Search results for "Economies of scale"
showing 10 items of 36 documents
The organization of the defense support system: an economic geography perspective
2017
In the context of restricted budgetary resources and the growing cost of maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) activities, a major issue for modern armed forces is to sustain defense platforms. A possible method consists of realizing economies of scale through the concentration of maintenance activities, which involves the spatial reorganization of existing industrial sites dedicated to MRO. This article provides a formalized framework to discuss the optimal organization for the MRO of defense platforms in space. The public planner organizes the maintenance of defense platforms with only two possible spatial configurations. In the dispersed configuration, two industrial production units i…
A Hybrid Architecture for Tiered Storage with Fuzzy Logic and AutoML
2020
The explosion of storage needs pauses a multifaceted challenge for organizations, not only it exerts a large pressure on precious resources, but also creates a sub-optimal data environment where the noise level may overwhelm the actual signal. However, despite the economies of scale achieved by major cloud platforms, the fundamental issue of storage optimization did not go away.
Economic effects of the consolidation of water utilities in Japan
2014
Water utilities are affected by economies of scale. However, in Japan most water utilities are small-scale water services. Therefore, they face enormous difficulties in terms of financial and personnel resources. To take advantage of economies of scale, the consolidation of water utilities has been promoted since 1965 by Japanese water authorities. The measure has been successful to some extent; nevertheless, consolidation has not progressed in recent years as was expected. This paper identifies the main barriers that hinder the consolidation of water utilities in Japan and describes the new promotion plan for the consolidation of water utilities developed by the Japan Water Works Associati…
Spatial Localization in Manufacturing: A Cross-Country Analysis
2009
This paper employs a homogenous firms' database to investigate industry localiza- tion in European countries. More specifically, we compare, across industries and countries, the predictions of two of the most popular localization indices, i.e., the Ellison and Glaeser index (Ellison and Glaeser, 1997) and the Duranton and Over- man index (Duranton and Overman, 2005). We find that, independently from the index used, localization is a pervasive phenomenon in all countries studied, but the degree of localization is very uneven across industries in each country. Furthermore, we find that the two indices significantly diverge in predicting the intensity of the forces generating localization with…
Franchising: the dilemma between standardisation and flexibility
2014
Both standardisation and flexibility are naturally linked to franchising and the balance between them has become an important research issue. Literature states that cost minimisation, brand image and innovation are the main reasons that push towards standardisation, while flexibility is claimed (for those that advocate for it) in order to achieve a higher adaptation to local markets and enhance franchisees’ entrepreneurial attitudes. This research will focus on the computer retail sector to find out how franchise networks in services settle this dilemma. Here, franchisors have decided to focus on economies of scale and strong common corporate image as key goals and thus allow franchisees to…
Drivers and barriers of inter-municipal cooperation in health services – the Norwegian case
2018
Inter-municipal cooperation in service delivery is widespread, as is the notion that this type of cooperation is primarily driven by economies of scale. However, the empirical results appear to be ...
Scale economies and input price elasticities in microfinance institutions
2013
Author's version of an article in the journal: Journal of Banking & Finance. Also available from the publisher at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbankfin.2012.08.004 We evaluate the efficiency of microfinance institutions (MFIs) using a structural approach which also captures these institutions' outreach and sustainability objectives. We estimate economies of scale and input price elasticities for lending-only and deposit-mobilizing MFIs using a large sample of high-quality panel data. The results confirm conjectures that improvements in efficiency can come from the growth or consolidations of MFIs, as we find substantial increasing returns to scale for all but profitability-focused deposit-m…
Product-market integration with endogenous firm heterogeneity
2021
Abstract This paper proposes a general equilibrium oligopoly model in which firm heterogeneity is endogenously reproduced through technology adoption decisions. The model can explain persistent oligopolistic market structures and prices in spite of free entry and market enlargement. Moreover, strong selection might deteriorate average cost efficiency due to strategic interactions. Integrating identical countries can be welfare-improving. But distributional issues and tensions between welfare and scale economies may arise. The theory can be motivated by recent evidence on oligopolistic market structures resisting globalization forces.
Institutional Influences of Professional Associations and Franchise Organizations on Competitiveness of the Healthcare Clinics
2019
This paper uses insights from the institutional theory to study the competitiveness of the healthcare clinics in Spain. The environment of the healthcare services is highly institutionalized: professional associations are state agents responsible for the extensive regulation. Recently emerged franchise chains become subject for imitation by creating institutionalized routines from within and increasing competitive pressures for other industry players. While the sector is dominated by the independent doctors, franchise organizations are becoming more popular and show steady growth rates. The franchise business model in healthcare is evolving: while the core activity—provision of a healthcare…
Cost Modelling In Waste Water Treatment Processes: An Empirical Analysis For Spain
2007
The reuse of resources obtained from regenerating wastewater is an absolute must both from a social and also environmental and health viewpoint. For any water reuse project to be viable, water treatment processes must be optimised. In this sense, extensive knowledge of the structure of costs associated to each of the treatment technologies available is necessary. This research applies cost modelling methodology by adjusting a series of representative functions and an empirical analysis is undertaken for a sample of wastewater treatment plants in Spain.