Increasing Product Variety Research Articles

COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT BY NEURAL NETWORKS MODELING

Current manufacturing industries are experiencing a paradigm shift towards more flexibility to respond quickly and efficiently to constant changing customers requirements, new technologies and increasing product variety. In today’s manufacturing environment it is necessary to make diverse decisions, which mainly concern to all stages of the manufacturing activity: bidding, negotiating, order acceptance, product design, processes planning and jobs scheduling. The decision consists in selecting the most suitable alternative from the potential ones, therefore a comparative assessment of the potential alternatives is required. In this paper we present a different approach to performing the comparative assessment, based on modeling with neural networks. Neural networks are used for establishing the dependence relations between the key process parameters and measured datasets e.g. cost, time span, consumed energy etc. A numerical simulation for comparative assessment by modeling with neural networks, with the help of an instances artificial database is also presented.

Decentralised protocols for autonomous mobile robots in material handling: inductive learnings from centralised controller

As customer demands for personalised items continue to grow, flexible material handling systems are becoming indispensable in manufacturing to accommodate the increasing product variety and demand fluctuations. Consequently, the adoption of autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) is on the rise, driven by their capability to autonomously respond to changes in demand. However, the myopic nature of AMRs’ autonomous decision-making may limit their ability to consider a system-wide perspective. To address this challenge, we propose an AI-based platform that extracts knowledge from a centralised agent, which makes system-wide decisions offline, and integrates this knowledge into decentralised AMRs operating online. We develop a mixed-integer linear programming model, a genetic algorithm, and a scheduling algorithm to generate centralised solutions. Additionally, we design features to convert these solutions into training instances and employ artificial neural networks to derive knowledge from them. This knowledge is then integrated into each AMR as a protocol. Through experiments, we evaluate the performance of the developed protocol, demonstrating its superiority over other dispatching rules in minimising the total weighted tardiness of transportation requests and the total waiting time of transportation requests at storages.

Production and Dietary Diversities with Seasonality in Rural Agricultural Context in Sri Lanka: A Case of <em>Mahakanumulla</em> Village Tank Cascade System

Dietary diversity is considered a characteristic of a healthy diet. Improving production diversity is a way to increase dietary diversity in subsistence farming contexts. However, with the agricultural transformation, this association must be revisited. The study aimed to investigate the association between production diversity and dietary diversity in rural agricultural households in Sri Lanka taking seasonality into account. The study site was the Mahakanumulla Village Tank Cascade System in the dry zone of Sri Lanka. Pooled Ordinary Least Squares regression was used in the estimation. The results indicated that production diversity and dietary diversity have a positive and statistically significant relationship. The education level of the household head, income and household size were also identified as factors affecting household dietary diversity. The households seem to smoothen dietary diversity levels across months; hence, there is no significant difference in dietary diversity between Yala/Maha seasons or pre- and post-harvesting periods. Cultivating some specific crop types such as cereals, involvement of livestock farming, and the season affected the frequency of consumption of some food groups such as dairy and meat. This study concludes that increasing production diversity could improve the nutrition of rural agricultural households in Sri Lanka. Hence, nutrition development programmes may benefit from encouraging production diversity in rural agricultural contexts.

Order or Collaborate? Manufacturers Utilize 3D-Printed Parts to Sustainably Facilitate Increased Product Variety

3D printing (3DP) has garnered significant attention from industries, prompting traditional manufacturers to adopt 3DP to sustainably facilitate increased product variety. Observing manufacturers’ two adoption strategies, ordering parts and collaboratively printing 3DP parts, in a real-world setting, we utilize a wholesale price contract and a Nash Bargaining contract to describe these two strategies and then develop a supply-chain model including a 3DP supplier (Supplier) and a traditional manufacturer (Manufacturer). Further, we employ backward induction to solve the subgame-perfect Nash equilibrium for the model to reveal differences between these two strategies and the impact of 3DP’s improved resource efficiency. According to equilibrium outcomes, analytical results show that first, as long as the unit cost of each 3DP part is not overly high and 3DP’s resource efficiency is not extremely low, the Manufacturer is willing to implement 3DP to increase product variety. Second, a rise in the resource efficiency can create a “win-win” scenario for the Manufacturer and the Supplier. Third, supply-chain collaboration can be achieved when the Manufacturer’s and the Supplier’s bargaining powers approach equality. Interestingly, a Nash bargaining contract can incentivize the manufacturer to substitute a base product with a variety of products, a change facilitated by an increase in the retail price of this base product. The managerial implication of this research is that enhanced resource efficiency can lead to less environmental pollution in the collaboration model by resulting in the sale of lower quantities of the base product, which would otherwise consume more resources and generate greater environmental pollution.

