International Manufacturing Research Articles

The morbidity rate of gallstone disease in the patients of senile age

Objective — to determine the morbidity rate of biliary tract pathology in senile patients for prognosis of their possible medical needs.Materials and methods. During the first half of 2019, all patients aged 75 years or older, who were hospitalized for planned treatment in the therapeutic, cardiological or neurologic departments of multidisciplinary hospital, were offered to perform the abdominal ultrasound examination. The examination was performed on a mid‑range scanner from one of the international branded manufacturers after standard patients’ preparation. Totally 236 patients aged 76 — 93 years were examined, the mean age of the examined patients was 80.28 ± 0.23 years. Statistical analysis was performed using descriptive statistics using the MedStat computer program.Results. Among the examined patients, 97 were men (41.1 %), the mean age of 80.05 ± 0.35 years, and 139 (58.9 %) women with the mean age 80.45 ± 0.31 years. The statistical difference between the mean age of the surveyed men and women was not significant (p = 0.33). The prevalence of gallstone disease among senile patients was significant. In particular, in 16 patients one gallbladder stone with sizes from 4 to 32 mm was detected, in 29 patients — two or more stones with sizes from 3 to 24 mm. In 6 patients, it was ascertained that the gallbladder was completely filled with concrements with sonographic signs of a dysfunctional bladder. The proportion of patients with gallbladder stones accounted for 21.6 % of the total number of patients in the group. Form patients with the diagnosed gallstone disease, women prevailed — (30 (58.8 %)), but the incidence of gallstone disease exposure in the subgroups of men and women was the same (21.6 %). Among the examined patients, cholecystectomy was performed in 55 (23.3 %). The proportion of women with the removed gallbladder significantly exceeded that of men (74.5 %, or 29.5 % of all women examined).Conclusions. The proportion of senile patients with gallstones disease was 21.6 %, without gender differences in the gallstone disease incidence; 23.3 % of patients were undergone cholecystectomy during the lifetime. The cholecystectomy rate was twofold higher in the subgroup of women in comparison with men (29.5 % vs. 14.4 %, respectively). Almost every second elderly patient needs monitoring for existing or already operated gallstones with the need for periodic sonographic evaluation of the biliary system.

The Surveillance Transceiver Module Design for Improvement of Irradiance Coverage and Image Grayscale Quality

Night image quality is gradually emphasized in surveillance industry in past years, and the requirement for the night image definition standards is enhanced. A traditional flashlight-like circularly symmetric light is gradually not suitable for the industry, and the optical design equipped secondary optical elements also encounters the difficulty in space restriction. Package lenses are used for the optical design in this study, mainly replacing the functions of secondary optics and solve the restriction of inadequate internal space of a camera. Meanwhile, the light design of a light-emitting module is proceeded to match the characteristic of a camera image capturing 4:3 or 16:9. Radiant coverage and irradiance efficiency are two parameters to judge the light quality. A new design, under the irradiance efficiency 100%, could enhance the original radiant coverage from 0.366 to 0.825, increasing up to 2.25 times. Besides, the image irradiance uniformity also increases from 0.47 to 0.714, with the increase up to 1.52 times. The package lens design is gradually accepted by international surveillance manufacturers.

FACTORS FOR IMPROVING AND MODERATING A SUCCESSFUL SUPPLY CHAIN

The purpose of this study is to explore whether the ability to adjust and redistribute resources has a positive effect on improving a supply chain’s competitive capabilities. In addition, we also verify whether information transparency is an antecedent to improving the ability to adjust and redistribute resources. Finally, this study explores the moderating effects of investment cost controls and absolute dominance on the relationship between information transparency and the ability to adjust and redistribute resources. A partial least squares (PLS) analysis was the main method used in this study. The empirical data were obtained from the International Manufacturing Strategy Survey (IMSS). Regarding the research results, in addition to the relationships among information transparency, resource adjustment and redistribution ability, and supply chain competitive capabilities, our research results demonstrated that overemphasizing investment cost controls and absolute dominance will moderate the relationship between information transparency and resource adjustment and redistribution ability and further lead to weak competitive capabilities.

