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Quality Management Tools and Techniques: Quality Function Deployment
Objectives:
This assignment is primarily aligned with S1 and AR1 of the learning outcomes of the course:
S1 Demonstrate the ability to utilize quality tools learnt in place of work, with examples of practical implementation in public, service and industrial applications).
AR1 Understand the scope of implementation and limitation of each tool and technique.
Provide a similar level of detail as in in Figure below (about 6-10 customer attributes and 6-10 engineering/technical characteristics)
Provide some supporting text or annotations to explain the HoQ. For example, you will need to explain what the system is and who the customers are.
Further explanation on what to include in the project.
Explain what is QFD, (Quality Function Deployment)?Quality function deployment (QFD) is a specialized method for making customer needs/wants important components of the design and production of the product or service. QFD is designed to help planners focus on characteristics of a new or existing product or service from the viewpoints of market segments, company, or technology-development needs. The technique yields charts and matrices. QFD helps transform customer needs (the voice of the customer into engineering characteristics (and appropriate test methods) for a product or service, prioritizing each product or service characteristic while simultaneously setting development targets for product or servic
2. Explain the WHATs in a QFD matrix.
The following are the WHATS in a QFD matrix:
Gathering Customer Needs Input: The premise of QFD is that before any product or service is designed, the producer should have a good understanding of his potential customers’ needs in order to improve the likelihood that the product or service will be a market success. That the producer should be aware of customer needs seems logical, but it sounds far easier than it is. Before the textbook rework is started, the QFD team must work diligently to deter- mine what potential customers would like to see in terms of attributes and features of the product and perhaps what they don’t like about our current product.
Refining the Customer Needs Input: The data must be sorted into a prioritized set of the most important customer needs. At this point we will call on some QFD Tools, the first of which is the Affinity Diagram. Refining a large collection of data into something that represents the essence of the VOC is done through the analysis techniques of the affinity diagram, and QFD team discussion.
Using the Affinity Diagram: Affinity diagrams are used most appropriately when the following conditions exist: When the issue in question is so complex and/or the known facts so disorganized that people can’t quite “get their arms around” the situation. When it is necessary to shake up the thought processes, get past ingrained paradigms, and get rid of mental bag- gage relating to past solutions that failed. When it is important to build a consensus for a pro- posed solution.
Using the Tree Diagram: The next tool to be used is the Tree Diagram. Tree diagrams can be used for countless purposes. It will be used here simply to refine the affinity diagram results to make the list the customer needs, or WHATs that will be placed in the HOQ.
Although a tree diagram could go all the way down into the nuts and bolts of a new design, remember that the objective here is not to
design the new product, but to list the items to be addressed by the design team once the entire HOQ is completed.
Customer Importance: Also coming out of the analysis is the team’s best estimate of the relative importance of each listed customer need. Customer importance is usually based on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest priority.
3. Explain the HOWs in a QFD matrix
The Technical Requirements room of the HOQ states how the company intends to respond to each of the Customer Needs. It is sometimes referred to as the voice of the company. We must state at the outset that the technical requirements are not the design specifications of the product or service. Rather, they are characteristics and features of a product that is perceived as meeting the customer needs. They are measurable in terms of satisfactory achievement. Some may be measured by weight, strength, speed, and so on. Others by a simple yes or no, for example a desired feature, appearance, test, or material is or is not incorporated. The other side of the coin is that the technical requirements must not be limiting, but must be flexible enough to allow the company to consider every creative possibility in its attempts to satisfy the need. The technical requirements are generated by the QFD team through
discussion and consultation with the Customer Needs and Planning matrices used as guidance. The team may use affinity or tree diagrams to develop, sort, and rank the requirements, similar to the Customer Needs development process. The difference here is that the input is from within the company rather than from external customers.
4. Explain the 1, or 3, or 9 interrelationship values in a QFD matrix
Now that we have the QFD team’s technical requirements (HOWs) in the HOQ, the next step is to examine how they relate to the WHATs of the Customer Needs. The results will be shown in the Interrelationships matrix, which links the HOWs and the WHATs. At each intersection cell of the inter- relationship matrix the team must assess the degree of relationship between the WHAT and the corresponding HOW. This is usually done using scales of significance of 1 to 5 or 1 to 9, with the higher number indicating a stronger relationship. Sometimes these numbers are entered, but often symbols are used
Nursing Research & Evidence-Based Practice NUR 561
Overview
In researching the topic of central line associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), writer completed an online search for relevant articles to the topic. Articles selected were a quantitative and a qualitative article on CLABSI and prevention of CLABSI. This paper is based on the five-peer reviewed article on CLABSIs and CLABSIs prevention. CLABSI is considered a blood stream infection which is confirmed primarily by laboratory work (Sacks et al., 2014). CLABSI is a bloodstream infection that happens to the patient who has central line within 48 hours of insertion and is not related to an infection from another site (CDC, 2016). In general, CLABSI happens when there is a possibility of not correctly inserting the central venous line (CVL) or not monitoring or supervising the site after the insertion and not adhering to CLABSI protocol. It is one of the major blood stream infection with the increased morbidity and mortality rates of 10 to 20 % (Morrison, 2012). It cost a lot of money to the U.S. healthcare system and thousands of deaths in America, yet it is preventable healthcare associated infections just by implementing CLABSI bundle (CDC, 2016).
PICOT Question
The Evidence Based Practice research PICOT Question to be addressed: Does having a CLABSI prevention/elimination team who are dedicated to supervise entire central line insertion in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and CLABSI bundle protocol as opposed to bedside ICU nurse be responsible to implement the CLABSI-related preventive measures for the purpose of reducing the risk of CLABSI?