THE IMPACT OF A LARGE DEPRECIATION ON THE COST OF LIVING OF RICH AND POOR CONSUMERS

AbstractUsing retailer scanner data, we investigate how a sharp and abrupt depreciation of the exchange rate affects consumers' cost of living. We find that the marginal cost of imported goods increased, whereas their retail markups decreased compared to domestic products. There was also a surge in the entry and exit of both foreign and local product varieties post‐depreciation. Wealthier consumers, who spend more on imports, are hit harder by higher marginal costs but benefit from reduced markups and increased product diversity, unlike their less affluent counterparts.

Analysis of the Marketing Strategy of Freshippo Based on the 4Ps Theory

With the emergence of the epidemic and the rapid changes and development of the fresh new retail industry, Freshippo, as a leading enterprise, has also attached great importance to its marketing strategy research. More and more competitive enterprises are emerging, analyzing Freshippo’s marketing strategy to identify strengths and weaknesses and propose improvement suggestions is crucial for Freshippo to maintain competitiveness. Therefore, this article uses a research method that combines literature analysis and case analysis, using 4ps marketing theory, to deeply analyze the current marketing strategy status of Freshippo in four aspects of product, price, place, and promotion. Research has found that Freshippo has problems such as high prices,poor offline store experience, single payment methods, incomplete app functions, and insufficient promotion methods. Based on those problems mentioned above, this article also provides some reference improvement suggestions，such as strictly control product quality, increase product variety, conduct differentiated pricing, optimize the experience of offline stores, enrich on line payment methods, enrich member rights, and increase online marketing. From the research, it can be found that although Freshippo is in a leading position, there is still a lot of room for improvement in marketing strategies. As an emerging industry, the fresh new retail industry still has great development space.

Sustainability of the Digital Economy in Indonesia: Opportunities, Challenges and Future Development

This study aims to evaluate the challenges and opportunities arising from digital transformation and the digital economy, as well as their impact on human and physical resource development in the context of Indonesia. The methods used were a literature review and a qualitative approach. This study used secondary data obtained from academic articles published in the last 10 years. Data analysis techniques include material collection, data reduction, analysis and synthesis stages, and drawing conclusions. The results indicate that digital transformation brings economic and social opportunities. However, challenges also arise, such as digital divides among different groups, the level of human resource development, data and online system security, and taxation issues. Obstacles to be faced include slow regulatory reforms, bureaucratic complexity, government promotion in various regions, and digital infrastructure limitations. Strategic steps that need to be taken include developing appropriate policies, fostering collaboration between the public and private sectors, enhancing cybersecurity capacity, and promoting digital transformation domestically and internationally to advance national and regional economies. The key conclusion is that the main impact of the digital economy on the Indonesian economy as a whole includes market share growth, increased brand awareness, expanded customer reach, ease of business transactions, and increased product variety at competitive prices.

Surveying Quality Management Methodologies in Wooden Furniture Production

Furniture production is a specific industrial sector with a high human labor demand, a wide range of materials processed, and short production runs caused by high customization of end products. The difficulty of measuring the aesthetic requirements of customers is also specific to furniture. This review of academic papers identifies and explains effective quality management strategies in furniture production. The reviewed literature highlights a range of quality management methodologies, including concurrent engineering (CE), total quality management (TQM), lean manufacturing, lean six sigma, and kaizen. These strategies encompass a variety of pro-quality tools, such as 5S, statistical process control (SPC), quality function deployment (QFD), and failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA). The strengths of these quality management strategies lie in their ability to enhance efficiency, reduce waste, increase product diversity, and improve product quality. However, the weaknesses concern implementation challenges and the need for culture change within organizations. Successful quality management in furniture production requires tailoring strategies to the specific context of the furniture production industry. Additionally, the importance of sustainability in the furniture industry is emphasized, which entails incorporating circular economy principles and resource-efficient practices. The most important finding from the literature analysis is that early detection and correction of poor quality yields the most beneficial outcomes for the manufacturer. Therefore, it is essential to strengthen the rigor of quality testing and analysis during the early stages of product development. Consequently, a deep understanding of consumer perspectives on required furniture quality is crucial. The review identified two research gaps: (1) the impact of unnecessary product over-quality on the efficiency of furniture production and (2) the influence of replacing CAD drawings with a model-based definition (MBD) format on quality management in furniture production.

