Alderson Products Inc.
– Packaging Equipment Manufacturer
Executive Summary
The case revolves around Alderson Products Inc., a firm which manufactures packaging equipments exclusively for the soft drink industry. Established way back in 1951, the company emerged from a relatively small scale bottle capping machinery producer to a well known company manufacturing a variety of packaging equipments. In addition to this, Alderson Products Inc. also ventured into the used equipment industry and achieved huge success in this sector. However, the company, of late, had been facing challenges in this sector due to the emergence of various competitors which included both new companies as well as the existing bottlers who were adopting Alderson Products Inc.’s practice of reconditioning old bottles and reselling them. As a result, the company was thinking of getting out of this old equipments’ business and concentrating on growing the business for new machinery and equipment.
The case deals with the present scenario in which Alderson Products Inc. had recently been wholly acquired by National Beverage Corporation of Baltymore, Maryland. The case mainly focuses on the problem regarding control of the sales effort, which was brought into attention as a result of the acquisition. It brings into focus an important decision which Alderson Products Inc. had to take, i.e. whether to implement a sales control system or not.
Company History
Alderson Products Inc., located in Detroit, was established in 1951 by the Alderson brothers, Jim and Frank. The Alderson ...