bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Perceptions of food “quality” and the power of marketing communication: results of consumer research on a branded‐egg concept
Authors: Fearne Andrew , Lavelle David
Published: July 2002

Despite the long term decline in per capita consumption, eggs remain an important staple in the British diet. Having recovered from the salmonella scare in 1989, the image of eggs has suffered in recent years due to the growing awareness of (and concern over) diet and health, and bird welfare. Finds evidence drawn from a consumer market research study which highlights the importance of effective marketing communication and the potential for adding value to the basic British egg.
Own branding in UK and French grocery markets
Authors: Fernie John , Pierrel Francis R.A.
Published: July 2002

Undertakes a comparative analysis of the evolution and development of own branding strategies in UK and French grocery markets. Primary research was carried out through semi‐structured interviews with senior managers of French grocery companies to determine the nature of their own branding strategies and to draw out comparisons with the strategies of their UK counterparts. Results indicate that it is unlikely that French retailers will develop store brands on the scale of Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Marks & Spencer and Safeway in the UK. The organizational structure of French grocery business is less conducive to centralized buying and distribution, and conflict between manufacturers and distributors has led to a less efficient supply chain than in the UK. These factors, coupled with a highly competitive price‐driven market environment, have resulted in most French retailers using own brands as a defensive strategy to combat strong national brands. The exceptions are companies which are well represented in the high street (Monoprix, Casino and Prisunic) and Carrefour, the only hypermarket operator which has ventured down the route of the UK multiples with a more value‐added, differentiation approach.
Case study: Tim Miner’s Concord Vegetable Corporation internship journal
Authors: Lantos Geoffrey P.
Published: July 2002

The case is presented by a senior marketing major (Tim), who did a business internship in the new products area of a fictitious consumer package goods firm. The case is presented as a journal Tim kept while interning. It is based on the author’s own journal, kept while working as a business professor intern in a firm similar to that in the case. Although names have been disguised, most of the activities, practices and problems described in the case are based on the author’s internship experience. Tim is simultaneously involved in two major new product projects. First is the early exploratory research done for new vegetable‐based food products. Second is a snack product which is ready to be moved from a controlled store test to test markets. Tim is also involved in other activities: a new business committee meeting, an industry forum, and a strategic plans presentation meeting. Tim works fairly closely with the new products manager, people in other areas of the firm such as marketing research and research and development, as well as with the firm’s ad agency. The case also describes informational interviews Tim conducted with various functional managers in the company involved with new products, and it gives students a feel for all of the nitty gritty implementation details involved in new product work.
The influence of brand recognition on retail store image
Authors: Porter Stephen S. , Claycomb Cindy
Published: July 2002

Investigates the relationship between brand characteristics ‐ awareness level and image ‐ and their influence on consumers’ perceptions of retail image. Proposes a model of relationships between the number of recognizable brands carried by a retail establishment, the presence/absence of an anchor brand, and perceptions of retail image. Presents the analysis and results of a study designed to test the model. In addition, develops and tests a measure of retail store image. Indicates that one tactic for ensuring a favorable retail store image is a merchandise mix composed of a relatively high number of brands possessing high brand awareness, and one or more brands with a strong brand image. Offers recommendations for both brand and retail managers.
Price setting in SMEs: some empirical findings
Authors: Carson David , Gilmore Audrey , Cummins Darryl , O’Donnell Aodheen , Grant Ken
Published: July 2002

Some consideration of the specific SME (small/medium sized enterprises) literature outlining perspectives on pricing practice in SMEs is given in this paper. Outlines some empirical findings gathered from in‐depth interviews with 40 SME owner‐managers in Northern Ireland. The findings provide corroboration of previous studies and expand the understanding of the price perspective for SMEs. Some conclusions are drawn as a result of this study. This paper examines the real implications of pricing in SMEs and shows how pricing fits with marketing in SMEs.
Fashion involvement, self‐monitoring and the meaning of brands
Authors: Auty Susan , Elliott Richard
Published: July 2002

This study considers the importance of fashion involvement in the interpretation of brands of jeans as measured by Snyder’s revised self‐monitoring scale, which discriminates between people who are highly motivated to respond to social cues and those who remain “true to themselves”. Over 650 people in the UK aged 14‐34
were shown either a branded or unbranded stimulus. They were asked to record their attitude to 27 pairs of bipolar adjectives using a semantic differential scale. At the same time they completed Snyder’s scale. It was found that self‐monitoring is a significant mediator of meaning with regard to unbranded, but not branded, jeans. A model of
choice by elimination of the unacceptable is suggested by high self‐monitoring
responses. It has implications for the amount of advertising required to support a
fashion brand.
Asymmetric price competition and store vs national brand choice
Authors: Aggarwal Praveen , Cha Taihoon
Published: July 2002

