Problems Related to Soft Bottles in Coca Cola - MBA/BBA Summer Internship Project Report

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A PROJECT REPORT
ON
A STUDY OF PROBLEMS RELATED TO
SOFT BOTTLES IN COCA COLA PVT.
LTD.
Submitted By
ANMOL MAHAJAN
AND
GURMEET SINGH
In Partial Fulfillment Of
Summer Internship
At
COCA COLA LTD

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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION

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CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION
1.1 INTRODUCTION TO SOFT DRINK INDUSTRY
The non-alcoholic beverage industry broadly includes soft drinks and hot
drinks. Soft drinks contain carbonated or non-carbonated water, a
sweetener, and a flavor, and hot drinks include coffee and tea. The soft
drink category dominates the industry and includes carbonates, juice,
bottled water, ready-to-drink tea and coffee, and sports and energy
drinks. Soft drinks are sometimes referred to as liquid refreshment
beverages (or LRBs). In the US, LRBs lead food and beverage retail
sales. In this series, we’ll focus on the soft drink or LRB market.
The Coca-Cola Company (KO) and PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) have dominated
the non-alcoholic beverage industry for ages. Coca-Cola is the world’s
largest non-alcoholic beverage company with more than 500 brands,
including 17 brands that generate more than a billion dollars each in
revenue. PepsiCo owns leading brands across its snack foods and
beverage portfolio, including 22 brands that generate more than a billion
dollars each in revenue. According to Beverage Digest, he companies
have a combined share of about 70% of the US carbonated soft drink (or
CSD) market.
Both companies have a wide geographic presence in more than 200
countries. The rivalry between these two companies, popularly called

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the cola wars, is legendary. Both have spent huge sums of money
on mutually targeted advertisements over decades.
With the use of more and more soft drinks, the containers that are used to
carry them are also in demand thus creating more threat to the
environment. These threats are those that occur with the effect caused by
non recyclable soft bottles being used by these companies to fill their
product in and send for sales. Now, the problem and threat to nature is on
one side and the problem being faced by these manufacturers while
producing and distributing their products to their dealers is on other side.
Due to the harsh effect shown by nature, these soft bottles are proving a
little bit problems for these manufacturers.
1.2 THE SOFT DRINK INDUSTRY
Soft drink industry, the production, marketing, and distribution of
nonalcoholic, and generally carbonated, flavored, and sweetened, water-
based beverages. The history of soft drinks in the United States illustrates
important business innovations, such as product development,
franchising, and mass marketing, as well as the evolution of consumer
tastes and cultural trends.
Many Europeans long believed natural mineral waters held medicinal
qualities and favored them as alternatives to often-polluted common
drinking water. By 1772, British chemist Joseph Priestley invented a

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means to synthetically carbonate water, and the commercial
manufacturing of artificial mineral waters began with Jacob
Schweppes’s businesses in Geneva in the 1780s and London in the
1790s. The first known U.S. manufacturer of soda water, as it was then
known, was Yale University chemist Benjamin Silliman in 1807, though
Joseph Hawkins of Baltimore secured the first U.S. patent for the
equipment to produce the drink two years later. By the 1820s, pharmacies
nationwide provided the beverage as a remedy for various ailments,
especially digestive.
Though the drinks would continue to be sold in part for their therapeutic
value, customers increasingly consumed them for refreshment, especially
after the 1830s, when sugar and flavorings were first added. Soda
fountains emerged as regular features of drugstores by the 1860s and
served beverages flavored with ginger, vanilla, fruits, roots, and herbs. In
1874 a Philadelphia store combined two popular products to make the
first known ice-cream soda. The first cola drink appeared in 1881.
In the late 1800s, several brands emerged that were still popular a century
later. Pharmacists experimenting at local soda fountains invented Hires
Root Beer in Philadelphia in 1876, Dr. Pepper in Waco, Texas, in 1885,
Coca-Cola in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1886, and Pepsi-Cola in New
Bern, North Carolina, in 1893, among others. Reflecting two of the
middle-class mores of the period—temperance and feeling overwhelmed
by the pace and burdens of modern life—early marketing touted these
drinks as alternatives to alcohol and/or as stimulants. Coca-Cola inventor

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John S. Pemberton's first print advertisement for his creation read
"Delicious! Refreshing! Exhilarating! Invigorating!," while As a Candler,
the eventual founder of the Coca-Cola Company, promoted his product in
the years leading up to Prohibition as "The Great National Temperance
Beverage."
The history of Coca-Cola reveals how national markets in soft-drink
brands developed. To limit the cost of transportation, manufacturers of
syrup concentrates licensed bottlers to mix the product, package, and
distribute it within a specific territory. Candler underestimated the
importance of the bottling side of the business and in 1899 sold the
national rights to bottle Coke for a fairly small sum to Benjamin F.
Thomas and Joseph B. Whitehead, who then started a national network of
bottlers, creating the basic franchising format by which the industry is
still run.
Candler and his successor after 1923, Robert Woodruff, were aggressive
and innovative in marketing Coke as a leading consumer product and
cultural icon. Coupons for free samples and giveaways of items bearing
the drink's name and logo publicized the beverage, and pioneering efforts
in market research helped define how best to take advantage of
advertising and promotions. During World War II, Woodruff opened
bottling operations overseas to supply U.S. military personnel, and after
the war, Coke was poised to enter these international markets, not only as
a consumer product, but also as a symbol of "the American Century."

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After World War II, the soft-drink industry became a leader in television
advertising, the use of celebrity endorsements, catchy slogans, tie-ins
with Hollywood movies, and other forms of mass marketing, particularly
focusing on young consumers and emphasizing youth-oriented themes.
As health and fitness consciousness and environmental awareness
became popular, the industry responded with sugar-free and low-calorie
diet sodas, beginning in the 1960s, and later, caffeine-free colas and
recyclable containers.
The most famous rivalry within the industry has been between Coke and
Pepsi, which waged two rounds of "cola wars" in the twentieth century.
In the 1930s and 1940s, Pepsi challenged the industry leader by offering
a twelve-ounce bottle for the same five-cent price as Coke's standard six
ounces. In the 1970s and 1980s, "Pepsi challenge" taste-tests led Coke to
change its formula in 1985, a campaign that failed because it
underestimated the attachment Coke drinkers had to the tradition and
symbolism of the brand.
In 2001, the soft-drink industry included approximately five hundred
U.S. bottlers with more than 183,000 employees, and it achieved retail
sales of more than $61 billion. Americans that year consumed an average
of 55 gallons of soft drinks per person, up from 48 in 1990 and 34 in
1980. The nine leading companies accounted for 96.5 percent of industry
sales, led by Coca-Cola with more than 43 percent of the soft drink
market and Pepsi with 31 percent. Seven individual brands accounted for
almost two-thirds of all sales: Coca-Cola Classic (itself with nearly 20

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percent of the market), Pepsi-Cola, Diet Coke, Mountain Dew (a Pepsi
product), Sprite (a Coca-Cola product), Dr. Pepper, and Diet Pepsi.
Domestic sales growth slowed in the late 1990s because of increased
competition from coffee drinks, iced teas, juices, sports drinks, and
bottled waters. The industry continues, however, to tap lucrative
international markets; Coke and Pepsi each have bottling operations in
more than 120 countries.
1.3 GLOBAL SOFT DRINK MARKET SIZE

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Dominant carbonates category
The global soft drink market is led by carbonated soft drinks (or CSDs),
which had a market size of $337.8 billion in 2013. In the same year,
CSDs were followed by bottled water, with a market size of $189.1
billion, and juice, with a market size of $146.2 billion. In a later part of
this series, we’ll discuss why CSDs have been losing popularity, and why
sales of other beverages, including juices and ready-to-drink tea, are
increasing.
Major companies
The non-alcoholic beverage market is a highly competitive industry
that includes two behemoths —The Coca-Cola Company (KO) and
PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP). Collectively, these companies hold about 70% of
the US CSD market. Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. (DPS), Monster
Beverage Corporation (MNST), and Cot Corporation (COT) are some
other key players in the CSD market.
Many international markets are also dominated by Coca-Cola and
PepsiCo, but include other companies such as Grouped DANONE,
Nestle SA, and Suntory Holdings Limited.
Non-alcoholic beverage manufacturers, like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, are
part of the consumer staple sector. You can invest in these companies
through the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP).

