netrashetty
Netra Shetty
Del Monte Foods (NYSE: DLM) is an American food production and distribution company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Del Monte Foods is one of the country's largest producers, distributors and marketers of branded food and pet products for the U.S. retail market, generating approximately $3.6 billion in net sales in fiscal 2009. Its portfolio of brands includes Del Monte, S&W, Contadina, College Inn, Meow Mix, Kibbles 'n Bits, 9Lives, Milk-Bone, Pup-Peroni, Meaty Bone, Snausages and Pounce, and Del Monte products are found in eight out of ten U.S. households.[citation needed] The Company also produces, distributes and markets private label food and pet products.
th the data in a form that is now useful, the researcher can begin the process of analyzing the data to determine what has been learned. The method used to analyze data depends on the approach used to collect the information (secondary research, primary quantitative research or primary qualitative research). For primary research the selection of method of analysis also depends on the type of research instrument used to collect the information.
Essentially there are two types of methods of analysis – descriptive and inferential.
Descriptive Data Analysis
Not to be confused with descriptive research, descriptive analysis, as the name implies, is used to describe the results obtained. In most cases the results are merely used to provide a summary of what has been gathered (e.g., how many liked or dislike a product) without making a statement of whether the results hold up to statistical evaluation. For quantitative data collection the most common methods used for this basic level of analysis are visual representations, such as charts and tables, and measures of central tendency including averages (i.e., mean value). For qualitative data collection, where analysis may consist of the researcher’s own interpretation of what was learned, the information may be coded or summarized into grouping categories.
Inferential Data Analysis
While descriptive data analysis can present a picture of the results, to really be useful the results of research should allow the researcher to accomplish other goals such as:
Using information obtained from a small group (i.e., sample of customers) to make judgments about a larger group (i.e., all customers)
Comparing groups to see if there is a difference in how they respond to an issue
Forecasting what may happen based on collected information
To move beyond simply describing results requires the use of inferential data analysis where advanced statistical techniques are used to make judgments (i.e., inferences) about some issue (e.g., is one type of customer different from another type of customer). Using inferential data analysis requires a well-structured research plan that follows the scientific method. Also, most (but not all) inferential data analysis techniques require the use of quantitative data collection.
As an example of the use of inferential data analysis, a marketer may wish to know if North American, European and Asian customers differ in how they rate certain issues. The marketer uses a survey that includes a number of questions asking customers from all three regions to rate issues on a scale of 1 to 5. If a survey is constructed properly the marketer can compare each group using statistical software that tests whether differences exists. This analysis offers much more insight than simply showing how many customers from each region responded to each question.
s at least two components. First, the product must be designed to function with a high probability of success, or reliability; that is, it will perform a specific function without failure under given conditions. When product reliability increases, the firm can extend the product's warrantee without increasing customer claims for repairs or returns. Warrantees for complex and expensive items such as appliances are important selling points for customers. Second, quality improves when operating or performance characteristics improve even though reliability does not. The goals of product design should be greater performance, greater reliability, and lower total production and operating costs. Quality and costs should not be viewed as a trade-off because improvements in product and process technologies can enhance quality and lower costs.
Quality function deployment is being used by organizations to translate customer wants into working products. Sometimes referred to as the house of quality, quality function deployment (QFD) is a set of planning and communication routines that focus and coordinate actions and skills within an organization. The foundation of the house of quality is the belief that a product should be designed to reflect customers' desires and tastes. The house of quality is a framework that provides the means for inter-functional planning and communications. Through this framework, people facing different problems and responsibilities can discuss various design priorities.
PROTOTYPING
Engineering and operations combine to develop models of products called prototypes. These may be working models, models reduced in scale, or mock-ups of the products. Where traditional prototype development often takes weeks or months, the technology for rapid prototyping has become available. Some companies are using the same technology that creates virtual reality to develop three-dimensional prototypes. Other firms employ lasers to make prototypes by solidifying plastic in only a few minutes; this process can produce prototypes with complex shapes. Prototyping should increase customer satisfaction and improve design stability, product effectiveness, and the predictability of final product cost and performance.