Sales and market share of store
brands have been growing significantly at the expense of national brands. The decision to purchase
a store brand or a national brand has been modeled in this paper. The proposed model provides an
explanation for the existence of asymmetric price competition between store brands and national
brands. The article proposes and empirically demonstrates the existence of a reference threshold as
the key criterion underlying this choice. It also shows that the decision to buy the store/national
brand is not influenced by the store brand’s price or price promotions, or the magnitude of the
difference between the threshold and the national brand’s price.
The identification of weak products revisited
Authors: Harness David R. , Marr Norman E. , Goy Tina
Published: July 2002

This paper revisits the causes of product deletion, an important if somewhat neglected part of product management theory. The causes of product deletion are important in the way they compromise a product manager’s ability to pursue the organisation’s product objectives. Without a knowledge of when or why a product may become sick, it is doubtful that proactive product management can be successfully accomplished. The documented causes of why products become terminally ill are explored to provide a conceptual background for the reported study. The findings of a qualitative study into the factors that cause product deletion in the financial services sector are presented. The key issues relating to both the financial services and the physical goods sector are analysed and discussed. The outcome of this is a realisation that the development of a universal model for the identification of why products become weak is unsafe. The results of this study suggest that there is a clear need for research that explores the relationship between the causes of product decline and the formulation of triggers of deletion.
Concepts and strategy guidelines for designing value enhancing sales promotions
Authors: Srinivasan Srini S. , Anderson Rolph E.
Published: July 2002

Sales promotions are probably the least understood and least analyzed of all the promotional tools, yet they are among the most costly and most frequently used. Today’s top managers are relentlessly searching for new areas in which to cut costs and increase profits, so sales promotion are coming under greater scrutiny than ever. In order to justify and skillfully use expenditures on sales promotions for different objectives and target markets, marketing managers must understand some key concepts and thoroughly examine several critical variables across markets and among sales promotion tools themselves that impact directly on sales, profitability, and value added.
Fashion innovativeness and self‐concept: a replication
Authors: Goldsmith Ronald E. , Moore Mary Ann , Beaudoin Pierre
Published: July 2002

Describes the results of a survey of 281 adult women in the state of Florida. We used the 15 adjective pairs of the Malhotra self‐concept scale to measure their self‐image. A valid and reliable self‐report scale measured their fashion innovativeness, thus identifying those consumers most likely to buy new fashions after they first appear in the market. T‐tests compared the mean scores on the self‐image adjective pairs between 30 innovators and 251 later adopters. Pearson correlation analysis was also performed. The results of both analyses showed that the fashion innovators described themselves uniquely as more comfortable, pleasant, contemporary, formal, colorful, and vain than the later adopters. The results were quite consistent with an earlier published study of college students, lending confidence to this approach to profiling fashion innovators and suggesting that using self‐image could be a fruitful way to appeal to these important consumers.
Issues and challenges in the positioning of service brands: a review
Authors: Blankson Charles , Kalafatis Stavros P.
Published: July 2002

In recent years, increasing attention has been paid to positioning and, more specifically, positioning of service brands. This is so because of the unique characteristics of services. Although some authors argue that there are no marked differences between positioning in services and that of physical goods, the vast majority of marketing scholars believe that it is difficult to embark on positioning strategies in services. Sheds some light on this issue within the context and aims to contribute to the debate.
What’s in a name? An intracultural investigation of Hispanic and Anglo consumer preferences and the importance of brand name
Authors: Bristow Dennis N. , Asquith Jo Ann L.
Published: July 2002

Empirically investigates predicted consumption pattern differences and the importance of brand name, related to specific product categories, between two distinct cultural groups – Hispanics and Anglos. The authors predicted that, due to differences in values and lifestyles of the two groups, intracultural differences would be observed in the level of importance members of each group attached to specific product attributes, the brand name of products, the influence of others on the purchase decision, and the price consumers expected to pay. Descriptive statistics, cross‐tabulations, bivariate correlations, ANOVA and MANOVA procedures provided support for three of the four hypotheses tested. Several managerial implications are drawn from the results and future research suggestions are provided.
The computational effect of price endings in multi‐dimensional price advertising
Authors: Estelami Hooman
Published: July 2002

