Complaining about products and services

I. Write down some words and expressions from the film.

1. To sort out – to deal with problems and difficulties; e.g. There’s been a mistake. I’ll try to sort things out and call you back.

To get sth sorted out – to rectify a confusing or problematic situation; e.g. I want to get everything sorted out before we leave.

Translate into English:

Я разберусь и накажу виновных.

Команда техников долго не могла разобраться, в чем причина поломки.

С этим вопросом надо разобраться первым делом завтра утром.

2. Circuit boards; circuitry – a set of connections between points on a piece of electrical equipment which uses a thin line of metal to conduct the electricity.

3. To embarrass – to make someone feel anxious, ashamed, or uncomfortable in a social situation; e.g. I happened to spill water on one of the guests – I was so embarrassed!; “Your grandmother’s accent still embarrasses you, you are even ashamed of the friends you once knew.” (O. Benton “Bensonhurst Blues”); It was a jolly embarrassing experience for me.

Translate into English:

Грег был очень смущен, когда вышел на сцену.

Его поведение просто обескураживает.

Ваша просьба отсрочить погашение задолженности ставит нас в довольно неловкое положение.

У него был очень смущенный вид.

Нам очень стыдно за этот инцидент.

4. To remedy – to deal with a problem or improve a bad situation; e.g. The company should act quickly to remedy this situation.

5. To track down – to find someone or something that is difficult to find by searching or making inquiries in several different places; e.g. I finally managed to track down the book you wanted in a shop near the station.

6. To isolate – to separate an idea, word, problem etc so that it can be examined or dealt with; to reveal or discover a problem.

7. To rectify – to correct something that is wrong; e.g. I did my best to rectify the situation, but the damage was already done.

8. To jam (up) – if a lock or a moving part of a machine jams, or you jam it, it no longer works properly because something is preventing it from moving; e.g. The front roller has jammed on the photocopier; the contextual meaning in the film is “to get folded”: “The paper keeps jamming.”

9. To fix (up) – to repair or adjust something that is broken or not working properly; e.g. Dad is outside fixing the brakes on the Chevy.

10. To hire – to pay money to borrow something for a period of hours or days; to rent.

11. To crack – to succeed in some way in solving a problem; to cope with a problem; e.g. It’ll be difficult to get this license but I believe we’ll crack it.

Translate into English:

Мы тщательно обследовали (scrutinized) механизм в поисках дефекта, и теперь я могу сказать, что нам это удалось.

12. To run a check – to hold, effect, or carry out a check; to check up/out something to make sure that it is actually true, correct, or acceptable.

II. Translate the new vocabulary into Russian.

III. Watch the film for the 1^st time.

IV. Give a proper Russian interpretation of the following sentences and phrases from the film. Try and avoid over-literal rendering.

1. I am sorry to have to say this. – Мне жаль, что приходится говорить об этом.

2. Hasn’t the consignment arrived yet? – Разве эта партия еще не пришла?

3. Right on schedule. – Точно по графику.

4. Warehouse manager – управляющий складом.

5. How many units are defective? – Сколько изделий оказалось бракованными?

6. Everything else seems fine. – Все остальное, вроде бы, в порядке.

7. I will get this sorted out immediately. – Я немедленно разберусь, в чем дело.

8. There are two hundred faulty circuit boards. – Двести монтажных плат забракованы.

9. Our product for the Far Eastern launch is defective. – Наши изделия, предназначенные для выхода на дальневосточный рынок, имеют дефекты.

10. It’s very embarrassing for us. – Это ставит нас в очень неловкое положение.

11. We have tracked down the problem. – Мы отследили проблему.

12. There was a localized problem in quality control that we have isolated and rectified. – Существовала недоработка в контроле за качеством. Мы обнаружили ее и исправили.

13. We now have a new Quality Assurance programme. – Сейчас у нас внедрена новая программа контроля качества.

14. You have failed to meet the terms of the contract. – Вы не выполнили условия контракта.

15. I understand your concern. – Я понимаю вашу обеспокоенность.

16. We appreciate that the situation has damaged your reputation. – Мы хорошо осознаем, что данная ситуация повредила вашей репутации.

17. We are very embarrassed by this incident. – Нам очень стыдно за этот инцидент.

18. We need it fixed today. – Нам нужно, чтобы его починили сегодня.

19. We will have to cancel our rental agreement. – Нам придется расторгнуть наш договор о прокате.

20. I think we’ve cracked it. – Я думаю, нам это удалось.

21. Orders for Big Boss are right on target. – Заказы на Большого Босса такие, как мы и планировали.

22. Derek flew to Tokyo to look at the problem. – Дерек улетел в Токио выяснять, в чем проблема.

23. We have tracked the problem down to just 2 batches. – Мы выяснили, что дефекты имеются только в двух партиях товара / сериях.

