1. Search online for information about the amusement industry. Identify three key success factors in the industry.
2. Visit Premier Rides’ Web site. Describe the company’s strengths and weaknesses. What opportunities and threats does the company face?
3. Which of the three strategies described in this chapter is Premier Rides pursuing? What advice can you offer Jim Seay about the company’s strategy?

In 1994, Peter Schnabel left his post at Intamin AG, a Swiss company that specializes in making roller coasters, to start a competing company, Premier Rides. Schnabel convinced
Jim Seay, the executive in charge of developing new rides for amusement park operator Six Flags, to join the fledgling company. Seay, now the sole owner and president of Premier Rides, manages the busiest designer of steel roller coasters in the United States, a Millersville, Maryland-based company that has installed more than 30 major theme park attractions, including Mr. Freeze at Six Flags Over Texas, Speed at the NASCAR Café in Las Vegas, and Revenge of the Mummy at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. A constant challenge is developing new, ever-edgier rides that push the limits of engineering while maintaining safety as a top priority.