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- All Subjects: management
- Creators: Fowler, John
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Description
Economic and environmental concerns necessitate the preference for retrofits over new construction in manufacturing facilities for incorporating modern technology, expanding production, becoming more energy-efficient and improving operational efficiency. Despite the technical and functional challenges in retrofits, the expectation from the project team is to; reduce costs, ensure the time to market and maintain a high standard for quality and safety. Thus, the construction supply chain faces increasing pressure to improve performance by ensuring better labor productivity, among other factors, for efficiency gain. Building Information Modeling (BIM) & off-site prefabrication are determined as effective management & production methods to meet these goals. However, there are limited studies assessing their impact on labor productivity within the constraints of a retrofit environment. This study fills the gap by exploring the impact of BIM on labor productivity (metric) in retrofits (context).
BIM use for process tool installation at a semiconductor manufacturing facility serves as an ideal environment for practical observations. Direct site observations indicate a positive correlation between disruptions in the workflow attributed to an immature use of BIM, waste due to rework and high non-value added time at the labor work face. Root-cause analysis traces the origins of the said disruptions to decision-factors that are critical for the planning, management and implementation of BIM. Analysis shows that stakeholders involved in decision-making during BIM planning, management and implementation identify BIM-value based on their immediate utility for BIM-use instead of the utility for the customers of the process. This differing value-system manifests in the form of unreliable and inaccurate information at the labor work face.
Grounding the analysis in theory and observations, the author hypothesizes that stakeholders of a construction project value BIM and BIM-aspects (i.e. geometrical information, descriptive information and workflows) differently and the accuracy of geometrical information is critical for improving labor productivity when using prefabrication in retrofit construction. In conclusion, this research presents a BIM-value framework, associating stakeholders with their relative value for BIM, the decision-factors for the planning, management and implementation of BIM and the potential impact of those decisions on labor productivity.
BIM use for process tool installation at a semiconductor manufacturing facility serves as an ideal environment for practical observations. Direct site observations indicate a positive correlation between disruptions in the workflow attributed to an immature use of BIM, waste due to rework and high non-value added time at the labor work face. Root-cause analysis traces the origins of the said disruptions to decision-factors that are critical for the planning, management and implementation of BIM. Analysis shows that stakeholders involved in decision-making during BIM planning, management and implementation identify BIM-value based on their immediate utility for BIM-use instead of the utility for the customers of the process. This differing value-system manifests in the form of unreliable and inaccurate information at the labor work face.
