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I would be grateful if you could kindly circulate this Call to
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                      CALL FOR CHAPTERS

        Mass Customization Information Systems in Business


                      A book edited by

                  Prof. Dr. Thorsten Blecker
         Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Germany
                              &
                  Prof. Dr. Gerhard Friedrich
               University of Klagenfurt, Austria


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Call for Chapters: http://www.manufacturing.de/calls/mc-it.htm

Proposals Submission Deadline: August 15, 2005
Authors notification:          August 31, 2005
Full Chapters Due:             November 30, 2005

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Introduction
Mass customization is a business strategy that aims at satisfying
individual
customer needs with near mass production efficiency. The advances
realized
in information technology are critical enablers, which make this
strategy
function efficiently. Information systems can be implemented to support
diverse activities in the mass customization value chain. They assist
customers during the product specification phase in order to lead them
in a
fast-paced manner to the product variants corresponding to their
individual
requirements. Modern information systems, which support open-innovation
even
enable customers to participate actively in the product design.
Furthermore,
mass customization information systems contribute to helping companies
mitigate excessive product variety and increase costs' efficiency on
the
shop floor and logistics through optimal product modeling and
production
planning and scheduling.

The Overall Objective of the Book
In the fields of mass customization information systems, there exists a
need
for a book enclosing high quality analyses in this area. The scientific
community and professionals both will benefit from a book that focuses
on
this subject. This book should describe the state-of-the-art,
innovative
theoretical frameworks, advanced and successful implementations as well
as
latest empirical research findings in the area. The main objective is
to
bridge theory and practice on the one hand and to fill research gaps
and
answer open questions on the other hand. The book will improve the
understanding of the problems that are encountered during the
conception of
information systems for mass customization. Furthermore, it provides
solution approaches for the mitigation of these problems and
simultaneously
highlights new directions for future research.

The Target Audience
The target audience consists of professionals and scientists working in
the
field of computer science and artificial intelligence. In addition,
industrial engineers and researchers in business administration with a
special focus on information systems and IT Management will find this
book
as an adequate reference that describes current research and presents
topics
that can be more deepened in the future. Graduate students in the
mentioned
areas will find practical applications of some theoretical concepts
that are
already discussed in class.

Recommended topics include, but are not limited to, the following:
    * Customer needs' elicitation
    * Personalization and advisory systems
    * Product modeling and configuration systems
    * Customer Relationship-Management systems
    * IT-Systems for Enterprise Resource Planning and
      Supply Chain Management
    * IT-architecture and infrastructure for mass customization
    * IT-support for open innovation

SUBMISSION PROCEDURE
Researchers and practitioners are invited to submit on or before August
15,
2005, a 2-5 page manuscript proposal clearly explaining the mission and
concerns of the proposed chapter. Authors of accepted proposals will be
notified by August 31, 2005 about the status of their proposals and
sent
chapter organizational guidelines. Full chapters are expected to be
submitted by November 30, 2005. All submitted chapters will be reviewed
on a
blind review basis. The book is scheduled to be published by Idea
Group,
Inc., publisher of the Idea Group Publishing, Information Science
Publishing, IRM Press, CyberTech Publishing and Idea Group Reference
imprints.


Inquiries and submissions can be forwarded electronically
(Word document and pdf) to:

Prof. Dr. Thorsten Blecker
Department of Business Logistics and General Management
HAMBURG UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY (TUHH)
Schwarzenbergstr. 95, 21073 Hamburg, Germany
Tel.: +49 (0) 40 42878 3525 . Fax: +49 (0) 40 42878 2200
E-mail: blecker@ieee.org