The thesis identifies and discusses the changing structure of international trade and specialization in the industries of cars and heavy trucks. The main contribution of the thesis is that it discusses the patterns from the perspective of the car industry with the similar but in some aspects different industry of heavy trucks as a contrasting example. This method aims at giving more knowledge about the varying challenges that different industries face in a globalized economy. To authors’ knowledge such a direct comparison has not yet been done. Some results presented in the study is that while car producers compete on a global scale the producers of heavy trucks does it on a regional scale. For the OECD 23 car producing countries, this implies competition from producers in countries with low factor input costs. This is probably one of the reasons why OECD 23 car producers have raised the export value or their goods relatively more than the producers of heavy trucks. The thesis also reveals how the patterns of export and specialization have shifted dramatically in both industries.

Chinese heavy truck industry has witnessed an unprecedentedprosper since 2009, and it has been attracting an increasing number of westernheavy truck companies to conduct business activities. However, differentindustry environment has brought different situation including the government’spolicies and consumers’ buying habits for local companies and foreign competitors.Thus, this study aims to analyze the impact of industry factors in Chinese heavy truck industry by examining a collection of the methodology. Porter diamond model is widely applied to investigate industry’s competitive advantages, butit should be noted that in this research the model is adapted into a new version in light of the necessity of emphasizing Chinese government in businessactivities. Main findings of this study are as follows: (1) research andanalysis factors of impact Chinese heavy truck industry and highlight government’s influence as a significant impact factor through a series ofpolicies; (2) it might be of considerable benefit if foreign heavy truckcorporation can observe the political transformation or policies while setting themarketing strategy in China.

<p>The thesis identifies and discusses the changing structure of international trade and specialization in the industries of cars and heavy trucks. The main contribution of the thesis is that it discusses the patterns from the perspective of the car industry with the similar but in some aspects different industry of heavy trucks as a contrasting example. This method aims at giving more knowledge about the varying challenges that different industries face in a globalized economy. To authors’ knowledge such a direct comparison has not yet been done. Some results presented in the study is that while car producers compete on a global scale the producers of heavy trucks does it on a regional scale. For the OECD 23 car producing countries, this implies competition from producers in countries with low factor input costs. This is probably one of the reasons why OECD 23 car producers have raised the export value or their goods relatively more than the producers of heavy trucks. The thesis also reveals how the patterns of export and specialization have shifted dramatically in both industries.</p>

Today there is a shift from mass production to mass customisation due to changing customer needs in the global market. This thesis report analyses customisation in a modular system through a case study in the truck industry with focus on development of a new seat solution. The customer requests showed a demand for one to two additional seats in the cab. In order to answer to various customer needs, companies implement modular product development principals which enables them to produce in a rapid speed, minimize costs, increase performance and produce a high mix of products. The established RQ:s were: RQ1: How do companies improve competitiveness by translating customer needs into technical requirements? RQ2: What are the challenges and possibilities when making changes in a modular system? The thesis followed the first steps in the product development process due to delimitations in time, scope, and research quality. The data was collected through a literature study, interviews with customers and archival records and documentations at the case company. The study resulted in two final concepts, namely a seat solution and a bench solution which answered to the customer need of one to two additional seats in the cab. A conclusion was that it is crucial for companies to understand the in-depth customer needs to provide higher customer value, which in turn can contribute to strengthen the companies’ competitiveness. The correct translation of customer needs to technical requirements is essential for the development of a modular system. Challenges and possibilities when making changes in a modular system was found to be design complexity along with opportunity to reuse existing components. Both the translation of customer needs and design decisions regarding a modular system is achieved in the earlier stages of the product development process. It is thus of high importance to translate the customer needs correctly and make thoughtful decisions of the modules in the modular system to ensure company competitiveness.

<p><strong>Title:</strong> Volvo Trucks' Customer Value Proposition</p><p><strong>Authors:</strong> Ekaterina Storubleva, Gregor Milosch, Christian Neumann</p><p><strong>Tutor:</strong> Erik Hunter</p><p><strong>Date:</strong> May 2009</p><p><strong>Keywords:</strong></p><p><strong></strong>Volvo Truck Corporation, truck industry, customer value, value drivers, retail strategy, communication, relationship marketing</p><p><strong>Purpose:</strong></p><p><strong></strong>The purpose of this thesis is to evaluate the general composition of Volvo Trucks' customer value proposition in Europe and to examine possible ways of enhancing it using Volvo's retailing strategy as a tool.</p><p><strong>Background:</strong></p><p><strong></strong>The concept of customer value gains more and more importance in modern companies. Firms have to truly understand what their customers expect in order to provide the right products for them.Truck manufacturing is a very cyclical industry, which is why in times of crisis, when trade volumes go down, they need to excel even more in order to maintain good business relations with their customers. Volvo Trucks, one of the world's leading truck producers, has adopted a special retailing strategy, in which it owns strategically important dealerships, in order to improve customer understanding and consequently customer value. This paper discusses in how far they succeed at this.</p><p><strong>Method:</strong></p><p><strong></strong>The authors followed a triangular approach, combining quantitative and qualitative research. The quantitative part was covered by a communication chain study and a value driver study, both developed by the authors. In the qualitative part, each participant answered ten open questions, which were then used for internal consistency checks and contributed additional thoughts.</p><p><strong>Conclusion:</strong></p><p><strong></strong>The Volvo Truck Corporation (VTC), by adapting its retail strategy, realized the importance of establishing long-term customer relationships and generating adequate intelligence about customer needs. The company not only incorporated influential elements of relationship marketing but also strives for sustainable improvements in customer-perceived value. However, some conflicts between the stakeholder groups involved have been discovered. The corporation's core values were found to be in line with customer preferences.</p><p>In essence, it is crucial for Volvo Trucks to implement the ideas of relationship marketing, establish superior communication channels, and to promote a common understanding of customer value.</p>

