Advising of Inability to Review Amount of Claim
Dear Sirs,
We acknowledge with thanks receipt of your letter of the 8th instant.
Regarding the cost of replacing the damaged parts, which you find to be high, we wish to draw your attention to the fact that we have included in our claim only the cost of material and labour, all other expenses connected with the repair not having been taken into consideration. We really think that the sum indicated in our letter of the 2nd June is quite reasonable, and we request you to pay us the full amount claimed by our Clients.
Yours faithfully,
Jim Brown
Financial Director
(11) Enquiry Letter
Dear Sirs,
We require for the expansion of our plant a Portable Air Compressor, model K.CE-6M, as shown on page 25 of your catalogue and would ask you to send us your quotation. The machine must be delivered complete with all essential fittings and tools together with the manual in English for service and maintenance.
We have already received quotations from three manufacturers who are offering us compressors of a similar design, for delivery in 5 – 6 months. As, however, most of the equipment for our plan was purchased in Russia, we should prefer to obtain this additional machine from your company.
We should be prepared, therefore, to place this order with you if the Compressor could be delivered in January, 2009, at the latest, and if, of course, you could quote us a competitive price.
Your immediate reply would be very much appreciated.
Yours faithfully,
M. Brown
(Purchase Department)
(12) Reply to Request to Reduce Prices
Dear Sirs,
We thank you for your letter of the 20th June concerning Paraffin Wax.
We are pleased that the quality of the goods meets your requirements, but we are surprised to hear that you consider our prices to be higher than those of our competitors. If you will refer to the last issue of the National Petroleum News, you will find that our prices are not above the quotations for Paraffin Wax of similar quality.
Wishing, however, to establish business relations with your company, we should be prepared to allow you a 5% discount from the prices quoted by us, reducing the price of Grade A to €62 – per long ton c.i.f. London, provided that you ordered at least 75 tons of each Grade. All other terms remain as stated in our letter of the 16th June and in our General Conditions enclosed in it.
This offer is subject to your immediate acceptance.
Yours faithfully,
Vlad Ivanov
|
|
|
Head of Supply Department
(13) Agreement on Price and Delivery Terms
Dear Sirs,
We have pleasure in confirming the telephone conversation of today between your Vice-President Mr.V.Petrov and our Managing Director Mr. C.D.Harris during which it was agreed that the total price of the Turbo-Alternator Set with Feed Heater, Condenser and Spare Parts should be £120.000.0.0 (one hundred and twenty pound sterling). It was further agreed that the whole equipment should be delivered in nineteen months from the date of the contract.
We thank you for order which will have our most careful attention and shall be obliged if you will send us your contract as early as possible to enable us to proceed immediately to the execution of the order.
Yours faithfully,
………..
(14) Letters of Complaints and Claims
Dear Sirs,
Equipment under Contract №184/115
We are sorry to have to inform you that in the consignment of equipment we have received against the above Contract there are several broken cases and some machines are damaged.
We are sending you the report signed by our inspectors from which you will see the extent of the damage.
Also, we would like to draw your attention to a fortnight`s delay in shipping the machines. This is an infringement of Clause 4 of the Contract which, you may well see, also stipulates payment by the Supplier of damages in case of delay in delivery.
So we ask you to transfer to our account the sum of the penalty and to strictly observe the terms of the Contract in future.
We hope to hear from you soon.
Yours faithfully,
V/O Techmachimport
Unit 7
Text A
Business Calls
Although email and instant messaging are quickly becoming standard forms of office communication, the telephone still plays an important role in business. Just like a face-to-face meeting, telephone conversations are expected to and should follow certain rules of etiquette to help make the experience pleasant and productive for all those involved. It's easy to forgo manners when talking over the phone. Distractions abound, from impromptu meetings or email notifications blinking on your computer screen. Remember that a conversation over the phone carries just as much weight as a face-to-face meeting, as it is a great opportunity to communicate in real time.
|
|
|
A lot of people find it difficult to make phone calls in a foreign language – and that's understandable. Perhaps the most significant difference about being on the telephone is that you are cut off from your normal sources of feedback. In a face-to-face situation, you can rely on a number of visual cues to gauge the other person’s reaction to your message, but these aren’t available to you over the phone. You can't see the person you are talking to, their voice might be unclear, and you might find it difficult to find the right words.
