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In this paper, the authors study the entry and outsourcing strategies of manufacturer while considering the brand spillover effect resulting from outsourcing. The supply chain comprises two manufacturers: one being the entrant with a strong brand, and the other as the incumbent with a weak brand. The entrant decides whether and how to enter the market.

Stackelberg game is applied to study the optimal strategies for the manufacturers. This paper conducts a comparative analysis on four situations, yielding conclusions and managerial insights.

The results show that, for the entrant, there is no need to worry about the brand spillover effect in the outsourcing process, which is very interesting and counterintuitive. To get further, the authors find the reason: The spillover effect causes the entrant’s equilibrium retail price to grow faster than the wholesale price. They also prove that a stronger brand effect empowers the entrant to challenge industry barriers, while the impact of the brand spillover effect is the opposite. For the incumbent who acts as the weak party in this issue, it is demonstrated that the optimal choice is to continue selling when facing the encroachment and outsourcing call from the entrant.

Differing from previous studies, the authors notice the brand spillover effect caused by outsourcing when studying company’s entry strategy. They further divide the brand effect into two parts, one of which does not exhibit a spillover.

In this paper, the authors aim to consider the manufacturer's battery research and development (R&D) decision under subsidy. The supply chain includes two manufacturers, which produce substitutable electric vehicles, and a battery supplier. One of the manufacturers can choose to develop batteries or buy batteries. The authors assume consumers do not have enough trust in the manufacturer-made battery.

Stackelberg game is made use of to study the battery R&D strategy of the manufacturer under the incentive of government subsidies. This paper makes a comparative analysis on six situations, then the authors get some conclusions and give some managerial insights.

The results show that subsidy strategies do not necessarily reduce actual payments when the manufacturer does not research and develop batteries. The retail prices and actual payments are closely related to the substitutability and total cost advantage of product. The authors also find consumer trust positively affects the demand of the electric vehicles using the manufacturer-made batteries and then affects the manufacturer's battery R&D decision. When consumers have low trust in manufacturer-made battery, subsidy can bring greater sales and make R&D more profitable than procurement, so that the manufacturer chooses R&D. This study's findings also suggest consumer subsidy is always better for the government.

Distinguished from previous studies, the authors discuss the decision-making of component research, and introduce various government subsidy strategies and consumer trust to study their roles in the manufacturer's battery R&D choice.

The purpose of this paper was to use visual and arc sensors to simultaneously obtain the underwater wet welding information, and a weld seam-forming model was made to predict the weld seam's geometric parameters. It is difficult to obtain a fine welding quality in underwater welding because of the intense disturbances of the water environment. To automatically control the welding quality, the weld seam-forming model should first be established. Thus, the foundation was laid for automatically controlling the underwater welding seam-forming quality.

Visual and arc sensors were used simultaneously to obtain the weld seam image, current and voltage information; then signal algorithms were used to process the information, and the back propagation (BP) neural network was used to model the process.

Experiment results showed that the BP neural network model could precisely predict the weld seam-forming parameters of underwater wet welding.

A weld seam-forming model of underwater wet welding process was made; this laid the foundation for establishing a controller for controlling the underwater wet welding process automatically.

The objective of this chapter is to interpret a supply chain as an ontological entity with being-in-the-world of spacetimemattering. A case study approach is adopted to reveal the strategies undertaken by one of China’s fastest growing Internet companies – Xiaomi Inc. – to create competitive advantage through its management of product design and supply chain integration. Utilizing publicly available data, we analyze the company with quantum storytelling and network analysis techniques. Our analysis concludes that Xiaomi’s success originates from two aspects. First, Xiaomi is a good storyteller, who makes stories appealing to customers by involving them into product design and branding. Second, Xiaomi’s parsimonious supply chain substantially improves its market responsiveness and reduces disruption risks; more importantly, it helps to offer products of great value to customers.

