Organization Overview and Job Experience at RAK Ceramics

Organization Overview and Job Experience at RAK Ceramics Bangladesh Limited

Ceramics are classified as inorganic and nonmetallic materials that are essential to our daily lifestyle. Ceramic and materials engineers are the people who design the processes in which these products can be made, create new types of ceramic products, and find different uses for ceramic products in everyday life. Ceramics are all around us. This category of materials includes things like tile, bricks, plates, glass, and toilets. There are now a number of Ceramic Industries in our country.

RAK Ceramics Bangladesh Ltd. is the leading Ceramic industry of our country. They are the number one ceramic manufacturer in the world.

RAK Ceramics (Bangladesh) Limited, a UAE-Bangladesh joint venture company, was incorporated in Bangladesh on 26, November 1998 as a private limited company. It has started its commercial production on 12 November, 2000. Passed a resolution in extraordinary general meeting on 10 June 2008, certificate issued by Registrar of Joint Stock Companies dated 11 February, 2009 it’s converted into a public limited company.

RAK Ceramics (Bangladesh) Ltd. have BDT 4009 million global conglomerates in the ceramic industry. They have always strived to create the right ambience in our life with a perfect blend of technical finesse and aesthetics while creating thousands of designs in Ceramic Tiles &GresPorcellanato& several models in Sanitary ware.

RAK Ceramics Bangladesh produces a very wide range of products in the Ceramic Range with products such as Ceramic Wall and Floor Tiles, Décors and Borders, Cladding etc. RAK Ceramics Bangladesh produces an extremely wide range of products in GresPorcellanato in several finishes suited for any ambience. Hundreds of models in Salt & Pepper; Soluble Salt, Glazed Porcelain, Polished Porcelain, Double Charge and other are part of the offerings. Also Rustic, Wooden, Slate, Step, Pavement tiles are exclusive in GP Product range. In Sanitary ware various models are produced in wash basins (mounted as well as pedestal types), bathroom sets (water closet & water tank), Counter and many associated accessories. Marble shades products, Single set (OASIS) are exclusive collection of product range. Moreover, Double flushing system, Jet flushing system, Soft closing Hinges, Spreader is the available exclusive accessories.

Historical Background of RAK

RAK Ceramics (Bangladesh) ltd. is a UAE-Bangladesh joint venture of RAK Ceramics Ltd. The Company is engaged in manufacturing and marketing ceramic and sanitary ware products. The Company is headquartered in Dhaka with manufacturing facilities at Gazipur. The company is listed with the Dhaka and Chittagong stock exchanges. RAK Ceramics is Bangladesh’s largest ceramic tiles and sanitary ware manufacturer. RAK Ceramics manufacturing capacities increased three fold in the last decadeamong the fastest-growing and most profitable companies in our business space in Bangladesh. Top line and bottom line grow 14.42 percent and 20.13 percent CAGR respectively over the last five years leading to 2011 Awarded ‘Super brands’ status in 2010, the only one in ceramics industry space in Bangladesh. They have raised the benchmark for the others in ceramics industry space.

Within a short span of times RAK plays a significant role of the market share. In Bangladesh, every 4th sanitary ware fixed is non RAK Ceramics & every 4th tile fixed is RAK Ceramics. Turnover in 9 years achieved a compounded Annual growth of 33.26%. The company has three product lines, which are Tiles and Sanitary Ware. The company recently set up large scale Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) to reduce environmental hazard, which started operation end of March, 2009.

There are three products of the company as Ceramics Tiles, Granite Tiles and Sanitary all kind of Wares items.

Specializing in high-quality ceramic wall and floor tiles, GresPorcellanato, and sanitary ware, RAK Ceramics uses more than 1,000 production models, 40 models of sanitary wares with new designs added almost every week to its portfolio. Tiles are manufactured in a variety of sizes, from 20 cm x 30 cm up to 60 cm x 60 cm, the widest range offered in the ceramic field.

The global production of tiles exceeds 360,000 sq. and 12,000 pieces of sanitary ware per day from its state-of-the-art plants in UAE China, Sudan, Bangladesh, India and Iran. RAK Ceramics manages over 2,500 employees in Bangladesh and over 15,000 employees worldwide and currently exports to more than 160 countries, which is a testimony to its excellent reputation worldwide. RAK Ceramics has recently achieved the status of supplying 1 billion sq. of tiles worldwide and it is the fastest ceramic manufacturer to achieve since its inception within two decades.

