Customization Process Research Articles

Implementing a system architecture model for automated aircraft cabin assembly processes

Aircraft manufacturers provide their customers with a number of options for aircraft customization, including a wide variety of pre-qualified optional equipment from which they can select different components according to their requirements. The numerous options cover a variety of engines, navigation systems, and interior cabin designs. This flexibility gives the possibility to the airlines to differentiate their brands. Moreover, a unique cabin interior design leaves an enduring impression on their customers and constitutes their expectations for the upcoming flight. On the other hand, many choices result in many different specifications, long delivery periods, complicated installation procedures such as stopping the running assembly of the cabin, disassembling already installed cabin components, and assembling new cabin models. Therefore, aircraft customization increases the cost and the lead time of the aircraft manufacturing processes and thus decreases the production rates. It is in the best interest of aircraft manufacturers and airlines to automate and optimize the customization processes to make them more time and cost efficient. This paper presents a method for establishing reconfigurable and optimized scheduling for aircraft cabin assembly. The data necessary for calculating the optimal schedule are retrieved from cabin system architecture that is built with semantic web language. The focus is on building a system architecture ontology model for automated scheduling of assembly processes of an aircraft cabin, which opens up the possibility for cabin customization at every assembly step. Moreover, the cabin ontology can be used as a foundation for co-design where each expert of their branch can further upgrade the model. With the algorithm presented in this paper, the ontology can be upgraded with new data, which will automatically correlate with the existing data in the cabin ontology. The knowledge-based ontology model provides a view of the whole chain from design to realization and feedback links to all included parties. Moreover, it gives the possibility for agile changes in the assembly sequence in response to the updated demands of the clients.

Pilot study of a new freely available computer-aided polyp detection system in clinical practice

PurposeComputer-aided polyp detection (CADe) systems for colonoscopy are already presented to increase adenoma detection rate (ADR) in randomized clinical trials. Those commercially available closed systems often do not allow for data collection and algorithm optimization, for example regarding the usage of different endoscopy processors. Here, we present the first clinical experiences of a, for research purposes publicly available, CADe system.MethodsWe developed an end-to-end data acquisition and polyp detection system named EndoMind. Examiners of four centers utilizing four different endoscopy processors used EndoMind during their clinical routine. Detected polyps, ADR, time to first detection of a polyp (TFD), and system usability were evaluated (NCT05006092).ResultsDuring 41 colonoscopies, EndoMind detected 29 of 29 adenomas in 66 of 66 polyps resulting in an ADR of 41.5%. Median TFD was 130 ms (95%-CI, 80–200 ms) while maintaining a median false positive rate of 2.2% (95%-CI, 1.7–2.8%). The four participating centers rated the system using the System Usability Scale with a median of 96.3 (95%-CI, 70–100).ConclusionEndoMind’s ability to acquire data, detect polyps in real-time, and high usability score indicate substantial practical value for research and clinical practice. Still, clinical benefit, measured by ADR, has to be determined in a prospective randomized controlled trial.

Lessons From EU-Projects for Energy Renovation

There is an urgent need for energy renovation of the existing building stock, in order to reach the climate goals, set in Paris in 2016. To reach climate targets, it is important to considerably lower energy demand as well as switch to fossil-free heating systems. Unfortunately, renovation rates across the EU remain at a low level of 1% per year. Deep renovation, which lowers energy use with 60% or more, accounts only for 0,2% of renovations. The heating transition thus progresses much more slowly than the electricity transition. We draw on the framework of technological innovation systems, which allows comparison of different transitions. In the literature, it is argued that the configurational nature of the renovation system is one of the main reasons for the slow heating transition. The renovation system is context-bound and consists of many actors both on the demand-side and the supply-side, which leads to a fragmented market. For increasing the speed of the heating transition, it is deemed important to counter this fragmentation. We carried out a review of reports and publications of EU-funded projects on energy renovation. In many projects fragmentation in the building sector was identified as one of the main obstacles. We analyzed the deliverables of these energy renovation projects to find tried and tested solutions. One of these is the so-called one-stop-shop, which promises to improve the organization of the supply side, while also providing an appropriate and affordable solution to the customer. In the discussion we argue that the energy renovation system could be improved by increasing collaboration on the supply side and at the same time simplifying the renovation process for customers. A promising tool to make this happen is the one-stop-shop.