P- Patients admitted in ICU
I- Having a CLABSI team to supervise the central line insertion
C- Bedside ICU nurses responsible to maintain and prevent CLABSI
According to the article by Furuya et al., (2016), CLABSI is a condition that can be prevented. The intention of this study was to assess the compliance with the central line insertion bundle overall in US. The research method involved cross-sectional design involving National sample of adult ICUs participating in National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) surveillance (Furuya et al., 2016). The overall study involved 984 adult ICUs in 632 hospital (Furuya et al., 2016). The results of the study showed that only 69 percent of the US hospitals reported compliance with the set regulations to prevent CLABSI. It is therefore evident that compliance to the stipulated guidelines is not strictly followed. According to Furuya et al., compliance is the most effective method of preventing CLABSI. Most of the healthcare organization and healthcare centers are aware regarding the guidelines recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Center of disease Control to presents the central line associated blood steam infections in ICU’s settings. This article by Furuya et al. (2016), is based on a qualitative study which is focused on the mutli-center research on the prevention and elimination of the CLABSI. This articles also focuses on why some of the hospital are more diligent on preventing the CLABSI than other despite the guidelines provided by national mandates. Research was conducted in 250 hospitals with the mean CLABSI rate of 2.1 per 1000 CVL (Furuya et al., 2016). Among them only 49 % reported to have a written CLABSI bundle policy (Furuya et al., 2016). Even on those who monitored compliance, only 38 % were highly compliant with the CLABSI bundle (Furuya et al., 2016). In this research, first the hospital’s infection preventionist was questioned by phone and then in person interviewed was conducted. On this research there was a use of snowball sampling to conduct the phone interview, in person interviews. The phone interview and in person interview was conducted on the epidemiologists, Physicians, unit managers, nurses in the ICU’s unit. After the interview it was identified that most of the organization had the common challenges to implement the CLABSI protocol in their organizations. There were basically four common challenges which were discussed by all the healthcare organization. The four challenges were the politics, culture, structure, and emotions. Politics meaning the relationship among the employee on the unit, culture as a values and beliefs which were shared by the employee, structure meaning some factors which are affecting the quality improvements projects, and lastly emotions as the level of commitment and passion shared on the unit (Furuya et al., 2016). After analyzing the article, it has been noted that those hospital who had a higher score on the culture and emotion were also the ones who were more committed and passionate about fostering change, improving implementation, and collaborating more quality improvement projects. On the other hand, those hospital who did not score high on the four challenges were also found to be not having favorable environment for change. The proposed study will close a gap in knowledge as it identifies that for effective implementation and collaboration of CLABSIs’ prevention plan, plan dissemination was deciphered as a prodigious step. From this article it has been found that the effect of implementing the CLABSI bundle protocol and educating nurses has a significant impact on reducing the CLABSI and associated infection as the p value was 0.015 (P = 0.015), incidence rate ratio [IRR] 0.77, 95% confidence interval and (β = -1.029, p = 0.015).As we know that the p value less then .05 is significant and that we reject the null hypothesis of stating that there is no difference. The result indicated that there was a significant difference in reduction of CLABSI infection when the CLABSI bundles protocol were implemented and education were provided to the ICU employees on CLABSI. As a plan disseminating for the quality improvement was to meet the guidelines evidence-based practice research and implementing a Vascular Care Team (VCT) to monitor the CLABSI bundle protocol. Normally time frame for these kinds of projects will be three months. On a timely basis meeting were conducted between nurses and CLABSI team to monitor the progress towards prevention of the CLABSI.
The research study by Park et al. (2017) was conducted in a community hospital which was based on the qualitative analysis of midline catheter and central line care that were provided by medical-surgical nurses. Most of the community hospitals are not equipped with the required tools or had experience with preventative measure which are needed to fight central line associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs). In this research, the researcher has utilized the phenomenological framework and the methods of exploration was the interview process (Park et al., 2017). The study was approved by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention institutional review board (IRB) and the New Jersey Department of Health’s IRB use in this analysis (Park et al., 2017). Consents were obtained from qualified participants. No human harm was noted on this study as it is an education study and was conducted by interviewing process. The researcher on this research study conducted 45-minute interview with the medical-surgical nurses on the medical-surgical units that has the highest rate of CLABSI. This research studies were basically focused on the nurse’s perspective at central line care. Fifteen medical surgical nurses were interviewed from the medical surgical units who had highest’s incidence of CLABSI who were working as fulltime. After the interview process various challenges emerges out. The biggest challenge was to follow the correct procedure along with CLABSI prevention. Also, nurses did not have high exposure with CLABSI and patient with CLABSI. 15 nurses identified that there is a need for education concentrating on the central line care and CLABIs prevention training. As, a teaching strategy, nurses who were seasoned and experienced related to CLABSI were brought to the community hospital to guide the nurses. As a result, plan was created which was based on the experiences nurses experience and when implemented decreased the CLABSI rate. This article focuses on the prevention of infection from the nurses prospective who were working nurse in a community hospital. This article explores the interventions that can be implemented to prevent CLABSI. The article highlights that the condition can be prevented if healthcare organizations take the necessary preventive measures. This data collection methods involved exploring the impacts of overall intervention implemented by peer tutoring which involved 1000 days of continuous tutoring. The results of the research showed that CLABSI decreased from 6.9 infections in the pre-intervention period to 2.4 and 1.8 in the intervention (Park et al., 2017). This article focused on the CLABSI rate for 9 months pre-intervention, 6 months during the intervention and 9 months post-intervention. SPSS 22.0 was utilized to conduct the statistical analysis for this article. It has been found from this research that CLABSI rate decreased from 6.9 infections in the pre-intervention phase to 2.4 and 1.8 in the intervention period of 6 months with P value being 0.102 (p= 0.102) per 1000 catheters per 9-month period (Park et al., 2017). The researcher used the regression model to show the significant difference between the pre intervention and post intervention drop rate in CLABSI where the P value was less than 0.001 (P < 0.001). As mentioned above P value less than 0.05 is considered to be statistically significant and shows the difference preintervention and postintervention of applying the CLABSI bundles and education provided to the nurses and we reject the null hypothesis stating there will be no difference in pre intervention of applying CLABSI bundle and post intervention of CLABSI bundles. Hence, this research showed significant increase in CLABSI when there was no peer tutoring. To close the gap in knowledge, the article highlights that without peer tutoring interventions, the rate of CLABSI infections can increased again. From this article it has been noted that in order to prevent the CLABSI, healthcare organization need to concentrate on clinical reasoning and preventative actions. This article can be used in healthcare organizations to explain the importance of peer tutoring towards the prevention of CLABSI.
