Product Mix (product + mix)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


In-Class Simulation of Pooling Safety Stock

DECISION SCIENCES JOURNAL OF INNOVATIVE EDUCATION, Issue 2 2005
D. Brent Bandy
ABSTRACT In managing business process flows, safety stock can be used to protect against stockouts due to demand variability. When more than one location is involved, the concept of aggregation enables the pooling of demands and associated inventories, resulting in improved service levels without increasing the total level of safety stock. This pooling of safety stock can be done physically by consolidating inventory in one location, or by using virtual centralization, where inventories are kept at decentralized locations, but information is centralized. In teaching the concept of pooling safety stock, a simple in-class simulation can be helpful in demonstrating why the approach works. The approach presented here involves operations for a company where total product demand is constant, but there are two products and product mix can vary. The simulation can also be implemented using an electronic spreadsheet for classes that are taught on the Internet. A quiz was given to two sections, one that experienced the simulation and one that did not. A comparison of the results from the quiz provided evidence of the effectiveness of the simulation in helping students understand the impact of pooling safety stock. In addition, a brief anonymous survey that was administered in the section that had the simulation provided further support for the effectiveness of the simulation. [source]


Import Competition and Employment in Japan: Plant Startup, Shutdown and Product Changes

THE JAPANESE ECONOMIC REVIEW, Issue 2 2004
Eiichi Tomiura
This paper examines the relationship between import competition and employment during and after the recent Bubble period in Japan. Gross job flow data are combined with import data for 334 four-digit manufacturing industries. The estimates demonstrate that various modes of employment adjustment respond differently to changes in import prices. Job creation/destruction associated with plant startups/shutdowns was significantly sens-itive to import competition. Among plants continuously operating, job creation during the Bubble boom by plants that altered their product mix across industries was responsive to import price fluctuations, while job flows at plants that remained within the same industries were not. [source]


Delegation of Authority In Business Organizations: An Empirical Test

THE JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL ECONOMICS, Issue 1 2004
Massimo G. Colombo
This paper tests the predictions of economic theory on the determinants of the allocation of decision-making power through the estimates of ordered probit models with random effects. Our findings show that the complexity of plants' operations and organization, the characteristics of the communication technologies in use, the ownership status of plants and the product mix of their parent companies figure prominently in explaining whether authority is delegated to the plant manager or not. In addition, the nature of the decision under consideration turns out to affect the allocation of authority. [source]


Data analytics and stochastic modeling in a semiconductor fab

APPLIED STOCHASTIC MODELS IN BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY, Issue 1 2010
Sugato Bagchi
Abstract The scale, scope and complexity of the manufacturing operations in a semiconductor fab lead to some unique challenges in ensuring product quality and production efficiency. We describe the use of various analytical techniques, based on data mining, process trace data analysis, stochastic simulation and production optimization, to address these manufacturing issues, motivated by the following two objectives. The first objective is to identify the sub-optimal process conditions or tool settings that potentially affect the process performance and product quality. The second objective is to improve the overall production efficiency through better planning and resource scheduling, in an environment where the product mix and process flow requirements are complex and constantly changing. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Textile coloration industry in India

COLORATION TECHNOLOGY, Issue 1 2008
M D Teli
This review paper discusses the diversity of the textile sector in India, including its nature, the number of stakeholders and its effect on the overall national economy. It focuses on the significant role the coloration industry is expected to play in the near future, as this is the most problematic step in textile production with respect to profitability, planning and technology. While carrying out analysis of the textile and clothing industry, it also deals with the transformation the industry has undergone in the last two decades in terms of the selection of textile product mix in different regions of India from the point of view of profitability, the use of modern technology and selection criteria of colourants and specialised chemicals. These changes are viewed in respect of improved quality demands, measures undertaken to minimise the pollution level of the environment, and other related factors. In parallel, the growth of the dyestuff and speciality chemical industry, which has a direct relationship with this industry, is also discussed. It attempts to reflect upon the efforts of the Indian government in encouraging modernisation of the textile processing industry in terms of the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme and other policy supports in relation to the response from the industry. Finally, the paper highlights the amount of human resource development needed to achieve the ambitious targets the government has put before the textile and clothing industry. [source]