Factores de competencia horizontal que afectan al resultado de las empresas productivas

Utility products here refers to projects which usually involve the integration of two or more finished products, sometimes commercial brands, into a new product. The production of utility products often does not require tasks other than those involved with the procurement of a range of finished products to be integrated into a new product. Dennis offers instructions on a project which requires the assembly of components for a pocket-sized survival kit with no tools required for the assembly. In this project, Dennis integrates a selected list of finished products which have been obtained from the market and uses them as a survival kit, including a small tin, a list of consumable commodities, a multi-tool knife and a printed plan for instructions:

“Here is the list of items you will need for your Survival kit: (1) Small multitool (1) Roll of dental floss (3) Sewing needles (1) Mini-Bic Lighter (30) Ibuprofen (14) Multivitamins (1) Tube antibiotic ointment (3) Firecrackers (9) 1.5v button cells (12) Inches of sturdy copper wire (1) White Superbright LED (10) Caffeine pills (1) Cyanide capsule (1) List of instructions” (Dennis, male, observation)

146 Dennis selects, combines and quantifies multiple products which can be obtained from the market as components for his new product (a pocket- sized survival kit). Dennis is passing on his knowledge of how to select and put the commodities together:

“Put everything except the multitool in an altoids tin. It will just barely close, so tape it up with duct tape to finish the job.” (Dennis, male, observation)

Figure 2 A Pocket Sized Survival Kit Project by Dennis

In addition to the textual description of his product, Dennis also provides a photographic description of his created project including the list of commodities alongside the final product.

Dennis has only selected a number of relevant market-based products to be combined as

147 his final product with no tools or modified materials involved (see figure 2). Therefore, Dennis acts as a reviewer of market-based products which can be selected for his survival kit. Such projects require a member to offer knowledge about why and how to produce a product through finding the most suitable products or brands from the marketplace. For example, Hector similar to Dennis, has created a similar project, but he includes other commodities for a survival kit:

“You need a swiss army knife also known as a pocket knife or multi-tool.…Bandages or plasters…a compass…A handkerchief…Fish hooks and line…Matches…Basically you have got a full survival kit containing all the things you need when you are in a survival situation” (Hector, male, observation).

Hector also offers a photographic description of his project including all the commodities selected for a survival kit. Hector offers a snapshot of the final product as photographed in figure 3. Hector offers more explanations of his commodities than those presented in the project created by Dennis and indeed critiques Dennis’s use of container:

“Most people use altoids tins to put their survival kit in, but I wouldnt recommend to use one, as it is not fully watertight, however, you can basically use any sort of tin, box or bag you want” (Hector, male, observation).

148 Figure 3 All the Things for A Survival Kit Project by Hector

Hector also offers descriptive reviews of the other commodities included in his final product.

The following presents his reviews, which justify the use of the commodities selected and integrated in his product:

“Obviously if your lost in say, the plain desert or the leafy rainforest, you need a compass to find your way out, a compass always points North” (Hector, male, observation)

“Bandages or plasters are the things you MUST have in a survival kit… if you cut yourself you dont want to get ill by bacteria and germs getting into the cut, so you use a bandage to wrap around it or cover it.” (Hector, male, observation)

So, Hector’s project is more developed that Dennis’s in giving detailed reasoning for the kinds of things one might need in different situations. Other members have also created

149 projects which produce utilities through the integration of multiple products from the marketplace. Diyo publishes a project about the commodities to be included in a proposed automobile emergency kit. He purposively integrates a selected range of finished products into a proposed automobile emergency survival kit, including bought commodities such as multipurpose utensils, sheltering, sanitation supplies, first aid supplies, food, and aids for survival situations. Similarly, Duncan offers instructions on a project for the assembly of components for a portable electronics kit which requires no tools to complete. For this project Duncan basically integrates a selected list of finished products which have been obtained from the market and uses them in a new electronic kit, including a bag, a list of consumables, meters and hand tools. Duncan has introduced the idea of his project, but he also acts as a reviewer of market-based products which can be selected for the portable electronics tool kit.

Such utility products are popular within bug-out bags and toolkits projects. These projects contain compact collections which can be used for a variety of purposes from touring, to camping, to survival. Indeed, there are a broad range of projects on Instructables created by members which cover many other utilities. Lon publishes a project which contains all the commodities required for a pocket fishing kit. Rad and Str include different items in different cooking kits. This often requires a member to offer knowledge about where, why and how to create a product through finding the most suitable products and brands from the marketplace. All the above projects created by Dennis, Hector and other members contribute utility products which require no tools to integrate their component products.