3M 2012 Annual Report Download - page 121

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NOTE 15. Business Segments
3M’s businesses are organized, managed and internally grouped into segments based on differences in markets,
products, technologies and services. In 2012, 3M managed its operations in six operating business segments: Industrial
and Transportation; Health Care; Consumer and Office; Safety, Security and Protection Services; Display and Graphics;
and Electro and Communications. 3M’s six business segments bring together common or related 3M technologies,
enhancing the development of innovative products and services and providing for efficient sharing of business resources.
These segments have worldwide responsibility for virtually all 3M product lines. 3M is not dependent on any single
product/service or market. Transactions among reportable segments are recorded at cost. 3M is an integrated enterprise
characterized by substantial intersegment cooperation, cost allocations and inventory transfers. Therefore, management
does not represent that these segments, if operated independently, would report the operating income information shown.
The difference between operating income and pre-tax income relates to interest income and interest expense, which are
not allocated to business segments.
Consistent with 3M’s strategy of building relevance and presence in the marketplace, the Company announced in October
2012 that it was immediately beginning to align resources and management toward a new structure comprised of five
business groups: Consumer; Industrial; Health Care; Safety and Graphics; and Electronics and Energy. The company’s
operating results were managed on the basis of its existing segment structure through 2012, with the intention that results
be managed under the new alignment once it is fully effective in the first quarter of 2013. As a result, the business
segment information that follows is reported under the existing segment structure through 2012.
Business Segment Products
Business Segment
Major Products
Industrial and Transportation
Tapes, coated and nonwoven abrasives, adhesives, specialty materials, filtration products,
closure systems for personal hygiene products, acoustic systems products, automotive
components, abrasion-resistant films, structural adhesives and paint finishing and detailing
products, energy control products
Health Care
Medical and surgical supplies, skin health and infection prevention products, drug delivery
systems, dental and orthodontic products, health information systems and food safety
products
Consumer and Office
Sponges, scouring pads, high-performance cloths, consumer and office tapes,
repositionable notes, indexing systems, construction and home improvement products,
home care products, protective material products, and consumer and office tapes and
adhesives
Safety, Security and
Personal protection products, safety and security products, commercial cleaning and
protection products, floor matting, roofing granules for asphalt shingles, infrastructure
protection products, and track and trace solutions
Protection Services
Display and Graphics
Optical films solutions for electronic displays, reflective sheeting for transportation safety,
commercial graphics systems, and mobile interactive solutions, including mobile display
technology, visual systems and computer screen films
Electro and Communications
Packaging and interconnection devices, insulating and splicing solutions for the
electronics, telecommunications and electrical industries, and touch screens and touch
monitors