This paper aims to examine the extent to which social media competence (SMC) determines exporting companies’ actual adoption of social media applications, which eventually might impact these firms’ performance. Quantitative study where data were collected through a web-based survey addressed to Spanish exporters. SEM is employed for testing the hypotheses. SMC has an influence on the firm’s actual use of these social media applications, which in turn has an impact on the firm’s performance. However, the intention to use social media applications mediates the relationship between the firm’s SMC and its social media usage.

This paper aims to study the micro-structure evolution of friction layers to optimize the friction and wear behaviors of TiAl-based material. It further enlarges the scope of using TiAl alloys and increase in the service life of TiAl alloy-made mechanical components, especially under some extreme conditions.

To study the structure evolution of friction layers, the HT-1000 tribometer is used to study the friction and wear properties of as-prepared samples. With the assistance of field emission scanning electron microscopy and an electron probe micro-analyzer, the stratified structures in cross-sections and a surface morphology of the wear scars are well characterized. A ST400 surface profiler helps in better understanding of the three-dimensional texture profiles of wear scars. X-ray diffractometer (XRD) is also used to analyze phases in the as-prepared samples.

An analysis method on the micro-structure evolution can provide better views to understand the influence of friction layers on the tribological behavior, at different wear stages. It finds that the micro-structure evolution of friction layers has an immediate effect on the friction coefficients and wear rates of TiAl-based material. It also proves to be a useful tool for evaluating the behaviors in friction and wear of TiAl-based material.

The findings of this paper provide better assistance to explore the effect of friction layers on the friction and wear behaviors of TiAl-based materials. The results help in deep understanding of the micro-structure evolution of friction layers. It also increases the service life of TiAl-based mechanical components.

The purpose of this paper is to prepare carbon fiber-reinforced polyimide matrix composites and to investigate the single role of carbon fiber in polyimide composites on tribological performance under distilled water condition.

Three carbon fiber-reinforced polyimide matrix composites were fabricated by using a hot press molding technique. The tribological behaviors of carbon fiber-reinforced polyimide matrix composites sliding against steel ball were evaluated with a ball-on-disk tribotester under distilled water condition. Meanwhile, the effect of different length of carbon fiber on the wear resistance of polyimide matrix composites was investigated during the sliding process.

The friction coefficients and specific wear rates of polyimide composites containing 100 μm carbon fibers were lower than those of other specimens. The wear mechanism of carbon fiber-reinforced composites was delamination under distilled water condition. The interfacial combination between the carbon fiber and matrix became worse with the increase of length of carbon fiber.

This paper reported the effect of the different length of carbon fiber on polyimide matrix composites to prepare mechanical parts in mining industrial fields.

Coral aggregate seawater concrete (CASC) is a new type of lightweight aggregate concrete that is becoming widely used in reef engineering. To investigate the corrosion behavior of different kinds of rebar in CASC exposed to simulated seawater for 0-270 d, the electrochemical techniques, including linear polarization resistance (LPR) technique and the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), were used in the present work.

The electrochemical techniques, including LPR technique and the EIS, were used in the present work.

Based on the time-varying law of linear polarization curves, self-corrosion potential (E_corr), polarization resistance (R_p), corrosion current density (I_corr), corrosion rate (i), and the characteristics of EIS diagrams for different types of rebar in CASC, it can be found that the anti-corrosion property of them can be ranked as epoxy resin coated steel > 2205 duplex stainless steel (2205S) > 316 L stainless steel (316 L) > organic coated steel > ordinary steel. Additionally, the linear regression equation between R_p and charge transfer resistance (R_ct) was established. Finally, the EIS corrosion standard of rebar was established from the LPR corrosion standard, which provides a direct standard for the EIS technique to determine the condition of rebar in CASC.

The linear regression equation between polarization resistance and charge transfer resistance was established. And the EIS corrosion standard of rebar was established from the LPR corrosion standard, which provides a direct standard for the EIS technique to determine the condition of rebar in CASC.