Gaining From Losing a Competition in Product Variety

This article studies the impact of a competing firm's substantial expansion in product variety, achieved through modularity and delayed differentiation, on the sales and inventory of the focal firm in the market. Intuitively, the firm's sales are expected to decrease when a competitor increases its product variety, as existing consumers are drawn to the greater range of competing products, resulting in a substitution effect. However, we also emphasize a simultaneous spillover effect, where the dramatic increase in a competitor's product variety can expand the overall market for all firms (including the focal firm) by attracting new consumers to the market. The net impact thus depends on the tradeoff between the substitution effect and spillover effect, forming an empirical question. To explore this tradeoff and quantify the net impact of a competitor's substantial increase in product variety on the focal firm's sales and inventory, we exploit the launch of Coca-Cola's Freestyle dispenser that offers over 120 beverage products via modularity and delayed differentiation. Our analysis focuses on the treatment effects of the launch of Freestyle on changes in the focal firm's sales quantity, sales dispersion, and inventory levels. Contrary to common intuition, we find that the focal firm's total sales remain unchanged following the launch of Freestyle dispensers, but its sales dispersion increases by 2.2%, which in turn leads to a 1.0% increase in inventory levels at distribution centers. The unchanged total sales and increased sales dispersion imply a redistribution of sales among the focal firm's stock keeping units (SKUs). By analyzing data at the SKU level and the business customer level, we uncover the mechanism behind this sales re-allocation: a 1.9% increase in the sales of the focal firm's long-tail products at the expense of its star product sales. Meanwhile, we identify a 0.9% increase in sales to retailers and entertainment locations, while sales to restaurants decline. These empirical results help disentangle the substitution and spillover effects on the focal firm's sales resulting from its competitor's substantially increased product variety. Managerial implications derived from these findings are discussed.

Managing Product Variety to Increase Sales in Used Automotive Closed-Loop Supply Chains

The relationship between product variety and sales has been extensively researched, but almost exclusively from the perspective of a new goods retail firm. Closed-loop supply chains for used goods, such as automobiles, offer unique challenges in terms of using reverse flows to create product variety at the retail location. Firms in used goods industries are unable to define their product mix a priori and may not even know which goods will be available to add to their sellable inventory. In this article, we use data from a used automobile retailer to explore these issues. A better understanding of the relationship between variety and sales can help used automobile retailers improve how they define and structure product variety at retail locations. Improved management of used automobile sales has obvious financial implications, but it also has important environmental implications, given the large contribution of passenger vehicles to overall emissions. This study implements a cluster analysis using consumer-facing variables to understand how customers view product variety for used automobiles. Our results show that three distinct classes of inventory exist, primarily driven by a key characteristic—body type—which differs from the traditional definition of product variety for new vehicles in the existing literature. A two-way fixed effects regression is then used to understand the relationship between product variety at the firm's retail locations and sales. The results demonstrate a nonlinear relationship between product variety and sales and, intriguingly, suggest that increasing product variety in some classes can be used to drive sales in others. Our findings yield important contributions for managers in used automobile firms and extend the broader literature on closed-loop supply chains. Specifically, our research demonstrates important differences in how product variety should be managed with used goods relative to new goods by a firm seeking to maximize sales.

Patents, Innovation, and Imitation in a North-South Model with Increasing Product Variety

Patents, Innovation, and Imitation in a North-South Model with Increasing Product Variety

Strategi Komunikasi Pemasaran “OPPO” Dalam Meningkatkan Penjualan Produk (Studi Pada Toko Erafone Ciputat – Tangerang Selatan)

This research aims to find out future strategies to increase sales. The analysis used in this research is SWOT analysis. This research method uses descriptive qualitative research. In this analysis it is known that the Ciputat Branch of the Erafone Store is in quadrant I, this position indicates a company that is strong and has opportunities, so the appropriate strategy to implement is SO, namely the company optimizes its strengths to take advantage of existing opportunities by paying attention to all possible threats from competitors in the market. . SO Strategy steps that need to be given more attention are improving product quality, increasing product diversity, and being more responsive to customer demand. The Ciputat Branch of the Erafone Store can increase existing opportunities by taking advantage of the economy which is starting to grow steadily, the large number of people who are looking for cellphones because they are needed to enter certain locations, and the large number of young and old people who are interested in cellphones.

