• Title/Summary/Keyword: cost evaluation

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A basic study on explosion pressure of hydrogen tank for hydrogen fueled vehicles in road tunnels (도로터널에서 수소 연료차 수소탱크 폭발시 폭발압력에 대한 기초적 연구)

  • Ryu, Ji-Oh;Ahn, Sang-Ho;Lee, Hu-Yeong
    • Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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    • v.23 no.6
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    • pp.517-534
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    • 2021
  • Hydrogen fuel is emerging as an new energy source to replace fossil fuels in that it can solve environmental pollution problems and reduce energy imbalance and cost. Since hydrogen is eco-friendly but highly explosive, there is a high concern about fire and explosion accidents of hydrogen fueled vehicles. In particular, in semi-enclosed spaces such as tunnels, the risk is predicted to increase. Therefore, this study was conducted on the applicability of the equivalent TNT model and the numerical analysis method to evaluate the hydrogen explosion pressure in the tunnel. In comparison and review of the explosion pressure of 6 equivalent TNT models and Weyandt's experimental results, the Henrych equation was found to be the closest with a deviation of 13.6%. As a result of examining the effect of hydrogen tank capacity (52, 72, 156 L) and tunnel cross-section (40.5, 54, 72, 95 m2) on the explosion pressure using numerical analysis, the explosion pressure wave in the tunnel initially it propagates in a hemispherical shape as in open space. Furthermore, when it passes the certain distance it is transformed a plane wave and propagates at a very gradual decay rate. The Henrych equation agrees well with the numerical analysis results in the section where the explosion pressure is rapidly decreasing, but it is significantly underestimated after the explosion pressure wave is transformed into a plane wave. In case of same hydrogen tank capacity, an explosion pressure decreases as the tunnel cross-sectional area increases, and in case of the same cross-sectional area, the explosion pressure increases by about 2.5 times if the hydrogen tank capacity increases from 52 L to 156 L. As a result of the evaluation of the limiting distance affecting the human body, when a 52 L hydrogen tank explodes, the limiting distance to death was estimated to be about 3 m, and the limiting distance to serious injury was estimated to be 28.5~35.8 m.

An Evaluation of Allowable Bearing Capacity of Weathered Rock by Large-Scale Plate-Bearing Test and Numerical Analysis (대형평판재하시험 및 수치해석에 의한 풍화암 허용지지력 평가)

  • Hong, Seung-Hyeun
    • Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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    • v.38 no.10
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    • pp.61-74
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    • 2022
  • Considering that the number of cases in which a structure foundation is located on weathered rock has been increasing recently, for adequate design bearing capacity of a foundation on weathered rock, allowable bearing capacities of such foundations in geotechnical investigation reports were studied. With reference to the study results, the allowable bearing capacity of a foundation on weathered rock was approximately 400-700 kN/m2, with a large variation, and was considered a conservative value. Because the allowable bearing capacity of the foundation ground is an important index in determining the foundation type in the early design stage, it can have a significant influence on the construction cost and period according to the initial decision. Thus, in this study, six large-scale plate-bearing tests were conducted on weathered rock, and the bearing capacity and settlement characteristics were analyzed. According to the test results, the bearing capacities from the six tests exceeded 1,500 kN/m2, and it shows that the results are similar with the one of bearing capacity formula by Pressuremeter tests when compared with the various bearing capacity formula. In addition, the elastic modulus determined by the inverse calculation of the load-settlement behavior from the large-scale plate-bearing tests was appropriate for applying the elastic modulus of the Pressuremeter tests. With consideration of the large-scale plate-bearing tests in this study and other results of plate-bearing tests on weathered rock in Korea, the allowable bearing capacity of weathered rock is evaluated to be over 1,000 kN/m2. However, because the settlement of the foundation increases as the foundation size increases, the allowable bearing capacity should be restrained by the allowable settlement criteria of an upper structure. Therefore, in this study, the anticipated foundation settlements along the foundation size and the thickness of weathered rocks have been evaluated by numerical analysis, and the foundation size and ground conditions, with an allowable bearing capacity of over 1,000 kN/m2, have been proposed as a table. These findings are considered useful in determining the foundation type in the early foundation design.

