Author Archives: aviyer2010

Unknown's avatar

About aviyer2010

Professor

Retail Analytics to mitigate fashion risk

Posted on September 21, 2013 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal, on September 8, 2013, titled “Fashion Industry Meets Big Data” (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323595004579062793245498838.html?mod=itp&cb=logged0.7893976105842739) describes the increasing use of analytics in the fashion industry to forecast trends. These forecasts provide estimates of demand by color, fabric … Continue reading →

Posted in Operations Management, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 20 Comments

Can Instacart’s no inventory solution to grocery delivery work ?

Posted on September 21, 2013 by aviyer2010

An article in AllThingsD (http://allthingsd.com/20130917/with-webvans-implosion-as-cautionary-tale-instacart-slowly-begins-to-expand-starting-with-chicago/) describes a grocery delivery in San Francisco and Chicago offered by Instacart (https://www.instacart.com/faq), with no warehouses but with delivery from existing grocery retail stores. The company charges $3.99 for orders exceeding $35 with delivery in … Continue reading →

Posted in mgmt5612018, Operations Management, Service Operations, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 56 Comments

Resurgence of US textile manufacturing – an automation driven solution

Posted on September 21, 2013 by aviyer2010

An article in the New York Times on September 19, 2013 (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/20/business/us-textile-factories-return.html?_r=0) describes a textile plant, Parkdale Mills, that makes 2.5 millions pounds of yarn using 140 workers now, compared to 2000 workers in 1980. The new plant uses automation, … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Contexts, Operations Management, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Will modular smartphones help reduce e-waste ?

Posted on September 21, 2013 by aviyer2010

An article in CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/19/tech/innovation/phonebloks-the-smartphone-for-life/index.html?hpt=hp_bn5) describes a proposal by the company Phonebloks (www.phonebloks.com) to create smartphones with a modular design that enables individual phone owners to customize the phone. With individual units such as the camera, battery, storage etc that … Continue reading →

Posted in Operations Management, Supply Chain Issues, Sustainability | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Is P&G’s plan to cut package contents to increase prices a winner ?

Posted on September 16, 2013 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (September 8, 2013) describes a plan by Proctor and Gamble (P&G) to reduce 8 diapers from a box of 140 while maintaining the price, thus raising prices by 6%. This policy follows the … Continue reading →

Posted in Operations Management, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Lulemon’s CEO’s blame on supply chain issues for poor performance a stretch ?

Posted on September 16, 2013 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (September 12, 2013) describes a conference call in which Lululemon’s CEO blamed supply problems associated with Luon, a stretch fabric that was the cause of see through black yoga pants that had to … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Contexts, Operations Management, Service Operations, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Sarin antidote stockpiles, supply problems and extension of expired drugs

Posted on September 16, 2013 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (September 13, 2013) describes supply problems for antidotes for Sarin due to manufacturing issues, that result in less than the stated dosage, in prefilled syringes made by Pfizer. The impact is possible erroneous … Continue reading →

Posted in Operations Management, Service Operations, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Will Apple’s two different market segment phone offerings help or hurt?

Posted on September 16, 2013 by aviyer2010

An article in the New York Times (September 11,2013) describes possible issues caused by Apple’s decision to offer the iPhone in a 5S and a 5C configuration, priced at $550 and $400. The cheaper model will have a plastic body … Continue reading →

Posted in Service Operations, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Does fast fashion enhance poor garment manufacturer working conditions in Bangladesh ?

Posted on September 16, 2013 by aviyer2010

An article in the New Yorker by James Surowicki (May 20,2013) quotes MIT political scientist Richard Locke as suggesting that fast fashion, with short cycle times, high variety and demands for quick turnaround, force garment manufacturers to demand poor working … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Contexts, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Will a flat-fee model by publishers for ebook access work ?

Posted on September 3, 2013 by aviyer2010

An article in the Wall Street Journal (September 3, 2013) describes a proposal by two companies, eReatah and Oyster, to provide a flat-fee access to ebooks. eReatah plans to offer 80,000 titles and offers a $16.99/month for two books or … Continue reading →

Posted in Collaboration, Operations Management, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment