IT for niche companies: is an ERP system the solution?

Abstract.  Niche companies are per definition idiosyncratic. They survive in a competitive world by mastering a small market niche, providing what their customers need. This often requires a flexible organization, and the ability to customize products. To be more efficient, many of these companies rely on extensive use of IT, often by installing general Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. These systems have grown from isolated systems that handle planning based on incoming orders and the component structure of the various products, to systems with ambitions to embrace the total functioning of the company including vendor and customer relation management. In this paper, we present four case studies. One company is a part of a large enterprise, but performs niche functions within this enterprise. The other three are small- or medium-sized enterprises. Each of these performs in small niche markets. Common to all is the fact that they encounter problems with the utilization of their ERP systems. The major problem seems to be that the ERP system has an inherent business model that may not conform to the needs of the company. Without a good understanding of the underlying models and the constraints under which the fundamental algorithms operate, it is difficult to use these systems correctly. Even excellent systems may give bad results if they are applied to situations where they are not suited. Further, the monolithic structure of an ERP system, with a rather complicated parameter setting, is often insufficient to mould the system to the needs of a niche company. We discuss these problems based on our four case studies, and offer alternative approaches that may be considered.     

Cu-Al-Mn-Ti形状记忆合金抗母相时效的研究

利用弯曲试验、X射线衍射、金相和扫描电镜及透射电镜观察等方法研究了CuAl24Mn3Ti2合金在不同母相时效处理条件下的抗母相时效能力。结果表明,对于同一种变形量,Cu-Al-Mn-Ti合金在母相时效时,形状记忆效应随不同时效保温温度呈现先下降后上升的规律性变化,其中400℃记忆效应最好,500℃最差;而形状记忆效应则随不同时效保温时间呈现不同程度的先上升后下降的规律性变化,400℃合金下降缓慢,500℃下降加快;Mn和Ti的加入细化了组织,并且形成了富Mn和富Ti相,强化了合金组织,提高了合金的记忆效应。     

Enterprise Social Networks as Digital Infrastructures - Understanding the Utilitarian Value of Social Media at the Workplace

ABSTRACT

In this study, we first show that while both the perceived usefulness and perceived enjoyment of enterprise social networks impact employees’ intentions for continuous participation, the utilitarian value significantly outpaces its hedonic value. Second, we prove that the network’s utilitarian value is constituted by its digital infrastructure characteristics: versatility, adaptability, interconnectedness and invisibility-in-use. The study is set within a software engineering company and bases on quantitative survey research, applying partial least squares structural equation modeling.     

Organizational Characteristics Influencing SME Information Security Maturity

In the current business environment, many organizations use popular standards such as the ISO 27000x series, COBIT, and related frameworks to protect themselves against security incidents. However, these standards and frameworks are overly complicated for small to medium-sized enterprises, leaving these organizations with no easy to understand toolkit to address their security needs. This research builds upon the recent Information Security Focus Area Maturity (ISFAM) model for SME information security as a cornerstone in the development of an assessment tool for tailor-made, fast, and easy-to-use information security advice for SMEs. By performing an extensive literature review and evaluating the results with security experts, we propose the Characterizing Organizations’ Information Security for SMEs (CHOISS) model to relate measurable organizational characteristics in four categories through 47 parameters to help SMEs distinguish and prioritize which risks to mitigate.     

Supporting SMEs' IP capabilities: Impact study of INPI pre-diagnosis through the use of the AIDA approach

This article aims to evaluate the impact of a regional SME IP support programme in France led by the INPI (National Institute of IP) and the Lorraine regional government. The panel includes 150 regional SMEs. The data were collected through the use of the AIDA approach and a data analysis was carried out, including principal components analysis (PCA) and a hierarchical ascending classification (HAC). The data analysis shows that the INPI pre-diagnosis allowed enterprises to progress in their IP-management. The knowledge of IP and its issues increase very significantly and appear to influence the IP-related management of the companies studied.     

A network approach to overcoming barriers to market engagement for SMEs in energy efficiency initiatives such as the Green Deal

The Green Deal (GD) was launched in 2013 by the UK Government as a market-led scheme to encourage uptake of energy efficiency measures in the UK and create green sector jobs. The scheme closed in July 2015 after 30 months due to government concerns over low uptake and industry standards but additional factors potentially contributed to its failure such as poor scheme design and lack of understanding of the customer and supply chain journey. We explore the role of key delivery agents of GD services, specifically SMEs, and we use the LoCal-Net project as a case study to examine the use of networks to identify and reduce barriers to SME market engagement. We find that SMEs experienced multiple barriers to interaction with the GD such as lack of access to information, training, and confusion over delivery of the scheme but benefited from interaction with the network to access information, improve understanding of the scheme, increasing networking opportunities and forming new business models and partnerships to reduce risk. The importance of SMEs as delivery agents and their role in the design of market-led schemes such as the GD are discussed with recommendations for improving SME engagement in green sector initiatives.     

利用CASSSME实现GIS数据质量检查的方法研究

从分析数据加工中的错误来源入手,在研究数据特性的基础上,介绍了利用SME软件进行基础地理信息数据质量检查的方法,具体阐述了房屋要素和其他要素穿越检查方案的编写过程,利用真实数据检验编写的检查方案,从运行结果看,利用南方CASSSME质检模块进行数据质量检查的方法是可行的,结果是正确的。     

Entrepreneurial quality and regional development: Characterizing SME sectors in low income areas*

This paper analyses the characteristics of SMEs in less‐developed areas in comparison with more advanced economies. The conceptual framework includes different factors making up the so‐called ‘entrepreneurial quality’ of the SME sector: the personal characteristics of the entrepreneurs (motivations and previous experience), different dimensions of the SMEs’ entrepreneurial orientation, and the patterns of the SMEs’ insertion in national and global value chains. The empirical analysis uses data of SMEs in four different Spanish provinces representing examples of low income economies and comparatively high income ones, respectively. Results show the SMEs in the low income economies to be characterized by a lower entrepreneurial quality.     

邯郸市中小企业成长园规划设计

在我国,工业园区作为区域经济发展的增长,给城市的发展带来了良好的经济效益,甚至成为区域形象工程。然而,不少工业园区由于工业活动密集所造成的环境污染、缺少配套公共服务设施以及企业间各自为政等问题,导致所在区域的环境质量下降和工业园区内人气不足,妨碍了工业园区的可持续发展。通过对邯郸市中小企业成长园项目的规划设计分析,提出了中小企业成长园活力塑造的途径。对工业园区健康、高效、有序发展具有一定的参考价值。     

电脉冲处理对FeMnSiCrNiNbC合金NbC析出及记忆效应的影响

研究了电脉冲处理对FeMnSiCrNiNbC合金形状记忆效应的影响,并对其微观机理进行初步探讨.结果表明,Fe17Mn5Si8Cr5Ni0.5NbC合金经5%预变形,300 V,1 Hz电脉冲处理13次后形状回复率达到80%,比800℃时效1000s获得的最大值提高12%.SEM分析表明,电脉冲处理可在极短的时间内加速诱导大量、细小的NbC颗粒在基体内析出,进而有效地改善了合金的记忆性能并提高了效率.