Your assignment this week is to read case study 6.1 from the book, and answer the following questions:

1. List four macro-segmentation variables and explain their value in business markets.

2. List four micro-segmentation variables and explain their value in business markets.

3. Identify some of the bases that Wavin can use to segment the market.

4. Compare Wavins possible market positioning with respect to the following, and describe how it might target each segment:

a. Small, local construction companies that build new residential homes, or upgrade existing homes.

b. Large, nation-wide commercial construction companies (for example: Turner Construction company https://www.turnerconstruction.com/)

CASE STUDY 6.1 SEGMENTING THE MARKET FOR WAVIN Wavin Group (www.wavin.con) provices plastic pipe systems the name derives from a contract on of the words WAter anc VINyl chloridel. Its products are used in the build. ing incustry for all aspects of water management, plumbing, heating and drainage. Headquartered ir Zwolle in the Netherlands [where it was founced in '955), it is the leading clobal suppiier of these systems and solutiors in Eurcpe, with a presenze in 25 Eurepean countries and 40 marufacturing si:es. Outs de Europe, it has a gloval network of agents, licensees and distribu:ors. It employs about 5500 people and has an annual tu'nover in the region of E1.2 aillion. Since 2012 Wavin is part of the group Orbia, a glosal supplier of polymer, material and infrastructure solutions. Wavin's industrial trends (including WAVIN, OSMA Hep 0 , Hepworth] span products and systams, designed and procuced for a wide range of applications including gas, water, sewer systems, building. land drainage and irr gation, and cable ducting. It ho,ds over 300 patents on produats and processes and has a streng commitment to innovaticn as part of its overall bus ness strategf; the group aims to achieve 20 per cent of its income from products less than fiveyears old. Innovation also supports Wavin's sustainability priorit es, the compary introducing technologies to ensure that its plastic pipes contain over 50 pe* cert recycled materials. It is 150900 " qualified anc its produc:s nee: the recuirements of BS EN ISO 140-1 and BS EN 1329-1 for non-pressure undarground drainage pipes, and soil ard waste discharge piFes, respectively. Wavir prcvides comolete solutions for customers, bazked by a dedicated sales force vith full marketing, technical, sales and oparational infrastructure. And there is a very extensive range of different end-users for 'Wavin products, including: - the joabing builder replacing a set of cutters, f tting a new kitchen, bui.ding a naw bathroom or repairing cracked crains be.ow ground: - the small building contracter relurbisting a whole rouse cr building from scratch; - large building contractors engaged in a whole residential housing developmert; - enginee-ing companies engagec in fipelining repairs or laying public access cable networks; and - Large civil ard mechanizal engineering companies build ng infrastructure pro ects such as whole water treatment plants. Howevar, end-users typically are not able to buy procucts from Wavin directly. Rather, products are purchased through a range of merchants. This makes re.ationships (Cortinued) with the distributors very important for the company land some of these companies are very large in their own right, e.g. Saint-Gobain, Travis Perkins]. Of course, this does not mean that the company has no contact with many end-users. For example, Wavin's strength in specification appeals to national house builders (such as Redrow and Taylor Wimpeyl. At the same time, while the company is interested in demand for its products in the round, with its sales team it recognizes that it may need to talk to clients and their designers about a whole solution, involving an entire range of products configured in the most appropriate way to solve a customer problem. As well as contractors and distributors land others such as clients, developers, trade jobbers and utility providers) in the marketplace, there are specifier markets that affect whether or not Wavin products are used. Professionals such as architects and structural and mechanical engineers have substantial reference power. Furthermore, high-profile reference projects have substantial value in showcasing Wavin product solutions - the more publicly known and impressive the better. The installation of a new soil and waste plumbing system for La Scala Opera House in Milan that was efficient and reliable was only the starting point. Demonstrating that it was best able to meet the requirements for range completeness and performance in terms of low noise levels swung it for Wavin. Wavin has also provided bespoke underfloor heating for 'The Core' education centre at the Eden Project in Cornwall, sitting alongside the large biomes featured at the attraction, as well as a new five-star Hilton hotel in Bournemouth, UK. As well as these high-visibility projects, the company has been involved in reference projects for residential development companies, such as Redrow's upmarket housing project Cranberry Gardens in Cheshire, where the customer was looking for a future-proofed storm management system to protect the luxury homes during both regular and extreme weather conditions. The company segmentation strategy continues to develop in order to adapt to changes in the marketplace. Unsurprisingly then, the company engages in category management activities with important customers. After all, when you are one of the biggest manufacturers in the world of industrial plastic pipe systems and other industrial plastics products, you undoubtedly know much more than many of your customers