An Empirical Study on the Improvement of In Situ Soil Remediation Using Plasma Blasting, Pneumatic Fracturing and Vacuum Suction (플라즈마 블라스팅, 공압파쇄, 진공추출이 활용된 지중 토양정화공법의 정화 개선 효과에 대한 실증연구)

  • Jae-Yong Song;Geun-Chun Lee;Cha-Won Kang;Eun-Sup Kim;Hyun-Shic Jang;Bo-An Jang;Yu-Chul Park
    • The Journal of Engineering Geology
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    • v.33 no.1
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    • pp.85-103
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    • 2023
  • The in-situ remediation of a solidified stratum containing a large amount of fine-texture material like clay or organic matter in contaminated soil faces limitations such as increased remediation cost resulting from decreased purification efficiency. Even if the soil conditions are good, remediation generally requires a long time to complete because of non-uniform soil properties and low permeability. This study assessed the remediation effect and evaluated the field applicability of a methodology that combines pneumatic fracturing, vacuum extraction, and plasma blasting (the PPV method) to improve the limitations facing existing underground remediation methods. For comparison, underground remediation was performed over 80 days using the experimental PPV method and chemical oxidation (the control method). The control group showed no decrease in the degree of contamination due to the poor delivery of the soil remediation agent, whereas the PPV method clearly reduced the degree of contamination during the remediation period. Remediation effect, as assessed by the reduction of the highest TPH (Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons) concentration by distance from the injection well, was uncleared in the control group, whereas the PPV method showed a remediation effect of 62.6% within a 1 m radius of the injection well radius, 90.1% within 1.1~2.0 m, and 92.1% within 2.1~3.0 m. When evaluating the remediation efficiency by considering the average rate of TPH concentration reduction by distance from the injection well, the control group was not clear; in contrast, the PPV method showed 53.6% remediation effect within 1 m of the injection well, 82.4% within 1.1~2.0 m, and 68.7% within 2.1~3.0 m. Both ways of considering purification efficiency (based on changes in TPH maximum and average contamination concentration) found the PPV method to increase the remediation effect by 149.0~184.8% compared with the control group; its average increase in remediation effect was ~167%. The time taken to reduce contamination by 80% of the initial concentration was evaluated by deriving a correlation equation through analysis of the TPH concentration: the PPV method could reduce the purification time by 184.4% compared with chemical oxidation. However, the present evaluation of a single site cannot be equally applied to all strata, so additional research is necessary to explore more clearly the proposed method's effect.

Development and Experimental Performance Evaluation of Steel Composite Girder by Turn Over Process (단면회전방법을 적용한 강합성 소수주거더 개발 및 실험적 성능 평가)

  • Kim, Sung Jae;Yi, Na Hyun;Kim, Sung Bae;Kim, Jang-Ho Jay
    • KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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    • v.30 no.5A
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    • pp.407-415
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    • 2010
  • In Korea, more than 90% of the total number of steel bridges built for 40~70 m span length is a steel box-girder bridge type. A steel box-girder bridge is suitable for long span or curved bridges with outstanding flexural and torsional rigidity as well as good constructability and safety. However, a steel box-girder bridge is uneconomical, requiring many secondary members and workmanship such as stiffeners and ribs requiring welding attachments to flanges or webs. Therefore, in US and Japan, a plate girder bridge, which is relatively cheap and easy to construct is generally used. One type of the plate girder bridge is the two- or three-main girder plate bridge, which is a composite plate girder bridge that minimizes the number of required main girders by increasing the distance between the adjacent girders. Also, for the simplification of girder section, the stiffener which requires attachment to the web is not required. The two-main steel girder plate bridge is a representative type of plate girder bridges, which is suitable for bridges with 10 m effective width and has been developed in the early 1960s in France. To ensure greater safety of two- or three-main girder plate bridges, a larger steel section is used in the bridge domestically than in Europe or Japan. Also, the total number of two- or three-main girder plate bridge constructed in Korea is significantly less than the steel box girder bridge due to a lack of designers' familiarity with more complex design detailing of the bridge compare to that of a steel box girder bridge design. In this study, a new construction method called Turn Over method is proposed to minimize the steel section size used in a two- or three-main girder plate bridge by applying prestressing force to the member using confining concrete section's weight to reduce construction cost. Also, a full scale 20 m Turn Over girder specimen and a Turn Over girder bridge specimen were tested to evaluate constructability and structural safety of the members constructed using Turn Over process.

