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How to Use This
Book
The two primary sections
of this book are devoted first to the engineering and research
industry as a whole and then to the “Individual Data Listings”
for THE ENGINEERING & RESEARCH 375. If
time permits, you should begin your research in the front chapters
of this book. Also, you will find lengthy indexes in Chapter
4 and in the back of the book.
THE ENGINEERING AND RESEARCH INDUSTRY
Glossary: A short list of engineering
and research terms.
Chapter 1: Major Trends
Affecting the Engineering & Research Industry.
This chapter presents an encapsulated view of the major trends
that are creating rapid changes in the engineering and research
industry today.
Chapter 2: Engineering & Research
Industry Statistics. This chapter presents in-depth
statistics ranging from an industry overview to national research
expenditures, patents and much more.
Chapter 3: Important Engineering
& Research Industry Contacts – Addresses, Telephone
Numbers and World Wide Web Sites. This chapter covers
contacts for important government agencies, restaurant organizations
and trade groups. Included are numerous important World Wide
Web sites.
THE ENGINEERING & RESEARCH 375
Chapter 4: THE ENGINEERING & RESEARCH
375: Who They Are and How They Were Chosen.
The companies compared in this book (the actual count is 385)
were carefully selected from the engineering and research
industry, largely in the United States. 158 of the firms are
based outside the U.S. For a complete description, see THE
ENGINEERING & RESEARCH 375 indexes in this chapter.
Individual Data Listings: Look at one of
the companies in THE ENGINEERING & RESEARCH 375’s
Individual Data Listings. You’ll find the following
information fields:
Company Name: The company profiles are in
alphabetical order by company name. If you don’t find
the company you are seeking, it may be a subsidiary or division
of one of the firms covered in this book. Try looking it up
in the Index by Subsidiaries, Brand Names and Selected Affiliations
in the back of the book.
Ranks:
Industry Group Code: An NAIC code used to
group companies within like segments. (See Chapter 4 for a
list of codes.)
Ranks Within This Company's Industry Group: Ranks,
within this firm's segment only, for annual sales and annual
profits, with 1 being the highest rank.
Business Activities: A grid arranged into
five major industry categories and several sub-categories.
A "Y" indicates that the firm operates within the
sub-category. A complete Index by Industry is included in
the beginning of Chapter 4.
Types of Business: A listing of the primary
types of business specialties conducted by the firm.
Brands/Divisions/Affiliations: Major brand
names, operating divisions or subsidiaries of the firm, as
well as major corporate affiliations - such as another firm
that owns a significant portion of the company's stock. A
complete Index by Subsidiaries, Brand Names and Selected Affiliations
is in the back of the book.
Contacts: The names and titles up to 27 top
officers of the company are listed, including human resources
contacts.
Address: The firm's full headquarters address,
the headquarters telephone, plus toll-free and fax numbers
where available. Also provided is the World Wide Web site
address.
Financials:
Annual Sales (2004 or the latest fiscal year available
to the editors, plus up to four previous years):
These are stated in thousands of dollars (add three zeros
if you want the full number). This figure represents consolidated
worldwide sales from all operations. 2004 figures may be estimates
or may be for only part of the year—partial year figures
are appropriately footnoted.
Annual Profits (2004 or the latest fiscal
year available to the editors, plus up to four previous years):
These are stated in thousands of dollars (add three zeros
if you want the full number). This figure represents consolidated,
after-tax net profit from all operations. 2004 figures may
be estimates or may be for only part of the year—partial
year figures are appropriately footnoted.
Stock Ticker: When available, the unique
stock market symbol used to identify this firm's common stock
for trading and tracking purposes is indicated. Where appropriate,
this field may contain "private" or "subsidiary"
rather than a ticker symbol.
Total Number of Employees: The approximate total
number of employees, worldwide, as of the end of 2004 (or
the latest data available to the editors).
Apparent Salaries/Benefits: A "Y"
in appropriate fields indicates "Yes." Due to wide
variations in the manner in which corporations report benefits
to the U.S. Government’s regulatory bodies, not all
plans will have been uncovered or correctly evaluated during
our effort to research this data. Also, the availability to
employees of such plans will vary according to the qualifications
that employees must meet to become eligible. For example,
some benefit plans may be available only to salaried workers—others
only to employees who work more than 1,000 hours yearly. Benefits
that are available to employees of the main or parent company
may not be available to employees of the subsidiaries. In
addition, employers frequently alter the nature and terms
of plans offered.
NOTE: Generally, employees covered by wealth-building benefit
plans do not fully own (“vest in”) funds contributed
on their behalf by the employer until as many as five years
of service with that employer have passed. All pension plans
are voluntary—that is, employers are not obligated to
offer pensions.
Pension Plan: The firm offers a pension plan
to qualified employees. In this case, in order for a “Y”
to appear, the editors believe that the employer offers a
defined benefit or cash balance pension plan (see discussions
below).The type and generosity of these plans vary widely
from firm to firm. Caution: Some employers refer to plans
as “pension” or “retirement” plans
when they are actually 401(k) savings plans that require a
contribution by the employee.
• Defined Benefit Pension Plans:
Pension plans that do not require a contribution from the
employee are infrequently offered. However, a few companies,
particularly larger employers in high-profit-margin industries,
offer defined benefit pension plans where the employee is
guaranteed to receive a set pension benefit upon retirement.
