The current competitive context puts manufacturers under increasing pressure to provide products and services that meet the particular requirements of individual customers, calling for high ...flexibility in business processes. The complexity and the uncertainty of demand are particularly high in customized contexts, such as the make-to-order (MTO) and engineer-to-order (ETO) sectors, where the ability to deal with more and more differentiated requirements in terms of product features, delivery lead time and cost is crucial. In order to be competitive in such a context, due date (DD) quotation and capacity evaluation at the customer enquiry stage are of strategic importance, having a large impact on the company performance. Despite the large impact on company performance, the importance of DD setting and order acceptance processes and related decisions is often underestimated in practice and the issue is underexposed in the literature. As the applicability of most of the proposed models is limited and there are too few empirical studies describing the practices adopted for capacity and delivery lead-time management in industrial contexts, this study is aimed at developing an understanding of these practices based on a sample of 15 Italian capital goods manufacturers. An interpretative framework is proposed in order to identify the main contextual factors impacting company choices. A model that formalizes the decision process for setting DDs in the analyzed cases is then proposed, suggesting different procedures depending on the type of enquiry submission (DD set by companies or customers) and customer order (fast or slow).
Poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation (PAR) is a versatile and complex posttranslational modification composed of repeating units of ADP-ribose arranged into linear or branched polymers. This scaffold is linked to ...the regulation of many of cellular processes including the DNA damage response, alteration of chromatin structure and Wnt signalling. Despite decades of research, the principles and mechanisms underlying all steps of PAR removal remain actively studied. In this work, we synthesise well-defined PAR branch point molecules and demonstrate that PARG, but not ARH3, can resolve this distinct PAR architecture. Structural analysis of ARH3 in complex with dimeric ADP-ribose as well as an ADP-ribosylated peptide reveal the molecular basis for the hydrolysis of linear and terminal ADP-ribose linkages. We find that ARH3-dependent hydrolysis requires both rearrangement of a catalytic glutamate and induction of an unusual, square-pyramidal magnesium coordination geometry.
Given the paucity of research that examines the impact of Social Sustainability Practices (SSP) on performance outcomes, this study investigates the adoption and influence of these practices on ...firms' and suppliers’ overall performance, whilst also considering the level of complexity of operational environments of global supply networks. A Fuzzy-sets Qualitative Comparative Analysis (FsQCA) approach is adopted, based on eight primary case studies within the food, chemical and textile sectors, with data collected through semi-structured interviews conducted with representatives from each company.
The research identified four key categories of SSP: informative, control, collaborative, and supply network redesign practices. The findings offer empirical support for the notion that SSP adoption yields improved performance outcomes for both the firm and its suppliers. These positive effects encompass enhanced firm profitability, increased supplier efficiency, and heightened supplier innovativeness. Nevertheless, the research uncovered that the relationship between adopting SSP and their impact on performance is not always straightforward. In certain instances, a combination of these practices may be necessary to achieve the desired performance level.
In addition, a prudent consideration of the operational complexity present in global supply networks is crucial for informed decision-making pertaining to the selection and adoption of the most appropriate SSP. Driving profits in complex operational environments requires integrating both informative and collaborative practices, whilst tight control is necessary to improve supplier efficiency, regardless of the extent of complexity. Collaboration also emerged as a core factor of success in enhancing supplier innovation regarding social sustainability. Decision makers should also collaborate with external entities, particularly Non-Governmental-Organisations (NGOs) and industry associations/peers, to educate suppliers, thus creating an auspicious environment where suppliers are accountable for their own sustainability performance. This research carries significant practical implications. Managers should evaluate diverse combinations of SSP to confront global sustainability challenges through the utilization of customized strategies that can yield enhanced performance results. Expanding sustainability beyond primary suppliers can often be challenging in a global supply networks, given a firm's limited oversight, transparent knowledge and control over lower tier suppliers. Consequently, managers should seek to strengthen controls and oversight within the manageable segments of the supply network, all the while facilitating self-adaptation within the extended supply network with the adoption of informative and collaborative practices that extend reach, homogeneity, and improve overall governance.
