Business Data Analysis

Unit Code: BSS002-6
Assessment 1: Individual Report (50%) – It is expected that each student work independently on all the
tasks set out in this assignment, applying problem solving strategies and selecting appropriate
techniques in modelling and simulation in order to produce an individual report according to the
guidelines provided. This individual work must be your own work only with no consultation with others.
The individual report must not exceed 2,000 words.Submit your completed report only via the turnitin
link which will be available a week before the assignment submission deadline in the “Assessment &
Feedback” folder.
Please note that you should have a genuine individual effort at solving the given tasks; however, to
help those who had made every effort in completing their work some guidance will be given in the class.
Individual feedback will be provided within 15 working days and is based on: How well did your work
meet the stated assessment criteria? and How could you improve your future performance in this type of
task?
Assignment Title:“Kitchenware Products”
Issued date: Week One: Monday 12/10/2015
Submission due date:
Week Nine: Friday 04/12/2015: A single report per student should be submitted via the TURNITIN link in
the Assessment folder. Assignment must not be e-mailed under any circumstance.
Unit co-ordinator’s name: C F Shooshtarian
Threshold standards
Assessment number In order to pass the assessment you will need to:
1 Develop a basic mathematical model of a business scenario.
Use Excel to construct charts and summary measures to assess the essential features of the
model.

Grading/
Criteria A+ A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- D+ D
D- E
80-100 75-79 70-74 67-69 64-66 60-63 57-59 54-56 50-53 47-49 44-46 40-43
35-39
Research, synthesise and produce a technical report Communicate your findings clearly and
concisely. Recommend solutions to provide a better insight to the problem. Justifying your choice in a
technical report which has a
clear structure and logical sequence;
tables, diagrams and figures are appropriate, clearly labelled and interpreted;
accuracy;
objectivity;
continuity;
conciseness. Communicate your findings clearly and concisely. Recommend solutions to provide a
better insight to the problem. Justifying your choice in a technical report which has a clear structure
and logical sequence.
Communicate your findings clearly and concisely. Recommend solutions to provide a better
insight to the problem. A report which has a clear structure and logical sequence.
Communicate your findings in your report and recommend solutions to provide a better insight to
the problem.
Communicate your findings in your report.

Kitchenware Products
Since 1919 Kitchenware Products have been a market leader and manufacturer of stainless steel kitchen
utensils and small electrical appliances. Today Kitchenware Products proud to carry forward the
tradition of innovation, quality and superior customer service that was started by their founder, Leo J
Wahl, 91 years ago. Always evolving Wahl has remained focused on developing essential appliances for
the modern home. A brand trusted the world over, Wahl remain a family run business with products sold
in approximately 165 countries worldwide.It is considering the production and marketing of a new type
of carving knife. Initial estimates suggest that the company could sell 40,000 units in the first year
and expect to increase sales by as much as 10% per annum thereafter. The variable costs per unit are
estimated as follows: raw materials, £3.00; packaging, £0.90; direct labour, £2.00; distribution,
£1.00.
The inflation rates for the next three years are forecast to be 3%, 5% and 6%. Inflation will affect
variable costs for the product but fixed costs are likely to remain at the same level of £10,000 over
the next four years. In calculating profits over the next four years, the tax rate can be taken as 23%.
Kitchenware Products intend to sell the carving knife at £8 for the first year with an annual increase
of £0.30 thereafter.
Task 1
(a) Kitchenware Products have asked you to develop a financial planning model so that they can
determine how net profits would be affected by changes in planned sales volume and product price over
years 2 to 4.
(b) Having built the financial planning model, Kitchenware Products now want to look at three ‘what-if’
scenarios.
• Scenario 1: Suppose inflation is predicted to be 6% during the second year and 8% thereafter.
What would be the profitability of the new carving knife in these circumstances?
• Scenario 2: Suppose the Company decides to sell 3% more units per year as well as increasing
the current selling price by 10% per year. What would be the effect on the ‘net profit after tax’ for
each year?
• Scenario 3:Suppose that Kitchenware Products decides to vary the projected sales volume over a
range from -5% to 10% of the initial assumption. The company wants to see how the ‘Net profit after
tax’ would change as the projected sales volume changes.
Kitchenware Products has decided to make a major capital investment in the introduction of a new
product, the Wahl James Martin Electric Knife or as it is called in the Company as: ProtoC. The Wahl
James Martin Electric Knife (ProtoC) with its soft touch grip handle is designed for easy and
comfortable use. There is a double action safety lock to prevent the knife being accidently operated
and a safety button for the safe removal of the blades. Two sets of stainless steel blades, a set of
standard blades and a set of coarse blades allowing you to cut a variety of foods, expertly carving the
roast dinner, neatly cutting bread and can even cut through frozen food. This item is great for when
carving a Sunday roast, Christmas or family gatherings, no need to struggle anymore with uneven slices
with this electric knife it makes cutting like a dream!
There is usually a large amount of uncertainty associated with the development and marketing of any new
product, e.g., the size of potential sales, the ideal selling price of the product, and the
manufacturing costs. These uncertain factors are best represented by appropriate probability
distributions, and the project’s profitability can then be investigated using simulation. Such an
approach is generally referred to as ‘risk analysis’.
Kitchenware Products has asked you to perform a risk analysis on the marketing of the new product the
Wahl James Martin Electric Knife (ProtoC). The capital investment required to market the product is
£120,000. The factors associated with the new product and their respective probabilities are provided
in Table 1.0 below:
Table 1.0: The factors associated with the new product and their respective probabilities
Selling Price Probability Variable Cost Probability Sales volume Probability
£22
£24
£27 0.3
0.4
0.3 £18
£20
£22 0.4
0.4
0.2 40,000
45,000
50,000 0.25
0.50
0.25

Task 2
Prepare a report that discusses the general development of the spreadsheet simulationmodel, and make
any recommendations that you have regarding:
(a) The worst and best results obtained in a simulation of 1000 trials;
(b) The mean profit and its corresponding risk;
(c) How the profit values are distributed over their range, and what profit values are most likely;
(d) The probability of a loss;
(e) Critically appraise the simulation approach to risk analysis.