Establishing Optimal Conditions for LED-Based Speed Breeding System in Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] (LED 기반 콩[Glycine max (L.) Merr.] 세대단축 시스템 구축을 위한 조건 설정)

  • Gyu Tae Park;Ji-Hyun Bae;Ju Seok Lee;Soo-Kwon Park;Dool-Yi Kim;Jung-Kyung Moon;Mi-Suk Seo
    • KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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    • v.68 no.4
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    • pp.304-312
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    • 2023
  • Plant breeding is a time-consuming process, mainly due to the limited annual generational advancement. A speed breeding system, using LED light sources, has been applied to accelerate generational progression in various crops. However, detailed protocols applicable to soybeans are still insufficient. In this study, we report the optimized protocols for a speed breeding system comprising 12 soybean varieties with various maturity ecotypes. We investigated the effects of two light qualities (RGB ratio), three levels of light intensity (PPFD), and two soil conditions on the flowering time and development of soybeans. Our results showed that an increase in the red wavelength of the light spectrum led to a delay in flowering time. Furthermore, as light intensity increased, flowering time, average internode length, and plant height decreased, while the number of nodes, branches, and pods increased. When compared to agronomic soil, horticultural soil resulted in an increase of more than 50% in the number of nodes, branches, and pods. Consequently, the optimal conditions were determined as follows: a 10-hour short-day photoperiod, an equal RGB ratio (1:1:1), light intensity exceeding 1,300 PPFD, and the use of horticultural soil. Under these conditions, the average flowering time was found to be 27.3±2.48 days, with an average seed yield of 7.9±2.67. Thus, the speed breeding systems reduced the flowering time by more than 40 days, compared to the average flowering time of Korean soybean resources (approximately 70 days). By using a controlled growth chamber that is unaffected by external environmental conditions, up to 6 generations can be achieved per year. The use of LED illumination and streamlined facilities further contributes to cost savings. This study highlights the substantial potential of integrating modern crop breeding techniques, such as digital breeding and genetic editing, with generational shortening systems to accelerate crop improvement.

The Market Segmentation of Coffee Shops and the Difference Analysis of Consumer Behavior: A Case based on Caffe Bene (커피전문점의 시장세분화와 소비자행동 차이 분석 : 카페베네 사례를 중심으로)

