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The purpose of this paper is to propose an efficient computational technique, which uses Haar wavelets collocation approach coupled with the Newton-Raphson method and solves the following class of system of Lane–Emden equations:

To deal with singularity, Haar wavelets are used, and to deal with the nonlinear system of equations that arise during computation, the Newton-Raphson method is used. The convergence of these methods is also established and the results are compared with existing techniques.

The authors propose three methods based on uniform Haar wavelets approximation coupled with the Newton-Raphson method. The authors obtain quadratic convergence for the Haar wavelets collocation method. Test problems are solved to validate various computational aspects of the Haar wavelets approach. The authors observe that with only a few spatial divisions the authors can obtain highly accurate solutions for both initial value problems and boundary value problems.

The results presented in this paper do not exist in the literature. The system of nonlinear singular differential equations is not easy to handle as they are singular, as well as nonlinear. To the best of the knowledge, these are the first results for a system of nonlinear singular differential equations, by using the Haar wavelets collocation approach coupled with the Newton-Raphson method. The results developed in this paper can be used to solve problems arising in different branches of science and engineering.

Though academic study on the subject is still in its early stages, there is growing interest in using blockchain technology for transforming the supply chain. The academic literature is divided and yet only includes studies evaluating how the supply chain has changed organizations. To comprehend the new phenomena, this study aims to investigate the factors of blockchain technology in driving supply chain transformation. To be more precise, the authors developed from the literature the most prevalent criteria for determining if supply chain transformations are ready to be scaled up.

This study followed a combination of two multi-criteria decision making methods evaluation based on distance from average solution and complex proportional assessment) methodology in this research: planning, investigating, executing out, establishing a rating of the criteria and evaluating it.

The study shows that the “organizational driver” and the “technology driver” are the factors most important to the transformation of the supply chain, whereas the “financial driver” and the “regulatory driver” are less important. This study also makes some managerial recommendations to address the factors impeding the supply chain’s transformation. Each factor’s significance was explored, and a proposed study agenda was also presented.

Although the main forces behind the transformation of the supply chain have been recognized, further research into statistical correlation is required to confirm how the various elements interact.

This research aids decision-makers in comprehending the key forces behind supply chain transformation. Managers and decision-makers might better predict and allocate the necessary resources to start the road toward digitization and make well-informed choices once these aspects have been investigated and understood.

In light of the pandemic’s effects on the world and the increase in businesses embracing the digital economy, the supply chain transformation is more important than ever. Beyond blockchain deployment and the pilot studies on digital transformation, there is a gap. The topics and factors this study uncovered will operate as a framework and recommendations for more theoretical investigation and practical applications.

Rapid tooling (RT) integrated with additive manufacturing technologies have been implemented in various sectors of the RT industry in recent years with various kinds of prototype applications, especially in the development of new products. The purpose of this study is to analyze the current application trends of RT techniques in producing hybrid mold inserts.

The direct and indirect RT techniques discussed in this paper are aimed at developing a hybrid mold insert using metal epoxy composite (MEC) in increasing the speed of tooling development and performance. An extensive review of the suitable development approach of hybrid mold inserts, material preparation and filler effect on physical and mechanical properties has been conducted.

Latest research studies indicate that it is possible to develop a hybrid material through the combination of different shapes/sizes of filler particles and it is expected to improve the compressive strength, thermal conductivity and consequently increasing the hybrid mold performance (cooling time and a number of molding cycles).

The number of research studies on RT for hybrid mold inserts is still lacking as compared to research studies on conventional manufacturing technology. One of the significant limitations is on the ways to improve physical and mechanical properties due to the limited type, size and shape of materials that are currently available.

This review presents the related information and highlights the current gaps related to this field of study. In addition, it appraises the new formulation of MEC materials for the hybrid mold inserts in injection molding application and RT for non-metal products.

The police in India do not meet the standards of legitimacy. This chapter examines a significant question – why in the largest democracy police are deemed illegitimate and untrustworthy?

The chapter draws from the literature about police role and functioning in India. Data from the Crime in India and other publications is utilized to assess the nature of policing and interactions with the citizens. Since the police derive their legitimacy from that of the government, the nature of politics and its impact upon the police organization is assessed from various reports and publications.

There is significant evidence to suggest that in India, citizens distrust the police and fear the officers while the police too remain mired in corruption, brutality, violating the rights of citizens. Two arguments are made to explain the reasons for the illegitimacy of police system: first, that the police model is incompatible with the plural and diverse democratic framework of the country. Second, that the political leaders have vitiated the democratic polity itself, preventing the growth of independent public institutions that could hold them accountable. All these have serious consequences for the health and vitality of the largest democracy in the world.

This chapter provides evidence about incompatibility of colonial policing with liberal democratic order and argues that political leadership is largely responsible for the illegitimacy of police and other public institutions.

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) have emerged as one of the most promising technology in our day-to-day life. Limited network lifetime and higher energy consumption are two most critical issues in WSNs. The purpose of this paper is to propose an energy-efficient load balanced cluster-based routing protocol using ant colony optimization (LB-CR-ACO) which ultimately results in enhancement of the network lifetime of WSNs.

The proposed protocol performs optimal clustering based on cluster head selection weighing function which leads to novel cluster head selection. The cluster formation uses various parameters which are remaining energy of the nodes, received signal strength indicator (RSSI), node density and number of load-balanced node connections. Priority weights are also assigned among these metrics. The cluster head with the highest probability will be selected as an optimal cluster head for a particular round. LB-CR-ACO also performs a dynamic selection of optimal cluster head periodically which conserves energy, thereby using network resources in an efficient and balanced manner. ACO is used in steady state phase for multi-hop data transfer.

