No description available.

Numerous companies experienced the digital transformation of their functional and operationalstrategies. Among all the business sectors, which are being transformed, the industrial sector exhibits aconsiderable delay in transforming its operational strategy. The most significant underlying reason isthe high expenditure involved in upgrading the hardware components and infrastructure. According tothe literature, transformed companies enjoyed higher revenues and became more innovative. However,in most researches, an instant character was given to the transformation, and only a few years wereinvestigated; therefore, there was a need to describe the dynamics of the transformation with differentstages based on how it was executed. The digital transformation variable constructed in this studycontained the missing information from both the time the transformation was implemented and thespecific level it has reached. In particular, the investigated sample included ten firms from theindustrial sector of motion, automation, and robotics over ten years, and a panel data analysis wasconducted by utilizing the developed digital transformation variable. The analysis revealed that boththe business revenue and patented innovations were positively related to the transformation. Thetransformation brought immediate results to the innovation aspects, and all the examined companiesimproved their patented innovations. In contrast, the relationship of the business revenue with thelevel of the digital transformation was found impaired compared to previous studies. The investigationof the impact of the time lag resulted in the same conclusions for both explored variables, whereas themodel has been found robust against changes in the constructed digital transformation variable. Sincemore time and resources are required for the industrial sector to enjoy the transformation benefits, thissector must be studied independently by understanding its unique implications for the interpretation ofthe transformation outcomes.

The literature on manufacturing performance measurement underscores the importance of operational performance measures, as well as aggregate organisational measures. However, research aimed at quantifying and tracking such measures from both operational and organisational perspectives has been slow in forthcoming. The Manufacturing Operational Effectiveness (MOE) indicator introduced and tested in this study lends itself to both operational performance measures and aggregate organisational performance measures of the manufacturing system performance. The results of several simulation scenarios utilising actual manufacturing data clearly illustrate the utility of MOE. These results have both operational tactical and strategic organisational practical implications. Operational effectiveness and strategic competitiveness can be tracked and improved through the systematic utilisation of MOE.

China is the largest energy consumer worldwide, with a fast-growing rate. But the energy and environmental problems brought by its unbalanced energy structure and low energy efficiency restrict the sustainable development of China. The Distributed Energy System (DES) is one of the internationally recognized solutions to the problems. To enhance the implementation of the DES under China’s scenario, the thesis develops computational models for the Combined Cooling, Heat, and Power (CCHP) and Separated Cooling, Heat, and Power (SCHP) systems for a Micro Energy Grid in northeast China using MATLAB. The objective is to minimize the overall expenditure, energy use, and carbon emission equivalents. The results show that the CCHP system reduces 18.62% of the overall expenditure and 35.02% of the carbon emission equivalents than the SCHP system. The CCHP system has a promising prospect in China with better Greenhouse Gas emissions reduction and economic performance. / Kina är världens största energikonsument, med en snabb tillväxttakt. Men de energi- och miljöproblem som orsakas av den obalanserade energistrukturen och den låga energieffektiviteten begränsar Kinas hållbara utveckling. Distribuerade energisystem (DES) är en av de internationellt erkända lösningarna på dessa problem. För att förbättra implementeringen av DES enligt Kinas scenario utvecklar avhandlingen beräkningsmodeller för kombinerad kylning, värme och kraft (CCHP) och separerad kylning, värme och kraft (SCHP) för ett mikroenerginät i nordöstra Kina med hjälp av MATLAB. Målet är att minimera de totala kostnaderna, energianvändningen och koldioxidutsläppen. Resultaten visar att CCHP-systemet minskar de totala utgifterna med 18,62 % och koldioxidutsläppen med 35,02 % jämfört med SCHP-systemet. CCHP-systemet har lovande utsikter i Kina med bättre minskning av växthusgasutsläpp och ekonomisk prestanda.