  • Yu, Jong-Pil;Yoon, Nam-Soo
    • Journal of Distribution Science
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    • v.9 no.4
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    • pp.5-13
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    • 2011
  • This study provides analysis of the effectiveness of domestic marketing strategies of the Korean coffee shop "Caffe Bene". It bases its evaluation on statistical outputs of 'choice attributes,' "market segmentation," demographic characteristics," and "satisfaction differences." The results are summarized in four points. First, five choice attributes were extracted from factor analysis: price, atmosphere, comfort, taste, and location; these are related to coffee shop selection behavior. Based on these five factors, cluster analysis was conducted, with statistical results classifying customers into three major groups: atmosphere oriented; comfort oriented; and taste oriented. Second, discriminant analysis tested cluster analysis and showed two discriminant functions: location and atmosphere. Third, cross-tabulation analysis based on demographic characteristics showed distinctive demographic characteristics within the three groups. Atmosphere oriented group, early-20s, as women of all ages was found to be 'walking down the street 'and 'through acquaintances' in many cases, as the cognitive path, and mostly found the store through 'outdoor advertising', and 'introduction'. Comfort oriented group was mainly women who are students in their early twenties or professionals, and appeared as a group to be very loyal because of high recommendation to other customers compared to other groups. Taste oriented group, unlike the other group, was mainly late-20s' college graduates, and was confirmed, as low loyalty, with lower recommendation activity. Fourth, to analyze satisfaction differences, one-way ANOVA was conducted. It shows that groups which show high satisfaction in the five main factors also show high menu satisfaction and high overall satisfaction. This results show that segmented marketing strategies are necessary because customers are considering price, atmosphere, comfort, taste, location when they choose coffee shop and demographics show different attributes based on segmented groups. For example, atmosphere oriented group is satisfied with shop interior and comfort while dissatisfied with price because most of the customers in this group are early 20s and do not have great financial capability. Thus, price discounting marketing strategies based on individual situations through CRM system is critical. Comfort oriented group shows high satisfaction level about location and shop comfort. Also, in this group, there are many early 20s female customers, students, and self-employed people. This group customers show high word of mouth tendency, hence providing positive brand image to the customers would be important. In case of taste oriented group, while the scores of taste and location are high, word of mouth score is low. This group is mainly composed of educated and professional many late 20s customers, therefore, menu differentiation, increasing quality of coffee taste and price discrimination is critical to increase customers' satisfaction. However, it is hard to generalize the results of study to other coffee shop brand, because this study have researched only one domestic coffee shop, Caffe Bene. Thus if future study expand the scope of locations, brands, and occupations, the results of the study would provide more generalizable results. Finally, research of customer satisfactions of menu, trust, loyalty, and switching cost would be critical in the future study.

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The Evaluation of Forest-road Network Considering Optimum Forest-road Arrangement and Yarding Function (최적임도배치(最適林道配置) 및 집재기능(集材機能)을 고려(考慮)한 임도배치망(林道配置網) 평가(評價))

  • Park, Sang Jun;Bae, Sang Tae
    • Current Research on Agriculture and Life Sciences
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    • v.19
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    • pp.45-54
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    • 2001
  • This study was carried out to provide fundamental data for prospective forest-road project and forest-road network arrangement through appraising existing forest-road network with density, extension distance, maximum yarding distance and yarding area, position of forest-road line considered above foundation of two theories, one is "theory of optimal forest-road density" which has expense for yarding cost and constructing forest-road minimized, the other is "theory of optimal forest-road arrangement" which has investment effect maximized. The results are as follows. 1. In density and extension distance of the forest-road by site, it was showed up that density of existing forest-road is lower than that of calculated forest-road. So, it is thought that some additional forest-roads have to be constructed. 2. In the arrangement of the forest-road network by site, it was showed up that the arrangement of calculated forest-road is higher than that of existing forest-road arrangement for the forestry and yarding function. So, it is thought that the arrangement of forest-road network have to be considered to maximize the investment effect. 3. In "mean maximum distance for yarding" and "mean area which yarding can be done" by horizontal and inclined distance, the existing forest-road networks were different from those of calculated forest-road network. So, calculated forest-road network making investment effect maximize is more effective than existing forest-road network. Hence, in prospective forest-road project, it is needed that forest-road network having "area which yarding can be done" maximized through considering function for yarding have to be constructed.

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Usefulness of Troponin-I, Lactate, C-reactive protein as a Prognostic Markers in Critically Ill Non-cardiac Patients (비 순환기계 중환자의 예후 인자로서의 Troponin-I, Lactate, C-reactive protein의 유용성)

