I am here in Costa Rica. Thankfully I enjoy the taste very much. After the mall it was bedtime because we had our first class in the morning.
Monday class was enjoyable. We also were able to exchange Dollars for Colones at 512 to 1. We had lunch at Veritas, and in the afternoon, we got dressed up for a meeting with CINDE, a non profit organization in Costa Rica. There, we watched a presentation on there role in bringing foriegn investment into CR. I will have another post dedicated specifically to there talk.
I spent the early evening getting my assigned reading done for class. Viviana made dinner which was in her words, pig and vegetables. It tasted like sausage to me. After dinner everyone from Miami met at Pescaditos, a local bar to enjoy some Costa Rican night life.
Today, Tuesday, we had class in the morning and a local Costa Rican came in the afternoon for a lecture on Sustainability in Costa Rica. So far, the lecture and readings are really making me think about how business can be conducted more efficiently and maybe more importantly, how business can benefit from considering the environment when making decisions.
Tonight there is a Dance class that I am planning on attending. Maybe I will learn some Ragae or Salsa!!
To reach downtown San Jose and Veritas University, where we would be staying, we had to take about a half hour bus ride. Darkness kept me from seeing the mountains around us and from just riding around, San Jose seemed pretty similar to American Cities. When we arrived at the University, I met my host mother. Her name was Viviana and she had a tiny Toyota Paseo that myself and my roomate Nate barely fit into with all our luggage. Her house ended up being 3 blocks away from the University and a great location in terms of some things to do in San Jose. I really was expecting a big family with a mother that was older, but Viviana lives mainly by herself except when her mother or boyfriend stay as well and she is only 26 years old. She is a preschool teacher and has been to L.A. and Orlando and speaks english very well which is great because I do not know any spanish.
That first night was very interesting. We went to Subway for dinner which I really did not expect to do in Costa Rica. Then Viviana took us to 2 bars where we met her friends, her boyfriend, and I had my first Imperial, the main domestic beer in Costa Rica. Here, you can buy a beer for as littler as $1.50. The first bar was more relaxed and was part of a restaurant. Oddly enough the bar had pictures of Hilary Clinton, The Beatles, and other famous works of art. The second bar was more of a dance bar and it played a lot of Elvis music.
My room is actually its own littler apartment that she usually rents out and is in the back yard. To get up the stairs to my room I must pass her dog which is very friendly, thankfully. Viviana also has a pet rabbit, it seems that she is an animal lover. My room has two beds, one is a double which will be nice. I have begun to unpack and get myself situated. My room will be very nice because it will be very private and it also has its own bathroom with a shower. So far, I have not been able to get a hot one, but I am still hopeful.
Sunday was also an eventful day. When I awoke, breakfast was already on the table. It was Guyo Pinto, eggs, and bacon. Gallo Pinto is a mixture of rice and beans and every Tico seems to make it their own way. Viviano´s Gallo Pinto was delicious. After breakfast, the group I am with from Miami had an orientation and tour of Veritas University. We then departed by bus for a narrarated tour of Costa Rica which also included some walking of the streets of San Jose. The city seems to be very young and busy, the parks and shops were all very crowded. That afternoon, we ate lunch at a local restaurant. Again, I had rice and beans but also had a salad and a steak whcih was all very good. I have learned that Costa Rica always seems to have fresh fruits to eat and juices to drink. At this particular restaurant, they had a juice that was made from rice and pineapple. It was quite refreshing and quinched the thirst I had from walking around in the heat. After lunch we traveled to a Souvineer shop where there were handmade Tico masks and other things that are native to Costa Rica. We were supposed to head to a mall but it began to rain so we went back to Veritas.
Sunday night, Viviano took Nate and I to the Multi Plaza which is a mall just outside of Costa Rica. Though most of the stores were closed, we were able to get dinner in the food court. I had rice and beans and chicken. I believe that rice and beans will be a recurring theme in my diet while I am here in Costa Rica. Thankfully I enjoy the taste very much. After the mall it was bedtime because we had our first class in the morning.
Monday class was enjoyable. We also were able to exchange Dollars for Colones at 512 to 1. We had lunch at Veritas, and in the afternoon, we got dressed up for a meeting with CINDE, a non profit organization in Costa Rica. There, we watched a presentation on there role in bringing foriegn investment into CR. I will have another post dedicated specifically to there talk.
I spent the early evening getting my assigned reading done for class. Viviana made dinner which was in her words, pig and vegetables. It tasted like sausage to me. After dinner everyone from Miami met at Pescaditos, a local bar to enjoy some Costa Rican night life.
Today, Tuesday, we had class in the morning and a local Costa Rican came in the afternoon for a lecture on Sustainability in Costa Rica. So far, the lecture and readings are really making me think about how business can be conducted more efficiently and maybe more importantly, how business can benefit from considering the environment when making decisions.
Tonight there is a Dance class that I am planning on attending. Maybe I will learn some Ragae or Salsa!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)