Most business people, unless they feel very confident, prepare for an important phone call in a foreign language in advance. And during the call they are making notes while they are talking to help them to remember what was said. Although it`s quick and convenient to phone someone to give them information or to ask questions, the disadvantage is that there is nothing in writing to help you to remember what was said. It`s essential to make notes and often when an agreement is reached on the phone, one of the speakers will send a fax or e-mail to confirm the main points that were made. As it`s so easy to be misunderstood when talking on the phone it`s a good idea to repeat any important information (especially numbers and names) back to the other person to make sure you`ve got it right. Always make sure you know the name of the person you are talking to. If necessary, ask them to spell it out to you, so that you can make sure you`ve got it right – and try to use their name during the call. And make sure they know your name, too. It`s important to sound interested, helpful and alert when answering the phone. You may have to make or receive calls to or from regular customers and prospective customers, so a good telephone manner not only makes an impression in business, but it also helps to make money.
If you get shunted to a receptionist and he or she asks why you are calling, give a concise but informative statement that can be easily relayed. Do not, however, assume that your message will be communicated; when you speak directly with the person you are trying to call, repeat your message in your own words. Don't be insulted if you're asked to leave a message or call back later - previous engagements do take priority.
|
|
|
One thing you can do to improve your telephone skills is to learn some of the multi-word verbs that are commonly used in telephone conversations. Most of them are featured in this module. Hold on means 'wait' – and hang on means 'wait' too. Be careful not to confuse hang on with hang up! Hang up means 'finish the call by breaking the connection' – in other words: 'put the phone down.' Another phrasal verb with the same meaning as hang up is ring off. The opposite of hang up / ring off is ring up – if you ring somebody up, you make a phone call. And if you pick up the phone, (or pick the phone up) you answer a call when the phone rings.
If you are talking to a receptionist, secretary or switchboard operator, they may ask you to hang on while they put you through – put through means to connect your call to another telephone. With this verb, the object (you, me, him, her etc.) goes in the middle of the verb: put you through. But if you can't get through to (contact on the phone) the person you want to talk to, you might be able to leave a message asking them to call you back. Call back means to return a phone call – and if you use an object (you, me, him, her etc.), it goes in the middle of the verb: call you back. Another thing to think about when talking on the telephone is formality . It's important to use the right level of formality – if you are too formal, people might find it difficult to feel comfortable when they talk to you. On the other hand, if you are too informal, people might think you are rude!
Generally speaking, if you are talking to someone in a business context, you should use could, can, may or would when you make a request: 'Could I speak to Jason Roberts, please?' 'Can I take a message?' 'Would next Wednesday be okay?'. You should also use please and thank you or thanks very much whenever you ask for, or receive, help or information. It's important to show politeness by using words like would, could, please, thank you etc. But it's also okay to use some of the features of informal/spoken English - short forms, phrasal verbs and words like okay and bye - in other words - everyday English! So phrases like “I'm off to a conference..., no problem, bye!” and “hang on a moment and I'll put you through” are perfectly acceptable, as long as the overall tone of the conversation is polite.
|
|
|
It's better to ask for help or clarification when you're having a telephone conversation, than to pretend you understand something that you didn't. It's perfectly acceptable to use phrases like 'Could you repeat that, please?' 'Could you speak a little more slowly, please?' and 'would you mind spelling that for me please?' Using phrases like these will help make sure that you have a successful phone call, and may save you from lots of problems later on. You could always say that the line's very bad today if you can't hear very well. And it's also a good idea to practise words, phrases and vocabulary before you make the call!
You should identify yourself and your company when receiving an incoming call. While it's not impolite to say, "Off the Wall Productions, Mary Robert speaking," it might be easier on the listener to say, "Thank you for calling Off the Wall Productions. This is Mary Robert. How may I help you?" Variations on this theme can convey your greeting quite effectively. If you work at a large corporation with many departments, it may also help to include your department or section name, "This is Mary Robert, accounts receivable. How may I help you?"
Exercises
I. Imagine you are calling a company and want to speak to someone who works there. Which of the phrases below could be yours and which of them could be said by someone answering your call? Fill in the chart below:
How can I help?
Can I speak to ….please?
Please hold on.
I`ll just put you through.
Who`s calling, please?
I`ll see if he`s in.
Just a second.
Who shall I say is calling?
Hang on a moment.
I`ve got …on the phone for you.
| You | Someone answering your call |
II. Now read two sample phone calls and pay attention to all the useful phrases:
(1)
Michelle: Hello, you've reached the marketing department, Michelle speaking. How can I help?
Man: Yes can I speak to Rosalind Wilson, please?
Michelle: Who’s calling please?
Man: It’sRichard Davies here
Michelle: Certainly. Please hang on and I’ll put you through.
Man: Thank you.
