...2000 Executive Summary Black & Decker had always been a market leader in the power tools industry. Many changes took place that helped out in the company in the short run, but hurt in the long run. In 2000 Black and Decker Corporation was still reeling from the financial and strategic problems stemming from the company's acquisition of Emhart Corporation in 1989. In late 1998 Black & Decker management celebrated the completion of an almost decade-long effort to divest nonstrategic business gained through its 1989 acquisition of Emhart Corporation and expected the company to enter a long-awaited period of growth as its entire management refocused its attention on its core power tools, plumbing, and security hardware business. Archibald believed that "This portfolio restructuring will allow us to focus on core operations that can deliver dependable and superior operating and financial results." However the portfolio restructuring did little to improve the market performance of the company's securities. Yet Archibald and the management continued to express confidence that the company's streamline portfolio would allow Black & Decker to achieve revenue and earnings growth that the market would find impressive. So far the 1998 divestitures have not produced steady increases in the company's stock price, but look promising for the future due to the efforts to refocus efforts on the successful power tools line. Strategic planning team evaluation Over the years,...
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...G. Decker in Baltimore. 73 years after receiving its first patent, Black & Decker was the world’s largest producer of power tools, power tool accessories, electric lawn and garden tools, and residential security hardware. The brand has also made its successful foray into households with products such as the DustBuster, and Spacemaker amongst other things. The franchise also holds nearly 30% of market share overall in the US power tools market. With strong segment shares in the professional industrial and consumer market at...
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...Hamilton Power Tools marketed industrial products by catering to constructional and industrial tool market. Their construction product lines included power trowels, power trowels, concrete vibrators, generators and power driven tools. Their industrial lines were primarily pneumatic tools: drills, screwdrivers etc. One of their products – gasoline-powered chain saw was slightly different from the above tools. Mr. Campagna, the marketing manager for Hamilton Power Tools knew that the chain saw industry primarily catered to following markets:-Professionals (lumberjacks), farmers, institutions and casual users. Among these casual user segment was considered to be the future growth market. Hamilton Power Tools thus hired Consumer Metrics of Chicago to conduct two research projects. The first one was a projective technique known as Thematic Apperception Test(TAT) using picture response techniques. The basic premise of TAT research is that it in an unstructured and indirect manner encourages respondents to project their emotions, needs, motives, attitude and values at a sub-conscious level. Purpose of research: The research was primarily exploratory to gain insights into reasons why people make certain purchases. Mr. Campagna also wanted to get a flavour of language people use in talking about chain saw. Analysis of method: The research was conducted in states of Illionois and Wisconsin. People who were selected for TAT were screened on basis of whether they planned to purchase...
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...of his senior management team unhappy. • The question at hand was whether Pinnacle Co., the small, publicly held Indiana-based machine tool company he led as CEO, should attempt to acquire Hoilman Inc. Hoilman was a company known for the cutting-edge sensor technology and communications software it had developed to monitor robotics equipment. Anglos had just heard a credible rumour that one of Pinnacle’s chief competitors was planning a hostile takeover of the company. Coincidentally, Don Anglos knew Hoilman well because he had recently held exploratory talks about the possibility of a joint venture designed to develop similar technology capable of monitoring a broad range of manufacturing equipment. The joint venture did not work out. But now, by acquiring Hoilman, Pinnacle could develop software that transmitted real-time information on its customers’ equipment, enabling it to set itself apart by providing top-notch service far more sophisticated than its current standard maintenance and service contracts. • Don, a hard-charging 48-year-old, firmly believed that bigger was better. It was a premise that had served his Greek immigrant father well as he built a multi-million-dollar business from nothing by acquiring one commercial laundry after another. The CEO had to admit, though, that getting bigger in the machine tool industry, currently a slow-growing sector facing increasing competition from low-priced foreign manufacturers, was going to be a challenge...