► Customer Enquiry Management is studied from a global supply chain perspective. ► Greater coordination and formalization of CEM are linked to improved performance. ► CEM practices are directly ...influenced by supply chain configuration complexity. ► CEM practices are indirectly influenced by the types of supply chain relationships. ► Sources of complexity resulting from global CEM practices are identified.
The Customer Enquiry Management (CEM) process is of strategic importance to non-Make-To-Stock companies but few empirical studies have explored the CEM practices adopted by firms in practice. A study on the Italian capital goods sector by Zorzini, Hendry, Stevenson, and Pozzetti (2008) provides the most comprehensive contingency-based framework to date. This paper builds on Zorzini et al. (2008) by conducting multi-case study research with seven global capital goods companies managing CEM in the UK. The evidence suggests that both high levels of coordination and formalization of the CEM process are linked to improved performance. In particular, cross-functional coordination and formalization impact jointly on the performance of companies characterized by a large-sized control problem. Two moderating factors are also identified: the proportion of slightly/highly customized orders and the availability of integrated information systems. Analysis of the impact of supply chain coordination and other globalization factors on CEM shows that CEM practices are: directly influenced by the complexity of the supply chain configuration; and, indirectly influenced by the types of relationships with supply chain partners. Two sources of complexity that result from operating in a global context are also identified: coordinating the activities of sales structures distributed around the world; and, managing global customers with different languages and cultures. In terms of managerial implications, the results indicate that coordination with partners along the supply chain is needed at the customer enquiry stage and constraints linked to global customers should be considered when structuring CEM.
Nous rapportons le cas clinique d’une patiente de 55ans présentant une dyspnée de stade 3-4 sur les 5 dernières années, sans autre symptôme clinique. Une hypertension artérielle pulmonaire (HTAP) a ...été mise en évidence par une échocardiographie. Cependant, une angiographie pulmonaire n’a pas montré d’anomalie thromboembolique. Une scintigraphie pulmonaire de ventilation s’est révélée normale sur les deux plages pulmonaires, tandis que la perfusion a montré de multiples défauts segmentaires et sous-segmentaires bilatéralement. Cette configuration diagnostique d’angiographie pulmonaire normale avec de multiples anomalies de perfusion a conduit au diagnostic de maladie veino-occlusive pulmonaire (MVOP) en tenant compte du contexte clinique, des résultats de l’imagerie radiologique et scintigraphique, et des tests de laboratoire et des fonctions pulmonaires. La MVOP est une entité clinico-pathologique caractérisée par l’occlusion ; or, le rétrécissement des veines et veinules pulmonaires par du tissus fibreux entraînent des manifestations cliniques qui sont proches à bien des égards de l’HTAP. La MVOP reste mal caractérisée, difficile à diagnostiquer et à traiter. Cependant, la MVOP doit être connue des cliniciens et considérée dans le diagnostic différentiel de l’HTAP.
We report the case of a 55-year-old woman presenting stage-3-4 dyspnea over the last 5years with no other clinical symptoms. Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) was evidenced by echocardiography. However, there was no argument for chronic thromboembolic disease during pulmonary angiography. The pulmonary scintigraphy showed homogeneous ventilation on both lung fields, with multiple bilateral segmental and subsegmental perfusion defects, however. These perfusion abnormalities with a normal pulmonary angiography led to the diagnosis of pulmonary veno-occlusive disease (PVOD) taking into account the clinical context, imaging findings, and laboratory and functional assessments. PVOD is a clinicopathological entity characterized by the occlusion or narrowing of the pulmonary veins and venules by fibrous tissue, leading to clinical manifestations that are, in many ways similar to PAH. PVOD remains poorly understood and it is difficult to diagnose and treat. However, PVOD needs to be known by clinicians and considered in the differential diagnosis of PAH.
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