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The purpose of this paper is to examine the joint influence of technological newness (TN) and market newness (MN) on the relationship between customer involvement (CI) and new product performance.

The authors employed hierarchical moderated regression analysis to test the hypothesized relationships using survey data collected from 214 Chinese manufacturing firms.

The authors found that the impact of CI on new product performance varies across the different configurations of TN and MN. Specifically, the performance effect of CI is most positive under low TN and high MN, while the performance effect is least positive under low TN and low MN.

This study enriches CI research by identifying different configurations of product innovativeness that augment or limit the value of CI.

This paper aims to identify factors influencing the likelihood of consumers trying muscadine wines and among those who have tried them, willingness to pay (WTP) for an in-state produced muscadine wine.

The study uses a 2015 survey of wine consumers residing in Tennessee (TN). The survey presented respondents with a referendum choice experiment between a ‘base’ wine (represented by a North Carolina (NC) muscadine wine) and a TN muscadine wine. The study uses probit regressions to estimate factors influencing the probability of trying muscadine, and those influencing TN muscadine wine choice. Estimates of WTP for TN muscadine wine are derived from the model coefficients.

Older age, living in non-metro households being a weekly wine consumer, preferring red wines, and having visited a winery in the past year positively influence trying muscadines. Older age, liking muscadines and lower product price positively influence TN muscadine choice. Greater importance of wines being local and premiums paid for local foods have positive influences on trying muscadines and WTP for TN muscadine wine. A premium WTP for a TN muscadine over a NC muscadine exists among TN consumers. Among the most influential reasons why consumers chose the TN muscadine were beliefs that purchasing local wines helps local wine grape growers and local economies.

This study provides the muscadine wine industry with estimates of WTP for locally produced muscadines and demonstrates that attitudes toward local wines and premium paid for local foods positively influence trying muscadine wine and WTP for locally produced muscadine.

This study aims to determine whether consumers are willing to pay a premium for locally produced hard apple cider and examine the factors influencing this premium. This study examines the influence of hard apple cider attributes and consumer characteristics on consumer preferences for local hard apple cider.

Data from a 2019 survey of 875 Tennessee consumers regarding their preferences for a local hard apple cider were obtained. Probit estimates were used to calculate the premium consumers were willing to pay for a locally made hard apple cider and factors influencing this premium. A multivariate probit was used to ascertain factors influencing the importance of attributes (e.g. heirloom apples, sweetness/dryness, sparking/still and no preservatives added) on local hard apple cider preference.

Consumers would pay a $3.22 premium for local hard apple cider compared with a $6.99 reference product. Local foods preferences, urbanization, weekly purchases of other alcoholic beverages and shopping venues influenced premium amounts. Other important attributes were sweetness/dryness and no preservatives. Influence of consumer demographics suggests targeted marketing of local ciders could be successful.

Few studies examine consumer preferences for hard apple ciders. This study represents a cross-sectional analysis of the premium consumers would pay for local hard apple ciders and the importance of other hard apple cider attributes.

Burgeoning challenges of climate change and poverty alleviation across many parts of the world have enforced the policy makers and researchers to develop an alternate system for performance assessment of an individual, a country, and a corporate. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the sustainability strategies of three leading states in the Indian leather industry – Tamil Nadu (TN), West Bengal (WB) and Uttar Pradesh (UP) – to gain insights into their efforts and progress in generating economic, social, and environmental values.

This study used case study approach for investigative analysis, and triangulation method – interviews and field visits, for data verification. The study examines the various sustainability strategies by applying economic value creation (evaluation of growth in total turnover, evaluation of the growth in profitability, evaluation of leverage), social value creation (evaluation of the growth in wages, evaluation of the growth in employee welfare expenses), and environmental value creation (conservation in raw material consumption, conservation in energy consumption, evaluation of waste management practices).

The findings reveal that the three states differ significantly from each other both in terms of efforts made and progress achieved during the period of study, 1998-2013. UP seems to be making the most consistent progress in achieving economic value, while WB shows the most progress in creating social value, and TN leads the pack in terms of creating environmental value. Thus, the three leading states in the Indian leather industry have been allowing trade-offs to get competitive advantage over others.

The opaqueness with which the Indian leather Industry conducts social and environmental practices clearly limits the sources of accurate and reliable data, and the ability of researchers to precisely identify the problems and suggest solutions.

The opaqueness with which the Indian leather Industry conducts social and environmental practices clearly impacts the policy makers, practitioners, and researchers to continue such initiatives and improve the lives of people in India for whom continuing this profession is a big challenge and a hurdle to accomplish their livelihood.

The paper gives a theoretical explanation of the sustainability in the leather industry with respect to its strategies in terms of economic value, social value, and environmental value.

This paper aims to focus on the antioxidant properties and consumer acceptability of biscuits produced from pearl millet (PM)–tiger nut (TN) composite blends, with the aim of encouraging the use of these under-utilised food crops in producing value-added products with nutraceutical potential.

PM grains and TN seeds were processed into flour and blended at ratios: 15:85 (A), 20:80 (B), 25:75 (C), 30:70 (D), 35:65 (E), 40:60 (F), 45:55 (G), of PM to TN using response surface methodology. The antioxidant properties of the biscuits produced from the flour blends were determined using standard methods, and data obtained were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA); differences of means were separated using Duncan multiple range test. The biscuits were subjected to sensory evaluation using 50 untrained panellist and results statistically analysed.