The research by Blot et al. (2014) is based on systematic review and meta-analysis of the interventions taken to prevent CLABSI. The article sought to determine whether central line–associated bloodstream infections. The research method involves analysis of the previously done studies from 1995–June 2012 (Blot et al., 2014). CLABSI per 1,000 catheter-days, CLABSI per 1,000 inpatient-days, and catheter utilization rates were identified in this article. Maryland Health Care Commission (MHCC) measured the objectives and difficulties of reporting data publicly and has approved this study (Blot et al., 2014). The research was conducted in a five adult ICUs at a regional teaching hospital, that has 63 ICU beds. The CLABSI bundle was introduced to ICU which has four components: hand hygiene, sterile technique upon insertion, use of chlorohexidine wipes for skin preparations, and avoidance of the femoral vein as the access site (Blot et al., 2014). The research was conducted for 10-month period over 18,656 inpatient-days and 9,388 catheter-days (Blot et al., 2014). In this research 687 CVL insertions on 481 patients were performed (Blot et al., 2014). Consents were obtained from qualified participants and no human harm was noted on this study as it is an education study and was conducted by interviewing process. The results of the study show that CLABSI have decreased significantly over the years due the use of CLABSI bundles and education regarding CLABSI. A ratio of 95% confidence intervals proved that CLABSI can be prevented (Blot et al., 2014). Hence, from the article, quality improvement interventions are crucial in preventing CLABSI. Continuous quality improvement can be used to close the gap in knowledge on how to implement continuous quality improvement in ICU. This article by studied a visual design of information from widely-reported central line-associated blood stream infection (CLABSI) ending data for generating decisions by different target individuals, health care customers and professionals. In deciding on the best way to openly document CLABSI data results Maryland Health Care Commission (MHCC) measured the objectives and difficulties of reporting data publicly and has approved this study (Blot et al., 2014). The visual view of quantitative knowledge explains data for customers and health care professionals for creating decisions. The purpose of visual design, to systematize the information for relaying a message successfully, can be achieved by prioritizing, combining, and arranging the information appropriately. The study used formative methods with several groups to verify the choices that the researchers did to obtain the members, and they employed an extensive cross section of the intended user populations. The researchers confirmed visualizations that were accepted and publicly organized for customers and health care professionals in Maryland. This article recognizes that in order to expedite the CLABSI prevention program, a peer-reviewed research framework which assimilates evidence into practices is really crucial. This article focused on systematic review and meta-analysis examines to find out the impact of quality improvement interventions on central line-associated bloodstream infections in ICU patient. Also, the researcher used the Meta-regression which assessed the impact of CLABSI bundle interventions and high baseline rate on intervention effect. From this article it has been found that the effect of implementing the CLABSI bundle protocol and educating nurses has a significant impact on reducing the CLABSI and associated infection as the p value was .03 (P = .03). As we know that the p value less then .05 is significant and that we reject the null hypothesis of stating that there is no difference. The result indicated that there was a significant difference in reduction of CLABSI infection when the CLABSI bundles protocol were implemented and education were provided to the ICU employees on CLABSI.
According to the article by Chopra et al. the main objective was to research on effective evidence-based care to prevent CLABSI infections among ICU patients. The article notes that Central Venous Catheters (CVC) play a central role in preventing the infections. The method of data collection involved 34 evidence-based studies done previously to identify causes and prevention of CLABSI (Chopra et al., 2013). Moreover, review was conducted in accordance with the protocol proposed by the Federal University of São Paulo. 1,485 studies were initially selected but only 34 studies were considered necessary for this study (Chopra et al., 2013). The results from the study showed that interventions such as hand hygiene and maximal barrier precautions are effective in preventing CLABSI among ICU patients. Therefore, the article concludes that that commitment of stuff plays a crucial role in preventing CLABSI. This article is can be used to seal the gap by teaching members of the staff how to commit themselves in preventing CLABSI. This article by Chopra et al. (2013) is a crossover randomized prospective pilot study of central venous catheter (CVC) team intervention in comparison to standard care. Consents were obtained from qualified participants and no human harm was noted on this study as it is an education study and was conducted by interviewing process. In most cases, treatment for children suffering from cancer includes chemotherapy that is delivered via CVC. Although the CVC is a reliable source for delivering chemotherapy, it increases the risk of bloodstream infections (BSIs). The study takes place in a children’s hospital with the focus on two inpatient oncology units with 41 patients in the experiential unit and 41 in the control unit. The study compares patients who receive CVC blood draw bundle by nurses on the CVC team experimental interventions versus standard care from a bedside nurse. In the six-month study, a significant difference was seen in the CVC team and standard care by the bedside nurse related to risk of BSIs. In determining the effectiveness of the CVC team, a larger cohort group is needed. While the use of CVC is pervasive, most studies related to CLABSIs are done in the adult population. This article provides data related to CLABSIs in the pediatric population. A vascular team needs to be created to monitor the CLABSI protocol and to calculate the data of CLABSI. The vascular team will be conducting he seminar, meetings, and creation of the EBP bundles for the elimination of CLABSI. A vascular team should be created to monitor the CLABSI protocol and to calculate the data of CLABSI. The vascular team will be conducting he seminar, meetings, and creation of the EBP bundles for the elimination of CLABSI. Vascular team was providing PowerPoint presentation, webinar, websites and handouts regarding the prevention of CLABSI to educate nurses and empower them on CLABSI bundle protocol. In this research the pre intervention and post intervention of education and CLABSI bundles drastically decreased the rate of CLABSI from 3.9 per 1,000 catheter days to 1.0 per 1,000 catheter days. Also, in this research study the P value was 0.000 which is less than 0.5 and is considered to be statistically significant as the (P< 0.001).
