...3M’s Business Segments 3M Company had a rocky start in 1902 as "Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing," an almost-failed mining company. In 2002 it changed its name to 3M; today the company is a diversified industrial and consumer products company operating six business segments. 3M sells the majority of its products to retailers or other large distributors; some large companies and hospitals have direct accounts with 3M for their more specialized technologies. Best known for brands including Scotch tape, Post-It, and Nexcare, 3M makes over 55,000 products ranging from sandpaper and bandages to wide screen LCD TVs. The thread that unifies the majority of 3M’s products is that they are based on applying coatings to backings (e.g., sandpaper). Divisions with key product offerings are listed below: * Healthcare (18.6% of sales): Medical Supplies; Skin Products; Pharmaceuticals (sold in 2007); Drug Delivery Systems; Dental / Orthodontic; Health Information Systems; Microbiology * Industrial & Transportation (30.8% sales): Abrasive Systems; Industrial Adhesives; Personal Care; 3M Dyneon; CUNO; Specialty Materials; HighJump Software; Aerospace; Packaging; Automotive * Consumer & Office (15% of sales): Stationary; Office; Home Care; Protection; Construction; Home Improvement; Visual Systems * Display & Graphics(13.5% of sales): Optics Systems; Commercial Graphics, Traffic Safety Systems; Touch Systems * Electro & Communications (9.8% of sales):...
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...cases with enormous personal challenges presented by these disasters, 3M’s people also met the business challenges and once again delivered strong results. George W. Buckley Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer Despite all this turbulence, full-year sales increased 11 percent to $29.6 billion, with double-digit growth in Industrial and Transportation; Safety, Security and Protection Services; and Health Care. Operating margins were 20.9 percent for the company, and all businesses delivered margins of 20 percent or higher, which is an amazing feat of consistency. Inge G. Thulin named President and Chief Executive Officer, 3M Company, Feb. 24, 2012 Inge G. Thulin, 58, was named president and chief executive officer of 3M Company effective Feb. 24, 2012. A 32-year veteran of 3M, he served as executive vice president and chief operating officer of 3M since May of 2011, after having served as executive vice president, 3M International Operations since 2003. Mr. Thulin joined 3M Sweden in 1979, working in sales and marketing, and subsequently assumed...
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...Innovation Organisations: The 3M Way Damian Gordon Recommended Reading 3M formerly known as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company Founded on the North Shore of Lake Superior at Two Harbors, Minnesota in 1902 With over 76,000 employees they produce over 55,000 products, including: adhesives, abrasives, laminates, passive fire protection, dental products, electrical materials, electronic circuits and optical films Richard Drew June 22, 1899 – December 14, 1980 American inventor who worked for 3M in St. Paul, Minnesota, where he invented; – – – Masking tape, Cellophane tape, and Duct tape. Masking Tape In 1923 3M employee Richard Drew visited an autorepair shop in St. Paul, Minnesota. 3M produced and sold sandpaper and Drew was in the shop to test out a new batch. Masking Tape When he entered the shop employees were expressing disappointment at a failed attempt to paint a car in the two-tone style that was becoming popular at the time. Masking Tape Typically how the effect was achieved was by painting part of the car in one colour while covering the other parts with butcher paper The butcher paper was usually held in place with a heavy adhesive tape. Unfortunately, removing the adhesive tape peeled away part of the paint job. THE IMPORTANT BIT: Rather than just sympathise with his customers and move on, Drew decided to do something about it. Masking Tape His company 3M had a lot of know-how in creating adhesives...
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...3M has been known for decades as an entrepreneurial company that peruses growth through innovation. It generates a quarter of its annual revenues from products less than 5 years old. Long before “reinvention” became a buzzword of American business, 3M already had made change a central part of its corporate culture [1]. Many say the company’s success over the years is linked to its ability to change as 3M, its products and the world marketplace evolves. Once 3M top management has long felt that the 3M innovation process was being focus on incremental improvements to existing product lines. They urgently wanted to improve matters, and wanted especially to improve 3M's ability to respond to the "unarticulated needs" of customers by providing breakthroughs and services. Among many methods of innovation that the 3M used to improve their capability of making breakthroughs, The Lead User process offered a promising solution to that problem. Von Hipple (1999) marks that the Lead User market research method is built around the idea that the richest understanding of new product and service needs is held by just a few "Lead Users." They can be identified and drawn into a process of joint development of new product or service concepts with manufacturer personnel. In this research after a general description of innovation definition, the 3M Company is introduced as the research case study. In the fourth part the culture and methods of innovation that made or used by the 3M is discussed. And...
