BACKGROUND
Triumph Motorcycles is a privately-owned British company and that their motorcycles are designed, developed and built at their factory, one of the most technologically advanced plants in the world, which is located in Hinckley, in the heart of Great Britain. Thus, Triumph has always had its own distinctive character and a history of creating bikes that become design classics and did not lost that touch – the inspiration and engineering passion that birthed the iconic Bonneville of the 60′s has today created bikes like the stunning Rocket III and the unmistakable Speed Triple. (Andrews et el. 2001) The heart of the company’s philosophy is a firm commitment to developing truly unique motorcycles that are distinctive in looks, design, and performance. Triumph’s aim is to craft bikes that deliver a great riding experience through the fusion of a well-balanced, easy to handle chassis and strong, flexible engines. The result is an inspiring range of motorcycles delivering intelligent, usable performance and the company currently employs 980 personnel worldwide and has offices in many major countries like the UK, America, France, Japan and Benelux. (Andrews et el. 2001)
Furthermore, it was the obvious choice back then. Britain was the biggest motorbike maker in the world and led the motorcycling world in performance and engineering innovation with such bygone makers as BSA, Matchless and Vincent, to name just a few. Thus, it was established that the Triumph has captured approximately 75 per cent of the ‘Hollywood’ market, one of few US markets where Triumph is the market leader. It is true that the credit for Triumph’s rebirth goes to John Bloor, a builder who bought the company’s remains for about 0,000. (Brown 2002) The product has been completely revamped. New engines were crucial. Most have a distinctive three-cylinder layout, which makes them more powerful than the two-cylinder bikes made in Europe and the United States, and more relaxing than the high-revving four-cylinder bikes made in Japan. Bloor was betting on the nostalgic power of the Triumph brand. The original Triumphs offered lighter weight and better handling than Harley’s machines, and sales of the British bikes were stronger in the United States than they were in their home market. The bikes are also part of US folklore. Despite what flag waving Harley guys in bars may mistakenly claim, Steve McQueen in The Great Escape and Marlon Brando in The Wild One rode Triumphs. (Brown 2002)
Thus, Bloor’s decision to keep a three-cylinder engine from the original lineup turned out to be a great marketing move, and it has helped the company stand out from the crowd. Most other bikes use two-or four-cylinder engines. Triumph’s soulful three-cylinder has won a place in the hearts of many bikers, who tend to be a discriminating bunch when it comes to how an engine feels and delivers power on the road. Three-cylinder engines are also perfect for the middle-aged men who are getting back into bikes. (Brown 2002)
ENVIRONMENTAL SCAN
Henceforth, Triumph’s motorcycles are in the middleweight and heavyweight category only, competing mainly with companies such as Harley-Davidson, Ducati, BMW and of course the main Japanese motorcycle manufacturers. Motorcycles were also classified by types of use, generally separated into four groups: standard, which emphasized simplicity and cost; performance, which focused on racing and speed; touring, which emphasised comfort and amenities for long-distance travel and custom, which featured styling and individual owner customization. The standard models tended to have the smaller engines, while the performance motorcycles often had a better engine capacity as well as having a comfortable seating position and their engines ranged from middleweight to super heavyweight types.
Through Triumph’s enhanced segmentation process as there were appropriate product segments in the market as detailed below.
