Manufacturing - Custom Parts Business Plan

Our strategy and implementation will be a very straightforward approach to extending our products and services to potential clients via every cost-effective approach possible. Our combined services offering is very unique, and allows for more profitability while staying ahead of other industrial distributors and services providers in terms of delivery and competitive pricing. The combination of our distributorship’s solid inventory, and the ability of the service area to provide re-conditioning and special services to industrial products quickly, allows for faster shipments with fewer logistical problems. For our customers, this means lower costs.

Presently, the local industrial suppliers and service providers do not really provide an effective combination of supplying a cost-effective service strategy that yields the customer any real savings. The local distributors must also rely heavily on outsourcing for many of their services, which drives up the shipping costs to the customer dramatically. This business plan allows for low-cost implementation of Internet-based customer access, as well as direct marketing where needed. The plan also focuses on the needs of our clients, working within particular parameters that permits the business to respond to small and large clients equally efficiently.

5.1 Competitive Edge

Our competitive edge is our combined services, products, and the engineering skills required to properly interact with our customers and vendors. Our mix of inventory, industrial distribution, and the service capabilities to respond to the customer’s needs quickly will make JTB a respected vendor in the industry.

JTB’s competitive edge incorporates an overall approach to market our goods and services to many different industries. Our unique approach of developing our own branded sales and marketing applications will strengthen our ties to our distributor partners and direct clients. As computer networking is a strong area for me personally, I see the benefits to businesses that have solid network based sales and marketing tools in place. Our overall goal is to utilize our own applications and developed software to integrate our distributor partners services. When completed, JTB will be able to offer much larger clients an extremely large variety of products and services drawing from our distributor partners services and products.

All of the JTB divisions will benefit from the marketing, strategic ad placements and the direct marketing products offered by every other JTB division.

5.2 Marketing Strategy

Key Goals to our marketing strategy are as follows:

1. Develop a high profile sales environment, to bring our products to new and existing clients.
2. Develop new ways to market our products to potential clients via our branded applications and software.
3. Develop channel partnerships utilizing our own applications, drawing from these partners services and products to develop a large base of products and services to be offered to larger clients.
4. Develop and maintain a quality customer service and follow-up program for all of the JTB divisions.
5. Develop and utilize an ongoing automated marketing system to contact potential clients.
6. Carefully target marketing expenditures to maximize returns on the campaigns.

5.2.1 Marketing Programs

JTB’s marketing programs will directly target our intended customer base, utilizing many different avenues of  marketing. Initially, we will mass-market introductory offers and letters of introduction indexed against our customer database. Further secondary marketing will be through our Internet-based marketing systems. Additional follow-up work will be done by our staff.

JTB’s customer databases will overlap as they are similar. Every opportunity will be explored as each branch solicits new business, allowing for additional cost effective introduction of our other products and services. JTB will also develop Internet marketplaces where our products and services can be marketed as well, taking full advantage of the very low costs offered by developing and managing our own sites.

5.3 Sales Strategy

JTB’s sales strategy will rely on a straight-forward approach of developing the company’s long term sales goal of providing quality engineered products and services tailored to the customer. Our overall goal will be to pay close attention to details gathered regarding other vendors, and how they interact with the clients, constantly fine tuning our transaction process until it is almost effortless for the clients to do business with us.

Customer access to our sales staff is also critical, as we intend to offer phone, fax, and Internet-based inventory access and order processing. Further Internet access on our main site will let clients develop budgets and gather engineering information about the products we offer. This will be further enhanced by the custom software products of JTB Integrated Technologies, when developed. Our sales staff will have a tremendous source of information available to act as an advisor to our clients.

5.3.1 Sales Forecast

Our sales forecast table uses the following assumptions:

1. Auto Body Products average growth rate of 34% annually.
2. Auto Body Services average growth rate of  14% annually.
3. Commercial Drilling average growth rate of  22% annually.
4. Sporting Goods Products average growth rate of 19% annually.
5. Sporting Goods Services average growth rate of 17% annually.
6. Metalworking and Manufacturing growth rate of 18% annually.
7. Industry Analysis Compounded Annual Growth Rate of 7.02% 

The sales growth is controlled by several factors including:

1. The JTB’s ability to find quality service associates to train, and the length of the training process.
2. JTB’s ability to partner with other quality channel partners to handle over capacity situations.
3. Limitations in actual shop time available ie. constraints in available work area and personnel.

Many of the services provided are billable hourly at nearly $60 per hour for service work; in comparison, some products manufactured internally will need to be at a lower shop rate to provide for more competitive pricing to break into the different markets.

We will work to have many of the patented products manufactured externally, allowing our equipment to be utilized on more profitable work. Contingencies need to be in place to backup all products and services offered in the event of personnel issues, or equipment failure. Direct costs in the Sales Forecast table reflect these outsourced manufacturing costs, after initial design.

5.4 Strategic Alliances

JTB will develop and implement many strategic alliances to build its product and services offering. Alliances to manufacture our higher volume products will aid in keeping our internal costs in check while allowing unlimited growth potential by utilizing our channel partners’ production capabilities. Further development on this will be to purchase on a contractual basis to help lock in pricing on our product offering. Our distributor partners will allow us to offer additional products and services that we could not otherwise offer, also reducing our investments in additional personnel and equipment while maximizing profits.

5.5 Milestones

Secure Leasing, Banking, and Attorney Arrangements – Long term arrangements to secure the equipment financing, banking relations, and general and patent attorney needs.

Set up JTB’s Industrial Services Location – Prepare working area for incoming equipment, wiring, shipping and receiving areas, networked accounting systems, and develop a work flow methodology for the entire shop.

Complete the equipment selections and installation – Equipment will be selected from various machine tool dealers throughout the U.S. These machine tools will be inspected closely for quality, selecting the best possible pieces while working within our budget.

Manager selections and training begins – JTB will be looking for individuals who posess a good aptitude for engineering, preferably with a background in QC and Machining.

Contractor selection for outsourced manufacturing – Competing contract manufacturers will be providing sample parts and quotations for our products, in particular, contractors will be quoting on the Automotive and Sporting Goods lines as they have the highest potential volume and will require substantially more manufacturing capacity than we will have available.

JTB Industrial Services Marketing Campaign – Our marketing campaign will initially target the local Louisiana market with a letter to the key personnel within the target businesses. This introduction will be a combination letter marketing the JTB Industrial Sales Division as well; alternately, the Industrial Sales Divisions sales personnel will follow up on these accounts.

JTB outsourced product line development – Once the contractor selection is complete, we will place orders from the suppliers for components, packaging, and replacement parts.

JTB services development – JTB’s service area will begin servicing clients as soon as the core machine tools are in place; some specialty equipment may take several months to locate. During the first year, management will be processing most of the work.

JTB Service associate selection and training – Service Associates will be from a production background, familiar with manufacturing and general machining, training will be ongoing for at least 1 year. Management will work with these individuals on a one-on-one basis to accomplish this, and minimize training costs while still competing orders as needed.