Evolution stages of aircraft manufacturing firms

AbstractAeronautics is one of the highest value‐adding industrial sectors in an economy, and many regions have sought to develop aeronautics industries for economic diversification. Aircraft production, however, is complex and capital‐intensive, and efforts to establish aircraft manufacturing firms have led to mixed results. Here, we present a study of development of six international aeronautical manufacturing firms, across four continents, using a mixed‐method approach. Using empirical quantitative data and results from 103 semistructured interviews with senior executives and policy makers, we identify a set of discrete stages: inception, base production, competitive growth, inventive development, and maturity that characterize the evolution pathways of aeronautics firms. We find that firms do not necessarily follow a linear development path, and they can jump and skip stages or may regress back to earlier stages under financial or other pressures. We find that aeronautics firms are more likely to reach a self‐sustaining maturity stage once they establish independent contracts with multiple partners and are able to develop their own technologies. The results indicate that firms should establish strategies to acquire independent contracts through competitive bidding and should plan for achieving innovation capabilities early on as this is crucial for their long‐term viability.

Drainage and sewage system performance – Consequences of reductions in toilet flush volume

This study aims to evaluate impacts of reducing toilet flush volume from 6.8 to 4.8 Lpf with laboratory and field studies. In laboratory, 260 tests were performed including water consumption, waste removal and solid transport tests, in 20 different toilets produced by national and international manufacturers. These tests demonstrated that a simple reduction in flush tank water level was not a viable solution for reducing flush volume, due to flush energy loss. Toilets are designed to work with certain water volume, and reducing this volume without studying the consequences that this could cause, can make with the toilet fail. Toilets approved according the standards ABNT NBR15097, ABNT NBR15491 and ASMEA112.19.2 were installed in 10 houses. The monitoring of water consumption and sewage system videos were conducted during eight months. When 6.8-Lpf toilets were installed, the average toilet water consumption was 16.6L/inhabitant/day. For 4.8-Lpf toilets, this value increased to 17.6. The number of flushes/person/day increased after toilets replacement, indicating that users applied successive flushes. Videos showed blockages in sewage system horizontal pipes. Findings from this study suggest that low-flush toilets do not decrease total water use, and may result in increased water use. In addition, they can cause clogging and solid deposit on sewage system. Practical application: Many management failures have affected the world water availability. Water demand has increased with population growth, and unless the equilibrium between water demand and supply is restored, the world will face increasing water shortage. However, it is essential to study the way of reducing water consumption. Without an effective analysis, instead of bringing benefits to population, water consumption reduction can lead to clogging and negative consequences on sewage system performance, causing disorder to them. It is recommended that manufacturers did not reduce the toilet water consumption without a study on the impact caused on the sewage systems, as well as designers should be careful when specifying sanitary appliances.

Proposed 2MW Wind Turbine for Use in the Governorate of Dhofar at the Sultanate of Oman

In this work, we propose a preliminary design of a horizontal-axis wind turbine (HAWT) as a candidate for the Dhofar Wind Farm project, in the southern Omani Governorate “Dhofar”, at the southwest part of the Sultanate of Oman. This wind farm (under construction) is considered to be the first commercial, utility-scale (50MW) wind farm in the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) area. The proposed wind turbine has an expected electricity generation of 2MW. We studied the wind atlas of Oman and from which we determined the maximum possible mean wind speed in the entire Sultanate and built our design based on that reference value, which is 6m/s (21.6km/h). After this, we applied a set of modeling equations that estimate the power output from the wind turbine rotor and matched the target electric power to the design variables using a MATLAB computer code. We reached a suitable design and we present here the distribution of the blade angle (twist angle), and the power per unit span along the rotor blade. The rotor design has 3 blades with a diameter of 70m and a rotational speed of 24rpm. This rotor gives 2.37MW of output power, which exceeds the target 2MW output, allowing for about 15% of power losses in the gearbox and generator. We utilized some commercial designs of wind turbines from different international manufacturers as references for typical limits or recommended values of some design parameters.

Quality analysis of galvanized pipes applied to natural gas installations in civil construction

