Cost Risk Tolerance Area of Material Supply in Biomass Power Generation
This research aims to shed light on the interaction mechanism of cost risks for biomass material supply in power generation. Firstly, game model is established to analyze interactions among factors including unit procurement cost, unit transportation cost, basic price and coal price for cop residue collection. Secondly, Monte Carlo simulation is implemented based on two profit ratio to compare the profit increase under material competition with that under price alliance. Thirdly, risk tolerance area approach is applied in mapping of cost risk. Shi Liquan Biomass Power Plant in Shandong Province of China is analyzed as a case to show that price alliance will benefit both the allied enterprises and the local collection area by the proposed methodology.
Study on the distribution and quantity of biomass residues resource in China
The distribution and quantity of biomass residues resource in China have been evaluated. Agricultural and forest residue as two main categories of biomass residues resource have been investigated. The study shows that the unused agricultural and forest residues account for 51.9% and 45.8% of the total residues available as an energy resource in China.
Application of the Kano Model for a Better Understanding of Customer Requirements in Higher Education—A Pilot Study
Various pieces of information and knowledge turn into “know-how” simply by their application in the market. This applies to all spheres of activities. It is therefore important to know and understand the requirements of customers already in the stage of making a product, and to confront these with the possibilities of a producer. In this article we are exploring the possibilities of a better understanding of the requirements of customers and stakeholders in the process of the creation of products in educational services. In particular, we examined seven general requirements: practice orientation, ethical orientation, research orientation, quality resources, innovation orientation, skills orientation, and quality staff. We use the Kano model on a pilot sample of respondents at an institution of higher education. Our results showed that “practice orientation” and “quality resources” are the most stable requirements, while “quality staff” is the least stable. The most linear requirement (the same effect on satisfaction and dissatisfaction) is “innovation orientation”. “Research orientation” belongs to attractive requirements and we also found that in the case of “ethical orientation” there are weak relations between positive and negative responses in our survey. The “skills orientation” proved to be too general, and our research shows that it could be indifferent. It is therefore advisable to specify the investigated skills when investigating requirements on educational services. The main contribution based on the proposed research procedures is an effective linking of customers and producers already from the beginning of constructing a value chain. Investing in sophisticated management approaches when modelling products and processes can thus become a significant source of the competitive advantage of an educational institution. At the same time, it is a contribution to better placing of its graduates in the labor market.