Research in marketing indicates that consumers may be sensitive to the final digits of prices. For example, despite being substantively equivalent, a price such as $199 may create more favorable price perceptions than $200. However, existing research has primarily focused on the effects of price endings in the context of uni‐dimensional prices – prices consisting of a single number. Advertised prices in the marketplace are often multi‐dimensional, consisting of numerous price dimensions. In such pricing contexts, price endings may influence consumers’ ability to conduct the arithmetic required to compute the total advertised price. Examines the effect of various price ending strategies on consumers’ computational efforts. The findings indicate that the more commonly exercised price ending strategies tend to result in prices that are the most difficult for consumers to evaluate.
Marketing causes and implications of consumer confusion
Authors: Mitchell Vincent‐Wayne , Papavassiliou Vassilios
Published: July 2002

Explores the concept of consumer confusion; what causes it, how consumers react to it and how marketers can influence it. The focus proposed differs from previous work by integrating the notions of stimulus overload and stimulus similarity as well as acknowledging conscious and unconscious confusion. The marketing determinants of confusion are classified and an inventory of confusion reduction strategies is discussed. Examines the marketing and policy implications of confusion, presents a checklist for brand managers to use when conducting a confusion audit and highlights areas for future research, especially into measurement of the concept.
EC steel prices and imports: impact of imports from Eastern Europe
Authors: Richardson P.K.
Published: July 2002

As might be expected, steel product prices fell during the recession of the early 1990s. Between 1990 and 1992, steel prices fell by about a third. As the economies of the EC recovered from the recession from early 1993, steel prices rose but by mid‐year it was clear that the increase was much below what was expected. It soon became clear that expected price rises were being mitigated by rising imports from Eastern European countries. This paper considers the process of steel price determination in the EC and the effect of cheap imports on EC prices. It shows that unregulated and relatively cheaper imports from the Former Soviet Union and Central and Eastern European countries indeed had a more depressing effect on EC prices by raising supply than would have been the case otherwise.
Controlling access to the Internet in UK public libraries
Authors: Willson Jonathan , Oulton Tony
Published: July 2002

Policies and practices of UK public libraries in providing access to Internet services are reviewed. Results of a questionnaire survey conducted as part of the Library and Information Commission funded PuPPS (public places, private spaces) scoping study of privacy, anonymity and confidentiality in public libraries, are reported. Ninety‐six per cent of respondents indicated that they had Internet facilities for the public. Many respondents indicated that they had policy documents on provision of and access to electronic and print materials. The majority of libraries (71 per cent) imposed some form of control on public access computers and a smaller majority (56 per cent) on staff only computers. The reliability and effectiveness of software currently available for filtering and blocking was a major cause for concern amongst respondents. The major reason for the imposition of control software appeared to be concern about access to sexually explicit material. The use of such software is frequently part of a broad corporate policy, designed to protect the local authority from adverse criticism by public or staff. Issues of privacy, anonymity and confidentiality were of lesser concern to public library respondents than control of public access to inappropriate material on the Internet.
Methodologies for crawler based Web surveys
Authors: Thelwall Mike
Published: July 2002

There have been many attempts to study the content of the Web, either through human or automatic agents. Describes five different previously used Web survey methodologies, each justifiable in its own right, but presents a simple experiment that demonstrates concrete differences between them. The concept of crawling the Web also bears further inspection, including the scope of the pages to crawl, the method used to access and index each page, and the algorithm for the identification of duplicate pages. The issues involved here will be well‐known to many computer scientists but, with the increasing use of crawlers and search engines in other disciplines, they now require a public discussion in the wider research community. Concludes that any scientific attempt to crawl the Web must make available the parameters under which it is operating so that researchers can, in principle, replicate experiments or be aware of and take into account differences between methodologies. Also introduces a new hybrid random page selection methodology.
Spiral dynamics:
Authors: Cowan Christopher C. , Todorovic Natasha
Published: July 2002

Strategies often go awry because organizational leaders are not fully aware of the values held by its members. No matter how brilliant the analysis that underlies a strategy, it is the people ‐‐ from the board room to the factory floor ‐‐ who must understand and implement the strategy. That only happens when the strategy fits their values. Values matter. Ethical decisions and actions are based on values. The authors present a psychological theory that describes three levels of values: surface values, hidden values, and deep values, and explain how these values affect an organization’s leaders and followers as they pursue their mission.
Cyberbranding: leveraging your brand on the Internet
Authors: Bergstrom Alan
Published: July 2002

As Internet usage grows, brands are becoming even more important than they have been in other channels or environments. With more choices from many unknown providers, customers tend to choose a provider that represents a set of values or attributes that are meaningful, clear, and trusted (a brand). However, migrating an existing brand to Internet use is not straightforward. A brand’s appeal may shift as Internet users have significant attitudinal differences from shoppers in other channels. The author presents the branding basics and six steps to building a strong brand on or off the Internet.
The new consumer emerges
Authors: Kress Katherine , Ozawa Nancy , Schmid Gregory
Published: July 2002