Some natural gas distributors for residential and commercial buildings in Brazil use galvanized steel tubes and fittings manufactured by the hot-dip zinc process that are supported by the specifications contained in the Brazilian Standards. Zinc coating is one of the most widely used methods to provide protection against corrosion. It is therefore essential that national and international tube manufacturers and installation and maintenance companies in civil construction also meet the defined national and international standards, especially when the tubes and fittings are used for natural gas in residential buildings. This two-way communication could eliminate most issues that delay or prevent superior galvanizing quality. Low standards lead to the deterioration of the zinc coating and the metal base of the pipes, which may lead to leaks, such as fluids, flammable gases, and other toxic products, and potentially jeopardise residential and commercial buildings. Here the importance of ensuring the quality of zinc-coated pipes is demonstrated through a series of analyses on natural gas pipe corrosion used in civil construction in Brazil. Based on Brazilian standards, the zinc mass determination per square meter, uniformity tests (Preece test) and metallographic evaluation of the deposited zinc layer were carried out on samples of galvanized tubes for natural gas. An experiment was also developed to reproduce the same conditions of subfloors (mortar beds) where there is penetration of water and humidity reaching the galvanized pipes. Metallographic analysis showed that samples of galvanized tubes by the hot-dip zinc galvanizing can have discontinuities and defects in zinc layer. Such defects associated with penetration and/or permeation of the water and humidity in the subfloor favor the corrosive process and consequently can cause gas leaks and probable accidents in residential buildings. Keywords: Corrosion, galvanized steel, zinc coating, quality, natural gas pipes, civil construction.

Reclaiming the Discarded: Life and Labor on Rio's Garbage Dump by Kathleen M. Millar

Reviewed by: Reclaiming the Discarded: Life and Labor on Rio's Garbage Dump by Kathleen M. Millar Luis M. Sierra Millar, Kathleen M. Reclaiming the Discarded: Life and Labor on Rio's Garbage Dump. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2018. Garbage pickers, pepenadores, and catadores are the labels by which the subjects of anthropologist Kathleen M. Millar's Reclaiming the Discarded: Life and Labor on Rio's Garbage Dump are known in Latin America. Uniquely, Millar does not focus on these workers as surplus to neoliberal capitalist labor markets or as marginal, precarious, or the detritus of society. Millar's ethnography instead offers a different perspective. What happens when one analyzes these lives not from the premise of lack—of skills, jobs, wealth, or social capital—but instead from their own perspective? Millar uses making a living as the conceptual framework in two interrelated ways: examining the formation of work culture and explicating the economic activities Rio de Janiero's catadores engaged in as recyclers. Her research was conducted at Jardim Gramacho, which was one of Rio's largest landfills, in the decade before it closed in 2012. Reclaiming the Discarded is part of a relatively recent body of literature that asks scholars to reassess their assumptions and to interrogate taken-for-granted categories of analysis. Millar's analysis highlights how scholars have assumed that the economy is a real object rather than a fluid social construction. She uses the catadores' picking of plastics to show how garbage becomes a valuable good through the workers' labor. It is weighed, packaged, and reprocessed into nylon rope that is sold to international clients and manufacturers. Reclaiming the Discarded demonstrates how the catadores' economic activities defy categorization as solely informal, reframing economic activity as fluid and fungible. She illustrates that late capitalism cannot have anticipated how the informal economy enables workers to create a different kind of culture and a unique way of making a living. "Form of living" is a useful a heuristic here, as a new way of assessing economic activity and as a category for understanding the lives of the catadores. Among the many strengths of Reclaiming the Discarded is Millar's analysis of worker culture. The book is thought provoking and insightful, but the explication of worker culture outshines even these qualities. As a participant-observer, Millar vividly details the lives of her coworkers. She highlights many reasons why people began to work in the landfill. She shows the reader that conceptions of a lumpenproletariat, a reserve labor pool, or even the detritus [End Page 436] of society are inaccurate and miss the important ways that catadores made a living in terms of work and life outside work. One would have liked to have seen more about the administration of the Jardim Gramacho and an explanation of the interactions between the drug gangs, the Gramacho administration, the scrap dealers, government authorities, and the catadores. While Millar does show the connections between these actors, one senses that the relationships were far more interwoven than she suggests. While these are minor points, they did detract somewhat from this reader's fuller understanding of the work. Millar's work potentially opens another avenue for theorizing how late capitalism is changing what it means to be a worker and the meaning of work as it relates to neoliberal capitalism. Put more simply, Millar gives scholars a meaningful framework for theorizing what the work and the workers of the future might look like. Millar deploys her theoretical frameworks brilliantly and concisely and grounds them in real-world examples. Readers from many disciplines could benefit from the insightful analysis Millar provides. Her insistence on reframing and replacing the value judgments of the middle classes is an important contribution of the work: it illuminates how academics can fail to interrogate their own biases to the detriment of knowledge production and social reform. In these ways, Reclaiming the Discarded might help workers reclaim the dignity of working-class culture and serve as the basis for activism in the future. Luis M. Sierra Thomas More University Copyright © 2019 Association of Global South Studies, Inc.