Product segments in the motorcycle market
Motorcycles were often classified by engine capacity in three categories follows: (Brown 2002)
Ø lightweight (50 cc-250 cc)
Ø middleweight (251 cc-650 cc)
Ø heavyweight (651 cc and up)
Aside, big-bike sales have doubled in Britain over the past five years, and the buyers are no longer youngsters needing cheap wheels but older people with the money to spend on expensive toys. Many of these born-again bikers have not touched a motorbike since their teens, and find Japanese offerings just a bit too fast and flash for their taste. Triumph’s sales have risen from 2,000 in 1991 to 33,000 in 2002, tempting thoughts of the old Triumph’s peak of 50,000 in the late 1960s. Most buyers now are aged between 35 and 55. US sales have soared since in 2001 Triumph introduced a retro-styled bike, called the Bonneville, and are now rising at an annual rate of 40 percent. (Brown 2002)
The Bonneville is about 85 per cent faithful to the 650 cc Bonneville of yore, which was the machine to ride in the 1960s if you were not a Harley man. Further introduction of a Harley-style cruiser bike is being considered by the Triumph management team. Taking marketing cues from Harley-Davidson, Triumph also offers a line of clothing and accessories. Growth should be consistent. Sales are rising by 15 percent a year, putting Triumph within sight of European rivals such as BMW and Ducati. Bruno Tagliaferri, Triumph’s Marketing Manager, reckons there is plenty of scope for growth in the United States, where 250,000 big bikes are sold each year. (Brown 2002) Although they did not know it, this was to be their best year. Two decades later and Japanese manufacturers are nowhere near as dominant. While they still loom large on the global motorbike market, 1981′s record domestic production has declined to just 2.4 million. This serves as a stark reminder of a painful trend for all types of Japanese manufacturers as their domestic costs have risen, their markets have matured and their rivals have sharpened their game.
In 2001 two Japanese manufacturers. Suzuki and Kawasaki joined forces to jointly produce and develop new bikes, marking the end of the ‘big four’ in Japan, where they ruled alongside much bigger rivals Honda and Yamaha. In Europe, for example, Japan’s market share has fallen from 80 per cent to 50 per cent over five years, although numbers have risen. And in the vital US market its share has fallen by 10 percent over the past decade. (Church and Austin 1979) The rise and rise of the Japanese motorbike manufacturers owed as much to luck as to design. Manufacturers were servicing a huge domestic market for many years which generated the profits that financed the export drive. It also gave the Japanese a finely honed design and production machine that churned out faster, more reliable and better-looking bikes – and did so every year. The weak yen also made Japanese exports intensely competitive. In addition, they were up against severely weakened domestic manufacturers in the West. Triumph, BSA and Norton in the United Kingdom, for example, were spent forces, and the country was in the middle of labor disputes that generated a lazy attitude towards design and technology, producing machines that looked old fashioned in comparison to their Japanese rivals. (Church and Austin 1979)
Furthermore, the Japanese manufacturers, perhaps complacent in their success, failed to spot a key change in the motorbike buying world. They were too obsessed with technology and assembly quality and did not recognize that motorbikes had become consumer goods which had a brand value. Harley-Davidson led the way here with branded goods ranging from desk clocks to women’s thongs, feeding hugely into profits. Japanese manufacturers based their bikes on racing models. Undoubtedly Japanese bikes are lighter and faster, but it takes a lot of skill to ride them. Western manufacturers have been designing for people who like to ride normal bikes in a normal environment. As Japan’s rivals have caught up with the technology they have also managed to inject something extra. Ducati conveys on two wheels the kind of image its Italian counterpart, Ferrari, has on four. Triumph has capitalized on its Britishness and the appeal of the marque’s previous incarnation with such models as the Bonneville. (Church and Austin 1979) Harley-Davidson has built up an appeal for weekend rebels with ,000-plus salaries as Honda remains the largest manufacturer of motorbikes in the world and the alliance between Suzuki and Kawasaki has more to do with these markets than the competition in the super bike league. It allows them to pare costs considerably by jointly procuring parts and joining forces on product design, development and production. (Church and Austin 1979)
