ArvinMeritor, Inc. (NYSE: ARM) is a corporation headquartered in Troy, Michigan which manufactures automobile components for light service vehicles, trucks, and trailers. ArvinMeritor is a Fortune 500 company.[1]
In 1997, Rockwell International spun off its automotive business as Meritor. In 2000, ArvinMeritor formed from the merger of Meritor Automotive, Inc., and Arvin Industries, Inc.[2]
On February 1, 2011, it was announced that the company would revert its name back to Meritor, Inc. at the Mid-American Truck Show in late March

Baby food has proven to be the most dynamic category of the global foods packaging industry with total retail packaging sales up 5.1% in 2010 and, in prepared baby food particularly, we see the traditional glass jar format being challenged by alternative, safe and easy-to-use packaging formats that seek to address busy parents' lifestyle needs.
An unceasing rise in demand for quality baby food
Global retail spend on baby food amounted to close to US$37 billion in 2010, equating to an increase of 5% on 2009 levels, illustrating the category's resilience to a recessionary operating environment.

Parents have shown themselves to be more willing to reduce their outgoings on snacks and indulgent food purchases whilst showing a rising concern for their baby's nutritional intake, resulting in the increasing purchase of prepared baby food.

Health scares such as the melamine contamination crisis in milk formula in China of 2009, also impacting the wider Asia Pacific region, have further cemented parents' demand for quality, the world over, with China introducing more rigorous product and packaging safety standards to safeguard the population's health.

Furthermore, despite the maturing demand and low birth rates evident across many of the more developed world economies, baby food manufacturers continue to focus on adding value to their product ranges rather than implement a discounting strategy with retail price holding at US$12 per kilo as the use of functional ingredients and organic baby food lines expand market presence.



Thin wall plastic container proves to be the success story of prepared baby food

In packaging terms, important developments afoot that respond to busy parents' lifestyle needs have procured especially buoyant development for the thin wall plastic container, with retail sales rising by an impressive 15% in 2010.

The lightweight attributes of the thin wall plastic container over the equivalent glass jar makes it suited to parents on the move whilst reduced transportation costs is an additional contributory factor for the rise in use of thin wall plastic container amongst US brand owners with the US importantly ranked as the single-largest country user of thin wall plastic containers in baby food in 2010.

The thin wall plastic container's microwaveable attribute is another important driver attesting to the pack type's growing success, increasing market presence to account for 27% of global prepared baby food packaging sales in 2010, up from 21% in 2005 as busy parents look for aids to simplify preparation of baby's meal.

Within France, which has had the microwaveable thin wall plastic container for prepared baby food for a few years, there continues to be a growing interest and purchase of such microwaveable baby meals.

These provide consumers with the same convenience and time-saving gains as when cooking an adult ready meal and sales growth increased by the widened product offering with further launches from market leader Blédina SA through the “Les Idées de Maman” range of meals.

In powder milk formula, the launch of single-serve sachets such as by the Enfamil brand in the US, is just another indicator of how busy working parents, juggling child care and work look to packaging to simplify daily feeding routines and the amount of baby kit they need to carry around with them.

Pouches finding a niche amongst organic lines in North America and Western Europe
Pouches are also becoming more widely available in the baby food category offering brand owners a new-look baby food packaging format with take-up most apparent amongst premium, niche and in many cases organic, prepared baby food lines.

In the US, the emergence and success of pouches is evident through organic baby food brands like Sprout and Plum Organics. Similarly in the UK, Ella's Kitchen is one notable flagship brand using brightly coloured pouches across its organic baby food range, from baby through to toddler stage.

The pouch is forecast to offer 7.4% CAGR growth in baby food over 2010-2015.

Colour used in German packaging to highlight a new economy milk formula line
In Germany, in the aim to meet differing consumer needs, Humana Milchunion eG, ranked number 4 in German retail baby food sales, launched an economy range covering all stages of baby development, from newborns to toddlers.

The company chose to use purple across this new product range launched in 2010 as a means to enable easy and clear visibility to consumers on store shelves.