Development and Application of Sour Service Pipeline Steel with Low Manganese Content

Comprehensive analysis on the requirement and evaluation result of pipeline steel for sour service is carried out in this paper. So as to provide technical support for the development of the high toughness sour service pipeline steel with low manganese content.The evaluation results shows that the high toughness sour service pipeline steel with low manganese content has excellent comprehensive properties, and the excellent comprehensive mechanical properties and corrosion resistance properties of trial products are achieved through reasonable composition and micro-structure design. The HIC and SSC test result complies with pipeline steel requirement for sour service drafted by major international manufacturers. In order to guarantee the application prospect of the trial products, the weldability of the sour service pipeline steel is analyzed finally, and the test result shows that HAZ softening can be improved when the cooling rate was higher than 20 °C /s.

Aerospace industry in México and biofuels: a sustainability approach

The development of the aerospace industry in Mexico shows potential growth measured through the levels of state investment and the arrival of several international manufacturers to set up manufacturing production because of advantages offered by the country’s proximity to North America and its international trade agreements with the European Union and some Asian countries, which are considered to be the biggest markets in this sector. Very high demand is expected for jet fuels in the coming decades due to intense global economic activity. Under this context, the Mexican government has developed infrastructure and several programs aimed at developing sustainable long-term biofuels for the industry. The objective of this research is to provide a literature review of the aerospace industry and the main biofuel crops currently deployed for this industry (mainly transportation). The main results show a promising and innovative industry fostered by public and private investments motivated by Mexico’s recent regulatory changes in the energy sector. The main raw material crops for the production of biofuel in Mexico are Jatropha, sunflower, canola, and palm oils, all of which present significant advantages with production in Mexican soils. Important challenges remain, however, for continued development of capabilities in R&D, manufacturing production, supply chain optimization, and market development for biofuels.

Addressing mass-customization trade-offs in bottom of the pyramid markets

PurposeManufacturers find bottom of the pyramid (BOP) markets challenging to serve due to low margins and highly localized needs. As such, residents in BOP markets often go without products commonly available in developed countries. Going without medical equipment may negatively affect healthcare services. This study develops a supply chain design strategy that supports the production of medical equipment by preserving variety flexibility at low volumes that stands to create new market opportunities for manufacturers and improve healthcare for residents in BOP markets.Design/methodology/approachThe authors introduce a mass-customization model called options-based planning (OBP) which offers a framework to both leverage the efficiencies of high volume production models and provide products that are customized to local market needs. An empirical simulation, grounded in data collected from a large international manufacturer of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment, illustrates how an OBP production strategy will likely perform under BOP conditions and facilitate the delivery of healthcare equipment to BOP markets.FindingsOBP provides a means for manufacturers to provide the customization necessary to serve fragmented BOP markets, while enabling higher production volume to make serving these markets more feasible. The empirical simulation reveals the relative benefits of OBP under conditions of forecast uncertainty, product complexity (number of design parameters) and different levels of responsiveness.Social implicationsIncreased access to modern medical equipment should improve healthcare outcomes for consumers in BOP markets.Originality/valueThe MRI context in BOP markets serves to illustrate the value of the OBP model for manufacturers.

Disseminative capabilities and manufacturing plant roles in the knowledge network of MNCs

Manufacturing plants operating within the international manufacturing network (IMN) of a multinational company (MNC) frequently participate in the intra-company creation and distribution of knowledge, thereby contributing to the competitive advantage of the whole company and at the same time strengthening their own position within the MNC. International business and operations management literature suggests that plants taking up a knowledge-sending role within their IMN have a stronger position within the company. Nevertheless, literature offers little guidance on how to become a knowledge disseminator within the IMN.This article proposes to fill an important gap in the literature related to the concept of disseminative capacity, aiming (1) to explore how the knowledge-sending and knowledge-receiving roles of manufacturing plants can be assessed in an IMN context, and (2) to identify the capabilities needed for a plant to become a knowledge-sending unit within the IMN. To reach this objective, thirteen case studies were analyzed involving plants in four different countries.Results from the case studies show that (1) manufacturing plants can be positioned along a continuum from predominantly knowledge-receiving to predominantly knowledge-sending units, with multiple intermediary positions coexisting; (2) several plants have a strategic intent to change their positions, moving mainly along this continuum towards a higher intensity of knowledge-sending roles; (3) three elements are identified as necessary preconditions to develop disseminative capabilities, namely a knowledge-sharing-oriented organizational culture, incentive systems and organizational structures that reward knowledge sharing, and the intensity of inter-plant human interactions.