(2)
Michelle: Hello, marketing, Michelle speaking. How can I help?
Man: Could I speak to Jason Roberts please?
Michelle: Certainly. Who shall I say is calling?
Male: My name’sMike Andrews.
Michelle: Just a second - I’ll see if he’s in. Hello, Jason, I’ve got Mike Andrews on the phone for you ... OK - I’ll put him through. Hang on a moment, I’m just putting you through.
III. You are Marie Spencer and you work in the finance department for a major corporation. The telephone rings ... How would you answer the phone? There are three options for you to choose from:
a) Hello?
b) Hello, can I help you?
c) Hello, Finance Department, Marie speaking.
IV. You are Marie Spencer and you work in the finance department of the *U.S. Big-D Construction Corporation. Imagine that Mr. John Gordon, Finance Director of the London *Patterson Construction is calling. He wants to make an appointment with Mr.Weston, the head of finance department of your company who is away for a conference in Paris at the moment. Mr. Weston went there three days ago and he will return on Friday next week. Which of the phrases below could be yours and which of them could be said by Mr. John Gordon? Fill in the chart below.
I`m afraid Mr….won`t be back till next Friday.
Hello. My name is ….. Could I contact …please?
I`m afraid ….is not available. He is ….
Could you take a message, please?
I`m sorry. Mr Weston isn`t available today. Three days ago he went to Paris to a conference and hasn`t returned yet.
Would you tell him I called up?
I`m coming to ..on …. I`like to make an appointment with Mr…. Will he be able to see me about 11.00 on Monday next week?
Will you hold on a moment, please? I`ll just ask his secretary if he`s returned.
Could you ask him to call me up as soon as he returns, please?
Hello. My name is …..May I have a word with…please?
Would you like to leave a message?
I`ll ask Mr…. to call you back as soon as he can.
| Marie | Mr. John Gordon |
V. Reconstruct the whole telephone conversation between Marie Spencer and John Gordon using appropriate phrases.
VI. Imagine that Mr.Weston, Marie`s boss, has returned to London. Mary has to report to him about the phone call from John Gordon. How would she do it? Before you start fulfilling the task, revise the following rules:
Indirect Speech (also referred to as 'Reported Speech') refers to a sentence reporting what someone said. It is almost always used in spoken English. If the reporting verb (i.e. said) is in the past, the reported clause will be in a past form which is known in English grammar as Sequence of Tenses. This form is usually one step back into the past from the original. It is also important to change time words (signifiers) when referring to present, past or future time to match the moment of speaking. For example, she said, "I want to bring my children tomorrow." This sentence is turned into the following: She said she wanted to bring her children the next day. Study the examples:
| Direct speech | Indirect Speech (Reported Speech) |
| "I live in Paris." | He said he lived in Paris. |
| "I am working at an important project." | He said he was working at an important project. |
| "I have visited London twice." | He said he had visited London twice. |
| "I went to New York last week." | He said he had gone to New York the week before. |
| "I had already completed." | He said he had already completed. |
| "I am going to take part in the negotiation. | He said he was going to take part in the negotiation. |
| "I will bring the draft agreement to London." | He said he would bring the draft agreement to London. |
Text B
Phrasal Verbs in Business
Native speakers of English tend to use a lot of phrasal verbs (sometimes called prepositional, multi-word verbs) in everyday spoken English. In fact, this is quite frustrating for students who often have learned one-word verbs during their English studies and then are confronted with an English speaking world where people usually favor phrasal verbs in daily discourse. Such combinations of a verb and a function word (usually analyzed as an adverb) express a unit of meaning that is quite different from that of either of the elements in isolation. For example, put out means “extinguish”, put off means “postpone”, put up means “preserve (food) by canning”, etc.
Phrasal verbs are useful in business communication. So, "`turn out' is a phrasal verb in the question “how many turned out for the fund raising event?”
You have noticed the great number of phrasal verbs used when people make phone calls. Occasionally the same phrasal verb can have two different meanings. Take the verb break and the two meanings of break into. Someone who breaks into your house is called a burglar but you could also say: It's very difficult to break into journalism, meaning it is very difficult to get into a career in journalism.
Now read the short story and try to work out what the phrasal verbs mean.
"Upbringing"
Sheila Hammond was only twenty-three when she was elected as a Member of Parliament, the youngest woman member in its whole history. Naturally the press showed a great interest in her and her family, invariably asking her how she had managed to be elected at such a young age. Her answer never altered. She owed it all to the way she had been brought up by her mother, Mary.