New consumers have emerged in North America. These consumers have higher expectations and are more demanding than yesterday’s consumers. Businesses must meet these requirements if they are to hold a competitive place in today’s marketplace. The authors report on research that identifies the key characteristics of the new consumers and suggest worker attitudes and behaviors that must be employed to serve these changing demands. This article also includes a lengthy sidebar that examines the factors that drive consumer attitude change over time.
Where has all the service gone?
Authors: Schulze Horst
Published: July 2002

The decline in real customer service parallels corporate USA’s fascination with customer care management – elaborate technologies and processes that spin the wheels of service without actually serving anyone. The author criticizes these new economy service models and demonstrates from first‐hand experience the values of the old economy. He includes a number of novel ways for approaching defect‐free service in any business.
Invisible management, visible results: a personal story
Authors: Stine Philip C.
Published: July 2002

What does it take to be a manager? In practical, day‐to‐day terms, most people with that title do not really know. Many are lifted from the ranks of technical workers, told they are managers, perhaps even given some objectives, and left on their own. This article suggests that a manager performs best like an invisible umbrella, sheltering those who do the work from the storms above and providing the best possible environment for them to get the job done. The author offers ten pointers on how technical people can grow into managers.
The reinvention and sale of J.C. Penney’s Direct Marketing Services unit
Authors: Slywotzky Adrian , Weissel Michael
Published: July 2002

This case chronicles the changing of a corporate unit’s business model, organizational model, and mindset. The reinvention process started in early 1999 when Mercer Management Consulting received a call from Bob Romasco, who had recently assumed the role as CEO of J.C. Penney’s Direct Marketing Services (DMS) unit. After completing a review of the company, he realized the need for a new vision and business design. Mercer worked closely with Romasco and his team over a two‐year period to transform many aspects of the business from its strategic direction to the implementation of sophisticated direct marketing techniques. Throughout, it was clear that a successful transformation would require more than the right vision and strategy; it also required changing the general mindset of the staff.
An incubator for foreign companies hoping to hatch in the USA
Authors: Davidson Alistair
Published: July 2002

Interviews the founder and executive director of the International Business Incubator (IBI) of Silicon Valley, which stimulates regional growth and acts as an economic development agency. States that despite the collapse of the ‘dot‐com’ bubble, IBI has continued to nurture businesses that choose the sales growth route to expansion. Explains that the company, a traditional not‐for‐profit incubator largely funded by the City of San Jose Redevelopment Agency, helps organizations to deal with the special problems experienced by foreign companies entering the USA. Points out that they only accept firms with sales experience in their own country, which helps their success rate, but warns of a number of common misconceptions. Describes the successful incubator model, stressing the importance of working to reduce risk for the startup or new company, the entrepreneur, the investors and for the region. Regards the incubator’s most important contribution as the quality and scope of relationships with professionals and consultants available to its clients.
Escaping merger and acquisition madness
Authors: Lynch John G. , Lind Barbara
Published: July 2002

Is the average M&A adventure just an executive ego trip? Is it management folly, or can it be done so that it reliably produces growth? A model presented here may help executives who are engaged in making acquisitions and making them work navigate the shoals of mergers and acquisitions more successfully.
Management consultant meets a potential client for the first time: the pre‐entry phase of consultancy in SMEs and the issues of qualitative research methodology
Authors: Adamson Ivana
Published: July 2002

The day‐to‐day operations in small to medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) tend to reach a bottleneck before the owner‐managers think of engaging an external expertise to help. By then the situation is often difficult to salvage, and management consultants tend to get blamed for the outcomes. In this study, 40 management consultants were asked to allow a researcher to be present during their first meeting with a potential client. Four agreed. The objective of this study was to evaluate a model of pre‐entry phase of consultancy behaviour against the real‐life interaction, in which two parties attempt to choose the best problem‐solving partner. The findings suggest that, far from management consultants and potential clients behaving in a rational way, as proposed by the pre‐entry phase model of consultancy, each partner brought into the interaction their personal agenda, therefore taking the interaction processes away from the “purely business” rational level, as present management literature suggests. This has some important implications for the research methodologies used to study SMEs.
Lost in music? Subjective personal introspection and popular music consumption
Authors: Shankar Avi
Published: July 2002

Reports on the use of subjective personal introspection. Offers a brief overview of subjective personal introspection and then describes the technique used to inform an ongoing piece of research that is being conducted into popular music consumption. Concludes by assessing the usefulness of the technique and highlights how it may be of use to practitioners.
Nominal grouping sessions vs focus groups
Authors: Langford Barry E. , Schoenfeld Gerald , Izzo George
Published: July 2002

