The Hybrid Car and the Part of the Combination of Strategies - Essay Example

Eco Products Eco products are environmentally friendly products. The essence of this is to control the rate of global warming and climate change, as well as to control the level at which natural resources are being depleted in the world as a whole. The encouragement of the use eco products is essential in ensuring consumers’ awareness of the current state of the environment they live in and in stimulating their capacity to improve it. Therefore, consumers will be selective and careful when they shop for any products in the market for their consumption or usage in their homes or workplaces. The awareness is brought about by passing or disseminating large quantities of information on the effects of goods on the environment and the mitigation measures for any situations related to the goods. Therefore, it is essential that there should be good relationships between the providers of the products and the consumers to ensure the dissemination of this kind of information is done effectively. The products in discussion in this paper are cars (Johnson 280). The Business Context Over the past decade the world has been hit with several climate change effects, a lot of those have been attributed to the industries, mainly to the vehicles and the fuel used by them. Other major concerns that have come up over this decade include the rise in petroleum prices. This has driven many to think of better ways to conserve energy and they have had a different perception of energy security as a whole. The current market has shifted from using petroleum to light duty vehicles. They have invented the hybrid cars which either use electricity or use very little petroleum. The dependence on petroleum products has begun to bring up major concerns especially when it comes to economic issues. The oil prices are set to go higher over the years to come. This is because the resource is also being depleted and since it is not a renewable resource. It is becoming scarce by the day. With the production of new hybrid vehicles, the usage of petroleum has dropped and the risk of climate change and global warming due to the emission of greenhouse gases has also dropped tremendously. According to the analysis, the amount of fuel being used in the United States alone has reduced dramatically. The results of the analysis show that, since the time that these vehicles entered the market, the amount of fuel that has been saved is an estimated 9 million barrels or three hundred and eighty five gallons of fuel. This simply means that more people are likely to purchase these types of vehicles just in order to have an opportunity to save on a few gallons of fuel. This is an economically viable venture which has to be promoted globally and, if possible, the fuel guzzlers should all be faced out and the introduction of even greater ways to reduce the consumption of fuel should be also brought forward in order to change the state of energy security worldwide (Johnson 313). This particular product, the hybrid car, is quite sustainable. The fuel consumption of vehicles has gone down and the depletion of oil wells is no longer a threat in the country. The other major concern is the fact that the hybrids are not exactly efficient. Therefore, new technology breakthroughs have to be made to ensure that these vehicles are not only the minimal fuel consumers they are but also very efficient in the transport industry that way there will be greater or significant reduction in fuel consumptions and the goal of sustainability will be achieved. The Product The energy crisis is a tough nut to crack. It has over the years brought about a lot of contention amongst countries. Some countries have the oil wells and others don’t. America is core dependent on petroleum but it has few wells and has been overexploited in terms of fuel. This is one thing that is threatening the economy of this country. But, to say the least concerning that, there are mitigation measures that are required to be put in place to ensure sustainability of the use of petroleum products in this country. An introduction of petroleum free nation for starters would be a good move if all vehicles used electricity. Wouldn’t that be a better on the oil crisis that eating up the heads of everyone. The product in mind is the hybrid electric vehicle advanced. This is the solution of the energy security problem in the world. These vehicles pose no risk of pollution and they do not consume petroleum fuel. That is why I would advocate for the hybrid electrical vehicles to be advanced technologically for them to be more efficient. The efficacy of hybrid vehicles is mostly driven by the sources of power their motors or engines. There are two types of hybrid the series hybrid and the parallel hybrid. In the series hybrid, the gasoline or petroleum engine turns the generator on then either the generator will be responsible for charging the batteries or powering the electric motor therefore in most cases, the petroleum or gasoline motor never powers the vehicle thus less fuel consumption (Pastakia 170). In the parallel hybrid the two sources of power found in the hybrid car are combined in two different ways. Both gasoline and the electric motors are responsible for transmission, and this transmission is responsible for moving the wheels of the vehicle. The components of this hybrid vehicle are the fuel tank, gasoline engine, electric motor, generator, batteries and finally the transmission (Pastakia 120). The gasoline engine in the hybrid is small for the efficacy of the vehicle and also for reduction of emissions into the atmosphere. The electric motor is also sophisticated and uses very advanced technologies in order to increase the efficacy of the vehicles. For instance, this motor can draw energy from the battery in order to accelerate the speed of the vehicle. This product is a compromise to its competitors; it attempts to increase mileage but also ensures that the emissions that are made by the vehicle are in check. The competitors on the other hand, have a problem with their mileage and the refueling is as frequent as the mileage being covered by the vehicle. Since hybrid cars have smaller engines they are likely to move faster that gasoline driven vehicles. The major eco characteristics of this product are; the fact that it does not emit gases from combustion of fuel it does not pollute the environment. Since there will be no emissions by the vehicle the rate of climate change or global warming will be reduced tremendously. The engines of the hybrid vehicle only run at efficient speed in order to reduce the rate at which the emissions occur. The use of electricity has reduced the rate at which oil wells and or basins are being depleted. Rationale/ Description /Approach for the Product The hybrid vehicle is mostly used by the consumers who are eco-friendly and want to spend less on gas. The truth of the matter is these vehicles have been designed this way to save the earth from the trouble they may encounter as predicted by many in the few