最近一個(gè)人權(quán)監(jiān)督組織SumOfUs呼吁蘋(píng)果公司(Apple Inc.)，希望在今年夏天推出下一代智能手機(jī)── iPhone 5 時(shí)，能夠成為首款“符合人道標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的 iPhone”(Ethical iPhone)。 蘋(píng)果公司最近因?yàn)槠浯笮椭圃旌献骰锇椹ぉじ皇靠倒?Foxconn Electronics Inc.)的勞動(dòng)環(huán)境被西方標(biāo)準(zhǔn)認(rèn)定為不人道因而飽受批評(píng)。據(jù)傳由于工作環(huán)境不佳，富士康公司已有十幾位員工相繼傳出自殺，而其中一座廠(chǎng)房爆炸事件也被指向與不安全的可燃性粉塵有關(guān)。 但所謂“符合人道標(biāo)準(zhǔn)”的 iPhone 5 顯然無(wú)法在今夏前實(shí)現(xiàn)。包括蘋(píng)果、戴爾(Dell)、惠普(HP)和幾十家其它一線(xiàn)電子制造商們都將其制造業(yè)務(wù)外包給EMS。而這些EMS公司(如富士康)正陸續(xù)將制造廠(chǎng)房遷移到一些勞動(dòng)成本更低的地區(qū)－－在這些地區(qū)的勞動(dòng)力成本僅占在美洲與歐洲地區(qū)時(shí)的一小部份。在一款電子產(chǎn)品的總成本中，這種勞動(dòng)力成本通常不太受重視。 EMS顧問(wèn)公司Charlie Barnhart & Associates負(fù)責(zé)人Charlie Barnhart在回復(fù)EBN有關(guān)OEM/EMS關(guān)系建立以及合約關(guān)系結(jié)束時(shí)程的電子郵件中表示： 典型的OEM與EMS在建立一項(xiàng)新的外包供應(yīng)方案時(shí)，從第一次雙方的內(nèi)部會(huì)談到首次產(chǎn)品出貨平均約需5個(gè)季度的時(shí)間。同時(shí)，取決于合作計(jì)劃的規(guī)模、方法、復(fù)雜度以及OEM的經(jīng)驗(yàn)，OEM-EMS建立合作關(guān)系的時(shí)間長(zhǎng)短顯然存在很大的范圍。(我還見(jiàn)過(guò)只需三、四個(gè)季度即快速簽約，也有拖延至七、八個(gè)季度才完成簽約的案例。) 一般來(lái)說(shuō)，OEM要解除其與現(xiàn)有外包供應(yīng)方案間的關(guān)系并不需要太多時(shí)間，平均約三個(gè)季度左右。顯然，結(jié)杕合約關(guān)系的時(shí)間資料也有一定的范圍存在，而且實(shí)際的數(shù)字也難以確定，因?yàn)樗ǔ８y確認(rèn)發(fā)現(xiàn)問(wèn)題時(shí)雙方實(shí)際進(jìn)行“第一次內(nèi)部討論”的時(shí)間。加上我們也研究過(guò)許多延宕多年的失敗案例，通常是因?yàn)椴牧县?zé)任歸屬問(wèn)題、法規(guī)程序，以及有關(guān)產(chǎn)品保固與申訴等問(wèn)題。 因此，我認(rèn)為要與一家改變合作方案的客戶(hù)進(jìn)行外包計(jì)劃時(shí)，估計(jì)約需要八個(gè)季度的時(shí)間。 對(duì)于任何典型的消費(fèi)電子產(chǎn)品發(fā)布速度──例如每6個(gè)月發(fā)布更新或升級(jí)版本──OEM通常必須在產(chǎn)品發(fā)布日期的兩年以前就開(kāi)始脫離不符合標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的EMS合作伙伴關(guān)系，同時(shí)間還要與新的合作伙伴開(kāi)始進(jìn)行量產(chǎn)。因此，當(dāng)OEM要轉(zhuǎn)換其設(shè)計(jì)、BOM、合約等等制造業(yè)務(wù)給新的合作伙伴時(shí)，其結(jié)果將會(huì)導(dǎo)致前所未有的大量冗余與浪費(fèi)──這可是在產(chǎn)業(yè)供應(yīng)鏈中的一大禁忌！ 有鑒于富士康公司的規(guī)模，Barnhart稱(chēng)其為EMS公司中的巨擘 (Goliath fringe)─OEM想要無(wú)縫地將其制造業(yè)務(wù)過(guò)渡到另一家EMS是不可能的。包括蘋(píng)果、Dell及其它廠(chǎng)商都不得不先劃分在富士康的制造業(yè)務(wù)，才可能轉(zhuǎn)換至最富士康的其它EMS競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手。根據(jù)IHS iSuppli公司表示，以EMS產(chǎn)業(yè)階層來(lái)看，光是一家富士康公司的營(yíng)收大約已經(jīng)是排名其后的九家公司總營(yíng)收的兩倍。 我們總是只想到要堅(jiān)持原則，但有時(shí)不妨也稍稍計(jì)算一下。為了讓中國(guó)勞工的工資提升到西方的水平，事實(shí)上只會(huì)讓i系列商品(i-product)的成本增加35%，而完全無(wú)法改善中國(guó)勞工的工作環(huán)境。 編譯：Susan Hong 本文授權(quán)編譯自EBN Online，版權(quán)所有，謝絕轉(zhuǎn)載 參考英文原文：An 'Ethical' iPhone by Summer? Not Going to Happen，by Barbara Jorgensen

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{pagination} An 'Ethical' iPhone by Summer? Not Going to Happen Barbara Jorgensen A human rights watchdog agency has called for Apple Inc. to produce its first "ethical" iPhone -- the iPhone 5 -- by this summer. Apple has recently come under fire for the labor practices, deemed abusive by Western standards, at one of its largest manufacturing partners, Foxconn Electronics Inc. More than a dozen workers at Foxconn have committed suicide, allegedly due to working