The total phenolic content (TPC-mg/GAE) of PM–TN flour blends ranged from 2.65-4.95 (A-G), with an average TPC of 3.85. In PM–TN biscuits, total phenolic values ranged from 1.20-3.42 (A-G), with an average of 2.39. The 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethyl benzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) radical scavenging activities (μmolTEAC/g) of PM–TN flour blends ranged from 26.7-36.4 (A-G), and the values for biscuits ranged from 28.5-38.6 (A-G). There was a highly significant correlation, r = 0.811(p < 0.001) and r = 0.913 (p < 0.001) between phenolic content and antioxidant activity for flour and biscuit, respectively. The effect of in vitro digestion of biscuits on the antioxidant assays viz-a-viz: TPC and ABTS radical scavenging activities were also investigated. The order of phenolic release was enzymic > aqueous > ethanolic digest for TPC, while for ABTS, the order of release was enzymic > ethanolic > aqueous. The highest values for antioxidant properties were found in the simulated in vitro enzyme digested biscuits. Consumer acceptability revealed that the overall acceptability scores of the biscuits were not significantly different except for biscuit sample G.

The paper has demonstrated the antioxidant potentials and consumer acceptability of PM–TN biscuits. It also shows the effect of in vitro digestion on the antioxidant activities of the biscuit and its potential health benefit, as a source of antioxidant.

Classification techniques have been applied to many applications in various fields of sciences. There are several ways of evaluating classification algorithms. The analysis of such metrics and its significance must be interpreted correctly for evaluating different learning algorithms. Most of these measures are scalar metrics and some of them are graphical methods. This paper introduces a detailed overview of the classification assessment measures with the aim of providing the basics of these measures and to show how it works to serve as a comprehensive source for researchers who are interested in this field. This overview starts by highlighting the definition of the confusion matrix in binary and multi-class classification problems. Many classification measures are also explained in details, and the influence of balanced and imbalanced data on each metric is presented. An illustrative example is introduced to show (1) how to calculate these measures in binary and multi-class classification problems, and (2) the robustness of some measures against balanced and imbalanced data. Moreover, some graphical measures such as Receiver operating characteristics (ROC), Precision-Recall, and Detection error trade-off (DET) curves are presented with details. Additionally, in a step-by-step approach, different numerical examples are demonstrated to explain the preprocessing steps of plotting ROC, PR, and DET curves.

This chapter shows how different recycling locations influence closed-loop supply chain (CLSC) cost and carbon dioxide equivalents (CO₂e), as well as reveal competitive recycling and manufacturing locations, including relevant distance- and location-related factors, for achieving very low cost and CO₂e CLSCs supporting circular economy. Exploratory data analysis is used to analyze results from simulations based on empirical data and market rates relating to textile and clothing CLSCs. The results show that most very low-cost and CO₂e CLSCs consist of fabric and garment manufacturing located at the same or nearby locations, and whose labor costs and electricity CO₂e are low, whether fiber recycling facilities are located in proximity to used garment sorting facilities or not. Scenario and sensitivity analyses of important cost and CO₂e factors for recycling location competitiveness reveal that increasing used garment prices makes locations with high import duties lose competitiveness, and that varying water freight CO₂e changes comparative location competitiveness.

This paper formulates and analyzes Bayesian model variants for the analysis of systems of spatial panel data with binary-dependent variables. The paper focuses on cases where latent variables of cross-sectional units in an equation of the system contemporaneously depend on the values of the same and, eventually, other latent variables of other cross-sectional units. Moreover, the paper discusses cases where time-invariant effects are exogenous versus endogenous. Such models may have numerous applications in industrial economics, public economics, or international economics. The paper illustrates that the performance of Bayesian estimation methods for such models is supportive of their use with even relatively small panel data sets.

The traction cable is paralleled with the existing traction network of electrified railway through transverse connecting line to form the scheme of long distance power supply for the traction network. This paper aims to study the scheme composition and power supply distance (PSD) of the scheme.

Based on the structure of parallel traction network (referred to as “cable traction network (CTN)”), the power supply modes (PSMs) are divided into cable + direct PSM and cable + autotransformer (AT) PSM (including Japanese mode, French mode and new mode). Taking cable + Japanese AT PSM as an example, the scheme of long distance power supply for CTN under the PSMs of co-phase and out-of-phase power supply are designed. On the basis of establishing the equivalent circuit model and the chain circuit model of CTN, taking the train working voltage as the constraint condition, and based on the power flow calculation of multiple train loads, the calculation formula and process for determining the PSD of CTN are given. The impedance and PSD of CTN under the cable + AT PSM are simulated and analyzed, and a certain line is taken as an example to compare the scheme design.

Results show that the equivalent impedance of CTN under the cable + AT PSM is smaller, and the PSD is about 2.5 times of that under the AT PSM, which can effectively increase the PSD and the flexibility of external power supply location.

The research content can effectively improve the PSD of traction power supply system and has important reference value for the engineering application of the scheme.