24. A crucial factor is how quickly they can deliver. – Вопрос в том, как быстро они смогут начать поставки.

25. They are the nearest supplier to the assembly line. – Из поставщиков они расположены ближе всех к сборочной линии.

26. Price can’t be a factor at this stage. – Цены на этом этапе уже не являются решающим фактором.

27. I think we have to get the best service at the best price. – Мы должны воспользоваться лучшими услугами по наименьшей цене.

28. What on earth is going on? – Бога ради, да что происходит?

29. Welcome back. – C возвращением.

30. They are running a check. – Они сейчас проводят проверку.

31. All the signs are that it is just those two batches in Japan. – Все указывает на то, что речь идет только о тех двух сериях, отправленных в Японию.

32. Do you have an appointment, sir? – У вас назначена с ним встреча, сэр?

V. Watch the film for the 2^nd time.

VI. Answer some questions on the film.

1. What is the topic of the film?

2. How many plot lines does the film consist of? (3) What are they?
(a. The Japanese firm makes a complaint on Bibury Systems; b. Bibury Systems makes a claim on the producers of defective circuitry; c. Jenny Ross on behalf of Bibury Systems complains on a rental office about the faulty fax-machine.)

3. What was the purpose of Mr. Sakai’s calling Clive Harris?

4. What exactly did he claim on: late delivery or the quality of products?

5. How was the fault revealed?

6. How many batches proved to be wrong?

7. Was it an easy job to scrutinize all the batches?

8. How did Clive Harris perceive the bad news?

9. Bibury Systems had only one week for repairing or replacing the defective units, didn’t they?

10. Clive was going to send Don Bradley to Japan and Derek Jones to suppliers, wasn’t he?

11. Let’s discuss Mr. Bradley’s talk with Mr. Clayton, the suppliers’ rep. Were there 300 or 200 faulty circuit boards? What market were they designed for? What influence could the problem exert upon Bibury Systems’ reputation?

12. Did Mr. Clayton reject or accept the claim?

13. How did he explain the reason for the fault?

14. What did the supplier undertake with regard to the quality control?

15. Was it a convincing excuse for Don Bradley?

16. What was the only option Bibury Systems had, according to Mr. Bradley?

17. Mr. Clayton kept referring to the fortuity of the fault. How did he justify that?

18. Did that sound a sufficient explanation for the Sales and Marketing Director? What was he especially concerned about?

19. Mr. Clayton kept appealing to their own high reputation they wouldn’t like to break, didn’t he?

20. Did Mr. Bradley mollify his position (as well as his anger) in the end?

21. Let’s get down to the following episode. What was Jenny’s complaint about?

22. What exactly was wrong with the fax-machine?

23. Did the rental firm promise to fix the defect immediately?

24. What did Jenny threaten to do in case they didn’t repair the fax-machine fast?

25. Was Kate quite satisfied with her business trip to America?

26. How was it going with Big Boss there? (Did the American sales force manage to meet the target figures for orders?)

27. How did Kate respond to the news regarding the company’s problems in Japan?

28. Well, the problem occurred in Japan. Kate was responsible for the US market. So why was she worried that much? (Perhaps she felt committed to all Bibury Systems’ affairs.)

29. According to Don, how many options of dealing with different suppliers did they have? (3)

30. What was a crucial factor in dealing with suppliers, in Clive’s opinion?

31. What fault did Derek Jones find with MAGL, even though they were the fastest?

32. What advantages and disadvantages did Parkview have as compared with the other suppliers? (a fast delivery time, a very high reputation, the nearest supplier to the assembly line, but very expensive)

33. What disagreement arose between Derek and Don on the price problem?

34. What decision was taken by the Managing Director eventually?

35. What steps were to be taken in New York, following the events in Japan?

36. Who did Mr. Smith want to see?

37. What could the aim of his visit be?

VII. Make a phone or face-to-face dialogue or write a letter of complaint (at your discretion). Some possible reasons for your claim may be a delay in delivery, a default of payment, poor quality of a product, or infringing any other provision of a contract. Give rein to your fancy but remember to be polite and not to lose your temper even if a well-grounded claim is rejected or dealt with improperly.