Part I- Analyze the following case and answer the questions that are presented at the end of the writing. Product-A leaves the parent plant GSCM International based in Rio, Brazil. The plant is one of excellence and has inspection records on samples of 99.7%. According to them, that applies to packaging, product, time and compliance. Product-A is placed in containers, it travels by land for about 2 hours to the port of Rio de Janeiro. From there it will be sent to the Caribbean distributor in Port of Spain. From its warehouses it will distribute to Jamaica and Puerto Rico. Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and some Lesser Antilles (British Virgin Islands, Leeward and Windward Islands) are supplied from Jamaica. The US Virgin Islands are supplied from Puerto Rico. On a weekly basis, the manufacturer in Brazil receives a report from its customer service provider (Call-Center in Costa Rica). There is a significant increase in complaints. Of the 900 calls received per day, 48% are about product-A. Of those, 62% are from the market in St. Thomas. The rest are distributed between St. Croix (19%), Anguilla and Barbuda (7%) and smaller percentages (<4%) among the remaining markets.

The GSCM International company says that the problem is with the distributors, but which one is it? Where would you start? How would you do that analysis to determine which of the distribution centers or retailers has handled the product improperly?