COMPUTER-AIDED DESIGN
Currently, business managers and engineers perceive computer-aided design (CAD) as a tool to assist engineers in designing goods. CAD uses computer technology and a graphic display to represent physical shapes in the same way that engineering drawings have in the past. It is used in the metalworking industry to display component parts, to illustrate size and shape, to show possible relationships to other parts, and to indicate component deformation under specified loads. After the design has been completed, the engineer can examine many different views or sections of the part and finally send it to a plotter to prepare drawings. This capability greatly reduces engineering time and avoids routine mistakes made in analysis and drawing. It significantly increases productivity and reduces design time, which allows faster delivery.
Applications of CAD systems are not limited to producing goods. While it's true that services do not have physical dimensions, the equipment and facilities used to produce services do. For example, the service stalls in an automotive center or rooms in an emergency medical center have physical characteristics that can be represented by the interactive graphics capabilities of a CAD system.
LEGAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES
IN PRODUCT DESIGN
What is the responsibility of an organization and its managers to see that the goods and services they produce do not harm consumers? Legally, it is very clear that organizations are responsible for the design and safe use of their products. Consumers who believe they have been damaged by a poorly designed good or service have legal recourse under both civil and criminal statutes. Often, however, only the most serious and obvious offenses are settled in this way. More difficult ethical issues in product design result when the evidence is not as clear. For example, what responsibilities does a power tool manufacturer have with respect to product safety? Does a power saw manufacturer have the responsibility to design its product so that it is difficult for a child to operate? Suppose a parent is using a power saw and is called away to the telephone for a few minutes. A ten-year old may wander over, press the trigger and be seriously injured. Designing the saw so it has a simple and inexpensive lockout switch that would have to be pressed simultaneously when the trigger is pressed would make it more difficult for the accident to happen. What is the responsibility of the parent? What is the responsibility of the company?
PRODUCT DESIGN
AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Organizations consider product design a critical activity to the production of environmentally friendly products. Organizations increasingly recognize that being good corporate citizens increases sales. Fast-food restaurants have begun recycling programs and redesigned packaging materials and systems in response to customer concerns. In other cases, being a good corporate citizen and protecting a company's renewable resources go well together; there are win-win opportunities where an organization can actually design products and processes that cut costs and increase profits by recapturing pollutants and reducing solid waste.
OVERVIEW OF PRODUCT
DESIGN PROCESS
Product design time can be reduced by using a team approach and the early involvement of key participants including marketing, research and development, engineering, operations, and suppliers. Early involvement is an approach to managing people and processes. It involves an upstream investment in time that facilitates the identification and solution of down-stream problems that would otherwise increase product design and production costs, decrease quality, and delay product introduction.
Time-based competitors are discovering that reducing product design time improves the productivity of product design teams. To reduce time, firms are reorganizing product design from an "over-the-wall" process to a team-based concurrent process. Over-the-wall means to proceed sequentially with the limited exchange of information and ideas. When this approach is used, problems are often discovered late because late-stage participants are excluded from decisions made early in the process. As a result, poor decisions are often made.
Product design is a labor-intensive process that requires the contribution of highly trained specialists. By using teams of specialists, communications are enhanced, wait time between decisions is reduced, and productivity is improved. Participants in this team-based process make better decisions faster because they are building a shared knowledge base that enhances learning and eases decision-making. By sharing development activities, design decisions that involve interdependencies between functional specialists can be made more quickly and more effectively. This reorganized process creates a timely response to customer needs, a more cost-effective product design process, and higher-quality products at an affordable price.
