The aim of this thesis was to develop and evaluate a Clean and Green Decision-Support System by exploring the practice of a large Australian Winery and developing a decision-support system that would facilitate movement towards clean and green wine product packaging. This thesis took into account the relationship between wine manufacturers and their packaging suppliers as shared information between these parties is central to the National Packaging Covenant (NPC) which is an outcome of concern for the environment. This concern has had a dramatic impact upon this relationship in the wine industry because each has to comply with Government regulations and customer demand for environmentally friendly packaging. / A review of the current knowledge about New Product Development revealed that the implicit emphasis within this body of research was upon modification of existing products to reduce the cost of production and/or increase sales volume. Many authors recognised the impact of external demands upon the new product environment yet there was little inclusion of one of the forces driving these external demands- the need for 'Clean and Green' production processes. It was argued here that the inclusion of clean and green in models of New Product Development was necessary for company sustainability because of the pressure from Government and from customers for environmentally friendly products. / The notion of a sustainable competitive advantage underpinned the importance of meeting customer needs and introduced the need to develop unique attributes that cannot be easily copied by competitors. The intense competition in the Australian wine industry made this an important consideration. While a significant number of studies had linked sustainable competitive advantage with New Product Development, studies that incorporate these concepts within the clean and green context were extremely limited. It was further recognised that any theoretical model developed only from the manufacturer's perspective and which overlooked the perspectives of suppliers, customers and the Government would be flawed because it may limit the implementation of clean and green practices. Therefore, there existed a gap in knowledge about how a company could incorporate clean and green practices into their New Product Development and remain competitive. / An exploratory, qualitative case study based upon Yin's (1994 and 2003) case study methodology was undertaken. Data were triangulated through open-ended semi-structured interviews, archival documents and literature reviews. The interviews explored the key drivers, key barriers and key relationships that may influence the consideration of clean and green product development. Seventeen participants were interviewed; eight from the suppliers, eight from the case study organisation and one from the wine industry association. Content analysis was used to analyse the interview transcripts and the archival documents. The findings confirmed that the relationship between the supplier and manufacturer was very important and symbiotic in nature and that each was concerned with customer demands and Government regulations. This was related to the drivers which were all aimed at the Winery retaining or improving its sustainability in the market place. The barriers were found to be communication (and the related problem of sharing information), which when operating smoothly could facilitate the process but when not (as in this case), provided a strong barrier to implementation of clean and green practices in the wine industry. The analysis was used to develop an eleven step easy-to-use Clean and Green Decision-Support System which calculated a final score for each wine packaging product. This system was then evaluated using data about wine bottles that was collected during the data collection phase. It was found that the Clean and Green Decision-Support System developed as part of this thesis provides easy-to-understand output that allows the decision-maker to choose the product that is as close as possible to the ideal clean and green product. / This thesis contributes to knowledge in three ways. Firstly, it contributes by theoretically linking the constructs of clean and green, New Product Development and sustainable competitive advantage to develop a new theoretical model which also incorporates the various perspectives of key stakeholders. Secondly, it contributes to knowledge of industry practice by explicating the issues faced by a Winery when seeking to implement Clean and Green New Product Development. Finally, it contributes to professional through the development and evaluation of a Clean and Green Decision-Support System in a real-life setting that has immediate practical application. This simplifies the decision-making related to evaluation of clean and green products and helps to resolve the communication problem somewhat by clearly identifying what information is needed and the source of that information thereby further facilitating the implementation of clean and green practices. / Opportunities for further research exist in the areas of expanding upon the scope of the study to improve its generalisability; further exploring the Winery-supplier relationship, particularly in regard to the development of symbiosis; and in the further development and simplification of the process of obtaining the information needed for the Clean and Green Decision-Support System. / Thesis (PhD)--University of South Australia, 2005.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1987. / Bibliography: leaves [238]-241.

Thesis, PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (doctoral)--Rijksuniversiteit te Utrecht.

Thesis (M.Phil.) - University of Queensland, 2005. / Includes bibliography.

Thesis (MTech (Business Information Systems))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2008. / There is need to realise the potential of information and communication technologies (ICT) for farmers and agricultural role players, in order to achieve agriculture development. However in South Africa, it is not yet established which specific ICT are used and how they are used in different agricultural farm enterprises, and if used, their extent of deployment. In addition, few studies have focused on the factors that influence the use of ICT in South African agriculture. This study addresses these issues. This study investigates factors of ICT use that are helpful and necessary for the recognition of the importance and benefits of ICT in Western Cape commercial agriculture, specifically in the wine industry. The study investigates the different forms of ICT used in the wine industry, how they are being used in the industry, what they are used for, how important these technologies are as enablers of production, and the factors that affect their use. This study focuses on the use, not the adoption, of ICT in commercial agriculture. The study involved two groups of participants and was in two phases. In phase one, a survey of commercial farmers was conducted in Robertson Wine Valley. Phase two involved their farm employees who are involved in farm activities ranging from field, winery and administrative work in Robertson Wine Valley. 15 farmers and 60 farm employees responded to the questionnaire. The scope of the results for this study is limited to descriptive statistics, chi-square tests and correlation analysis. From the chi-square and correlation analysis, it was found that ICT training, age, race, current occupation on farm, monthly salary, education level and ICT literacy influence the use of ICT by farm employees.

