Caterpillar Tractor Co. was founded in 1925. After WWI, its first European base was set up in Great Britain. This was the first of a long series of expansion in Europe and abroad to help manage foreign exchange shortages, tariffs, import controls and better serve customers around the world. In 1931, the company created a separate engine sales group to market diesel engines to other equipment manufacturers. This group was replaced in 1953 with a separate sales an marketing division to better serve the needs of a broad range of engine customers. Engine sales now account for approximately one-third of the company's total sales and revenue. In 1963 the United States company signed a joint venture with the Japanese Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. Caterpillar has managed to develop engines designed specifically for various applications, achieving considerable international success and widening its commercial horizons. Since 1985, the Caterpillar range of products has been widely diversified to meet the needs of a great variety of clients. Caterpillar has become one of the most impressive industrial giants on the international engine panorama. Working on different fronts, Caterpillar has over time developed engines for the nautical world, making its mark with reliable products, effective in terms of performance, weight and size1.
             The main focus of reviewing Caterpillar is to review the management of a global corporation. Globalization is forcing companies to rethink strategies, redesign organizations, seek new partnerships and open both minds and boundaries. Managers try to match competitive advantages of their global rivals by changes such as moving manufacturing offshore but few go beyond mere imitation and are trapped in an endless game of catch up. Regaining competitiveness may require rethinking competitor analysis through strategic intent. In 1970 Komatsu was small compared to their US rivals Caterpillar, but by beginning with ...