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...3M in 2006 Prior to reading the 3M case, I was unaware of this historic corporation that dominates a wide range of markets today. I have heard and purchased products such as Post-it Note, Scotch Tape, and Scotch-Brite; however, I did not know all these products and many more belong to 3M Company. 3M was initiated in 1902 by five businessmen in Minnesota and its first product was the development of sandpaper. William McKnight was the leading figure and CEO of 3M who revolutionized the company and led it to its initial success. He and other prominent figures at that time evolved the company culture into a unique innovative organization. 3M was the first company to utilize various strategies that differentiated them from other organizations at the time. For instance, they applied product diversification, which was done by creating brand extensions, production modifications, or creating brand new products. A large number of ground-breaking products were created by, “leveraging existing technology and applying it to new areas”. (p. C437) This strategy was not common in other industries during that time period. This unique culture assisted 3M by allowing the company to reach out to markets their competitors could not have access too. This advantage gave 3M the opportunity to acquire a wide range of new consumers across different market sectors. It placed them as the top dog in supplying daily essentials for individuals, families, manufacturers, and suppliers. Another strategy...
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...distinct stages and processes. In this assignment I will attempt to give a clear and cohesive analysis starting from the earliest ideas of the Post It right through to the products available today. 3M The physical invention of the post it spanned over a period of 10 years, however, I believe the earliest derivation of the modern day Post It Note can be traced back to the very establishment of the 3M Company itself. In 1902 the business got off to a rather bad start when a group of investors by mistake bought a mountain containing worthless mineral to start a business to mine corundum to manufacture sand paper). Unsurprisingly the company did not generate profit for 14 years. Seemingly spurred on by their less than successful origins, 3m have since always strived to create a working environment in which innovation can flourish. Brand (1998) on the topic of 3m states that “to guarantee such conditions are in place and sustained over time, requires a long term commitment from top management, the recruitment and retention of the right people and a strong support and recognition programme.” Brand (1998) insists however that innovation cannot be allocated to one or two individuals in an organisation, that “it must permeate the entire fabric of an organisation and every department within a company, not just...
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...Introduction The Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing company, or more commonly known and abbreviated as 3M, was found in 1902 in Two Harbors, US. The company started out by mining corundum which was to be used to make sandpaper and grinding wheels but soon seized operations when artificial replacements made the mineral worthless. 3M then turned to producing grinding wheels and sandpaper themselves, and only then were things were then looking up. Having difficulty with quality and marketing its products, the management supported its workers to innovate and develop new products which became its core business. Over the years, 3M and its division have produced many unique and inventive products for households and production alike. Popular Innovations from 3M: Waterproof sandpaper Post-it notes Scotch tape – Masking tape Imation Corporation Nowadays, with the vision of “the ability to not only develop unique products, but also to manufacture them efficiently and consistently around the world”, 3M operates with over 80,000 employees in more than 60 countries producing in access of 55,000 different products. 3M Business Unit: Abrasive Systems Division 3M Abrasive Systems is the core business that the company started with over 100 years ago. Part of the Industrial and Transportation business, today, it produces a complete line of coated abrasives, abrasives, microfinishing and microreplicated abrasives, plus hardware accessories which are available in sheets, rolls...
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...Subscribe Newsletter Search Fast Company iPad edition promotion Co.DESIGN Co.CREATE Co.EXIST Co.LEAD TECHNOLOGY MOST INNOVATIVE COMPANIES MAGAZINE The United States of Design Photo by David Bowman Since arriving in Minnesota from Milan last year, Mauro and his wife, Elisa, can't help but stand out. | Photo by David Bowman The Nine Passions Of 3M's Mauro Porcini By Chuck Salter 1. Mauro loves his pink lion. One Saturday afternoon last spring, he and his wife, Elisa, front-runners for the title of Minnesota's most glamorous Italian transplants, stumbled onto an eclectic sale in a parking lot on the outskirts of St. Paul. As soon as he saw the white stone statue of a regal lion, Mauro didn't hesitate forking over a few hundred bucks. He knew exactly what he wanted to do with it. "I painted it fluo [as in fluorescent] pink myself," he says. And he put it in his front yard for all to see. Mauro Porcini is the resident design guru at 3M, the materials-science conglomerate based in St. Paul. Throughout the company, he's simply known as Mauro--a renaissance man who's transcended his last name. Although most of his Midwestern colleagues pronounce it MORE-oh, it actually rhymes with WOW-whoa, which is also the typical reaction to the flamingo-colored sculpture that now resides across the street from the Oak Ridge Country Club. The club had been lion-free for 90 years until Mauro moved from Milan in 2010 to Hopkins, a...
