Optical Distortion, Inc - Harvard Business Case
1) - What characteristics of the ODI contacts are likely to make it appealing/unappealing to chicken farmers
Characteristics of the product : new contact lenses for nonhuman application
• depth perception reduced to about 12"
• visual acuity greatly reduced (astigmatism)
• hydrophilic polymer : no irritation problem
• slightly larger than the eye opening to keep it in place
• red tint alters appetite of chickens and cannibalism tendencies
• distortion built into the crown
• inner eyelid (keeping the eye moist and clean) no affected (under the lens)
(+) Cannibalism reduced : Peck order removed
• 80% of chicken in 3% of farms with 10,000 or more chickens : chicken are confined in groups
• Hierarchical type of social organization (dominant vs submissive chickens)
• Pecking behavior o Cannibalism (loss to the farmer when a bird is killed) o Fewer eggs produced : Submissive birds devote less time at the feeding through o Pecking increases for the most productive chicken and when they are confined
• Main visual cues for the peck order removed : cannibalism reduced
(+) A better process than debeaking : Less trauma, more eggs
• Debeaking process o Does not interfere with the peck order but reduces cannibalism (25% to 9%) o Trauma resulting in a temporary weight loss and retardation of egg production o 7.50$/hour for 220 birds
• Lenses process o Flock mortality reduced to 4.5% when contact lenses used instead of debeaking o No trauma, no weight losses, no reduction in egg production o 225 chickens per hour
(+) Possibility to reduce the farmer's feed cost, greater feeding efficiency
• Debeaked chicken could eat only if feed > 3/8" deep
• Significant savings in feed if the depth of feed is reduced
• Contact lenses enable a farmer to reduce the depth of the feed
(+/-) The price : 20$ per box of 250 pairs : 0.08$ per pair
(-) No possibility to reuse contact lenses
• difficult to take out
• melting point very close to the sterilization
Characteristics of the product : new contact lenses for nonhuman application
• depth perception reduced to about 12"
• visual acuity greatly reduced (astigmatism)
• hydrophilic polymer : no irritation problem
• slightly larger than the eye opening to keep it in place
• red tint alters appetite of chickens and cannibalism tendencies
• distortion built into the crown
• inner eyelid (keeping the eye moist and clean) no affected (under the lens)
(+) Cannibalism reduced : Peck order removed
• 80% of chicken in 3% of farms with 10,000 or more chickens : chicken are confined in groups
• Hierarchical type of social organization (dominant vs submissive chickens)
• Pecking behavior o Cannibalism (loss to the farmer when a bird is killed) o Fewer eggs produced : Submissive birds devote less time at the feeding through o Pecking increases for the most productive chicken and when they are confined
• Main visual cues for the peck order removed : cannibalism reduced
(+) A better process than debeaking : Less trauma, more eggs
• Debeaking process o Does not interfere with the peck order but reduces cannibalism (25% to 9%) o Trauma resulting in a temporary weight loss and retardation of egg production o 7.50$/hour for 220 birds
• Lenses process o Flock mortality reduced to 4.5% when contact lenses used instead of debeaking o No trauma, no weight losses, no reduction in egg production o 225 chickens per hour
(+) Possibility to reduce the farmer's feed cost, greater feeding efficiency
• Debeaked chicken could eat only if feed > 3/8" deep
• Significant savings in feed if the depth of feed is reduced
• Contact lenses enable a farmer to reduce the depth of the feed
(+/-) The price : 20$ per box of 250 pairs : 0.08$ per pair
(-) No possibility to reuse contact lenses
• difficult to take out
• melting point very close to the sterilization