According to the article by Sacks et al. (2014), a central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) develops within 48 hours of the line placement. This article is based on the research done to investigate pathogens associated with CLABSI. The research method involved analysis done from October 2011 to September 2012, with the intention of identifying the infectious causing agents associated with CLABSI. This article investigated the effect of the effect of implementing a checklist for the placement of central venous lines (CVL). Participants were assigned to the checklist group either control or experimental in a 1:2 ratio (Sacks et al., 2014). In this research the frequency of CLABSI was compared in control and experimental groups. In this study total of 4416 CVL were inserted; 1518 were from checklist group and 2898 participants were in the control group (Sacks et al., 2014).This article explains that the use of checklist during CVL placement has caused lowered incidence of CLABSI frequency. Consents were obtained from qualified participants. There was no human harm noted as the education conducted was online and screenings were performed during routine exams. The results of the study showed that majority of infections were caused by staphylococci 34.1 percent, enterococci16 percent, and Staphylococcus aureus, 9.9 percent (Sacks et al., 2014). The article concludes that the action taken by healthcare organizations to prevent CLABSI like use of antibiotics, echinocandins and parenteral vancomycin which is an antibiotic intervention. The knowledge from the article is useful to medical practitioners working in ICU. The recommendations provided can prevent CLABSI. The study by (Sacks et al., 2014). was based on a two-year case matched controlled retrospective study of central line associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) in an urban trauma service. The population consisted of 6014 admissions to the trauma service. The case reviewed 105 case-matched controlled groups who did not suffer from CLABSI. There were 35 CLABSI catheters that were identified, 25 out of 35 documented breaks in sterile technique, and 16 catheters were placed in intensive care unit (ICU). CLABSIs were associated with documented break in sterile technique placed in the ICU setting. Practitioners were encouraged to increase awareness and education to adhere to strict sterile precautions. An emphasis was put on the use of CLABSI bundle and education on CLBASI prevention. Research was approved by the Department of Intensive Care Medicine at the University Medical Center Hamburg–Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany. Independent variable: Catheterize patients, dependent variables: CLABSI infections (Sacks et al., 2014). The researcher in this article have utilized the SPSS 22.0 has a data analysis method which is mostly used for quantitative data. The researcher noted that the rate of CLABSI per catheter days reduced 19/3,784 to 3/1,870 after implementation and collaboration of the CLABSI protocol Bundle. It was also noted that the p value was 0.02, which is statistically significant value. P value in this research study was less then .05, (p=0.02), p <0.05). With the CLABSI bundle and education intervention, CLABSI rate decreased from 3.9 per 1,000 catheter days to 1.0 per 1,000 catheter days. Also, in this research study the P value was 0.000 which is less than 0.5 and is considered to be statistically significant as the (P= 0.02),and (b = −0.505, χ2 (1) = 4.20) (Sacks et al., 2014). We can conclude that we can reject the null hypothesis and state that there was significant difference noted when CLABSI bundle was applies towards the prevention of the CLABSI. In conclusion, most of the CLABSI identified in the trauma service were related to break in the sterile technique. It is most frequent in the ICU setting. The adherence to proper sterile technique guidelines while placing catheter can help to reduce CLABSI and patient mortality. Also, the CLABSI bundles has been found very effective by various health organizations. As identified in this article, appropriate implementation of the bundle reduces the rate of infections by 38%.
Conclusion
As we all know, there are several comprehensive studies and research done on CLABSI and prevention of CLABSI. The main purpose of this research study is to establish the effect of working as a team on the quest to improve the patient’s safety and prevention of infection in ICU patient. It has been found from different article review that the best way to prevent CLABSI is by developing models, educating bedside nurses, attending seminar, attending continue education based on CLABSI and CLABSI protocol guidelines. The models have to be based on the Evidence Based Research (CDC, 2016). Knowledge is defined as power (Morrison, 2012). Attending PowerPoint presentation, attending seminar based on the CLABSI and prevention, and keeping communication open on significance of CLABSI prevention was the best way of prevention of CLABSI. As to test knowledge a competency test should also be conducted on the bedside nurses for competency and knowledge.
References
Blot, K., Bergs, J., Vogelaers, D., Blot, S., & Vandijck, D. (2014). Prevention of central line– associated bloodstream infections through quality improvement interventions: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Clinical Infectious Diseases, 59(1), 96-105.
CDC National and State Healthcare-Associated Infections Progress Report, (March 2014), retrieved from www.cdc.gov/HAI/pdfs/progress-report/hai-progress-report.pdf
Chopra, V., Olmsted, R.N., Krein, S.L., Safdar, N., & Saint, S. (2013). Prevention of central line- associated bloodstream infections: Brief update review in making health care safer II: An updated critical analysis of the evidence for patient safety practices. Rockville (MD):
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US), No. 211(10). doi: 10.1007/s11606- 011-1935-y.
Furuya, E. Y., Dick, A. W., Herzig, C. T., Pogorzelska-Maziarz, M., Larson, E. L., & Stone, P. W. (2016). Central line–associated bloodstream infection reduction and bundle compliance in intensive care units: a national study. infection control & hospital epidemiology, 37(7), 805-810.
Morrison, T. (2012). Qualitative analysis of central and midline care in the medical/surgical
Park, S. W., Ko, S., An, H. S., Bang, J. H., & Chung, W. Y. (2017). Implementation of central line-associated bloodstream infection prevention bundles in a surgical intensive care unit using peer tutoring. Antimicrobial Resistance & Infection Control, 6(1), 103.
Sacks, G. D., Diggs, B. S., Hadjizacharia, P., Green, D., Salim, A., & Malinoski, D. J. (2014).
Reducing the rate of catheter-associated bloodstream infections in a surgical intensive care unit using the Institute for Healthcare Improvement Central Line Bundle. The American Journal of Surgery, 207(6), 817-823.
Sensors are sophisticated devices that are used to detect and respond to electrical or optical signals. (Engineersgarage.com). They are used to convert the measure of physical aspects into a signal that can be measured electrically. They are used in the healthcare industry, the military, cars, wearable technology, cell phones, and so on. The sensor industry is expected to grow to $162 billion in 2019. (TechRepublic, 2016).
Sensor technology is constantly evolving and is one of the fastest growing industries there is, as well as the most profitable. A common goal for sensors is for cutting edge technology to deliver improved functionality through the sensor. Whether this is optical sensors used by the military to detect threats, motion sensors used in a cars brakes to prevent an accident, or an image sensor used in a camera. Another common desire when it comes to sensors is the ability to make them smaller, lower costing, with better wireless connectivity. (Grand View Research).
Bosch Sensortec is one of the biggest sensor companies there is. They have been producing sensors for years and are now the leading provider of MEMS-based sensors in the consumer electronics market. They are also making sensors and products for wearable technology. Bosch also produces motion sensors. More than 4 million MEMS sensors per day are shipped from their facility in Germany. They produce sensors for everything from cars to cell phones. (Cision, 2015).
A few more major players operating in the industrial sensors market are Rockwell Automation (US), Honeywell (US), Amphenol Corporation (US), Texas Instruments (US), Panasonic (Japan), STMicroelectronics (Switzerland), First Sensor (Germany), and Siemens (Germany). Rockwell delivers a wide range of solutions and services for applications such as food & beverages, life sciences, oil & gas, mining, cement, metals, pulp & paper, and water & wastewater. The company offers start-to-end industrial services to its end users. The available solutions offer the company an advantage over its competitors for increased growth. The company adopts both organic and inorganic growth strategies. In the last 3 years, Rockwell Automation offered 2 products related to the industrial sensors segment. (Markets and Markets)
By the year 2023, the sensor market is on path to be a 241-billion-dollar industry. The different market segments within the sensor industry is divided by the type of sensor, the technology used, the industry they are used for, and geography. There has been a recent surge in Research & Development into sensors from some very large corporations such as STMicroelectronics, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., and Sony. The interest from these companies will lead to sensors improvement in both quality and efficiency. (Allied Market Research).
