Speak Business English Like an American » LESSON 4 - Talking about Manufacturing
Dan: We've decided to launch our new spring shoe on April 20th.
Mike: We're still trying to work out the kinks in our manufacturing process. Our factory in China is having trouble with the soles.
Dan: I know that, Mike. But you've still got three months. It should be plenty of time.
Mike: It could take another six months to fine-tune our manufacturing process.
Dan: Well, we don't have that much time. No ifs, ands, or buts, we need to launch on April 20th.
Mike: Just for the record, I think we're cutting it a little close. I recommend we launch on July 20th instead.
Dan: We can't. We've already decided on the tagline: "Spring into spring with Swift's new spring shoe."
Mike: It's time for a reality check. I'm telling you we might not be ready by April 20th, and you're telling me we have to be because of a tagline?
Dan: Mike, now's the time to step up to the plate and get the job done.
Mike: Well, I'm going to be working down to the wire.
Dan: Just do whatever it takes. Just make sure we've got a million pairs of shoes in inventory by the April 20th deadline.
Mike: I'm going to have to run the factories 24/7. That's going to be a lot of overtime pay.
Dan: At the end of the day, a little extra expense doesn't matter. We just want those shoes ready by April 20th.
NOTE: A "kink" is a problem or flaw in a system or plan.
SYNONYM: no two ways about it
NOTE: This expression comes from baseball. You step up to the plate (a plastic mat on the ground) when it's your turn to hit the ball.
NOTE: This expression comes from horse racing. In the 19th century, American racetracks placed wire across the track above the finish line. The wire helped determine which horse's nose crossed the line first. If a race was "down to the wire," it was a very close race, undecided until the very last second.
NOTE: This expression is now overused. You will likely hear it, but you may not want to use it.
SYNONYM: when all is said and done
Tom is a plant manager at Chocolate Delights, a manufacturer of chocolate. To prepare for the holiday season, the chocolate factory operates (1) ___________ and doesn't shut down for even an hour. Tom is very hardworking and every year (2) ___________ to get a large amount of chocolate produced to meet the holiday demand. This year, Chocolate Delights decided to make a new type of chocolate Santa Claus. There were some problems with the manufacturing process, but Tom was able to (3) ___________ . It was just a matter of (4) ___________ one of the machines. Tom's goal is to have 100,000 boxes of chocolate ready to ship by November 1. Will he reach this goal? Probably, but he'll be (5) ___________ Nancy, Tom's boss, is afraid he's (6) ___________ this year. "Time for a (7) ___________ ," she told him this morning. "If you don't speed up production, you're not going to reach your quota." Tom just smiled and replied, "Don't worry, I'll (8) ___________ . You can count on me."
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The purpose of the Illustrated Everyday Expressions with Stories series is to introduce English language learners to common idioms through humorous examples and illustrations. The lessons in this book will both entertain and enlighten students while providing exposure to how each idiom can be used in a variety of contexts.
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