The amount of the benefit is determined by the years of service
with the company and the employee’s salary during the
later years of employment. The longer a person works for the
employer, the higher the retirement benefit. These defined
benefit plans are funded entirely by the employer. The benefits,
up to a reasonable limit, are guaranteed by the Federal Government’s
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. These plans are not
portable—if you leave the company, you cannot transfer
your benefits into a different plan. Instead, upon retirement
you will receive the benefits that vested during your service
with the company. If your employer offers a pension plan,
it must give you a summary plan description within 90 days
of the date you join the plan. You can also request a summary
annual report of the plan, and once every 12 months you may
request an individual benefit statement accounting of your
interest in the plan.
• Defined Contribution Plans:
These are quite different. They do not guarantee a certain
amount of pension benefit. Instead, they set out circumstances
under which the employer will make a contribution to a plan
on your behalf. The most common example is the 401(k) savings
plan. Pension benefits are not guaranteed under these plans.
• Cash Balance Pension Plans:
These plans were recently invented. These are hybrid plans—part
defined benefit and part defined contribution. Many employers
have converted their older defined benefit plans into cash
balance plans. The employer makes deposits (or credits a given
amount of money) on the employee’s behalf, usually based
on a percentage of pay. Employee accounts grow based on a
predetermined interest benchmark, such as the interest rate
on Treasury Bonds. There are some advantages to these plans,
particularly for younger workers: a) The benefits, up to a
reasonable limit, are guaranteed by the Pension Benefit Guaranty
Corporation. b) Benefits are portable—they can be moved
to another plan when the employee changes companies. c) Younger
workers and those who spend a shorter number of years with
an employer may receive higher benefits than they would under
a traditional defined benefit plan.
ESOP Stock Plan (Employees' Stock Ownership Plan):
This type of plan is in wide use. Typically, the plan borrows
money from a bank and uses those funds to purchase a large
block of the corporation’s stock. The corporation makes
contributions to the plan over a period of time, and the stock
purchase loan is eventually paid off. The value of the plan
grows significantly as long as the market price of the stock
holds up. Qualified employees are allocated a share of the
plan based on their length of service and their level of salary.
Under federal regulations, participants in ESOPs are allowed
to diversify their account holdings in set percentages that
rise as the employee ages and gains years of service with
the company. In this manner, not all of the employee’s
assets are tied up in the employer’s stock.
Savings Plan, 401(k): Under this type of plan, employees
make a tax-deferred deposit into an account. In the best plans,
the company makes annual matching donations to the employees’
accounts, typically in some proportion to deposits made by
the employees themselves. A good plan will match one-half
of employee deposits of up to 6% of wages. For example, an
employee earning $30,000 yearly might deposit $1,800 (6%)
into the plan. The company will match one-half of the employee’s
deposit, or $900. The plan grows on a tax-deferred basis,
similar to an IRA. A very generous plan will match 100% of
employee deposits. However, some plans do not call for the
employer to make a matching deposit at all. Other plans call
for a matching contribution to be made at the discretion of
the firm’s board of directors. Actual terms of these
plans vary widely from firm to firm. Generally, these savings
plans allow employees to deposit as much as 15% of salary
into the plan on a tax-deferred basis. However, the portion
that the company uses to calculate its matching deposit is
generally limited to a maximum of 6%. Employees should take
care to diversify the holdings in their 401(k) accounts, and
most people should seek professional guidance or investment
management for their accounts.
Stock Purchase Plan: Qualified employees
may purchase the company’s common stock at a price below
its market value under a specific plan. Typically, the employee
is limited to investing a small percentage of wages in this
plan. The discount may range from 5 to 15%. Some of these
plans allow for deposits to be made through regular monthly
payroll deductions. However, new accounting rules for corporations,
along with other factors, are leading many companies to curtail
these plans—dropping the discount allowed, cutting the
maximum yearly stock purchase or otherwise making the plans
less generous or appealing.
Profit Sharing: Qualified employees are awarded
an annual amount equal to some portion of a company’s
profits. In a very generous plan, the pool of money awarded
to employees would be 15% of profits. Typically, this money
is deposited into a long-term retirement account. Caution:
Some employers refer to plans as “profit sharing”
when they are actually 401(k) savings plans. True profit sharing
plans are rarely offered.
Highest Executive Salary: The highest executive
salary paid, typically a 2003 amount (or the latest year available
to the editors) and typically paid to the Chief Executive
Officer.
Highest Executive Bonus: The apparent bonus,
if any, paid to the above person.
Second Highest Executive Salary: The next-highest
executive salary paid, typically a 2003 amount (or the latest
year available to the editors) and typically paid to the President
or Chief Operating Officer.
Second Highest Executive Bonus: The apparent
bonus, if any, paid to the above person.
Other Thoughts:
Apparent Women Officers or Directors: It
is difficult to obtain this information on an exact basis,
and employers generally do not disclose the data in a public
way. However, we have indicated what our best efforts reveal
to be the apparent number of women who either are in the posts
of corporate officers or sit on the board of directors. There
is a wide variance from company to company.
Hot Spot for Advancement for Women/ Minorities:
A "Y" in appropriate fields indicates "Yes."
A “Y” in appropriate fields indicates “Yes.”
These are firms that appear either to have posted a substantial
number of women and/or minorities to high posts or that appear
to have a good record of going out of their way to recruit,
train, promote and retain women or minorities. (See the Index
of Hot Spots For Women and Minorities in the back of the book.)
This information may change frequently and can be difficult
to obtain and verify. Consequently, the reader should use
caution and conduct further investigation where appropriate.
Growth Plans/ Special Features: Listed here
are observations regarding the firm's strategy, hiring plans,
plans for growth and product development, along with general
information regarding a company's business and prospects.
Locations: A "Y" in the appropriate
field indicates "Yes." Primary locations outside
of the headquarters, categorized by regions of the United
States and by international locations. A complete index by
locations is also in the front of this chapter.
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