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...October 1, 2013 Binford Tools Inc. 1234 Annapolis Dr. Plumville Pa, 65790 Dear Binford Tools, Lee Valley Tools would first like to thank you for your recent submission of your new midrange hand plane to be sold through its retail stores, website, and catalogs. It can see that you have put great thought and time into manufacturing a fine wood-working instrument. With that said, on behalf of Lee Valley, I regretfully am writing to inform you that it will not be accepting your tool into the family of Lee Valley woodworking tools. While your tool is a fine specimen, it does not meet the criteria Lee Valley has put in place to keep it at the top of the industry. The evaluation criteria are as follows: • Quality of Materials • Precision Manufacturing • Innovative Designs • Cost Quality of Materials: After extensive testing of your product, testers have noticed flaws that could lead to it wearing down quicker then they’d like to see. The steel used for the planer is lacking the durability needed to hold up to the constant use by our customers. The edge must hold its sharpness for much longer than what is being seen through testing. Precision Manufacturing: With the use of lower grade steel, the testers see that thinner irons were used which create more vibrations when pulled across the wood surface. These vibrations affect the quality of finish, which from our products, needs to be of the highest quality. Innovative Design: Lee Valley takes pride in upholding...
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...company had developed production expertise and had built a reputation for customer service in the natural gas industry as well as extracted gas from underground wells. Electrical and Electronic. The E & E segment was Cooper’s largest in 1988, generating one-half of corporate sales and 57% of operating profits. Cooper had entered this segment with the 1981 purchase of Crouse-hinds. By 1988, E&E had four sub-segments, each representing quite diverse business, but all focused on the mature North American market that accounted for over 90 percent of segment sales. Commercial and industrial. In the commercial and industrial segmen Cooper participated in the non-powered handtool and window treatment business, and in the automotive aftermarket. In the Tool group, consolidation of acquisitions was completed and new manufacturing of acquisitions was completed and new manufacturing facilities constructed by 1988, and the company held the preeminent market position in most of its tool lines. Compression, drilling and energy equipment Compression and drilling segment had been Cooper’s largest in 1981, generating over 50% of revenues and over 60% of operating profit. However, the collapse of the energy industrgy in the early and mid-1980s caused sales of oil and natural gas equipment to fall preipitously. By 1988, this segment accounted for 21 percent of Cooper sales and less than 10 percent of income. II. List of Questions • What is...
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...suitable for the growth of tropical fruits and vegetation. Plantations are grown on a large scale because the crop is grown for commercial purposes, not for domestic use.Work on plantations involves numerous hazards relating to the work environment, the tools and equipment used and the very nature of the work. Plantation Work The main activity on a plantation is the cultivation of one of two kinds of crops. This involves the following kinds of work: soil preparation, planting, cultivation, weeding, crop treatment, harvesting, transportation and storage of produce. These operations entail the use of a variety of tools, machines and agricultural chemicals. Where virgin land is to be cultivated, it may be necessary to clear forest land by felling trees, uprooting stumps and burning off undergrowth, followed by ditch and irrigation channel digging. In addition to the basic cultivation work, other activities may also be carried out on a plantation: raising livestock, processing crops and maintaining and repairing buildings, plants, machinery, implements, roads and railway tracks. It may be necessary to generate electricity, dig wells, maintain irrigation trenches, operate engineering or woodworking shops and transport products to the market. Child labour is employed on plantations around the world. Children work with their parents as part of a team for task-based compensation, or they are employed directly for special plantation jobs. They typically experience long and arduous working...
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...Oakland, CA 94601 IS535 - Managerial Applications of Information Technology Milestone 1 Refocusing Mission Tool & Mfg., Co. Dale Reynolds DeVry University Refocusing Mission Tool & Mfg., Co. 1. The Subject Mission Tool & Mfg., Co. (MTM) has an internal problem which I believe could be resolved by a propose solution. MTM can benefit with this proposition, as well as resolve its many financial issues that it’s facing with the bad economy and still trying to compete in the manufacturing business without spending an arm and a leg. MTM has an overall IT costs that are too high to be spent on while trying to gain profit and stay in the manufacturing competition. With this proposition MTM could also make employees work more users friendly and the company can gain independency by not being dependent to local company’s network. With this MTM can be more efficient by getting rid of all the paper work that is cluttering and hard to organize to be found by any employee or personnel that needs documents. 2. Company Background Mission Tool & Mfg., Co. Mission Tool is a business specializing in precision stamped and machined components. They have capabilities to suit every need, ranging from those of a start-up company through to the demands of a thriving corporation. The plant is located in Hayward, CA and is based on nearly 40 years of experience, Mission Tool utilizes the talents of a dedicated staff coupled with the latest in high-technology machining, stamping and...
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...To: Chad Thomas Founder Chad's Creative Concepts From: Subject: Chad's Creative Concepts Date: Jan. 07, 2015 Chad's Creative Concepts is a small custom furniture manufacturing company that has earned a reputation for innovative designs and excellent quality by focusing production on specialty designed furniture. Chad's Creative Concepts has grown substantially and has caused significant problems between standardized furniture and specialty designed furniture production. The problems concern external operations and internal operations of manufacturing. Chad's Creative Concepts has to set priorities to schedule different orders. Orders for low running and high running furniture pieces are being accepted because sales have increased. Chad's Creative Concepts has not increased the amount of equipment or capacity needed to handle the business growth. Low running and high running furniture pieces are now competing for the same manufacturing capacity. Chad's Creative Concepts has to emphasize the importance of on time delivery and manufacturing costs. Low running furniture pieces and high running furniture piece have a different set of priorities. Sales and marketing have not considered the conflict between dedicating equipment to standardized pieces and specialty equipment for custom pieces. Producing standard furniture pieces has created significant growth for the company. The growth has also caused the cost of inventory and operational costs to increase...
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...For 85 years, the Williams Machine Tool Company had provided quality products to its clients, becoming the third largest U.S.-based machine tool company by 1990. The company was highly profitable and had an extremely low employee turnover rate. Pay and benefits were excellent. Between 1980 and 1990, the company’s profits soared to record levels. The company’s success was due to one product line of standard manufacturing machine tools. Williams spent most of its time and effort looking for ways to improve its bread-and-butter product line rather than to develop new products. The product line was so successful that companies were willing to modify their production lines around these machine tools rather than asking Williams for major modifications to the machine tools. By 1990, Williams Company was extremely complacent, expecting this phenomenal success with one product line to continue for 20 to 25 more years. The recession of the early 1990s forced management to realign their thinking. Cutbacks in production had decreased the demand for the standard machine tools. More and more customers were asking for either major modifications to the standard machine tools or a completely new product design. The marketplace was changing and senior management recognized that a new strategic focus was necessary. However, lower-level management and the work force, especially engineering, were strongly resisting a change. The employees, many of them with over 20 years of employment at Williams...
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...In this individual paper, we would like you to consider how you might use the tools from the Leading Teams course to develop your leadership skills over the coming year. This assignment has two goals: • Nudge you into practicing the tools and concepts discussed in class. • Launch your leadership development efforts now, at the beginning of the program. Assignment length: Because I want you to put the majority of your effort into "doing" and "thinking" (drawing lessons from the experience, deciding on next steps), we are going to keep the writing part short. 3 pages maximum, double spaced. Due date: Tuesday, September 2, 5 pm (via Turnitin on Blackboard) (Note the due date has been moved back by one day) Preparation: Step 1: Identify a leadership skill you would like to develop, and a tool or framework from the course that might help you to do so. For example, you might decide that you want to develop the emotional facet of your leadership, and will use one of the emotion management tools to do this. Step 2: Apply the tool or framework multiple times over the coming two-week period. • IMPORTANT: Get started now. The time investment can (and should) be short (a few minutes a day), but could not usefully be crammed into the last day. • Be creative. If you can think of a novel way to apply some of the course ideas, great. The important thing is that you do something. • Track what you are doing. Step 3: Reflect on what...
