THE NCUK INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATION YEAR

IFYBS004 Business Studies

Exemplar Coursework

INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS

 This coursework is a take-home assessment.

 Essay length: 1,250 – 1,500 words (not including appendices/bibliography)
 There are 100 marks in total.
 This coursework contributes 20% to your overall final mark for your IFY Business
Studies
 All references should be acknowledged using the Harvard referencing system.

Exemplar CW © NCUK Ltd 2021 Page 1 of 3

Background

Brimore Engineering (BE) is a small engineering company located in the North East of
England. It is a private limited company which has been owned by the Brimore family since
1987.

The current Board of Directors has five directors. Three of these directors are sons of the
original founder of the company, Bob Brimore. Although Bob is no longer on the Board and
takes no active role in the management of BE, he still retains 30% of the ordinary shares
in the business. His three sons each have a 15% shareholding, with the remaining 25%
owned by two non-family directors who invested £1 million in the business in 2014 when
the business had suffered its third consecutive year of making a loss. The capital provided
by these two investors was used to invest in the latest production technology which
reduced the size of the workforce by 20% and, by 2014, BE was once again a profitable
business.

However, although the company has remained profitable since 2016 there is some concern
among the current directors about financial performance of Brimore in more recent years.
(See Table 1).

Table 1: Extracts from BE’s Financial Statements for 2019-21

2020 2021
£m £m
Capital Employed 1.6 2.0
Revenue 1.76 1.66
Gross Profit 1.39 1.28
Profit for year 0.62 0.51

Brimore produces parts such as catalytic converters, brake drums and drive shafts which
are used in the car industry. The Nissan car factory in Sunderland is Brimore’s largest
customer, accounting for 42% of all of its revenue. The market is very competitive.

At a recent Board meeting the Marketing Director highlighted the fall in sales of component
XT345 which has, up until recently, been one of Brimore’s most profitable products. “We
really need to review our product mix and work on a new marketing strategy to increase
sales and reverse the recent downward trend in profits”, she told the other members of
the Board.

Task

Prepare a report for Brimore’s Board of Directors which:

 Analyses the financial data provided in Table 1 and evaluates its usefulness to the
Directors of Brimore Ltd.
 Describes how Brimore could undertake an analysis of its product portfolio.
 Evaluates the methods of promotion Brimore’s senior management could use to
increase sales of its products to the car industry.

Exemplar CW © NCUK Ltd 2021 Page 2 of 3

Coursework Guidance

You should present your work using an appropriate business report format. It is
recommended that you write between 1,250 – 1,500 words excluding bibliography and
appendices.

You will be assessed for this coursework task using the NCUK Assessment Criteria. You
must provide evidence of the following skills:

 Knowledge and understanding

 Application
 Analysis
 Evaluation
 Study skills – report format, clear and accurate referencing, using reliable sources.
A comprehensive bibliography.

Exemplar CW © NCUK Ltd 2021 Page 3 of 3