SWOT Analysis

Internal
Strengths:
Whirlpool’s strong investments in Research & Development activities have always been a major contributor of revenue to the company. Last year’s revenues from innovative products hit a record high of $1.6 billion (2006), an increase of 10% from 2005. The Trio’s unique features set it apart from any existing products on the North American market. The scientific breakthroughs in water filtration technology are unrivalled by any existing product. This filtration process is patented, and kept highly secret, which will deter competitors from copying our design, and therefore Whirlpool occupies a very strong market position relative to it’s competitors. As of the 2006 merger with Maytag, Whirlpool now occupies a staggering 70% of the North American laundry segment market. The Whirlpool brand has long been recognized as the leader in supplying household appliances, designing products that are easy to use, convenient, reliable, and provide superior results, and the Trio is no exception. As an energy efficient, top quality product, the Trio will exceed customer expectations, and thus give us a favorable position in the minds of consumers. The global manufacturing capabilities of Whirlpool facilitates distribution of the product throughout North America, and potentially worldwide. Manufacturing overseas is cost-efficient, and will assist in supplying the Trio to consumers at the least cost possible.

Weaknesses: Our major internal concern is that the new technology used in the water filtration process will mean that our repair technicians must be brought up to speed on how to go about repairing and replacing parts on defective units. Since the mechanics of this appliance are so different from any of the products in the laundry care line, we are considering several courses of action to counter this problem.