Grounding the analysis in theory and observations, the author hypothesizes that stakeholders of a construction project value BIM and BIM-aspects (i.e. geometrical information, descriptive information and workflows) differently and the accuracy of geometrical information is critical for improving labor productivity when using prefabrication in retrofit construction. In conclusion, this research presents a BIM-value framework, associating stakeholders with their relative value for BIM, the decision-factors for the planning, management and implementation of BIM and the potential impact of those decisions on labor productivity.
ContributorsGhosh, Arundhati (Author) / Chasey, Allan D (Thesis advisor) / Laroche, Dominique-Claude (Committee member) / Fowler, John (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description近20年,中国品牌零售业的快速发展使其成为全球第三大零售市场。消费者的需求量在大幅增长，对于本土企业来说，机遇与挑战并存。
对于连锁型品牌零售企业，员工是其产品和服务的载体。而如何做好不同层次的人员的激励体系，并得以踏实的落实和执行，是企业经营中非常关键的环节，也是品牌零售企业在竞争中获取优势的根本保证。另外，由于连锁零售企业基层员工流动性大、总体素质较低，如何对这部分员工实施有效的绩效考核,成为很多连锁零售企业管理人员面临的一个难题。
本文将长期和短期激励作为主要的研究内容。从整体国内企业来看，运转良好的绩效考评体系并不多，大部分企业的绩效考评体系只注重短期激励而忽视了长期激励的作用，绩效考评关注的是目标的实现，与员工的发展相脱节。因此，如何做好品牌企业的激励体系，如何在人才竞争中取得先机，并最大化企业利润，是本文研究的重心。
目前的研究空白在于对连锁型店铺的激励绩效。而考虑到品牌零售中的连锁经营往往涉及到成百上千家门店，涉及到的从业人数较多，因而对门店的激励绩效的成败是关系到企业整体激励绩效好坏的关键。
本文对激励绩效方案的相关理论进行回顾、分析与总结，从委托代理理论、激励理论、交易成本理论和产权理论入手，分析连锁型品牌零售企业的激励绩效特点。连锁型品牌零售企业合伙制本质上与特许经营精神及设计理念一致，而想要改进的正是特许经营中加盟店与总部的博弈与消耗，形成利益共同体，达到企业价值最大化的目标。
通过连锁型品牌零售企业绩效激励的真实案例（永辉超市合伙人制度、拉夏贝尔店铺合伙人制度、康奈零投入型与交股金型两种店铺合伙人制度）分析得出风险共担、超额利润分成的合伙人制度在连锁型品牌零售企业激励绩效方案设计中的可行性及意义，并从中发现了已有实践存在的问题，并提出建议。
店铺合伙人制度激励店长、提高单店销售业绩、减少交易成本、提高管理效率的正向作用毋庸置疑，建议在实践中积极推行与完善。
对于连锁型品牌零售企业，员工是其产品和服务的载体。而如何做好不同层次的人员的激励体系，并得以踏实的落实和执行，是企业经营中非常关键的环节，也是品牌零售企业在竞争中获取优势的根本保证。另外，由于连锁零售企业基层员工流动性大、总体素质较低，如何对这部分员工实施有效的绩效考核,成为很多连锁零售企业管理人员面临的一个难题。
本文将长期和短期激励作为主要的研究内容。从整体国内企业来看，运转良好的绩效考评体系并不多，大部分企业的绩效考评体系只注重短期激励而忽视了长期激励的作用，绩效考评关注的是目标的实现，与员工的发展相脱节。因此，如何做好品牌企业的激励体系，如何在人才竞争中取得先机，并最大化企业利润，是本文研究的重心。
目前的研究空白在于对连锁型店铺的激励绩效。而考虑到品牌零售中的连锁经营往往涉及到成百上千家门店，涉及到的从业人数较多，因而对门店的激励绩效的成败是关系到企业整体激励绩效好坏的关键。
本文对激励绩效方案的相关理论进行回顾、分析与总结，从委托代理理论、激励理论、交易成本理论和产权理论入手，分析连锁型品牌零售企业的激励绩效特点。连锁型品牌零售企业合伙制本质上与特许经营精神及设计理念一致，而想要改进的正是特许经营中加盟店与总部的博弈与消耗，形成利益共同体，达到企业价值最大化的目标。
通过连锁型品牌零售企业绩效激励的真实案例（永辉超市合伙人制度、拉夏贝尔店铺合伙人制度、康奈零投入型与交股金型两种店铺合伙人制度）分析得出风险共担、超额利润分成的合伙人制度在连锁型品牌零售企业激励绩效方案设计中的可行性及意义，并从中发现了已有实践存在的问题，并提出建议。
店铺合伙人制度激励店长、提高单店销售业绩、减少交易成本、提高管理效率的正向作用毋庸置疑，建议在实践中积极推行与完善。
ContributorsZheng, Laili (Author) / Pei, Ker-Wi (Thesis advisor) / Chen, Xinlei (Committee member) / Zhu, Hongquan (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description最近几十年对高管人员个人特征的研究成为组织战略决策领域的重要议题，但其中对
于高管人员的心理感受却几乎从未触及。心理学研究表明，心理感受会很大程度上影响人
的行为。荣耀感，作为最主要的一种与自我意识相关的心理感受，对于工作行为和结果的
影响都非常大。因而，研究企业高管的荣耀感，对理解和预测他们的行为，进而对预测其
个人意志扮演重要角色的公司战略决策有显著意义。
本论文对企业高管的荣耀感进行了系统研究。通过两个研究，中国企业高管的问卷
调查数据，回答了两个问题：1. 企业高管工作荣耀感的内涵是什么？2. 企业高管荣耀感
的高低如何影响其在公司中的战略决策。具体而言，通过 6 人深度访谈和 50 人的开放式
问题问卷的定性研究提炼了企业高管荣耀感的双维度模型，即世俗荣耀感和神圣荣耀感，
202 名企业高管样本的问卷开发了信度和效度达标的两种荣耀感的测量量表（研究一）；
运用 159 名企业高管的问卷数据（研究二）检验了有关两种荣耀感影响公司战略变革意愿
和行为，以及社会创新的不同作用及其边界条件的理论模型和假设。
本研究的主要结论是：
1. 企业高管的世俗荣耀感和神圣荣耀感均正向影响企业战略主动性、战略变革，以
及社会创新战略，其中神圣荣耀感相比世俗荣耀感，对于公司社会创新战略的影响效应更
大；2.企业高管神圣的荣耀感，相比世俗荣耀刚对公司战略主动性的积极作用，受到其感
知到的基于政策环境变化的心理契约违背的影响更大，而世俗的荣耀感，相比神圣荣耀感
