Na área de processamento de sinais biomédicos a extração de informação, baseada em um conjunto de medidas adquiridas no tempo, é considerada de suma importância. A qualidade desta informação extraída permite avaliar o funcionamento dos diversos órgãos. Objetivos: (1) propor o método de análise de componentes dependentes para auxiliar a extração de componentes de interesse, a partir de medidas multivariadas; (2) caraterizar as componentes extraídas através de representações em termos de tempo e freqüência, e espectro de potência; e, (3) aplicar o método e avaliar as componentes de interesse extraídas no contexto real MCGf, MGG e fMRI. A proposta para a extração fundamenta-se no método chamado de Análise de Componentes Dependentes ACD. As medidas a serem processadas são multivariadas a partir de sensores distribuídos, espacialmente, no corpo humano dando origem a um conjunto de dados correlacionados no tempo e/ou no espaço. Observa-se que os sinais de interesse raramente são registrados de forma isolada, e sim misturados com outros sinais superpostos, ruído e artefatos fisiológicos ou ambientais, onde a relação sinal-ruído é geralmente baixa. Nesse contexto, a estratégia a ser utilizada baseia-se na ACD, que permitirá extrair um pequeno número de fontes, de potencial interesse, com informações úteis. A estratégia ACD para extração de informação é aplicada em três importantes problemas, na área de processamento de sinais biomédicos: (1) detecção do sinal do feto em magnetocardiografia fetal (MCGf); (2) detecção da atividade de resposta elétrica do estômago em magnetogastrografia (MGG); e, (3) detecção de regiões ativas do cérebro em experimentos de imagens por ressonância magnética funcional (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, fMRI). Os resultados, nos três casos estudados, mostraram que o método utilizado, como estratégia, é efetivo e computacionalmente eficiente para extração de sinais de interesse. Concluímos, baseados nas aplicações, que o método proposto é eficaz, mostrando seu potencial para futuras pesquisas clínicas. / An important goal in biomedical signal processing is the extraction of information based on a set of physiological measurements made along time. Generally, biomedical signals are electromagnetic measurements. Those measurements (usually made with multichannel equipment) are registered using spatially distributed sensors around some areas of the human body, originating a set of time and/or space correlated data. The signals of interest are rarely registered alone, being usually observed as a mixture of other spurious, noisy signals (sometimes superimposed) and environmental or physiological artifacts. More over, the signal-to-noise ratio is generally low. In many applications, a big number of sensors are available, but just a few sources are of interest and the remainder can be considered noise. For such kind of applications, it is necessary to develop trustful, robust and effective learning algorithms that allow the extraction of only a few sources potentially of interest and that hold useful information. The strategy used here for extraction of sources is applied in three important problems in biomedical signal processing: (1) detection of the fetal magnetocardiogram signal (fMCG); (2) detection of the electrical activity of the stomach in magnetogastrograms (MGG); and (3) detection of active regions of the brain in experiments in functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI). The results, within the three cases of study, showed that the DCA method used as strategy is effective and computationally efficient on extraction of desired signals.

<p>Background: The recent years in the Swedish Fast Moving Consumer Goods industry have been characterized by a palpable shift in power balance, favouring the retailers. Since the shift in power balance has strengthened the negotiation position of the retailers, the suppliers now have to, to a greater extent than before, accommodate to the retailers’ goals, whether they be financial or strategic. </p><p>Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate how this recent power shift has affected the relationships of suppliers and retailers. This development has resulted in the rather new and unexplored area of retailer value, which this study further aimed to explore. </p><p>Research method: Interviews were conducted with representatives fromthe leading retailer chains and market leading suppliers. </p><p>Results: The increased use of information and control on behalf of the retailers has led to the suppliers, to a greater extent than before, having to adjust to the retailers'different store concepts. However, in order to create retailer value, the suppliers also need to focus on the consumers’ needs and preferences, since the way to the retailer’s shelves is through creating consumer demand. They also have to stay innovative and make use of the experience and in-depth knowledge they possess within their product segments, as that is where they still have the upper hand.</p>

