TATA Company International Business

Introduction International business refers to commercial transactions that are conducted across political boarders. The boarder may describe countries, nations, states or even regions. International business is normally undertaken for purposes of profit making though transactions by governments at times carry political benefits.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on TATA Company’ International Business specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This paper seeks to discuss aspects of international business with respect to a case study about TATA Company. The paper will look into the case study to identify contemporary issues that are facing the company and to carry out an evaluator analysis into the company’s position and environment. The house of Tata The house of Tata is a family enterprise that was established in the year 1868. Having been established as a trading organization, the firm evolved over time to expa nd and diversify its operations in different sectors. Just six years after its establishment, the firm turned into dealing in textiles. The company also expanded in its financial capacity and was able to establish a luxury hotel in the country in the year 1903. Four years later, the firm established a steel company. Though the firm then took time before entering into another venture, it made a major step in the year 1932 to own an airline. The house of Tata also developed a subsidiary firm that, in the year 1968, deals in software. Besides its economic significance, the Tata group has been identified as a socially sensitive enterprise following its participation in charity activities. By the year 1938, the group had expanded to thirteen companies following the ventures that established its subsidiaries. One of the administrative approaches that the group developed under J. Tata as its chairman was the autonomy that the subsidiaries were granted. A level of independence in management was advocated for which led to the group’s firms expanding to overlap in their products. By the end of J. Tata’s reign as the group’s chairperson in the year 1991, Tata group had expanded from thirteen companies to three hundred companies. The entrance of R. Tata in the year 1991 to head the group was characterized with a lot of change in the organization. Ratan managed to revive some of the organization’s subsidiaries that were not stable such as the steel company and the motors company. He also restructured the firms many subsidiaries to work in groups that were based on the type of products offered. His restructuring reorganized the group into sectors that were â€Å"information systems and communications; engineering; materials; chemicals; consumer products; energy; and services† (Khanna, Palepu and Bullock, 2009, p. 2). Some of the company’s later significant developments have been international ventures through acquisitions and merger s with foreign companies (Khanna, Palepu and Bullock, 2009, p. 2).Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Contemporary issues facing the company The long time duration in which the Tata group has existed has been characterized with features of opportunities, threats, strengths and even weaknesses. One of the issues that have been evident with the group, with specification to the Tata motors, has been its exploration and existence in the global market (Tata, n.d., p. 1). The group has a record of entry into the international market since the beginning of the twenty first century. The move by the company that includes acquisitions and integrations has been its strategy for exploration of and expansion into markets. The bid by the company to acquire Jaguar and Land Rover that were out for bids in the United States was an example of such explorations. Surowiecki reports that by the ye ar 2008, Tata Company had not explored the motor vehicle industry in the United States and its brand of product were not even available on the American roads. Though the company had a strong history with productions in India, it was not even yet known in the United States. The company’s dominance in its domestic market without any significant feature in foreign markets such as the United States and European markets, according to Surowiecki were due to the economic environment that surrounded the global market (Surowiecki, 2008, p. 1). Another international move by Tata motors was its partnership with MG rovers of Britain in the year 2003 that enabled the company to explore the European market. This move led to the introduction of â€Å"the Indica into the European market as the CityRover† (Khanna, Palepu and Bullock, 2009, p. 11).  In the partnership, Tata exported the brand of vehicle that was then sold in Europe by MG motors. Other acquisitions and partnerships wer e made with respect to companies in countries such as Spain, Brazil and Korea among others (Khanna, Palepu and Bullock, 2009, p. 14). The compa ny’s engagement in international trade is still on its course with an increasing trend being registered in the company’s exportation of vehicles. In April 2010 for example, the company exported one unit of a Nano brand of car that it had developed. The level of exportation of the same brand grew to reach four hundred and ninety eight by April 2011. The company is also reported to be making plans to further expand its international influence with plans to establish production units in regions such as the Latin America and Africa. Marketing techniques to expand its market in the already explored areas are also international avenues that are still being explored (News, 2011, p. 1).Advertising We will write a custom report sample on TATA Company’ International Business specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/ page Learn More Apart from the direct establishment of the company in the external markets, it has been deriving mutual exchange of expertise from the regions in which it expands. Acquisitions have for example been relinquishing technological rights to the company. The company has also to a great extent benefited from exchanging its management within its structure in different regions. A movement of a manager from one environment to another will lead to transfer of skills to the new region (Tata, n.d., p. 1).  There are also a number of issues that face the company in the form of weaknesses. One of such is the brand of vehicles that the company has been producing. Its brands have been associated with middle economic class which can not afford expensive cars. The brands are also outdated in the environment that has realized innovations from competitive companies. With the availability of many companies in the motor industry in the Indian market and the competition pr ovided by international automobile producers, the company has been struggling to cope with the market that is influenced by new car models in fashion (Research, 2009, p. 7). Also significant among the issues facing the company is the quality of its products in relation to those from other producers in the industry. A survey that was conducted over manufacturer’s ratings in the motor vehicle industry reveals that the company is not among consumer’s favorites. The result of the research that was based on factors such as â€Å"safety, quality, value, performance, environmental friendliness, design and technology† revealed a preference of other manufacturer’s vehicles as opposed to those of Tata. In relation to safety of vehicles, there are competition from brands such as â€Å"Volvo, Ford, Subaru† among others that are rated above Tata (Consumer, 2010, p. 1). Quality also rates brands such as â€Å"Toyota, Honda and Ford† among others as prefer red and value ranks â€Å"Honda, Toyota and Ford† among others in the level of preference (Consumer, 2010, p. 1). With brands such as those of Toyota, Honda and Ford among others being preferred over Tata with respect to all the aspects of the research, it is a clear indicator that regardless of the lower price of the Tata brands, they might not be preferred among those that have enough money to purchase the brands such as Toyota which have also diversified to realize production of cheap car models. The lowly priced productions of the company which has been associated with inefficiency with respect to aspects such as safety, value and quality among other car properties has thus in the long run worked to the disadvantage of the company. Other companies in the motor vehicle industry therefore have the capacity to beat Tata both in the international market as well as in India which the companies have infiltrated (Consumer, 2010, p. 1).Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Another survey that ranked vehicle brands with respect to number of problems registered per one hundred vehicles also reveals lack of efficiency in the vehicle model. According to the survey, Honda closes the list of top five with ninety nine problems registered out of every one hundred vehicles sampled. Tata vehicles are therefore characterized with at least 100 problems per 100 sampled vehicles. This reveals a probability that each and every Tata brand of vehicles have problems. Such cases of problems associated with its vehicles may turn customers away from the company’s brands (Top, 2011, p. 1).  Tata together with the entire Indian auto mobile industry has also been criticized with poor strategy in its attempt to acquire market for its products. Though the company has realized growth in market control, it is feared that this influence could be short leaved. The company has been criticized for not employing modern technologies in its production and marketing processes. One of the poor strategies that have been realized of Tata is the offensive move to counter competition that it realizes in the market without appropriate long term plans. A move that Tata has not yet identified though is perceived to be of great benefit to it is the reduction in its expenditures and development of the quality of products that it offers (Rediff, 2004, p. 1). Weaknesses facing the company are also reported to include lower return on investment which gives reflection of low profitability. The company’s sales in India are also reported to be less than its targets besides its inability to capture the market of luxury cars (MBA, 2009, p. 1). The issue of Tata’s acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover Though Tata has had a past of acquisitions and mergers with other companies especially in the bid to expand its market influence, it ought not to acquire the two brands of vehicles, Jaguar and Land Rover. Available options to Tata group Though the Tata group has m ajorly resorted to mergers and acquisitions in its bid to expand, especially to the international market, it in general terms has a variety of options for expansion of its market in foreign countries. Ansoff’s growth matrix One of the strategies that the group can adopt is the matrix approach that is based on consideration of both market forces and the organizations products. Under this approach, considerations are made with respect to existing markets and products as well as possible new markets and products. The approach then gives rise to elements such as â€Å"market penetration, product development, market development and diversification† (Action, n.d., 1). Market penetration: market penetration refers to the move by a firm to increase its control of an existing market. Under this move, the Tata group can make efforts to capitalize on the control of its domestic market that it has experienced and has good knowledge of. This approach may be less risky and relativel y cheaper for the company as compared to the acquisitions that are directed to new and distant markets from the firm’s original location. Market development as an approach to the matrix method on the other hand entails the introduction of an organizations existing product into new markets. The market could be the organization’s domestic or a foreign one. Under this approach, the group can resort to exploring its unexploited markets in terms of geographical regions and social classes. It can take its products to these markets and employ marketing strategies to increase its sales in these markets. This, if successful can enable the company to increase its sales and hence its revenues and profitability.  Product development on the other hand establishes new products into an existing market. With this approach, the firm can enter into innovations of new brands of commodities such as its own initiatives into new brands of luxury vehicles for example. With its originality, the organization can then take advantage of the good will that it has over time developed in India and its other markets. Following the company’s ability that has given it market share in the past, its newly introduced products will be acceptable and even perform better if they are associated with developed quality and efficiencies. Tata can similarly introduce its new products and venture them in entirely new environments. Such could have been the case instead of acquisitions. The company could have been introducing its originally invented products into markets such as the United States, Europe and even other regions like Latin America and Africa. The diversification approach can be in the organization’s lines of production or can be ventures into other lines such introduction of a different commodity (Action, n.d., 1). Franchising and licensing The use of franchising and licensing over intellectual property is another avenue that the company can employ to help it im prove its revenues. With relatively less investments into inventions, the company can earn from contracts over its intelligence. The advantage behind franchising is the fact that it is not capital intensive and is therefore less risky once the property is established. Such moves will also help Tata in developing capacity into innovative moves for more quality products (Action, n.d., 1). Public equity Generating funds from public investors into major development steps that could only be unaffordable to the company can also be a strategy. Given enough resources such as finances, the firm can for instance have the capacity to develop new brands and their manufacturing sites in its domestic and foreign markets. Direct ventures such as increasing its direct exports into foreign markets are also a positive move (Action, n.d., 1). Foreign direct investments Another venture that Tata could have adopted in its initiative to diversify into international market is through foreign direct invest ments into its target countries. With the general wave of countries encouraging for foreign direct investments with even government initiatives to facilitate the same, Tata could take the advantage to establish its production units in foreign markets (Bento Joao, 2009, 2). Evaluation The decision against Tata’s acquisition of the two models is based on the circumstances that have surrounded the vehicle brands. One of the issues that clouded the acquisition of the brands is the economic downfall in the brand’s dominant markets which is the United States and Europe. With the melt down, Tata company was undertaking a risk that could