These empirical results provide new and strong support for Langford’s 1994 quantitative demonstration that the qualitative results of nominal grouping sessions (NGS) are highly reliable and valid. We also show that NGS produces responses in greater depth and breadth than many years of research have demonstrated for focus groups. Since the NGS procedure provides broad, deep, reliable and valid results that are ranked by importance to the subject of interest, we had all the detailed information we needed for effective decision making without subsequently surveying a random sample of the population. The quantitative survey results strongly supports our conclusion that NGS provided all the correct answers in detail. We firmly believe NGS eventually will replace focus groups as the qualitative research method of choice when valid and complete results are important to decision makers, and will render many surveys unnecessary.
Managerial understanding of contemporary industrial marketing issues
Authors: Palmer Roger
Published: July 2002

This paper presents the findings of an empirical study conducted with 256 senior marketers in industrial and technological organisations. The results confirmed that the status of marketing in such organisations is low, but that this is likely to change due to a number of factors. Managers identified objectives that they prioritised for future success, which were positively correlated with intuitively appropriate strategies. The managers also identified the skills and abilities that they considered important in the future, providing valuable guidance for management educators.
A natural synergy
Authors: Logan Linda R.
Published: July 2002

Shows the advantages of balancing and maximizing both the people
and technical sides of management philosophy, approaches and skills. The
current direction of organization into self‐directed or self‐managed
work teams provides an excellent opportunity for integrating the
thinking, methods and tools of the quality movement into everyday work.
This can achieve the results promised by the quality gurus of the
twentieth century without the negative effects that come from regarding
the implementing “quality” as a program. Also shows how our
paradigm of competition has worked to our disadvantage in understanding
and applying the many great ideas coming forth from the business and
academic communities.
Centripetal force
Authors: Arroba Tanya , Wedgwood‐Oppenheim Felix
Published: July 2002

Looks at the process whereby certain members of corporate
management teams are marginalized as a result of the central and
powerful role of central departments such as finance and personnel.
Investigates the impact on the effective working of the team and the
consequences for the organization as a whole.
How colleagues and customers can help improve team performance
Authors: Cook Sarah , Macaulay Steve
Published: July 2002

Suggests that the way performance reviews are carried out is changing. A “case law” of European experiences of 360° feedback is building up and the authors share this with a wider audience to help the reader decide the relevance for their organisation to improve team performance. The article spells out potential problems areas and discusses what to do to overcome them to get the full benefits of this powerful tool. It suggests you should plan the process thoroughly and think carefully how you will handle the introduction. Expect to communicate thoroughly and to respond to concerns. Be clear that line management and the team members must own the process. Follow‐up is vital. If these safeguards are followed, the experience of an increasing number of organizations is that 360° feedback is a beneficial tool to improve team performance.
Noise change as an indicator of maintenance requirement
Authors: Al‐Haboubi Muhammad H. , Selim Shokri Z.
Published: July 2002

Machine malfunction may be detected from the change in its noise level sensed by the ear or measured by a sound level meter. When various machines run concurrently in a workshop, it is not easy to detect noise change. This paper presents the development of a system of equations relating to the combined noise level at each machine with the individual noise level and the inter‐machine distances. A method is presented to detect a malfunctioned machine by solving a system of equations and a case study is included.
Design of maintenance system in MRPII
Authors: Ip W.H. , Kwong C.K. , Fung R.
Published: July 2002

Very limited research has attempted to consider maintenance strategies in the design of MRPII. The manufacturers who need to optimise the return of their assets and facilities using systematic maintenance management will find that the MRPII system is unable to provide them with the solution. Proper design and integration of maintenance management into MRPII enable the manufacturers not only to manage their production planning and scheduling activities but also to analyse their maintenance history, carry out cost analysis and study the failure trends to determine how the available labour and materials in maintenance can be used effectively. In order to overcome the weakness of the MRPII system in the management of maintenance activities, this paper describes some research work that has been carried out using the integrated definition method (IDEF) model to systematically integrate maintenance into MRPII. Moreover, in order to illustrate the methodology, a lamp manufacturing company with a lot of highly automated equipment and facilities which depends on modern maintenance strategies as well as MRPII‐type production planning and control is described.
A Petri‐Net‐based machine tool failure diagnosis system
Authors: Prickett P. , Grosvenor R.
Published: July 2002