Some obvious strengths of these companies are the very large amount of resources they have. The large corporations who make millions of sales per day have more money to invest into their products. They have the manpower to continue to research the latest and greatest technology for their sensors. This also includes the ability to use the most efficient technology to make their sensors with a quick turnaround time. They also have the means to advertise as much as they need to in order to drive up product awareness. One weakness is the fact that there are so many of these large corporations wanting to produce the latest and greatest sensor. Having so many competitors will possibly drive down the price, which would be beneficial to the consumer, but not to their profit margins.
One thing is for certain, sensors are here to stay. The sensor industry is one of the fastest growing markets and they are only going to get bigger and more profitable. Consumers are using sensors in a wide variety of products from their cars and phones, to their wearable technology. There is also a huge trend in converting your home into a smart home which is made possible with the use of sensors. The possibilities are endless with sensors.
Communication is key to success. Creative input is encouraged from every team member on the project. It’s very important for a team to define and delegate goals and stick to them, knowing everyone’s part and responsibilities. Ineffective communication has proven to be a barrier that many teams face within a group. The inability to converse in a language that is not understood by both the sender and receiver seems to be the greatest barrier to effective communication.
Team Andrews has had its downfalls within the first weeks. With so many different things going on with each one of us, including the fact that Capsim is new to all, has caused some setbacks, but nothing that the team can’t handle. We are getting to know each other and even though we are in different time zones and have different schedules, we are coming together focusing on our assignments and simulations. We try to get on it by the beginning of the week, that way we know what we need to do individually and have plenty of time to achieve. We have been in contact mostly by text and email.
Like any business, for it to be successful, all departments have to work together. The same concept goes for teamwork. By the same token, our team seems to work in concert. We often contribute equally on given assignments. Thus far, our assignments have never been later. Each week we each take turns on uploading the decisions, but we can’t seem to pass a certain point. As for how or what we can improve, I would suggest that as individuals we must each continue to watch videos and practice and hopefully, we’ll get better at Capsim. Otherwise, from that, nothing else needs improvement.
As the weeks go by, the team has a better grasp of the simulations, which we all agree that was the most confusing part of the Team Project. We are communicating more often now that we better understand what the goal is.
The company immediately decided to change its strategy after the mistakes made in 2019. The company performed production audits and realized that there was plant capacity which was unnecessarily left. This analysis led the company to create a new strategy in 2020. Before transitioning to a new strategy, the company was struggling with profits, inventory, contribution margins, and other ratios. In order to recover quickly and perform better, the company decided to sell its existing plant capacity. As the transition took place, the strategic move resulted in improvements in net profits, ROE, ROS, ROA and performed well in other categories. We are expecting the same result in 2021. We also initiated the production of a new product which we expect to perform well in the high-tech market. This will allow the company to designate a product for each low and high-tech companies, improving profits, and market shares. This strategy was able to help the company recover faster; the company knew that they immediately needed to select a permanent strategy in order to improve company’s performance consistently.
The company had to take a $119,748 worth emergency loan in order to facilitate company’s actions. After carefully going through all available numbers, the company realized that they made two wrong decisions. Those two wrong decisions are as follows:
Company’s pricing strategy: After going through the prices of the competitors, the company realized that the company has priced its products incorrectly. That is one of the major reasons behind company’s low contribution margin (products are less profitable).
Inventory Management: The company forecasted for more sales than occurred, leading to the product’s inventory to build. Excess inventory must be stored, where it remains in the warehouse, instead of being purchased by customers.
The emergency loan was caused by excess inventory in which we had adjusted selling off this inventory We must account for inventory carrying over when setting our production schedule. Our priority should be to try and sell off excess inventory of the product where possible. Regardless of the cause, we kept a close eye on closing cash positions. Projected closing cash positions is a great indicator of emergency loans, but they depend on how accurately we have forecasted. In most cases, forecasting is an extremely difficult task. So, having a small buffer of cash can help avoid future emergency loans.
The company also has cash from Current Debt Borrowing, which means it is a short-term debt. The company is making enough profits to pay off this debt in one payment. At the same time, using these debts have helped increase our net income in comparison to Chester, Erie, and Baldwin. Making Digby our most high-ranking sales position coming in with $224,564 of net income. Chester has sales of common stock of $2,000 but Digby has the upper hand with $3,600 while the rest of the teams are at $0. The long-term debt that has been issued is under Digby for about $6,163 and another $3,000 on Chester, which will retire in the next round, hoping not to borrow Emergency Loan money.
Overall the report so far is as follows.
For sales: The industry average for Sales was $122,640. 4 out of 6 teams earned stars. The top Sales performer was Digby: $224,564. The bottom Sales performer was Ferris: $18,312.
Team Andrews sales were $105,526
Profit: The industry average for Profit was $21,763. 5 out of 6 teams earned stars. The top Profit performer was Digby: $42,883. The bottom Profit performer was Ferris: ($51).
Team Andrews Profits were $23,268
Contribution Margin: The industry average for Contribution Margin was 35.6%. 3 out of 6 teams earned stars. The top Contribution Margin performer was Digby: 43.0%. The bottom Contribution Margin performer was Ferris: 17.4%.
Team Andrews Contributions were 40.78%
Stock Price: The industry average for Stock Price was $88.22. 5 out of 6 teams earned stars. The top Stock Price performer was Digby: $135.87 The bottom Stock Price performer was Ferris: $27.78. Team Andrews Stock Price was $63.97
Emergency Loans: Team Andrews had Emergency Loans for:
Year 5: $118,328
Year 6: $50,328
Year 7: $31,181
With a gross total of $119,748 at the end of the simulation.
The team has been working hard in trying to change our strategy to have better outcomes and acquiring better numbers in upcoming rounds. The company is already seeing positive changes and progress.
What must be updated since you originally created that document? What have you learned?
There is not too much that team Andrews would change to achieve our deliverables of the project as well as our CAPSIM simulations. As stated in our team charter though, everyone has picked up additional tasks during that time and those that were occupied elsewhere have stepped up to do more than average work the following week. During our weekly meetings there is a great deal of discussions that take place allowing some to answer questions about why we are making the decisions we are for the company and then it is a group effort to answers those questions. Our overall project is progressing a bit slower than the simulations as we continue to struggle to find solid statistics for the sensors we discovered. We are all working to build that information for the end project.
