Introduction

Husky Injection Molding Systems was started by a German by the name of, Rob
ert Schad.Through previous, inexperienced mistakes, Husky started off rough b
ut then made a name for it. HuskyInjection Molding Systems was a company w
hich built machines and mold for plastic items. Schad bred the company slowly
through time by offering new products and expanding the company. From the
brink of bankruptcy, Schad pulled the company out into the green and then exp
onentially grew. Huskystarted off offering a very thin product line by currently
offers a vast selection of top quality productand services in the Plastics industry.

SWOT Analysis

Strengths

Husky Injection Molding Systems had much strength. They offered a wide varie
ty of productswith each having top quality. Husky always had the most up-to-
date technology running in thecompany which attributed to the quality and spe
ed put into their machines and mold. Their aim waslisted as, ³a supplier of com
plete factory solutions for the plastic industry.´ In order to do this theyneeded t
o have amazing customer service and great management. In order to have thes
e incredible products, they needed incredible research and development which
they did. To have all these valueworking in perfect conditions, Husky had a ster
n and strong corporate culture which drove employeesto work to the best of th
eir abilities.Encompassing all these strengths, this is the reason that Husky Injec
tion Molding Systems hashad such strong brand image to customers and even c
ompanies in the industries

weakness

With great quality comes a price, Husky had to charge a pretty hefty premium f
or their productsand services. The premium becomes more apparent when you
compare to their competitors. For seemingly the same product, Husky would c
harge $400,000 as opposed to their competitors' $350,000.This is hard for the c
ompany to express their higher premiums.Although big in many of the different
sectors and types of machines in the plastic makingindustry, they still fall short
in the remaining sectors, such as the small tonnage machine area. Huskyfalls sh
ort in the international markets compared to other competitors.

Oppo

rtunities

As stated above, there are a couple of sectors of the market that Husky falls sh
ort of. Anopportunity arises from these weaknesses. Husky could start to alloca
te more of their resources intoexpanding into the small tonnage machine mark
et which handle jobs less than 150 tons. This can begood to start to sell toward
s smaller businesses. More opportunities come from the international market.
Husky could hope for a joint-
venture or a buyout with the Austrian company, Engel. Engel already hasa pres
ence in their home country so that would take care of all the international risks
dealing withforeign distributors and supply chains.

hreats

Due to being the high-

end producer, low cost competitors could be a huge threat to Husky. The possi
bility of an economic recession could make customers lose sight of Husky's high
quality and drivethem to start to look at lower priced machinery for a short-
term gain.

Strength/

Oppo

rtunity Strategy:

International Expansion

Since Husky has such a strong brand image, they could potentially do a joint-
venture with aninternational company who has equally brand equity and tackle
the international market. They offeringwould be to show their highly rated qua
lity and speed of both their product and services.

Strength/

hreat Strategy:

Promotion of Value-added Service

Husky needs to emphasize their reason for charging such a premium. They coul
d make their brand known to target customers that don't know about their qu
ality. Husky could explicitly show whytheir product is superior and that what cu
stomers are buying is top quality.

W
eakness/

Oppo

rtunity Strategy:

Expand Product Line

One weakness Husky has is that they do not have any products at all in the sma
ll tonnagemachine sector. They could easily allocate more their resources and ti
me towards R and D to smalltonnage machinery and dominate that part of the
market.

eakness/

hreat Strategy:

Market Research

In order to combat external factors such as low cost competitors swooping to t

ake market shareor even an economic crisis, Husky should always be on their to
es and keep up their research on themarket.

Questions1. Define their strategy.

Husky has entered into the plastic industry as the leading firm in this preform ni
che. They had perfected vertical integration by assembling and designing the m
olds and machines, but they relied onoutside vendors for the products to build
their products. Husky enjoyed technical challenges and hadhigh research and d
evelopment expenditures. They had high quality products and could charge pre
mium prices. Customers were willing to pay because of their excellent custome
r service,technological knowledge and maintenance. In addition, Husky¶s corpo
rate culture was superb. Uniqueto other businesses, not just in their industry b
ut nationwide, they were concerned with the environmentand paid close atten
tion to their ingredients of their products.

2/3. Given their competitive advantages and competencies, is this an appropriate strategy? Gi
venthe industry characteristics, is this an appropriate strategy?

³A
n equi

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ent vend

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n and its hist

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layed significant r

lesin the

urchase decisi

n, as did the vend

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n after-sales service and

aintenance.´ (
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Business in this preformed niche is dependent on reputation, longevity, and cu

stomer service.These qualities were Husky¶s competitive advantage, core com
petencies, and lead them to be theindustry leader. Their strategy was the reaso
n for their success and their ability to compete in themarket up until 1995. How
ever, external environments turned the tables. Resin prices drastically roseas a
result of a shortage, placing Husky on the brim of bankruptcy. Also, their niche
market wasinvaded by multiple (cheaper) competing companies.

4. Recommend changes to the strategy to enhance, maintain, or turnaround its performance.

Even though their current strategy has allowed them to be the market leader, s
ome changes needto take place to defend and hold their market share. First an
d foremost, they need to try and predict

uncontrollable factors. We know that it is hard, but they should develop a team
of forecasters who canuse tools to better predict the unexpected. Secondly, H
usky never patented their machines and molds.They need to do this before co
mpetitors start using their ideas. We also feel they should startdeveloping singl
e-
stage machines. This will allow them to compete with smaller companies and gr
abmore market share by acquiring smaller clients. Due to the extension of this
new product line, theyshould create and expand their sales force. With an inter
nal, larger sales force, they should be trained to perform technical assistance. B
y training the sales associates for technical work, they will gain better knowledg
e of the products and how they work. In return, they could sell them better and
giver customers better technological assistance. Lastly, we also feel an internet
presence would be beneficial.Customer service would increase and people cou
ld learn more about Husky and their products.