Lecture Handout SCATERBOYS - AN INTRODUCTION This handout contains a set of notes provided to support the above named lecture and should be considered along with any accompanying presentation slides and referenced publications. SCATERBOYS - AN INTRODUCTION Learning Outcomes: Describe the ScaterBoys organisation Key Words: Synopsis: Review the ScaterBoys Case To enable holistic and deeper thinking whilst enabling management theory to be put into practice we will adopt a single case running through the module. A BRIEF HISTORY OF SKATEBOARDING Dreamed up by skaters who wanted to surf the streets, Skateboarding was invented in the 1950s in California. Initially boards were home produced, as there were no manufactures of boards until the early 1960s. Skateboarding gained credibility in the 1990s, as ESPN hosted the first ever X games (televised across the world). Skateboarding is an action sport which involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard. Skateboarding can also be considered a recreational activity or a method of transportation. A skateboard is a small piece of wood in the shape of a surfboard with four wheels attached to it. A lone person rides the skateboard, controlling the movement with their feet. While some use skateboards as transportation over short distances, most are used to perform stunts. SKATEBOARD HARDWARE See Fig 1 The basic elements of the skateboard include the board or deck, the wheels, and the trucks, which connect the wheels to the board, and allow the board to turn. Each skateboard wheel is mounted on its axle via two bearings. Mounting hardware, used to attach the trucks to the board, is a set of eight bolts, usually an Allen or Phillips
head, and corresponding locknuts. Risers are used to increase the space between the truck and the deck. This allows the truck to twist further without causing wheel bite (when the wheel touches the deck and stops spinning). In addition, grip tape (a sheet paper or fabric with adhesive on one side and a surface similar to fine sand paper on the other) may be applied to the top surface of a board to allow the rider's feet to grip the surface and help the skater stay on the board while undertaking tricks. Skateboards have been customised in many ways using colour, different materials, sizes, shapes and graphics. SKATEBOARD INDUSTRY Some writers claim that Skateboarding is one of the fastest growing sports not only in America but worldwide. Participants in the sport have been growing exponentially, already surpassing the popularity of several more traditional sports. One of the reasons skateboarding has become so popular (over 15 Million in the US) is that it has such a universal and open appeal. Skateboarding has been a significant business since the late 1970s. Since then skating, and the board sports industry, has been commercially driven. The skateboarding industry has evolved into a multibillion dollar business. It is thought that the hard goods (boards, wheels and trucks) account for a much smaller amount of sales than the softer goods such as clothing, hats and shoes. Consequently, not all consumers are skaters. The skate industry posted U.S. retail sales of approximately $7 billion in 2008 (around $6.2B in 2010) according to the Surf Industry Manufacturers Association (SIMA). The industry is typically made up of manufacturers who create the parts and assemblers who put them together to form a wide variety of products. Downstream, skateboards are typically purchased from specialist shops and the Internet. SKATEBOARD MANUFACTURE Skateboards were first manufactured in the late 1950s. Interest was renewed in the early 1970 s with the introduction of polyurethane wheels, (boards became easier to control and more stunts were possible). Also in the 1970s, skateparks were introduced. Skateparks were specially designed places that catered to skateboarders. They had obstacle courses, pools and pipes (large, circular type) to challenge skateboard riders. With skateparks also came more competition, recognition, and sponsorship. RAW MATERIALS: Most skateboard decks are made of glue and wood (usually maple), but some are made of composites, fiberglass and other artificial materials. They are usually decorated by screen printing. Skateboard trucks are usually made of aluminium or other metal. Wheels are made of polyurethane. While some lowend skateboards are assembled by manufacturers, most components are sold
separately to consumers who put them together on their own. THE MANUFACTURING PROCESS See Fig 2 DECK: A piece of maple wood undergoes a treatment that allows it to be peeled into veneers (thin sheets of wood) that are then delivered to the deck factory. Each veneer is then put into a glue machine which evenly coats each veneer with wood glue. Each skateboard is made of several layers of veneer. Stacks are put into a mould inside a hydraulic press. The mould creates the nose, concave, and tail of each skateboard. The resulting laminate sits in the press for anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours. The longer the time, the more naturally the wood and glue set. After the laminates are removed from the press, eight holes for the truck mount are drilled. A worker called the shaper takes the newly drilled board and, with a previously made template, hand shapes each deck with a band saw. The deck is hand sanded and coated with a paint or sealant. After the deck is dry, a decorative design may be added by screen printing. The decks are then dried and readied for shipment. TRUCKS: First a master truck pattern is hand tooled and used to construct a mould for making the actual truck. Aluminium is heated to over 700 C in a furnace, reducing it to a liquid. This liquid aluminium is poured into the mould. The mould has the truck's axles in place before the aluminium is poured in. The mould is allowed to cool, then broken by hand and the parts removed. These pieces include the kingpin knob, pivot cup, baseplate, and riser pad. Using machines, a worker heat treats each part. The parts are then grinded, polished, and drilled. Finally, each truck is handassembled with kingpins, brushings, grommets, washers, and nuts and prepared for shipment. WHEELS: polyurethane is heated to create a liquid. If the wheels are to be coloured, a pigment is added and the resulting mixture is poured into aluminium moulds and allowed to harden into a solid. The wheel is removed by hand and cured on trays. Many wheels are made at the same time on a conveyor system (batch or continuous production process). The resulting wheel slug is cut to shape by hand on a lathe. With a blade, the sidewalls (also known as the radius) and tread (riding surface) are cut into the wheel. The wheel may be decorated, in a semi automated sub process next. The wheels are then packaged for shipment. ASSEMBLING THE SKATEBOARD: After purchasing/manufacturing the three separate components, the consumer or manufacturer must put them together. Once assembled, grip tape is needed to provide traction on the board. Grip tape comes in a large rectangular sheet, bigger than the actual deck. It is smoothed over by hand to
get rid of any air bubbles. Using a file, the edge of the board under the grip tape is defined. With a blade or scissors, the extra parts of the grip tape are removed. With an awl or another sharp, pointed object, the eight truck holes are exposed through the grip tape, and the mounting bolts are placed. The truck is then installed over the bolts and tightened with the locknuts. One set of bearings and a spacer are placed on each of the four truck axles. The wheel is then attached, flush with the bearings and spacer. The other set of bearings is put in the wheel. The wheels are secured with washers and a lugnut. The skateboard is now ready to be ridden. QUALITY CONTROL: When the components are purchased separately, the consumer must follow all instructions for their own safety. All screws must be tightly secured so that they will continue to hold the trucks in place while stunts are performed. Manufacturers continually check the finished boards to see that they are secure and meet safety requirements. STARTING YOUR OWN SKATEBOARD SHOP There are many specialised skateboard shops worldwide thousands in the US. There are also numerous board, truck and wheel products created by manufactures. Diversified shops may also sell longboards (a longer variant of a skateboard. It is commonly used for cruising, downhill racing, slalom racing, sliding, and/or transport) and scooters. Ideally, the shop should be in a good location. An ideal site would be near a skate park or an area where skaters happen to visit often. Shops cater for different needs from new to professional skaters. New skaters may find skateboards on the lower price range more attractive until they gain additional experience. While experienced skaters may value higher quality skateboards that are more expensive. Experienced skaters are more likely to purchase parts and assemble boards by themselves whilst the novice will seek out a ready assembled board. Additional products can include T shirts, hats, bags, footwear, and first aid kits. Sources: http://www.madehow.com/volume 6/Skateboard.html ScaterBoys is an example of a small manufacturing company within the skateboarding industry. ScaterBoys offer skateboards as their primary product. They also provide skateboarding accessories and clothing. The company was established as a reseller but has more recently pursued growth through vertical integration and has taken to manufacturing/ assembling its own products using procured parts. The company has a variety of trading goods (purchased in their final form from UK and global suppliers who then resell the products directly to consumers (in direct) and directly to consumers (worldwide). The company is located in an Industrial Warehouse built in 1990. In Year 1: there are 21 employees. The company is run by the owner (MD) assisted by an office manager and clerk; and five managers/ team leaders (Plant/ production, Sales, Accounts, Warehouse and Procurement/
purchasing). There is a team of five employees responsible for making Skateboard products; a team of three employees are responsible for sales and customer service; two clerks assist the accounts manager (one of whom is part time); there are three warehouse employees (one focuses more on inbound logistics and stock control and the withdrawal of stock/ parts for the production team) the other two focus on picking, packaging and shipping goods outbound. Cleaning services and company accounts are contracted out. WAREHOUSE LAYOUT See Fig 3 BUSINESS PROCESSES: The core business processes include fulfilment, procurement and production. FULFILMENT: A customer order is received by email, fax, tele or post by the sales team who enter details into the ScaterBoys system to create an internal sales order. The warehouse pick, pack and ship (using an external courier) the goods. If the customer is a business then an invoice is generated with 28 day terms. Consumers pay at the time of placing an order (typically by credit card). Accounts process the payment of invoices (receivables) as they arrive. PROCUREMENT: When inventory is running low or a customer orders goods not in stock, procurement place orders with suppliers. Goods are then received in bound at the warehouse who then store the goods and update systems accordingly. Accounts will receive the invoice from suppliers and will then pay the supplier. PRODUCTION: The production manager plans operations based on either a supply (make to stock) or customer led approach; though they tend to make to order. Upon the issuance of a planned order, the warehouse withdraws the parts needed by the production team to make the Skateboards. The boards are assembled and then placed into the inventory. INFORMATION SYSTEMS: Until recently the company had utilised several standalone computers. A SAGE application was used to manage orders and accounts, a custom built access database managed the inventory. Spreadsheet packages were used to manage suppliers and products. This was, however, far from satisfactory with employees having to go from computer to computer to swap files and printout forms to instigate work etc. In some cases data had to be printed from one system and re entered into another. As a result of a number of problems, growth and a desire to be more efficient, the company recently procured a new integrated and networked system to manage all operational and primary aspects of the company. This new system eliminated the
problem of having to re enter data and have multiple versions on different computers. Everyone now had access to the same information but actions are restricted by a user set of privileges. REVENUES: In the first year that you encounter the company they record annual revenues of 3M. Revenues grow in the second year. see www.scaterboys.com Case Study reproduced with permission Dr Phil Kelly 2013 (adapted from Magal, S. and Word, J. (2009), 'Essentials of Business Processes and Information Systems', Wiley)
ACTIVITY: 1 Activity duration (mins): 30 AN INTRODUCTION TO SCATERBOYS Briefing Discuss the case
Figures FIGURE: 1 SKATEBOARD HARDWARE
FIGURE: 2 THE MANUFACTURING PROCESS
FIGURE: 3 WAREHOUSE LAYOUT