Sunrise Medical and the Quickie Wheelchair

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Journal of Business Case Studies – November/December 2012 Volume 8, Number 6 Sunrise Medical And The Quickie Wheelchair Lisa M. Houts, California State University, USA ABSTRACT This case profiles the Quickie Wheelchair, first developed by a group of entrepreneurs in Fresno, California and now manufactured by Sunrise Medical, the world’s leading manufacturer of customized lightweight wheelchairs. Topics such as strategy, product design, location planning, quality control, and just-in-time systems make this case suitable for use in a production and operations management course. Keywords: Lean Production; Just-In-Time; Operations Management; Entrepreneurship; Wheelchair THE QUICKIE WHEELCHAIR’S BEGINNING A fter Marilyn Hamilton was involved in a tragic hang-gliding accident in 1978, she suddenly found herself wheelchair bound. Weighing 50 pounds, her new steel and vinyl non-adjustable wheelchair was heavy and hard to maneuver. Hamilton, however, still wanted to pursue her love of sports and an active lifestyle. She thought that by using lightweight materials, like the aluminum tubing and nylon found in hang gliders, she could build a more responsive, high-performing chair. Two friends who had previously built hang gliders created her first new wheelchair, and they dubbed it the “Quickie”. Amazingly, in 1979, less than a year after her accident, Hamilton and her friends, Jim Okamoto and Don Helman, formed Motion Designs and started making and selling wheelchairs out of a shed in Fresno, California. Revolutionary design made the Quickie the first fully adjustable, ultra-light wheelchair available on the market. Weighing only 25 pounds, this colorful, customizable chair sold for $1,450. It was well-suited to the needs of its target market, typically 18-30 year-olds who had previously been active and who wanted to maintain an independent lifestyle. Soon a

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