It has been observed through simulation that LB-CR-ACO protocol exhibits better performance for network lifetime in sparse, medium and dense WSN deployments than its peer protocols.

The proposed paper provides a unique energy-efficient LB-CR-ACO for WSNs. LB-CR-ACO performs novel cluster head selection using optimal clustering and multi-hop routing which utilizes ACO. The proposed work results in achieving higher network lifetime than its peer protocols.

In this article, the authors consider the following nonlinear singular boundary value problem (SBVP) known as Lane–Emden equations, −u″(t)-(α/t) u′(t) = g(t, u), 0 < t < 1 where α ≥ 1 subject to two-point and three-point boundary conditions. The authors propose to develop a novel method to solve the class of Lane–Emden equations.

The authors improve the modified variation iteration method (VIM) proposed in [JAAC, 9(4) 1242–1260 (2019)], which greatly accelerates the convergence and reduces the computational task.

The findings revealed that either exact or highly accurate approximate solutions of Lane–Emden equations can be computed with the proposed method.

Novel modification is made in the VIM that provides either exact or highly accurate approximate solutions of Lane-Emden equations, which does not exist in the literature.

A well-designed supply chain performance measurement system, should account for not only the capabilities and performance attributes of the focal firm but also its supply chain partners. The purpose of this paper is to help design a system that strikes a balance between the strategic objectives of the focal firm and its supply partners vis-à-vis the requirements of supply chain performance (cost, quality, speed and customer taste).

A theoretical framework on the strategic supply chain performance measurement system is developed based on existing literature and subsequently tested using a survey on 136 successful manufacturing organizations in India. The organizations were clustered into three strategy types and compared using analysis of variance on ranks to look for differences in preference for performance parameters.

The study examined the five dimensions of the supply chain practices, namely, strategic supply/distribution network, customer relationship, internal operations, information sharing and social and environmental responsiveness. The empirical results demonstrate the inclusion of business strategy orientation in designing today’s supply chain and hence its performance measurement system. Not supported hypotheses were addressed in the light of contextual factors.

The study is confined to finding preferences of non-financial aspects of supply chain performance and tier-1 suppliers. The research helps better design and benchmark supply chain performance metrics, based on the strategic choice of the firm.

This paper highlights the shortcomings in the existing performance measurement and gaps in the existing literature in the supply chain context. Further, it gives a holistic view of strategic supply chain performance measurement design.

The numerical methods are of great importance for approximating the solutions of a system of nonlinear singular ordinary differential equations. In this paper, the authors present the biorthogonal flatlet multiwavelet collocation method (BFMCM) as a numerical scheme for a class of system of Lane–Emden equations with initial or boundary or four-point boundary conditions.

The approach is involved in combining the biorthogonal flatlet multiwavelet (BFM) with the collocation method. The authors investigate the properties and procedure of the BFMCM for first time on this class of equations. By using the BFM and the collocation points, the method is constructed and it transforms the nonlinear differential equations problem into a system of nonlinear algebraic equations. The unknown coefficients of the assuming solution are determined by solving the obtained system. Additionally, convergence analysis and numerical stability of the suggested method are provided.

According to the attained results, the proposed BFMCM has more accurate results in comparison with results of other methods. The maximum absolute errors are calculated by using the BFMCM for comparison purposes provided.

The key desirable properties of BFMCM are its efficiency, simple applicability and minimizes errors. Therefore, the proposed method can be used to solve nonlinear problems or problems with singular points.

The paper summarises the merits and limitations of different methods used to determine the rejection criteria of the primary reformer tubes. It compares the microstructures as obtained on the outer surface of the reformer tubes with that observed in the transverse section in the regions of outer wall, midwall and inner surface. On the basis of these studies coupled with dimensional change measurements, the in situ metallographic technique has been used to monitor the condition of tubes in two reformation units and the tubes had given satisfactory service till the next turnaround as predicted.

The purpose of this paper is to identify and quantify the key components of the overall cost of software development when warranty coverage is given by a developer. Also, the authors have studied the impact of imperfect debugging on the optimal release time, warranty policy and development cost which signifies that it is important for the developers to control the parameters that cause a sharp increase in cost.

An optimization problem is formulated to minimize software development cost by considering imperfect fault removal process, faults generation at a constant rate and an environmental factor to differentiate the operational phase from the testing phase. Another optimization problem under perfect debugging conditions, i.e. without error generation is constructed for comparison. These optimization models are solved in MATLAB, and their solutions provide insights to the degree of impact of imperfect debugging on the optimal policies with respect to software release time and warranty time.

A real-life fault data set of Radar System is used to study the impact of various cost factors via sensitivity analysis on release and warranty policy. If firms tend to provide warranty for a longer period of time, then they may have to bear losses due to increased debugging cost with more number of failures occurring during the warrantied time but if the warranty is not provided for sufficient time it may not act as sufficient hedge during field failures.

Every firm is fighting to remain in the competition and expand market share by offering the latest technology-based products, using innovative marketing strategies. Warranty is one such strategic tool to promote the product among masses and develop a sense of quality in the user’s mind. In this paper, the failures encountered during development and after software release are considered to model the failure process.