RAK Ceramics is the world’s first company to offer the world’s first Luminous, the wonder tile that glows in the dark and the Antimicrobial, a super specialty tile for the hospitality industry and it continues to be a global pioneer in the world of ceramics through innovative eco-friendly products such as RAK SLIM, Stone Art Collection, Orion Collection and Wood Art Collection using the latest Nanopixle digital printing technology. . Recently RAK Ceramics has tapped children tiles segment.

Products of RAK Ceramics (Bangladesh) ltd.

RAK has been manufacturing and supplying a wide range of tiles and sanitary wares in the ceramic sector of Bangladesh since 2000. Excellent designs and pattern can be created using specially selected wall and floor tiles, borders, corners, listellos and capping.

Many of RAK Ceramics’ models come in modular designs, making it easier for the customer. The unique ambience patterns created using ceramic tiles and also GresPorcellanato tiles appeals most discerning customers. The company has two product lines, which are Tiles and Sanitary Wares. The company recently set up large scale Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) to reduce environmental hazard, which started operation end of March, 2009.

Tiles

In the Ceramic Range, the company produces ceramic wall tiles, ceramic floor tiles, matching border & decor tiles, listellos and pencils & capping and few other related items.

In GresProcellanato (porcelain / fully vitrified tiles), the company produces thousands of glazed and unglazed porcelain, covering finishes such as polished, semi polished, unpolished, rustic, stone, travertine etc.

In Bangladesh with three fold expansion Drive Company has reach capacity to produce over 8 million square meters of tiles per annum & has over 1000 different tiles models recipe. The salient features of the plants are:

Gang of modern technological machineries: Versatile 5 presses, long range 5 kilns & multipurpose 12 ball mills.
Latest equipment & technological application: Some unique patterns and finishes: are acquired through new technologies such as Roto Printing, Double charge, Granitech, MDR, Techno slate, Twin Press and Dry Glaze etc. Some unique “antique style” finishes and many specialized finishes in tiles have been possible due to such advanced GresProcellanto technology.
Modern European machinery: Robotic controlled TGV machines. Computer controlled guided vehicles transferred semi-finished goods from station to station, robots picked and placed semi-finished tiles in many production steps as well as in sorting and packing the finished tiles, skilled technicians in sophisticated control rooms monitored raw materials in blending mills, wet and dry grinding vessels, presses, kilns, drying and cooling cycles, and many other operations
Water jet cutting technology machines: Facilitate unique water jet designs, and diamonds cutting machine tools help make beautiful vanity tops from Gresporcellanato slabs.
High Quality inputs: Imported raw materials like soda feldspar, potash feldspar, clays from India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. Fritz & glazes from Spain & other European countries.

Ceramist R&D activity: Active team of ceramist to challenge customer demand & device cost effective input recipe solutions.

Sanitary Wares

In sanitary ware, various models of wash basin (mounted as well as pedestal), water closets (WC) and water tank (WT) accessories and decorated sets are produced.

State of the art plants produces over 900,000 pieces per annum & over 40 different models of sanitary ware. The salient features of the plants are:

Latest Italian Technology: For production including computerized kilns.
6 Medium Pressure Casting Plants: For production of wash basin, pedestals, cisterns, lids and accessories.
Battery Casting Moulds: To produce water closets.
Highest Quality Raw Materials: Ball clay and kaolin from U.K., glazes from Spain and stains from Germany.
In House Quality Control and Testing: A laboratory of the highest standard.

Certain technology drivers & noteworthy achievement as follows:

RAK Ceramics is one of the pioneers in installing unique equipment. It is the first company to install the largest press
RAK Ceramics also offered several unique and proprietary technical products like luminous tiles (tiles that emitted light in the dark, which took two years and several trials to develop), antimicrobial tiles (tiles that inhibited growth of bacteria), and custom-made designs by water jet.
The range of RAK Ceramics products is unmatched with over 6000 tiles models & over 600 sanitary models. Smallest mosaics of size 2 cm x 2 cm and tiles of 10 cm x 10 cm to the largest slab in the industry 125 cm x 185 cm.

Vision & Mission Statement

Vision

To maintain status as world’s leading innovator in ceramic field

Mission Statement

Their Responsible And Knowledge-driven mission includes:

C – Close to our clients by listening to their needs and adapting to market requirements

E – Excellence in producing high quality products that offers best value-for-money

R – Redefining the product innovation and design process

A – Accountable to its clients, trade partners, stakeholders and employees

M – Motive employees to develop them into future entrepreneurs

I – Integrity of the management towards the organizational goals

C – Committed to the society by contributing towards a healthy environment

S – Sustainability in every sphere of business

RAK’s Macro environment

The macro environment refers to all forces that are part of the larger society and affect the microenvironment. It includes concepts such as demography, economy, natural forces, technology, politics, and culture.