Her father had died of a heart attack when she was only two after his business had been brought down following a financial scandal. Criminal charges had been brought against him but the matter was closed on his death. The press decided to bring up this information without being able to get at the truth thanks to Mary's skilful management.
In fact during the election as Sheila went round from house to house canvassing, Mary would always bring up the rear. It was difficult sometimes to work out who was standing for Parliament, Sheila or Mary. Her mother had observed early on that Sheila was very good at defending herself and always arguing her case well, which had decided her to bring her daughter on in the art of public speaking. The awareness that Sheila had had all her life about her father's apparent "disgrace» brought her up against the necessity constantly to be on her guard. Sheila had never really explained what her father had done. All she would hint at was that the whole business had brought shame on the family name, although her father was totally innocent.
Exercises
I. Chose the appropriate phrasal verb among the ones given in brackets and translate the sentences:
1. Sales … in the last quarter.(got up; went up; did up; grew up)
2. We will … the matter of sharing investment costs in the next stage of negotiations. (pull down; give out; bring up; take with)
3. Demand was so high that cellular phone distributors … stock well before Christmas.(fell out with; ran out of; did away with; brought out of).
4. We will soon be out of sales catalogues and must find a temporary solution before the new one (brings out; comes out; falls out; takes out).
5. The meeting has been … Until November. (put off; pushed away; carried out; made up).
6. If the group wants to boost the brand`s image, it will have to …advertising and promotion. (push money up; give money in; put money into; set money up).
7. The figure is to be … to next year`s results. (put back; taken out; given over; carried forward)
8. The only research and development centre left after the merger is near Paris. The Irish and German ones have been … (closed down; put out; pushed away; done down).
9. The brothers … the company in 1920.(found out; put up; grew up; set up).
10. Inward investment has …as a result of changes in taxation law. (pulled in; given up; taken out; fallen off).
11. The ambitious scheme … thanks to the dedication and determination of the members of the project team. (gave out; came off; took up; pulled along).
12. The lobby groups put pressure on the government to … legislation to ban cigarette advertisements and succeeded. (get on; take in; carry away; push through).
13. The number of days lost to strikes in the British car industry has … regularly since the middle of the 1980s. (fallen through; got off; come down; dropped under).
14. … another new procedure will not guarantee that the problem will be solved. More frequent informal communication between departments heads would help. (bringing in; setting in; pushing up; throwing down).
15. The firm is … a new financial officer for their Madrid subsidiary. (looking for; picking up; taking out; thinking about).
16. The operator will …offering the services. That is the Board`s decision. (set to; go on; buy out; put up).
17. …the plan will prove much harder than deciding on which ones ensure the firm`s survival in the coming months.(carrying out; taking through; pushing up; setting down).
18. These days CEOs have to … environmental issues among other preoccupations. (set up; deal with; take out; make up).
19. The banks have … hope of getting all the debts in the present economic circumstances. (given up; taken back; put in; done down).
20. Retailers are … on the new Disney video in anticipation of an upsurge in demand. (stocking up; putting up; going out; pushing out)
II. Choose a correct Tense and Voice in the following sentences:
1. How long (you / have) ...this PC ?
2. If I (be) ...you, I’d accept that offer from the supplier.
3. The purchasing details (finalise) ... at the moment.
4. I don’t know what (we / do) ... if we had lost the order.
5. I (attend) ... a mind-mapping course from September to December
in 2004.
6. How long (you / deal) ... with those clients?
7. If I have time, I (finish) ... the report at home this evening.
8. How long (you / work) ... on that project last year?
9. I heard that you nearly won first prize in the lottery last weekend. What (you / do) ... with all that money?
10. If I could have a holiday right now, I (go) ... to the Bahamas.
11. How long (you / stay) ... in Minneapolis when you
(visit) ... America last year?
12. We (have) ... the accounts checked next week.
13. I (have to) ...go to work by bus this morning, my car
(service) ... at the moment.
14. How long (you / work) ...in this office?
15. Is the photocopier still out of order? – No, it (repair) … this morning.
16. I (be) … to New York on business 3 times.
17. This report (write) ...by Dr. Martin, wasn’t it?
18. Everyone went to the workshop except me, because I already (take part) ... in similar seminars 3 times.
19. That suppler (make) ... late deliveries already 3 times
this year.
