Physical and technological resources
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The document explains the importance of physical and technological resources for businesses, detailing their classifications and applications. It highlights key physical resources such as buildings, materials, and machinery, as well as technological resources like software and intellectual property, emphasizing how companies like Tesco utilize and manage these resources effectively. Additionally, it covers the necessity of maintenance, insurance, security, and emergency provisions to ensure smooth operations and safety.
Physical and technological resources
- 1. Unit 2 Assignment 2 Lewis Appleton 1 Mr McColgan Introduction I am going to give an explanation on what physical and technological resources are and how they are applied to businesses; I will be explaining in detail what these types of resources are and the main types of them and how they are going to be used. Physical resources Physical resources are what a business needs to be able to operate and carry out its work. Without physical resources a business will not be able to pay the running costs and will also not be able to recruit employees. They are split into many sub- categories which are; Buildings and facilities Materials and waste Plant and machinery Equipment including IT Planned maintenance and refurbishment Emergency provision Insurance Security Technological resources The technological resources are things such as computer hardware, they are also other things such as computer monitors, modems and routers, but these resources go beyond this, and there are things such as software, music and text. These resources need to be managed. There are four main areas that the resources can be allocated in. These types of technological resources are; Intellectual property Accumulated experience and skills Software licenses Protection via patents and copyright Physical resources Buildings and facilities Businesses will need a place from what they can operate from; this can range from anything as small as a home which will probably be when the business starts its operations to having large offices around the world. It is the buildings that can give the potential to have customers recognise them and want to be associated with the business. It is also important for the business to have facilities in places that have a large amount of visitors such as in London. It is important for the business to have its
- 2. Unit 2 Assignment 2 Lewis Appleton 2 Mr McColgan facilities arranged on the interior so that the customers are able to get the service from the correct part of the business. Some businesses such as those who are a large online business do not have many facilities because they are not necessary to try and attract customers; an example of this is Amazon because the customers are not trying to see what goes on in there. Businesses need to make sure that their facilities are in places that are accessible to the public and may need to make sure that it is visible, such as in a clear area or they may also be in among other competitors to try to stand out. Tesco Tesco will use the buildings and facilities to make sure that their business runs efficiently. They need to make sure they have enough buildings for all of their different requirements; they will need to make sure that their excess supplies are stored in warehouses and are kept secure to avoid the business losing valuable resources. They will also need to make sure that their different stores are kept safe because they will be used for the transactions of selling supplies to the customers. Tesco may also have facilities that produce their own products because this would reduce the costs of expenditure that the business has to pay. Tesco also needs to make sure that their buildings are in the correct locations, they may want their warehouses to be in secure locations hidden away from the public and they may want to make sure that their stores are accessible to the local community by building it in open space. Materials and waste Businesses will need materials to be able to operate, this will depend on the type of their operation it runs, the services or products it provides and what the group of employees are expected to do. A business that deals with cars may need to have materials such as steel and paints. Another business that has to do office work will need to make sure that their employees are given the correct equipment to work with, they will need computers and stationary to operate so the business will need to provide these to the employees. Businesses have to decide whether to use renewable resources such as paper, where trees can be replanted to get more, or they can use resources that are not renewable such as oil. Businesses may decide to be slightly scarce on the amount of supplies they provide so that they can keep down the costs of operating. Businesses also have to get rid of their waste, so other agencies such as the council will have to co-operate with the business. The government helps businesses get rid of waste by funding the Envirowise campaign which gives tips on how to dispose of the waste because the government find that it is important for the environment to be healthy. Tesco Tesco will need to make sure that all of their stores have the right amount of their products in the store to keep up with the demand of the customers buying them. In the warehouses Tesco will need to make sure that they have the materials stored in a format where they are easily accessible so they can be made into the products being sold. Within the business Tesco may decide to reduce the amount that they spent and use renewable resources, this way they will also be helping the environment, another way they may reduce the costs is by giving their employees a
- 3. Unit 2 Assignment 2 Lewis Appleton 3 Mr McColgan limited amount of supplies to work with. Tesco also needs to get rid of their waste and therefore may ask the government to help them with this; the Envirowise Campaign can offer advice on how Tesco can get rid of their waste. Plant and machinery Businesses have certain requirements for plants and machinery. Businesses that need to make their own products may have to have their own factories to be able to create them. It will need to pay high costs to create its products but they will be created in bulk supply and can be more beneficial to the business. Businesses may also need machinery to operate for example a business that has warehouses may need to have motorised vehicles to import and export the supplies and they may also need forklifts to move around the warehouse to transport large objects. For some businesses it may be cheaper for them to lease the machinery as they will save money in the short term but if they need the machinery for a long time it may be more cost effective in the long term to purchase the machinery. Tesco Tesco will need to make sure that they have plants to create their products, because they have their own brand of products made by them they will need to make sure they have the correct machinery to produce their products. To produce these supplies the business may need to lease the machinery instead of buying it, this is because it will mean they will not have to pay as much and it becomes cost effective in the short term, but in the long term it would be more cost effective to buy the machinery. Some of the machinery that Tesco will need can include motorised vehicles to transport the items around their warehouses. Equipment including IT It is important for businesses to have the correct equipment to be able to operate efficiently. An example is that equipment may be needed to measure the attendance of the employees and what time they arrive and for this they may need a computer system that is linked to a few computers or a staff login systemmay be used on the businesses website (if they have one). Equipment is required in some businesses more importantly because will increase the efficiency rate, for example a business may need to transport supplies around and without the right equipment the business may not be able to carry out that service. Other businesses may also need certain programs on their computers such as software and they may need to be spread across many computers. The use of computer programs can also enhance the efficiency that the business works at. Tesco Tesco will need to make sure that in their corporate offices that they have equipment for the employees to use, this equipment includes basic office equipment; a computer, paper and pens. This is what will be needed for the basic operations of the business. Some equipment such as servers may be needed within the offices as well to make sure that all of the employees are able to store their work on one database, the business may also need specialist software that applies to their operations to make sure that the employees are able to conduct their work.