The influence of creative packaging design on customer motivation to process and purchase decisions

Creativity is a growing area of retailing research. Drawing upon the optimal-arousal theory, this research examines how the dimensions of packaging design creativity, such as divergence and relevance, have varying levels of influence on customer process, persuasion, and response measures. The findings show that packaging design can evoke customer curiosity in certain conditions. Further, the results suggest that the effect of packaging design creativity differs significantly in the retail context, in contrast to earlier studies that have mostly focused on the context of advertising. The findings provide new insights and implications for retailers, brand managers, and packaging designers to understand how creativity impacts customer decision making.

Case Study of V. K. Sofa Makers Customization Process

Purpose: Many successful businesses in India were less documented; hence this is an attempt to create a document of a company started by a young entrepreneur in Mangalore with a determination to create jobs for himself and others; documenting is an essential process for others to learn and understand and hence this analysis of VK Sofa makers is an attempt as a case study document for anyone and everyone who wishes to know in-depth about the company process. Similar case studies have been studied on young entrepreneurs, to know various types of entrepreneurs; therefore, it is critical to understand the process followed by departments as a Manu-Retailer organization, from manufacturing to selling, a value chain that generates customer value and a great business. Retail is a competitive business and needs to be managed and modified as per the seasons and customer needs; therefore, the purpose is to know; the depth of this mastery by the team over the years' Manufacturing is a challenge and a, strength in terms of standardization in sofa making; hence can Indian Companies like VK sofa makers export like other nations like Africa, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and many more nations. Keep global customer needs in mind as customization; for Global markets where requirements are unique: foldable sofas, metal sofas, garden sofas. Marketing both online and offline, channelizing the marketing and sales effort would be the key; pure leather sofas for business or just pleasure or daily use at home or office made. Hence can, VK Sofa Makers; make sofas'; that can be shaped and be user-friendly, as well as a match; the needs of business travelers who stay in Hotels for business, touring, and just sightseeing. Are the VK sofa products designed ergonomically, and how best can they be further customized along with metal or garden furniture is also being analyzed. Hence the purpose is to study- VK Sofa Makers is in-depth with a comparative study of enterprises; that are similar across the markets. Design/Methodology/ Approach: The approach followed in making this case study was observations of the processes followed, speaking to various employees, vendors, and the owner himself. Open questions were asked to many of them, either directly or indirectly, involved in sofa- the making process. Findings/ Results: It has been seen and learned; that the model is a replicable model by any person who garners and attempts the same kind of effort, results are to be achieved; in the process. Originality: This is a first attempt to study VK Sofa Makers; as a case study; that is not known to the academic world, as well as the world in general. The research scholar; has put- in efforts to make sure the saga of success is- spread; for the greater glory of such business models that could be; replicated in other areas of products or services. Paper Type: Case study method of understanding customization process at VK Sofa makers.

Is green customer integration always a facilitator for green product innovation?: A conflict-based view

PurposeAlthough the facilitating role of green customer integration in business-to-business (B2B) markets has been highlighted in some green product innovation literature, analysis of the difficulties it can pose is still an underdeveloped field. This paper extends the conflict-based view and examines the effect of green customer integration on customer–firm conflicts and thereby investigates the influence of conflict on green product innovation.Design/methodology/approachThis study conducts a questionnaire survey. Ordinary Least Square regression and structural equation model with Maximum Likelihood Estimation are applied to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe results show that green customer information integration is positively related to cognitive conflict, whereas green customer process integration has an inverted U-shaped relationship with cognitive conflict and a positive relationship with affective conflict. Moreover, green product innovation is promoted by cognitive conflict and is damaged by affective conflict.Originality/valueThis study highlights the conflict-related factors that play a role in firm–customer collaboration for green product innovation in B2B markets. It also reveals the potential dark side of green customer integration by explicitly delineating its effects on conflicts.