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1.5 WHAT ARE SOFT BOTTLES?
A soft bottle is a bottle constructed from plastic. Plastic bottles or Soft
bottles are typically used to store liquids such as water, soft drinks, motor
oil, cooking oil, medicine, shampoo, milk, and ink. The size ranges from
very small sample bottles to large carboys.
Plastic bottles were first used commercially in 1947 but remained
relatively expensive until the early 1960s when high-
density polyethylene was introduced. They quickly became popular with
both manufacturers and customers due to their lightweight nature and
relatively low production and transportation costs compared with glass
bottles. However, the biggest advantage plastic bottles have over glass is
their superior resistance to breakage, in both production and
transportation. Except for wine and beer, the food industry has almost
completely replaced glass bottles with plastic bottles.
1.6 PRODUCTION OF SOFT BOTTLES
Plastic bottles are formed using a variety of techniques. The choice of
material varies. Depending upon application.
1. High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) is the most widely used resin
for plastic bottles. This material is economical, impact resistant,
and provides a good moisture barrier. HDPE is compatible with a
wide range of products including acids and caustics but is not
compatible with solvents. It is supplied in FDA-approved food

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grade. HDPE is naturally translucent and flexible. The addition of
color will make HDPE opaque, but not glossy. HDPE lends itself
to silk screen decoration. While HDPE provides good protection at
below freezing temperatures, it cannot be used with products filled
above 160 °F (71 °C) or products requiring a hermetic (vacuum)
seal.
2. Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE) is similar to HDPE in
composition. It is less rigid and generally less chemically resistant
than HDPE, but is more translucent. LDPE is used primarily for
squeeze applications. LDPE is significantly more expensive than
HDPE.
3. Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET, PETE or polyester) is commonly
used for carbonated beverage, water bottles and many food
products. PET provides very good alcohol and essential oil barrier
properties, generally good chemical resistance (although acetones
and ketenes will attack PET) and a high degree of impact
resistance and tensile strength. The orienting process serves to
improve gas and moisture barrier properties and impact strength.
This material does not provide resistance to very high temperature
applications—max. Temp. 200 °F (93 °C).
4. Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) is naturally clear, has extremely good
resistance to oils, and has very low oxygen transmission. It

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provides an excellent barrier to most gases and its drop impact
resistance is also very good. This material is chemically resistant,
but it is vulnerable to some solvents. PVC has poor resistance to
high temperatures and will distort at 160 °F (71 °C), making it
incompatible with hot-filled products. It has attained notoriety in
recent years due to potential health risks.
5. Polycarbonate (PC) is a clear plastic used to make water and milk
bottles. 5 gallon water bottles are the most common examples of
PC bottles.
6. Polypropylene (PP) is used primarily for jars and closures and
provides a rigid package with excellent moisture barrier. One
major advantage of polypropylene is its stability at high
temperatures, up to 220 °F (104 °C). Polypropylene is autoclavable
and offers the potential for steam sterilization. The compatibility of
PP with high filling temperatures is responsible for its use with hot
fill products. PP has excellent chemical resistance, but provides
poor impact resistance in cold temperatures.
7. Polystyrene (PS) offers excellent clarity and stiffness at an
economical cost. It is commonly used with dry products including
vitamins, petroleum jellies, and spices. Styrene does not provide
good barrier properties, and exhibits poor impact resistance.

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8. Fluorine Treated (HDPE) bottles are exposed to fluorine gas in a
secondary operation, are similar in appearance to HDPE and have
exceptional barrier properties to hydrocarbons and aromatic
solvents. Fluorine treated bottles are excellent for use with
insecticides, pesticides, herbicides, photographic chemicals,
agricultural chemicals, household and industrial cleaners,
electronic chemicals, medical cleaners and solvents, citrus
products, d-limonene, flavors, fragrances, essential oils,
surfactants, polishes, additives, graffiti cleaning products, pre-
emergent’s, stone and tile care products, waxes, paint thinner,
gasoline, biodiesel, xylem, acetone, kerosene and more.
For non-bottle applications, fluorination of plastic can provide
compliance with state and federal regulations. An example would be
fluorinated plastic fuel tanks used for lawn and garden equipment,
automobiles, etc.
1. Post Consumer Resin (PCR) is a blend of reclaimed natural HDPE
(primarily from milk and water containers) and virgin resin. The
recycled material is cleaned, ground and decompounded into
uniform pellets along with prime virgin material especially
designed to build up environmental stress crack resistance. PCR
has no odor but exhibits a slight yellow tint in its natural state. This
tint can be hidden by the addition of color. PCR is easily processed
and inexpensive. However, it cannot come into direct contact with

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food or pharmaceutical products. PCR can be produced in a variety
of recycled content percentages up to 100%.
2. K-Resin (SBC) is ideally suited to a wide variety of packaging
applications by virtue of its sparkling clarity, high gloss, and
impact resistance. K-Resin, a styrene derivative, is easily
processed on polyethylene equipment. It is suitable for packaging
many products but is specifically incompatible with fats and
unsaturated oils or solvents. This material is frequently used for
display and point-of-purchase packaging.
3. Bioplastic - polymer structures based on processed biological
materials rather than petrochemicals. Bioplastic are commonly
made from renewable sources like starch, vegetable oil, and less
commonly, chicken feathers. The idea behind Bioplastic is to
create a plastic that has the ability to biodegrade.
There is ongoing concern as to the use of plastics in consumer food
packaging solutions, environmental impact of the disposal of these
products, as well as concerns regarding consumer safety. Karin Michaels,
Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School, suggests that toxins
leaching from plastics might be related to disorders such as infertility and
cancer in humans.

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In the United States, plastic water bottles are regulated by the FDA which
also inspects and samples bottled water plants periodically. Plastic water
bottle plants hold a low priority for inspection due to a continuously good
safety record. In the past, the FDA maintained that there was a lack of
human data showing plastics pose health problems, however in January
2010; the FDA reversed its opinion saying they now have concerns about
health risks.
These all are some of the several types of plastic or soft bottles available
in the market. As discussed, some are recyclable and some are non
recyclable thus causing a threat to the environment. The bottles that are
not recyclable cause greater effect and threat to environment. These
bottles are not a threat to environment only but also to the manufacturing
companies that are manufacturing it with their products in it. With the ill
effects of temperature and other forces, it has been seen that many of the
bottles gets break and thus causing ill effect over the bottle and product.
1.7 IMPACTS OF SOFT BOTTLES ON ENVIRONMENT
58% of fizzy drinks are packaged using PET plastic bottles. The
remaining 42% of fizzy drinks are packaged using a mix of glass bottles,
steel and aluminum cans. A few issues about each type of packaging are
presented in the table below.

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The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
An area of marine debris, roughly the size of Texas, floats within the
Pacific Ocean. This ‘Garbage Patch’ lies between California and Hawaii
and, despite belief to the contrary, cannot be seen easily with the naked
eye, let alone from space. It is predominantly made up of thousands of
tiny pieces of floating plastic called micro-plastics. Scientists have
collected up to 1.9 million bits of plastic per square mile.
As noted by Greenpeace, “a single one liter bottle could break down into
enough small fragments to put one on every mile of beach in the entire
world”. These micro-plastics can disturb marine food webs by blocking
sunlight from reaching algae and plankton, in addition to acting like
sponges- absorbing toxic chemicals – which are then digested by marine
wildlife and eventually us.