对公司社会创新的正向作用，受到其感知到的基于政策环境变化的心理契约违背的影响更
大。
本论文对战略领导力的研究做出了重要贡献。战略管理研究越来越多地关注人的因
素，尤其是企业高管对企业决策、行为以及绩效的影响，但以往对高阶的研究都集中在对
高管人员认知、背景及经验的探讨，本论文首次聚焦于高管人员的情感体验，通过强调高
管人员的荣耀感对组织战略决策的重要性，本研究大大地扩展了战略领导的研究范畴。
论文从心理学的视角出发，首次从内容和来源视角区分荣耀感的两种类型，对原先
从表现形式（momentary experiences and chronic dispositional tendencies）对荣耀感的
分类是个补充，对心理学领域有关荣耀感的研究做出了贡献。本文创造性地将荣耀感的研
究扩展到了企业管理中的高级管理人员，显著地提高了有关个体荣耀感受的理论与管理学
领域理论和实践运用的相关性。
于高管人员的心理感受却几乎从未触及。心理学研究表明，心理感受会很大程度上影响人
的行为。荣耀感，作为最主要的一种与自我意识相关的心理感受，对于工作行为和结果的
影响都非常大。因而，研究企业高管的荣耀感，对理解和预测他们的行为，进而对预测其
个人意志扮演重要角色的公司战略决策有显著意义。
本论文对企业高管的荣耀感进行了系统研究。通过两个研究，中国企业高管的问卷
调查数据，回答了两个问题：1. 企业高管工作荣耀感的内涵是什么？2. 企业高管荣耀感
的高低如何影响其在公司中的战略决策。具体而言，通过 6 人深度访谈和 50 人的开放式
问题问卷的定性研究提炼了企业高管荣耀感的双维度模型，即世俗荣耀感和神圣荣耀感，
202 名企业高管样本的问卷开发了信度和效度达标的两种荣耀感的测量量表（研究一）；
运用 159 名企业高管的问卷数据（研究二）检验了有关两种荣耀感影响公司战略变革意愿
和行为，以及社会创新的不同作用及其边界条件的理论模型和假设。
本研究的主要结论是：
1. 企业高管的世俗荣耀感和神圣荣耀感均正向影响企业战略主动性、战略变革，以
及社会创新战略，其中神圣荣耀感相比世俗荣耀感，对于公司社会创新战略的影响效应更
大；2.企业高管神圣的荣耀感，相比世俗荣耀刚对公司战略主动性的积极作用，受到其感
知到的基于政策环境变化的心理契约违背的影响更大，而世俗的荣耀感，相比神圣荣耀感
对公司社会创新的正向作用，受到其感知到的基于政策环境变化的心理契约违背的影响更
大。
本论文对战略领导力的研究做出了重要贡献。战略管理研究越来越多地关注人的因
素，尤其是企业高管对企业决策、行为以及绩效的影响，但以往对高阶的研究都集中在对
高管人员认知、背景及经验的探讨，本论文首次聚焦于高管人员的情感体验，通过强调高
管人员的荣耀感对组织战略决策的重要性，本研究大大地扩展了战略领导的研究范畴。
论文从心理学的视角出发，首次从内容和来源视角区分荣耀感的两种类型，对原先
从表现形式（momentary experiences and chronic dispositional tendencies）对荣耀感的
分类是个补充，对心理学领域有关荣耀感的研究做出了贡献。本文创造性地将荣耀感的研
究扩展到了企业管理中的高级管理人员，显著地提高了有关个体荣耀感受的理论与管理学
领域理论和实践运用的相关性。
ContributorsZhou, Jun (Author) / Tsui, Anne (Thesis advisor) / Zhu, Hongquan (Thesis advisor) / Qian, Jun (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
In this dissertation research, I expand the definition of the supply network to include the buying firm’s competitors. Just as one buyer-supplier relationship impacts all other relationships within the network, the presence of competitor-supplier relationships must also impact the focal buying firm. Therefore, the concept of a “competitive network” made up of a focal firm, its competitors and all of their combined suppliers is introduced. Utilizing a unique longitudinal dataset, this research explores how the organic structural changes within the new, many-to-many supply network impact firm performance. The investigation begins by studying the change in number of suppliers used by global auto manufacturers between 2004 and 2013. Following the Great Recession of 2008-09, firms have been growing the number of suppliers at more than twice the rate they had been reducing suppliers just a few years prior. The second phase of research explores the structural changes to the network resulting from this explosive growth in the number of suppliers. The final investigation explores a different flow – financial flow -- and evaluates its association with firm performance. Overall, this dissertation research demonstrates the value of aggregating individual supply networks into a macro-network defined as the competitive network. From this view, no one firm is able to control the structure of the network and the change in structure directly impacts firm performance. A new metric is introduced which addresses the subtle changes in buyer-supplier relationships and relates significantly to firm performance. The analyses expand the body of knowledge through the use of longitudinal datasets and uncovers otherwise overlooked dynamics existing within supply networks over the past decade.