Research on the Method of Acquiring Customer Individual Demand Based on the Quantitative Kano Model.

In order to realize accurate marketing by analyzing customer individual demand, a new quantitative Kano model method is put forward, and it is helpful to provide customized products for heterogeneous customer classification groups. By improving the traditional Kano model, the customer satisfaction and the importance degree of products are defined, and the quantitative Kano demand model is established. Customers are classified as the price preference group, the brand preference group, and the service priority group, and decision-making of product attribute quality improvement for customer classification is realized. Lastly, electric vehicles (EVs) are selected as a study case, and their various demands for different classifications of customers are discussed by questionnaire survey and calculation of satisfaction and the importance degree. Furthermore, different customer group demands are classified as attractive demands, expected demands, nondifferential demands, or essential demands, and the important product attribute acquisition process for various customers is discussed to improve enterprise market competitiveness.

Relationships among actors within the sharing economy: Meta-analytics review

The sharing economy has emerged as an influential research area in which a platform mediates customers’ temporary access to service provider resources. To provide a generalizable picture of the platform’s customer and service provider relationship formation process, we integrate effect sizes from 192 studies, including 214 independent samples (N = 88,154). The findings indicate there are motivators and inhibitors for individuals to join a platform as a customer or service provider and that these influence attitudinal and behavioral responses toward the platform through a two-level relationship quality pathway. Moderator analysis reveals that the impact of customer motivators and inhibitors on customer response to service providers and platforms depends on country-level moderators and cultural context. These results provide insight into relationship formation among actors in the sharing economy. The study also makes recommendations for platform managers, especially in hospitality and tourism, to more effectively manage their relationships with their users.

TianheGraph: Customizing Graph Search for Graph500 on Tianhe Supercomputer

As the era of exascale supercomputing is coming, it is vital for next-generation supercomputers to find appropriate applications with high social and economic benefit. In recent years, it has been widely accepted that extremely-large graph computation is a promising killer application for supercomputing. Although Tianhe series supercomputers are leading in the world-wide competition of supercomputing (ranked No. 1 in the Top500 list for six times), previously they had been inefficient in graph computation according to the Graph500 list. This is mainly because the previous graph processing system cannot leverage the advanced hardware features of Tianhe supercomputers. To address the problem, in this paper we present our integrated optimizations for improving the graph computation performance on our next-generation Tianhe supercomputing system, mainly including sorting with buffering for heavy vertices, vectorized searching with SVE (Scalable Vector Extension) on matrix2000+ CPUs, and group communication on the proprietary interconnection network. Performance evaluation on a subset of the Tianhe supercomputer (with 512 nodes and 196,608 cores) shows that our customized graph processing system effectively improves the graph search performance and achieves the BFS performance of 2131.98 GTEPS.

Case Study of Furniture Manufacturing Companies

Purpose: This study encompasses four cases pertaining to furniture manufacturing industry in India. Manufacturing is essential for our nation and hence four companies are studied namely: Spacewood Pvt. Ltd, Choice Furntech LLP, Stanley Lifestyles Ltd, and VK Sofa Makers Pvt.Ltd. There are few similarities and associations with all four of these companies. This study also uncovers various aspects of minute details related to furniture pricing, customization, and unique selling proposition via segmentation/segments that they are operating in. The companies that are in study are basically seasoned and very strong fundamentally and operationally. Design/Methodology/Approach: Observations and interactions/interviews with employees of all the four companies along with online databases were studied for finding similarities and dissimilarities in certain key variables and bring out the best variables/ practices that could be replicated by others. Findings/ Results: This case study reviews the current situation of various customization processes through multiple variables in furniture manufacturing companies in India and the data is collected from interaction with employees, vendors, customers, company websites, scholarly literature, and internet sources for results that could have far reaching implications when compared to others abroad. Originality: It is a study to find commonality or similarity[s] among these four companies with reference to VK Sofa makers for any future entrepreneurs to have a sustainable/ implementable business model that can grow rapidly by customization and superior service quality. Type of Paper: Case Study based research analysis for knowing similarities among dissimilar companies of a same industry as well as to know the dissimilarities of similar nature companies in a given market space; hence the science and art of running these companies is the basis for this case study.