Positioned as an economy range, the brand owner fully comprehends consumers' interest in provenance as quality remains high on consumers' agendas when it comes to making baby food purchases, regardless of the price point, and as such the marketing for the new product line clearly states that the line is “German-sourced”.

Glass will certainly remain the material of choice within prepared baby food in the years to come but is nevertheless set to post a far more sombre growth of just under 1% CAGR over 2010-2015 as compared to a more robust total packaging growth of 4% CAGR set for the category.

* A pre-session survey collected information related to travel planning, the booking of reservations and the importance of various attributes in deciding on the mode of transportation used to go from the airport to the hotel.

* A nine-minute video of interior and exterior footage of the German maglev prototype developed for demonstration purposes by Transrapid.

* Each participant completed a "concept reaction" survey to obtain top of mind impressions, attitudes and pricing opinions.

This phase also involved several one-on-one interviews with significant travel wholesalers who bundle and resell travel packages to travel agencies. These interviews were conducted similarly to the focus groups.

Positive reaction
There was strong positive reaction from consumers and those in the travel industry to the development of a high speed train system such as maglev. The written "concept reaction" survey reinforced opinions respondents expressed verbally during the groups. In open discussion in all sessions, respondents used words like neat, great, fun, exciting, good-looking, comfortable, futuristic, safe, and cool to describe their impressions. The train's technology, speed, energy efficiency and environmental friendliness were attributes that had important appeal to the participants, though "high speed" unnerved some.

Maglev was viewed more as another mode of transportation than as an attraction. As an attraction, the ride's short duration could limit the number of repeat trips.

Participants naturally based their ideas of an acceptable fare on their experiences with other modes of inter-city transportation. Even so, certain incentives could elevate the actual fare charged.

Ease of personal and baggage transfer were found to be critical to the success of a system of this type. Transfer from airline arrival gates and/or airport baggage areas to the train's terminal must be convenient and speedy to offset plans to take an alternate mode of transportation--taxi, shuttle bus or rental car. Baggage transfer must be seamless.

Respondents said that the maglev's airport terminal should be comfortable, similar to an airline's. Having a small information and/or technology display would be appropriate. First time users would be interested in the anticipation of the upcoming trip. It also would entice walk-on traffic.

An on-board video of the technology was the least important attribute according to the reaction survey.

However, during the discussion, positive comments were made about this feature, e.g., an educational exhibit while riding.

Maglev Transit immediately used the focus group information to begin design and development of its marketing plan. The findings were also used extensively in preparing for meetings with other parties that had a vested interest in the rail system: The City of Orlando, the Orlando International Airport, the International Drive Business Association, and several local communities and neighborhood associations.

PHASE TWO
Phase two of the study used a paired trade-off approach to learn consumer opinion toward several competing modes of transportation and evaluate the price sensitivity between each. Specifically, this phase helped evaluate the trade-offs consumers would make between the maglev and an alternative mode of transportation.

Conjoint analysis is widely recognized as a way to query respondents for opinion toward a product, service or a bundling of both. In a conjoint exercise, consumers make the same type of choices they make when shopping. They weigh product features and attributes, making trade-offs on their way to picking the product that best meets their needs and wants. This information facilitates optimum product and pricing design and more informed decision making.

The primary purpose of the tradeoff phase was to obtain a direct comparison between alternate modes of transportation, including maglev, from the airport. This phase also was designed to better understand some of the opinions derived from the focus groups.

Specifically, the objectives included:

* Comparison of competing modes of transportation from the airport based on travel time, drop-off convenience and cost.

* Obtaining consumer opinion of the sensitivity of automatic baggage transfer from the inbound airline to the hotel and its impact on ridership decisions.

* Measuring the train's appeal as a tourist attraction.

* Obtaining data on consumer travel patterns.

* Obtaining basic demographic, geographic and psychographic information on the respondent.

This phase used conjoint methodology and involved personal interviews with travelers at the Orlando International Airport. The questionnaire used a series of questions based on a paired trade-off between two transportation options (see Figure 2). The layout was based on a factorial design having four factors of three to four levels each. Fare is an example of a factor that has up to four levels.
 