ContributorsHuff, Jerry (Author) / Fowler, John (Thesis advisor) / Rogers, Dale (Committee member) / Carter, Craig (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
The following is a case study composed of three workflow investigations at the open source software development (OSSD) based Apache Software Foundation (Apache). I start with an examination of the workload inequality within the Apache, particularly with regard to requirements writing. I established that the stronger a participant's experience indicators are, the more likely they are to propose a requirement that is not a defect and the more likely the requirement is eventually implemented. Requirements at Apache are divided into work tickets (tickets). In our second investigation, I reported many insights into the distribution patterns of these tickets. The participants that create the tickets often had the best track records for determining who should participate in that ticket. Tickets that were at one point volunteered for (self-assigned) had a lower incident of neglect but in some cases were also associated with severe delay. When a participant claims a ticket but postpones the work involved, these tickets exist without a solution for five to ten times as long, depending on the circumstances. I make recommendations that may reduce the incidence of tickets that are claimed but not implemented in a timely manner. After giving an in-depth explanation of how I obtained this data set through web crawlers, I describe the pattern mining platform I developed to make my data mining efforts highly scalable and repeatable. Lastly, I used process mining techniques to show that workflow patterns vary greatly within teams at Apache. I investigated a variety of process choices and how they might be influencing the outcomes of OSSD projects. I report a moderately negative association between how often a team updates the specifics of a requirement and how often requirements are completed. I also verified that the prevalence of volunteerism indicators is positively associated with work completion but what was surprising is that this correlation is stronger if I exclude the very large projects. I suggest the largest projects at Apache may benefit from some level of traditional delegation in addition to the phenomenon of volunteerism that OSSD is normally associated with.
ContributorsPanos, Ryan (Author) / Collofello, James (Thesis advisor) / Fowler, John (Thesis advisor) / Pan, Rong (Committee member) / Wu, Teresa (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
Yield is a key process performance characteristic in the capital-intensive semiconductor fabrication process. In an industry where machines cost millions of dollars and cycle times are a number of months, predicting and optimizing yield are critical to process improvement, customer satisfaction, and financial success. Semiconductor yield modeling is essential to identifying processing issues, improving quality, and meeting customer demand in the industry. However, the complicated fabrication process, the massive amount of data collected, and the number of models available make yield modeling a complex and challenging task. This work presents modeling strategies to forecast yield using generalized linear models (GLMs) based on defect metrology data. The research is divided into three main parts. First, the data integration and aggregation necessary for model building are described, and GLMs are constructed for yield forecasting. This technique yields results at both the die and the wafer levels, outperforms existing models found in the literature based on prediction errors, and identifies significant factors that can drive process improvement. This method also allows the nested structure of the process to be considered in the model, improving predictive capabilities and violating fewer assumptions. To account for the random sampling typically used in fabrication, the work is extended by using generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) and a larger dataset to show the differences between batch-specific and population-averaged models in this application and how they compare to GLMs. These results show some additional improvements in forecasting abilities under certain conditions and show the differences between the significant effects identified in the GLM and GLMM models. The effects of link functions and sample size are also examined at the die and wafer levels. The third part of this research describes a methodology for integrating classification and regression trees (CART) with GLMs. This technique uses the terminal nodes identified in the classification tree to add predictors to a GLM. This method enables the model to consider important interaction terms in a simpler way than with the GLM alone, and provides valuable insight into the fabrication process through the combination of the tree structure and the statistical analysis of the GLM.