Investigating Trust to Bridge the Attitude–Behaviour Gap: A Study of Socially Responsible Customers in a Low Trust Society

While corporate social responsibility (CSR) is widely investigated in the Western world, the CSR attitude–behaviour gap is still wide and underexplored in the context of developing countries. Limited empirical research has tried to examine how CSR customer awareness (CA) may lead to subjective cognitive attributes such as customer’s trust on CSR, which in turn leads to behavioural outcomes (e.g., purchase intention) in a low trust society. To address these shortcomings in the literature, this article builds on the stakeholder theory to examine the influence of CSR CA on purchase intention (PI), considering the facilitatory roles of customer’s trust on CSR when company evaluation (CE) and product association (PA) moderate the mediated relationship. The data were collected in Pakistan from a sample of 321 socially responsible customers. Hypothesized relationships were tested using structural equation modelling using mediation and moderated mediation analysis. The results demonstrated that customers’ trust on CSR mediated the relationship between CSR CA and PI. PA was insignificantly different for low and high components of PA on the CA–trust–PI link compared to CE that was significantly different for the CA–trust–PI link. This indicates that, when socially responsible customers process CSR information, CE plays an important role regarding the associative attributes on the CA–trust–PI link than PA in low trust societies. The discussion and implications conclude the research study.

The Product Customization Process in Relation to Industry 4.0 and Digitalization

Today’s customer no longer wants one-size-fits-all products but expects products and services to be as tailored as possible. Mass customization and personalization are becoming a trend in the digitalization strategy of enterprises and manufacturing in Industry 4.0. The purpose of the paper is to develop and validate a conceptual model for leveraging Industry 4.0 and digitalization to support product customization. We explored the implications and impacts of Industry 4.0 and digitalization on product customization processes and determine the importance of variables. We applied structural equation modeling (SEM) to test our hypotheses regarding the antecedents and consequences of digitalization and Industry 4.0. We estimated the process model using the partial least squares (PLS) method, and goodness of fit measures show acceptable values. The proposed model considers relationships between technology readiness, digitalization, internal and external integration, internal value chain, and customization. The results show the importance of digitalization and technology readiness for product customization. The results reveal that the variable of internal integration plays a crucial mediating role in applying new technologies and digitalization for customization. The paper’s main contribution is the conclusion that, for successful implementation of the customization process, models are required to focus on the internal and external factors of the business environment. Our findings are supported by various practical applications of possible product customization.

A Data Warehouse-Based System for Service Customization Recommendations in Product-Service Systems.

Nowadays, manufacturers are shifting from a traditional product-centric business paradigm to a service-centric one by offering products that are accompanied by services, which is known as Product-Service Systems (PSSs). PSS customization entails configuring products with varying degrees of differentiation to meet the needs of various customers. This is combined with service customization, in which configured products are expanded by customers to include smart IoT devices (e.g., sensors) to improve product usage and facilitate the transition to smart connected products. The concept of PSS customization is gaining significant interest; however, there are still numerous challenges that must be addressed when designing and offering customized PSSs, such as choosing the optimum types of sensors to install on products and their adequate locations during the service customization process. In this paper, we propose a data warehouse-based recommender system that collects and analyzes large volumes of product usage data from similar products to the product that the customer needs to customize by adding IoT smart devices. The analysis of these data helps in identifying the most critical parts with the highest number of incidents and the causes of those incidents. As a result, sensor types are determined and recommended to the customer based on the causes of these incidents. The utility and applicability of the proposed RS have been demonstrated through its application in a case study that considers the rotary spindle units of a CNC milling machine.

