Carefully read the attached case study and write a professional business report of 3,000 words (+/- 10%) as a consultant, advising the company on their options for relocation and the development of an operational level integrated risk assessment.
The report should demonstrate your understanding of the topics addressed and include appropriate referencing to support the key methods used. An example report template is provided to help you. You may use this directly, or devise another of your own choosing.
Some years ago, David J. Robinson, a Director of a Textile Company in the Leeds area, decided to go into business on his own account in order to produce and sell his own invention – an electronic measuring instrument, which could determine the percentage of moisture present during the drying process in the manufacture of cloth. He rented an area of 100 sq. metres on the top floor of a cloth dyeing company in a poor district of Leeds, employed three men to assemble the instrument, and also a foreman, a storekeeper/clerk and a salesman, and sank all his effort into the venture. D. J. Robinson’s was born.
The success of the venture depended mainly on the ability and determination of the founder “to sell himself and the instrument”. This Robinson achieved by tremendous personal effort. Working fourteen hours a day, he personally purchased all materials, supervised the assembly of the instrument, fixed selling prices and contacted customers.
After two years the number of employees had risen to over forty, and Robinson had registered his firm as a private limited company, with himself and two former colleagues from the textile industry as Directors. The latter two gentlemen merely provided capital, however, and took no part in the running of the business, which was still very much under David Robinson’s personal control.
Today D. J. Robinson & Company Ltd., employs over fifty people (for details of the present organisation structure and labour force, see Appendix 1) and the Company, which had been formed with the initial intention of closing a significant gap in the instrumentation field associated with the textile industry, has now extended its activities into the general instrumentation market as further electronic instruments (designed to measure and control such factors as temperature, pressure and level in a variety of industrial processes) have been added to the range.
Owing to this rapid expansion, however, the existing premises are now severely overcrowded and David Robinson has recognised that if the Company is to continue to expand, it must move to larger premises. Accordingly he has recently been looking round for a new site which he hopes will satisfy his requirement that it must be in a pleasant environment, preferably nearer the “green belt” than the present premises in a poor district of central Leeds.
After much consideration David Robinson has finally decided to take up a lease offered by Leeds Corporation on premises situated on a Trading Estate at Ridington, on the northern outskirts of the city about ten miles from the present premises. Whilst not satisfying all the requirements which he had in mind, the site on the Trading Estate has numerous advantages. The new premises occupy a total area of 700 square metres, and furthermore, the Ridington residential area which is not far from Leeds’ surrounding countryside, houses 90,000 people and is one of the largest municipal areas in Europe
Robinson is not so happy, however, about the establishment at Ridington as his proposed new Research Department (which he considers is now necessary in order to devise new products, and improve and develop existing ones, in the highly competitive instrumentation field). Having a research background himself he feels that the Research team should be “away from it all” in a country area and is therefore personally keen to consider a premises at Staveley, on the outskirts of Kendal, within the Lake District National Park for the establishment of the Research Department.
You have been engaged as a consultant to assist the company in a feasibility study to identify the pros and cons of each of the proposals and to make recommendations on future strategic direction for the company. You are also required to develop and apply an operational level integrated risk assessment methodology to the manufacturing process to support the company’s aspiration to work toward certification using PAS99, ISO9001,ISO14001 and ISO18001 as their management system model. This should be presented in a formal report of aim 3,000 words
Outline report (optional)
Title page
Abstract / Executive Summary
• This should be contained to a page or less and provide a three-part overview of the whole report – Introduction / Methodology (what was done) / Conclusions (key findings and recommendations)
Contents page
Introduction
• A short contextualisation for the report (why is it being written), and aims and objectives (should match / reflect the aims of the assignment)
Literature Review / Technical background
• A logical review of the background to the main topics that will be covered to provide a solid foundation for the methodology and findings.
Methodology
• This should flow from the intro aims and objectives and the lit review explaining the steps taken to reach the conclusions that will be presented later.
Findings / Discussion
• Presentation of the key information required and pertinent discussion leading toward the conclusions (walk the reader through the process so that they reach the conclusions with you). These can be presented under different heading to address each assignment requirement. You have to use BEST analyses and SWOT analyses.
Conclusions and Recommendations
• Summarising statements showing what the final proposed outcome is and any recommendations that flow from these.
References
• The University standard (Harvard Reference System) must be used throughout the report ( between 20 to 30 references)
Appendices
• This section should contain any supporting information you feel may be necessary – but ensure anything required to support the conclusions are in the main body of the report.
Word count.
The word count (3,000 words) will be applied to the main body of the report only (ie using the above outline, everything from the introduction to the Conclusions are included. Also Tables and diagrams are excluded from the word count.