  • Cho, Yu Ji;Ham, Hyeon Seok;Kim, Hwi Jong;Kim, Ho Cheol;Lee, Jong Deok;Hwang, Young Sil
    • Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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    • v.58 no.6
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    • pp.562-569
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    • 2005
  • Background : The severity scoring system is useful for predicting the outcome of critically ill patients. However, the system is quite complicated and cost-ineffective. Simple serologic markers have been proposed to predict the outcome, which include troponin-I, lactate and C-reactive protein(CRP). The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic values of troponin-I, lactate and CRP in critically ill non-cardiac patients. Methods : From September 2003 to June 2004, 139 patients(Age: $63.3{\pm}14.7$, M:F = 88:51), who were admitted to the MICU with non-cardiac critical illness at Gyeongsang National University Hospital, were enrolled in this study. This study evaluated the severity of the illness and the multi-organ failure score (Acute Physiologic and Chronic Health EvaluationII, Simplified Acute Physiologic ScoreII and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment) and measured the troponin-I, lactate and CRP within 24 hours after admission in the MICU. Each value in the survivors and non-survivors was compared at the 10th and 30th day after ICU admission. The mortality rate was compared at 10th and 30th day in normal and abnormal group. In addition, the correlations between each value and the severity score were assessed. Results : There were significantly higher troponin-I and CRP levels, not lactate, in the non-survivors than in the survivors at 10th day($1.018{\pm}2.58ng/ml$, $98.48{\pm}69.24mg/L$ vs. $4.208{\pm}10.23ng/ml$, $137.69{\pm}70.18mg/L$) (p<0.05). There were significantly higher troponin-I, lactate and CRP levels in the non-survivors than in the survivors on the 30th day ($0.99{\pm}2.66ng/ml$, $8.02{\pm}9.54ng/dl$, $96.87{\pm}68.83mg/L$ vs. $3.36{\pm}8.74ng/ml$, $15.42{\pm}20.57ng/dl$, $131.28{\pm}71.23mg/L$) (p<0.05). The mortality rate was significantly higher in the abnormal group of troponin-I, lactate and CRP than in the normal group of troponin-I, lactate and CRP at 10th day(28.1%, 31.6%, 18.9% vs. 11.0%, 15.8 %, 0%) and 30th day(38.6%, 47.4%, 25.8% vs. 15.9%, 21.7%, 14.3%) (p<0.05). Troponin-I and lactate were significantly correlated with the SAPS II score($r^2=0.254$, 0.365, p<0.05). Conclusion : Measuring the troponin-I, lactate and CRP levels upon admission may be useful for predicting the outcome of critically ill non-cardiac patients.

Evaluation of a colloid gel(Slime) as a body compensator for radiotherapy (Colloid gel(Slime)의 방사선 치료 시 표면 보상체로서의 유용성 평가)

  • Lee, Hun Hee;Kim, Chan Kyu;Song, Kwan Soo;Bang, Mun Kyun;Kang, Dong Yun;Sin, Dong Ho;Lee, Du Heon
    • The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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    • v.30 no.1_2
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    • pp.191-199
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    • 2018
  • Purpose : In this study, we evaluated the usefulness of colloid gel(slime) as a compensator for irregular patient surfaces in radiation therapy. Materials and Methods : For this study, colloid gel suitable for treatment was made and four experiments were conducted to evaluate the applicability of radiation therapy. Trilogy(Varian) and CT(SOMATOM, Siemens) were used as treatment equipment and CT equipment. First, the homogeneity according to the composition of colloid gel was measured using EBT3 Film(RIT). Second, the Hounsfield Unit(HU) value of colloid gel was measured and confirmed by CRIS phantom, Eclipse RTP(Eclipse 13.1, Varian) and CT. Third, to measure the deformation and degeneration of colloid gel during the treatment period, it was measured 3 times daily for 2 weeks using an ion chamber(PTW-30013, PTW). The fourth experiment was compared the treatment plan and measured dose distributions using bolus, rice, colloid gel and additional, dose profiles in an environment similar to actual treatment using our own acrylic phantom. Result : First experiment, density of the colloid gel cases 1, 2 and 3 was $1.02g/cm^3$, $0.99g/cm^3$ and $0.96g/cm^3$. When the homogeneity was measured at 6 MV and 9 MeV, case 1 was more homogeneous than the other cases, as 1.55 and 1.98. In the second experiment, the HU values of case 1, 2, 3 were 15 and when the treatment plan was compared with the measured doses, the difference was within 1 % at all 9, 12 MeV and a difference of -1.53 % and -1.56 % within the whole 2 % at 6 MV. In the third experiment, the dose change of colloid gel was measured to be about 1 % for 2 weeks. In the fourth experiment, the dose difference between the treatment plan and EBT3 film was similar for both colloid gel and bolus, rice at 6 MV. But colloid gel showed less dose difference than bolus and rice at 9 MeV. Also, dose profile of colloid gel showed a more uniform dose distribution than the bolus and rice. Conclusion : In this study, the density of colloid gel prepared for radiation therapy was $1.02g/cm^3$ similar to the density of water, and alteration or deformation was not observed during the radiotherapy process. Although we pay attention to the density when manufacturing colloid gel, it is sufficient in that it can deliver the dose uniformly through the compensation of the patient's body surface more than the bolus and rice, and can be manufactured at low cost. Further studies and studies for clinical applications are expected to be applicable to radiation therapy.