Background: The recent years in the Swedish Fast Moving Consumer Goods industry have been characterized by a palpable shift in power balance, favouring the retailers. Since the shift in power balance has strengthened the negotiation position of the retailers, the suppliers now have to, to a greater extent than before, accommodate to the retailers’ goals, whether they be financial or strategic. Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate how this recent power shift has affected the relationships of suppliers and retailers. This development has resulted in the rather new and unexplored area of retailer value, which this study further aimed to explore. Research method: Interviews were conducted with representatives fromthe leading retailer chains and market leading suppliers. Results: The increased use of information and control on behalf of the retailers has led to the suppliers, to a greater extent than before, having to adjust to the retailers'different store concepts. However, in order to create retailer value, the suppliers also need to focus on the consumers’ needs and preferences, since the way to the retailer’s shelves is through creating consumer demand. They also have to stay innovative and make use of the experience and in-depth knowledge they possess within their product segments, as that is where they still have the upper hand.

This thesis is focused on the objective: How can the city's transport system and land use be coordinated and stakeholder collaboration be developed, to make the proportion of environmentally sustainable shopping trips increase? Trading and transportation in the town has been developed so that consumer’s traffic dependence has increased and the elderly, children and people without cars have got poorer accessibility to basic services. The consequences in terms of increased car use is negative for environmentally sustainable development. The premise of this thesis is three questions; What knowledge is there in Sweden and internationally on travel and shopping habits? What is the individual's behavior and what determines the choice of travel mode when doing purchasing trips? How does corporations and national, regional and local public agencies coordinate their decision-making? The aim of the thesis is to analyze and discuss how trade and the transportation system can be coordinated and developed to contribute to attractive and environmentally sustainable trade structures. Given this aim it was an important focus of the thesis to study and analyze how the forms of collaboration between stakeholders can be developed A review and analysis is made of the theoretical and practical aspects of individuals' behavior and how collaboration in decision-making can be developed and enhanced. The driving forces behind the emergence of today's trading structures are analyzed as well as their ability to influence society's conditions for increased durability. The state of knowledge is reported when it comes to travel- and purchasing-habits in Sweden and internationally, as well as the observed and projected impacts on traffic and the development of sustainability. Case studies from semi-central business establishments in Nacka, Falun and Umeå with 578 interviews of consumers and nine interviews with stakeholders handling trade in the case study locations, is reported. Results from a Web Panel with 1 839 web interviews with the same issues as in the case studies, but across the country, is described. The final chapters discusses the three questions and the objective and in the final discussion is the most important points highlighted regarding the development of trade in a sustainable and attractive city. A methodology for creating a sustainable trade policy in a municipality as well as a detailed account of the current state description, case studies and web-based survey is reported in the appendices. / <p>QC 20151002</p>

