Benihana of Tokyo Case
Medaille College
MBA-621
Operations Management
Case Study #2
Donner Company
3/8/2006
Amr Abbas
Problem Definition
The three-year old Donner Company has positioned itself well within both the small volume, customized (contract) printed circuit boards market as well as the large volume, generic (captive) printed circuit boards market. Large electronic firms (AT&T, IBM) produced their components in captive shops, while smaller sized companies, or when large and small quantities of simple technology or fast turn-around prototype boards were required, these requests usually are fulfilled by contract shops.
With 750 competitors in the US alone, and a market that is volatile, Donner’s ability to anticipate and resolve design problems and prototype techniques enabled it to maintain its competitive edge. However, this competitive edge has been compromised by poor on-time delivery and high rate of product return, in addition to planning and manufacturing problems that caused bottlenecks, shifting bottlenecks and improper utilization of labor. These problems began to hamper the overall performance of the firm, and management started evaluating the company’s position and different strategic policies.
Following is detailed analysis and recommendations by evaluating the current conditions of the company, particularly the following areas:
• Operational and strategic implications of company direction
• Labor utilization
• Materials
• Capacity
• Information flow
• Evaluating the following performance criteria: Quality, Productivity and Delivery.
Following detailed analysis of data, process flow and inventory strategies, my recommendations will be focused on the following opportunities:
1. Changing strategy from current position to one which concentrates on producing only small quantities of fast turn-around SMOBCs.
2. Changing strategy from current position to one which concentrates on producing only large quantities of simple technology
MBA-621
Operations Management
Case Study #2
Donner Company
3/8/2006
Amr Abbas
Problem Definition
The three-year old Donner Company has positioned itself well within both the small volume, customized (contract) printed circuit boards market as well as the large volume, generic (captive) printed circuit boards market. Large electronic firms (AT&T, IBM) produced their components in captive shops, while smaller sized companies, or when large and small quantities of simple technology or fast turn-around prototype boards were required, these requests usually are fulfilled by contract shops.
With 750 competitors in the US alone, and a market that is volatile, Donner’s ability to anticipate and resolve design problems and prototype techniques enabled it to maintain its competitive edge. However, this competitive edge has been compromised by poor on-time delivery and high rate of product return, in addition to planning and manufacturing problems that caused bottlenecks, shifting bottlenecks and improper utilization of labor. These problems began to hamper the overall performance of the firm, and management started evaluating the company’s position and different strategic policies.
Following is detailed analysis and recommendations by evaluating the current conditions of the company, particularly the following areas:
• Operational and strategic implications of company direction
• Labor utilization
• Materials
• Capacity
• Information flow
• Evaluating the following performance criteria: Quality, Productivity and Delivery.
Following detailed analysis of data, process flow and inventory strategies, my recommendations will be focused on the following opportunities:
1. Changing strategy from current position to one which concentrates on producing only small quantities of fast turn-around SMOBCs.
2. Changing strategy from current position to one which concentrates on producing only large quantities of simple technology