We wanted to provide the sensor industry with premium products. Therefore, we wanted to create a brand focused on premium products by focusing to serve high tech customers. This means we would be creating 1 updated product at the end of each year. This was to meet high-tech customer demands. Also, our products must keep in pace with the market in order to capture the high-tech market segment. By playing around in the simulation we did not change our focus target segment, but we kept on playing with developing R&D, marketing, production as well as finances.
Porter’s Generic Strategy: Which strategy did your team choose initially, and how did it change as the course moved on?
We adapted Niche Differentiation strategy, which allowed us to particularly focus on High tech customers segment. This allowed us to gain a competitive edge by distinguishing our products to be most updates, fresh, high quality, high awareness, as well as high accessibility. We have developed our R&D such that we are able to come out with a new product at the end of each year, which helped keeping our design fresh and kept our customers excited in buying our products. We tried to focus more on reducing the size and improving performance so that we can perform well on the R&D of our products. We priced our products higher than average. We gradually kept increasing our prices when we came out with an updated product. We gradually changed the capacity with increasing demand during each of our competition rounds. We tried creating a brand with premium products and we are going to ace it.
Target Market: Which of the two market segments did your team choose initially, and what has happened since?
We did not try to focus more on being present on every segment. We tried to focus on High tech customer segment, which is very famous for electronic industry. Since we are focused on creating sensors, we focused and targeted high-tech customers. High tech customer segment demands products with high quality design and must be produced new and fresh every year and this is how we choose on selling to high tech customers. We priced our products higher than average, but our targeted segment was ready to pay us the price for each updated product we produced. To meet their expectations, we spent more on promotions and sales budgets and increased our chances on automation by lowering our production costs.
Project Plan: How did your team do hit the milestones? What had to be added or should have been added? Did any specific project management skills help in this area?
Our team is performing and coordinating well enough for us to get through the class simulations as well as the course project work. We designed our communication plan and worked on our project more wisely. These steps would help build project proposals, initial request analysis that will determine our business’ team meetings, which helped the team keep updated through group texting as well as WebEx meetings.
Project management is all about working in teams. Our team working skills are above and beyond everyone, which will help us win the competition rounds as well as ace the course.
Conflict Management Plan: Give examples of how this worked for your team.
The team continues to impress me with their dedication and problem-solving skills. Francis is an excellent organizer and communicator, Paul is always willing to take on additional tasks, and Marc is very positive and enthusiastic that he motivates the whole team.
Member misses a meeting – Take minutes. documented for their review. We did this for our team members in case they missed a meeting.
Member does not complete work on time – Other members takes on their task, while the member missing will take on additional tasks the following week.
Member has an unavoidable emergency that delays work- The remaining members team up to complete the task.
How will you resolve minor disagreements? We set up a team meeting to discuss and resolve any conflicts.
Team Rules: Share the team rules and explain how they helped your team.
We decided to do the simulations in our team meetings, which helped us perform well and bring solutions for doubts we had on the simulations as well as competition rounds.
We focused more on weekly communication so that none of our team members is held back in any portion of the course, whether it be discussion threads, simulations, project milestones, or competition rounds.
Team leader monitors our individual performances and notifies each other with any issues or concerns, helping us win as a team. This is how we focus in succeeding as a team in class.
As stated in our team charter, others have picked up additional tasks during that time and those that were occupied elsewhere have stepped up to do more than average work the following week.
Ethics: How has your team adhered to ethical principles?
As stated in our team charter, our team is committed to upholding ethical business practices and operating with integrity when it comes to the work submitted for this course by the group. Responsibilities will be divided equally; we will support each other when necessary. Communication will be effective, efficient and constructive, while being delivered in a positive manner. All work submitted will be original unless properly cited. Decisions will be made with equal input and in a voting manner, if an immediate decision needs to be made, the group leader will intersect the discussion to complete.
Andrews will use the SWOT Model to analyze the company strategies.
Cost leadership on traditional and low-end market segments.
As determined by the market structure, the two market segments taking up the most percentage of market shares are traditional and low-end. Thus, in the first and second year, Andrews’ focus is on the fast penetration of such segments through lowering down variable costs and increasing degree of automation. The cost-focusing strategy allows Andrews to capture second most market shares in the traditional and low-end markets, which in turn enables us to have more capital to invest in R&D in high-end, and performance segments in future years when the growth rate for these two segments advances.
Demand forecasting and swift adjustment to capacity and production
Capacity has come to Andrews notice that demand forecasting could help the company produce the accurate number of products to satisfy demands from different market segments, so managers can have the ability to capture growth opportunities with enough inventory. Demand forecasting is also key to ensure smooth cash flow as Andrews’ can unlock cash that would be otherwise tied up in excess stock resulting from overproduction. Another critical focus is on Andrews’ capability to adjust swiftly to customer demand. As the market share across different segments are not fixed, the total industry unit demands are changing from year to year. Hence, keeping a close watch on the market condition and having the ability to change swiftly, enable the company to adjust capacity and production levels promptly to better serve customer demand.
Management on ROE and ROA
Return on equity (ROE) and return on asset (ROA) are two major indicators to measure company’s profitability and efficiency in using assets. In order to improve both ROE and ROA, we focus on improving sales margins, offering dividends to shareholders, increasing leverage for the company. The benefits of offering dividends is to boost shareholders’ trust and confidence, which in turn increases share value and market capitalization, as well as to serve as a means to distribute the idle cash to maximize ROE and ROA.
We also have tight control on taking loans, especially to the issuance of emergency loans, which could have a negative impact on our cash flow. Our strategy is to take long-term loans in the first few rounds to ensure enough working capital for expanding capacity, automation and raising the sales budget to increase market recognition from potential consumers. Yet we carefully measure the leverage ratio to ensure our company is not over leveraged and thus becomes too risky to meet immediate financial obligations.
Product differentiation and diversification
The high-end and size market segments become growing more prominent in the market structure. Instead of concentrating heavily on price, the underlying factors contributing to the consumers’ buying criteria include product positioning and reliability. Hence, the practice of continuing one-size-for-all undifferentiated strategy and product development is unfit for us to capture the new demands from these nonprice-sensitive segments. Against this background, we adopt product differentiation strategy in a bid to create differentiated products to target at different market segments shaped by distinctive consumer requirements.
Additionally, we strive to diversify our products within the same market segment in order to maximize market share and capture consumers by brand diversification. The most noticeable advantage of having multiple brands within the same segment as it can increase brand exposure and appeal to different buying motives.
