Bell Equipment Bell Equipment (Bell) is one of the most impressive South African business success stories and was founded in 1954 in KwaZulu-Natal. Bell has a global footprint and 60 years of experience in the manufacture, distribution and support of material-handling equipment to a broad spectrum of industries. Its team of more than 3000 people worldwide puts integrity first in all they do and strive towards innovative customer solutions. Bell has a capacity to build 5000 machines a year and its principal manufacturing plant is in Richards Bay. The Bell ADT is their core product and globally renowned. Overview Bell believes in the philosophy that if its customers succeed, so will the group and it creates value by striving to give customers the best ownership experience. Their strategies and daily operations are focused on building long-term relationships that will, in turn, generate continuous machinery and aftermarket sales. Bell achieves this by listening to their customers' needs, developing relevant equipment and aftermarket solutions, manufacturing quality products and ensuring that stakeholders through their value creation process receive meaningful support to sustain their business. Bell Equipment has more than six decades of experience and continues to grow its intellectual property, product ranges and reputation as a provider of quality heavy equipment. It operates globally with machines in over 80 different countries. 26 Mission statement At Bell we have learnt that by valuing the contribution of every one of our people, we have been able to grow. That everyone on the team can and does make a difference. Our customers will receive quality in everything we do. The commitment to our customers distinguishes Bell Excellence. It is a continuous process of achieving improvements which result in equitable attainment of customer, suppliers, shareholders and employee expectations. All our activities are conducted in a spirit of fairness, honesty and integrity. Bell products fulfil haulage and materials handling needs across many industries. We design and manufacture products to fulfil the needs of our customers. Through listening, we are able to produce innovative equipment that matches their needs. Products With a common thread of providing solutions for customers who require material-handling machinery, the Bell business and products are clearly defined within four groupings: Global ADT specialist, material-handling distributor, agriculture and forestry solutions provider, and provider of aftermarket services. As one of the largest producers of articulated dump trucks (ADTs) and front-end loaders in the world, all of Bell's designs are wholly South African, patented and owned by the company. It is the second-largest ADT producer in the world, second only to Volvo. Complementing their Bell ADTs, Bell is one of South Africa's leading construction machinery suppliers and expanded its range of quality ancillary equipment to include wheeled loaders, telescopic handlers, skid steer loaders, graders and rough terrain forklifts. In terms of their agriculture range, Bell offers an extensive range of robust equipment such as haulage tractors, tri-wheeled loaders and slew loaders. In addition, Bell offers a range of aftermarket products and services. For example, the company offers fleet management support, providing satellite linkups with real-time information for users of their equipment. Every ADT leaving its factories will have Fleetm@tic available, a management-information tool that provides real-time information on cost per ton, fuel consumption, wear and tear and even tire pressure. Bell also offers maintenance contracts and extended warranties as well as services to do oil analysis to keep productivity levels high and avoid possible downtime. It also offers a range of Bell lubricants that are specially engineered oils and greases to keep the machine operating at peak performance. Bell ADT - at the forefront of technological innovation Launched in 1985, Bell Equipment's first ADT, the 25-ton model was a resounding success. This led to new models expanding the range. Lighter, faster models extended the ADT application to a greater number of challenging hauls. At the forefront of technological innovation, geared at improving productivity and safety while delivering the lowest cost per tonne of material moved, Bell ADTs offer keyless entry, Hill Stop, Bin Tip Prevention, Turbo Spin Protection, On Board Weighing and an Auto Park Application as standard features. In addition, 27 the ADT specialist is now achieving success with autonomous vehicle operation based on remote operation, external sensors that become the eyes and ears of the machine and site control software that manages the operation based on communication with the other two elements. Latest news During March 2022, Bell announced its intentions to move manufacturing out of South Africa due to volatility. In its financial year-end statement published on Monday (28 March), the group said it remains committed to South Africa as a local manufacturer and is confident of the opportunities available to it. However, it said that it is vital to its business that 'customers around the world trust in its ability to support them regardless of local, regional or global events'. "To safeguard the long term sustainability of the group, a growth plan is in place to ensure that Bell ADTs, as our higher volume products sold predominantly into northern hemisphere markets, are less exposed to the risks presented by the volatility of the South African landscape going forward. "Consequently, over time more aspects of ADT manufacturing will shift to the northern hemisphere. This will enable the group to better protect and grow our South African base and increasingly focus on manufacturing the group's growing range of lower volume products." Bell added that South Africa remains a tough environment with low business confidence, and said that the civil unrest in KwaZulu-Natal - which temporarily closed its Richards Bay factory -exacerbated supply chain challenges and logistics issues created by the pandemic and global supply chain issues. Questions 1 Discuss the different stakeholders who have an impact on Bell Equipment with specific reference to their expectations of the organisation. 2 Explain the purpose and desired outcomes of Bell Equipment. 3 Appraise the Bell Equipment mission statement to determine whether it meets the characteristics of a well-formulated mission and provide recommendations on how the mission statement can be improved. Hint: Use a table with the following headings for the evaluation: components, yeso, excerpts from the mission statement. 4 Use the information in the case study as well as additional research using the internet and identify: 3a) Two strengths 3b) Two weaknesses 3c) Two opportunities 3d) Two threats 5 Critically evaluate the following four strategic goals of Bell Equipment to determine whether they meet the requirements of well-formulated objectives. Once you have evaluated them, make suggestions as to how these objectives could be improved. Bell Equipment has the following strategic goals: (1) To strive for improved interaction with the important stakeholders on an ongoing basis to nurture strong relationships. (2) To increase the production of ADTs in 2024. (3) To grow the sales of Bell lubricants and engineered oils. (4) To increase the profitability of the business over the next year