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An Exploratory Study on the Components of Visual Merchandising of Internet Shopping Mall (인터넷쇼핑몰의 VMD 구성요인에 대한 탐색적 연구)

  • Kim, Kwang-Seok;Shin, Jong-Kuk;Koo, Dong-Mo
    • Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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    • v.18 no.2
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    • pp.19-45
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    • 2008
  • This study is to empirically examine the primary dimensions of visual merchandising (VMD) of internet shopping mall, namely store design, merchandise, and merchandising cues, to be a attractive virtual store to the shoppers. The authors reviewed the literature related to the major components of VMD from the perspective of the AIDA model, which has been mainly applied to the offline store settings. The major purposes of the study are as follows; first, tries to derive the variables related with the components of visual merchandising through reviewing the existing literatures, establish the hypotheses, and test it empirically. Second, examines the relationships between the components of VMD and the attitude toward the VMD, however, putting more emphasis on finding out the component structure of the VMD. VMD needs to be examined with the perspective that an online shopping mall is a virtual self-service or clerkless store, which could reduce the number of employees, help the shoppers search, evaluate and purchase for themselves, and to be explored in terms of the in-store persuasion processes of customers. This study reviewed the literatures related to store design, merchandise, and merchandising cues which might be relevant to the store, product, and promotion respectively. VMD is a total communication tool, and AIDA model could explain the in-store consumer behavior of online shopping. Store design has to do with triggering a consumer attention to the online mall, merchandise with a product related interest, and merchandising cues with promotions such as recommendation and links that induce the desire to pruchase. These three steps might be seen as the processes for purchase actions. The theoretical rationale for the relationship between VMD and AIDA could be found in Tyagi(2005) that the three steps of consumer-oriented merchandising are a store, a product assortment, and placement, in Omar(1999) that three types of interior display are a architectural design display, commodity display, and point-of-sales(POS) display, and in Davies and Ward(2005) that the retail store interior image is related to an atmosphere, merchandise, and in-store promotion. Lee et al(2000) suggested as the web merchandising components a merchandising cues, a shopping metaphor which is an assistant tool for search, a store design, a layout(web design), and a product assortment. The store design which includes differentiation, simplicity and navigation is supposed to be related to the attention to the virtual store. Second, the merchandise dimensions comprising product assortments, visual information and product reputation have to do with the interest in the product offerings. Finally, the merchandising cues that refer to merchandiser(MD)'s recommendation of products and providing the hyperlinks to relevant goods for the shopper is concerned with attempt to induce the desire to purchase. The questionnaire survey was carried out to collect the data about the consumers who would shop at internet shopping malls frequently. To select the subject malls, the mall ranking data announced by a mall rating agency was used to differentiate the most popular and least popular five mall each. The subjects was instructed to answer the questions after navigating the designated mall for five minutes. The 300 questionnaire was distributed to the consumers, 166 samples were used in the final analysis. The empirical testing focused on identifying and confirming the dimensionality of VMD and its subdimensions using a structural equation modeling method. The confirmatory factor analysis for the endogeneous and exogeneous variables was carried out in four parts. The second-order factor analysis was done for a store design, a merchandise, and a merchandising cues, and first-order confirmatory factor analysis for the attitude toward the VMD. The model test results shows that the chi-square value of structural equation is 144.39(d.f 49), significant at 0.01 level which means the proposed model was rejected. But, judging from the ratio of chi-square value vs. degree of freedom, the ratio was 2.94 which smaller than an acceptable level of 3.0, RMR is 0.087 which is higher than a generally acceptable