impact its financial stability. This is because the vehicle brands had in the first place been associated with significant loses and coupled with the poor economic status in their markets; Tata stood a risk of failing to recover its investments in the two brands. The currency factor that would over time change due to cross border transactions also posed a threat to Tata’s financial interests in the transaction. The move thus put Tata’s profitability at great risk (Icmirida, 2008, p. 7). Another challenge to the acquisition would be the barriers in the culture between the operational set ups of the acquired brands and that of Tata’s India. In India for instance, there is an established culture that any business that is crumbling can be revived even under limited resources and poor business environment. Though this is a good philosophy, it is not very promising in environments where productions are based on efficiencies and resource limitation is not a factor. The two brands that are at their poor financial states might not be successfully revived to a competitive level with other European and American brands as would be possible in India where domestic competitors depend on the philosophy (Thite, Wilkinson and Budhwar, n.d., p. 2). The poor quality production reported of Tata, that could be associated with its Indian philosophy of working under limited resources, could as well pose a threat to the development of the already loss oriented car brands. This is actually significant in the environment where unlike India, quality is given preference. The investment might therefore not pick up to sustainability (Hall, 2011, p. 1). The general trend that was adopted by the firm in its move to venture into the international market appears to be more risky relative to other available options for expansion into international markets. Measures such as the growth matrix and exportation allow an investing entity a basis of originality that could drive well among customers. Direct foreign investments that are well initiated with established authority and rights of the investor are another positive avenue for expansion. Acquisitions and mergers especially with entities that are not profit making in on the other hand a more tasking initiative (Action, n.d., 1), (Bento Joao, 2009, 2). Recommendat ions Regardless of the company’s moves to expand its market control in the motor vehicle industry, it is still faced with problems such as inefficiencies in its production processes leading low quality products. The company should therefore develop a strategy into transforming its operations to be in line with the level of technology and quality in the market. This will help the company’s products to gain preference among consumers. The company should also take measures to directly improve its image in the market. Contrary to moving to have acquisitions as a strategy to increasing its sales, the company should concentrate its efforts on marketing its cheap brands in developing country where customers might resort to lower cost as opposed to expensive brands. The company also has better and safer approaches into the international market. Instead of rushing into acquisitions and mergers, the firm can independently make avenues into the international markets. Foreign dire ct investments, exportation and market expansion would be better for the Tata group of companies. Conclusion The Tata group having been established as a family business developed over time to have independent subsidiaries. Its development has also included diversification of its market by acquiring enterprises in international markets. The company is however characterized by a weak system that produces poor quality products. Its move to acquire Jaguar and Land Rover don’t seem to be a good move following its weaknesses and the threats that such acquisitions are associated with. On the contrary, the firm should have adopted other techniques in exploring the international market. References Action. (n.d.). growing your business- growth and expansion. Available from: http://www.ace.org.sg/Site/Page.aspx?id=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000013421. Bento Joao. (2009). Economic Integration, International Trade and the Role of Foreign Direct Investment: The Case of Portuguese Manufact uring. Berlin, Germany: LIT Verlag Mà ¼nster Consumer. (2010) Most important factors in buying a car. [Online] Available from: http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/cars/new-cars/news/2010/01/2010-car-brand-perceptions-survey/most-important-factors/brand-perceptions-most-important-factors.htm Hall, W. (2011) Jaguar Land Rover: Halewood makes its case. [Online] Available from: http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/41a5ef84-8dbf-11dd-83d5-0000779fd18c.html#axzz1NflZEKu0 Icmirida. (2008) Tata motor’s acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover. [Online] Available from: http://www.icmrindia.org/casestudies/catalogue/Business%20strategy/BSTR313.htm Khanna, T., Palepu, K and Bullock, R. (2009) House of Tata: Acquiring a global footprint. New York: Cengage Learning. MBA. (2009) TATA motors swot analysis. [Online] Available from: http://www.mba-tutorials.com/marketing/251-tata-motors-swot-analysis.html News. (2011) Nano goes global as Tata Motors begins export. [Online] Available from: http://ne ws.24by7info.net/nano-goes-global-as-tata-motors-begins-export/ Rediff. (2004) The big threat to Indian autos. [Online] Available from: http://www.rediff.com/money/2004/sep/21guest2.htm Research. (2009) Automobile sector. [Online] Available from: http://www.slideshare.net/Nisha08/research-3372818 Surowiecki, J. (2008) The Tata invasion. [Online] Available from: http://www.newyorker.com/talk/financial/2008/01/28/080128ta_talk_surowiecki Tata. (n.d.) SWOT Analysis-Tata motors limited. [Online] Available from: http://www.marketingteacher.com/swot/tata-motors-swot.html Thite, M., Wilkinson, A and Budhwar, P. (n.d.) Internationalization of India Inc. [Online] Available from: https://www.google.com/url?sa=tsource=webcd=2ved=0CCgQFjABurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.shrm.org%2Fabout%2Ffoundation%2Fresearch%2FDocuments%2FThite%2520India%2520Paper%25204-11.docxrct=jq=acquisition%20of%20jaguar%20by%20tata-%20cultural%20barrierei=ejjhTY_9C4rAhAfU09HWBgusg=AFQjCNGGw6IcSVzGg87ej21DtOKdnTxz8wcad=rja To p. (2011) The top 5 car brands with the least quality problems. [Online] Available from: http://www.top5ofanything.com/index.php?h=24788248 This report on TATA Company’ International Business was written and submitted by user Jillian Farmer to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

How does Act 3 Scene 1 create and increase the dramatic tension leading to the end of the play Essays