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...Marketing Fudamentals June 17, 2014 3M Case Post-it. Preguntas 1. A) ¿Cómo obtuvo David Windorski ideas de los estudiantes universitarios que le ayudaron a diseñar la versión comercial final de marca textos con banderitas Post-it? B) ¿Cuál fue la importancia de estas ideas para el éxito del producto? 2. ¿Que A) Ventajas especiales y B) problemas potenciales tuvo 3M al introducir un nuevo producto de marca textos con banderitas para los estudiantes universitarios en 2004? 3. Visite su librería universitaria antes de responder A) ¿dónde exhibiría el marca textos con banderitas Post-it en una librería universitaria? B) ¿de qué modo puede usted lograr que el exhibidor comunique al mayor número de estudiantes la existencia del producto? 4. ¿de qué manera podría 3M promover su marca textos con banderitas Post-it para que los estudiantes se den más cuenta de la existencia del producto? 5. ¿Cuáles son A) las oportunidades particulares y B) los desafíos potenciales para 3M derivadas de llevar su marca textos con banderitas Post-it a los mercados internacionales? C) ¿en qué países debería 3M concentrar sus esfuerzos de marketing? Questions 1. (a) How did 3M’s David Windorski get ideas from college students to help him in designing the final commercial version of the Post-it® Flag Highlighter? (b) How were these ideas important to the success of the product? 2. What (a) special advantages and (b) potential problems did 3M have in introducing a new highlighter-with-flags...
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...of products and services to the newspaper production industry. We aspire to carry a reputation in our marketplace of being a single source for existing consumable press parts and specialty tapes, as well as being the go to company for new and innovative, cost saving, quality enhancing products and services. In pursuit of our goals, we resolve to treat our employees, customers and the community with dignity and respect. THE COMPANY U.M.I. was incorporated in the state of Florida in 1993. We are manufacturers and distributors of parts, specialty pressure sensitive tape products and services for the production of daily and weekly newspapers. The legal name of the business is Uhrig & MacKenzie, Incorporated, d.b.a./ U.M.I. U.M.I. is an “S” Corporation. Our principal offices are located at 2821-A Worth Avenue, Englewood, Florida 34224. STRATEGIC ALLIANCES U.M.I. has developed important and profitable strategic alliances and exclusive marketing agreements with several larger and more established businesses. For example, We have developed exclusive marketing agreements with: • Lohmann Technologies of Hebron, KY • 3M Company • Support Products of Effingham, IL • The Flint Ink Company Lohmann Technologies is a world leader in the manufacture of medical and industrial pressure sensitive tapes. Through a concerted effort, we have been able to secure 20% percent of sales of these products to the newspaper...
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...Abstract . 3M Corporation History of the 3M Corporation What started off as a small company in the Lake Superior Town of Two Harbors, Minnesota in the year 1902 – 3M has grown into a worldwide corporation with companies in over 60 countries. Things seemed bright in June 1902, when Two Harbors attorney John Dwan drew up articles of incorporation and added his $1,000 to that of other charter board members, meat market owner Hermon Cable, Dr. J. Danley Budd, the city’s leading physician, and Duluth and Iron Range Railroad executives William McGonagle and Henry Bryan (3M Corporation, 2015). The five men set out looking for the next new product. They wanted to mine a certain type of mineral deposit (Corundum) to use as an adhesive for grinding-wheels. Corundum was in demand as the premier abrasive for grinding wheels, sandpaper and other items to polish, shape, sharpen and decorate items produced by America’s increasingly industrialized economy. This new source of corundum was greeted jubilantly; the only other North American source was in Ontario. The problem – one that surfaced after the company had incurred a large start-up debt – was that the corundum was not there on Lake Superior’s Minnesota north shore. What was there was anorthosite, which is useless as an abrasive (Bishop, 2005). So within a couple of years of its founding, 3M had tons of mineral for sale, no customers and was all but bankrupt. When mining turned out to be of little use and a failed attempt with mineral...