Belöningssystem och dess utformning diskuteras både i organisationer samt forskningsvärlden. Att utforma ett fungerande belöningssystem är problematiskt och det är många faktorer att ta hänsyn till. Butiken och dess miljö är en viktig faktor i ett dagligvaruhandelsföretag för att skapa bästa upplevelsen för kunden. Butikschefen ansvarar för att skapa detta samt för att butiken ska fungera systematiskt. Men hur är ett belöningssystem utformat till butikschefer i ett dagligvaruhandelsföretag? När belöningssystem utformas finns risken att det inte leder till önskande beteenden. I dessa fall kan en förändring ske, men vad är det egentligen som motiverar förändringen? Det är detta denna rapport har tagit sikte på samt det faktum att organisationen är kooperativa påverkar ledningens beslut och således belöningssystemet. Studien kommer således att undersöka: ”Hur är ett belöningssystem utformat till butikschefer i ett svenskt kooperativt dagligvaruhandelsföretag och vad motiverar en förändring av det?”. För att undersöka detta problem har principal-agentteorin tillämpats för att belysa problematiken som kan uppstå mellan ledning och butikschefer. Kooperativa teorier öppnar till en diskussion om det faktum att organsationen är kooperativ har påverkat utformningen av belöningssystemet. Teorier kring belöningssystem utgör en del i den teoretiska referensramen för att förstå hur belöningssystem är utformade samt vad som kan motivera en förändring av dem. För att besvara problemet har en kvalitativ metod tillämpats där en fallstudie på Kf Göta har genomförts. Faktumet att organisationen är kooperativ påverkade inte belöningssystemets utformning direkt. Dock påverkades belöningssystemet indirekt på grund av den bristande medlemskontrollen och att de kooperativa värderingarna genomsyrar de dagliga besluten. Den förevarande studiens slutsats är att det inte endast finns ett optimalt belöningssystem som tillfredsställer alla organisationer utan det bör anpassas efter det beteende som ledningen vill främja. Vi har således kommit fram till att det är viktigt att belöna ett beteende som leder till ett bra resultat snarare än att bara belöna ett bra resultat. / Incentive programs and its design is something that is discussed in organisations and academia. It’s problematic to design an effective incentive program and there’re many factors to consider. In a FMCG enterprise, the store and its environment is an important factor for creating the best experience for the customers. It’s the store manager's responsibility to make sure that everything in the store works in a systematic way. But how is a store manager incentive program designed in a FMCG enterprise? When incentive programs are designed, chances are that it does not lead to the behaviours that’s wanted. In these cases, a change may occur, but what actually motivates the change? This study has also reviewd if the fact that the organization is cooperative has affect the management decisions and therefore the incentive program. The study will examen "How is a incentive program designed to store managers in a Swedish cooperative FMCG enterprise and what motivates a change of it?”. To examine this problem, the principal-agent theory has been applied to illustrate the problem which can arise between management and store managers. Co-operative theories opens up to discussion about if the fact that the organisation is co-operatives has influenced the design of the incentive program. Theories about incentive programs is part of the theoretical framework for understanding how incentive programs are designed and what may motivate a change in them. To answer this problem, a qualitative method is applied and a case study on Kf Göta has been implemented. The fact that the organisation is co-operative did not affect the inceintive program design directly. However, it affected the incentive program indirectly because of the lack of member control and the co-operative values ​​permeate their daily decisions. The present study concludes that there is not only one optimal incentive program that suits all organisations, and it should be adapted to the behavior that management wants to promote. We have therefore concluded that it’s important to reward a behavior that leads to a good result rather than simply rewarding good results.

The aim of this master thesis is to analyze the position of the Coca-Cola Company on the Czech market of non-alcoholic beverages using retail audit data. First of all, the information about non-alcoholic beverages market in the Czech Republic is provided as setting the context for the analysis itself. This includes the facts such as size, market structure and trends both in terms of covered categories and producers operating within the market. Subsequently, the Coca Cola Company as the globally largest producer of non-alcoholic beverages is presented into the given context and in relation to the main producers on the Czech market with emphasis on the segment of cola flavored drinks is assessed its position. The analysis primarily using hard retail audit data is in the final part of the thesis enriched with the results of the consumer survey delivering the important insights of consumers themselves.

Main goal of this Master's thesis was to evaluate how price reductions influence consumers' likelihood to purchase FMCG products in connection to brand loyalty. Czech customers are characterized by high sensitivity to sales promotions. This thesis is focused on analysis of price discounts of shampoos in the Czech Republic. Leaflets of main retailers selling drugstore products were researched in order to describe the frequency and discount depth of shampoos. Customers' behaviour while buying shampoos and their attitude towards price discounts of shampoos were examined through a questionnaire. Main hypotheses that shampoos are discounted very frequently and of significant depth were confirmed. To conclude, customers' likelihood to buy shampoos increases heavily with discounted prices and some of the customers even believe that it is not worth buying shampoos for full prices.