Title: Volvo Trucks' Customer Value Proposition Authors: Ekaterina Storubleva, Gregor Milosch, Christian Neumann Tutor: Erik Hunter Date: May 2009 Keywords: Volvo Truck Corporation, truck industry, customer value, value drivers, retail strategy, communication, relationship marketing Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to evaluate the general composition of Volvo Trucks' customer value proposition in Europe and to examine possible ways of enhancing it using Volvo's retailing strategy as a tool. Background: The concept of customer value gains more and more importance in modern companies. Firms have to truly understand what their customers expect in order to provide the right products for them.Truck manufacturing is a very cyclical industry, which is why in times of crisis, when trade volumes go down, they need to excel even more in order to maintain good business relations with their customers. Volvo Trucks, one of the world's leading truck producers, has adopted a special retailing strategy, in which it owns strategically important dealerships, in order to improve customer understanding and consequently customer value. This paper discusses in how far they succeed at this. Method: The authors followed a triangular approach, combining quantitative and qualitative research. The quantitative part was covered by a communication chain study and a value driver study, both developed by the authors. In the qualitative part, each participant answered ten open questions, which were then used for internal consistency checks and contributed additional thoughts. Conclusion: The Volvo Truck Corporation (VTC), by adapting its retail strategy, realized the importance of establishing long-term customer relationships and generating adequate intelligence about customer needs. The company not only incorporated influential elements of relationship marketing but also strives for sustainable improvements in customer-perceived value. However, some conflicts between the stakeholder groups involved have been discovered. The corporation's core values were found to be in line with customer preferences. In essence, it is crucial for Volvo Trucks to implement the ideas of relationship marketing, establish superior communication channels, and to promote a common understanding of customer value.

Research shows that climate changes we face today is a consequence of the increasing amounts of greenhouse gases that circulate in our atmosphere due to increased human industrial activity. Many firms and industries are therefore increasingly implementing environmental management strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions towards a more sustainable environment. These environmental management efforts can be broadly classified under two umbrellas which are sustainable production and sustainable consumption and these two parts need to work together in order to contribute effectively towards a more sustainable environment. The environmental management literature however reveals a gap between sustainable production and sustainable use of vehicles in the automotive industry showing that while the major global environmental impact - greenhouse gas emissions - occurs when vehicles are put to use, the environmental management efforts in the industry are skewed to the production of vehicles.An emerging trend to breach this gap is that vehicle manufacturers are providing extending services to help vehicle users minimize their greenhouse gas emissions. This study analyses the extended service packages of the global truck manufacturer, Scania, against the environmental objectives and initiatives of five road transport companies in Sweden. An exploratory case study approach was used from the perspective of the road freight transport companies to find out if extended services present suitable opportunities to extend environmental management from manufacturers to users in the road freight transport industry. The study found that the extended services provide solutions that help road freighttransport companies to achieve lower fuel consumption and lower emissions from theirvehicles. Road freight transport companies traditionally invest in environmental initiatives to gain marketing advantages but the extended services present a rare opportunity to the companies to compete on profit margins by investing in the extended services. / Market Making of a High-value Business Model in Low Cost Markets: Value Co-Creation in Swedish Industry, CeLS, Project manager: Leif-Magnus Jensen, leif-magnus.jensen@jibs.hj.se, +46 36 10 1881.

<p>Scania is an old and well established company within itsindustry, thus the company has understood, through experience, that it is simply not enough to be product oriented in the truck industry, instead the company has to focus on what is of value to the customer. To know and understand the customer’s business or area of business is a key success factor which develops trust for the company, this trust and knowledge of the customer’s area of operation is of critical importance during economic slowdowns.</p>

Scania is an old and well established company within itsindustry, thus the company has understood, through experience, that it is simply not enough to be product oriented in the truck industry, instead the company has to focus on what is of value to the customer. To know and understand the customer’s business or area of business is a key success factor which develops trust for the company, this trust and knowledge of the customer’s area of operation is of critical importance during economic slowdowns.

Thesis (MTech. degree in Architectural Technology (Management)) / Revision of the Road Transportation Act 74 of 1977, with the de-regulation of the long-haul trucking industry, caused a fast growing, highly competitive industry, where the road transport industry revolves around cost of delivery and delivery times. Unreasonable customer expectations place a burden on truck drivers who are mostly uneducated and mostly ignorant of the hazardous conditions under which they work. The study therefore investigates the causes and development of hazard patterns (with frequencies of accidents), the circumstances and conditions of long-haul trucking that make the establishment of trucking centres necessary, as well as the requirements of truck drives, employers and owner-drivers to see if the proposed trucking centres will be rejected or accepted by them. The proposed centres would provide safe rest periods, healthy food, continuous health and traffic education and would allow for social interaction between visitors at these centres. These conditions would contribute to the reduction of number of road accidents and stem the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.