Splitting hybrid Make-To-Order and Make-To-Stock demand profiles

In this paper a demand time series is analysed to support Make-To-Stock (MTS) and Make-To-Order (MTO) production decisions. Using a purely MTS production strategy based on the given demand can lead to unnecessarily high inventory levels thus it is necessary to identify likely MTO episodes. This research proposes a novel outlier detection algorithm based on special density measures. We divide the time series' histogram into three clusters. One with frequent-low volume covers MTS items whilst a second accounts for high volumes which is dedicated to MTO items. The third cluster resides between the previous two with its elements being assigned to either the MTO or MTS class. The algorithm can be applied to a variety of time series such as stationary and non-stationary ones. We use empirical data from manufacturing to study the extent of inventory savings. The percentage of MTO items is reflected in the inventory savings which were shown to be an average of 18.1%.Comment: demand analysis; time series; outlier detection; production strategy; Make-To-Order(MTO); Make-To-Stock(MTS); 15 pages, 9 figure

Designing and managing multiple pipelines

There is now a growing recognition that supply chains should be designed from ‘the customer backwards’ rather than from ‘the company outwards’. If such a view is accepted then the implication is that since the organisation will likely be serving multiple markets or segments there will be the need to design and manage multiple ‘pipelines’ to serve those different customers. To assist decision makers in their choice of appropriate supply chain design a framework is proposed based upon multiple criteria. A case study is presented which highlights the benefits of selecting, engineering and operating multiple pipelines tailored to the needs of th

Towards establishing a research tradition in accounting : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business Studies in Accounting at Massey University

Perhaps the most significant event to have affected accounting since the beginning of the 20th century was the stock market crash of 1929. Although the event took place in the U.S.A. and so only directly affected the American accounting profession the subsequent influence of the American profession on the professions in many other countries (England, Australia, Canada etc.) can be traced to this event. The significance of this event lies in the fact that it witnessed the beginning of a new era in the accounting discipline in which the general attitude toward the profession was transformed from one of disinterest to one quite the opposite. Although the attitude fostered was one of extreme disdain, the immediate consequence of which was widespread criticism of accounting practitioners and their practices, accounting was to its advantage never again to rest on its laurels. Notwithstanding the fact that the profession may have received a disproportionate amount of the blame for the events which took place at that time, the heavy criticism which the profession endured pointed unmistakably to many previously ignored responsibilities and inadequacies. Perhaps the most significant inadequacy was the fact that the profession was at a loss to answer or explain to its critics the rationale for the practices they were then using. Unable to successfully answer its critics and prompted by the threat of legislative sanctions and controls, accountants for the first time began to see the need for a critical examination of the practices which made up their discipline. Apart from the work of one or two individuals (e.g. Sprague, Paton) this amounted to the first recognition by accountants en masse of the need for research in accounting. This need for introspection was recognised by most professional bodies by the mid 1940's. The method of research adopted to facilitate this critical investigation centred around the wholesale gathering of data on what accountants were doing. The expected objective of this research was that one would from the collected information be able to establish common ways of doing things which could then, by the authoritative decree of the profession, be established as rules. This method of research continued largely unchallenged up until the 1950's and even today continues to dominate the way accountants conduct research. Concern had been expressed that research was not "organised" but this was not concerned with an organised plan of matters to be investigated or ways in which answers were to be sought but rather the questions of whether research should be an individual or group effort and whether certain issues deserved discussion with others (arguments of grouping). Since the 1950's however, concern has been expressed among the academic branch of the profession that the sort of research referred to above was not only ad hoc in nature, but hardly even deserving of the term 'research'. Sir Alexander Fitzgerald was one to come to this conclusion after considerable personal endeavour along these lines. He commented "Research is not merely an exposition of practices currently followed." (Fitzgerald, 1957, 2) Supporting Fitzgerald and also attacking the notion of authoritative rule-making, Chambers commented "We [must] question the formulation of rules before adequate analysis of the matters in respect of which they are made" (Chambers, 1966, 353). In efforts to provide a solution to the now wide open question - What is the best research method for accounting purposes?, reference has subsequently been made to the physical sciences which are thought, by virtue of the fact that they have the only well-developed research tradition, to have the only research method of any consequence. Evidencing this belief, Chambers, referring to his own particular efforts to outline a methodology for accounting, commented "... there was no pattern to follow except that of the well-developed sciences" (Chambers, 1966, 4). Following further investigation of the physical sciences however, what is now apparent is that there appears to be more than one explanation for their success and so more than just one finite method of research than that implied by the phrase 'scientific method'. In this thesis the intention is to investigate these latest developments with a view to deciding whether any or all of the explanations referred to have some relevance for accounting

New Models for Expert System Design

This thesis presents new work on the analysis of human lung sound. Experimental studies investigated the relationship between the condition of the lungs and the power spectrum of lung sound detected at the chest wall. The conclusion drawn from two clinical studies was that the median frequency of the lung sound power spectrum increases with a decrease in airway calibre. The technique for the analysis of lung sound presented in this thesis is a non-invasive method which may be capable of assessing differences in airway calibre between different lobes of the lung. An expert system for the analysis of lung sound data and pulmonary function data was designed. The expert knowledge was expressed in a belief logic, a system of logic which is more expressive than first order logic. New automated theorem proving methods were developed for the belief logic. The new methods were implemented to form the 'inference engine' of the expert system. The new expert system compared favourably with systems which perform a similar task. The use of belief logic allows introspective reasoning to be carried out. Plausible reasoning, a type of introspective reasoning which allows conclusions to be drawn when the database is incomplete, was proposed and tested. The author concludes that the use of a belief logic in expert system design has significant advantages over conventional approaches. The experimental results of the lung sound research were incorporated into the expert system rule base: the medical and expert system research were complementary

