When testing multi-story structures on a shaking table, most testing facilities require a reduced scale model. Producing scale test units at small scale is particularly challenging for unreinforced masonry structures. Previous work by other researchers showed that scaling of units and mortar joints is mandatory in order to obtain for the reduced scale masonry failure modes, which are similar to...

The problem of practical realization of the optimal Axed-delay symbol-by-symbol detection algorithm is investigated. A simplified parallel symbol (SPS) detector is derived which is several times faster and simpler than that suggested by the original algorithm. A number of approximations are applied to the SPS detector which lead to the derivation of suboptimal detectors. An interesting suboptim...

Indian industries are in the process of implementing best production practices of Supply Chain Management (SCM), Just in Time (JIT) and Total Quality Management (TQM). These practices are being applied in isolation and collectively in different combinations. The integration of these practices is a major issue which this paper will try to address. Models of these practices as applicable to indus...

a r t i c l e i n f o Due to the challenges associated with reaching consumers using traditional marketing approaches, firms increasingly rely on relational marketing tactics to increase customer patronage with the firm. Yet, consumers often actively avoid relational devices. Thus, firms have a heightened interest in factors that affect customer engagement in relationship marketing efforts. Thi...

In a service environment a service provider needs to determine the amount and kinds of capacity to meet customers’ needs over many periods. To make good decisions, she needs to know the probability distribution of her customers’ demand in each period. We study a situation in which customers’ demand for a given service is random in each period, but inelastic, or modeled well by this assumption, ...

A multilevel inverter is capable of generating high-quality stepwise pseudo-sinusoidalvoltage with low THD , applicable to high-power and high-voltage systems. These types of topologiesmay require a large number of switches and power supplies. This leads to much cost, large size, andcomplicated control algorithms. Thus, newer topologies are being proposed to decrease the numberof power electron...

Increasingly organizations compete based on time. As a result, cycle-time reduction is a key agenda for organizations interested in achieving increased customer service and reduced cost. With improved cycle time, organizations can often eliminate or reduce inventory while expanding customer service offerings. The purpose of this tutorial is to present the fundamental concepts of cycle time redu...

Research shows that continuing competitive pressure applied during development and production leads to better industry performance, often at reduced cost. However, the entrenched practice of one-time competition for an entire program life-cycle often endows the winner with a very strong monopolistic power that lasts for decades. This paper describes continuous competition as leverage to acquire...