This master thesis deals with a topic of master data quality at retailers and suppliers of fast moving consumer goods. The objective is to map a flow of product master data in FMCG supply chain and identify what is the cause bad quality of the data. Emphasis is placed on analyzing a listing process of new item at retailers. Global data synchronization represents one of the tools to increase efficiency of listing process and improve master data quality. Therefore another objective is to clarify the cause of low adoption of global data synchronization at Czech market. The thesis also suggests some measures leading to better master data quality in FMCG and expansion of global data synchronization in Czech Republic. The thesis consists of theoretical and practical part. Theoretical part defines several terms and explores supply chain operation and communication. It also covers theory of data quality and its governance. Practical part is focused on objectives of the thesis. Accomplishment of those objectives is based on results of a survey among FMCG suppliers and retailers in Czech Republic. The thesis contributes to enrichment of academic literature that does not focus on master data quality in FMCG and global data synchronization very much at the moment. Retailers and suppliers of FMCG can use the results of the thesis as an inspiration to improve the quality of their master data. A few methods of achieving better data quality are introduced. The thesis has been assigned by non-profit organization GS1 Czech Republic that can use the results as one of the supporting materials for development of next global data synchronization strategy.

This dissertation investigated why Dutch millennials have a positive attitude towards sustainable packaging and whether this resulted into the purchase of sustainably packaged products in the FMCG industry. Data was collected by the use of a survey among 115 Dutch millennials. With the use of moderation variables (price, packaging quality, availability, recognition and perceived consumer effectiveness), certain interaction effects could be measured that influence purchasing decisions. Results showed that a positive attitude towards sustainable packaging results in a higher probability of purchasing sustainably packaged products. Furthermore, it was found that millennials are willing to pay extra for sustainable packaging. Also, more knowledge on how to recognize sustainably packaged products increases the likelihood of purchasing them.

