Whirlpool 2002 Annual Report Download - page 11

2002 Annual Report 19 President’s Message
18
Increasingly, we are leveraging resources from our global
platform to expand our portfolio of innovative products for
global export. For example, Whirlpool’s top-rated microwave
hood combination ovens are designed at our technology
facilities in Sweden, produced at our manufacturing
facilities in China, and marketed and sold in the United
States. Our operations in Brazil manufacture refrigerators
with innovative features and designs that appeal to
consumers worldwide. In 2002, the region exported these
popular refrigerators to Europe, and, through the capabilities
of our global product development process, transferred the
platform to Whirlpool India. The enthusiastic consumer
response to the 2002 introduction helped Whirlpool India
claim the No. 1 refrigeration position in the country.
Whirlpool’s global platform provides our operations
with resources and capabilities no other manufacturer
can match. Whirlpool’s global procurement, product
development and information technology organizations
help our operations reduce costs, improve efficiencies
and introduce a continuous stream of relevant innovation
to consumers.
Our global procurement organization leverages the
volume purchasing power of our worldwide operations to
eliminate costs and redundancies across regions. Cross-
regional teams of product development engineers
collaborate on innovation initiatives for regional and
global distribution. And our information technology
organization provides Internet tools that cut the
complexity and costs of doing business for Whirlpool and
its trade partners.
We also use the global platform to transfer key innovations
and processes across regions and brands. Perhaps the
best example to date is the success of Whirlpool’s laundry
innovations. In 2002, the
Whirlpool Duet high-efficiency
clothes washer and dryer pair was rolled out across the
United States with consumer and trade partner response
significantly outpacing capacity.
The popular
Duet pair emerged from Whirlpool’s global
product development process, and involved teams of
employees representing technology, manufacturing and
brand marketing from our U.S. and Europe operations.
Encouraged by the popularity of the Duet washer with
U.S. consumers, Whirlpool Europe introduced branded
versions of its own late last year.
In the U.S., consumer demand for the
Duet washer and
dryer, as well as for earlier laundry innovations such as
the Whirlpool Calypso clothes washer, helped create and
expand the industry’s high-efficiency laundry segment.
Whirlpool grew its share position in this premium end of
the laundry segment by more than 70 percent in 2002.
We expect Whirlpool’s ongoing introductions of relevant
laundry innovation, such as the
Whirlpool Family Studio,
will continue to capture the interest of consumers and
generate profitable growth for the company and its
shareholders. Whirlpool’s innovation process will continue
to drive growth across all our product categories.
Part of the success of our brands and innovations is based
on the ability of our global operations to execute the
company’s global value-added trade and distribution
strategies. In North America, for example, Whirlpool holds
the No. 1 appliance position with the top national appliance
retailers and buying groups. Our trade partners know
the level of value and consumer appeal that is tied to
Whirlpool’s innovation, as well as the importance of having
trained salespeople who can effectively demonstrate that
value to customers. Whirlpool innovation delivered to
customers through value-added retail and distribution
formats is a winning formula for Whirlpool and our trade
partners.
As our operations work to align and leverage the resources
of our global platform to meet the needs of our customers,
Whirlpool’s brands will continue to introduce meaningful
and relevant innovations and create new services in
ways that create value. Throughout the regional business
summaries that follow, you will see highlights of innovations
and accomplishments from each of our regional operations
in 2002. Achievements such as these are helping our
operations to capture the attention of consumers world-
wide, increase the support from our trade partners and
create the unique customer experiences that are building
unmatched levels of customer loyalty to our brands.
Jeff Fettig
President and Chief Operating Officer
February 27, 2003
President’s Message
TO OUR SHAREHOLDERS –Whirlpool’s regional operations
used the leverage of our global platform to help drive
record sales and a solid operating performance for the
company. In addition to top-line growth generated by
our brands through Whirlpool’s ongoing introduction of
consumer-relevant innovation to the marketplace,
our operations contributed savings from productivity
and restructuring initiatives that helped improve the
company’s operating performance.
In North America, our operations turned in an outstanding
performance, highlighted by record sales and operating
profit. Whirlpool’s operations in Europe showed solid
improvement as well, as did Whirlpool Asia. And in context
of the significant economic and industry challenges within
Latin America last year, our operations there turned in a very
strong performance.
To sustain the productivity savings that are being
achieved by our operations, we have embedded our
Operational Excellence process – based on Six-Sigma and
lean manufacturing skills and capabilities – within each
of our worldwide manufacturing facilities. Based on
these capabilities, our operations turned in a record
improvement in total cost productivity in 2002. A parallel
process is being instituted across the entire enterprise
in an effort to eliminate additional costs and to create as
many resources as possible to invest in innovation
that builds customer loyalty to our brands.
During the year, the company’s acquisitions in Mexico
and Poland, as well as restructuring activities worldwide,
strengthened the manufacturing and cost positions of
our operations. Rationalization of manufacturing in
each region coupled with the migration of certain global
products to low-cost countries – such as China, India,
Slovakia and Brazil – enabled our operations to compete
effectively against emerging global competitors.
> Jeff Fettig
President and Chief Operating Officer