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Due to ocean current circulation, floating marine debris is transported to
‘natural gathering points’ within the oceans – as seen with the North
Pacific Garbage Patch. These patches are created by gyres – circular
ocean currents- whose centers are very calm and stable. Once debris
enters the gyre’s centre it stays, resulting in a buildup of rubbish.[3]
No country will take the responsibility for cleaning the trash up as the
Pacific Garbage Patch lies far from any coastline and is made up of waste
from several nations – primarily North America and Asia.39 this tricky
task has been left to International organizations such as the Plastic Soup
Foundation.
The myriad properties and usefulness of plastic has resulted in an
exponential proliferation and pervasiveness on a global scale. Plastic
pollution now reaches virtually every part of the planet. More recently,
the most significant growth has been in single use disposable products.
Packaging is the largest end use market segment, accounting for 40% of
the total plastic produced. Not surprisingly, as this is a disposable
product, it has become the major pollutant.
Once thrown away, plastic has the opportunity to enter the water course
and eventually the oceans. And while plastic waste only accounts for
about 10% of the total amount of waste we generate, it is responsible for
up to 80%, or sometimes more, of the waste that accumulates on land,
shorelines, the ocean surface or the seabed.

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Plastic pollution is having a significant environmental and economic
impact. One estimate (from 2008) was that plastic pollution alone is
costing developing and industrialized nations up to $1.27 billion annually
as it threatens the fishing, shipping and tourism industries. It threatens
our marine animals through ingestion and entanglement, and our
ecosystems as a vector for invasive species.
However perhaps the most insidious threat is to human health. Plastic
does not go away but, under the influence of waves and sunlight, it
breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces. These particles (which
outnumber plankton in some regions) are entering the food chain and
releasing chemicals into the fish that eat them. These ingested particles
are retained within the fish’s digestive system and slowly release
chemicals into its body. Once consumed by us, these chemicals are
slowly released into our bodies. Some of these chemicals have the ability
to disrupt the endocrine system of humans and cause cancers.
There is no simple answer to the problem of plastic waste in the oceans
or around the globe. Anyone who says that the solution lies in recycling,
or biodegradable products has not addressed the underlying issue; that is,
plastic waste is the result of Poor Waste Management Systems or human
neglect, and the issue of plastic pollution not yet being considered an
urgent matter. The real challenge to finding a solution therefore, is to
determine how to change our own attitudes and behavior alongside the

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development of a strategic mix of alternative processes, technologies and
materials.
1.8 PROBLEMS FACED BY COMPANIES DUE TO SOFT
BOTTLES
Most of the major shares holding soft drink manufacturer companies use
soft bottles as a package for their soft drink. The manufactured soft drink
is poured in the soft bottles and then shipped across various thousand
numbers of retailers and dealers across different state and countries.
While all this going on, there comes a serious problem of getting the soft
bottles injured.
Being injured refers to as a situation where soft bottles gets damaged and
the product gets wasted or comes back to the production plan from where
it went to get sold. This problem is being one of the major problems for
the company itself as the company has to prepare for themselves too.

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CHAPTER 2
COMPANY PROFILE

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CHAPTER 2 – COMPANY PROFILE
2.1 COMPANY OVERVIEW
The Coca-Cola Company, which is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia,
but incorporated in Wilmington, Delaware,[2]
is an American
multinational beverage corporation, and manufacturer, retailer, and
marketer of nonalcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups.[3]
The
company is best known for its flagship product Coca-Cola, invented in
1886 by pharmacist John Stitch Pemberton in Columbus, Georgia.[4]
The
Coca-Cola formula and brand were bought in 1889 by Asa Griggs
Candler (December 30, 1851 – March 12, 1929), who incorporated The
Coca-Cola Company in 1892. The company has operated
a franchised distribution system since 1889, wherein The Coca-Cola
Company only produces syrup concentrate, which is then sold to
various bottlers throughout the world who hold exclusive territories. The
Coca-Cola Company owns its anchor bottler in North America, Coca-
Cola Refreshments.
The company's stock is listed on the NYSE (NYSE: KO) and is part
of DJIA, the S&P 500 index, the Russell 1000 Index, and the Russell
1000 Growth Stock Index. Muhtar Kent serves as chairman of the
company with James Quincey as president and chief executive officer.

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2.2 OPERATIONS
Coke manages seven main operating segments (most of them
geographically-based), including: Eurasia and Africa; Europe; Latin
America; North America; Asia Pacific; Bottling Investments; and
Corporate. The North America operating segment generates the majority
of its revenue from the sale of finished beverages, while the other
geographic regions get most of their business from the manufacture and
sale of beverage concentrates and syrups. The company made 63% of its
sales from finished product operations during 2015, while the rest came
from concentrate operations.
The Bottling Investments division focuses on the beverage company's
owned bottling operations outside of North America. This segment helps
to maximize the efficiency of its production, distribution, and marketing
efforts. They include a 29% stake in Mexico's bottler Coca-Cola
FEMSA(now the largest independent Coke bottler), 23% of European
bottler Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling, and 29% of Coca-Cola Amatil, a
bottler and distributor of Coke products in Australia, New Zealand, and
surrounding countries. Other major independent bottling partners
include Arca Continental, New Coca-Cola Enterprises, and wire
Beverages.

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2.3 GEOGRAPHIC REACH
The world's largest beverage company rang up almost 55% of its sales
outside the US during 2015, in some 200 countries worldwide across
Eurasia, Africa, Europe, North America, and the Pacific Region.
Important international markets include Asia, Latin America, and
Europe, which made up more than 30% of 2015 revenues, combined.
2.4 SALES AND MARKETING
Not only is Coca-Cola one of the world's most recognizable and valuable
brands, but The Coca-Cola Company supports the largest beverage
distribution system in the world, made up of company-owned or
controlled bottling and distribution operations, as well as independently
owned bottling partners, distributors, wholesalers, and retailers.
Beverages bearing trademarks owned by or licensed to them account for
1.9 billion of the approximately 57 billion beverage servings of all types
consumed worldwide every day.
In 2015, about 81% of the company's worldwide unit case volume was
outside of the US. The largest unit case volumes were in Mexico, China,
Brazil, and Japan, which made up 31% of worldwide total. Of these
international unit case volumes, 74% held sparkling beverages while the
rest held still beverages.

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To keep its brand foremost in the mind of consumers, the company spent
$4 billion on advertising in 2015, up from $3.5 billion and $3.26 billion
in 2014 and 2013, respectively.
2.5 FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE
The Coca-Cola Company's annuals sales and profits have been trending
lower over the past several years as traditional soft drink sales have fallen
with changing consumer tastes in developed markets.
The soft-drink maker's sales fell 4% to $44.3 billion during 2015 with
sales falling in every segment and region except for North America
(where it sold more bottled water and teas), mostly due to the
unfavorable impact of foreign exchange rates. Unit case volume
shipments, however, increased in every territory in the low-single digits,
while Bottling Investment shipments rose 8% with higher growth in
China and India, and in Germany to a lesser extent.
Despite sales declines in 2015, the company's net income rose 4% to
$7.35 billion mostly as its deal with Monster Beverage was re-appraised
to be worth $1.4 billion more than previously believed. Coca-Cola's
operating cash levels dipped 1% to $10.53 billion after adjusting for the
impact of foreign currency fluctuations and because it paid more in tax
payments.