Syfte – Syftet med detta projekt att kartlägga och skapa förslag på förbättring av lagerläggningen vid torrvarulagret på företaget för att minska kostnader och öka effektiviteten. 1. Hur kan artiklar prioriteras för optimal lagerhållning? 2. Hur kan företaget upprätthålla god lagerhållning på lång sikt? 3. Hur kan en förbättrad lagerhållning bidra till företagets lönsamhet Metod – Undersökningen har baserats på kombination av personliga observationer, en dokumentstudie för att samla information gällande företagets omsättning, marginaler och svinn för de olika varugrupperna samt en enkätstudie som syftar till att samla information angående personalens syn på lagerhanteringen och vilket framtida läge som bör uppnås. Resultat – Observationerna visar att personalen inte fullt ut följer de instruktioner som finns angående var varor skall ställas på lagret. Det visar sig att på grund av mängden varor på lagret är detta inte möjligt. Observationerna visar även att många produkter som lagras inte direkt skapar värde i form av försäljning och tar upp värdefullt lagerutrymme som skulle kunna användas till andra produkter. Varor tenderar att placeras i hörnet av lagret vilket blockerar framkomligheten för två ställageplatser. Av enkätsvaren visar det sig att personalen på arbetsplatsen har delade uppfattningar om hur arbetet på lagret fungerar. Det visar sig att många i personalen håller med om att pallar ofta behöver flyttas för att komma åt bakomliggande varor. Resultatet från enkäterna visar att många medarbetare anser att varor inte ställs på rätt plats. Det visar sig att en stor del av medarbetarna inte vet att det finns nedskrivna bestämmelser om hur lagerarbetet skall skötas. Slutsatser – Produkter kan delvis prioriteras baserat på ABC-analysen men inte fullt ut enligt den teoretiska modellen. Företaget bör behålla principerna för ställagelagring eftersom denna metod anpassas bra för den typen av lager som företaget har men faller på grund av att dessa principer inte följs. Familjegruppsprincipen kan användas för att prioritera varor i större volymer på enhetliga pallar vid de angivna ställageplatserna. 5S kan hjälpa företaget att få koll på onödiga produkter på lagret genom att sortera ut och strukturera var sak på sin plats. Genom att göra detta med kontinuitet kan företaget hålla en bättre lagernivå och därmed hålla lagret under kontroll under tider då lagret blir pressat. Strukturerade rutiner och visuell styrning kan hjälpa erfarna och nya medarbetare att lätt förstå vad som behöver göras och hur detta skall genomföras. PDSA-cykeln kan användas för att kontinuerligt utveckla och förbättra processerna för lagerhållningen vid arbetsplatsen. Genom att skapa struktur, en städad arbetsplats och tydliga rutiner kan företaget skapa en bättre överblick av lagret. Denna överblick skapar möjlighet att se varugrupper eller produkter som är i riskzonen för att gå sönder eller passera utgångsdatum. Detta bidrar till att minska svinnet på arbetsplatsen vilket i sin tur leder till potentiell ekonomisk vinning under lång sikt. Långa ledtider är något företaget drabbas av på grund av den bristande framkomligheten på lagret. Med ett strukturerat lager minskar ledtider vilket ger personalen mer tid att lägga på värdeskapande aktiviteter. Onödiga rörelser för personalen är vanligt förkommande då varor flyttas och omplaceras på lagret för att komma åt andra varor. Detta agerar som ett slöseri av personalens tid. Väntan förekommer som ett resultat av den bristande framkomligheten vilket påverkar ledtider och effektiviteten på arbetsplatsen. / Purpose - The purpose of this project is to map and make suggestions for quality improvements for warehousing at the company with focus on increasing effectiveness and lowering the cost. 1.How can articles get prioritized for optimal warehousing? 2.How can the company maintain optimal warehousing in the long run? 3.How can optimized warehousing contribute to the company's profitability? Method - The study is based on a combination of personal observation, a document study used to gather information regarding the company's revenue, margins and waste for the different article groups. An inquiry was made with the purpose to gather information regarding the staff´s view of present warehouse logistics and future goals. Results - The observations show that the staff doesn't follow the guidelines regarding positioning of the articles in the warehouse. This is not possible with the amount of products in stock. The observations show that there are some products in the warehouse that do not directly contribute to the revenue of the company and therefore taking up space from products that do contribute to the revenue. Some articles are placed in the corner of the warehouse which limits access to two parts of the shelving system at the same time. The results from the inquiry show that the staff have mixed opinions regarding how well the warehouse runs. Most of the staff recognize the problem of having to move articles before reaching the wanted item. The inquiry show that a lot of the staff members does not follow the rules regarding placement of articles in the warehouse and most don't know if there are any written rules regarding this. Conclusions - Products can partially be prioritized based on the ABC-model but not to the full extent. The company should follow the principles of the shelving system since this is already implemented but is not used to the full extent. The family group principle can be used to prioritize products and sort them in different groups based on their attributes. 5S can help the company to identify unnecessary products and sort and mark everything in the warehouse. This identification leads to the possibility to lower and keep reasonable stock volume and keep control even though a big delivery is due. Structured routines and visual leadership may help both veteran and new workers in the work with the warehouse. The PDSA-cycle can be used to continuously improve and perfect processes for stock management at the store. Through designing a structure, a clean workplace and clear routines is it possible for the company to maintain a clear overview of the warehouse. This overview makes it possible to spot product groups that are in the danger zone for breaking or passing the expiration date. This will contribute to lowering the waste for the company which leads towards a potential financial gain over a longer period of time. With a more organized warehouse does the staff get more time to focus on value gaining tasks. Unnecessary movement for the staff is common due to the need to move products before work can be done. This is recognized as a waste of the staff's time and therefore a waste of resources. Waiting i common which is present due to products blocking the passage ways, this does lengthen lead times and decreases the effectiveness at the warehouse.