An examination of reverse logistics best practices in the fast-moving consumer goods industries

The Coronavirus pandemic has led to consumers being progressively demanding, with changing needs owing to increased product variety and globalisation, as well as cheaper substitutes for products from foreign markets. The fast-moving consumer goods industry is able to provide for such a demand, as it is one of the biggest industries globally. However, this industry has also been affected by reverse logistics, which has led to the industry in search of reverse logistics best practices to mitigate reverse logistics challenges. The main objective of this study was to examine reverse logistics best practices in the fast-moving consumer goods industry. This was achieved by employing a positivist research philosophy, and furthermore by employing the explanatory and descriptive research design. This study was quantitative in nature which promoted the use of a non-probability purposive method to further collect data through survey-monkey using online platforms. The study achieved an 80% response rate from the FMCG retail industry, where the descriptive results from the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, version 27 revealed that RL best practices are moderately implemented.

Digital-twin deep dynamic camera position optimisation for the V-STARS photogrammetry system based on 3D reconstruction

ABSTRACT Photogrammetry systems are widely used in industrial manufacturing applications as an assistance measurement tool. Not only does it provide high-precision feedback for assembly process inspection and product quality assessment, but also it can improve the flexibility and robustness of manufacturing systems and production lines. However, with growing global competition and demands, companies are forced to enhance production efficiency, shorten production lifecycle and increase product variety by incorporating reconfigurable factory design that can meet challenging timeline and requirements. Although dynamic facility layout is widely investigated, the position selection for the photogrammetry system in dynamic manufacturing environment is usually overlooked. In this paper, dynamic layout of the V-STARS photogrammetry system is investigated and optimised in a digital-twin environment using deep reinforcement learning. The learning objectives are derived from the field of view (FoV) evaluation from point clouds 3D reconstruction, and collision detection from the digital twin simulated in Visual Components. The application feasibility of the proposed dynamic layout optimisation of the V-STARS photogrammetry system is verified with a real world industrial application.

Increasing Production Diversity and Diet Quality: Evidence from Bangladesh.

In the context of rural Bangladesh, we assess whether agriculture training alone, nutrition Behavior Communication Change (BCC) alone, combined agriculture training and nutrition BCC, or agriculture training and nutrition BCC combined with gender sensitization improve: (a) production diversity, either on household fields or through crop, livestock or aquaculture activities carried out near the family homestead and (b) diet diversity and the quality of household diets. All treatment arms were implemented by government employees. Implementation quality was high. No treatment increased production diversification of crops grown on fields. Treatment arms with agricultural training did increase the number of different crops grown in homestead gardens and the likelihood of any egg, dairy, or fish production but the magnitudes of these effect sizes were small. All agricultural treatment arms had, in percentage terms, large effects on measures of levels of homestead production. However, because baseline levels of production were low, the magnitude of these changes in absolute terms was modest. Nearly all treatment arms improved measures of food consumption and diet with the largest effects found when nutrition and agriculture training were combined. Relative to treatments combining agriculture and nutrition training, we find no significant impact of adding the gender sensitization on our measures of production diversity or diet quality. Interventions that combine agricultural training and nutrition BCC can improve both production diversity and diet quality, but they are not a panacea. They can, however, contribute towards better diets of rural households.

Tree diversity and social–ecological resilience of agroforestry after volcanic ash deposition in Indonesia

Smallholder farmers and their agroecosystems in active volcanic landscapes need to deal with and recover from eruptions. Resilience to extreme shocks may increase with system diversity, enhancing food and income security and ecosystem services provision; however, the longer term effects of volcanic ash are rarely assessed. To test the hypothesis that tree diversity contributes to the social–ecological resilience of coffee-based agroforestry, we quantified (1) the immediate effects of deposition of a 15-cm ash layer on tree survival, (2) the effect of volcanic ash on aboveground C stocks, tree diversity and wood density frequencies, (3) litter layer dynamics, and (4) farming system and income recovery 3 years after. Observations in four land-use systems before and after ash deposition (remnant forest, coffee-based complex and simple agroforestry, annual crops) were complemented by 46 farmer interviews on tree species’ survival, system, and financial recovery. Based on farmer interviews, low-wood-density trees were most affected by volcanic ash deposition. Ash deposition did not, after 3 years and across land-use systems, significantly change tree density, basal area, or C stocks. In contrast, species richness in coffee-based agroforestry increased significantly. Standing litter stocks in agroforestry decreased, but slower decomposition partially compensated for reduced litter input. Farmers stated that diversity and flexibility in coffee-based agroforestry support a system recovery that is faster than that for annual crops, suppressing income fluctuation. Farmer’s adaptive responses to enhance species diversity contributed to the resilience of farms, by retaining basic system structure and functions of agroforestry, and increasing product diversity and income.Graphical abstract