- 4. Unit 2 Assignment 2 Lewis Appleton 4 Mr McColgan Planned maintenance and refurbishment The buildings, plants and machinery that the businesses have need to be regularly maintained so that it is kept up to date and meets the safety checks. Even when businesses use the factories that use flow production need to make sure that there is time allocated to check the machinery and check that it is safe to run, if necessary they will need to make some minor adjustments. If the business does not carry out regular maintenance then the machines may break down and therefore the business will lose production levels and they will therefore lose profits. Sometimes the business may need to refurbish to make sure that the new resources that the business uses are eco-friendly or may save energy. Tesco Tesco will need to make sure that they supervise the people responsible for the use of machinery; their machinery will need to be regularly maintained to make sure that they are safe to use and to prevent them from breaking down. Tesco may decide to refurbish their facilities to make sure that the workspace keeps the employees comfortable, in places such as their stores they may also refurbish the place to make the customers feel more welcomed by the business and this can encourage them to purchase the products that Tesco is selling. Emergency provision Policies and provisions need to be drawn up to make sure that if an event was going to happen that would cause the workplace to be unsafe that it will provide regulations for what actions need to be taken. One of the things that the business will need to do is regularly train their staff to deal with these events and to do this they will need to regularly do evacuation training and the instructions will need to be clear for the employees. Such emergencies may be fires or other incidents within the business workspace. The business also needs to provide equipment such as file alarms that will be able to detect fires, fire escapes for quick exits from the workspace and fire extinguishers. The equipment that the business uses will need to be regularly checked to make sure it meets the health and safety specifications. The employees will also need to be aware that they will need to notify their employees if an incident was to happen so that they can be dealt with more safely and faster. The employers also have to take note of the safety of the customers and visitors within the business area and they become a high priority. Tesco Tesco will need to make sure that they give priority to their customers when in a bad situation. Tesco will need to make sure that they have provisions drawn up to tell their employees what to do when there is an emergency. To make sure these provisions work they will also need to make sure that they regularly do practice drills otherwise the employees may fail when such an emergency actually happens. Tesco will need to provide fire exits to the employees and other people using the area. Tesco needs to make sure that they check their equipment to ensure that it is safe, they may also decide to provide fire extinguishers, the employees need to make sure that any event of an emergency happening or being likely to happen needs to be reported to the employers.