Trial of George Buchanan before the Lisbon Inquisition

The process against George Buchanan, as it is set forth in the Inquisition Records, falls naturally into four chapters as follows:- (1) The preliminary proceedings which led to the order for his arrest. These proceedings began on 17 October 1549 and ended on 1 August 1550. (2) The arrest of Buchanan and Diogo de Teive and the sequestration of their effects - events that took place at Coimbra on 10 and 11 August 1550. (3) The trial proper from the delivery of Buchanan to the gaoler of the Lisbon Inquisition on 15 August 1550 to the last examination of Buchanan on 15 Lay 1551. (4) The sentence passed on Buchanan, his abjuration and subsequent penal detention till his final release on 29 February 1552 - the date of the last entry in these Records. I shall detail the course of events under these four heads, referring where necessary to the fortunes of Diogo de Teive and soar da Costa, Buchanan's partners in misfortune

That it is Possible to Correlate the Clinical Types of Lobar Pneumonia with the Serological Types of the Pneumococcus

In December 1929 it was noted that in addition to the seasonal variation of case incidence of Lobar Pneumonia, there was also definite vvariation in the clinical types and an investigation was then begun in an attempt to determine those variations. This was carried on until February 1930, when it was decided that the material available was suitable for a much more comprehensive investigation and it was thought that an attempt to classify the suspected clinical types of Lobar Pneumonia would be of considerable interest. About this time Dr. Robert Cruikshank of the Glasgow Roya; Infirmary was investigation the serological types of the Pneumococcus in Pneumonia and as a result of collaboration with him the scope of the work was greatly extended by having tje infecting organism typed in each case. The manner of presentation of the collected material is somewhat unorthodox but an attempt has been made to present the salient features of lobar pneumonia in a logical manner, endeavouring at the same time to incorporate clinical and epidemiological material. The inquiry was begun on the 17th December, 1929, and is still proceeding. The present paper deals with 486 cases of definite lobar pneumonia admitted to Wards 9 and 10 East, Belvidere Fever Hospital, Glasgow, in the period between the above date and 9th September, 1931. Of this number there were 317 cases who had attained the age of 15 years and were thus classed as adults and deemed capable of giving an intelligent history. Each of those 317 cases had the causal organism determined by Dr. R. Cruikshank, Glasgow Royal Infirmary. 171 cases of this latter group were examined in detail each day as described in the chapter upon Uethods of Investigation. Of the men who were examined during the period following dismissal, the first hundred who had returned during the first year following dismissal were utilised for the investigation with regard to the carrier problem

Selecting suppliers for socially sustainable supply chain management: Post-exchange supplier development activities as pre-selection requirements

The aim of this paper is to provide an understanding of how the supplier selection process used by buying organisations to establish socially sustainable supply chains has evolved from the traditional purchasing function. Through the application of a socially responsible purchasing (SRP) approach, organisations are attempting to address the challenges of selecting appropriate suppliers to engage with. To achieve SRP, behavioural agency attributes were found to complement traditional agency forms of governance from the start of the process. Through the use of an exploratory case study approach, three focal (purchasing) firms pursuing a strong sustainability agenda, and two supply chain intermediary organisations were investigated. The results show that supplier development activities previously positioned post-selection, are now performed at the pre-selection stage, moving them to the beginning of the process. Suppliers must now demonstrate commitment to sustainability through implementing improvements highlighted in corrective action reports at the pre-selection point before any financial transactions occur. The movement of post-selection supplier development activities to the pre- selection stage, to align sustainability goals and reduce risk, is a significant finding of this paper that purchasing personnel and suppliers should consider in the establishment of a socially sustainable supply chain

Choral odes of Euripides: interpretative problems and mythical paradigms

There is still a tendency to defend Euripides against a charge of inserting entirely irrelevant choruses into his tragedies, but not even the statements of Aristotle (Poetics 1456a25ff.) can be used to convict him of such an act. Nevertheless, certain odes do present problems of interpretation, and especially those that recount mythical tales. Four tragedies containing such odes are considered. The second stasimon of the Helen presents the myth of Demeter and Persephone, which, through the use of related imagery, is seen to be the paradigm for Menelaus' rescue of Helen from Egypt and foretells the couple's successful escape. The extreme textual difficulties of the final stanza of the ode, however, means that it is unlikely that any certain conclusion on this ode will ever be achieved. In the IT Orestes' capture of the effigy of Artemis and his rescue of Iphigenia result in both an assertion of the superiority of Apollo's oracular commands and the procurement of Orestes' kingship in Argos. These two elements are reflected in the third stasimon, in which the tale of Apollo securing his position at Delphi, as Orestes did at Argos, also conveys the superiority of his status. At first the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, described in the third stasimon of the IA, appears to be the very paradigm that Iphigenia will not be able to follow, but as the play proceeds it becomes clear that the sacrifice she undergoes is a form of wedding, and the contrasts between a wedding and the sacrifice lend to the tragedy of her situation. Finally, in the Electra, the chorus describe various heroes of legend, whom Electra and Orestes seem to take as their role models in the murders of Aegisthus and Clytemnestra. Neither of the characters, however, has the appropriate heroic qualities, and, although they commit the murders, they are unable to fulfil the roles of their heroic counterparts. Therefore the paradigm fails and thereby serves to comment upon the tragic nature of the murders. In all the plays Euripides uses mythical paradigms, in a more developed form than in the Pindaric odes, to reflect the action on stage such that the action is a repeat of the myth. In this way the myth becomes "historical" and, as in Thucydides' concept of history, a paradigm for common human experience