There are several reasons why early involvement and concurrent activities bring about these improvements. First, product design shifts from sequential, with feedback loops that occur whenever a problem is encountered, to concurrent, where problems are recognized early and resolved. The ability to overlap activities reduces product design time. Second, when a team of functional specialists works concurrently on product design, the participants learn from each other and their knowledge base expands. People are better able to anticipate conflicts and can more easily arrive at solutions. As a result, the time it takes to complete an activity should decline. Third, fewer changes later in the process results in faster and less expensive product design. When problems are discovered late, they take more time and money to solve.
th the data in a form that is now useful, the researcher can begin the process of analyzing the data to determine what has been learned. The method used to analyze data depends on the approach used to collect the information (secondary research, primary quantitative research or primary qualitative research). For primary research the selection of method of analysis also depends on the type of research instrument used to collect the information.
Essentially there are two types of methods of analysis – descriptive and inferential.
Descriptive Data Analysis
Not to be confused with descriptive research, descriptive analysis, as the name implies, is used to describe the results obtained. In most cases the results are merely used to provide a summary of what has been gathered (e.g., how many liked or dislike a product) without making a statement of whether the results hold up to statistical evaluation. For quantitative data collection the most common methods used for this basic level of analysis are visual representations, such as charts and tables, and measures of central tendency including averages (i.e., mean value). For qualitative data collection, where analysis may consist of the researcher’s own interpretation of what was learned, the information may be coded or summarized into grouping categories.
Inferential Data Analysis
While descriptive data analysis can present a picture of the results, to really be useful the results of research should allow the researcher to accomplish other goals such as:
Using information obtained from a small group (i.e., sample of customers) to make judgments about a larger group (i.e., all customers)
Comparing groups to see if there is a difference in how they respond to an issue
Forecasting what may happen based on collected information
To move beyond simply describing results requires the use of inferential data analysis where advanced statistical techniques are used to make judgments (i.e., inferences) about some issue (e.g., is one type of customer different from another type of customer). Using inferential data analysis requires a well-structured research plan that follows the scientific method. Also, most (but not all) inferential data analysis techniques require the use of quantitative data collection.
As an example of the use of inferential data analysis, a marketer may wish to know if North American, European and Asian customers differ in how they rate certain issues. The marketer uses a survey that includes a number of questions asking customers from all three regions to rate issues on a scale of 1 to 5. If a survey is constructed properly the marketer can compare each group using statistical software that tests whether differences exists. This analysis offers much more insight than simply showing how many customers from each region responded to each question.
s at least two components. First, the product must be designed to function with a high probability of success, or reliability; that is, it will perform a specific function without failure under given conditions. When product reliability increases, the firm can extend the product's warrantee without increasing customer claims for repairs or returns. Warrantees for complex and expensive items such as appliances are important selling points for customers. Second, quality improves when operating or performance characteristics improve even though reliability does not. The goals of product design should be greater performance, greater reliability, and lower total production and operating costs. Quality and costs should not be viewed as a trade-off because improvements in product and process technologies can enhance quality and lower costs.
Quality function deployment is being used by organizations to translate customer wants into working products. Sometimes referred to as the house of quality, quality function deployment (QFD) is a set of planning and communication routines that focus and coordinate actions and skills within an organization. The foundation of the house of quality is the belief that a product should be designed to reflect customers' desires and tastes. The house of quality is a framework that provides the means for inter-functional planning and communications. Through this framework, people facing different problems and responsibilities can discuss various design priorities.
PROTOTYPING
Engineering and operations combine to develop models of products called prototypes. These may be working models, models reduced in scale, or mock-ups of the products. Where traditional prototype development often takes weeks or months, the technology for rapid prototyping has become available. Some companies are using the same technology that creates virtual reality to develop three-dimensional prototypes. Other firms employ lasers to make prototypes by solidifying plastic in only a few minutes; this process can produce prototypes with complex shapes. Prototyping should increase customer satisfaction and improve design stability, product effectiveness, and the predictability of final product cost and performance.