ContributorsKrueger, Dana Cheree (Author) / Montgomery, Douglas C. (Thesis advisor) / Fowler, John (Committee member) / Pan, Rong (Committee member) / Pfund, Michele (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
In today's global market, companies are facing unprecedented levels of uncertainties in supply, demand and in the economic environment. A critical issue for companies to survive increasing competition is to monitor the changing business environment and manage disturbances and changes in real time. In this dissertation, an integrated framework is proposed using simulation and online calibration methods to enable the adaptive management of large-scale complex supply chain systems. The design, implementation and verification of the integrated approach are studied in this dissertation. The research contributions are two-fold. First, this work enriches symbiotic simulation methodology by proposing a framework of simulation and advanced data fusion methods to improve simulation accuracy. Data fusion techniques optimally calibrate the simulation state/parameters by considering errors in both the simulation models and in measurements of the real-world system. Data fusion methods - Kalman Filtering, Extended Kalman Filtering, and Ensemble Kalman Filtering - are examined and discussed under varied conditions of system chaotic levels, data quality and data availability. Second, the proposed framework is developed, validated and demonstrated in `proof-of-concept' case studies on representative supply chain problems. In the case study of a simplified supply chain system, Kalman Filtering is applied to fuse simulation data and emulation data to effectively improve the accuracy of the detection of abnormalities. In the case study of the `beer game' supply chain model, the system's chaotic level is identified as a key factor to influence simulation performance and the choice of data fusion method. Ensemble Kalman Filtering is found more robust than Extended Kalman Filtering in a highly chaotic system. With appropriate tuning, the improvement of simulation accuracy is up to 80% in a chaotic system, and 60% in a stable system. In the last study, the integrated framework is applied to adaptive inventory control of a multi-echelon supply chain with non-stationary demand. It is worth pointing out that the framework proposed in this dissertation is not only useful in supply chain management, but also suitable to model other complex dynamic systems, such as healthcare delivery systems and energy consumption networks.
ContributorsWang, Shanshan (Author) / Wu, Teresa (Thesis advisor) / Fowler, John (Thesis advisor) / Pfund, Michele (Committee member) / Li, Jing (Committee member) / Pavlicek, William (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010
Description近年来，中国内地FOF业务发展迅速，但在业务发展初期的实践中，FOF管理人在遴选基金资产和预测其未来收益等方面遇到诸多困难，传统的FOF组合构建技术往往不理想。本文借鉴海外因子配置相关理论，尝试通过归因分析基金的收益来源，寻找能深度刻画基金经理管理能力的特质因子，创新性地提出了基于权益类基金的特质因子构建FOF组合的新方法。本文选择100家权益类私募基金，通过因子拆解剥离了市场、行业、风格等共同影响因素，遴选出特质因子表现更优的基金经理，而不是仅仅选择过往业绩好的基金经理，并基于特质因子构建一组FOF组合，与此同时，运用传统方法构建基于基金资产的另一组FOF组合，对比两种组合方法的组合绩效，实证结果显示基于特质因子的FOF组合绩效更优。本文进一步运用转移概率矩阵和相关性分析，找到了基于特质因子的FOF组合绩效更优的证据，即特质因子延续性更好和相关性更低。与基于基金资产的FOF组合配置传统方法相比，由于基金的特质因子延续性更好，运用历史数据预测未来收益的确定性相对更好；基金的特质因子之间的相关性低，大幅增强了FOF组合配置的稳定性和分散性。总体来讲，基于特质因子的FOF组合配置方法为FOF管理人提供了一个更量化、更有效、更稳健的组合配置新路径，能有效提升FOF组合配置的绩效。
关键词: FOF、因子投资、组合配置、特质因子
关键词: FOF、因子投资、组合配置、特质因子
ContributorsLi, Jie (Author) / Zhu, Hongquan (Thesis advisor) / Yan, Hong (Thesis advisor) / Liang, Bing (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