Porter’s Five Forces Model
Team Andrews customized version of Porter’s Five Forces model (MindTools, n.d.) with significant application for the purpose of internal competition analysis. However, the sensor industry is an oligopolistic area, industry monopoly, which means that there are no new entrants and external replacements that may threaten Andrew. On the other hand, every company has their own plan of R&D, which means each product has their own characteristic in different companies. This will indicate the bargaining power of the suppliers is low. Due to the characteristic of high-end production, the power of customers is higher than others. Additionally, the internal rivals of threat are high.
What strategic planning recommendations would you make and why?
For the strategic plan, the perfect recommendations are likely required to be made for deciding the specific annual objectives and policies. The companies follow several paths to formulate better strategies so that they can sustain economically longer. The organization is required to set correct objectives for interpreting organizational goals. The objective is the sequential map that is necessary to be correctly decided, as based on the objectives the strategies of work conduction are depending. Therefore, to lead the strategic process for any plan it is necessary to define the objective correctly.
These policies are also an important part of the organization’s strategic plan as the policies are the companies’ guidelines or it can be said rules and regulations that hold the organization to maintain their portfolio to work ethically. To complete the strategic plan, policies boost the organization to maintain a working framework and keep the correct track of work that helps the organization to obtain the positive outcome in terms of growth and development.
Strategy reviews and evaluations are an important process for measuring the correct formulation in the strategic plan. Suppose an organization is working on a defined strategic plan, through its formulation the organization is leading the day to day processes. It is necessary to make a review on the process as the strategy may require any alterations in its design so that a better structure can be implemented. Monitoring or reviewing the strategy may lead to obtaining any flaws that may cause threats to the organization in the future. Therefore, reviewing the strategy that is working on the organizational process is recommended.
The strategic plans of evaluations are necessary to ease future welcoming of critical moments in the organization. These evaluations are based on the following aspects:
Achieved goals as per the organizational needs
Fulfillment of the customer’s needs
Updated the standard as per the market innovation
Monitoring competitors perception value in the market
Observing the growing capabilities and the decline rate
The above evaluations listed are necessary for the correct enabling of strategic plans so the process and work standards can be maintained successfully.
(2016). Intro to Business: A Primer Companion text to Capsim Core Business Simulation edition 1. Retrieved from: http://ww3.capsim.com/PDF/CapsimCoreBusinessPrimer.pdf (Links to an external site.
Opioid physical dependence develops quickly, and abrupt discontinuation may cause signs and
symptoms such as loss of appetite, anxiety, craving, increased blood pressure and heart rate,
nausea, vomiting, and muscle spasms. sweating, chills, sighs, body pain, diarrhoea, rhinorrhea,
and lacrimation. Opioids include both prescription painkillers Vicodin and OxyContin and the
illicit drug heroin. Signs of opioid abuse include overall sedation, memory issues, inability to
concentrate, slowed reaction times, lethargy and mood swings.
Diagnosis
Respiratory depression is the result of opioid toxicity, and supportive care to restore ventilation
and oxygenation is the cornerstone of patient management. Opioid toxicity can be treated with
the competitive m-opioid receptor antagonist naloxone
Conclusion
When patients are being considered for opioid medication, including before surgery, they should
be screened for substance abuse, depression, and other psychiatric disorders. One or more
individuals on the sports medicine team may make decisions pertaining to the management of
OTC and prescription medications in the sports medicine facility. Written policies and
procedures will demonstrate that due diligence was exercised to involve and educate all
concerned parties, and that all personnel have established guidelines to reference when managing
medication in the sports medicine setting. Prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) are
electronic databases created and overseen at the state level to collect data on opioids and other
controlled substances as well as noncontrolled drugs with potential for abuse. Consistent practice
for appropriate screening, assessment, and prescribing for pain can be directed through
computerized prescriber order entry (CPOE), clinical decision support (CDS), pharmacy and
therapeutics committee–approved guidelines, and formulary restriction.
PICOT
Will healthcare providers (P) That attends educational programs on the assessment and
management of pain in injured athletes (I) lead to an increase of knowledge (O) over a six
month time period (T).
References
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Chang, C. J., Young, C. C., Weston, T., Ohkubo, M., Tedeschi, F., Higgs, J. D., … White, M. (2018). Inter-Association Consensus Statement: The Management of Medications by the Sports Medicine Team. Journal of Athletic Training (Allen Press), 53(11), 1103–1112. Retrieved from https://search-ebscohoscom.southuniversity.libproxy.edmc.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=134145157&site=eds-live
Cobaugh, D. J., Gainor, C., Gaston, C. L., Tai, I C. Kwong, Magnani, B., Mc Pherson, M. L., Krenelok, E. P. (2014). The opioid abuse and misuse epidemic: Implications for pharmacists in hospitals and health systems. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy, 71(18), 1539–1554. https://doi.org/10.2146/ajhp140157
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Fahrenheit 451 is an innovative story that dwells on the life of Guy Montag as the main character and is set in the 24th century. Critically, the novel clarifies how literature and books are illegal, and some firefighters have been hired to destroy the materials. Distinctively, Fahrenheit 451 reveals the disruptive nature of technology where individuals are exposed to digital media that does not help in self-improvement. Additionally, there is the depiction of dependency on technology where some characters foster emotional connections to television presenters at the expense of family members. The story progresses into the life of Guy Montag, who questions the morality of his profession as a firefighter when he sees the community being destroyed and deteriorating. As a result, the protagonist decides to transform where he focuses on the rebuilding of the society through the campaign for literature and culture as a rebel with the aspiration of promoting literacy. Among the compelling literary styles incorporated in Fahrenheit 451 is the depiction of various settings that enable the audience to understand the transformation in culture. Decisively, the change in setting affects symbolism and irony as fiction elements in the plot of the novel.
Change in setting is a literary element in Fahrenheit 451 that affects the development of the plot in the novel. Critically, the change in setting enables the author to establish three distinct sections through the life of Guy Montag in the novel. The first phase represents a time when literature and culture were prioritized in society. Also, the first phase showcased a time when literacy was a virtue in the community and individuals engaged in self-development initiatives. Decisively, the change in setting enables a transformation to the second phase, where there are directives intended to disrupt culture and literacy in society (Hwang 596). Under this context, the change in setting is masterfully used by the author to showcase the role of Guy Montag as a dutiful fireman who contributes to the elimination of literacy and culture.