ArvinMeritor, Inc. (NYSE: ARM) is a corporation headquartered in Troy, Michigan which manufactures automobile components for light service vehicles, trucks, and trailers. ArvinMeritor is a Fortune 500 company.[1]
In 1997, Rockwell International spun off its automotive business as Meritor. In 2000, ArvinMeritor formed from the merger of Meritor Automotive, Inc., and Arvin Industries, Inc.[2]
On February 1, 2011, it was announced that the company would revert its name back to Meritor, Inc. at the Mid-American Truck Show in late March

Baby food has proven to be the most dynamic category of the global foods packaging industry with total retail packaging sales up 5.1% in 2010 and, in prepared baby food particularly, we see the traditional glass jar format being challenged by alternative, safe and easy-to-use packaging formats that seek to address busy parents' lifestyle needs.
An unceasing rise in demand for quality baby food
Global retail spend on baby food amounted to close to US$37 billion in 2010, equating to an increase of 5% on 2009 levels, illustrating the category's resilience to a recessionary operating environment.

Parents have shown themselves to be more willing to reduce their outgoings on snacks and indulgent food purchases whilst showing a rising concern for their baby's nutritional intake, resulting in the increasing purchase of prepared baby food.

Health scares such as the melamine contamination crisis in milk formula in China of 2009, also impacting the wider Asia Pacific region, have further cemented parents' demand for quality, the world over, with China introducing more rigorous product and packaging safety standards to safeguard the population's health.

Furthermore, despite the maturing demand and low birth rates evident across many of the more developed world economies, baby food manufacturers continue to focus on adding value to their product ranges rather than implement a discounting strategy with retail price holding at US$12 per kilo as the use of functional ingredients and organic baby food lines expand market presence.



Thin wall plastic container proves to be the success story of prepared baby food

In packaging terms, important developments afoot that respond to busy parents' lifestyle needs have procured especially buoyant development for the thin wall plastic container, with retail sales rising by an impressive 15% in 2010.

The lightweight attributes of the thin wall plastic container over the equivalent glass jar makes it suited to parents on the move whilst reduced transportation costs is an additional contributory factor for the rise in use of thin wall plastic container amongst US brand owners with the US importantly ranked as the single-largest country user of thin wall plastic containers in baby food in 2010.

The thin wall plastic container's microwaveable attribute is another important driver attesting to the pack type's growing success, increasing market presence to account for 27% of global prepared baby food packaging sales in 2010, up from 21% in 2005 as busy parents look for aids to simplify preparation of baby's meal.

Within France, which has had the microwaveable thin wall plastic container for prepared baby food for a few years, there continues to be a growing interest and purchase of such microwaveable baby meals.

These provide consumers with the same convenience and time-saving gains as when cooking an adult ready meal and sales growth increased by the widened product offering with further launches from market leader Blédina SA through the “Les Idées de Maman” range of meals.

In powder milk formula, the launch of single-serve sachets such as by the Enfamil brand in the US, is just another indicator of how busy working parents, juggling child care and work look to packaging to simplify daily feeding routines and the amount of baby kit they need to carry around with them.

Pouches finding a niche amongst organic lines in North America and Western Europe
Pouches are also becoming more widely available in the baby food category offering brand owners a new-look baby food packaging format with take-up most apparent amongst premium, niche and in many cases organic, prepared baby food lines.

In the US, the emergence and success of pouches is evident through organic baby food brands like Sprout and Plum Organics. Similarly in the UK, Ella's Kitchen is one notable flagship brand using brightly coloured pouches across its organic baby food range, from baby through to toddler stage.

The pouch is forecast to offer 7.4% CAGR growth in baby food over 2010-2015.

Colour used in German packaging to highlight a new economy milk formula line
In Germany, in the aim to meet differing consumer needs, Humana Milchunion eG, ranked number 4 in German retail baby food sales, launched an economy range covering all stages of baby development, from newborns to toddlers.

The company chose to use purple across this new product range launched in 2010 as a means to enable easy and clear visibility to consumers on store shelves.

Positioned as an economy range, the brand owner fully comprehends consumers' interest in provenance as quality remains high on consumers' agendas when it comes to making baby food purchases, regardless of the price point, and as such the marketing for the new product line clearly states that the line is “German-sourced”.