COMPUTER-AIDED DESIGN
Currently, business managers and engineers perceive computer-aided design (CAD) as a tool to assist engineers in designing goods. CAD uses computer technology and a graphic display to represent physical shapes in the same way that engineering drawings have in the past. It is used in the metalworking industry to display component parts, to illustrate size and shape, to show possible relationships to other parts, and to indicate component deformation under specified loads. After the design has been completed, the engineer can examine many different views or sections of the part and finally send it to a plotter to prepare drawings. This capability greatly reduces engineering time and avoids routine mistakes made in analysis and drawing. It significantly increases productivity and reduces design time, which allows faster delivery.
Applications of CAD systems are not limited to producing goods. While it's true that services do not have physical dimensions, the equipment and facilities used to produce services do. For example, the service stalls in an automotive center or rooms in an emergency medical center have physical characteristics that can be represented by the interactive graphics capabilities of a CAD system.
LEGAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES
IN PRODUCT DESIGN
What is the responsibility of an organization and its managers to see that the goods and services they produce do not harm consumers? Legally, it is very clear that organizations are responsible for the design and safe use of their products. Consumers who believe they have been damaged by a poorly designed good or service have legal recourse under both civil and criminal statutes. Often, however, only the most serious and obvious offenses are settled in this way. More difficult ethical issues in product design result when the evidence is not as clear. For example, what responsibilities does a power tool manufacturer have with respect to product safety? Does a power saw manufacturer have the responsibility to design its product so that it is difficult for a child to operate? Suppose a parent is using a power saw and is called away to the telephone for a few minutes. A ten-year old may wander over, press the trigger and be seriously injured. Designing the saw so it has a simple and inexpensive lockout switch that would have to be pressed simultaneously when the trigger is pressed would make it more difficult for the accident to happen. What is the responsibility of the parent? What is the responsibility of the company?
PRODUCT DESIGN
AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Organizations consider product design a critical activity to the production of environmentally friendly products. Organizations increasingly recognize that being good corporate citizens increases sales. Fast-food restaurants have begun recycling programs and redesigned packaging materials and systems in response to customer concerns. In other cases, being a good corporate citizen and protecting a company's renewable resources go well together; there are win-win opportunities where an organization can actually design products and processes that cut costs and increase profits by recapturing pollutants and reducing solid waste.
OVERVIEW OF PRODUCT
DESIGN PROCESS
Product design time can be reduced by using a team approach and the early involvement of key participants including marketing, research and development, engineering, operations, and suppliers. Early involvement is an approach to managing people and processes. It involves an upstream investment in time that facilitates the identification and solution of down-stream problems that would otherwise increase product design and production costs, decrease quality, and delay product introduction.
Time-based competitors are discovering that reducing product design time improves the productivity of product design teams. To reduce time, firms are reorganizing product design from an "over-the-wall" process to a team-based concurrent process. Over-the-wall means to proceed sequentially with the limited exchange of information and ideas. When this approach is used, problems are often discovered late because late-stage participants are excluded from decisions made early in the process. As a result, poor decisions are often made.
Product design is a labor-intensive process that requires the contribution of highly trained specialists. By using teams of specialists, communications are enhanced, wait time between decisions is reduced, and productivity is improved. Participants in this team-based process make better decisions faster because they are building a shared knowledge base that enhances learning and eases decision-making. By sharing development activities, design decisions that involve interdependencies between functional specialists can be made more quickly and more effectively. This reorganized process creates a timely response to customer needs, a more cost-effective product design process, and higher-quality products at an affordable price.
There are several reasons why early involvement and concurrent activities bring about these improvements. First, product design shifts from sequential, with feedback loops that occur whenever a problem is encountered, to concurrent, where problems are recognized early and resolved. The ability to overlap activities reduces product design time. Second, when a team of functional specialists works concurrently on product design, the participants learn from each other and their knowledge base expands. People are better able to anticipate conflicts and can more easily arrive at solutions. As a result, the time it takes to complete an activity should decline. Third, fewer changes later in the process results in faster and less expensive product design. When problems are discovered late, they take more time and money to solve.
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