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...Determine which pieces of equipment are critical to the operation (can’t run without it). 2. Write PM’s on these pieces of equipment (I have a few written already) using the owners manuals as your starting point. Chances are your PM’s will look nothing like your originals once you are rolling. 3. Inventory your spare parts using the total quantities to determine the proper storage location. You want to make sure that you are not storing a bunch of “air”. Most likely you will start to run out of locations once you expand, so it is better to “right size” the parts up front the best you can. You will also continue to move parts in the storeroom as the min/max change or you determine that you do not need to stock that part anymore. 4. Determine your storeroom location labeling system and mark/label the locations so that you have a location to store the materials. 5. Enter the location in the parts data within bigfoot. It would be beneficial to also enter the quantities at that point. Once you have the part numbers/locations/qtys in place, I would have the techs communicate to the storeroom what parts were checked out so that inventory numbers can be updated. I would suggest you get the techs attaching the parts in the system ASAP to help keep inventory numbers accurate. This is not easy. Once you have a working system, you enter in the part number information for whatever supplier you are going to use to source parts. Our current part numbers are based on the equipment manufacturer...
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... Here my objective is to choose between one and three of these solutions of a module and create a 2-3 page report on. A few of the questions that I will briefly but clearly explain are what do I think of the purpose of the tool represented? What do I think can be learned from these tools? In what situations do I think these too would be useful? How can or could I apply these tools in my organization, career, or personal life? And last but not least my overall evaluation of the tools mentioned? Purpose The purpose of the SAP business object is for the NCIS is to have the opportunity to track all criminal activity in real time, identify crime trends, and allocate resources effectively. NCIS also uses this software to report to the U.S. Congress and justify funding. The next question asked was what I learned from these tools? A few of the items that I learned that I thought could not be possible was how amazing how this tool provided NCIS the opportunity to become proactive. NCIS went from solving crimes to actually preventing, investigating and solving them before they actually happen. The other question that I was asked to discuss was how I think that this tool would be useful. According to Ofelia Perotti, who is a analytical cell division chief at NCIS. She states within this article that “Congress allocates funds specifically for different functions. For example if certain...
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...assemble and adjust various styles of clutches or brakes QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Manual dexterity and good number recognition skills is required. Ability to use air tools, power tools and hand tools is required. Experience in assembly practices and procedures are preferred. ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES The list is representative but not intended to be all inclusive. Other duties may be assigned. Assemble various types and styles of product from start to finish including special customer requirements Read Operating Manufacturing Sheets (OMS) or Instructions to assemble product Burnish and adjust completed units as required Electrically test completed units and inspect parts for quality Prepare units for shipping, including proper documentation, as required Train other employees when necessary. Perform above duties with minimum supervision TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT: Air tools, power tools, hand tools and electrical test equipment PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT Safety glasses and/or side shields and steel toed shoes. Some tasks may require gloves. All protective equipment required by company policy and/or State law. EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE: Less than high school education; or up to one (1) month related experience or training; or equivalent combination of education and...
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...Shortages Fortune 2000 food product manufacturer rapidly increases network visibility, extends useful life for existing tools, and accelerates MTTR for troubleshooting problems “We selected the Anue Net Tool Optimizer to eliminate our SPAN shortage problem. Since it has been deployed, we have also seen a significant improvement in network visibility, cost savings on tools, and faster MTTR for diagnostic troubleshooting.” – Lead Network Administrator “The Anue Net Tool Optimizer allows us to share traffic from our limited number of SPANs with eight tools, without dropping packets or overloading the tools with data.” – Lead Network Administrator Company Profile The Customer is a $4B food product manufacturer in North America (FY 2010). With products that distribute across the continent, in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, the Customer is one of the leaders in packaged coffee, health/natural foods, and a variety of other packaged edibles. Problem The Customer runs a complex network with approximately 7,500 networking devices deployed at their headquarters, as well as 33 remotely located sites, 75% of which are primarily manufacturing facilities. They use a variety of tool types, including Application Performance Management (APM), Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS), URL Filtering, Packet Capture, and Data Loss Prevention (DLP). With such a variety of tools, the Customer’s networking team found that the data center lacked available access points, specifically SPAN ports...
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