Yes / Medicines management is only one part of NHS (UK) procurement and management, but essentially a very expensive part. In December 2012 the Department of Health issued an action plan to improve the use of medicines and reduce waste. There is an onus therefore on the NHS to ensure that they are as efficient in the medicines management as possible in all aspects of the supply chain in order to ensure sustainability (economically and operationally). To do this consideration must be given to medicines optimization, from procurement, through to storage, dispensing, compliance and finally waste prevention and reduction and waste retrieval. As part of the larger National Health Service (UK), hospital pharmacy places strong emphasis on contributing to the efficiency targets through reductions in waste and drug spending, and best practice. The purpose of this study is to examine medicines reverse logistics practice within the NHS hospital pharmacies, and the operational strategy which drives such practices. The overarching aim is to explore through qualitative analysis the variance and commonality in strategy and practice in what is a standard logistical activity. The outputs offer transparency of medicines RL as practiced by NHS professionals and contribute to ongoing discussions within the Department of Health (NHS UK) on best practice governing waste medicines recycling processes. A qualitative approach was adopted in undertaking this research study, utilizing a purposive study sample. The survey examined practice in 45 hospitals as individual cases across all stages in the medicines reverse logistics system. The findings indicated there is some commonality in the strategy employed in conducting medicines recycling, and all 3 drivers are prevalent in undertaking recycling and encouraging a more sustainable approach, i.e., economic, corporate citizenship, and legislation. However, the means by which the same objective was achieved differed, such as resource utilisation, training etc. / The full-text of this article was released for public view at the end of the publisher embargo on 3 Nov 2015.

面對全球化市場與激烈競爭壓力下，企業如何維持生存及永續經營的長期競爭優勢，與提升股東的價值，己經成為企業追求的目標及使命。 全球重要的商業模式流通活動，其中以零售業為面對最終消費者的主要經營業者，而隨著消費者生活型態的多元化、銷售模式的突破與創新，以及市場競爭的愈趨激烈，也逐漸有了嶄新的面貌，更帶來了企業營運策略上的挑戰。零售業將如何透過轉型與創新，掌握市場新商機? 本研究透過個案R公司，曾經是一個近百年經營歷史的美國前二大消費性電子類產品零售商，擁有自有品牌,代理及加盟店總數曾經高達7000多家,零售點幾乎遍佈全美各州.公司業績曾超過美金60 億美元,(約NT 1,800億元),其企業形象與產品服務等,曾為美國消費者認為是新科技創新與零售產業之標竿。 本研究經由探討及分析個案公司過去不同時期的營運策略及商業模式運用，歷程如何極大化其競爭力領先市場競爭者。　然而面對消費性電子產品市場不段變遷、新科技及網際網路創新之商業營運模式下，個案公司如何面臨重大經營挑戰而下市。科技的發達，帶來消費行為的改變，不論是實體零售業者、或是線上業者，都必須與時俱進才能保持競爭力。未來，業者若不加緊腳步，整合虛實通路行銷、產品及服務的需求，及適時的調整營運模式與策略，恐怕會在業績上重大衝擊。希望由此個案研究結論, 能給相關企業未來參考進而有所助益。 關鍵詞：零售業、營運策略、商業模式、競爭力 / In the face of global market and intense competition, how to maintain the long-term competitive advantage of survival and sustainable management, and to enhance the value of shareholders, has become the pursuit of business goals and mission. The world's major business model of circulation activities, of which the retail industry to face the ultimate consumer of the main business, and with the diversification of consumer lifestyle, sales model breakthrough and innovation, and the increasingly fierce market competition, But also gradually have a new look, but also brought the business strategy on the challenges. How will the retail industry manage new business opportunities through transformation and innovation? This study, through Case R- Company, was a top consumer electronics retailer in the United States for nearly a century, with its own brands, agents and franchises totaling more than 7,000 retail outlets in almost all states. The company's performance has exceeded US $ 6 billion (about NT $ 180 billion), its corporate image and product services, etc., was the US consumer think is the new technology innovation and retail industry benchmark. This study explores and analyzes the use of business strategies and business models in the past different periods of time, and how the process maximizes its competitive leading market competitors. However, the face of consumer electronics market is not changing, new technology and Internet innovation business model, the case of how companies face major business challenges and market. The development of technology, bringing changes in consumer behavior, whether physical retailers, or online industry, must keep pace with the times to remain competitive. In the future, if the industry does not step up the pace, the integration of the actual situation of marketing, product and service needs, and timely adjustment of business models and strategies, should have major impacts of the performance. Hope that the case study conclusions, to the future reference to the relevant enterprises and then help. Keywords: Retail, Operational Strategy, Business Model, Competitiveness

