Applications in bi-tech and business

As we know Lanchester Laws are widely used in calculating military force, but here we particularly introduce two issues in business and bio-tech.

3.4.1 Special experiments in bio-tech

McGlynn [73] attempted to test whether ants use Lanchester’s laws in interspecific competition at food sources. He designed two types of bait platforms, and conducted these experiments in natural settings at the La Selva Biological Station in Costa Rica. In one bait platform (modified Petri dishes), he had large semicircular openings which provided access to the bait, while the other had a narrow entrance which provided bait access. McGlynn found that, although ants of all sizes were attracted to the baits, smaller ant species

significantly dominated the bait platforms that has large entry access holes, while there was no clear pattern of domination by ants of any particular size at the platforms with the small entry holes. McGlynn [73] suggests that these results may be interpretable from Lanchester’s laws, at least for the results from the smaller ants. However, he does caution that other factors such as territoriality, nutritional needs of the colony, nest locations, and the suite of competing species near particular bait platform sites, could have contributed to the findings. Considering the very significant result obtained with the bait platforms provided with the large openings, McGlynn [73] suggests that this could be used to design baits platforms to administer insecticides for ant control, especially since the problem ants worldwide seem to be small non-native invading species [74]. In a comparative study, McGlynn [74] found that in all of the ant genera with monomorphic worker castes that fight during competition, the non-native invasive species were smaller than the native species. He believes that the fact that fighting nonnative ants are smaller than their closest native relatives may provide powerful insights into the mode of success of the non-native invading species. While other factors including life history attributes such as polygyny and colony budding, could be responsible for their competitiveness, it is certainly intriguing to consider whether some of this success could be attributed to the fact that the ants are following Lanchester’s laws of combat.

Lanchester’s Linear Law appears to be followed in slave-making ants which steal brood from heterospecific colonies to augment the worker force in their own nests. The slave-makers are usually outnumbered by workers in the colonies that they wish to raid.

Do the slave-makers try to organize one-to-one duels? According to Franks and Partridge [62] the slave-making ants Formica pergandei and F. subintegra which produce

“propaganda” or confusing substances (esters such as decyl, dodecyl and tetradecyl acetates) that cause alarm amongst the defending workers (Regnier and Wilson [75]), are actually trying to split the enemy ranks to force limited engagements or one-to-one duel situations. In these duels, victory is ensured by the superior individual fighting ability of the slavemaking ants, many of which are equipped with powerful mandibles and stings.

Another possible example of the use of the Linear Law is the slave-making ant Harpagoxenus sublaevis which produces the “propaganda” alkanes n-heptadecene and n-heptadecadiene (Ollet et al [76]) that cause the defenders to attack each other [77].

3.4.2 The Lanchester strategy on sales and marketing¹⁷

The Lanchester Strategy is based on the Lanchester Laws, Yano [52] describes the strategy of the weak.The New Lanchester Strategy includes strategies for both the strong (market leader) and the weak (second and lower market share). The starting point of stategy is, after all, the desire on the part of the weak to find a way to defeat the strong.

Recently, diversification has led to increasing competition among companies engaged in disparate industries. Companies entering the fray for the first time need to implement the strategy of the weak. Even the strong would be well advised to familiarize themselves with the strategy of the weak in order to protect their positions of strength. This volume is a continuation of the story presented in Volume One. Supervisor Sakamoto remains the chief protagonist, and the story revolves mainly around him and his colleagues at Company W, a manufacturer. Other characters from manufacturing companies, retailers, and service industries are introduced in this story.

Differentiation here means having something that the competition doesn't. This is the most basic strategy for the weak. Weak companies would be seriously mistaken to adopt the same strategies used by their stronger rivals. Since differentiation strategy involves having something that the competition does not, companies must be prepared to change their differentiation strategy when a competitor's reaction warrants such a change. For that reason, differentiation strategy must never be rigid. Constant alertness and flexibility are called for. In this chapter, we discuss the importance of differentiation strategy and describe the various forms it may take.

Local battles are waged on a limited front. In terms of sales strategy, this has two meanings:

1. Fighting local battles, and 2. Creating local battle conditions.

Fighting local battles means competing in specific regions. Creating local battle conditions in specific regions. Creating local battle conditions means segmenting the market. Not only must regions be segmented, but also merchandise and customer bases. This step is necessary when a company is attempting to set priorities.

We consider single (man-to-man) combat. In terms of sales strategy, this means penetrating a market dominated by one company and going after that company's customers.

This strategy is needed when a company enters a new industry or region, or is attempting

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to cultivate a new customer base, and is in the process of setting its priorities.

In relation to sales strategy, close combat embraces the following four concepts:

1. Adopting a direct sales system,

2. Launching a "downstream" campaign, 3. Reinforcing one's home base, and 4. Using personal approach as a weapon.

Close combat is vital to distribution strategy and in developing tactics.

In a battle, the weaker army has no hope of winning unless it focuses its small forces on one area. In sales strategy, as well, the weaker company must launch a concentrated offense. There are several types of one-point concentration (involving regions, products, and customer bases), but the most problematic aspect is where to focus the effort. The best strategy for the weaker company is to select a relatively easy target or to focus on an area where it already has strength.

Diversionary operations confuse the enemy. It is important to keep such operations secret, since once an army's battle plan is discovered by the enemy, defeat is inevitable.

Decoy maneuvers are an important aspect of this particular strategy. In sales strategy, the purpose of diversionary operations are:

1. To demoralize the enemy, and 2. To scatter the enemy's forces.