How does Act 3 Scene 1 create and increase the dramatic tension leading to the end of the play Essays How does Act 3 Scene 1 create and increase the dramatic tension leading to the end of the play Essay How does Act 3 Scene 1 create and increase the dramatic tension leading to the end of the play Essay Shakespeare, soon to become the worlds most famous playwright, was in his peak of playwriting abilities during 1593 when he wrote Romeo and Juliet. He wrote to entertain in the Rose Theatre, Bankside in London. At that time London was a lively, highly populated place where aspiring writers and entertainers may go to claim their fortunes and in many ways still is. William Shakespeare had many rivals and obstacles to overcome and was living life on the edge.The Master of the Revels was able to shut down theatres at the strike of a pen as it was seen to be unholy to go to the theatre and many other writers also hoped for success, one of them being Christopher Marlowe. Romeo and Juliet was Shakespeares first play that was exciting enough to really rival Marlowe, mainly because it includes, portrays and expresses basic and important emotions such as love, passion and violence which are still felt strongly to this day. This is one of the reasons it is studied, watched and respected in the twenty first century.Romeo and Juliet is set in sixteenth century Italy in fair Verona. The play is set around two rival high status families from which two opposing star crossed lovers take their life. The families are typical of high status Italian families we hear about today: always feuding, outgoing, loud, strong minded and very quick tempered. In many ways these families are the roots of the modern mafia. This intertextuality already increases the dramatic tension. Many characters are involved in the play and they stand for different binary oppositions: Benvolio is a peaceful person, I do but keep the peace whereas the fiery Tybalt is a very violent and hot headed person, what, drawn and talk of peace? I hate the word.However some characters are very similar such as Mercutio and Tybalt; they are both quick witted, volatile and both resort to violence which is shown before they meet making the audience (in sixteenth century theatre the audience were entertained most by violence and sex) excited at the prospect of the two most violent people in the play who happen to be enemies meeting; also increasing the dramatic tension. Another aspect increasing the dramatic tension is in the prologue it states where civil blood makes civil blood unclean. The audience will have experienced a public brawl in which no-one was killed which also resulted in a warning from the prince that anymore public fighting will result in death, your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace. This will leave the audience wondering when death will result, keeping the audience involved and anticipating this event.Another Event that increases the dramatic tension is in Act 2 scene 6 Romeo and Juliet get secretly married, Come, come with me, and we will make short work, For by your leaves, you shall not stay alone till holy church incorporate into one., creating dramatic irony as only us, Romeo, Juliet, Friar Lawrence and the Nurse know about it. This dramatic irony comes into play effectiv ely during Act 3 scene 1 when Tybalt confronts Romeo.During Act 3 scene 1 Tybalt approaches the Montague and Mercutio looking for Romeo. The day is hot, the capels abroad, and if we meet shall not scape a brawl This reinforces Benvolios character as cautious and peaceful and also implies a fight will happen soon once the Capulets and the Montagues meet increasing the audiences expectations of the fatal confrontation, adding to the dramatic tension. When Tybalt arrives, the atmosphere changes and Benvolio warns By my head here comes the Capulets. To which Mercutio replies By my heel, I care not, showing Mercutios quick wit and his will for a fight although perhaps not a serious retort.In the play I feel that Mercutios line should be spoken slowly and confidently as it is one of the key lines in the play signifying a violent challenge may arise during or soon after this scene. The mood really changes when Tybalt and Mercutio start quarrelling, starting off with Tybalt provoking Mercut io by insulting him by suggesting he is homosexual with Romeo Mercutio, thou consortest with Romeo. Consort is an Elizabethan word meaning to keep company or to entertain. Mercutios response in my mind is very clever and quick witted as he turns the insult into a challenge to fight as he draws his sword as he describes as a fiddlestick, Consort? Dost thou make us minstrels?And thou make minstrels of us, look to hear nothing but discords. Heres my fiddlestick, heres that shall make you dance. Zounds, consort!. Dramatic tension is increased as the audience now fully expects a fight and may remember the princes warning. The similarities between Mercutio and Tybalt are now very clear but one difference is that Mercutio speaks in prose whereas Tybalt speaks in Poetry suggesting maybe that Tybalt is more sophisticated or Mercutio is in a mild rage unable to project his words clearly and Tybalt is more calm and confident.As Romeo enters dramatic irony adds to the ever increasing dramatic t ension because the audience remembers the secret marriage between him and Tybalts cousin Juliet. Tybalt immediately insults Romeo and challenges him but he refuses saying But love thee better than thou canst devise leaving Mercutio infuriated, O calm, dishonourable, vile submission!, and Tybalt confused. At this point the audience knows a fight will happen even if Romeo isnt involved. Mercutio then challenges Tybalt and they proceed to fight; Romeo tries to split up the brawl but this results in Mercutio being wounded. Tybalt then leaves. Mercutio jokes about his injury but clearly states that it is fatal Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man. Although he is still joking while he says thiscreating some relief for the audience using the word grave as a pun meaning both: a trench dug in the ground for the burial of a corpse and serious or sombre. And blames Romeo repeating A plaque aboth houses, leaving Romeo feeling guilty and feeling as though he has to avenge Merc utios certain death. Mercutio leaves before he dies, which could be for many reasons: he is a very popular character and the audience would be annoyed to see him die or simply maybe Shakespeare wouldnt have wanted too many bodies on stage.Dramatic tension is dramatically increased now as the audience has witnessed one death but feel as though another death will occur, seeing Romeo seeking revenge. Tybalt comes back finding Romeo challenging him showing a new side to Romeo. This shall determine that. They fight and eventually Romeo overcomes Tybalt and kills him. This is a totally new side to Romeo we havent seen yet as he has been portrayed as a gentleman and a peaceful person much like Benvolio.This is perhaps the turning point in the play as Romeos violent side has been exposed and leaves the audience wondering whether this is his true personality or whether it was a one off burst of rage. This turning point signifies the play is moving faster to the dramatic conclusion, building up the dramatic tension for later in the play. Romeo exclaims O, I am fortunes fool. before leaving. This I feel should be shouted as it truly expresses Romeo emotions and feelings at this present point in time and it signifies the involvement of fate which is mentioned before in the play.Romeo leaves just in time as the Prince arrives along with Lord Montague, Lord Capulet and their wives. The Prince decides that punishing Romeo with death would be un-necessary as enough lives have been taken already so instead he banishes Romeo from Verona but he if he returns he will be killed. And for that offence immediately do we exile him hence. This creates dramatic tension as it leaves the audience wondering what Romeo will do as he can either return to see Juliet and run the risk of being caught and killed or he can Stay away for Verona and not see his Juliet.During Act 3 Scene 1 the Elizabethan audience would have responded well because it was fast paced with lots of exits and entrances, violence and excitement. I personally feel that this is the most interesting and exciting scene as it unravels peoples true personalities and the dramatic tension is built up very well until two climactic fights.

