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Supply chains in an attempt to be more competitive, are adopting new management paradigm. Among these paradigms there are four that deserve particular mention because of their importance to better {SC} performance: lean, agile, resilient and green. The main objective of this paper is to propose a set of supply chain management practices to become the {SC} more lean, agile, resilient and green, which were named {LARG} practices, and to suggest a conceptual model that makes possible to analyze the influence of these {LARG} practices on manufacturing supply chains performance. Also, a set of operational, economic and environmental performance measures are suggested.

We prove that given a finite (zero) exact right decomposition (M, T) of a semigroup S, if M is defined by a finite complete presentation, then S is also defined by a finite complete presentation. Exact right decompositions are natural generalizations to semigroups of coset decompositions in groups. As a consequence, we deduce that any Zappa–Szép extension of a monoid defined by a finite complete presentation, by a finite monoid, is also defined by such a presentation.

It is also proved that a semigroup M^0[A; I, J; P], where A and P satisfy some very general conditions, is also defined by a finite complete presentation.

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Supply chains ({SC)} in an attempt to be more competitive, are adopting new management paradigm. Among these paradigms there are four that deserve particular mention because of their importance to better {SC} performance: lean, agile, resilient and green. The main objective of this paper is to propose a conceptual model for a lean, agile, resilience and green {SC}, with the purpose of improving their operational, economic and environmental performance. In this attempt a set of {SC} management practices, which were named {LARG} practices, and several performance measures are suggested. This model is based in the literature review about the four {SC} management paradigms and also {SC} performance measurement. Among the suggested {LARG} practices the ones influencing more the {SC} performance are the just in time and also the supplier relationships. Also the {SC} performance measures with more {LARG} practices influencing them are the inventory levels and the time, that is, the {SC's} operational performance is the most affected.

Domain Specific Languages (DSLs) are claimed to increment productivity, while reducing the required maintenance and programming expertise. In this context, DSLs usability is a key factor for its successful adoption.

In this paper, we propose a systematic approach based on User Interfaces Experimental validation techniques to assess the impact of the introduction of DSLs on the productivity of domain experts. To illustrate this evaluation approach we present a case study of a DSL for High Energy Physics (HEP).

The DSL on this case study, called Pheasant (PHysicist’s EAsy Analysis Tool), is assessed in contrast with a pre-existing baseline, using General Purpose Languages (GPLs) such as C++. The comparison combines quantitative and qualitative data, collected with users from a real-world setting. Our assessment includes Physicists with programming experience with two profiles; ones with no experience with the previous framework used in the project and other experienced.

This work’s contribution highlights the problem of the absence of systematic approaches for experimental validation of DSLs. It also illustrates how an experimental approach can be used in the context of a DSL evaluation during the Software Languages Engineering activity, with respect to its impact on effectiveness and efficiency.

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a new technology that has received considerable attention from academics and practitioners due to its large scope of application, advantages and potentialities. This chapter aims to highlight the potentialities associated with RFID in fast moving Fashion Supply Chain Management (FSCM). The research emphasizes the technological contribution to the Fashion Supply Chain (FSC) such as speed up logistics activities, increased quality, reduced prices, and more responsive improvements for customer satisfaction. The chapter reviews the RFID technology, presents the benefits, disadvantages, and barriers associated with it. To explore the deployment of the RFID technology in the Fashion Supply Chain (FSC), a case study investigation of companies in different FSCM nodes was carried out. A cross-case analysis it is also presented to achieve a deeper understanding about this technology in a fast moving FSCM context