Assignment #5

I believe that one of the important factors of Nucor Steel's competitive advantage is their philosophy on decentralized management. There are only five managerial levels at Nucor. This provides a more cost efficient operation. The majority of the operation decisions are made at the division level or lower which is important because the higher up management levels can worry about more important things such as ways to further increase profitability. With an estimated 75 employees in corporate offices and staff members it maintains the smallest number of corporate office employees for a corporation of that size. Once again, this making the operations of the company more cost efficient. Another factor is the technological factor. Nucor Steel was among the first companies to implement electric arc furnaces in their operations. By using this, Nucor was able to melt down countless tons of steel from all sources. This results in high profitability. Nucor also implemented a system offering incentives to their employees for working hard. If productivity is exceeding expectations, employees are paid weekly bonuses. This is a very good way to receive great results from all employees. If the company is doing well, employees are paid better at the end of the year. This system will keep employees motivated on a daily basis. The reward system not only rewards the employees who are working hard, but the company as well. The steel business is a very competitive business but with the innovation in operations and stripping away management levels along with employee incentives,Nucor has become one of the most profitable steel production companies in the world.

Assignment #4

Neural Networks are a non linear, adaptive systems that are inspired by the biological nervous system such as the brain. They can identify and learn correlating patterns between input data sets and corresponding target values. Neural networks can be trained to predict the outcome of new independent data. 

Credit card companies use neural networks to monitor card activity of the user. The network is able to develop a pattern of the users spending activity. From this it can figure out more about the person and that persons spending habits.This network develops a pattern and when that pattern seems broken from an unusual spending characteristic it is flagged. If a person normally spends between $5 and $200 on any given transaction and all of a sudden there is a $1500 charge out of state, the network will flag this as unusual activity. This benefits both the business and the consumer. The business such as Discover for example, is able to save money by preventing any further theft. The user is also benefited by saving money and possibly their credit score. This is a very important system that helps millions of users everyday. People fall victim to identity theft and credit card fraud everyday so this system has been implemented and is very precise in stopping fraud. 

Neural networks are new to weather prediction. Inputs would include weather reports from surrounding areas. Outputs would be the future weather in our area.  Even though we already have a current system of predicting the weather, the complexity of weather predictions using conventional computer analysis proves to be too demanding.  The use of a neural network, however, which learns rather than analyzing has shown to be very proficient in predicting local rainfall with upwards of 85% accuracy. This type of system can be a game changer for everyone involved.  Meteorologists are able to predict the weather with more accuracy and can be more confident in the predictions.  The weather in one area of the world can effect the weather in that of a different area. A pattern can be created from this. Weather is very unpredictable but a complex system such as neural networking can provide us with a more accurate insight on the future weather and make an impact on how to prepare for it.

http://udini.proquest.com/view/credit-card-fraud-detection-using-goid:304810406/

http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2011/12/the-neural-networks-watching-your-credit-card/

http://www.calsci.com/Weather.html

Assignment #3

Partners' system is a very complex yet, rewarding system.  Its the process of embedding knowledge into everyday work activity. By linking massive amounts of clinical knowledge to an IT system, it allows doctors to make better decision by accessing a library of information and other opinions. Plus, it is constantly updated which is a very important factor. If a doctor learns something once and it changes without them being notified, it can significantly effect the outcome of the efficiency of the treatment process. Medical records are another very important factor. Medical records indicate what medication a person might be taking at the moment and what that person the person is allergic to. This can help eliminate the risk of drug interactions. It shows previous treatments, so a doctor can determine what treatment to use for the current situation. For example, If a man visited the doctors office a year ago with strep throat 3 times within a 2 month period. A doctor can look at what treatment was used during those visits and see that they were unsuccessful therefore, will know to treat it with a different medication. When advancements are made in the field, doctors can be notified in real time so they can immediately implement the new advancements into their work. Being a knowledge based worker such as a doctor or nurse requires the knowledge of more than what the human brain can comprehend. This is why this system is so important. The system is continuously growing therefore, the success rate of treatments should grow alongside it.

Blog #2

If outputs are increased more than the inputs then you have an increase in return. Simply put, if a company expands by 50 percent and the result from that expansion leads to a 75 percent in output it would be an increase in return. Companies such as Google are a good example of this. They receive an increase in return with almost every expansion. Production recognition plays a significant role in this concept. Which further explains why Google is successful. The name alone is enough to sell a product, no matter what the product is. Economic of scale is viewed as being similar but it has a different concept. Economic of scale is the concept of perceiving that expansion will mean more sales. The cost per unit is decreased as the fixed cost is increased. Companies such as Sams Club and Costco have made a complete business out of this concept. But it doesn't stop there. You can go into almost any retail store and you will find bundle deals. Whether it be saving 50 cents by buying an extra tube of toothpaste at Walmart, or signing up for the 20 gig data plan at Verizon. Economist like Economic of scale because of its predictability.