Describes the ongoing development of a Petri‐Net‐based machine tool failure diagnosis system. The described system incorporates condition monitoring systems and expert system‐based diagnostic tools. Brings these together with the Petri‐Net monitoring system to form an integrated fault location and rectification package and an associated maintenance management system.
The effect of faulty design on building maintenance
Authors: Al‐Hammad Abdulmohsen , Assaf Sadi , Al‐Shihah Mansoor
Published: July 2002

Outlines the defects and faults during the design stage that affect building maintenance in Saudi Arabia and their relative degree of importance. Performed a survey of a randomly selected sample of 90 contractors, 30 architectural/engineering firms (A/Es), and 20 owners from the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. The survey included 35 defects and the respondents were asked to indicate their degree of importance. The defects were grouped into six groups. The level of importance of the defects and the groups were measured and ranked by their severity index for contractors, owners and A/Es. The following results were obtained: contractors, A/Es and owners generally agree on the ranking of the individual defects; contractors and A/Es agree on the ranking of the defect groups whereas contractors and owners, A/Es and owners do not agree; the construction drawings group of defects was ranked highly by all three parties whereas the architectural design group of defects received a low ranking.
Cost‐benefit analysis of a two‐unit standby system with post‐repair, activation time and correlated failures and repairs
Authors: Gupta Rakesh , Tyagi Vikas , Tyagi P.K.
Published: July 2002

Presents the analysis of a two‐unit cold standby system in which the standby unit takes a random amount of time for operation whenever the operative unit fails. Each unit is first repaired by the assistant repairman and is then taken up for post‐repair if necessary. The failure and repair times of each unit are assumed to be correlated and their joint density is taken as bivariate exponential. Uses regenerative point technique to obtain various reliability characteristics of interest. Studies the behaviour of steady‐state availability through graphs. Verifies earlier results.
Flowline corrosion problems: a case study of Shell Petroleum Development Company, Nigeria
Authors: Onyekpe B.O. , Dania L.P.
Published: July 2002

Describes flowline problems inherent in the land and swamp fields. Non‐destructive testing ‐ general visual inspection and ultrasonic thickness survey based on the nominal diameter sizes, age category and location of flowlines ‐ was carried out. The readings obtained were used to calculate the percentage weight loss of pipe per metre and deduce the flowline sections that need to be replaced to avoid rupture of the steel pipe or fitting in service, using residual life estimates. The reduction of the wall thickness of the pipes/ fittings is caused by a combination of corrosion initiated by physical deformation anomalies and the presence of corrosive media along the flowline tracks (inside and outside the pipes). Offers new measures to help the company mitigate the various flowline problems.
Analysis of computer integrated manufacturing systems by fuzzy human operator behaviour
Authors: Utkin Lev V. , Gurov Sergey V. , Shubinsky Igor B.
Published: July 2002

Analyses computer integrated manufacturing systems with the real‐time constraints under the condition that time to repair depends on human experience and can be fuzzy. Proposes an approach which combines probability and possibility measures. Illustrates the impact of the growth of human experience on the reliability characteristics with an application example.
Fluctuation thermodynamic model of diagnostics for preventive maintenance
Authors: Papic Ljubisa , Knezevic Jezdimir
Published: July 2002

Presents results obtained from research of a model of change in condition of systems with a view to raising effectiveness of a technological trial (testing) and to improving preventive maintenance. On the basis of this model, it follows that maximum dispersion of the condition parameter can be used as an early diagnostic parameter. A possible screenplay of change of the stochastic process dispersion which describes the fluctuation parameter has been analyzed. Discusses an example of testing an organizing real manufacturing system according to the statistical characteristics of the condition parameter. Provides a general procedure of preventive maintenance of the system according to the condition, based on synthesis of global and local diagnostics according to a fluctuation thermodynamic model.
Minimal repair policies for an economic manufacturing process
Authors: Dohi T. , Kaio N. , Osaki S.
Published: July 2002

This paper deals with economic manufacturing quantity (EMQ) models with stochastic machine breakdown and repairs. Under two minimal repair policies to maintain a production machine, the expected cost functions per unit time in the steady state, incurred in the manufacturing operation, are formulated and the optimal policies which minimize them are calculated. As a special case, we consider the case where the machine breakdown time follows the homogeneous Poisson process and calculate the optimal EMQ policies numerically. Also, an approximation method is used to represent the expected cost.
Operational software availability measurement with two kinds of restoration actions
Authors: Tokuno Koichi , Yamada Shigeru
Published: July 2002

This paper develops a plausible software availability model for operational use. In particular, we consider two kinds of restoration scenarios; one involves the debugging activity and the other does not involve the debugging activity. The time‐dependent behavior of the software system during the operation phase is described by a Markov process. Several stochastic quantities for software availability measurement are derived from this model. Finally, numerical examples are shown to illustrate software availability analyses.
Information technology: opportunities for maintenance management
Authors: Pintelon Liliane , Du Preez Niek , Van Puyvelde Frank
Published: July 2002