Improving Trade Competitiveness Through a Risk-based Approach: Post-clearance Audits in Bangladesh Customs

To create new development opportunities in the Global South, developing countries must enable greater trade facilitation with the global economy. Customs officials, who are at the front line and act as gatekeepers for market access, must often balance competing priorities between ensuring regulatory compliance and efficient processing of a high volume of consignments and goods. Currently, customs processes in developing countries often act as bottlenecks in the global supply chain which create undue costs for exporters and traders, yet these countries must also tackle the growing problem of illegal or unlawful trade. Post-clearance audits (PCAs) provide an effective risk management technique that can be used in conjunction with automated risk-based selectivity. This approach provides a holistic, risk management approach to customs processing. PCAs can also assist customs to promote an expedited release of goods without compromising the control of high-risk consignments. This article examines the weakness and the challenges of implementing PCAs within the domestic regulatory framework of Bangladesh. To achieve this objective, this article has obtained primary evidence from key stakeholders including Bangladesh Customs to develop insight and analysis into implementing PCA into the Bangladeshi regulatory framework. As this article will explore, these challenges include implementing an automated risk-based selectivity approach, online connectivity among relevant agencies, customs-to-customs cooperation, customs-to-business cooperation and developing greater technical capacity through skilling-up the workforce. Post-clearance Audit, Risk Management, Customs Control, Trade Facilitation, Bangladesh Customs

Effects of sustainable supply chain integration on green innovation and firm performance

Sustainability has a well-established influence on innovation, but less scrutiny about the efficacy of sustainable supply chain integration as a determinant of green innovations has been done. Based on information processing theory and dynamic capability view, this study proposes a framework relating sustainable supply chain integration, green innovation, and firm performance. Primary survey data and secondary data of annual reports published by 296 manufacturing firms from 19 different sectors in Pakistan were collected, and structural equation modeling (AMOS 26 and SPSS 25) was employed. Results indicate that sustainable internal, supplier, and customer integration foster both green managerial and process innovations. Findings also suggest that green managerial innovation has a significant positive influence on the firm's financial performance. In contrast, the influence of green process innovations on firm performance is negatively significant, suggesting that rapid changes in manufacturing processes and operational procedures cost firms in multiple ways and decrease firms’ profits. The new findings have implications for both managers and researchers in managing sustainable supply chains and green innovation .

The Octopus processor for the CMS L1 muon trigger for High Luminosity LHC

The upgraded L1 muon trigger system of the CMS experiment in the High Luminosity Large Hadron Collider is based on custom processors featuring large Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) connected by large numbers of optical links. These provide the I/O bandwidth and power necessary to process the complex algorithms used during the collection of physics data. The design and performance requirements of these processors creates significant challenges in signal integrity, power delivery, and thermal management. In this paper we describe the Octopus processor, featuring a large Xilinx Virtex Ultrascale+ FPGA and up to 128 links interfaced to optics through high quality twin-ax copper cables. Results on signal integrity at 25 Gb/s and the first demonstration of 50+ Gb/s links with pluggable optics in CMS are also shown, demonstrating bit error rates below 10−15 at a 95% confidence level. The thermal performance is measured inside an Advanced-TCA crate with acceptable thermal margins up to 200 W of chip power. Future improvements are mentioned, potentially allowing operation at up to 300 W.

