We propose two methods and an apparatus for counting stacked plywood sheets. The first method is based on the normalized cross-correlation method. In this method, an inspection image is first scanned and the cross-correlation of the template image of the stacked plywood cross-section is then investigated in order to obtain the number of normalized cross-correlation maxima, which indicates the number of plywood sheets. The second method is based on the cross-validation method and uses an estimation model to determine the central portion of each plywood sheet in the cross-section of the plywood stack. An application example demonstrates that the methods proposed can reduce the time required for counting plywood sheets by more than 40% as compared to current methods.

This study deals with the production seat booking system for the make-to-stock manufacturing process. This system comprises scheduling that resembles an airline or train booking system. The seat setting as production capacity control is an important part of this system, because of such problems as too many seats (which cause idling time) or too few seats (which cause missed opportunities due to delivery delays) in the actual manufacturing processes using this system. This study considers two controllable parameters. The first is to reserve production capacity and the second is to set standard inventory levels in the seat setting. We suggest the control method of the seat setting to support decision-making for schedulers in the actual manufacturing process, according to showing the estimation method of two controllable parameters to minimize the inventory cost as criteria by multiple regression analysis.

Customers react differently when a product is temporarily unavailable at a store, depending on their brand and store loyalty. By including backlogging, brand switching, and store switching—which we consider a customer's active responses to product stockout—we extend a traditional newsvendor model to apply to the two-stage supply chain of a manufacturer and multiple homogeneous retailers, each of which sells several substitutable products to end-customers. This research investigates the effect of consumer behavior with regard to product unavailability on a retailer's stocking decisions, the retailer's expected profits, and the possibility of supply chain coordination. Moreover, assuming that the building of brand and store loyalty positively affects a customer's tendency to respond actively to stockouts, we explore how a firm's marketing efforts influence supply chain coordination over a product's life cycle. We find that an active response to stockout is not always beneficial for an individual firm but can, at certain levels, substitute for a supply chain contract as a tool to coordinate the supply chain. In addition, we show that when customer response to product unavailability is sufficiently active, the additional profits resulting from the development of customer's loyalty can cover the buy-back payment the manufacturer must pay to the retailers. Based on our analytical results, we propose managerial implications regarding how a supply chain should adjust loyalty management over a product's life cycle.