MARKETING STRATEGY ANALYSIS OF HYDROPONIC VEGETABLES OF KEBUN SEHATI

E-commerce has now also penetrated agricultural products, including hydroponic vegetables. This study aims to determine the marketing mix strategy of hydroponic vegetables at Kebun Sehati that uses e-commerce in its marketing. Kebun Sehati as a newcomer in hydroponic vegetable e-commerce in Yogyakarta of course has strengths and, weaknesses, and has opportunities and threats in running its business. The marketing mix which includes the product, price, place, and promotion is an important factor in this business. This research is descriptive. Respondents in this study consisted of the management of Kebun Sehati who was taken by the census method, and the determination of the consumer sample was carried out by the accidental sampling method. The total number of samples in the study was 85 respondents. The analytical method to determine the strategy of developing a hydroponic vegetable marketing mix in Kebun Sehati uses SWOT analysis. From the results of this study, it can be concluded that the right strategy for the development of hydroponic vegetable marketing at Kebun Sejati is an aggressive strategy which includes: (1) Increasing product variety and freshness, as well as providing guarantees by utilizing community assistance to expand the market; (2) Setting prices that are affordable and following quality to expand the market; (3) Using applications in the play store to serve consumers who are information technology literate; (4) Conduct promotions with complete attributes on various social media to increase consumer awareness of healthy food ingredients.
 
 Keywords: E-commerce, hydroponic vegetables, marketing mix, SWOT analysis

The Rise of Niche Consumption

Over the last 15 years, individual households have concentrated their spending on a few preferred products. However, this is not driven by “superstar” products capturing larger market shares. Instead, households increasingly purchase different products from each other. As a result, aggregate spending concentration has decreased. We develop a model of heterogeneous household demand and use it to conclude that increasing product variety drives these divergent trends. When more products are available, households select products better matched to their tastes. This delivers welfare gains from selection equal to about half a percent per year in the categories covered by our data. (JEL D12, D91, E21, L66)

A digital twin framework development for apparel manufacturing industry

The apparel manufacturing industry faces challenges due to fast-changing fashion trends, increased product variety, and personalized demands. Quick and optimized decision-making is crucial to overcome these barriers. This study aims to develop a methodology for applying Digital Twin (DT) technology in apparel manufacturing plants. We demonstrate the applicability and exhibit efficacy of the proposed method by presenting a case study on implementing the DT technology at a sewing assembly line. The proposed approach provides step-by-step guidance, collecting real-time data and conducting dynamic simulations to reduce bottleneck operations. DT technology assists in decision-making, enabling apparel manufacturing plants to respond quickly to changing demands and to reduce bottleneck operations. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed methodology by reducing downtime and improving production efficiency. The proposed method can improve production efficiency, reduce downtime, and respond quickly to changing demands in the apparel manufacturing industry.

Impacts of Product Variety and Supply Chain Networks on the Influx of Information Exchange in Industry Applications

Managing product variety is a challenging problem given the increasing complexity of supply chain networks. To overcome this complexity, managing integration in the supply chain is essential for companies to coordinate effectively. By managing the influx of information exchange between the various entities involved in the supply chain network, integration can be achieved successfully. In this paper, we are targeting research questions regarding the impact of the influx of information exchange on product variety and supply chain networks and the key factors influencing its exchange from different industries’ perspectives. To investigate our research questions and to conduct a case study across different industries and companies, this study aims to explore the impact of supply chain network complexity, which causes an influx of information exchange due to increasing product variety through qualitative research. In our results, by categorizing the raw interview data, we visualize correspondent opinions to facilitate deep analysis, including factors such as product variety, supply chain networks, and information exchange. The key factors that can influence the influx of information exchange from different industries’ and companies’ perspectives are presented in our results to provide valuable insights into the significant factors affecting the success of the smart business.