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...------------------------------------------------- 3M Environmental ANALYSIS and report Project Report 3M COMPANY Environmental & SWOT Analysis of 3M Strategy | AN AMERICAN MULTINATIONAL CONGLOMERATE TABLE OF CONTENT 1. Introduction/Executive Summary………………….. 2. Industry Environment Analysis&External Audit……………………………………......... 3.1. Demographic Environment………………… 3.2. Economic Environment………………… ………… 3.3. Political and legal environment…………………………………. 3.4. Technical environment………………………………………………….. 3.5. Social environment………………………………………………………….. 3.6. Global environment………………………………………………………………. 3.7. Industry environment…………………………………………………………….. 3.8. Competitive landscape………………………………………………………. 3. Internal Environment Audit &Analysisof 3M company ……………………. 4. SWOT Analysis……………………………………………………….. 5. Risk factors & future interpretation………………. 6. Conclusions&Interpretation........................................................................ 7. References 1. Company Profile Introduction 3M is an American multinational, multi industry, diversified conglomerate company incorporated in 1929as per laws of State of Delaware, in order to continue operations of Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing that began in 1902.It is headquartered in St. Paul suburb of Maplewood ,Minnesota in United States. It is listed in fortune 500 company in 2008. ...
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...Case study An analysis of 3M, the innovation company Introduction Any review of the literature on new product development and innovation management will uncover numerous references to 3M. The organisation is synonymous with innovation and has been described as ‘a smooth running innovation machine’ (Mitchell, 1989). Year after year 3M is celebrated in the Fortune 500 rankings as the ‘most respected company’ and the ‘most innovative company’. Management gurus from Peter Drucker to Tom Peters continually refer to the company as a shining example of an innovative company. This case study takes a look at the company behind some of the most famous brands in the marketplace, including Post-it® Notes. It examines the company’s heritage and shows how it has arrived at this enviable position. Furthermore, the case study attempts to clarify what it is that makes 3M stand out from other organisations. Background Originally known as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, with its headquarters in St Paul, Minnesota, 3M was established in 1902 to mine abrasive minerals for the production of a single product, sandpaper. From these inauspicious beginnings, the company has grown organically, concentrating on the internal development of new products in a variety of different industries. The latest review of the company’s position reveals that it manufactures over 60,000 products, has operations in 61 countries, employs 75,000 people and has achieved an average year-on-year growth...
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...many cases with enormous personal challenges presented by these disasters, 3M’s people also met the business challenges and once again delivered strong results. George W. Buckley Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer Despite all this turbulence, full-year sales increased 11 percent to $29.6 billion, with double-digit growth in Industrial and Transportation; Safety, Security and Protection Services; and Health Care. Operating margins were 20.9 percent for the company, and all businesses delivered margins of 20 percent or higher, which is an amazing feat of consistency. Inge G. Thulin named President and Chief Executive Officer, 3M Company, Feb. 24, 2012 Inge G. Thulin, 58, was named president and chief executive officer of 3M Company effective Feb. 24, 2012. A 32-year veteran of 3M, he served as executive vice president and chief operating officer of 3M since May of 2011, after having served as executive vice president, 3M International Operations since 2003. Mr. Thulin joined 3M Sweden in 1979, working in sales and marketing, and subsequently assumed levels of...
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...management will uncover numerous references to 3M. 3M is quite possibly the most innovative company of our times that even CEOs of other visionary companies admire. 3M is best known for its household brands such as Post-it Note, Scotchgard, Scotch tape, and many more. 3M initially failed in its mining business, and eventually stumbled onto most of the successful innovations that we know 3M for, including Post-It, Masking and Scotch tape. There are some key activities and principles that contribute to 3M’s performance which reflected in its approach to innovation namely the variety of management techniques, such as good communications and the setting of clear objectives with a company culture built on more than 90 years of nurturing idea and fostering creativity. Being an “innovating machine”, 3M institutionalized the mechanisms to drive innovation as the "15 percent rule" - technical people spend up to 15 percent of their time on projects of their own choosing or initiative, "25 percent rule" - each division should produce 25 percent of annual sales from new products and services introduced in the previous four years (which later increased to 30 percent). More growth mechanisms were created to stimulate internal entrepreneurship, test new ideas, create unplanned experimentation, share new ideas, develop new innovation, diverse technology through technology transfer, ideas and innovation and promote "a small company within a big company feel" by creating small autonomous business...
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