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2.6 STRATEGY
The Coca-Cola Company continues to look to relatively undeveloped
markets with a growing middle class and money to spend on soft drinks
and juices. To that end, it announced it will invest $5 billion with its
bottling partners in Africa through 2020, raising its investment in the
region to $17 billion from 2010 to 2020.
In a move that supported expanding its fruit-based drinks portfolio and
investing in Africa, The Coca-Cola Company in late 2014 announced a
partnership with alcoholic beverage company SABMiller and South
Africa's Gutsche Family Investments to create Coca-Cola Beverages
Africa, the continent's largest bottler. The new company serves about a
dozen high-growth markets where disposable incomes and the population
are growing, and handles about 40% of the beverage company's African
volume. In exchange for its $260 million investment, The Coca-Cola
Company will receive an 11% interest in the bottler and SABMiller's
global Appletiser brand of carbonated juices as well as about 20 other
African and Latin American non-alcoholic beverage brands. Gutsche
Family Investments already controls Coca-Cola Sabco, a Coke bottler
since 1940 with operations in seven African countries. Coca-Cola
Beverages Africa will absorb most of SABMiller's non-alcoholic
operations on the continent as well as Coca-Cola Sabco's plants.
Also in 2014, the company teamed up with Keurig Green Mountain,
entering into a 10-year global strategic agreement to collaborate on the
development and introduction of The Coca-Cola Company global brand

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portfolio for use in Keurig Green Mountain's Keurig Kold at-home
beverage system. It purchased a 16% stake in Monster Beverage
Corporation in a long-term strategy to accelerate growth for both
companies in the fast-growing, global energy drink industry.
The popularity of soft drinks, especially in mature markets, has been on
the decline for the past decade as negative publicity about obesity and
other health risks continues to threaten sales. As a result, The Coca-Cola
Company and other top soft drink makers are turning toward other parts
of their noncarbonated product portfolio for growth, such as fruit juices,
sports and energy drinks, and bottled water and tea beverages.
A part of the plan to rely less on the old way of doing business, and
compensate for falling sales amidst changing tastes, the company is
selling many of its low-margin bottling operations to concentrate on
higher margin operations like selling concentrates and syrups to bottlers.
2.7 MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS
Diversifying its portfolio, in 2014 the company acquired a 16.7% equity
stake in Monster Beverage Corp., a leading maker of energy drinks.
Under the terms of the deal, The Coca-Cola Company will transfer
ownership of its worldwide energy business, including NOS, Full
Throttle, Burn, Mother, Play and Power Play, and Relentless, to Monster;
and Monster will transfer its non-energy business, including Hansen's

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Natural Sodas, Peace Tea, Hubert's Lemonade and Hansen's Juice
Products, to The Coca-Cola Company.
2.8 COMPANY BACKGROUND
In 2013 Coca-Cola opened a new bottling plant in Myanmar as part of a
planned $200 million investment during the next five years there which
also includes adding more than 22,000 jobs during that time period. Also
that year, in growing its distribution network, The Coca-Cola Company
bought Sacramento Coca-Cola Bottling Company, the sixth-largest
independent Coca-Cola bottler in the nation that serves nine northern
California counties.
2.9 COCA-COLA WORLDWIDE AND IN INDIA
Coca-Cola India, is one of the country’s leading beverage companies,
offering a range of healthy, safe, high quality, refreshing beverage
options to consumers. Ever since its re-entry in 1993, the Company has
gone on to establish an unmatched portfolio of beverages, refreshing
consumers with its leading beverage brands like Coca-Cola, Coca-
Cola Zero, Diet Coke, Thums Up, Fanta, Fanta Green Mango, Limca,
Sprite, Sprite Zero, VIO Flavored Milk, Maaza, Minute Maid range of
juices, Georgia and Georgia Gold range of hot and cold tea and coffee
options, Kinley and Bonaqua packaged drinking water, Kinley Club Soda

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and BURN energy drink. The Company along with its bottling partners,
through a strong network of over 2.6 million retail outlets, touches the
lives of millions of consumers. Its brands are some of the most preferred
and most sold beverages in the country.
The Coca-Cola system in India has already invested $2 billion till 2011,
since its re-entry into India. The company will be investing another $5
billion till the year 2020. The Coca-Cola system in India directly employs
over 25,000 people including those on contract. The system has created
indirect employment for more than 1,50,000 people in related industries
through its vast procurement, supply and distribution system. We strive
to ensure that our work environment is safe and inclusive and that there
are plentiful opportunities for our people in India and across the world.

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With an enduring commitment to building sustainable communities, our
Company is focused on initiatives that reduce our environmental
footprint, support active, healthy living, create a safe, inclusive work
environment for our associates, and contribute to the development of the
communities where we operate. Some of the Company’s flagship
community development programmes include the “Support My School”
programme, the “Parivartan” retailer training programme, women
empowerment as a part of the global 5BY20 campaign etc.
TCCC re-entered the Indian market post the economic liberalisation of
1991 and established Coca-Cola India Private Limited (CCIPL) as its
wholly-owned subsidiary in 1992. The entities that comprise the Coca-
Cola System in India are:

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Coca-Cola India Pvt Ltd is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Coca-
Cola which manufactures and sells concentrate and beverage bases and
powdered beverage mixes. A Company-owned bottling entity, namely,
Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd, thirteen licensed bottling
partners of The Coca-Cola Company, who are authorised to prepare,
package, sell and distribute beverages under certain specified trademarks
of The Coca-Cola Company; and an extensive distribution system
comprising of our customers, distributors and retailers are the other
pillars of this system.
Coca-Cola India Private Limited sells concentrate and beverage bases to
authorised bottlers. These authorised bottlers independently develop local
markets and distribute beverages to grocers, small retailers,
supermarkets, restaurants and numerous other businesses. In turn, these
customers make our beverages available to consumers across India.

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2.10 MISSION, VISION AND VALUES
1. Our Mission
Our Roadmap starts with our mission, which is enduring. It declares our
purpose as a company and serves as the standard against which we weigh
our actions and decisions.
 To refresh the world...
 To inspire moments of optimism and happiness...
 To create value and make a difference.
2. Our Vision
Our vision serves as the framework for our Roadmap and guides every
aspect of our business by describing what we need to accomplish in order
to continue achieving sustainable, quality growth.
 People: Be a great place to work where people are inspired to be
the best they can be.
 Portfolio: Bring to the world a portfolio of quality beverage brands
that anticipate and satisfy people's desires and needs.
 Partners: Nurture a winning network of customers and suppliers,
together we create mutual, enduring value.

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 Planet: Be a responsible citizen that makes a difference by helping
build and support sustainable communities.
 Profit: Maximize long-term return to shareowners while being
mindful of our overall responsibilities.
 Productivity: Be a highly effective, lean and fast-moving
organization.
3. Our Winning Culture
Our Winning Culture defines the attitudes and behaviors that will be
required of us to make our 2020 Vision a reality.
4. Live Our Values
Our values serve as a compass for our actions and describe how we
behave in the world.
 Leadership: The courage to shape a better future
 Collaboration: Leverage collective genius
 Integrity: Be real
 Accountability: If it is to be, it's up to me
 Passion: Committed in heart and mind
 Diversity: As inclusive as our brands
 Quality: What we do, we do well

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5. Focus on the Market
 Focus on needs of our consumers, customers and franchise partners
 Get out into the market and listen, observe and learn
 Possess a world view
 Focus on execution in the marketplace every day
 Be insatiably curious
6. Work Smart
 Act with urgency
 Remain responsive to change
 Have the courage to change course when needed
 Remain constructively discontent
 Work efficiently
7. Act Like Owners
 Be accountable for our actions and inactions
 Steward system assets and focus on building value
 Reward our people for taking risks and finding better ways to solve
problems
 Learn from our outcomes -- what worked and what didn’t

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8. Be the Brand
 Inspire creativity, passion, optimism and fun
2.11 OUR LEADERS

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2.12 PRODUCTS OF THE COMPANY

Page | 41
CHAPTER 3
RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY

Page | 42
CHAPTER 3 - RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research Methodology is a science of studying how research is done
scientifically. It is way to systematically solve the research problem by
logically adopting various steps. Methodology helps to understand not
only the products but the process itself. It aims to describe and analyze
methods, through light on their limitations and procedures and resources,
clarify their presuppositions and potentialities to the twilight zone at the
‘frontiers of knowledge’.
Research is an art of scientific investigation. It is the systematic
investigation on order to find out facts and solution of a particular
problem. It is the “Search for Knowledge” By adopting proper method of
research we can easily find our Solution and can achieve our objectives
easily.
Research methodology is the systematic way to solve the research
problem. This research methodology has helped in assessing the finding
& result for this purpose a lot of information was needed.
3.1 RESEARCH DESIGN
The mode of the research was the exploratory i.e. goal oriented or target
oriented.

