The Coherence Controlled Holographic Microscope (CCHM) was developed at BUT Brno for a quantitative phase imaging of living cells. Nowadays it ocurres that its imaging properties are enhanced by the use of additional modules. In the present the microscope is equipped with the epifluorescence module, which allows observation of fluorescently marked living cells. This thesis is going to follow up on the development of this module and is going to extend its options by confocal imaging. The disadvantage of current multi-channel confocal microscopes is a mechanical rotation of the Nipkow discs, which causes undesired mechanical vibrations. That is why in this thesis it is replaced by Digital Micromirror Device. With its use was developed optical system of the whole confocal model, whose correct funcion was simulated in optical CAD. The experimentally verified prototype serves to test the imaging properties. On this basis is designed an application idea of the fluorescence confocal module, which will be possible to connect to the CCHM microscope.

The purpose of this essay is to examine the possibilities for Farsta Centrum so they can increase their visitor count to avoid losing customers in favor of online shopping. It is investigated through several hypotheses that were formed. To accomplish this, a case study which consists of two parts has been completed. Firstly, a literature review was the basis for the hypotheses that investigates previous work concerning the subject. Secondly a questionnaire has been designed based on a standard model with attitude statements and a 7- point Likert scale. The questionnaire was then handed out to consumers as well as employees with a managerial role in the stores at Farsta Centrum. After this the answers were reviewed and analyzed based on average values. The results show that multi-channel shopping is not yet fully integrated with online shopping at Farsta Centrum. However other hypotheses were confirmed, for example that customer loyalty is important and that customers will prefer self-scanning. Therefore, two ways are presented to increase the visitor count to the center based on the results of the report. Firstly to pressure the stores to maintain a virtual store and secondly to force them to use self-scanning where appropriate. / Uppsatsens syfte är att undersöka om och i så fall hur Farsta Centrum kan öka besöksfrekvensen för att undvika att kunderna istället handlar online. För att problemet ska kunna diskuteras har en fallstudie av centrumet utförts vilken består av två delar. Först har en litteraturstudie gjorts där tidigare forskningsrapporter och litteratur presenteras. Här ligger också grunden till hypotesformuleringarna. Del två är en enkätundersökning med attitydfrågor som ställts till konsumenter respektive butiksansvariga i Farsta Centrum. Konsumenterna har fått besvara frågor relaterade till bland annat handelsmönster, hur det digitala integreras i handeln eller självscanning. Frågorna är kopplade till hypoteserna och svaren har utvärderats med medelvärden. Skalan som användes var en 7-gradig Likertskala. I resultatet framgår att Farsta Centrum inte är i framkant av den digitala handeln än. Hemsidor och telefoner är inte det viktigaste för konsumenterna och därför behöver inga anpassningar utföras än. Dock framgår till exempel att köptrohet är viktigt såväl som att självscanning är attraktivt. Det finns därför två sätt för Farsta Centrum att förvalta på ett bättre sätt för att öka besöksfrekvensen till centrumet utifrån rapportens resultat. De kan sätta mer press på butikerna att också tillhandahålla en virtuell butik samt forcera butiker att använda sig av självscanning där det är möjligt och passande.

Consumer free riding occurs when consumers gather information about a product through a full-service retailer and then ultimately purchase that product from a limited-service retailer. This phenomenon is becoming more common as consumers have an increasing number of retail channels in which they can evaluate and purchase products. The prevalence of this behavior is causing problems for retailers, particularly small, specialty retailers, as they struggle to deter free riders. The goal of this research is to explore free riding in the context of small, specialty retailers in an attempt to isolate key factors which influence free riding behavior and which may give specialty retailers and managers insights and tools with which to combat this behavior. This is accomplished through three studies, two qualitative and one quantitative. In the two qualitative studies, detailed information regarding free riding motivations and experiences is gained through interviews and open-ended questionnaires. The information gathered in studies one and two is then used in conjunction with the Theory of Reasoned Action to create a model of free riding. The model was tested across four samples and includes firm-controllable factors which may influence free riding. This research yielded many insights into consumer free riding behavior. One of the most illuminating aspects of free riding uncovered through this research is the emotional factor associated with free riding for some consumers. This emotional element, a sense of obligation to purchase from the retailer, was discovered and explored. Factors such as desire to support local merchants, personal connection to the retailer and extra-role service were revealed as firm controllable elements that retailers might be able to use to influence purchase obligation and therefore deter free riders. Other factors, such as subjective norms, were also found to impact free riding attitudes, while the impact of price sensitivity on free riding met with mixed results in this study. The results of this research offer managers possible tools for deterring free riders and offer researchers future areas for research.

To handle uncertainties and variabilities in production demands, many manufacturing companies have adopted different strategies, such as varying quoted lead time, rejecting orders, increasing stock or inventory levels, and implementing volume flexibility. Make-to-stock (MTS) systems are designed to offer zero lead time by providing an inventory buffer for the organizations, but they are costly and involve risks such as obsolescence and wasted expenditures. The main concern of make-to-order (MTO) systems is eliminating inventories and reducing the non-value-added processes and wastes; however, these systems are based on the assumption that the manufacturing environments and customers' demand are deterministic. Research shows that in MTO systems variability and uncertainty in the demand levels causes instability in the production flow, resulting in congestion in the production flow, long lead times, and low throughput. Neither strategy is wholly satisfactory. A new alternative approach, multi-channel manufacturing (MCM) systems are designed to manage uncertainties and variabilities in demands by first focusing on customers' response time. The products are divided into different product families, each with its own manufacturing stream or sub-factory. MCM also allocates the production capacity needed in each sub-factory to produce each product family. In this research, the performance of an MCM system is studied by implementing MCM in a real case scenario from textile industry modeled via discrete event simulation. MTS and MTO systems are implemented for the same case scenario and the results are studied and compared. The variables of interest for this research are the throughput of products, the level of on-time deliveries, and the inventory level. The results conducted from the simulation experiments favor the simulated MCM system for all mentioned criteria. Further research activities, such as applying MCM to different manufacturing contexts, is highly recommended.