next decades. The pollutions from the combustion from vehicles were the leading source of greenhouse gas emissions by 2007 in the US alone. Supposing nothing is done there will be an increase in natural calamities. This may include even quicker melting of the ice caps resulting in glaciers, too much rise sea water levels that may eventually overflow to the lands. There will be more depletion of the ozone layer, increasing the chances of many from contracting skin cancers or even eye problems. The rationale that is being used in the formation of these hybrid vehicles includes advanced technology especially in the electric motors and the gasoline engines. The battery that is used is more technical but long lasting although very expensive as well. These vehicles are convenient for use by people who understand the dire effect of the gasoline powered vehicles (Welford 155). These vehicles can be redesigned by creating more advanced batteries that may withstand a lot more time than the present. Other than that an eco-design should be in cooperated. The considerations to be made should include how much energy is in use, the material used for production, longevity, re using, recycling or who needs the product. The need for diesel in hybrid trucks is also still an issue in this industry with the introduction of more advanced technology that may be able to support the loads that these trucks carry; load capacity. Another area of concern is the initial cost of these vehicles. The technology being incorporated demands a greater level of technical knowhow therefore restricting the use of these vehicles due to the lack of expertise to service the vehicles. The technique that is mostly in cooperated in most of these hybrid vehicles is the parallel hybrid technique. For the manufacturing process this car has been designed to be eco-friendly therefore even the body of the vehicle is made of eco material. The sourcing of materials for those vehicles is done carefully with consideration as to whether the raw material is sustainable or not. Considering that the car is to be made eco-friendly then the finish is aneco-product (Desonie 342). Eco Marketing Plan In eco marketing several things have to be put into consideration, they include: the economic status of the consumers, the gender/sex, the family size and the age. All the above mentioned characteristics drive one into purchasing a certain good. The 7Ps can also be in cooperated that are the price, place, promotion, physical addresses, and processes among many others. Eco marketing plays a critical role in educating people on the importance of the ecofriendly nature of the product, in this case the hybrid car. This also tackles the issue of convectional marketing where people are advised to excessively consume a good so that they may still purchase it. The main aim of this is to change the mindset of the clients (Welford 354). The eco marketing plan is essential as is used to disseminate certain information to the users or potential users of the hybrid vehicles. Most people change their vehicles because they want better mileage or because they want a more fun vehicle or even one that consumes less fuel. With this in mind, eco marketing should always target the most significant things about the product that may contribute to an environmentally fit car (Isaak 81). There are tools that need to be used even as the marketing plan is on, they include; the life cycle assessment, design for environment, remanufacturing/dematerialization. Life cycle access will be used to establish the effects the product has on the environment. In this case the hybrid car does not entirely pollute the environment like the gasoline powered car (Schaltegger 293). To ensure that the products meets the customer needs then it is important one needs to know how to the conditioning of the customers is and change it (Schaltegger 47). To meet the demands one needs to know the budgets, product groups that individuals want to buy and why? To establish whether the customers are satisfied then the producer has to make a product that would give high satisfaction that may even develop to emotional attachment to the customer. For example, if the buyers of a Toyota Prius (hybrid car) are happy about their purchase they may not be able to let go of their vehicle. Eco marketing of hybrid cars should also entail offering services that will cater for the needs of those hybrid cars. For example, one should offer to recycle old vehicles for new ones, repairing worn out parts especially the batteries of these cars which tend to cost a lot of cash. Customers may continue being environmentally cautious that way. The Hybrid Car in Future The hybrid car is yet to advance into greater heights. This technology’s future is bright. There are newer generation hybrids that are called the plug-in hybrids. They have not been sold yet but it is believed that is the direction we are heading to. The plug-in hybrids are the part of the combination of strategies. The advantage of these over the rest is that it may never run out of electricity because of the availability of charging outlets that the vehicle may use to recharge. This will make this vehicle very efficient. The availability of the hybrid car is posing a threat to the gasoline powered car companies. The cars will overtake the gasoline powered ones eventually. Consumers will shift from buying the gasoline powered vehicles to hybrid cars and eventually they will be faced out from the market. The hybrid car does not emit gases; therefore, it does not generate any waste. The energy consumption used by this car is minimal; less fuel is used because the vehicle is not powered by gasoline purely (Isaak 86). Works Cited Davis, S.; Diegel, S. Transportation Energy Data Book, Edition 27. Oak Ridge, TN: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, 2008. Desonie, D. In Robinson R. (Ed.), Global Climate Change. New York: Macmillan Reference USA. 2 Oct. 2002. Isaak R. The Making of the Ecopreneur.Greener Management International (GMI) Vol. 38. 2002. pp. 81-91. Johnson, C.; Bergeron, P. Fuel Use Metrics. Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Sept. 2006. Linnanen L. An Insider’s Experiences with Environmental Entrepreneurship. Greener Management International (GMI) Vol. 38. 2002, pp. 71-80. Pastakia A. “Grassroots Ecopreneurship: Change Agents for a Sustainable Society.” Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol. 11, No. 2, 2008, pp. 157-173. Rondinelli, D. A. A New Generation of Environmental Policy: Government - Business Collaboration in Environmental Management. ENVIRONMENTAL LAW REPORTER NEWS AND ANALYSIS, 31(8), 10891-10905. (2001). Schaltegger, S., Burritt, R., & Petersen, H. An Introduction to Corporate Environmental Management: Striving for Sustainability: Greenleaf Publishing.(2003). Schaltegger, S. A Framework for Ecopreneurship: Leading Bioneers and Environmental Managers to Ecopreneurship. Greener Management International (GMI) 38, 2002. p. 45-58. 2002. Welford, R. (Ed.). Corporate Environmental Management. Earthscan Publications, 2008. Read More