Page | 43
Sample Size: There are 50 distributors to whom the questionnaire has
been distributed and their feedback is consisted in the interpretation of
the data.
3.2 COLLECTION OF DATA
Primary Data:
Primary Data is collected through personal interviews, questionnaires,
telephonic conversations. A survey was conducted on the distributors of
Coca Cola in Delhi with the help of questionnaire that is attached with
the file as annexure.
Secondary Data:
Secondary data is collected through company’s official website and
internet and with the help of books available.
The main research instrument with the help of which survey was
undertaken was questionnaire. The questionnaire contains a set of open-
end questions through which information was collected.
3.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
1. To gain knowledge on about the Coca Cola Company Limited in
India.
2. To acquire knowledge and the technical know-how of the fast
emerging production and distribution techniques.

Page | 44
3. To gain insight into company`s distribution process and problems
occurring in between.
4. To understand the use of soft bottles as a packing material for soft
drink.
5. To evaluate and know the different problems related to the use of
soft bottles in the company.
6. To provide some remedial measures in order to cope up and come
over to this problem related to soft bottles.
3.4 SAMPLE SIZE
The sample size of this research is 50 distributors in Delhi. The project is
to understand the people with different mind sets, try to make them
prospects from suspects. The 50 distributors that were selected were
some of the prominent dealers and business correspondents of Coca Cola
Limited in Delhi, India from past many years.
Sampling Technique
Random Sampling Technique is used for this project. In random
sampling, each item or element of the population has an equal chance of
being chosen at each draw. A sample is random if the method for
obtaining the sample meets the criterion of randomness (each element
having an equal chance at each draw). The actual composition of the
sample itself does not determine whether or not it was a random sample.

Page | 45
Judgmental sampling is a non-probability sampling technique where the
researcher selects units to be sampled based on their knowledge and
professional judgment. This type of sampling technique is also known as
purposive sampling and authoritative sampling. This type of sampling
technique is also known as purposive sampling and authoritative
sampling.
3.5. LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
 It is not as easier to study problems related to soft bottles being
faced by all the distributors of Coca Cola in Delhi by doing a
sample survey on 50 distributors only.
 The distributors were busy with their daily schedule and it was
very much difficult for them to give time.
 The distributors were seen going personal and had given false
responses too while recording the responses in questionnaire.
 Personal biasness of various distributors may have supplied wrong
data.
 Time and money was also an important constraint.

Page | 46
CHAPTER 4
DATA ANALYSIS
AND
INTERPRETATION

Page | 47
CHAPTER 4 - DATA ANALYSIS AND
INTERPRETATION
The questionnaire that was given to the distributors of Coca Cola in
Delhi were received back with information filled in it and then all these
questionnaires are analyzed in order to reach a specific conclusion and
finding a result.
In this chapter the questionnaires that were given to the 50 distributors or
respondents were received back and then analyzed and the result has been
developed. The Sample size that was taken for the study was 50 dealers
and out of all the 50 questionnaires given to them was received back with
full filled forms.
The percentage of questionnaires received back was full thus the result
that is drawn below is fully on the basis of answers given by the
respondents included in the survey.

Page | 48
Table No. 4.1: Gender Profile of the respondents
Gender Respondents’ Gender Detail Percentage
Male 50 100
Female 00 00
Total 50 100%
The statistical data in the above given table no 1 and figure no 1 shows
the gender profile of the 50 respondents that were interviewed with the
help of the questionnaire. After the analysis of the questionnaire, the data
showed that the all of the respondents were found to be Male 100%
whereas none of the dealer was found to be female, this shows that Male
members are in majority and all in all as per the random sample in the
survey rather than the female members.
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
Male Female
Gender Profile of the Dealers / Distributors
Female
Male

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Table No. 4.2: Age Profile of the Respondents
Age Profile Age of Respondents Percentage %
20 – 30 17 34
31 40 25 50
41 & Further 08 16
Total 50 100%
In table no. 4.2 and figure no 4.2, the data showed the age profile of the
respondents included in the survey and it was seen that the majority of
the employees that were in the survey were of age profile 31 – 40 Years,
i.e. 50% of the respondent were in this category, whereas 34% of people
were in the category of 20 – 30 Years and 16% were found in 40 + Years
age profile category. Thus it can be seen that majority of the distributors
the company is having are young and experienced professionals.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
20 - 30 36 - 40 40 +
Age Profle pf the Respondents
40 +
31 - 40
20 - 30

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Table No. 4.3: Qualification of respondents
Qualification Slab Qualification of
Respondents
Percentage
%
Higher Secondary level (10 +2) - -
Graduates (Professional) 23 46
Post Graduates (Professional) 27 54
Total 50 100%
Table No 4.3 and the figure adjoined with it shows the educational
qualification of the respondents. The statistical data showed that the
company is having none of its distributor as only Higher Secondary
Level passed. Whereas it is having a majority of dealers that are Post
Graduates, i.e. around 54% are PG and 46% of them were found to be
Graduates only. This shows that the company is having a good number of
well qualified dealers collaborated with it.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
HSS (10 + 2) Graduates Post Graduates
Qualification of the Respondents
Post Graduates
Graduates
HSS (10 + 2)

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Table No. 4.4: Do you face any type of problem from the company`s
end in term of delivering you the products in time.
Options Responses of
Respondents
Percentage
%
Yes 09 18
No 41 82
Total 50 100%
Table No 4.4 and Figure 4.4. Showed the responses of people regarding
the statement that whether they are facing any kind of trouble or problem
with the delivery process of the company. In response to this statement,
there were around 82 per cent of the people that were agree and satisfied
with the delivery process of the company but there were 18% of those
people that gave ‘Yes’ as there answer sating that they were feeling
problem with the present delivery status and process of the company.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Yes No
Any type of problem with delivery process?
No
Yes

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Table No. 4.5: Have you ever received any defective product having
soft bottle associated with it.
Respondents
Percentage
%
Yes 34 68
No 16 32
Total 50 100%
In table No 4.5 and Figure No. 4.5 it can be seen clearly that the dealers
were enquired about any kind of waste product being received by them
during the delivery of products to which majority of the dealers said yes
that they did received defective products with soft bottles associated with
the, whereas only 32 per cent of people denied of receiving any defective
product. This shows that dealers do received defective material in their
lot that they order from the company.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Yes No
Received any defective product with soft bottles
association in that product
No
Yes

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Table No. 4.6: Which product from the company do you receive
mostly defective.
Respondents
Percentage
%
Glass Bottles 02 04
Soft Bottles 47 94
Tetra Packs 01 02
Total 50 100%
In the above given Table No. 4.6 and figure No. 4.6, the respondents
were asked to record their views regarding the type of defective products
being received by them. On the response to this statement, it was seen
that majority of the respondents were in the favour of one thing that they
received soft bottles as mostly defective product whereas glass bottles
and tetra packs were least defective being received by them. Majority of
94 per cent of dealers supported the view that soft bottles are mostly
defective.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Glass Bottles Soft Bottles Tetra Packs
Most Defective Product Received
Tetra Packs
Glass Bottles2
Glass Bottles

