Exam 9: Product Management and New-Product Development

Use this information for question that refer to the Wire Products Inc. (WPI) case. Rob Rose sat back to review the portfolio of products his company, Wire Products Inc. (WPI), has in its product line. The company specializes in making various products for consumer and industrial uses from hard laminated wire-coated with special paints. 1) WPI's "Wire Closet" products have been on the market for 10 years. Consumers install the wire shelves and closet rods themselves. The market leader, Closetmaid, has been selling similar products for more than 20 years, but so far the sales volume and profits for the market continue to grow. Recently, several new competitors have come into the market. 2) Three months ago, WPI entered the lawn and garden market with folding fences made with laminated wire and branded as "Wire Fold-Fence." Previously, WPI had never made fences or been a player in the lawn and garden market-although other companies have been making products in this market for years. However, Rob Rose has discovered that recent sales of wire garden fencing have leveled off and profits are declining overall. Still, WPI thinks it has some cost advantages and can grow its own sales and profits in this market. 3) WPI has just developed "Oil Wire," a new concept for the environmental cleanup market. Oil Wire is coated with a special material that cleans up oil spills. There has never been a product like this and WPI wants to quickly get the word out about its benefits. The product is now being rolled out in selective markets. 4) Another business product is "Wire Locker" used for secure storage by gymnasiums or companies. This style of locker has now gone out of fashion and most customers are finding better materials to use for lockers. Aggressive selling has helped Wire Locker's sales stay flat, but the total market for wire style lockers is only half of what it was 10 years ago. 5) WPI's "Wire Window" product is used as a security product to protect glass windows. It sells to homeowners and retailers looking for additional safety. WPI's sales of this product have dropped in recent years because competitors have introduced maintenance-free products. However, the overall market for this type of product continues to show good growth. 6) WPI is running concept tests of a new wire car-top carrier called "Wire Car Top." There are other car-top carrier products on the market, but WPI plans to include options in its carrier that will make it easier to load bikes, skis, and suitcases. "Wire Car Top" is also very easy to put on and take off of the car because of its light weight and ease-of-use features. The concept tests are helping WPI analysts develop rough estimates of costs, sales, and profits. 7) Another new product idea, tentatively called "Wire Tent," is being considered. It would use laminated wires to create a portable tent frame. This product is currently being evaluated to determine its fit with the company's objectives and external market trends. Rob is thinking about the product life cycle, where each product fits, and what he should be doing as part of his marketing plan for each of these products. In which step of the new-product development process is "Oil Wire"?

Getting reactions from customers about how well a new-product idea fits their needs is

To be called "new" according to the FTC, a product must be entirely new or changed in a functionally significant or substantial respect.

At which stage of the product life cycle are VHS video recorders?

The legal obligation of sellers to pay damages to individuals who are injured by defective or unsafely designed products is called:

Concerning the product life cycle:

According to the text, product life cycles are:

Which of the following statements about the commercialization stage of the new-product development process is False?

At what stage of the product life cycle do industry profits start to decline?

Over the past several years, like other auto manufacturers, General Motors (GM) has introduced many new models of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) in all of its major divisions. This proliferation of SUVs and an increase in gasoline prices have caused sales to level off. In response, General Motors offered rebates of up to $5,000, or no-interest financing, on selected models of SUVs. The largest rebates went to current owners of GM vehicles, so that they would replace their current vehicles with a GM model instead of switching to another brand. The rebates have been heavily advertised on national television. Profit margins per vehicle have shrunk as a result of these costly promotions. In what stage of the product life cycle is GM currently operating?

When planning new products, managers need not be too concerned about safe design because it is each consumer's responsibility to decide what products are safe to buy and use.

According to the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), a firm can call its product "new" for _____ months.

The total quality management approach recognizes that defects are an inevitable part of mass production, and that the cost of replacing defective goods is just a cost of doing business.

"Fashion" is the currently accepted or popular ______________

At Toyota, its Lexus designers attempt to make improvements to the car's design each year, even if those changes are minor ones. This process is an example of:

The Japanese success showed that one of the biggest costs of poor quality is lost customers.

Product life cycles refer to the life of:

Empowerment means giving employees the authority to correct a problem on their own.

Which of the following observations concerning a phase-out strategy is incorrect?

The product life-cycle concept tells a manager how long each stage of the cycle will last.