Evolution of product quality in European,Japanese and US automotive firms: An exploratory longitudinal analysis

For years we have been hearing that US automobile manufacturers have been losing market share to their Japanese rivals who are reputed to make better quality vehicles. Most such reports are based on the initial quality surveys on new automobiles. In this paper we address two exploratory questions: (1) how does the quality of an automobile change with its age, and, (2) can firm level variables help explain differences quality. To answer these questions, we collected Consumer Reports’ reliability ratings on approximately 300 automobile models made by European, Japanese and US automotive firms during the 1998–2007; and approximately 240 models made by these firms over period of 2008–2015. For both periods we found that not only do automobiles made by Japanese firms have higher initial quality, but, as automobiles get older the difference in the product quality between Japanese versus European and US firms increases. We also found that the more generalist a European or US automobile firm, i.e., the wider is the firm׳s product offering in the marketplace, the lower its overall automobile quality during the 1998–2007 period. Conversely, Japanese generalist firms were found to have higher quality than specialist firms over the same period. The result is partly explained by the fact that Japanese firms have taken a different path to broadening their product variety – they have ensured a high level of quality of their initial offerings before entering newer market segments. The rate of reliability decline was found to be slower for all firms, and the differences in reliability across the 3 groups of firms were much less pronounced during the 2008–2015 period. This improvement may be as result of restructuring done by US automobile firms.     

上海汽车产业绿色升级研究

伴随着我国汽车产业的迅猛发展,绿色环保汽车的设计与生产、废旧汽车的绿色回收等问题成为研究的热点,汽车产业链的绿色升级势在必行。汽车产业链包括汽车生产的产业链,也包括汽车消费及后消费的产业链。产业链的不同环节间存在着输入端资源减量和输出端污染减量的相互作用,必须通过上下游的协同运作来提升产业链的整体环境绩效。将创新型商业模式的产品服务系统与作为环境保护策略的生产者责任延伸制整合起来,研究两者耦合可为汽车产业绿色升级带来新思路和新方法。     

L’adaptation des modèles de production dans les pays émergents L’exemple de l’industrie automobile en Argentine

How to test for the existence of a new model of production based on the firm lending an ear to customer demands and valuing the individual and collective intelligence of its work force? The facts for putting this model to the test of reality come from an analysis of two Argentinean automobile-makers, subsidiaries of Toyota and Volkswagen. Various aspects of their organization policy provide evidence of their capacity for making adaptations by “hybridizing” the parent firm’s model with the rationales inherent in the network of local actors (suppliers and labor unions, in particular). These firms are open systems with a narrow margin of maneuver. — Special issue: Latin America.     

Predicting Insurance Losses Under Cross-Classification: A Comparison of Alternative Approaches

Various mathematical and statistical models for estimation of automobile insurance pricing are reviewed. The methods are compared on their predictive ability based on two sets of automobile insurance data for two different states collected over two different periods. The issue of model complexity versus data availability is resolved through a comparison of the accuracy of prediction. The models reviewed range from the use of simple cell means to various multiplicative-additive schemes to the empirical-Bayes approach. The empirical-Bayes approach, with prediction based on both model-based and individual cell estimates, seems to yield the best forecast.     

交强险的成本因素分析

 内容提要：本文应用聚类分析方法和Beta回归模型对2009年度交强险审计报告所披露的交强险经营数据进行了分析。结果表明,交强险在31个地区的赔付率差异显著,主要影响因素包括人均收入水平、物价指数、人均交通支出和人均车辆数。交强险9个业务类别之间的赔付率差异也很明显,表明现行保费水平存在严重的不公平。各地区的赔付率和费用率之间存在反常的负向相关关系,反映了交强险在费用分摊中存在某种不合理现象。保险公司的经营费用率在不同地区之间和不同业务类别之间都没有显著差异,主要受保险公司业务规模的影响,规模经济效应显著。     

上海国际汽车城环同济知识经济圈的定位及发展思路

上海国际汽车城环同济知识经济圈在嘉定区和同济大学的战略合作布局中居于重要位置。在对上海国际汽车城的产业发展现状、环同济13平方公里的城区发展和土地利用等情况进行充分调研和分析的基础上,结合同济大学嘉定校区的学科现状及未来发展方向,探讨了产学研结合的主要方向,提出上海国际汽车城环同济知识经济圈的整体定位和具体发展思路。     

我国中部地区汽车产业自主创新研究

汽车工业已成为我国中部地区的支柱产业之一,自主创新是发展我国中部地区汽车工业的唯一选择。中部地区汽车工业已具备较高技术平台、投入巨额研发资金、已赢得国内外市场等优势,应运用造车理念、核心技术创新、创新形式多元化、自主品牌创新、开拓国内外市场、集群创新等综合战略加快其自主创新发展,进而加速实现我国中部地区崛起。     

Solutions to the Challenge of Meeting Rural Transportation Needs: Middle-Aged and Older Adults’ Perspectives

This study aimed to explore how the aging population in Appalachia manages its transportation and plans for the transition to non-driving and to seek possible solutions to the challenge of meeting rural transportation needs. Four focus groups (N = 38) were conducted, supplemented by a questionnaire, in Appalachian Kentucky. The results showed that few alternative transportation existed except a local paratransit service and informal transportation support. Compared to older adults, middle-aged adults reported a greater willingness to use mobile phones and the Internet to arrange transportation if they were available. Participants also recommended expanding the use of existing transportation in the community – such as church vans – to better meet the aging population’s needs. The findings suggest that partnership between government, non-profit, and private sectors is needed, not solely focusing on a tax-dependent solution. Additionally, information and communication technology-based transportation management system would help maximize the use of scare but existing resources in rural areas.     

Early inference on reliability of upgraded automotive components by using past data and technical information

When a new product is the result of design and/or process improvements introduced in its predecessors, then the past failure data and the expert technical knowledge constitute a valuable source of information that can lead to a more accurate reliability estimate of the upgraded product. This paper proposes a Bayesian procedure to formalize the prior information available about the failure probability of an upgraded automotive component. The elicitation process makes use of the failure data of the past product, the designer information on the effectiveness of planned design/process modifications, information on actual working conditions of the upgraded component and, for outsourced components, technical knowledge on the effect of possible cost reductions. By using the proposed procedure, more accurate estimates of the failure probability can arise. The number of failed items in a future population of vehicles is also predicted to measure the effect of a possible extension of the warranty period. Finally, the proposed procedure was applied to a case study and its feasibility in supporting reliability estimation is illustrated.     

汽车发动机点火系仿真实验台的设计

汽车发动机点火系仿真实验台将点火系与曲轴活塞连杆机构的匹配完全裸露 ,使其具有直观性 ,便于教学。本文重点介绍了模拟传统点火系仿真实验台的设计目的和原理以及设计方案的实现。