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Table No. 4.7: What according to you remained the main cause of
receiving defective soft bottles in the end.
Respondents
Percentage %
Delay in Transportation 13 26
Access in Detention Period 23 46
Temperature 09 18
Poor Packaging Standards 05 10
Total 50 100%
In table no. 7 and figure no. 7, one of the important questions is being
asked to the dealers. They were asked to record their statement with
respect to a thing that what will be the main reason behind the defective
soft bottles being received by them. In response to this statement,
majority of the dealers i.e. around 46 per cent of the dealers agreed that
the excess in detention period is the main cause, whereas 26 per cent
blamed delay in transportation and 18 people said temperature to be the
major role player whereas poor packaging standards were blamed by 10
percent of people.
0
10
20
30
40
50
Delay in
Transportation
Excess in
Detention
Period
Temperature Poor Packaging
Standards
Main Reason for Defective Soft Bottles
Poor Packaging Standards
Temperature
Excess in Detention Period
Delay in Transportation

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Table No. 4.8: How would you rate the transportation and delivery
system of company.
Respondents
Percentage
%
Good 28 56
Average 21 42
Poor 01 02
Total 50 100%
In the table no. 4.8 and figure 4.8, it has been asked to the dealers to rate
the transportation and delivery system of the company. In response to
this, it has been seen that majority of the respondents rated the
company`s delivery system as good but it has also been seen that around
42 per cent of the respondents said it to be average and 2 per cent were
those that claimed it to be of poor level.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Good Average Poor
Rating Company`s Transportation and
Delivery System
Poor
Average
Good

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Table No. 4.9: Do you think temperature plays major role when it
comes to defective soft bottles.
Respondents
Percentage
%
Yes 43 86
No 07 14
Total 50 100%
In table no. 4.9 and figure no. 4.9, the dealers were asked to record their
views regarding whether the temperature plays any important role in
defective soft bottles. Majority of the respondents i.e. around 86 percent
of respondents agreed to this fact that temperature also plays major role
in defective soft bottles whereas only 14 percent of people were not
satisfied with this statement as per them, temperature is not any major
cause in the receiving of defective soft bottles.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Yes No
Rol of temperature in defective soft bottles
No
Yes

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Table No. 4.10: Excess in waiting period causes detention that causes
defects in products later on. Do you agree with this?
Respondents
Percentage
%
Fully 38 76
Very Little 05 10
Up to Some Extent 07 14
Total 50 100%
The statistical data in Table No. 4.10 and figure 4.10 can be seen
showing the response of dealers with regard to the statement that whether
detention period causes any kind of defect to the product. In response to
which, it was seen that 76 percent of people were straight agreed to this
fact and there were 10 people that were very little supportive to this
statement and 14 percent were those who were positive to this statement
up to some extent.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Fully Very Little Up to Some Extent
Detention Period Causes Defects in Soft
Bottles
Up to Some Extent
Very Little
Fully

Page | 58
CHAPTER 5
FINDINGS AND
SUGGESTIONS

Page | 59
CHAPTER 5 – FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIONS
It has been seen that dealers are facing issues with the soft bottles coming
defective or puffed due to several reasons say it to be transportation delay
or detention time extended or the hot summer temperature. The major
problems occur when the transport delivery gets delayed and the dealer
has to suffer the delay and also gets defective products for further sale.
The company was unable to get a proper view with regard to the
defective soft bottles and the problems related to soft bottles. There are
so many problems related to soft bottles whether say naturally or in
business aspect. Here, you will get to know the basic problems being
faced by the company in term of their dealers.
The product when leaves the production plant ware house, it has to reach
the destination plant of ware house of that particular dealer in under
twenty four hours. The liability starts here, when the truck or the
consignment got delayed by some time, it reaches late I the godown thus
causing more time to get the truck unloaded that causes increased
detention period. Here, detention period is the excess in time that has
been allotted to a truck to finish and empty its contents to the particular
ware house it was assigned. When the truck got late there, the unloading
also starts late causing many problems in relation to the defect in soft
bottles. Soft bottles are required to be stored in a particular temperature
with heat limits not permissible and cold limits up to an extent where
these bottles could remain nicely without causing any defect.

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With the delay in unloading time, the bottles starts exceeding the
temperature due to chemical gases involved in it while production, it
starts reacting as the cold temperature and dark as well is the first and
basic requirement of soft bottles so as to keep them defect free and also
keep the soft drink cool so as to get it sold. But when the detention time
increases, the unloading gets delayed and soft bottles remains in the truck
for longer time than they can remain. The temperature rises and as they
are stacked over one another, it causes problem to them thus getting soft
bottles defective or puffed.
Another thing comes in hand in response to defect of soft bottles is the
temperature. Due to non availability of cover over the truck, the products
get exposed in sunlight in summers causing huge effect of sun over the
bottles. It has been pre mentioned and quoted over the bottles that they
should not be exposed to direct sunlight and should be kept under cool
and dry temperature. When the soft bottles get openly exposed under
sunlight, the chemical gases reacts and it creates problems by causing
defects in those soft bottles and it serves as loss for company as the
products gets defective.
Delay in transportation, proper handling of products, openly exposure to
sunlight and other things are mainly identified and referred to as the main
problems that soft bottles face and gets defective issues. Below are some
of the major findings from this study that will explain you the purpose of
questionnaire framed and the responses of the dealers.

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5.1 FINDINGS
 During the analysis of the distributors that were included in the
sample survey, it was revealed that all the dealers the company is
having are male. This shows that there is majority of male and
dominance of male in this profession of distribution ship.
 When the age profile of the respondents in the survey was
evaluated, it was founded that majority of the dealers are in the age
slab of 31 to 40 Years of category. This clearly shows that the
dealers are mostly experienced and are aware of the problems that
they are facing in their business with respect to the soft bottles or
any other kind of distribution ship also. They can reach through
simple conversations and doubts can be clear to them if any.
 Dealers of the company associated with it are mostly qualified and
this is a genuinely a nice and good thing because when the dealers
and distributors are educated enough to understand the level of
work and type of work they have to do and encounter the problems
that they will be tackling with day by day procedures, it will make
them aware of many things that will be useful for them in future.
 When the dealers were requested about the question to tell whether
they are facing any issues regarding the delivery of the product
from the company. Majority of the people expressed no issues with

Page | 62
the delivery process but a few percentages between them expressed
their negative views in response to the delivery process.
 Dealers were seen agreeing upon the fact that whether they have
received defective product in which the involvement of soft bottle
can be seen. Majority of the people said that they did received such
products thus clearing the doubt regarding problems in soft bottles
do occur.
 On the response to this statement, it was seen that majority of the
respondents were in the favour of one thing that they received soft
bottles as mostly defective product whereas glass bottles and tetra
packs were least defective being received by them. Majority of 94
per cent of dealers supported the view that soft bottles are mostly
defective.
 It has been seen that majority of the dealers i.e. around 46 per cent
of the dealers agreed that the excess in detention period is the main
cause, whereas 26 per cent blamed delay in transportation and 18
people said temperature to be the major role player whereas poor
packaging standards were blamed by 10 percent of people.
 Majority of the respondents claimed the transportation and delivery
system of company to be good but it has also been seen that there
was a notable percentage of people according to whom, the

Page | 63
transportation and delivery system was of average quality while 2
percent of people said that it was not good and was poor.
 Temperature is also playing great role in defective soft bottles and
around 86 percentage of dealers gone agree with this statement. As
per them, defective soft bottles are also due to temperature scale
whereas a few handful of percentage of 16 percent did not agreed
with this statement as according to them, temperature does not play
any role in this.
 Majority of the dealers are agreed to the fact that delay in transport
makes excess in detention period and later on the detention period
causes defects in the soft bottles. This is send positive by 76
percent of people where as 10 people that were very little
supportive to this statement and 14 percent were those who were
positive to this statement up to some extent.
With these majority of findings, there has to be some suggestions and
recommendations given to the company in order to do so that the defect
can be minimized and more efficient product can be reach to the deader
so that they can give it further for sale without causing any delay and
defects
.