20. Hopefully, by the time we get back from the meeting, the documentation ... (complete).
Reference Material
Unit 1
Text B
*Job liability: here the author refers to the so-called Professional liability insurance, which protects professional practitioners such as architects, builders, lawyers, physicians, and accountants against potential negligence claims made by their patients/clients. The primary reason for professional liability coverage is that a typical general liability insurance policy will only respond to a bodily injury, property damage, personal injury or advertising injury claim. The above mentioned professional services and products can cause claims without causing a bodily injury, property damage, personal injury or advertising injury. Common reasons alleged in making claims on these policies are negligence, misrepresentation, violation of good faith and fair dealing, and inaccurate advice.
*Bidding: to do the bidding in construction industry means “to offer to do work or provide services for a fixed price, in competition with other companies”
*Subcontracting: if a company subcontracts work, they pay other people to do part of their work for them. (“Consultants can give advice and then subcontract the actual engineering work to specialists”.)
*pros: short for “professionals”
Unit 3
Text C
*template - something that serves as a master or pattern from which other similar things can be made, something that establishes or serves as a patter.
Unit 5
Text A
*brainstorming: is a group creativity technique designed to generate a large number of ideas for the solution of a problem. The method was first popularized in the late 1930s by Alex Faickney Osborn in a book called “Applied Imagination”. Osborn proposed that groups could double their creative output with brainstorming.
Although brainstorming has become a popular group technique, researchers have not found evidence of its effectiveness for enhancing either quantity or quality of ideas generated. Although traditional brainstorming does not increase the productivity of groups, it may still provide benefits, such as boosting morale, enhancing work enjoyment, and improving team work. Thus, numerous attempts have been made to improve brainstorming or use more effective variations of the basic technique. [Brainstorming Tips: Focus on generating a high quantity of ideas. Don't judge ideas. Invite other people to add ideas.]
*mind-mapping: A mind map is a diagram used to represent words, ideas, tasks, or other items linked to and arranged radially around a central key word or idea. Mind maps are used to generate, visualize, structure, and classify ideas, and as an aid in study, organization, problem solving, decision making, and writing.
The elements of a given mind map are arranged intuitively according to the importance of the concepts, and are classified into groupings, branches, or areas, with the goal of representing semantic or other connections between portions of information. Mind maps may also aid recall of existing memories.
By presenting ideas in a radial, graphical, non-linear manner, mind maps encourage a brainstorming approach to planning and organizational tasks. Though the branches of a mind map represent hierarchical tree structures, their radial arrangement disrupts the prioritizing of concepts typically associated with hierarchies presented with more linear visual cues. This orientation towards brainstorming encourages users to enumerate and connect concepts without a tendency to begin within a particular conceptual framework.
The mind map can be contrasted with the similar idea of concept mapping. The former is based on radial hierarchies and tree structures denoting relationships with a central governing concept, whereas concept maps are based on connections between concepts in more diverse patterns.
Text C
*Huawei is a world-leading telecom solutions provider focused on building long-term partnerships with telecom operators. Its head office is based in Bantian, China.
It is a leader in providing next generation telecommunications networks, and now serves 36 of the world's top 50 operators, along with over one billion users worldwide. The company is committed to providing innovative and customized products, services and solutions to create long-term value and growth potential for its customers.
Huawei's products and solutions encompassing wireless products, core network products, applications and software, as well as terminals. Major products are designed based on Huawei's ASIC chipset and utilize shared platforms to provide quality and cost-effective products.
At the end of June 2008, Huawei has over 80 000employees, 43%of whom are dedicated to R&D. Huawei's global R&D centers are located in Silicon Valley and Dallas in USA, Stockholm in Sweden, Moscow in Russia and Bangalore in India in addition to those in Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Shenzhen, Hangzhou and Chengdu in China.
Unit 6
Text A
*Event management: the organizing of large events, such as conferences and concerts.
*Adobe Flash (previously called Macromedia Flash) is a multimedia platform created by Macromedia and currently developed and distributed by Adobe Systems. Since its introduction in 1996, Flash has become a popular method for adding animation and interactivity to web pages; Flash is commonly used to create animation, advertisements, and various web page components, to integrate video into web pages, and more recently, to develop rich Internet applications.
Flash can manipulate vector and raster graphics and supports bi-directional streaming of audio and video. It contains a scripting language called ActionScript. Several software products, systems, and devices are able to create or display Flash content, including Adobe Flash Player, which is available for most common web browsers, some mobile phones and other electronic devices (using Flash Lite). The Adobe Flash Professional multimedia authoring program is used to create content for the Adobe Engagement Platform, such as web applications, games and movies, and content for mobile phones and other embedded devices.
Дата добавления: 2019-02-12; просмотров: 263; Мы поможем в написании вашей работы! |
Мы поможем в написании ваших работ!