a. The electronics industry and power tool manufacturing industry go hand in hand. The composite industry was conceived in the early 20th century and it has grown to become one of the most prominent industries globally.
(O) The modern society utilizes a wide array of electronic gadgets made in semi-automated or fully automated factories. The industry employs many electronic engineers and technicians to devise and develop these gadgets. These individuals are also expected to test, produce, set up and repair electrical and electronic equipment. b. Perhaps the largest segment of this industry is the consumer electronics section.
(T) The largest segment of this industry is the consumer electronics section.This constitutes all electronics meant for daily use, usually in construction, office productivity enhancement and to ease household chores. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) gave an estimate of the electronics’ sales at a value of more than U.S. $170 billion, a clear indicator of the industry’s immense contribution to the global economy. There are, however, issues currently affecting this industry, the principal one being management of electronic waste. (O) The need for environmental sustainability has prompted key industry players to adopt design techniques through innovativeness that foster manufacture of sustainable electronics. Company Overview
Stanley Black and Decker is one of the world’s most prominent consumer electronics manufacturers. The corporation, based in the state of Maryland in a town known as Towson, designs and sells electronic gadgets and products meant for home improvement. Just like other electronic manufacturers, Stanley Black and Decker is subject to enhancing environmental sustainability through innovativeness in design of its products, a feat the Company is striving to achieve through the application of technological advances (Stanley Black & Decker, 2011).
Technology Analysis
Assessment of technology in order to come up with new and sustainable electronic products or tools is one of the Company’ specialities. This Company strategy is aimed at finding leverage in the market by providing a wide array of high quality household tools that make people’s work easier. The technology innovation at Stanley Black & Decker, is driven by a team of diligent engineers, who extensively conduct research and use findings to develop technologies such as those discussed below.
Internal Environment
Strengths
(S) The Company recently developed a high-tech locking system, consisting of motorized locks. These locks can be activated remotely and can also be used to control the user’s automated systems and home security. This relatively new system also has a unique feature that allows users to customize codes, to arm the security system even when the door is locked and disarm it when the door is open. This allows homeowners with security concerns to confirm that they locked the doors, even from remote locations (Stanley Black & Decker, 2011).
(S) In the course of developing innovative and sustainable products, Black and Decker developed a thermal Leak detector. This gadget combines infrared (IR) and LED technology to facilitate detection of air leaks in a closed environment. Leaks depict different colors depending on the heat levels. For instance, hot leaks show a red color; cold ones a blue color and if there is no leak, then the color of the detector turns green. This enables users to determine areas around doors or windows that require being sealed (Stanley Black & Decker, 2011).
(S) To ease household chores for individuals, Stanley Black and Decker came up with a Steam Mop that incorporates Smart Select Technology. This implies that a user simply presses a button to indicate the type of floor to be wiped and the mop releases sufficient steam, by design. The mop has been shown to kill approximately 99.9 percent of germs using water only without any chemicals, making