Page | 64
5.2 SUGGESTIONS
 Female entrepreneurship in this field should be increased if it can
be increase. It has been seen that there is no female dealer
associated with the company in the sample data taken by us. If
there will be some female dealers associated, the company will
surely receive a boost in terms of workplace balancing and
healthier environment.
 It is nice to have young and energetic workforce with your
organization. No doubt most of the dealers are experienced enough
to handle situation but it should be taken care that some young
people must be entered into this business so as to make the flow of
new technological and communicational advancements keep
flowing.
 The company should thrive hard to achieve dealers that are capable
of knowing the company`s aims and objectives and upon
understanding those aims, he should be the one, who should mix
his own talent with company`s aims and achieve a cumulative
growth for both of him and the company in the long run.
 Majority of the dealers were seen satisfied with the delivery
process followed by the company but there were also a few notable
percentage of people those who were not satisfied with this
process. The company should notify those dealers and talk to them

Page | 65
and clear all the problems or gaps between them and should strive
hard to make them positive about the company as this will help
them remain happy with the organization and do a healthy business
that will be proving beneficial for both of them.
 As dealers themselves agreed regarding the point that they do
received damaged products with the involvement of soft
bottles. These products should be identified and put separately in
order to verify on a later stage as to what extent the product was
defective and how the defect came from.
 When it has been seen that the dealers are receiving more and more
defects and damaged products only in the soft bottle category, the
pet bottles of the company, t hey should inform the company about
the said otherwise it may have any kind of disaster as the company
will be unaware about the fact thus resulting in to ignorance of this
unknown fact that will make problems for them later on. It is thus
advised that such measures should be told to dealers and
distributors that they should inform the company about any type of
experience they had with their products.
 The dealers have clearly expressed their views with regard to the
excess in detention period, delay in transportation, temperature and
poor packaging standards being followed. The company is doing
things at mass level, there is possibility of some human errors like
delay in transportation or excess in detention period but

Page | 66
temperature is not in hand. It should be done that the products
should reach dealer`s godown in time thus causing a null effect
over the product and stopping it from getting damaged.
 No doubt the transportation and delivery system of the company is
rated good by the majority of the respondents but it should be kept
in mind that there were good numbers of people also who stated
the transportation and delivery system to be of average standard.
The problems that the dealers are facing here should be identified
as to what extent it is causing any harm to the dealers and making
them suffer problems after which they are rating the company`s
system as average in quality. It has been seen that delivery system
is the main system through which the company is possible to send
the products to its hundreds of dealers and distributors across Delhi
and other states also. The problems of detention period, delay of
transportation and others occur through these delivery system only.
You can easily fix these systems and get all your dealers on the
positive aspect of your company.
 It has been seen that majority of the respondents were in favored
with temperature as the main ill effect causing defective soft
bottles. Temperature puts pressure over the soft bottles thus
making them get soft enough to be broken or defective. There
should be provisions and such steps should be taken so that
temperature should not put any type of problem to this lot of cold
drinks. In the vehicles transporting soft drinks to dealers, those

Page | 67
should be covered with adequate cover on their truck and if vans
or tempos are being used, they should be all closed with
temperature maintained so that no ill effect of the hot temperature
could be felt on soft bottles. Though this problem is only in the
months of summer season as the soft bottles gets soften off by hot
temperature but in winters, no effect by temperature can be seen.
 Detention period should be finished as the excess in detention
period causes ill effects to the soft bottles. When the vehicle wait
for more than 24 hours to deliver the product, it goes into detention
period and thus causes more problem to the soft bottles as they get
defective. The bottles have to be reached in the godown before the
stipulated time given by the company but when it gets delayed, the
problems starts. These problems should with dealt with care so that
there should be no detention period.
Approximately 100 million plastic bottles are used and discarded every
day, with 80% of them simply becoming non-biodegradable litter. While
it is convenient to consume drinks straight out of plastic bottles, the trash
that is accumulated in the process takes a huge toll on the health of our
environment. Plastic water bottles have a significant carbon footprint,
with the amount of water going into making a bottle being up to three
times what’s inside the bottle. Also, bottles used to package water take
over 1,000 years to bio-degrade and, if incinerated, produce toxic fumes.

Page | 68
Since reuse is a step up from recycling, repurposing plastic bottles we
already have is an excellent habit to get into if we want to do our share to
help save the environment. You will be surprised at how many
opportunities for reuse there really are – once you start looking for them.
Thus these things are sure that if workers will be explained with
systematic procedural charts and way they can work out even if the delay
is caused could save a lot from getting the soft bottles defect. Using soft
bottles is also a big concern to the nature but the company can change
these soft bottles also with any other good thing as these bottles are
causing great effect to different species of living beings and the
environment.

Page | 70
CONCLUSION
Coke is it -- it being the #1 nonalcoholic beverage company, as well as
one of the world's most recognizable brands. The Coca-Cola Company is
home to 20 billion-dollar-brands, including four of the top five soft
drinks: Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Fanta, and Sprite. Other top brands
include Minute Maid, Powerade, and vitaminwater. All told, the
company owns or licenses and markets more than 500 beverage brands,
mainly sparkling drinks but also waters, juice drinks, energy and sports
drinks, and ready-to-drink teas and coffees. With the world's largest
beverage distribution system, The Coca-Cola Company reaches thirsty
consumers in more than 200 countries.
Alternatives to soft bottles
Only 52% of plastic bottles within households and 25% of total plastic
packaging were recycled in the UK in 2012. This places the UK in 25th
position out of 29 EU countries for plastic recycling and energy recovery.
Consumers therefore need a viable alternative to plastic bottles. These are
discussed in a paper by David Jones, who wrote the article above. His
discussion is summarised as follows:
Bioplastics – those made from corn starch – and biodegradable bottles
are the industry’s solution, but these have huge issues associated with
them. Some are only partially plant based, e.g. The Coca Cola company

Page | 71
is currently developing a plant bottle containing 22.5% plant based PET,
and so still rely heavily on oil based PET. Bioplastics utilise a potential
food source when food is already in short supply in certain areas, they
take a long time to degrade unless optimum conditions are provided, they
cannot be mixed with oil based plastic recycling processes, no UK
collection system for bioplastics currently exists and there are few
commercial scale composting plants.
Additionally, they continue to suggest that single use items are
acceptable – as do other packaging options: steel and aluminium cans,
tetra packs and glass.
The way forward requires a social and cultural change, which will be
forced upon us eventually as oil prices rise and oil based plastics are no
longer a viable economic option.
Compulsory take-back schemes, reusable steel or aluminium bottles, and
vending machines that can refill reuseable bottles have all been proposed
as methods for replacing plastic bottles within the soft drinks industry.
SodaStream, a company providing home carbonation systems, is
currently the best known of a few existing methods of refilling bottles
with home-made carbonated beverages.

