Brimore Engineering (BE) is a small engineering company located in the North East of

England. It is a private limited company which has been owned by the Brimore family since

1987.

The current Board of Directors has five directors Three of these directors are sons of the

original founder of the company, Bob Brimore. Although Bob is no longer on the Board and

(takes no active role in the management of BE, he still retains 30% of the ordinary shares

in the business. His three sons each have a 15% shareholding) with the remaining 25%

(owhed by two noh-family directors who invested 1 million in the business in 2014 when

the business had suffered its third consecutive year of making a loss. The capital provided

by these two investors was used to invest in the latest production technology which

reduced the size of the workforce by 20% and by 2014, BE was once again a profitable

business.

However, although the company has remained profitable since 2016 there is some concern

(among the current directors about financial performance of Brimore in more recent years.

Brimore produces parts such as catalytic converters, brake drums and drive shafts which

are used in the car industry. The Nissan car factory in Sunderland is Brimore's largest

customer, accounting for 42% of all of its revenue. The market is very competitive.

At a recent Board meeting the Marketing Director highlighted the fall in sales of component

(X7345 which has, up until recently, been one of Brimore's most profitable products. "We

really need to review our product mix and work on a new marketing strategy to increase

sales and reverse the recent downward trend in profits", she told the other members of the Board.

Prepare a report for Brimore's Board of Directors which:

Analyses the financial data provided in Table 1 and evaluates its usefulness to the

Directors of Brimore Ltd.

Describes how Brimore could undertake an analysis of its product portfolio.

Evaluates the methods of promotion Brimore's senior management could use to

increase sales of its products to the car industry.