Description当前，民营企业已成为中国重要支撑力量，而未来5到10年，约有300多万家民营企业面临传承困境。但学术研究领域在传承整体框架、配套机制建设方面有完整论述、有成功案例的所见不多。首先，针对以上民营企业的传承现状，本文将研究、回答五个问题：1、成功传承的标准和要素是什么？2、传承模式有哪几种，每种模式配套的传承机制是什么，该如何建立？3、民营企业应选择何种传承模式，如何选择？4、民营企业的整套传承方案如何落地搭建？5、是否有普适性的、可借鉴的民营企业传承模型，包含哪些要素？
其次，本文主要使用文献研究、案例研究、实证分析，选取中、美、德、日四家不同传承阶段、不同传承模式的知名民营企业，对其传承情况进行深入研究。在此基础上，归纳总结出传承的关键要素，对前述五个问题进行系统解答。同时，本文创新性地结合理论研究、案例研究及企业实践，提出适合我国大部分民营企业的传承全周期管理框架。
最后，根据以上研究，本文总结出关于中国民营企业传承的八大结论及建议：1、本质：权力的交接和义务的传递；2、两大风险：继任风险（继任人的能力要求）、代理风险（继任人对企业核心理念的意愿/忠诚度）；3、降低风险的四大机制：领袖锻造、人才梯队、管控治理、激励机制；4、两大成功要素：“选领袖”和“建机制”；5、四大机制是并行推进、相辅相成的，要尽早构建、持续优化；6、三大模式：家族成员继承、内生培养经理人、外聘职业经理人；7、民营企业传承模型包含七大要素、五大步骤；8、民营企业在制定传承方案时，除了要注意传承模型中的要素，还要注意其他关键要素。
其次，本文主要使用文献研究、案例研究、实证分析，选取中、美、德、日四家不同传承阶段、不同传承模式的知名民营企业，对其传承情况进行深入研究。在此基础上，归纳总结出传承的关键要素，对前述五个问题进行系统解答。同时，本文创新性地结合理论研究、案例研究及企业实践，提出适合我国大部分民营企业的传承全周期管理框架。
最后，根据以上研究，本文总结出关于中国民营企业传承的八大结论及建议：1、本质：权力的交接和义务的传递；2、两大风险：继任风险（继任人的能力要求）、代理风险（继任人对企业核心理念的意愿/忠诚度）；3、降低风险的四大机制：领袖锻造、人才梯队、管控治理、激励机制；4、两大成功要素：“选领袖”和“建机制”；5、四大机制是并行推进、相辅相成的，要尽早构建、持续优化；6、三大模式：家族成员继承、内生培养经理人、外聘职业经理人；7、民营企业传承模型包含七大要素、五大步骤；8、民营企业在制定传承方案时，除了要注意传承模型中的要素，还要注意其他关键要素。
ContributorsCao, Jianwei (Author) / Huang, Xiaochuan (Thesis advisor) / Liang, Bing (Thesis advisor) / Cheng, Shijun (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
Description
In the first chapter, I consider a capacity and price bounded profit maximization problem in which a firm determines prices of multiple substitutable products when the supply or capacity of the products is limited and the prices are bounded. This problem applies broadly to many pricing decision settings such as for hotel rooms, airline seats, fashion, or other seasonal retail products, as well as any product line with shared production capacity. In this paper, I characterize structural properties of the constrained profit maximization problems under the Multinomial Logit (MNL) model and the optimal pricing solutions, and present efficient solution approaches. In the second chapter, I consider a data-driven profit maximization problem in which a firm determines the prices of multiple substitutable products. This problem applies broadly to many pricing decision settings such as for hotel rooms, airline seats, fashion, or other seasonal retail products. A typical data-driven optimization problem takes a two-step approach of parameter estimation and optimization for decisions. However, this often returns a suboptimal solution as the estimation error due to the variability in data impacts the quality of the optimal solution. I present the relationship between estimation error and quality of the optimal solution and provide a possible way to reduce the impact of the error on the optimal pricing decision under the MNL model. In the last chapter, I consider a facility layout design problem of a semiconductor fabrication facility (FAB). In designing a facility layout, the traditional approach has been to minimize the flow-weighted distance of materials through the automated material handling system (AMHS). However, distance focused approach sometimes yields one major issue, traffic congestion, that there is a question if it is truly a good criterion to design a layout. In this study, I try to understand what makes such congestion by analyzing the system dynamics and propose another approach with a concept of ``balancing the flow" that focuses more on resolving the congestion. Finally, I compare the performance of the two methods through the simulation of semiconductor FAB layouts.
ContributorsYU, GWANGJAE (Author) / Li, Hongmin (Thesis advisor) / Webster, Scott (Thesis advisor) / Fowler, John (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021