SPECIFIED SWOT ANALYSIS (Triumph Motorcycle Analysis from the above environment scan key points)
Strengths
Ø Product Features/Product Cost of Motorcycle Bikes – Great Products
Ø Specialization of High Quality Parts and Excellent Relations in the market
Ø Societal benefits for increased motorcycle usage and safety rules – visible management process and control
Ø First mover advantage of better rivals
Weaknesses
Ø Lack of product valuing and independent resources
Ø Minimal customer supervision of products
Ø Product is difficult to sell without showing visual ways of the motorcycle aspects
Ø Capacity is too vague at times
Ø Tendency to high up on product prices – best seller bikes
Opportunities
Ø Outsourcing manufacturing
Ø Excellent customer relations and dealership strategies
Ø Partnerships with established manufacturers within the business
Ø Diversification of Products
Ø New markets – easy handling of products sold for individual buyers
Ø Relevant supply chain process
Ø Stable sales
Threats
Ø Fierce and Tight Competition – Close Rivals
Ø Loss of control through partnership as present
Ø Limited market potential (aftermarket)
Ø Possibility of short product lifecycle
MARKET TARGETING
The Triumph Group continued its strong growth trajectory in the 2005 financial year that ended on June 30th 2005. The group turnover rose by 42 percent from GBP 125 million (USD 225m) to GBP 177 million (USD 318m). The operating profit, before interest and tax, rose from GBP 1.5 million (USD 2.7m) to GBP 10.7 million (USD 19.2m) and representing a growth of 29% compared to the previous year’s sales of 24,500 units. (Hackman and Wageman 1995) The growth of Triumph Motorcycles is the result of an increase in sales across various Triumph’s markets since, their growth does not stem from an entry into any new, major markets. Triumph’s popularity with customers is growing across the board and it is satisfactory to see that the company’s markets have performed well above the levels of the previous year. (Hackman and Wageman 1995) Moreover, the recent sales growth shows that Triumph focuses on distinctively designed motorcycles with a lot of character has been very successful and this is where our focus will continue in the future. In many ways the Daytona Triple epitomises the strategy change that has taken place in our sport range, where we now focus on distinctively designed three-cylinder bikes. The first three-cylinder middleweight, the Daytona Triple stands apart immediately with its exceptional attention to detail and high quality finish. (Hackman and Wageman 1995)
The Scrambler is both a modern classic and a fun lifestyle machine that will appeal to young and old. We have seen more and more people watch on to the retro-wave and Triumph is the only manufacturer that could build this bike The Rocket III Classic is a derivative of the Rocket III, which has proven to be the most important Triumph motorcycle ever built. In addition, the classic derivative shares the same engine and chassis as the standard model but has a more comfortable riding position and a look which is more in tune with the classic cruiser market. (Hackman and Wageman 1995) The three models represent a significant strengthening of each of the ‘families’ in Triumph’s product range; Urban Sports, Modern Classics and Cruisers. All three models are available in dealers from early next year. Triumph has registered unit sales growth during the first four months of the current financial year of approximately 23 percent and the majority of the production volume for this financial year is already pre-sold as this implies a good position to be in, we remain focused on sustainable growth and the primary objectives are to grow value for their customers and our dealers and further strengthen the brand. (Hackman and Wageman 1995)
There were innovative new products that set the British manufacturer apart from the competition have driven Triumph’s growth in recent years. With groundbreaking models such as the 2,300cc Rocket III cruiser, the stylish Sprint ST sports tourer and the new Daytona 675 sport bike, Triumph offers consumers a broader product line than any other European road bike manufacturer. Whipp and Clark 1986) Triumph’s success in North America mirrors that of Triumph’s other key markets globally. During 2005 Triumph announced a 42 percent increase in turnover in the 2005 financial year. Group turnover rose by 42 percent from GBP 125 million (USD 225m) to GBP 177 million (USD 318m). The operating profit, before interest and tax, rose from GBP 1.5 million (USD 2.7m) to GBP 10.7 million (USD 19.2m). (Whipp and Clark 1986) Thus, within the year review, unit sales of Triumph motorcycles rose to 31,600, representing a growth of 29 percent compared to the previous year’s sales of 24,500 units. Triumph crushed its competition in the customer satisfaction stakes for used bikes, with 61 percent stating their satisfaction with the brand. Displaying obvious dominance within this category, all competition trailed at least 10 percent behind, leaving Triumph as the clear-cut winner. The management of the company were delighted that Triumph has been so successful in so many of the survey’s categories and with the new models the company have coming over the next 12 months as confident that there will be in the running again every year as desired. Whipp and Clark 1986)