Running faster and jumping higher? Survival and growth in international manufacturing new ventures

Going international early is increasingly the choice of new ventures in manufacturing industries. However, does earliness provide a positive outcome for internationalisation? To answer this, we have longitudinally analysed 3181 manufacturing new ventures established between 2002 and 2012. Using Cox regressions, we found that the 124 late internationals had the lowest risk of failure, while the 229 early internationals could not compensate for their mortality risk with significantly higher levels of growth in the post-internationalisation period. We discuss why an early internationalisation is more perilous than beneficial and provide some suggestions for the internationalisation of new ventures in these industries.

Digitalisation of the UK Manufacturing Economy: Structural Dependencies and Implications for Intervention Strategies

This paper empirically investigates the concept of industrial digitalisation by identifying major structural dependencies between the UK digital and manufacturing economy. Current policy analyses exploring the possible benefits for the digitalisation of UK manufacturing economy largely rely on expert judgment, and describe individual sectors without considering structural dependencies. The proposed analysis introduces a whole-system perspective on industrial digitalisation, deriving metrics of economic connectedness between relevant sectors by Input-Output Analysis using public-domain economic data. Key sectors contributing to the digitalisation of UK manufacturing are identified, and the structural paths of influence across these sectors are revealed analytically. The findings of this research provide industry and policy makers with a map of major structural dependencies across domestic and international manufacturing networks. Specifically, the analysis suggests that sectors such as aerospace provide multiplier effects to the digitalisation of other sectors, whilst pharmaceuticals manufacturing require more targeted investments to drive digital transformation.

Linking product complexity, disruption and performance: the moderating role of supply chain resilience

ABSTRACTIn the face of increasing vulnerability and complexity of the business environment, companies have started embedding the concept of resilience in their supply chains in order to handle disruptions. This paper investigates the relationship between product complexity, disruption and performance using the role of resilience capabilities as moderating variables in the relationships mentioned above. The relationships have been tested using data from the sixth editions of the International Manufacturing Strategy Survey (IMSS). Data highlights how product complexity increases the probability of disruption occurrence, which in turn affects plant performance, while resilience allows supply chains to reduce the harmful effects of a disruption.

Investigating the influence of network-manufacturing capabilities to the phenomenon of reshoring: An insight from three case studies

After a steady growth in global offshoring activities, it appears now a marked flow in the opposite direction with both a partial and full reversal of offshoring decisions. Research on reshoring put less stresses on the operation of dispersed facilities of an intra-firm network manufacturing. The purpose of this paper is to address the relevance of strategic capabilities for the operation of international manufacturing to the reshoring decision. The paper reports on retrospective studies of three European based companies, which have had recent reshoring experience. We adopt qualitative research using a case-based methodology that includes multiple in-depth interviews based on three companies. The study demonstrates that managerial challenges in the operation of dispersed facilities have played an important role in the reshoring decision. The findings allow understanding how the capability dimensions, ‘thriftiness’ and ‘learning’ being the most important, connect with the phenomenon of reshoring.

Impact of supply chain risk on agility performance: Mediating role of supply chain integration

Supply chain literature highlights the importance of agility performance for firms facing supply chain risk. However, the literature explaining the ways in which companies facing supply chain risk organize the key elements of their supply chain to enhance agility performance provides space for more research. We use dynamic capabilities view to explain why supply chain risk may motivate companies to integrate their supply chain to enhance agility performance. Structural equation modeling is used to test the hypotheses using data of 770 manufacturing companies obtained from the sixth version of International Manufacturing Strategy Survey. Empirical examination provides evidence that (a) a firm's supply chain risk has positive association with supplier and customer integration, (b) supplier, internal, and customer integration have positive impact on agility performance, though the impact of internal integration is weak, (c) supplier and customer integration mediate the relationship between a firm's supply chain risk and agility performance, and (d) supplier and customer integration mediate the relationship between internal integration and agility performance. The findings of this paper suggest that companies cope with supply chain risk by using integrative practices with suppliers and customers that enhance agility performance. Internal integration is the foundation for building up supplier and customer integration for agility performance. Future research may examine these relationships over time and in different industries and contexts.