level of 0.08. GFI and AGFI is turned out to be 0.90 and 0.84 respectively. Both NFI and NNFI is 0.94, and CFI 0.95. The major test results are as follows; first, the second-order factor analysis and structural equational modeling reveals that the differentiation, simplicity and ease of identifying current status of the transaction are confirmed to be subdimensions of store design and to be a significant predictors of the dependent variable. This result implies that when designing an online shopping mall, it is necessary to differentiate visually from other malls to improve the effectiveness of the communications of store design. That is, the differentiated store design raise the contrast stimulus to sensory organs to promote the memory of the store and to have a favorable attitude toward the VMD of a store. The results that navigation which means the easiness of identifying current status of shopping affects the attitude to VMD could be interpreted that the navigating processes via the hyperlinks which is characteristics of an internet shopping is a complex and cognitive process and shoppers are likely to lack the sense of overall structure of the store. Consequently, shoppers are likely to be alost amid shopping not knowing where to go. The orientation tool enhance the accessibility of information to raise the perceptive power about the store environment.(Titus & Everett 1995) Second, the primary dimension of merchandise and its subdimensions was confirmed to be unidimensional respectively, have a construct validity, and nomological validity which the VMD dimensions supposed to have a positive correlation with the dependent variable. The subdimensions of product assortment, brand fame and information provision proved to have a positive effect on the attitude toward the VMD. It could be interpreted that the more plentiful the product and brand assortment of the mall is, the more likely the shoppers to favor it. Brand fame and information provision as well affect the VMD attitude, which means that the more famous the brand, the more likely the shoppers would trust and feel familiar with the mall, and the plentifully and visually presented information could have the shopper have a favorable attitude toward the store VMD. Third, it turned out to be that merchandising cue of product recommendation and hyperlinks affect the VMD attitude. This could be interpreted that recommended products could reduce the uncertainty related with the purchase decision, and the hyperlinks to relevant products would help the shopper save the cognitive effort exerted into the information search and gathering, which could lead to a favorable attitude to the VMD. This study tried to sheds some new light on the VMD of online store by reviewing the variables mentioned to be relevant with offline VMD in the existing literatures, and tried to link the VMD components from the perspective of AIDA model. The effect size of the VMD dimensions on the attitude was in the order of the merchandise, the store design and the merchandising cues.It is said that an internet has an unlimited place for display, however, the virtual store is not unlimited since the consumer has a limited amount of cognitive ability to process the external information and internal memory. Particularly, the shoppers are likely to face some difficulties in decision making on account of too many alternative and information overloads. Therefore, the internet shopping mall manager should take into consideration the cost of information search on the part of the consumer, to establish the optimal product placements and search routes. An efficient store composition would be possible by reducing the psychological burdens and cognitive efforts exerted to information search and alternatives evaluation. The store image is in most part determined by the product category and its brand it deals in. The results of this study support this proposition that the merchandise is most important to the VMD attitude than other components, the manager is required to take a strategic approach to VMD. The internet users are getting more accustomed and more knowledgeable about the internet media and more likely to accept the internet as a shopping channel as the period of time during which they use the internet to shop become longer. The web merchandiser should be aware that the product introduction using a moving pictures and a bulletin board become more important in order to present the interactive product information visually and communicate with customers more actively, therefore leading to making the quantity and quality of product information more rich.

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