- 5. Unit 2 Assignment 2 Lewis Appleton 5 Mr McColgan Insurance The business will need to make sure that all of their buildings are insured, if the business owns the building then the business will arrange the insurance itself, but if they are leasing the business, the landlord will arrange the insurance instead. Fees are paid monthly in return for the protection that the business is purchasing and it will protect them against certain events that may occur. The building will need to be protected against natural disasters such as floods, fires, earthquakes or storms that damage the building and its contents, any damage to the equipment inside the building, any theft of equipment, vandalism of the building and its contents, leaking pipes, and collision by vehicles to the building. Depending on the policy that the business takes out will determine the amount that will need to be paid and the type of coverage that the business gets from the policy. Businesses will also need to have other types of insurance. Businesses have to make sure that they have employers’ liability insurance because they need to have this to follow the law. In the event of employees suffering from accidental death, bodily injuries or a disease, the employer will have to pay the employee or their family. Public liability insurance must be received by the employers to cover the costs that will need to be paid out if the public have either injuries or damaged property due to the actions that the business has made. The business can also take out other types of insurance such as product liability insurance, professional indemnity insurance and others. Some businesses may need to turn to financial advisers to help choose the right policies for the business. Tesco Tesco will need to make sure that they insure everything that they can. They will first of all need to make sure that their buildings are insured because they are the most expensive assets that the business will have. Tesco will also need to make sure that their vehicles and equipment are insured. If Tesco didn’t have insurance then they will be at risk of losing large cash values. Tesco will also need to make sure that their employees are insured against un-expectantly losing their job. Tesco have a large amount of resources that they need to insure such as buildings, machinery and their staff. Security The buildings that the businesses own need to be secured. Some businesses may choose to employ full-time security staff to keep a patrol of the building and for this they may sometimes use dogs. Other businesses will use Closed Caption Television cameras with alarms which are linked to the police station. For businesses there are now many schemes that are available for them to use, the organisations can give the business advice on how to improve the security of their buildings and their contents which can include using new equipment such as safes, secure doors and reducing the amount of supplies they keep inside the building. Tesco Tesco will need to make sure that they secure their assets. They will need alarms and cameras to keep surveillance on the buildings. Tesco need to make sure that they have people employed to survey these cameras and they also may choose to employ
- 6. Unit 2 Assignment 2 Lewis Appleton 6 Mr McColgan full-time security staff. There are schemes that Tesco can use to get advice on what they need to do. Technological resources Technological resources are those that are not in a physical form but can be in the form of software and experience. Intellectual property The intellectual property rights are what allow the people to have their ideas heard on what they think about the business and how it can improve. They are also able to know what happens to their ideas, such as how regularly they are going to be used, the things that they are associated with and if there is permissions to copy. There are five different types of intellectual property. The designs cover the decorations of the products and the features it may have. The drawings cover the designing of the product. The text covers the font styles, and the data that is written. The music covers the use of the music such as whether it is available to be reused. The video covers the use of the video clips and the protection against it being reused. Tesco Tesco will use intellectual property to make sure that everyone within the business gets their ideas heard, this way the business will be able to adjust their operations to make sure that first of all, all the employees are kept satisfied, secondly that all the sales will be rising and finally that the customers feel comfortable with the changes. They will need to make sure that only certain people can use these ideas and what they are able to be used for. Accumulatedexperience and skills The accumulated experience is what people have gained over years of working. This can mean that employers can look for difficult situations the person has been in and how they have combatted the events. Employees with more experience are likely to better than new employees. Therefore these employees may have special conditions to work in or have a better rate of pay. In businesses they need to make sure that they give their employees development of skills but they need to make sure that there are enough people with the skills to carry out the operations of the business. Having one or two people with the skills to carry out something means that it will be difficult for the business to operate. Organisations also need to make sure that there are backup staff for the jobs so that they can cascade information. Tesco Tesco will try to make sure that the employees they already have are kept for as long as they are still making a good effort to help the business make profit. They will want to make sure that they train the employees so they can operate the different parts of the business. Tesco like to have experienced employees because they are able to do the work more efficiently than other employees. The business will also make sure they have enough employees trained to do the different jobs.
- 7. Unit 2 Assignment 2 Lewis Appleton 7 Mr McColgan Software licences There are many businesses that have to invest their money into specialist software programs so that they can operate properly. Sometimes this software is designed especially for the business, or they will use other software and it will need to be paid for with licence fees. An example of this is that the software such as word that many businesses will need to use will need to be paid for the licence fees to Microsoft. Licences may allow a certain amount of computers to have the software or it can mean that it can be on one site. Some employees may also have permission to use the software at home. If the licences required are not bought then the business is breaking the law. Businesses can save money by buying a site licence. Tesco Tesco will use software licences to make sure that all of their products are not stolen and sold illegally. Tesco will have to invest their money in specialist software that they can use in their corporate offices and from that they can work more efficiently, they will also be able to get teams to work together more compliant with this software. Tesco may have to buy software licences for things such as Word from Microsoft as this is a popular choice for many businesses. Protectionviapatents and copyright For businesses it can cost a sum of money to protect their technological resources. Businesses can use legislation to protect them but they will have to prove that their idea has been used unlawfully. Businesses can use a patent to stop their operations of work being copied and used without permission from the business. First they will have to make sure that they register their ideas with the UK Intellectual Property Office. Tesco Tesco can use their money to protect their technological resources, but they can also use legislation to protect their ideas that they have come up with and they will need to be able to prove that their idea has been used without permission. Tesco can use a patent to stop people or other businesses copying their line of work and to do this they will first need to register any ideas they have with the UK Intellectual Property Office.