Stafford Act Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Stafford Act - Essay Example However, despite the act having very clear stipulations on the process of emergency declaration, types of assistance on disaster available and means of dispatching and coordinating the assistance, critics have pointed out over a number of weaknesses of the Act as it is. The shortcomings pointed out over the act therefore necessitate a thorough reform on the Stafford Act in order to ensure its efficiency and effectiveness is guaranteed. Thesis statement: A complete reformation of the Act is not only important but also argent as the Stafford Act lacks flexibility and is slow to provide cash quickly in the event of disaster which is declared an emergency. Major shortcomings of the Act as it is are observed right from the procedures that are to be followed in declaration of an emergency as a disaster by the governor and the president to the ultimate response through financial and physical support as deemed necessary. The main weakness observed by this paper is on the lack of flexibility and quick response as is caused by lots of bureaucracy while establishing the magnitude of the effect of the disaster by the local authorities and having the governor request for assistance from the president through writing which must also pass through such offices as the office of regional director. In spite of the fact that procedures of intergovernmental coordination are highly bureaucratic, the act fails to acknowledge that in the event of an emergency, prompt response is critical and as such establishes less bureaucratic procedure through which state governments should involve the federal government n prompt response to emergencies resultant from a disaster. Much of time is spent while a governor evaluates and estimates the magnitude of the effect of a disaster in terms of costs to be incurred in mitigating the effects, evaluating the localized impacts, evaluating coverage by insurance policies in place, processes of hazard mitigation as well as

The Impact of Technology in the Delivery of Healthcare Research Paper

The Impact of Technology in the Delivery of Healthcare - Research Paper Example Thus in 1998, The Committee on the Quality of Health Care in America, or CQHCA was established in order to develop plans to create substantial improvement in healthcare quality (IOM, 2001). A report released by the OIM contained the findings and recommendations of the committee, and it was mentioned that the committee gave emphasis on the support of meticulously and well-thought of designs in making the health care delivery system a lot more safer, much more effective, as well as being patient-centered, suitable to the patients’ needs, reasonable and competent (IOM, 2001). Both of the IOM reports showed how medicine and innovation can work together for better results, and it can be accomplished by the use of information technology. Using information technology as the means to implement changes in the health care industry means that the system would be upgraded to give better and more reliable results for both patients and health personnel (IOM, 2001). The main goals that were set by the CQHCA that utilize information technology were developed to address the following aspects of the health industry: Safety – there are evidences showing that automated order entry system can bring down the number of errors in drug prescription and dosage administration. Effectiveness – there are evidences showing automated reminder system improves the compliance rate with clinical protocols and guidelines. Patient-centered – information technology can be used to facilitate access to clinical information through Web sites and online support groups: and tailor fit health education as well as disease management information. Timely – IT can provide clinicians and patients timely information through Internet-based communication such as telemedicine and e-visits. Efficiency – clinical decision support system made possible by IT reduces the need for redundant laboratory tests. Equity – provision of broader range of options for interaction through Internet-based communication with clinicians to all people, regardless of ethnicity, race, geographical location, and socio-economic status. Electronic Health Records through Information Technology Electronic health record (EHR) is a system that is composed of electronic devices, computer programs, active users such as medical personnel and providers, support mechanisms, and other enhancements that not only document care, but also improves its provision (Amatayakul & Lazarus, 2005). It is a collection of health information of individual patients or of groups of people or a population that can be retrieved electronically from a closed system of programs. It may include the patient’s personal data such as age, weight, medical history, laboratory tests, and billing information. Overall, EHR is a clinician’s tool that manages various areas of patient care (Carter 2001). The most common computer systems and their functions in order to make electronic health records as efficient as possible are shown in table 1.

Performance Analysis of Reusable Software Systems

Performance Analysis of Reusable Software Systems Monika Kalotra Dr. Kuljit Kaur Abstract: To improve the quality of software system, there is a need to eliminate or reduce the rework. Software reuse is one of the solution proposed for it. Software reuse involves reuse of existing software modules, also called reusable software components, while creating new software systems. In the context of software reuse, it is important to evaluate the performance of reusable software components as performance is a crucial factor in the selection of any third party or existing software components. This paper shows a comparative study on the performance analysis of four reusable software components-hibernate, spring, IBatis and EclipseLink. This paper presents the way to build a comparative analysis that shows the average execution time, average heap usage, and average CPU utilization of the reusable software components using java based VisualVM tool. Keywords: Performance, Software Reusability, java framework, CBSD. I. INTRODUCTION In 1968, to overcome the software crisis Mcllroy proposed the concept of software [1]. To build large reliable software systems in a controlled and cost effective way, he pointed towards the effective use of reusable software components [2]. The results of software reuse to improve the productivity of the programmer because with the reuse we can produce high quality software at a minimum cost and deliver it within a short span of time [6]. Reused software is of better quality than new software because it has been already tried and tested in other systems. There are two approaches for reuse of code: develop the code with reuse or develop the code for reuse. In either case, there is a need of measuring the quality of the reusable piece of software [8]. The reuse of program/software is a common technique which attempts to save time and cost by reducing duplicate work. This paper presents a comparative study on the performance of four reusable software components hibernate, spring, IBatis, EclipseLink. These are Object Relational Mapping based framework. They can be used in developing a Java application. These components map the java classes to relational tables in database with the help of SQL queries. Several SQL queries are executed on these components at the backend. In order to measure the execution time, CPU utilization of every executed SQL query, performance benchmarks are used. We make a comparison between these reusable components using java VisualVM tool. II. RELATED WORK To evaluate software reusability two approaches are used: qualitative and empirical [11]. The qualitative methods require significantly manual efforts and depend on a subjective value. Empirical methods depend on the objective data