From Steam To diesel Great incite into both technology Change and Marketing

[ontheBNSF]

 

I have been reading the book From Steam to Diesel: Managerial Customs and Organizational Capabilities in the Twentieth-Century American Locomotive Industry and while it does a good job of providing insight into how and why the Steam locomotive and GAS Engine were replaced by Diesel Engines and How the diesel locomotive came to be what it is today, but it also provides insight into how one can takeover a stabilized market with established players. By having some insight into how one can take over a stabilized market with established players and repeating what electro-motive Diesel and GE did with Diesel-electric locomotives with either a radically different product in either the locomotive market or in any market even in a consumer market. So to anyone who is skeptical about technical change or about the marketability of product must remember that a radically different product took over the market before and a radically different product can take over the market once again. I also liked book because it provided technical insight into the issue which was the replacing of steam locomotives with Diesel rather than just pictures or a romanticized and Visual insight

How does one take over a stabilized market that has a few set of established players

A product must be radically different aka it is has to be game changing. Not only that the product must bring improvement that would be hard to achieve both improvements and improvements not possible at all with with the previous generation product. It has to achieve something not before possible such as the massive savings in fuel efficiency and labor savings afforded by diesel locomotives.

The people developing the product must be dedicated to it and be willing accept losses knowing that eventually your radically different product will pay off handsomely.

The best company for building a radically different product is one that is very diversified and has many skills.

A company must be willing to provide knowledge about a product and train people in how it works. Said company should also provide good customer service knowing that while you might lose money doing so you gain in terms of customer trust

You must guarantee your product.

It also must be said with a new product and new possibilities so comes new customer needs.

That is in my opinion what is to be understood about the switch from others modes of motive power to Diesel