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Digital transformation has led to major shifts in the customer landscape and the roles of distribution channel partners, resulting in implications for the distribution channel strategy of manufacturing firms. Whereas previous research in the field focused primarily on the impact of the shifting customer landscape, a gap in the literature was identified concerning digital transformation in relation to a manufacturing firm's distribution channel strategy. This study therefore aims to explore how the distribution channel strategy of manufacturing firms is affected by digital transformation and what the main challenges are for manufacturers, in order to address these implications. Building on existing work on multi-channel strategies and technological advancements, the main research question is: How can manufacturing firms adapt their distribution channel strategy in the face of digital transformation? An exploratory case study on a manufacturing firm was conducted utilizing semi-structured interviews as the main source of data, and analysis of the case study indicates that digital transformation affects the strategic choices of manufacturing firms related to their end users and channel partners. Based on the findings, the thesis contributes with practical considerations: that manufacturers should adapt the distribution channel strategy by focusing on the transformation of culture towards a holistic ecosystem approach to an integrated multi-channel strategy and by promoting win-win channel partner relationships. Also, the thesis makes a theoretical contribution by generating empirical evidence from a case study of a manufacturing firm, highlighting strategic challenges in the face of digital transformation. / Den digitala transformationen har lett till skiften i hur produkter konsumeras av kunder och vilken roll återförsäljare har i leveransen av dessa, vilket haft konsekvenser för distributionsstrategin för tillverkande bolag. Tidigare forskning har fokuserat på multi-kanalstrategier och hur dessa kan utformas av tillverkande bolag, medan färre studier gjorts på den direkta inverkan av den digitala transformationen på ett tillverkande bolags distributionskanalsstrategi. Således identifierades ett gap i tidigare forskning och därför ämnar denna studie utforska konsekvenserna för distributionskanalsstrategion för ett tillverkande av den digitala transformationen samt hur denna kan anpassas för att addressera dessa konsekvenser. Genom att bygga vidare på tidigare forskning inom dessa områden ställs den huvudsakliga forskningsfrågan: hur kan tillverkande bolag anpassa distributionskanalstrategin för att möta konsekvenser av digital transformation? Med den nuvarande forskningen som utgångspunkt genomfördes en undersökande fallstudie av ett svenskt tillverkande företag med semistrukturerade intervjuer som huvudsaklig datainsamling. Analysen av fallstudien visar att digital transformation påverkar de strategiska omständigheterna för ett tillverkande bolag kopplat till förändrande kundbeteenden och rollen av återförsäljare och betonar vikten av samarbete för att integrera distributionskanaler. Baserat på dessa resultat bidrar studien med praktiska överväganden för utformningen av en distributionsstrategi. Slutligen bidrar studien även till forskningen med empiriska data från en fallstudie av ett tillverkande bolag och visar på dess strategiska utmaningar till följd av digital transformation.

The fundamental purpose of this thesis was to determine how effective is the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) to predict and explain shopping for embarrassing products in single and multi-channel. This is important because multi-channel consumers buy more, the question is why (Neslin, Grewal et al. 2006). The question was answered by comparing consumer behaviour in three different channels: drugstore, internet and multi-channel. The Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) has been successful to predict intentions for a wide variety of products and behaviours. However, little is known about how effective it is when the behaviour under study is influenced by the emotion of embarrassment. Similarly, the TPB is parsimonious and has a good predictive power; nevertheless, this thesis identified that the TPB could be more effective if it considered: (1) the role of positive and negative emotions (2) other determinants of choice like personality and demographics (3) variables that are useful to make marketing decisions like the synergistic effect of brands, retailers and channels (4) variables that explain consumer response like approach and avoidance. To provide a comprehensive theoretical framework that is able to understand single and multi-channel, this thesis integrated the TPB within the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) framework. To evaluate the proposed model, the study used a context and target product that resonated with the theory: the purchase of Regaine (a hair loss product that is embarrassing to buy) in Boots (a well-known UK. multi-channel drugstore). The embarrassing nature of Regaine created differences in the importance that variables play in each channel. The results were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) and the three shopping environments were compared using multi-group analysis (MGA). The effectiveness of the TPB was improved. The variance explained (R² to intention) was 73 percent for the drugstore, 67 percent for the internet and 54 percent for multi-channel. However, subjective norm (SN) was the only factor that achieved significance for the three shopping environments. Personality and demographic factors had a low but significant moderating effect on intention. This thesis built on a series of contributions in different areas, such as the TPB, attitudes, subjective norm, perceived behavioural control, embarrassing products, multi-channel, marketing, emotions, personality and demographics. Future research should expand this thesis to other embarrassing products, industries and social media settings.