that can be collected with the help of some simulation tool. The performance metrics of component based systems, which are the challenging properties to predict and measure [4]. They have performed three case studies on performance analysis of real-time systems using Deep Compass framework. For performance analysis, software toolkit called CARAT is used for model synthesis and simulation. The performance of prediction methods based on models that support a development process from top to bottom, where developers create a new architecture and software components [3]. These methods rarely integrating existing components in the software architecture models. While there are many tools for performance measurement and profiling existing software components cannot be directly tested the performance when integrated into a model. A systematic approach proposed to software reuse are built to reuse and build by recycling [5]. The problems in software engineering is not a lack of reuse, but a lack of systematic reuse. They know how to do, but they do it informally. The concept of reuse is used to reduce the cost, effort and execution time for software development. Re also raises the productivity, maintainability and reliability of the software, which has been evaluated before in other software. Reusable software components framework is proposed. Empirical observations was made by applying the framework to the recording system C. The result clearly shows that the proposed framework to reduce the work of software developers, who needed a bit of effort to build reuse or build by recycling. The most complex components in the software development process is the database. The performance analysis of persistence framework explained in [15]. The complexity increases when the perspective differs of the interacting components. The performance comparison of two persistence frameworks namely Hibernate and IBatis using a banking database. Both the framework maps JavaBeans to SQL statements using a XML descriptor. The online banking application case study is used. Performance is measured using a java program which uses basic SQL operations on the banking database and the Round Trip Time is calculated and used to measure the way these mapping tools perform under various situations. The performance of both of these tools in single and multi-user environments are evaluated. Hibernate performs better because it supports lazy fetching and mapping associations. To develop the performance of software applications is a major problem in software applications. The solution is to avoid the assessment of late performance [10]. A prediction approach to provide the best solution to solve the problem. Three types of approaches to performance prediction used to know the measurement approach, the approach based on a model and a mixed approach. The main goal is to improve the performance of the software. Steffen and Ralf reported five factors that impact the performance of software component is the implementation components, resource conflicts, use patterns, platform deployment and required services. Quantitative approaches related to the objectives of the performance engineering of software to evaluate the software, which by focusing on quality factors of performance such as response time and throughput. In the end result, the hybrid approach is the best approach. III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY A. Data Collection To analyze the performance of reusable software components, we have downloaded some jar files relevant to these reusable software components. A Java application can be started with a set of jar files. For implementing various libraries and plug-ins in java applications these jar files are used. The various jar files being used are mysql-connector-java, hibernate-core, hibernate-validator, jboss-logging-3.1.3.ga-sources, javassist, org.springframework, org.springframework.Expression, ibatis-dao, ibatis.jar, javassist, IBatis-common and eclipselink. B. Performance Metrics: VisualVM is a tool that provides interface for viewing detailed information about Java based applications [7]. VisualVM organizes data about the JVM software and presents the information that enables the developer to quickly view data on multiple Java applications. Java VisualVM can be used by Java application developers to monitor and improve java applications performance. There are four metrics used to analyze the performance of reusable software components. a). CPU Utilization: Using this metric, you can see how much of CPU is being consumed by database activities. CPU utilization is used to track CPU performance when running a specific piece of code. It is measured in %. b). Total Classes loaded: VisualVM counts the total number of classes loaded for any java application. c). Heap used: It shows how much of the heap is currently used by a java application. It is measured in MB. d). Threads: Athreadis a programs path of execution. Two types of threads are used: live thread and daemon thread. i. Live Thread also called used thread. User thread are threads created by programmer. ii. Daemon Threads are called service provider threads and run parallel to your code. When Java Virtual Machine finds no user threads all daemon thread terminate immediately. Some reusable Software Components are used to analyze the performance and make a comparison between them. A. Hibernate In 2001, Hibernate was developed by Gavin King. Hibernate is a tool for object-relational mapping. Object-relational mapping is a programming method for mapping Java objects to relational model where Java classes are mapped to tables [6] database. This is an open source persistent framework. There is a persistence framework powerful high performance and query service for Java application. Hibernate fills the gap and establish a connection between a Java application and a database. Hibernate uses the OO approach based on Java and binds known as POJO (plain old java objects) into a single object and table cards in a database java classes [14]. B. Spring Spring is a free and open source framework that offers many features for developers. It was jointly developed by Rod Johnson and Juergen Hoeller in June 2003 is also a base ORM framework. Spring Framework aims to make application development enterprise Java easier to use and promote good programming by allowing a POJO-based programming model. Important features are the Inversion of Control, AOP and Spring MVC [12]. Spring Framework allows us to manage the relationships between different parts of the project to loose coupling between modules. C. IBatis This is an open source Java-based framework for ORM mapping data. In 2001, IBatis developed by Clinton Begin. IBATIS is a persistence framework that allows the mapping between SQL databases and Java objects. Mappings are separated from the application logic by wrapping SQL statements in XML configuration files. IBATIS is a lightweight frame. IBatis mapping parameters and results between class properties and the columns of the database table [9]. D. EclipseLink The EclipseLink provides object relational persistence solution with additional features for developers. EclipseLink is also a focused framework for ORM progressed and provides support for relational databases. EclipseLink is a source object persistence and transformation of the open object framework. It provides execution capabilities that reduce development efforts and maintenance of an application. The software provides an extensible framework that allows developers to interact with many data services [13]. IV. RESULTS A. Simulation Environment Performance of Hibernate, Spring, EclipseLink and IBatis is measured using a java simulation tool. These four reusable software components perform basic SQL operations on the music database and the execution time is calculated and used to measure the way these mapping tools perform under various situations. The aim is to get the time from generation