The information revolution and its impact on businesses, academic life and everyday life is still receiving much attention at conferences, in business publications and academic journals. This paper addresses some important opportunities created by the information technology (r)evolution for maintenance management. It also indicates how IT is already actively used in a number of normal working situations and points to possible new uses.
An object‐oriented decision support system for maintenance management
Authors: Nagarur Nagen N. , Kaewplang Jittra
Published: July 2002

As the world approaches a new millennium, more and more industrial and manufacturing processes are being computerized and rapid retrieval and use of necessary information is vital if an organization is to remain competitive. The present work develops a computerized decision support system to assist in maintenance planning. The system design and analysis, and the decision support system design and development are all developed in an object‐oriented environment. The support system is driven by maintenance performance indices. Both object‐oriented databases and relational databases are used, for transient and permanent entities respectively. A knowledge base with if‐then rules is developed for fault diagnosis and repair. The methodology was applied to a powder coating plant to develop its maintenance decision support system.
Chief mechanic: the new approach to aircraft maintenance by Boeing
Authors: Knezevic J.
Published: July 2002

Considers the new role of chief mechanic at Boeing – a role introduced for the 777 model. Looks at factors such as design build teams made up of members from areas such as engineering and customer support and who stayed involved throughout the design process. Considers aspects such as maintainability impact on availability and the education of design engineers. Provides information on built‐in‐test‐equipment and the aircraft information management system. Notes that the role of chief mechanic is now a permanent position at Boeing and suggests that the chief mechanic’s involvement throughout the design and development of the 777 was key to the success of the project.
Gripen: with focus on availability performance and life support cost over the product life cycle
Authors: Sandberg Anna , Strömberg Ulrika
Published: July 2002

Describes how the terms system effectiveness from a logistics perspective and life cycle cost effectiveness were designed into the Gripen combat aircraft and how they are now being taken care of in the operational phase. Notes that in the early concept phase, there was focus on availability performance and life support cost. To ensure future operational and support cost the contract between the vendor and customer included logistic parameters that were to be predicted and followed‐up during the design phase. The Gripen system is today in operational use and operational data is continuously collected and monitored and provides essential input to the process of continuous improvement of the product and the support system. Concludes that working with a focus on availability performance and life support cost over the product life cycle has helped to develop a state‐of‐the‐art high performing aircraft both in terms of operational performance and cost effectiveness.
Integrating Follett: history, philosophy and management
Authors: O’Connor Ellen S.
Published: July 2002

This paper describes Follett’s contribution to management theory in relationship to the political events and intellectual currents of her time and her unique inter‐relating of philosophy, political theory and management theory.
Democracy, scientific management and urban reform
Authors: Lauer Schacter Hindy
Published: July 2002

Analyses the Bureau of Municipal Research′s (BMR) role in the 1912 New York City School Inquiry to show the democratic orientation of key people trying to transfer scientific management to government. Because much modern public administration literature portrays scientific management as authoritarian, some people assume its proponents wanted to shut the populace out of public‐sector decision making by transfering power from elected officials to experts. The School Inquiry case shows how important reformers committed to scientific management sought to maximize the control that elected officials had over a key administrative function. The BMR stressed this democratic point of view until threats from its principal financial backer forced it to downplay its voice on educational issues and its innovative concept of efficient citizenship.
Rethinking relationships in governing: some Weberian distinctions
Authors: Dudley Larkin S.
Published: July 2002

Uses the distinctions Max Weber draws between means and ends of economics and politics in Economy and Society to explore why the discussion of ends may be neglected in current conversations on privatization and reinvention. Includes a discussion of possible relationships between public and private based on Weberian concepts of the life spheres of politics and economics and the contrasting types of status and purposive contracts. Suggests that to increase emphasis on ends, as well as means, public dialogue should focus on giving an account as well as on holding organizations to account. For public management to focus on giving an account, more attention needs to be given to appreciating a public law framework, understanding the relationships in different types of contract, and creating conditions favourable to communicative rationality.
Lines of authority: readings of foundational texts on the profession of management
Authors: O’Connor Ellen S.
Published: July 2002

Revisits works considered as foundational to management theory and practice. Argues that Taylor, Fayol and Follett work to legitimize management as a body of knowledge, as a practice, and as a profession ‐ and further, as a utopian resolution of conflicts between workers and managers. Methodology is based on techniques of textual analysis and thus also discusses the contribution of such approaches to management history and the relationship of this analysis of Taylor, Fayol and Follett to contemporary themes in management theory and practice.
Alderson’s transvection and Porter’s value system: a comparison of two independently‐developed theories
Authors: Priem Richard L. , Rasheed Abdul M. A. , Amirani Shahrzad
Published: July 2002