Oregon and Washington state administrative agencies’ impacts on economic development within the winery industry are examined. Policy cluster development appears to impact economic development programs differently in each state. The wine industry has flourished in both states since 1970, yet Oregon with 60% of Washington's population supports 10% more wineries. Oregon winery numbers continue to grow while Washington’s seem to have leveled out. From the literature and industry interviews, three variables were selected to be tested for their industry impacts: domestic consumption (state population times wine industry per-capita consumption); market domination (estimated from interviews and proportional market share); and net government intervention, an outgrowth of policy cluster analysis (policies cannot be examined in isolation, but must consider the impacts of direct and indirect collateral state agency policies as well). Comparisons between states were made. Multiple regression analysis determined these three variables accounted for approximately 95% of the variability of numbers of Oregon and Washington commercial wineries. Different equations were derived for each state. Of the three variables, Oregon’s number of wineries appears to be more influenced by government policy than in Washington. In Washington domestic consumption has more impact on winery numbers than in Oregon. No substantial impacts of oligopoly could be determined in either state.

Thesis (MTech (Horticulture))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2016. / Waste management in winery and distillery industries faces numerous disposal challenges as large volumes of both liquid and solid waste by-products are generated yearly during cellar practices. Composting has been suggested a feasible option to beneficiate solid organic waste. This incentivized the quest for efficient composting protocols to be put in place. The objective of this study was to experiment with different composting strategies for spent winery solid waste. Compost materials consisting of chopped pruning grape stalks, skins, seed and spent wine filter material consisting of a mixture of organic and inorganic expend ingredients were mixed in compost heaps. The filter material component varied (in percentage) among five treatments: T1 (40%) lined, T2 (20%) lined, T3 (0%) lined, T4 (40%) grinded material, lined and T5 (40%) unlined. Composting was allowed to proceed in open air over 12 months, from autumn to summer. Indicators such as temperature, moisture, enzyme activities, microbial counts, pH, and C/N ratio, were recorded. Generally, season (df =3, 16, P < 0.05) had significant effects (df =1, 3, P < 0.05) on heap temperature and moisture in all treatments. Similarly, microorganisms (actinobacteria and heterotrophs) varied significantly in all treatments in response to seasonal change (df = 3, 16; P < 0.05). Enzyme activities fluctuated in accordance with seasonal factors and compost maturity stages, with phosphatases, esterases, amino-peptidases, proteases and glycosyl-hydrolases being most prominent. Compared to treatments T2 and T3, compost treatments with higher percentage waste filter materials (T1, T4 and T5) had higher N (16100-21300 mg/kg), P (1500-2300 mg/kg), K (19800-28200 mg/kg), neutral pH, and lower C/N ratios (13:1-10:1), which were also comparable with commercially produced composts. Filter materials therefore, appears to be a vital ingredient for composting of winery solid waste.

published_or_final_version / Business Administration / Master / Master of Business Administration

The following dissertation uses an exploratory and confirmatory approach to explain relationship value within the grape and wine industry in Australia. Specifically, the research develops and empirically captures and compares buyers’ and sellers’ perceptions pertaining to relationship value. A three phase model was developed from a comprehensive literature review and further enriched through a qualitative field study involving sixteen in-depth interviews with wineries and their grape suppliers in Western Australia. The hypothesised structural equation models were tested using data gathered from a comprehensive survey of 175 wineries and 400 wine grape suppliers located in South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia. Research findings highlight the similarities and differences in relationship value antecedents and outcomes for wineries and grape suppliers. In Phase One, it was evident from the working relationships studied that partner attributes included in the model – conflict resolution, communication, performance satisfaction, trust and cooperation - all made an important contribution towards the realisation of relationship value for both parties. A restrained use of power was found to be critical to avoid a reduction in the ability to resolve conflict, the level of performance satisfaction and trust in the relationship. / In Phase Two, profitability benefits were shown to be the strongest predictors of relationship value, whilst the realisation of market and scout benefits strongly assisted firms to innovate. Perceptions of relationship costs were comparatively low for both customers and suppliers. The results of the Phase Three model provide rare empirical evidence which showed that while both parties share these same key relational antecedents and value outcomes (profitability benefits, innovation and market/scout benefits and relationship costs), the means by which relationship value is conferred was significantly different. For customers, satisfaction with a supplier’s performance enhanced perceptions of the value of that relationship due to the potential to increase profitability. Also, customer perceptions of relationship value increased through trust and cooperation. In contrast, suppliers in a trusting and cooperative relationship with a customer have the opportunity to increase the value of their relationships to the extent that they are willing to innovate to build strategic position, reduce costs and improve quality to increase profitability. Cluster analysis revealed there were those firms with a high relational orientation and others with a low relational orientation within both winery and grape supplier groups. Specifically, those wineries and grape suppliers with higher levels of conflict resolution, communication, performance satisfaction, trust and cooperation had corresponding higher levels of relationship value.