MANUFACTURING AND SERVICE PROCESSES: LOGANVILLE WINDOW TREATMENTS

MANUFACTURING AND SERVICE PROCESSES: LOGANVILLE WINDOW TREATMENTS Order Description only the first question Provide a five‐sentence summary for the case (the company and the problem it faces) not exceeding 70 words. and please find the attachment for more information MANUFACT M TURING AN ND SERVIC CE PROCESSSES: LOGA ANVILLE W WINDOW TREEATMENTSS Introduction For nearlyy 50 years, Lo oganville Wind dow Treatme ents (LWT) of  Loganville, G Georgia, has m made interior shutters tthat are sold tthrough deco orating centerrs. The figure  below showss some of thee various stylees of shutters LLWT makes. Past Man nufacturing and Service e Operationss: 2011 Traditionaally, LWT supported a limitted mix of staandard produucts. At any particular poin nt in time, thee mix of produccts might conssist of 6 differrent styles offered in 5 preedetermined sizes, resultin ng in 30 possible end produ ucts. LWT wo ould produce each of these e end productts in batches of 500 to 1,0 000 (dependin ng on the popularity of each style/size com mbination) an nd hold the fifinished produ ucts in the plaant warehousse. When a decorating cen nter called in with an orde er, LWT wouldd either meett the order fro om the finished goods invventory or holld the order tto be shipped when the neext batch wass finished. LWT’s pro oducts were ssold through iindependent decorating ceenters locateed across the United Statess and Canada. LLWT would se end each of th hese decorating centers a  copy of its caatalog, and th he decorating centers w would use thesse catalogs to o market LWTT’s products tto potential customers. It w was the responsib bility of the de ecorating centers to work with customeers to price out the shutteers, make suree the correct sizze and style w were ordered from LWT, and resolve anny problems. As a result, LLWT almost never dealt directly with the final custome ers. Manufaccturing and SService Operations: 201 12 By 2011, tthe influx of low‐cost shutters made in China had foorced LWT to reconsider itss business mo odel. Specifically, because of the low labo or costs in China (1/15 of LLWT’s labor ccosts), Chinese manufacturers products for substantially l ess and hold them in wareehouses across could makke exact copies of LWT’s p the United States and Canada. LWT’s traditional customers—the decorating centers—were turning more and more to these alternative sources. LWT decided to fight back. As Chuck Keown, president of LWT, put it: The only permanent advantage that we have over our Chinese competitors is that we are located here in the United States, closer to the final customer. So from now on, we will be a process focus manufacturer. We will deal directly with customers and make shutters to whatever specific measurements and finish they need. This means we can no longer count on producing batches of 500 to 1,000 shutters at a time and holding them in inventory. Rather, we will need to be able to make a few at a time in one‐off sizes, if that’s what the customer needs. On the service and marketing side of the house, we will now take orders directly from the customer. We will reach them through the Internet and through catalogs. We will work with them to determine what style best suits their needs, and to take the measurements needed to make the shutters. When there is a problem, we will work directly with the customer to resolve them. Yes, this will require dramatic changes to our business. But it also means we will be able to charge a premium for our products and create a relationship with the customers that our Chinese rivals will find difficult to emulate. As I see it, this is the only way we can survive. Questions 1. Provide a five‐sentence summary for the case (the company and the problem it faces) not exceeding 70 words. 2. How is the case related to each of the ten chapters we studied in this course? (“Not related” may be the best answer for some chapters) 3. Why is this company likely to change its mission? 4. Chuck Keown, president of LWT, is about to make a major decision for his company: a. What is this decision? b. How will it affect its strategy for competitive advantage? 5. Develop a list of five things (related to activities and resources) that must happen in order to accomplish the changes Chuck Keown envisions.   PLACE THIS ORDER OR A SIMILAR ORDER WITH US TODAY AND GET AN AMAZING DISCOUNT :)