Glass will certainly remain the material of choice within prepared baby food in the years to come but is nevertheless set to post a far more sombre growth of just under 1% CAGR over 2010-2015 as compared to a more robust total packaging growth of 4% CAGR set for the category.

* A pre-session survey collected information related to travel planning, the booking of reservations and the importance of various attributes in deciding on the mode of transportation used to go from the airport to the hotel.

* A nine-minute video of interior and exterior footage of the German maglev prototype developed for demonstration purposes by Transrapid.

* Each participant completed a "concept reaction" survey to obtain top of mind impressions, attitudes and pricing opinions.

This phase also involved several one-on-one interviews with significant travel wholesalers who bundle and resell travel packages to travel agencies. These interviews were conducted similarly to the focus groups.

Positive reaction
There was strong positive reaction from consumers and those in the travel industry to the development of a high speed train system such as maglev. The written "concept reaction" survey reinforced opinions respondents expressed verbally during the groups. In open discussion in all sessions, respondents used words like neat, great, fun, exciting, good-looking, comfortable, futuristic, safe, and cool to describe their impressions. The train's technology, speed, energy efficiency and environmental friendliness were attributes that had important appeal to the participants, though "high speed" unnerved some.

Maglev was viewed more as another mode of transportation than as an attraction. As an attraction, the ride's short duration could limit the number of repeat trips.

Participants naturally based their ideas of an acceptable fare on their experiences with other modes of inter-city transportation. Even so, certain incentives could elevate the actual fare charged.

Ease of personal and baggage transfer were found to be critical to the success of a system of this type. Transfer from airline arrival gates and/or airport baggage areas to the train's terminal must be convenient and speedy to offset plans to take an alternate mode of transportation--taxi, shuttle bus or rental car. Baggage transfer must be seamless.

Respondents said that the maglev's airport terminal should be comfortable, similar to an airline's. Having a small information and/or technology display would be appropriate. First time users would be interested in the anticipation of the upcoming trip. It also would entice walk-on traffic.

An on-board video of the technology was the least important attribute according to the reaction survey.

However, during the discussion, positive comments were made about this feature, e.g., an educational exhibit while riding.

Maglev Transit immediately used the focus group information to begin design and development of its marketing plan. The findings were also used extensively in preparing for meetings with other parties that had a vested interest in the rail system: The City of Orlando, the Orlando International Airport, the International Drive Business Association, and several local communities and neighborhood associations.

PHASE TWO
Phase two of the study used a paired trade-off approach to learn consumer opinion toward several competing modes of transportation and evaluate the price sensitivity between each. Specifically, this phase helped evaluate the trade-offs consumers would make between the maglev and an alternative mode of transportation.

Conjoint analysis is widely recognized as a way to query respondents for opinion toward a product, service or a bundling of both. In a conjoint exercise, consumers make the same type of choices they make when shopping. They weigh product features and attributes, making trade-offs on their way to picking the product that best meets their needs and wants. This information facilitates optimum product and pricing design and more informed decision making.

The primary purpose of the tradeoff phase was to obtain a direct comparison between alternate modes of transportation, including maglev, from the airport. This phase also was designed to better understand some of the opinions derived from the focus groups.

Specifically, the objectives included:

* Comparison of competing modes of transportation from the airport based on travel time, drop-off convenience and cost.

* Obtaining consumer opinion of the sensitivity of automatic baggage transfer from the inbound airline to the hotel and its impact on ridership decisions.

* Measuring the train's appeal as a tourist attraction.

* Obtaining data on consumer travel patterns.

* Obtaining basic demographic, geographic and psychographic information on the respondent.

This phase used conjoint methodology and involved personal interviews with travelers at the Orlando International Airport. The questionnaire used a series of questions based on a paired trade-off between two transportation options (see Figure 2). The layout was based on a factorial design having four factors of three to four levels each. Fare is an example of a factor that has up to four levels.

Wow netra, it is really awesome my friend! i am really impressed by your effort and also thanks for the information on ArvinMeritor. BTW, you would be happy to know that i am also going to share a report on ArvinMeritor which would help more and more people.
 

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