Demographic environment:

Demography refers to studying human populations in terms of size, density, location, age, gender, race, and occupation. This is a very important factor to study for marketers and helps to divide the population into market segments and target markets. It considers the demographic factors whenever they want to demographic attributes based ceramics services.

RAK has divided the total market by demographically. Their target customers are start form the middle class to upper class. The major locations for them are the developing areas. Males and females are both their target customer.

Economic environment:

It also considers the consumer changing income in their pricing strategy. Changing consumer spending patterns also need to consider in marketing strategy. Within this area are two different economies, subsistence and industrialized. Subsistence economies are based more in agriculture and consume their own industrial output. Industrial economies have markets that are diverse and carry many different types of goods. Each is important to the marketer because each has a highly different spending pattern as well as different distribution of wealth. RAK put their best concentration on the economic environment of the customers or clients. Keeping the factors in their mind the company controls the price pattern of the products. RAK ceramics price is much reasonable for the buyers.

Natural environment:

The natural environment is another important factor of the macro environment. This includes the natural resources that a company uses as inputs and affects their marketing activities. The concern in this area is the increased pollution, shortages of raw materials and increased governmental intervention. As raw materials become increasingly scarcer, the ability to create a company’s product gets much harder. Also, pollution can go as far as negatively affecting a company’s reputation if they are known for damaging the environment. The last concern, government intervention can make it increasingly harder for a company to fulfill their goals as requirements get more stringent. RAK Ceramics Bangladesh Ltd. has their own policies for the environment. RAK’s product is 100% environment friendly. They produce and sell the products which are safe for the environment as well as the customers or clients. RAK is fully committed to the government that they will not make the product which will harm the environment or make any pollution when they produce their products in the factory.

Technological environment:

The technological environment is perhaps one of the fastest changing factors in the macro environment. As these markets develop it can create new markets and new uses for products. It also requires a company to stay ahead of others and update their own technology as it becomes outdated. RAK always stay informed of trends so they can be part of the next big thing, rather than becoming outdated and suffering the consequences financially. Forces that create new technologies create new product and market opportunities. Ceramic sector is going to more competitive today so RAK is incorporating all types of new technological innovation up to date in order to cope up with growing new customer demand.

Political environment:

The political environment includes all laws, government agencies, and groups that influence or limit other organizations and individuals within a society. Laws, government agencies, and pressure groups that influence and limit various organization and individual in a given society are related with the political environments. RAK also follows all types of law regarding electronic distribution as well as keeping the economy strong. Every year they renew their every license.

Cultural environment:

The aspect of the macro environment is the cultural environment, which consists of institutions and basic values and beliefs of a group of people. The values can also be further categorized into core beliefs, which passed on from generation to generation and very difficult to change, and secondary beliefs, which tend to be easier to influence. As a marketer, it is important to know the difference between the two and to focus their marketing campaign to reflect the values of a target audience. RAK sales & marketing department executives always work by categorizing the culture into these two factors.

Description of the job

Brand Management: This position is responsible for execution of marketing initiatives in support of long term brand strategies. Scope of work would include exposure to a brand’s strategy, marketing plan, and the day in a life of as a brand manager. The ultimate goal is to help the brand manager achieve his/her profit, volume and market share goals. It must be able to work in a fast paced, small, entrepreneurial environment with an emphasis on collective, collaborative teamwork.

Specific Responsibilities:

Brand Plan Development and Execution – assists the brand manager in developing and executing marketing initiatives within budgeted parameters. This includes, but is not limited to, advertising, program/promotions, research, and public relations. Must be able to work collaboratively with agencies/vendors and internal resources to deliver results.

Program management and execution – manage the day-to-day logistics of the brand programs. Owns timeline management, budget and program analysis.

Market Analysis – monitors and analyzes sales volumes, market share trends and competitive activity and develops/recommends action steps based on existing opportunities. Also analyzes consumption and shipment data and compares results to established objectives to assure the effectiveness of marketing programs.

Brand Plan Development and Execution – assists the brand manager in developing and executing marketing initiatives within budgeted parameters. This includes, but is not limited to, advertising, program/promotions, research, and public relations. Must be able to work collaboratively with agencies/vendors and internal resources to deliver results.

