Resource Management Act Essay

Relevant books and articles discussing tyre performance, tyre maintenance, social responsibility, marketing and the environment were analyzed. Different opinions of writers have also been examined to fully understand the subject of the study. Sources from the Internet have also been visited in order to take a look at forums and online databases that may include materials relevant to the topic at hand. These web pages would include official web pages of concerned agencies and offices in New Zealand. The relevant statutes and laws in New Zealand were also looked upon in determining the legal issues that may be touched by the implementation of the proposed subject. These laws would include the Treaty of Waitangi, Resource Management Act of 1991, the Bill of Rights 1993 and the Employment Relations Act 2000 as such. A survey was also conducted in order to appraise the possible reaction of consumers and to further evaluate the feasibility of the proposed project. The survey was also deemed necessary in order to discover how much the public knows about tyre maintenance and what additional information should be included and highlighted by the tyre shop in the program. Survey questionnaires were randomly distributed to a number of participants in the furtherance of the study. The participants were selected among friends, lectures, staffs and general publics. Fifty-three responds were received out of sixty-five distribution. Two versions of the survey were distributed; the paper and the electronic version. The electronic version was distributed via emails, and the paper version was handed out. Charts 1 and 2 illustrate the number and percentages of respondents and versions distributed, respectively. The questionnaires and the overall results are attached in Appendix D and the result will be further elaborated in the Findings in the next section. Questionnaires were selected as the data collection method for this study because it is convenient to disseminate, time-effective for respondents to fill out and provided anonymity. Questions could be answered in less than ten minutes and respondents could be honest and open with the tyre maintenance questions. Chart 1 Illustrate the Percentages of Distribution and Responds of the Questionnaire Most questions were geared toward measuring how a tyre awareness program must be designed to effectively meet the car owner’s requirements. This provides the best possible information for program design based on the descriptive data. Questionnaires involve individual questions such as identification and background characteristics (Morris, 2004). The questionnaire was created as a short form of information gathering about the awareness of vehicle owners regarding tyre maintenance and their frequency of tyre maintenance. The Participants Information Sheet informed the respondents of a brief background of the research and assurance of their confidentiality. It presented to the respondents the importance of providing a balance between business and social responsibility through the facilitation, education and information given for the customers and the general public. It also presented the objective of implementing a tyre maintenance awareness program. Respondents were chosen according to the important qualification of being vehicle owners. The respondents needed to own a vehicle because they were the ones who were targeted to benefit from the tyre maintenance awareness program. However, since the survey was randomly distributed therefore there were no way of knowing in the first place whether they are car owners, thus the result includes the responds from non-car owners. Out of 53 respondents three were non-car owner but does frequently drive a car. Respondents were also asked basic nominal information such as their age and gender. The questionnaire for this study focused on the respondents’ awareness of tyre maintenance and their potential acceptance of a tyre maintenance awareness program. The purpose of the questions revolved around planning to introduce this program under the impetus of social responsibility. The data collection method deliberately asked whether respondents were car owners to selectively target those who held the responsibility of maintaining their vehicles. The questions involved the frequency of tyre maintenance practiced by the respondents. Car owner manual use distance traveled rather than periods of time to calculate the frequency. However, the questionnaire uses period of time which better reflects real world car owner experience. This was attributed to the convenience this type of monitoring would bring for the public, as it is assumed easier to remember dates than distance traveled. Investigating the awareness of tyre maintenance included whether the respondents had looked into the owner’s manual of their vehicle. Important information about tyre maintenance is located in the manual and it is important to check if the respondents’ awareness was related to their familiarity with the owner’s manual. Also, asking this question reveals if manuals, if in fact read, provide sufficient information for proper tyre maintenance. The questionnaire also considered the practical question of the convenience of maintenance awareness programs. It considers whether customers would prefer such a program while they were waiting for their tyre service to be done. However, this approach tends to only target people who regularly had their tyres maintained. This question gauges how much time car owners were willing to spend in attending tyre awareness programs. The questionnaire also explores the awareness of car owners regarding their tyres’ life expectancy and measures owner awareness of their tyres. Such questions prompt owners to consider the necessity for a tyre maintenance program. Visits to tyre shops and garages were also conducted (how chosen and how many? ) in order to know if the proposed program can ac in order to know if the proposed program can actually be implemented. The current status of tyre shops were also observed and where appropriate and ethical questions were also asked, in order to determine if currently, these shops are actually imparting information to their customers as regards to tyre maintenance and the important advantages of regularly maintaining their tyres. The shops or garages visited were also randomly chosen, specifically those around the Auckland Central due their locations as the centre of the research, hence to the convenient and due to the availability of variety of sizes, that is this area have small garages and larger garages. A total of 13 tyre shops and garages were visited. Also during oversea visit due to available opportunity visits were also conducted to some garages to observe the set up and available services. The Industry visits (Observation) and the overall findings are attached in Appendix E and the result will be further elaborated in the Findings in the next section. Lastly, visits were also made as regards enterprises engaged in the sale of goods of services that will be needed by the tyre shop in the marketing and implementation of the program in order to take note of prevailing market rates, and ultimately, in computing the estimated cost that would have to be shouldered by the tyre shop in the course of the marketing and implementation of the program.