Reporter Volume 25, No.9 October 28, 199

By SUE WUETCHER
News Bureau Staff
Several Western New York companies are trying to gain toeholds in
Eastern European markets with the hard work of University at Buffalo
MBA students. Five students spent the summer in either Poland or
Hungary conducting marketing and industry studies that assessed each
company's potential for trade and/or investment in the countries.
	The participating companies were Dunkirk Radiator Corp.;
Graphic Controls Corp.; The Mentholatum Co., Inc.; Rich Products
Corp., and Columbus McKinnon Corp. 
	The studies were done as part of the Global Export Market
Service (GEMS) program run by the Offices of Research and Economic
Development at the State University of New York, in conjunction with
the New York State Department of Economic Development.
	"This program represents a unique opportunity for a select
group of New York companies to focus on opportunities in the Hungarian
and Polish markets, and contribute to the learning experience of
highly qualified MBA students in international business," says John M.
Thomas, associate dean for international programs in the UB School of
Management.
	The students were matched with their respective companies in
the spring, and spent the last two months of the school year working
with the companies to define a concrete project. The summer months
were spent in either Poland or Hungary, gathering information of
interest to the assigned company. Each student represented the
interests of his sponsoring company, and was responsible for
implementing a project that met the needs and objectives of that firm,
Thomas emphasizes.
	The students received translation and other assistance in
their respective countries through School of Management ties with
Jagiellonian University in Krak of Budapest.
	Robert Wrobel spent eight weeks in Warsaw conducting basic
market research for Dunkirk Radiator. His task: to try to determine
the steps Dunkirk must take to export its hot water boilers to Poland.
	He researched the procedures and regulations required for
exporting, including how the new Value Added Tax affects the cost of
boilers. Wrobel, who speaks Polish, interviewed boiler installers,
possible distributors and government officials.
	Roger Duryea, who also worked in Poland, conducted studies for
Mentholatum. He followed up on the registration process that
Mentholatum previously had initiated in order to export to Poland some
of its core products, including topical analgesics and cold remedies.
He also explored the market potential of some products of
Mentholatum's parent company, Rhoto Pharmaceuticals, and offered some
suggestions for distribution strategies.
	In addition, he interviewed private pharmaceutical
manufacturers in the Warsaw area and researched related joint-venture
laws to assess the possibility of using a licensed manufacturer in
Poland if it proved to be cost-prohibitive to export the products. His
conclusion: it would be more appropriate, at this time, for
Mentholatum to export the products.
	David Miller, who spent the summer in Budapest, found that his
original project for Columbus McKinnon changed once he began work.
	The company had spoken with a Hungarian maker of chains and
hoists about establishing a joint venture. However, the project went
no farther than the initial query.
	Miller's main objective was to reestablish contact with the
company, evaluate its situation as a manufacturer and its potential as
an exporter to Western Europe. The company's long-term goal would be
to make Hungary its base of European operations.
	But as Miller began to conduct general studies on such things
as labor law, privatization and utility and real estate costs, he
began to look at other options for Columbus McKinnon, in addition to
the joint venture. The company could be a pure exporter, or it could
make its own "green-field" investment in the country.
	He met with government officials, representatives of the
potential joint venture partner and other potential distributors and
joint venture partners.
	In fact, he recommended to Columbus McKinnon that the company
drop the joint venture plan and make its own investment.
	And if the company follows his recommendation, "I know I will
have been a part of that," Miller says.
	His "boss," Craig Johnston, general manager for the
international division of Columbus McKinnon, speaks highly of the
program.
	"I found it to be a very effective way to get some very
detailed information about a specific project or country that it would
otherwise take the company a lot longer to do," Johnston says. "The
ability to have a single individual concentrating full-time on
something in the international marketplace was valuable for us."
	He says Miller produced for the company a very thorough,
100-page report covering all facets of areas such as distribution,
joint ventures and new factory development, as well as legislation and
political climate, subjects the company "could only find out about
firsthand."
	All three students praised the program as well, saying it had
been a tremendous learning experience.
	"I got to apply in a real situation some of the things I've
learned in class," says Wrobel. "It gave me a chance to dive in and
see how things really are."
	Duryea found it interesting to see how marketing is done in an
international setting.
	"What works here doesn't necessarily work there. The fun part
was finding the similarities and differences in how to approach
problems," he says. "One thing I've learned is that people are more
alike than they are different. It's the subtleties that marketers
really need to grasp to be successful."
	He was surprised to find that people in Poland wind-surf,
giving Mentholatum a potential market for its lip balms and
sunscreens.
	"People think it's a land of babushkas and breadlines, but
that simply isn't true anymore. The Western influence can be seen
everywhere you look," he says.