지체장애 독거노인가구를 위한 고령자 맞춤형 주택개조에 대한 거주 후 평가 연구

With the aging of the world"s population, Korea is facing a super-aged society, so active countermeasures are urgently needed. Home modification is an important mechanism for adapting to retirement life and is a key topic that can reduce the national welfare burden. This study attempted to understand the effect of an aging-friendly customized home modification through the reaction of the elderly residents. Accordingly, first the characteristics of the modified features and the residents respectively, second the fit between them for each modified feature, and third the effectiveness of the entire modification through measures of lifw quality such as perceived self-reliance and expectation of continuous residence and happiness. In order to understand the resident response, a graphic scale was used by replacing the 5-step Likert scale text with the FPRS" face icon. The target households were elderly women living alone with physical disabilities, whose houses currently had aging friendly customized modification. Interview and observation techniques were used for the investigation. As results, very positive responses to various dimensions of user benefits were identified for each changed feature of the houses in which the deficiency part of the previous houses were supplemented by modification. In addition, the remarkable improvement of the three aspects of life quality was also confirmed. This proved the overall effectiveness of customized home modification at a limited cost, along with the accumulation of satisfaction with various modified features. In particular, it is meaningful that it has shown the rationality of the customized modification process previously done to improve residents’ self-reliance and expectation of continuous residence which are the core topics and hopes of Aging In Place.

Customer integration and customer value: contingency roles of innovation capabilities and supply chain network complexity

PurposePrior research assumes that customer integration enhances customer value. However, the mechanisms and conditions under which customer integration contributes to customer value are less understood. This study aims to draw insight from the resource-based view (RBV) to conceptualize customer integration as an input resource that triggers product and process innovation capabilities to enhance customer value. The study further draws on the contingent RBV to examine supply chain network complexity (SCNC) conditions under which customer integration contributes to customer value through product and process innovation capabilities.Design/methodology/approachThis study’s conceptual framework is tested on primary data from 335 firms in Ghana. PROCESS and ordinary least square regression analyses were used to test the study hypotheses. Additional analyses were conducted using structural equation modeling and two-stage least square regression analysis.FindingsThis study finds that, beyond the significant direct positive association between customer integration and customer value, product and process innovation capabilities mediate the association between customer integration and customer value. Evidence further shows that the indirect associations between customer integration and customer value through product and process innovations are strengthened when SCNC increases.Originality/valueThis research validates the presumed relationship between customer integration and customer value and provides theoretical arguments and empirical evidence to demonstrate how process and product innovation capabilities uniquely and in interaction with SCNC transform this relationship.

Customized Investment Decisions for New and Remanufactured Products Supply Chain Based on 3D Printing Technology

Three-dimensional printing and customized products are gradually emerging, and many manufacturers use 3D printing technology to customize products according to the individual needs of consumers. We focus on the differential pricing of new products and remanufactured products after being customized by 3D printing and the profit distribution of supply chain members. Through building the Stackelberg game model led by the manufacturer, we discuss how supply chain members should make investment decisions about customized new and customized remanufactured products with the goal of maximizing the manufacturer’s profit when there are two models of remanufacturing by the OEM and remanufacturing by the retailer. Finally, through the simulation analysis of MATLAB, we explain how the manufacturer and the retailer make decisions under the influence of customization sensitivity coefficient and customization cost. We also analyze the impact of relevant factors on the level of customization effort and whether supply chain members are suitable for custom production. We found that when the level of customization effort is relatively low, both the manufacturer and the retailer should choose the manufacturer to complete the customization process. However, when the level of customization effort is relatively high the manufacturer can transfer the customization process to the retailer, but the retailer should still let the manufacturer lead the customization process for his own profit maximization.

Developing Aviation Smart Campus Through Digital Transformation Strategy: Case Study at Indonesia Aviation Polytechnic

The application of digital technology to business processes brings a new atmosphere in the era of technological disruption. The increasing number of transportation users makes all air transportation industry operators compete to provide services and facilities without neglecting safety. Personnel working in the aviation sector are keys to successful service delivery. Good quality education begins with the management of the aviation campus. The application of ICT or digital technology in aviation schools in the digital transformation era will bring a fresher atmosphere and innovation. This paper aims to make the concept of digital transformation on aviation campuses based on business processes. Based on the dimensions of digital transformation, which consists of 9 aspects, as well as the value chains of the five porters, a matrix for the concept of digital transformation for aviation campuses can be created. By paying attention to customer experience, processes and business models that make it possible to create new businesses; the implementation of Digital Transformation can be achieved. A simple concept of IT Architecture, this paper can provide a plan for making a smart aviation campus