conditions, and an explosion at one factory has been linked to unsafe levels of flammable dust. An ethical iPhone 5 is clearly not going to happen. Apple, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, and dozens of other top-tier electronics manufacturers have outsourced their manufacturing operations to EMS companies. These companies, such as Foxconn, have migrated to areas where labor -- one of the lesser components of an electronics product's total cost -- is a fraction of rates in the Americas and Europe. Charlie Barnhart, principal of EMS consultancy Charlie Barnhart & Associates, provided the following information in an email to EBN about how long it usually takes for an OEM to engage with an EMS provider -- and how long it takes to end the relationship. On average, it takes a little over five quarters for the typical OEM to implement a new outsourcing supply solution (initial internal discussion to first products delivery). Obviously, there is a big range around this average depending on the scale, approach, and complexity of the project and the experiential level of the OEM (I've seen engagements launched as quickly as three to four quarters and other stretch on for as long as seven to eight quarters). On average, it takes a little less time for an OEM to disengage from an existing outsourcing supply solution, i.e. typically three quarters. Obviously, there is a range on this data point as well, but that number is extremely hard to pin-down as it's much more complicated to determine when the "initial internal discussion" (re: the disengagement) actually took place. Plus many of the failed cases we study drag on for several years due to material liability issues, legal proceedings, warranty related claims, etc. Therefore, when I'm modeling an outsourcing initiative with a client who is "changing solutions," I use an eight-quarter timeline in the project plan. At the rate of release for any typical consumer product -- let's say six months for an updated or upgraded version -- an OEM would have to start disengaging with a non-compliant EMS partner two years before the product's release date, while ramping up with a new partner at the same time. The result would be an unprecedented amount of redundancy -- a big no-no in the supply chain -- as the OEM transfers its designs, bill-of-material, contracts, etc., to the new partner. Given Foxconn's size -- Barnhart counts Foxconn among the "Goliath fringe" of EMS companies -- a seamless transition to another EMS is impossible. Apple, Dell, and others would have to divide their business among Foxconn's nearest competitors. According to IHS iSuppli, the combined revenue of the next nine companies in the EMS hierarchy is half of Foxconn's. As much as many of us would like to stand on principle, just do the math. Bringing Chinese wages up to Western levels would increase the cost of a typical i-product by 35 percent. And that won't improve working conditions.