Different aspects of job performance

During the period of my three-month internship, I had tried to the best of my abilities to approach any task with full effort and utmost determination. My field supervisor was of the opinion that I have sincerely carried out all the tasks that I was assigned, stringently keeping in mind my responsibilities, and have completed them within the allotted time. My major strengths included my proficient and consummate writing skills and fluency in the English Language. However, one area that he believes I needed to work on is my interpersonal skills. It is very important for any individual working in the business front to be an extrovert, especially when it comes to dealing with clients in the business and being the face of the business. With this in mind, my supervisor believes that I need to develop my interpersonal skills not only for the abovementioned reason, but also in order to achieve proper progression professionally. In comparison the interpersonal skills that I walked in with to RAK, I had made some progress over the three months, but there is still room for improvement.

SWOT ANALYSIS

A scan of the internal and external environment is an important part of the strategic planning process. Environmental factors internal to the firm usually can be classified as strengths (S) or weaknesses (W), and those external to the firm can be classified as opportunities (O) or threats (T). Such an analysis of the strategic environment is referred to as a SWOT analysis.

The SWOT analysis provides information that is helpful in matching the firm’s resources and capabilities to the competitive environment in which it operates. As such, it is instrumental in strategy formulation and selection.

Strengths:

RAK’s strengths are its resources and capabilities that can be used as a basis for developing a competitive advantage. Examples of such strengths include:

Strong brand names
Good reputation among customers
Cost advantages from proprietary know-how Exclusive access to high grade natural resources Favorable access to distribution networks

Weaknesses:

The absence of certain strengths may be viewed as a weakness. Each of the following may be considered weaknesses:

High cost structure
Lack of access to the best natural resources
Lack of access to key distribution channels
High cost for importing raw materials

In some cases, a weakness may be the flip side of strength. Take the case in which a firm has a large amount of manufacturing capacity. While this capacity may be considered a strength that competitors do not share, it also may be a considered a weakness if the large investment in manufacturing capacity prevents the firm from reacting quickly to changes in the strategic environment.

Opportunities:

The external environmental analysis may reveal certain new opportunities for profit and growth. Such opportunities include:

An unfulfilled customer need in some cases Arrival of new technologies
Loosening of regulations Removal of international trade barriers
A developing market such as the Internet.
Mergers, joint ventures or strategic alliances.
Moving into new market segments that offer improved profits.

Threats:

Changes in the external environmental also may present threats to the firm. Such threats include:

Shifts in consumer tastes away from the firm’s products
Emergence of substitute products
New regulations Increased trade barriers
A new competitor in home market. Price wars with competitors.
A competitor has a new, innovative product or service.
Competitors have superior access to channels of distribution.

Taxation is introduced on product or service.

Critical observations and recommendations

Critical Observation

The Working environment is very friendly and employees are ready to help all the time. There is a good chain of command always followed. In spite it was not an easy job to find so many things during the very short period of practical orientation program. Now, I would like to present my observations and give, my opinion to improve service and make their customer more satisfied.

Lack of dynamic and prompt customer service
Lack of Proper Division of Labor and man power
Lack of Proper compilations &Maintenance of Files
Shortage of availability of Machineries
Employee Dissatisfaction
Lack of effective advertising and promotion
Lack of Computer Knowledge
Absence of proper Decoration
No desk and specific task for internee

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE INTERNSHIP COMPANY

RAK is a great learning company for interns. RAK helps interns improve and develops their skills.

I would recommend RAK to keep hiring interns with different educational background, to help build and improve the company with the knowledge they gained from their studies and other recommendations are-

Renovation of customer service
Ensure Proper Division of Labor and man power
Ensure Proper compilations &Maintenance of Files
Ensure availability of Machineries
Ensure employee satisfaction
Ensure proper promotional activities
Ensure effective computer literacy
Ensure of proper Decoration and expanded office area
Ensure internship desk and specific task

Conclusion

RAK Ceramics has been recognized as the world’s largest ceramic tile manufacturer by the ‘Ceramic

World Review’, the best known and most widely circulated international magazine devoted to ceramic tile and sanitary ware production technologies. It dominates the rankings of the top 25 ceramic tile manufacturers in 2009 with a total production output of 115 million square meters from 15 manufacturing facilities located in six countries. The company had first ever IPO under book building method in Bangladesh, which was highest in collection in terms of amount and number of applications. The company was rated AA+ in long term and ST-1 for short term, which was highest rating in manufacturing sector in Bangladesh.