Theses and Dissertations

This paper serves as an analysis of the current operational conditions of a real-world company – referred to as “Company X” – with respect to the IC substrate industry. The cost of substrates, a crucial component in the production of Company X’s product, has recently diverged from Company X’s predictions and is contributing to declining profitability. This analysis aims to discover the underlying cause for price divergence and recommend potential resolutions to improve the forecast of substrate costs and profitability. The paper is organized as follows: Chapter 1 is an introduction to IC substrates and the industry as a whole, Chapter 2 is a breakdown of the specific factors responsible for substrate prices, and Chapter 3 delivers a final recommendation to Company X and concludes the paper.

This thesis discusses the options of keeping or relocating the Arizona Coyotes to Quebec City. The Coyotes recently were not able to renew their lease with the city of Glendale for their current arena, Gila River Arena. For the next three years the Coyotes will play in a 5,000 seat capacity arena at Arizona State University. Quebec City has been rumored to want to bring a NHL team back and already has a 18,259 capacity arena. In order to assess the highest valued future location for the team, this thesis provides an analysis of 3 different options: (1) move the team to Quebec City Canada, (2) build a new arena in Tempe, or (3) continue to play at the ASU arena. First, an overview of the Coyotes as well as the original Quebec City NHL team, the Nordiques, is provided. Next, a financial analysis of the 3 options is provided. The final section makes conclusions based on the analysis provided.