Develop a Balanced Score Card.

Leiterplatten AG

This company has been growing fast between 1995 and 2010. The strategy to focus entirely on conductor plates for mobile telecom services was a complete success. The main plant in an Austrian provincial city had to be expanded several times and has reached its capacity limits in 2003. In 2004, from bankruptcy assets of German company, around 350 km from the main plant, another production facility was bought. It began operations in mid-2005 despite big start-up problems. It worked to full capacity - compared to the technical possibilities of the main plant - not earlier that in 2006.

Also in 2006 another plant in Hungary (250 km off the main plant) was established, fitted with new installations and became operative in 2007. Also here the start-up phase caused higher expenses than originally planned.

Only at the end of 2008, after very experienced employees and engineers from the main plant went to Hungary for some weeks and put their knowhow, the target productivity could be reached.

Both productivity problems in the foreign plants had caused sever difficulties: unsatisfied clients, high costs for additional shifts in the main plant, heavily reduced profitability in the main plant. But all customers could be kept. Capacity of the German and Hungarian plants were 25% each in relation to the main plant, so the main plant was able to offset the reduced output by foreign plants.

Now, in 2010, the continued strong market growth and high pressure by competitors from the supply industry for mobile telecom devices particularly in Asia require further expansion and establishing of the new plants.There are plans for two new plants: one in India and one in Vietnam. Each shall have around 75% of the capacity of the main plant in Austria. Capex for investment is huge, but seems justified by big demand and first contracts with customers.

Objective is to open the plant in India at the end of 2011 and in Vietnam at the end of 2012 whereby it has to be made sure that the previous pant start-up periods of several months in Germany and India be avoided and to fully exploit the plants capacities. The further increasing demand for mobile telecom devices (smartphones) and the increasing competition by other conductor plate suppliers characterize the competition environment.

Which steps shall be taken now and by which ratios the implementation of measures shall be controlled so that the success of further expansion can be secured?

Define four to six single objectives, measures and appropriate ratios for that.