of SQL to querying music database and then getting back the data. The conditions were the same for all these components. The execution time of application is computed by applying select, insert database operations on these four reusable software components. For this purpose, a set of SQL queries is executed against music database. The performance of Hibernate, Spring, IBatis and EclipseLink is monitored under multi user environment because java supports multithreading environment. The tests were conducted in the following environment: Operating system: Microsoft Windows 7, Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo Processor, Memory: 2GB. To monitor a java application, the parameters that we have used are CPU Utilization, Classes loaded, No. of Threads executed and Heap used by reusable software component. The experimental results of these software components are represented using graphical charts. In this we have considered select and insert sql queries as two benchmarks. For the first Select Benchmark we have used these SQL queries are: TABLE 1. For Select Query These SQL select queries are executed at the backend in the database. When we run these queries it shows how much CPU is utilized, how many classes are loaded, how much heap is used and how much time it takes to execute the java application. According to the average graphs, it is clear that IBatis perform better for select query because its development time is less as compared to other components. IBatis is a data mapper i.e. it maps results sets to the object in java application while other components map the columns of database tables with the java classes. IBatis makes use of SQL which is database dependent. According to the graphs, IBatis has less average CPU utilization, less execution time and consumes less heap because stored procedures are used. A stored procedures is a group of SQL statements that created and stored on database. The stored procedures improved the heap usage and improve the performance of application. IBatis loaded less no. of classes because of lazy loading and another reason is multiple threads are executed simultaneously. The insignificant code is reduced to access a database. The results of select query benchmarks are shown in fig1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. Fig 1. Execution time Fig 2: Average Heap Used Fig 3: Total no. Classes loaded Fig 4: No. of Threads Executed Fig 5: CPU usage The insertion operation is regarded as the second benchmark. The insert operation is used to insert one or more rows in a database table. The first command of language data manipulation performed immediately after the creation of this table is the insertion expression. For the second Insert Benchmark we have used these SQL queries: TABLE 2. For Insert Query According to the average graphs, the Charts shown that IBatis performs better for insert benchmark. The average execution time is large, maximum heap is used because multiple records are inserted in to database tables. The only operation in which spring consumes more time is for the insert operation. The number of threads executed to run a java application in IBatis is less than hibernate because we don’t have to create the separate session for threads to insert objects into the database. The sessions in IBatis enhance the performance by reducing the number of times the application needs to access the data. In this case, larger number of classes are loaded in EclipseLink than IBatis but lesser than hibernate. EclipseLink consumes more CPU with respect to the other components. For every insert operations so much effort was necessary on querying, IBatis handles this query in a better way. The results of insert query benchmarks are shown in fig 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10. Fig 6: Execution time Fig 7: CPU utilization Fig 8: Heap Used. Fig 9: No. of Threads Executed. Fig 10. Number of classes loaded V. CONCLUSION This paper presents the comparative analysis of four reusable software components namely hibernate, spring, IBatis and EclipseLink. Reusability allows us to use existing software system rather than building them from scratch. Three performance benchmarks namely SELECT, INSERT and JOIN queries are used in order to measure the performance of reusable software components. These benchmarks were applied on these four reusable software components to analyze their performance and to make a comparison among them. The performance was analyzed using these performance metrics such as CPU utilization, heap Used, number of threads executed, execution time and number of classes loaded with the help of VisualVM. According to our results in SELECT and INSERT queries, IBatis showed outstanding results as compared to other reusable components because it uses less average CPU utilization because of multithreading. IBatis consumes less heap because caching in IBatis improves the performance by caching a ll the results in the mapping statement and reducing the unnecessary trips to the database. IBatis loaded less number of classes because IBatis is a light weight component. REFERENCES [1]. McIlroy, Doug, â€Å"Mass Produced Software Components† Software Engineering Concepts and Techniques: Proceedings of the NATO Conferences, J.M. Buxton, P. Naur, and B. Randell, eds., Petrocelli/Charter, 1969. [2]. Johannes Sametinger, â€Å"Software Engineering with Reusable Components†, ACM Computing Surveys, ISBN: 3-540-62695-6, 1997. [3]. Simonetta Balsamo, Antinisca Di Marco, Paola Inverardi, and Marta Simeoni. â€Å"Model-Based Performance Prediction in Software Development: A Survey†, Software Engineering, IEEE Transactions on Volume: 30, Issue: 5 ISSN: 0098-5589,pp-223-228, 2004 [4]. V. Grassi, R. Mirandola, and A. Sabetta, â€Å"A Model Transformation Approach for the Early Performance and Reliability Analysis of Component-Based Systems†, Proc. In CBSE 6th joint meeting of the European software engineering conference and the ACM SIGSOFT, ISBN 978-1-4503-2237-9, 2006. [5]. Anas Bassam AL-Badareen, Mohd Hasan Selamat and Sherzod Turaev, â€Å"Reusable Software Components Framework†, International conference on Advances in Communications, Computers, Systems and Devices, ISBN: 978-960-474-250-9, 2008. [6]. Jiya Jiang , Yu Liu, â€Å"The Construction of E-Business Portal Based on Struts, Spring and Hibernate†, IEEE International Conference on Emerging Technologies, 2009. [7]. VisualVM tool accessed from http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/html/as400/v4r5/ic2924/index.htm?info/rzaihh.htm, 2009. [8]. Dantas, F., Garcia, â€Å"A. Software Reuse versus Stability: Evaluating Advanced Programming Techniques†, Proc. SBES10, Brazil, 2010. [9]. Zhiyu Zhou and Zhiang Chen, â€Å"Performance Evaluation of Transparent Persistence Layer in Java Applications†, IEEE proceedings International Conference on Cyber-Enabled Distributed Computing and Knowledge Discovery ISBN: 978-1-4244-8434-8, 2010. [10]. Adil Ali Abdelaziz, Wan M.N. Wan Kadir and Addin Osman, â€Å"Comparative Analysis of Software Performance Prediction Approaches in Context of Component-based System†, International Journal of Computer Applications (0975 – 8887) Volume 23– No.3, June 2011. [11] Anupama Kaur, Himanshu Monga, Mnupreet Kaur, â€Å"Performance Evaluation of Reusable Software Components†, International Journal of Emerging Technology and Advanced Engineering ISSN 2250-2459, Volume 2, Issue 4, April 2012. [12]. Ankur Bawiskar, Vinayak Kankate, â€Å"Integration of Struts, Spring and Hibernate for an University Management Sys†, International Journal of Emerging Tech and Advanced Engineering, 2012. [13] EclipseLink accessed from http://www.eclipse.org/eclipselinkjpa_extensions.pdf, 2012. [14] Hibernate accessed from http://www.tutorialspoint.com/hibernate/hibernateoverview.htm, 2012. [15]. S. M. Thampi and Ashwin Kumar, â€Å"Performance Comparison of Persistence Frameworks, Published in Cornell University Library, Arxiv, ISSN-1653-5715, 2013.