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The Human Impact of Soft Bottles
Plastic bottles contain Bisphenol A (BPA), the chemical used to make the
plastic hard and clear. BPA is an endocrine disruptor which has
been proven to be hazardous to human health. It has been strongly linked
to a host of health problems including certain types of cancer,
neurological difficulties, early puberty in girls, reduced fertility in
women, premature labour, and defects in newborn babies – to name a few
examples. BPA enters the human body through exposure to plastics such
as bottled drinks and cleaning products. It has been found in significant
amounts in at-risk groups such as pregnant women’s placentas and
growing foetuses. A study conducted last year found that 96% of women
in the U.S have BPA in their bodies.
The good news is that you can have your BPA levels measured and make
lifestyle changes to lower them, as demonstrated by Jeb Berrier in his
film about plastic consumer merchandise, Bag It.
Bottled drinks also contain phthalates, which are commonly used in the
U.S. to make plastics such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) more
flexible. Phthalates are also endocrine-disrupting chemicals that have
been linked to a wide range of developmental and reproductive effects,
including reduced sperm count, testicular abnormality and tumors, and
gender development issues. The FDA does not regulate phthalates or

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class them as a health hazard due to the supposedly minute amounts
present in plastic bottles. This decicsion does not take into account the
significant presence of plastics in the average American citizen’s daily
life, the fact that phthalate concentration increases the longer a plastic
water bottle is stored, or the fact that a bottled drink that is exposed to
heat causes accelerated leaching of harmful plastic chemicals into the
drink.
In addition to the negative impacts of BPA and phthalates on human
health there are also growing concerns regarding carcinogens and
microbial contaminants that have been found in test samples of bottled
water.
Bottling plants also cause problems for the humans who live near them.
Water extraction surrounding bottling plants involved millions of gallons
of water to make the bottles. This often leads to local water shortages
that affects nearby residents, especially farmers who need to provide food
for the surrounding neighborhoods.
The Animal Impact of Soft Bottles
Plastic bottle tops are currently not recyclable, and as with plastic bags
they often end up at the bottom of the ocean, and in the stomachs of a

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variety of animal species that mistake them for food. One albatross that
was recently found dead on a Hawaiian island had a stomach full of 119
bottle caps.
Marine life falls prey to this problem on a daily basis. A sperm whale
was found dead on a North American beach recently with a plastic gallon
bottle which had gummed up its small intestine. The animal’s body was
full of plastic material including other plastic bottles, bottle caps and
plastic bags.
The Environmental Impact of Soft Bottles
Plastic bottles are made from a petroleum product known as polyethylene
terephthalate (PET), and they require huge amounts of fossil fuels to both
make and transport them. In the 1970s the U.S. was the world’s largest
exporter of oil, but now it is the largest importer. If you fill a plastic
bottle with liquid so that it is 25% full, that’s roughly how much oil it
took to make the bottle. For a single-use disposable item, that’s a lot.
It’s harder to recycle plastic bottles than you think. Of the mass numbers
of plastic bottles consumed throughout the world, most of them are not
recycled because only certain types of plastic bottles can be recycled by
certain municipalities. They either end up lying stagnant in landfills,

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leaching dangerous chemicals into the ground, or they infiltrate our
streets as litter. They are found on sidewalks, in parks, front yards and
rivers, and even if you chop them into tiny pieces they still take more
than a human lifetime to decompose.
It gets worse. In the case of bottled water, the plastic-making process
requires over two gallons of water for the purification process of every
gallon of water.
In the U.S., bottled water and tap water are regulated by different federal
agencies. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates bottled
water and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates tap
water. Therefore, the enforcement and monitoring of water quality for
bottled water vs tap water does not add up. Due to strict EPA policies,
incidents of tap water contamination have to be reported immediately to
U.S. citizens, however there is no such rule for bottled water, despite
numerous bottled water recalls taking place over the years.
It has been seen that dealers are facing issues with the soft bottles coming
defective or puffed due to several reasons say it to be transportation delay
or detention time extended or the hot summer temperature. The major
problems occur when the transport delivery gets delayed and the dealer
has to suffer the delay and also gets defective products for further sale.
The company was unable to get a proper view with regard to the

Page | 76
defective soft bottles and the problems related to soft bottles. There are
so many problems related to soft bottles whether say naturally or in
business aspect. Here, you will get to know the basic problems being
faced by the company in term of their dealers.
The product when leaves the production plant ware house, it has to reach
the destination plant of ware house of that particular dealer in under
twenty four hours. The liability starts here, when the truck or the
consignment got delayed by some time, it reaches late I the godown thus
causing more time to get the truck unloaded that causes increased
detention period. Here, detention period is the excess in time that has
been allotted to a truck to finish and empty its contents to the particular
ware house it was assigned. When the truck got late there, the unloading
also starts late causing many problems in relation to the defect in soft
bottles. Soft bottles are required to be stored in a particular temperature
with heat limits not permissible and cold limits up to an extent where
these bottles could remain nicely without causing any defect.
With the delay in unloading time, the bottles starts exceeding the
temperature due to chemical gases involved in it while production, it
starts reacting as the cold temperature and dark as well is the first and
basic requirement of soft bottles so as to keep them defect free and also
keep the soft drink cool so as to get it sold. But when the detention time
increases, the unloading gets delayed and soft bottles remains in the truck
for longer time than they can remain. The temperature rises and as they

Page | 77
are stacked over one another, it causes problem to them thus getting soft
bottles defective or puffed.
Another thing comes in hand in response to defect of soft bottles is the
temperature. Due to non availability of cover over the truck, the products
get exposed in sunlight in summers causing huge effect of sun over the
bottles. It has been pre mentioned and quoted over the bottles that they
should not be exposed to direct sunlight and should be kept under cool
and dry temperature. When the soft bottles get openly exposed under
sunlight, the chemical gases reacts and it creates problems by causing
defects in those soft bottles and it serves as loss for company as the
products gets defective.

Page | 78
BIBLIOGRAPHY
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/toxin-in-pet-
bottles-of-soft-drinks-pepsico-coca-cola-mountain-dew-sprite-3067617/
http://marketrealist.com/2014/11/understanding-value-chain-soft-drinks-
industry/
http://www.coca-colaindia.com/about-us/our-leaders
http://www.encyclopedia.com/history/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-
and-press-releases/soft-drink-industry
http://www.euromonitor.com/soft-drinks
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/coca-cola-poisonous-
spirit-fanta-court-nigeria-nigerian-bottling-company-vitamin-c-health-
warnings-a7655766.html
http://www.onegreenplanet.org/animalsandnature/whats-the-problem-
with-plastic-bottles/
http://www.thebetterindia.com/58509/reuse-plastic-bottles-reduce-
pollution-waste/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_bottle
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Coca-
Cola_Companyhttp://www.vault.com/company-profiles/food-
beverage/the-coca-cola-company/company-overview

Page | 79
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/mar/17/coca-cola-hits-back-
at-sugar-tax-plan

Page | 81
QUESTIONNAIRE
PROBLEMS RELATED TO SOFT BOTTLES
TOPIC: A STUDY OF PROBLEMS RELATED TO SOFT
BOTTLES IN COCA COLA PVT. LTD.
This questionnaire survey is purely for academic purpose. Any
information collected through this survey is confidential and would not
be shared with anyone other than the people involved in this and will be
only used for the finding the results. (Kindly give your unbiased
response).
Name: ........................................................................................................
Q1. You are a?
a) Male.
b) Female
Q2) Your age lies in the group?
a) 20 - 30 Years

Page | 82
b) 31 – 40 Years
c) 41 & Further Years
Q3) Your Educational Profile?
a) HSL (10 + 2)
b) Graduates
c) Post Graduates
Q4) Do you face any type of problem from the company`s end in
term of delivering you the products in time?
a) Yes
b) No
Q5) Have you ever received any defective product having soft bottle
associated with it?
a) Yes
b) No
Q6) Which product from the company do you receive mostly
defective?
a) Glass Bottles

Page | 83
b) Soft Bottles
c) Tetra Packs
Q7) What according to you remained the main cause of receiving
defective soft bottles in the end?
a) Delay in Transportation
b) Excess in Detention Period
c) Temperature
d) Poor Packaging Standards
Q8) How would you rate the transportation and delivery system of
company?
a) Good
b) Average
c) Poor
Q9) Do you think temperature plays major role when it comes to
defective soft bottles?
a) Yes
b) No

Page | 84
Q10) Excess in waiting period causes detention that causes defects in
products later on. Do you agree with this?
a) Fully
b) Very Little
c) Up to some extent
Thanks for your valuable feedback through this questionnaire. The
information given by you will be used in order to study problems related
to soft bottles in coca cola pvt. ltd. So that suggestive measures should be
given and improvement must be brought in the process.
Anmol Jamwal and Gurmeet Singh

Problems Related to Soft Bottles in Coca Cola - MBA/BBA Summer Internship Project Report

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Problems Related to Soft Bottles in Coca Cola - MBA/BBA Summer Internship Project Report