Strategic Audit of Harley Davidson

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Value Chain The series of activities that are enacted by a firm that add value to a product beyond the cost of the production are referred to as the value chain. Harley Davidson offers a combination of superior performance and unique attributes within its value chain that promotes their core competencies and provides them with a competitive advantage. Operations Harley Davidson’s approach to the manufacture of motorcycles creates value as raw materials evolve into sellable products. The 40,000 square meter plant in Kansas City, Missouri is laid out in a fashion that permits the backward integration of components within the production facility. From the fabrication of parts to the production of engines onsite, a single V-Rod is built by the 1,100 employees of this factory in less than 3 hours from start to finish. The 2,100 square meter engine assembly area of the factory is capable of building the liquid cooled V-Twin for the V-Rod in approximately 2 hours from 370 components. Each of the 10 individual workstations takes approximately 7.5 minutes to complete its task. Building the engines onsite permits the firm to save on transportation costs of having the engines built at one location and shipped to another and decreases the carrying costs of inventory by using Just-In-Time production. Fabrication at the factory utilizes a mix of robotics and manual labor to produce the body of the V-Rod. Robots that are designed to cut pipe are capable of completing a single operation within 3 seconds. Other fabrication robots utilize 1800 watt lasers that can perform cutting operations at the rate of 100 inches per minute. Where robotics can be used to perform high speed cutting and welding operations, skilled workers are a... ... middle of paper ... ...iscontinue Buell Sport Bikes." New York Times 15 October 2009. Harley Davidson, Inc. 2012 New Harley Davidson Motorcyles. 2011. 15 September 2011 . —. Complete Annual Report. 2010 Annual Report. Milwaukee: Harley Davidson, Inc., 2011. —. Form 10-K. Form 10-K. Milwaukee: Harley Davidson, Inc., 2011. Hoover's, Inc. "Harley Davidson, Inc. Profile." Company Profile. 2011. Megafactories: Harley Davidson, Inc. National Geographic Channel. 2009. MV Agusta, Inc. MV Agusta F4-1000 Tamburini. 2011. 17 September 2011 . New York Times Company. Harley-Davidson, Inc. News. 2011. 22 September 2011 .

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