Because of the growth in income per capita as a consequent to the growth of global economy, skin care and cosmetic products have changed from luxury items to daily essentials. Together with the human nature of pursuing attractive appearance, factors such as decrease in the level of average age of cosmetic consumers, the increase of frequency of using cosmetic products, strong demand for high end skin care products with medical effects, and government support in developing cosmetic manufacturing as a key industry, suggest that the cosmetic market still has a significant growth potential. In addition, the recent popularity of ¡§cosmo-ceutical products¡¨ is pushing a number of major local corporations to enter the cosmetic market with biotech innovations. Because of the ease of transforming from chemical-related product manufacturing to cosmetic manufacturing, the local cosmetic industry is now saturated by small to medium-sized manufacturers. However, the local manufacturers are faced with the challenges of lack of GMP related legislation system for the cosmetics industry, shortage of financial resources, insignificant company size, and local R&D still awaits effective improvement. Therefore, it impossible for local companies to compete with the international cosmetics corporate giants. This paper will discuss the example of Taiwan Salt¡¦s successful transformation to a cosmetics manufacturer with collagen products. The example will be followed by analysis on the cosmetics industry in Taiwan and the competitiveness of global cosmetics companies such as P&G, L¡¦Oreal, Estee Lauder, and Shiseido. Selected companies will be analyzed for comparing their operational strategies. The findings will be further elaborated into the discussion of the current condition and demands in the local market of skin care product with whitening effect. The research suggested that the companies under study attempt to increase their competitiveness through product diversification and a focused operational strategy. Taiwan Salt for example started with specialized salt-related skin care products, and later on diversified the product lines to include collagen-related products. On the other hand, S-company capitalized on the unique demand for whitening products in the Asian market by orienting the product innovations with whitening and freckle-control effects. The company is faced with major threats of potential leak of production knowledge and counterfeit products. Due to the significant reduction of tariff, imported cosmetics from Europe and North America are increasing popular in the local market. Under the joint impact of decreased effectiveness of the traditional distribution channels, and change in consumer preference, brand diversification and distribution through multiple channels will be the future trends for survival. To succeed in the cosmetics industry, local companies must be dedicated to establishing new brands and promoting the brand recognition, and innovating new formula (i.e. skin care products with Chinese herbal medicine and natural herbal essences). In turn, to constitute a constructive persuasion for profitability in this industry, government would have to establish a GMP legislation system specialized for cosmetics manufacturing to improve the competitiveness of the local companies.

Over the past decade, the popularity of regional bus services has grown in large North American cities owing to more people living in suburban areas and commuting to the Central Business District to work every day. Estimating journey time for regional buses is challenging because of the low frequencies and long commuting distances that typically characterize such services. This research project developed a mathematical model to estimate regional bus travel time using artificial neural networks (ANN). ANN outperformed other forecasting methods, namely historical average and linear regression, by an average of 35 and 26 seconds respectively. The ANN results showed, however, overestimation by 40% to 60%, which can lead to travellers missing the bus. An operational strategy is integrated into the model to minimize stakeholders’ costs when the model’s forecast time is later than the scheduled bus departure time. This operational strategy should be varied as the commuting distance decreases.

Over the past decade, the popularity of regional bus services has grown in large North American cities owing to more people living in suburban areas and commuting to the Central Business District to work every day. Estimating journey time for regional buses is challenging because of the low frequencies and long commuting distances that typically characterize such services. This research project developed a mathematical model to estimate regional bus travel time using artificial neural networks (ANN). ANN outperformed other forecasting methods, namely historical average and linear regression, by an average of 35 and 26 seconds respectively. The ANN results showed, however, overestimation by 40% to 60%, which can lead to travellers missing the bus. An operational strategy is integrated into the model to minimize stakeholders’ costs when the model’s forecast time is later than the scheduled bus departure time. This operational strategy should be varied as the commuting distance decreases.

In this report, the modeling process and operation of an autonomous hybrid power system is studied. It is built based on a hypothetical case study of electrification of a remote village of 100 inhabitants in Kenya. The power demand is estimated and the costs of equipment components are specified after extensive research, so that the techno-economical design of the system can be carried out. The microgrid consists of photovoltaics, wind turbine, batteries, diesel genset, basic loads and water pumping and purification load. The system is modeled and simulated in terms of power management and its operation as well as the performance of the dispatch strategy is assessed. Problems like the management of extra power or tackling the deficit of power in the system are addressed. The model represents reliably the behavior of the microgrid and several improving actions are suggested.