In industrialised wealthy economies such as Japan, the United States and Europe motorcycles were often purchased for recreation in addition to basic transport. In developing economies and others with low income per capita, motorcycles or smaller two-wheelers were purchased primarily for basic transport, and the market was distinctly different. Historically large touring bikes, cruisers and racers sold almost exclusively in the wealthy economies while motorcycles with small engine displacement and mopeds made up the vast majority of sales in the developing nations. (Womack, Jones and Roos 1990) Decreasing trends in the overall market in some nations were due in large part to replacement of two-wheeled vehicles by automobiles as the countries became more affluent. Although, Triumph sells about 15 per cent of the Harley-Davidson sales volume as being so small makes it hard to develop new bikes or to buy good components at a decent price. To maintain quality Triumph makes about a third of its components in-house, and imports many from Japan. As a consequence the strategy is set for increasing sale and market share in the area of large motorcycles. (Womack, Jones and Roos 1990)
MARKET POSITIONING
A range of machines using famous model names from the past arrived in 1988. Brand new 750 cc and 900 cc triples and 1000 cc and 1200 cc fours all using a modular design (to keep production costs low) were built and proved successful. As sales built, big fours were phased out of the lineup – Triumph’s heritage is tied to parallel twins and triples, and these are the marketing and development focus of Triumph’s marketing strategy today. Triumph is now carving out a niche in the motorcycle market based on nostalgic looking engine technologies and design – its core customers are the “40something” males returning to their youth. The 790 and 865 cc iterations of the Bonneville and Thruxton look like slightly revised versions of their 1960s counterparts so although looking and sounding original, internally they include modern valves and counter balance shafts and there was an engine layout other manufacturers have mostly abandoned in the process. (Womack, Jones and Roos 1990)
Model range and its position
Triumph is building several models based on the Bonneville engine. The base Bonneville comes with 790 cc parallel twin. The Bonneville Black is a version with a blacked-out engine that is the least expensive model in Triumph’s lineup. The Bonneville T100 is an upscale version of the basic Bonneville, with an 865 cc parallel twin engine, two-tone paint schemes and a tachometer. (Womack, Jones and Roos 1990) The Thruxton uses the 865 cc engine with 2 mm larger carburetors and revised suspension for sharper handling. It features clip-on handlebars and rearset footrests. (Womack, Jones and Roos 1990) It was designed to recreate the look of cafe racers from the 1960s. The Scrambler is another nod to the past, with its raised exhaust and knobby tires that recall the desert racers of the 1960s. It also uses the 865 cc engine. There are two cruisers in Triumph’s lineup based on the Bonneville engine. (Womack, Jones and Roos 1990) The America is a straight-ahead custom with the 790 cc parallel-twin engine, forward-mounted foot controls, pulled-back handlebars and a low, dished-out seat. The Speedmaster uses the same formula as the America, but with the 865 cc engine and more sporting suspension and looks to make a sport cruiser. Triumph has learned not to compete head to head with Japanese manufacturers in the sportbike world, with the flagship Daytona 955 marketed as a “GT” sportsbike rather than a challenger to Yamaha. (Womack, Jones and Roos 1990)
