Eólica de Composites, S.A. (ECSA) - Teaching Note

A company suddenly wins a substantial contract, but doesn't have sufficient capacity in its existing plants to execute it. The search for a new plant location yields two final alternatives for a possible location, with similar costs but very different situations. One of them favors a policy of outsourcing but with few qualified workers, and the other is opposed to such a policy. The prioritization, analysis and explicit description of selection criteria reveals many relevant aspects which were initially invisible, and underscores the need to remain explicit in order to gain a better understanding of the consequences of each decision alternative.