Product obsolescence and its relationship with product lifetime: An empirical case study of consumer appliances in Japan

2021 ◽  
Vol 174 ◽  
pp. 105798
Author(s):  
Haruhisa Yamamoto ◽  
Shinsuke Murakami
Keyword(s):  
Author(s):  
Michael D. Johnson ◽  
Amlan Nanda

In the modern competitive environment, firms have to offer a variety of products to their customers in a cost effective manner. One way of achieving this goal is through the use of product platforms and product families. The choice of product materials and manufacturing processes has a significant effect on the ability to derive variants from these product platforms and families. Unfortunately, most economic analyses of materials selection rarely include the effect on the product family, and if they do they are viewed as static and passive investments. In reality, the decision to produce an additional variant is a “right, but not an obligation” — it can be viewed as a real option. A methodology to value the option of producing a follow-on variant product for an a posteriori (or bottom up) product family is proposed. This method uses inputs that are readily available for most product development teams. An automotive instrument panel beam case study is used to illustrate the method. Results from the case study show that while the follow-on variant option did not affect the relative economic preference of the materials, the value of the options associated follow-on variants accounted for a significant portion of total development project value. Valuations performed using both the binomial and Black-Scholes methods did not show significant differences between the methods. Material and manufacturing process characteristics are shown to have an effect on follow-on variant option value. The product lifetime and annual production volume of the follow-on variant are shown to have significant effects on option value. Initial variant product lifetime and underlying asset risk are shown to have less of an effect on option value.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1434
Author(s):  
Shouheng Sun

The collaborative economy is considered to have great potential in promoting the circular economy. However, there is little empirical research in this field. Taking the Beijing free-floating bike sharing (FFBS) program as an example, this study develops a system dynamics (SD) model based on the product lifetime extension business model (PLEBM) framework, and the business practices of FFBS. Combined with the dynamic evolution process of the FFBS market, the impact of FFBS on bicycle lifetime and the utilization efficiency of the urban bicycle system is explored. The results show that FFBS can reduce the required supply scale of the entire bicycle system by about 21%, and increase the average daily usage of bicycles by about 27%. In addition, FFBS also can increase the average lifecycle trip volume per bike in the entire urban bicycle system from approximately 900 to 1060, an increase of 16%. In particular, this study estimates that the optimal supply scale of the FFBS market in Beijing is about 800,000. It is worth noting that although enhancing the PLE strategy can increase the contribution of FFBS to PLE, it may also deteriorate the profitability of the FFBS platform. The authorities and FFBS operators should work together to continuously improve the profitability of the platform and strengthen its innovation capabilities to promote the healthy and sustainable development of FFBS.


2022 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 726
Author(s):  
Riikka Piippo ◽  
Kirsi Niinimäki ◽  
Maarit Aakko

The fashion industry is one of the most polluting industrial sectors in the world and its environmental impacts are huge. Garments are produced effectively at a low price, are of low quality, and are used for a very short time before ending up in increasing textile waste streams. One critical aspect in this context is the lifetime of a garment. Short garment lifetimes are the results of low quality and consumer dissatisfaction, or consumers’ constant search for newness, resulting in the early disposal of garments. This study focused on the issue of garment quality and how it can be connected to product lifetime. The research used a case study approach, including company interviews about working for quality, and aimed to expand on the topic of how quality impacts product lifetimes. Data analysis was conducted according to the principles of descriptive analysis and the discussion expanded to the circular economy context, creating an extended understanding of garment quality in a circular economy.


2014 ◽  
Vol 38 (01) ◽  
pp. 102-129
Author(s):  
ALBERTO MARTÍN ÁLVAREZ ◽  
EUDALD CORTINA ORERO

AbstractUsing interviews with former militants and previously unpublished documents, this article traces the genesis and internal dynamics of the Ejército Revolucionario del Pueblo (People's Revolutionary Army, ERP) in El Salvador during the early years of its existence (1970–6). This period was marked by the inability of the ERP to maintain internal coherence or any consensus on revolutionary strategy, which led to a series of splits and internal fights over control of the organisation. The evidence marshalled in this case study sheds new light on the origins of the armed Salvadorean Left and thus contributes to a wider understanding of the processes of formation and internal dynamics of armed left-wing groups that emerged from the 1960s onwards in Latin America.


2020 ◽  
Vol 43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Lifshitz ◽  
T. M. Luhrmann

Abstract Culture shapes our basic sensory experience of the world. This is particularly striking in the study of religion and psychosis, where we and others have shown that cultural context determines both the structure and content of hallucination-like events. The cultural shaping of hallucinations may provide a rich case-study for linking cultural learning with emerging prediction-based models of perception.


2019 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Povinelli ◽  
Gabrielle C. Glorioso ◽  
Shannon L. Kuznar ◽  
Mateja Pavlic

Abstract Hoerl and McCormack demonstrate that although animals possess a sophisticated temporal updating system, there is no evidence that they also possess a temporal reasoning system. This important case study is directly related to the broader claim that although animals are manifestly capable of first-order (perceptually-based) relational reasoning, they lack the capacity for higher-order, role-based relational reasoning. We argue this distinction applies to all domains of cognition.


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