In the hugely competitive 600 cc sportbike category, the four-cylinder Triumph Daytona 600, and before that, the Triumph TT, have lagged in performance compared to offerings from the Japanese makers. A bump to 650 cc for the smaller Daytona illustrated Triumph’s intention to not compete on the racetrack, where in many cases, displacement is limited to 600 cc, but on the street, where mid-range torque is often more important. (Wood 1988) For 2006 model, Triumph almost completely abandoned the four-cylinder engine as the 600 cc class sportbike offering from Triumph is the Daytona 675, which uses an inline-triple engine displacing 675 cc, further differentiating it from typical motorcycles in this class. Basically, a concrete change is that all new bikes going forward will have either the parallel twin or the iconic triple engine, something that’s unique for Triumph in the motorcycle market. (Wood 1988) Since, Triumph is about individuality and riding something that not everyone else has in working hard to define Triumph’s identity and the success of our latest models is evidence that the consumers like what we have done. In several markets, the demand has outstripped the supply of the new models and there are long waiting lists if people want to get their hands on models like the Speed Triple and the Sprint ST. Triumph has also worked hard to create a unique retail experience that reflects the Triumph brand, including the launch of a new corporate store design. (Wood 1988)
Motorcycle is a vital means of transport in Indonesia, especially for middle income people. Sales have leapfrogged from year to year since 2000 after plunging in 1998. The motorcycle industry has recovered fast from the 1997/1998 crisis as indicated by the leapfrogging increase in sales form year to year. In 2003, sales shot up again by 22% to 2.81 million from 2.29 million units in 2002. (Wood 1988) In the first seven months of 2004 sales totaled 2.16 million. The fast growth of the motorcycle industry is attributable partly to support from multifinance companies facilitating purchases with credit. Motorcycles are more convenient means of transport in large cities laden with traffic jams as around 85 percent of motorcycle purchases are made with credits offered by multi finance companies. As every motorcycle leasing companies concentrate on offering credit for the purchase of local products of motorcycles sold on the domestic market. Sales of the produced motorcycles are predicted to hit the level of 5 million units since, the domestic market is still highly potential; and local products are predicted to continue to dominate the market despite growing threat from foreign products notably from China as the producers of motorcycles rely largely on domestic market to dispose of their production as affected by competition among their own sole agents. (Wood 1988)
IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
Triumph solves its free form surfacing problems; implements latest design and production techniques Triumph found that it was difficult and time-consuming to create free form surfaces in a solid modeling application. So it started searching for a more automated method to develop efficient, aesthetically pleasing, production quality surfaces. Delivering high-quality products
Triumph has to make sure it has the latest design and production techniques to consistently deliver high-quality products in a limited time frame. Triumph had been developing entire motorcycles in its solid modeling CAD system. However, the company soon found that it was difficult and time-consuming to create free form surfaces in a solid modeling application. So Triumph turned to UGS’ authorized United Kingdom distributor in order to develop Class A surfaces. In the surfacing world at Triumph, aesthetic, free form shapes frequently begin with a concept design. Prior to surface development, a reflectance plot is applied to the electronic data to quickly determine the desired features and lay out the surface patch network. Using this network, the exterior skin is created.
Utilizing best-in-class inspection tools
To develop the solid model for final production, the completed surfaces are seamlessly brought into Triumph’s resident CAD system. Subsequently, Triumph used the industrial design and styling capabilities of Imageware to confirm first-article and routine inspections of prototype and production parts. Triumph is able to efficiently model the desired shapes and features. Then it checks the manufactured product to ensure it meets the stringent design specifications in its CAD database. As the NX’s inspection capabilities allow Triumph to compare styled parts that are either manufactured within a Triumph facility or by authorized suppliers throughout the world. Design engineers can rapidly capture 3D representations of parts and tooling using a Faro arm equipped with a 3D laser scanner. The scanned, physical data is then compared to the master model. The colored contour plot capabilities within NX help Triumph to completely evaluate tolerance deviations in surfaces and critical details and once the inspection analysis is captured, the electronic report can be shared with design and manufacturing engineers, management, mold makers and suppliers. Also, Triumph’s design engineers develop production quality surfaces in significantly less time than with traditional modelers.
Realizing a significant cycle time advantage
With improved intra- and intercompany communications and faster delivery of production quality surfaces, there was the advanced surfacing and inspection analysis capabilities reduced the overall design process by 50 percent. After several successful projects, Triumph elected to bring the technology in-house. Today, the Triumph design team develops its own Class A surfaces for motorcycle parts such as gas tanks, seats, body side panels, engine ports and grab rails.
A dynamic environment
Therefore, the NX’s dynamic editing tools provide a real-time environment in which curvature continuous, production quality surfaces can be perfected so, Triumph motorcycle was able to go through more design iterations in a much lesser time duration. The situation had allowed Triumph to capture the desired aesthetic style of their completed as well as final product surfaces while meeting the product’s functional and manufacturing specifications respectively.
In overall way, Triumph Motorcycles Ltd. involved their business in lieu of the following key points that keeps the company in tough shape as always as possible:
Issues
Ø Consistently deliver high-quality products
Ø Verify that parts meet stringent design criteria
Ø Improve overall product development time frame
Approach
Ø Utilize high-quality free form surface modeling
Ø Implement a completely automated digital design environment
Ø Leverage integrated product and tooling inspection processes
Results
Ø Production quality surfaces developed in significantly less time
Ø Communications streamlined with automated inspection processes and reports
Ø Overall time for design process reduced 50 percent
Source: Chris Chatburn, Design Engineer Triumph Motorcycles, Ltd. http://www.triumph.co.uk/
The useful significance was determined through the use of prevailing industrial standards, materials safety data sheets, quantitative scales of usage and other criteria. Debates on the internationalization of business, on the transfer of technology, knowledge and systems, and the effectiveness of mergers and joint ventures have particular relevance to the past and current restructuring of the global car industry. They were able to influence people understanding of difficult relationship which had existed involving joint design, parts sourcing and manufacturing projects. As the industry enters a period of overcapacity, the demand for distinctive vehicles will increase, so long as each competitor can contain costs. Despite having impressive core capabilities and a strong position in its home market, it needed new avenues overseas to sustain its rate of growth. In the North American market, its compact products and established reputation for motorcycles gave it an immediate advantage over other Japanese manufacturers as Triumph Motorcycles could be in a strong position to rule over their vital competitors, having detailed knowledge of a company versed in the production of its own models. Furthermore, Triumph’s strategy was to take on the motorcycle groups within quality makers, it did not need the capacity of their successful model range to challenge the mass-production giants of highly restrictive import controls.
REFERENCES
Andrews R.N.L., et el. 2001, ‘Environmental Management Systems: History, Theory, and Implementation Research’, in C. Coglianese and J. Nash (eds.), Regulating From the Inside: Can Environmental Management Systems Achieve Policy Goals? (Washington, DC: Resources for the Future Press).
Brown SF 2002, Case Study: Triumph Motorcycles Ltd. – ‘Rising form the ashes in the international motorcycle business’ pp. 48–51
Chatburn C Design Engineer Triumph Motorcycles, Ltd.
http://www.triumph.co.uk/
Church R and Austin H 1979, ‘The British Motor Car Industry to 1941’ London
Hackman JR and Wageman R 1995, ‘Total Quality Management: Empirical, Conceptual and Practical Issues’, Administrative Science Quarterly 40: 309-42
Hamel G 1991, ‘Competition for Competence and Inter-Partner Learning within International Strategic Alliances’, Strategic Management Journal, Vol.12 Special Edition, pp.83-103.
Triumph Motorcycles Ltd. Website
http://www.triumph.co.uk/
Whipp R and Clark P 1986, ‘Innovation in the Auto Industry’ London
Wood J 1988, ‘Wheels of Misfortune: The Rise and Fall of the British Motor Industry’ London
Womack J Jones J and Roos D 1990, ‘The Machine that Changed the World’ London, p. 169.
Yin RK 1994, Case Study Research: Design and Methods (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2nd edn).
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