A study of linear PMSM driven ropeless elevators

In recent years, buildings have become taller and wider. The conventional approach of one roped elevator car per hoistway seems increasingly impractical. The idea of ropeless elevators using linear motors was proposed more than 30 years ago, but it was merely treated as wishful thinking by the industry at that time due to lots of safety concerns. And discussion by the industry has mainly been qualitative in nature. In recent years, an international manufacturer announced the development of a prototype and the world's first installation may probably be open to public before the end of 2018. So far, academic studies have mainly focused on the study of linear motors with generic applications, while this paper focuses on the performance of the motor drive from an elevator's point of view. In this paper, we investigate the mechanism of the drive, and the linear permanent magnet synchronous motor and, by discretizing the equations of the full mathematical model, we fine tune the parameters and design suitable controllers. We evaluate its performance by computer simulation, based on the necessary kinematics of a real elevator, so as to arrive at some design guidelines. Finally, the most critical safety concern, i.e. free fall during a total power failure, is quantitatively studied by short circuiting all motor windings. Methods to achieve a reasonably constant and low descending speed, have been studied with parameters estimated analytically, and are verified by simulation. For the sake of illustrating the concept as an initial trial, simplified circuit models, controllers and sensors are all assumed as being ideal. It is hoped that this paper will stimulate the research interest of both the academic world and the industry, while the inclusion of more losses, armature reactions, and imperfections, etc., could be tackled in a further study. Practical application: The application of one roped elevator car in taller and wider buildings seems increasingly impractical. This paper considers the analysis of the application of ropeless elevators using linear motors focusing on the performance of the motor drive from an elevator's point of view. A basic mathematical framework is developed to study and design the controllers and drive of a multi-car elevator system by using linear permanent magnet synchronous motors with emphasis on the elevator performance as a whole system. The paper is aimed at stimulating research interest to drive the appropriate analysis and application of linear permanent magnet synchronous motor driven ropeless elevators.

PHP25 - The Development of Biosimilar in Taiwan

Given financial constrain of health expenditure, the rising demand of biosimilar is driving pharmaceutical market globally. Because of the intricacy of biosimilar, various regulations, policies and pricing scheme are conducted between countries. The aim of this study was to review the development of biosimilar worldwide, and research on physicians’ perception of biosimilar in Taiwan. Secondary research through February 2018 was performed for data collection on regulations, policies and pricing scheme from various countries. Besides, an in-depth face-to-face physician interview was applied for perception survey. Total of 30 physicians experienced in practicing biologics from North (50%), Central (30%) and South (20%) of Taiwan were investigated. Descriptive analysis was conducted to address the differences of policies and physicians’ perception about biosimilar. There was no significant discrepancy about regulatory approval requirements between countries, but substitution, interchangeability and pharmacovigilance. Most European countries already set up rules of substitutions and interchangeability of biosimilar at physician’s discretion. Among studied countries, biosimilar was priced at 70% ~ 90% of the originator. In Taiwan, relevant regulations were developed based on EMA guideline. There were only three products got regulatory and reimbursement approval by 2017. Based on the interview, around 80% of physicians had positive attitude in international pharmaceutical companies and 60% in international generic manufactures regarding the confidence of using biosimilar. The most important factor of impact level on prescribing biosimilar is clinical trial outcomes (93%) and followed by biosimilar developer company image (80%). Biosimilar is one of alternatives to relieve health burden; most countries have put in place specific policies for promoting access to biosimilar. Enhancing awareness of biosimilar is needed; more information of efficacy and safety is must to build up physicians trust on biosimilar. Therefore, well-established policies for managing risks and benefits of biosimilar are expected in the future in Taiwan.

Thematic Analysis to Assess Indian Consumers Purchase Intention for Organic Apparel

Consumer behavior is dynamic, and there is a beauty in trying to understand consumer’s intention for a product category like organic apparel, especially when it is a unique phenomenon that is scantly explored in an emerging economy like India. This paper is an attempt at understanding the factors that influence Indian consumer’s intention to purchase organic apparel. A purposive sampling procedure was adopted in selecting participants. A focus group discussion was conducted to capture data for the thematic analysis. Theoretical thematic analysis was conducted by relying on the theory of planned behavior model. Inductive thematic analysis gave way for other dimensions like product knowledge and involvement, environmental knowledge, and skepticism that evolved out of the themes. Product knowledge and involvement, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and attitude had an influence on the intention. Environmental knowledge and skepticism indicated a chance to negate the relationship. The textile manufacturers, who are innovating with sustainable fabrics, can look at the dimensions that consumers seek for while making a choice of organic apparel. Domestic and international organic apparel manufacturers can capitalize on the behavioral dimensions of the factors that influence consumer’s intention for organic apparel, thereby facilitating identifying the prospect.