Evaluates Wroe Alderson’s general theory of marketing as a possible platform for further developing Michael Porter’s ideas on strategic management. Alderson’s “transvection” and Porter’s “value system” are compared, and the uses of these concepts by their authors in developing approaches to achieving sustainable competitive advantage are contrasted. The potential for extension of each theory based on their similarities and differences is discussed. Presents examples showing how Alderson’s ideas may be used to resolve impasses in Porter’s work, and how recent empirical work testing Porter’s value system may be useful in extending and justifying Alderson’s transvection ideas. More generally, we suggest that Alderson’s general theory may provide a starting point for integrating Michael Porter’s ideas with the concepts from the “resource‐based view” of strategy, and that instances of independent formulation of nearly‐identical theories present special opportunities for scholars interested in both theory building and theory testing.
Understanding empowerment and resolving its paradox
Authors: Eylon Dafna
Published: July 2002

This paper introduces and reviews current understanding of the empowerment construct, recognizing Mary Parker Follett’s contribution to this area. Common themes between the empowerment literature and Follett’s writing are identified with special emphasis placed on the “Empowerment Paradox.” The paradox is described and suggestions for how Follett’s writing can help inform us are included. The paper concludes with directions for future research.
Fast interior filling of Model Maker models using a spraying nozzle to accelerate build speed
Authors: Jeng Jeng‐Ywan , Wang Jia‐Chang , Te Lin Tsung
Published: July 2002

Model Maker (MM) is a commercial rapid prototyping (RP) system using tiny jets to deposit thermoplastic materials onto a platform to build physical models and the associated support structures. Also, a cutter is employed to plane off the deposited surface in order to maintain smaller layer thickness and hence, model accuracy. The model’s accuracy is mainly affected by the profile layer thickness. The interior filling does not affect the model accuracy or layer thickness very much, but it significantly affects the building time. Hence, a new interior fast filling of MM using a spraying nozzle is proposed in this paper. The detail design, construction, and evaluation of the new proposed fast interior‐spraying process are presented. The results show that the building time using spaying nozzle is only 15 per cent of the time used by the original process.
Advanced deposition techniques for freeform fabrication of metal and ceramic parts
Authors: Tseng A.A. , Tanaka M.
Published: July 2002

Two newly invented deposition techniques for the freeform fabrication of metal and ceramic parts are presented. The first deposition technique studied is one that can deposit variable sizes of filaments in a controlled manner. The second technique consists of layer deposition using an adjustable planar nozzle to generate layers directly. Laboratory scale apparatus has been built to study the behavior of filament and layer formation of these two techniques. Experiments are conducted in typical operation ranges. Analytical solutions are also developed to parametrically study the effects of changing major operational parameters as well as to provide necessary information for designing the apparatus. All results indicate that the analytical predictions agree very well with the experimental observation. Finally, recommendations on the future development of these two techniques are given.
Intelligent toolpath for extrusion‐based LM process
Authors: Qiu Dan , Langrana Noshir A. , Danforth Stephen C. , Safari Ahmad , Jafari Mohsen
Published: July 2002

To fabricate high quality parts, and to make the development generic yet compatible with the in‐house hardware, a virtual simulation system has been developed, and an in‐house intelligent multi‐material toolpath generation system has been under development. This new development includes the issues such as multiple fill‐toolpaths for the same material, interface mismatch between adjacent materials and the intelligent toolpath features for machine control. After the multi‐material toolpath file generated by the in‐house software, the existing virtual graphical simulation as well as well selected part fabrication experiments were used to validate it. Based on the authors’ ongoing research about multi‐material layered manufacturing, it was determined that the build characteristic was heavily dependent on the material being used. Therefore, it was important to develop the hardware/software that will accommodate this requirement.
A decomposition‐accumulation model for layered manufacturing fabrication
Authors: Lin Feng , Yan Yongnian , Sun Wei
Published: July 2002

A mathematical model to describe the principle of layered manufacturing and layered fabrication error is presented in this paper. In this model, the layered manufacturing process is characterized by the model decomposition and material accumulation. A 3D design model is represented by a set of points with sequence functions to correlate the layered processing information. Iso‐sequence planes are defined as the processing layers to collect points with the same processing sequence and to define the material accumulation along its gradient direction. Examples of using the proposed model to describe the layered manufacturing to process flat and no‐flat surfaces and the description of the layered processing error are also presented.