Furthermore, the last stage is inducted by change in setting by the depiction of rebellion, where the protagonist in Fahrenheit 451 questions the immorality of the directives and decides to campaign for literature and culture. Hence, the integration of change in setting as a literary style enables the audience to appreciate the transformation in the plot as depicted by the characters (Hwang 596). Thus, change in setting becomes an essential literary style that provides a practical platform to support various themes such as symbolism and irony in Fahrenheit 451.
Distinctively, the change in setting has been used in Fahrenheit 451 to present an opportunity for the audience to understand the possibilities in the future. Notably, the conversation between Clarisse and Montag is a reflection of how there has been a significant transformation in the community (Bradbury 18). Similarly, the application of the change in setting reveals how the future is limited through censorship in literature, which makes books less attractive to people. As a result, it is possible for the audience to understand why media and technology have replaced literature in the future (Harrison 56). Additionally, the change in setting enables the reader to reflect on the adverse effects of technology in the community as showcased in Fahrenheit 451. Hence, the change in setting allows the practical description of the literature decline in Fahrenheit 451.
Symbolism is a major theme in Fahrenheit 451 that is supported through the change in setting. Notably, “The Hearth and the Salamander” is a title in the novel, which is a representation of symbolism. Distinctively, the title is a depiction of the life of the character in a changing world. From an analytical perspective, the salamander reveals the personality of Guy Montag, who has the capacity of surviving in a difficult situation without being damaged (Greenwood). Through, extrapolation, it is evident that the change in setting is a useful style used by the author that enables the audience to understand the relationship between the community and Guy Montag. Distinctively, by referring to the hearth and the salamander, the author elucidates the resilience in Guy Montag in a transformative society where culture and literature become forbidden. Hence, the use of changing the setting as a literary style enables the audience to understand the symbolism associated with the hearth and the salamander.
In addition, change in setting enables the definition of symbolism through the Phoenix. Distinctively, the Phoenix is a representation of constructive transformation that has to start with destruction. As in the Phoenix, there has to be destruction through fire to rise from the ashes. Critically, the Phoenix is a reflection of the life of Guy Montag, who had to take a destructive path before being reborn (Khan). The path taken by Guy Montag is a reflection of the fire that consumes the Phoenix before a constructive transformation. Afterward, Guy Montag acknowledges the error in his ways and decides to campaign for the establishment of culture by promoting literacy in society. Moreover, the change in setting presents a familiar background to the audience to correlate the Phoenix as a symbol of the life of Guy Montag. Hence, the incorporation of a change in setting enables the better use of symbolism as a literary style to enhance the understanding of the audience.
Irony is a significant theme in Fahrenheit 451 that is supported by a change in setting. Decisively, the change in setting enables the integration of irony as a literary style used to explain various circumstances in the novel. For example, the change in setting depicts irony associated with the actions of firefighters in the utopian society. Traditionally, firefighters are tasked with the responsibility of putting out fires and protecting property. However, the change in setting depicts irony, where firefighters in the utopian society have the obligation of burning books and starting fires to houses that contain literature (Gomez). The change in setting enables the illustration of irony through the life of firefighters in the story.
Similarly, change in the setting is used to reveal the situational irony encompassing the arrival of firefighters at the house of Montag. During the scene, Beatty explains to Montag that he has to destroy his books, as it was illegal to have them. However, Montag responds by killing Beatty to preserve literature (Lee 144). Critically, the change in setting allows a dynamic flow in the plot where the protagonist transforms from a dutiful servant to a rebel. Distinctively, the use of change in setting provides a platform to alter the plot where the focus is on Guy Montag as a rebel who works to promote the preservation of literature. The inclusion of the change in setting is instrumental in Fahrenheit 451 to support situational irony intended to alter the plot of the novel.
Likewise, change in setting is used to outline verbal irony in Fahrenheit 451 that reflects the harmful effect of technology in the utopian society. Verbal irony refers to a situation where the said words differ in meaning as to what was intended by the speaker. In the novel, Mildred explains that she has a deep affection for television presenters and goes the extra step of identifying them as family. However, through the change in setting, it is possible to outline the verbal irony associated with Mildred remarks, which significantly differ from her interaction with family members (Gomez). In reality, Mildred does not have a close connection with family members and disregards their welfare and well-being. Hence, the change in setting between television and real life is instrumental as it enhances the plot of the novel by displaying the harmful effects of technology on the characters.
In addition, change in setting is a literary style used to showcase dramatic irony in Fahrenheit 451. Dramatic irony refers to a situation where the audience has an understanding of an incident while characters remain oblivious. Critically, change in setting enables the depiction of dramatic irony in the plot where Mildred attempts to commit suicide by ingesting sleeping pills. After the intervention by doctors, Mildred is recuperated. However, Mildred does not remember the suicidal attempt and finds it difficult to accept the incident, as explained by Montag (Gomez). It is from this perspective that change in setting enables dramatic irony in this novel. Consequently, change in setting leads to an omniscient presence of the audience to understand happenings in the story despite ignorance from the characters.
Change in setting enforces irony and makes the plot more believable to the audience. Notably, Fahrenheit 451 is a story written in the 1950s when technology was limited. However, the incorporation of change in setting enables the audience to explore imagination and accept the possibility of big televisions and media (Thompson). Critically, the irony is vital in the novel as it enhances a different mentality where the audience evaluates the impact of technology in their lives. Hence, the incorporation of change in setting enables the establishment of a believable plot based on irony and imagination in Fahrenheit 451.
Conclusively, Fahrenheit 451 is an innovative novel that uses change in setting as a primary style to portray various themes. As discussed above, the novel envisions the transformation of a utopian society where literature and books become illegal. As a result, there is the hiring of firefighters to destroy books and literature houses. Distinctively, the change in setting facilitates the description of the life of Guy Montag as the main character before and after the transformation of the community. Critically, change in setting enables the audience to have a deep understanding of the three phases of transformations through the lives of the characters. Additionally, change in setting is instrumental in enforcing the impact of symbolism in the story. Distinctively the Phoenix and the salamander are symbols used to highlight the life of Guy Montag as he transforms from an antagonist to a protagonist who focuses on the preservation of literacy.. For example, the role of firefighters in the novel is altered, as they are responsible for starting fires rather than stopping them. Additionally, irony outlines the disruptive nature of technology where the characters such as Mildred value television characters more than family members. Hence, the utilization of change in setting allows the dynamic flow of the plot in the story through the transformation up to a point where literature and books become illegal in society.
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