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SUMMARY:Nested patterns in large-scale automotive supply networks  - Alexa
 ndra Brintrup (Cranfield)
DTSTART:20121011T110000Z
DTEND:20121011T120000Z
UID:TALK39095@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Rengarajan
DESCRIPTION:We draw on the network theoretic analysis of two large-scale e
 mpirical datasets describing the Toyota Motor Company and the Ford Motor G
 roup\, to show that macroscopic production characteristics of supply netwo
 rks are neither randomly assembled nor purely  hierarchical\, but are high
 ly nested. A nested pattern means that suppliers produce proper subsets of
  what other suppliers produce\, and niche products are produced only by th
 ose firms that already have highly diversified product portfolios. Prelimi
 nary examination hints that the pattern may be caused by large\, older fir
 ms choosing to add new\, unique products into their portfolio along a grow
 th process\, whilst small\, young specialists produce only standard techno
 logies. Nested networks are more robust than non-nested networks as suppli
 ers that fail can be substituted - but on a strategic level\, nestedness a
 lso means that small suppliers face more competition as their production c
 apabilities are redundant. This gives large\, diversified companies the ad
 vantage of niche production as well as operational efficiency advantages r
 esulting from their size and large breadth of operations\, possibly result
 ing in exponential growth.\n
LOCATION:Seminar 2\, Institute for Manufacturing\, 17 Charles Babbage Road
 \, Cambridge
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