Product Quality Essay

List some important physical properties of the fabric. The properties of textile fabrics are important for the control of quality, as well as for end use determination. There are several physical properties of fabric which affecting the performance and aesthetic of fabric. The first one is fabric count, it influences thickness of the fabric. It is the number of ends or picks per inch for woven fabrics, or the number of wales or courses per inch for knit fabrics. Variation occurs because of the weaving or knitting process and from finishing processes. Usually the higher the fabric count, the better the quality and the higher the cost. The second is fabric unit weight. It is the mass per unit area. It is expressed in one three ways; ounces per square yard, ounces per linear yard, and linear yards per pound. It is significant in determining both end use and quality. Moreover, it is fabric width. It means the distance from one edge to the other. Measurement is made perpendicular to the fabric edge, usually including the selvage area. The width is expressed in inches and is usually an average number of measurements taken at evenly spaced interval along the fabric pieces. Next one is fabric shrinkage. It is the process in which a fabric becomes smaller than its original size, usually through the process of laundry. It is undesirable property to the apparels. So the material has to be either shrink resistant or shrink recoverable, such as anti-shrink finish is to keep the fabric smooth and free from undesirable shrinkage. The last one is fabric thickness. It is the distance between the upper and lower surfaces of the material. It is measure under a specific pressure. Warmth and bulk properties depend on the fabric thickness- to-weight ratio. It can also be used as a performance indication of abrasion resistance or shrinkage tests. Generally speaking, the thicker the fabric is, the more comfortable in wearing. 6. What is the commonly used fabric inspection system? Mainly, two industry methods used are the Ten point and Four point systems. The most commonly used is four-point system. A minimum of 10% inspection of fabrics is required. The four-point system derives its name from the basic grading rules that a maximum of four penalty points can be assessed for any single defect. Normally, we inspect 10% of the rolls we receive and evaluate them based on this system. This way, we can avoid fabric related quality problems before it is put into production The following table shows the point system. Size of Defect| Penalty Points| Length of defects in fabric (either length or width)| Defects up to 3 inches| 1| Defects > 3 inches < 6 inches| 2| Defects > 6 inches < 9 inches| 3| Defects > 9 inches| 4| Holes and openings(largest dimension)| 1 inch or less| 2| Over 1 inch| 4| After inspection, the inspector will add up the defects points and then use the following formula to determine the rate of points per 100 yards. There are some common fabric faults, such as bow, skew, hole, mispick etc. Fabric checker should know common defects found in fabrics and he must recognize defects on the fabric at the time of fabric inspection. For the acceptance criteria and calculation, 40 points per 100 yards is the acceptable defect rate. The ten point system for piece goods evaluation was approved by the Textile distributors institute and the National Federation of Textile, in 1955. It is designed to identify defects and to assign each defect a value based on severity of defect. The system assigns penalty points to each defect depending on its length and whether it is in the warp (ends) or weft (fill) direction. The following table shows the point system.

Treetop Forest

Statement of the problem The packaging team at Treetop Forest is experiencing many problems. Their productivity is decreasing and affecting the rest of the departments negatively. The unsupervised employees are slacking off, are not motivated and are adopting norms that are not fitted with the company. Inventory costs and the risk of damaged stocks are also increasing. The quality of the appearance of the finished products is also decreasing, resulting in a loss in the market share in the industry, hence being unable to compete with other companies. Cause of the problem Social loafing is causing the decrease in productivity in the packaging team. This tendency to withhold physical or intellectual effort when performing a group task[1] represents the slacking behaviours of the employees in that department. The lack of supervision is also one of the main causes of most of the problems stated. The group’s cohesiveness is causing them to behave in similar manners, as additive tasks, even though the behaviours adopted are not in line with the norms of the rest of the company (taking longer breaks etc). Because this department’s location is further than all the other ones, the employees feel isolated and excluded from the company, causing their lack in motivation. The group’s poor performance is causing an overstock which results in high inventory costs and risk of damaged stocks since they have to be stored outside ultimately causing the poor appearance of the finished product which affects the buyer’s decision. It can be assumed that it is a larger group due to the tasks that need to be performed, which affects the group in many ways. In larger groups, friendships develop, participation decreases and disengagement increases resulting in process loss: a group performance difficulty stemming from the problems of motivation and coordination in larger groups. [2] Solutions and Consequences 1. To counteract the social loafing the company should: Increase feelings of indispensability. Doing this within the group would motivate the employees. Increase performance feedback, so that employees will know how to improve themselves as well as knowing what they did well. Reward group performance. Pros: Highly motivated in what they are doing †¢ They would feel belonging to the company since they would know what the company’s goals are. 2. To have a more structured environment, Treetop should hire and train a new supervisor only for the packaging department. Pros: †¢ This solution will decrease inventory costs and increase the production and quality of the finished products. †¢ Effective communication betwe en the other departments to balance the productivity levels Cons: †¢ The salary and training of this new employee will increase the company’s costs. 3. To reduce the overtime costs, limits should be put on the amount of overtime hours an employee is allowed to use, along with a deadline for a specific amount of products. Pros: †¢ This would decrease the overtime salary costs †¢ This would increase productivity due to the fixed goals. †¢ This would decrease the extended break and lunch times. Cons: †¢ Because these goals are imposed, the employees may be reluctant to achieve them. To avoid this situation, the goals could be discussed therefore increasing the probability of their achievement. Recommended Solution It would be recommended to implant supervision since it is the main cause of all the problems the company is faced with and because of the many effects it would have on the situation. The group needs structure and a supervisor would therefore help resolve most problems. Implemented Solution Immediately, communication should be improved between the departments to stop the unbalanced productivity. This would resolve part of the inventory costs problems. Upper management should also put someone in charge of the packaging team. If costs of hiring a new supervisor are too high, an existing supervisor could be given more shifts. Although hiring and training costs are high, the company will benefit from this addition in the long-term. The new supervisor would counteract the social loafing the company is experiencing. The supervisor could be trained to focus on the motivation of his group (rewarding good performances etc). This supervisor is also the one who should limit the employees to a certain amount of overtime hours they are allowed to. The supervisor would reinforce the company’s norms, eventually eliminating the self-imposed ones in the group (longer breaks†¦). The supervisor would also promote group cohesiveness and a pleasant working environment. In the short term, upper management could host a meeting or assembly between all departments to make them feel interrelated and important to the company. This could be a great motivation for the employees. In the long term, group evaluations could be necessary to measure the group’s performance and to see if the actions taken are resolving the problems. ________________________________________ [1] Johns,G, & Saks, A. M. (2008). Organizational Behaviour, 7th edition, Toronto: Addison-Wesley-Longman. [2] Johns,G, & Saks, A. M. (2008). Organizational Behaviour, 7th edition, Toronto: Addison-Wesley-Longman.