Product development is essential for all companies that want to survive in competitive markets regardless of the characteristics of the product that the company sells. Companies that sell products within product categories which can be seen as bad, also need to develop their products in order to remain competitive. If these bad products add a positive attribute, for example that they get organic, a contradiction within the product arises and they get incongruent. This thesis investigates which effects that follow a launch of an incongruent product. The thesis also examines if these effects are affected by the strength of the brand under which the product is launched.A total of 240 respondents participated in an experimental study where product incongruity was manipulated for two different product categories, where one well known brand and one unknown brand were examined in each category.

Background: Knowledge of customer needs is a key factor in companies? struggle to develop successful products. Several studies illustrate that the main reason for failure in product development is lack of customer understanding. Lately considerable changes have occurred. Large-scale mass production is continuously being replaced by customer orientation, especially in the high technological market.

If one looks at physical planning in Sweden today one can see that while talking about densification of existing development, reduced emissions and careful use of important land, urban sprawl is a fact with development of sheer residential districts in the urban edges and shopping malls in each and every municipality. As sustainable development is an essential goal for physical planning to strive towards, it is worth questioning if the direction of today?s planning will lead to the goal. A sustainable development can be seen as an obvious to goal aim at. In reality the aim means a hard and complex work.

The management of information is one of the key aspects within a successful andefficient product development process, particularly regarding complex products.Scania CV AB is at the moment developing a new IT-system, OAS, which aims tomanage the company?s product data. With this as a background, the purpose of thismaster thesis is to identify the cross-functional user needs within Scania?s organizationconcerning product data and the management around it.To fulfill the purpose, an empirical study consisting of 40 personal interviews with 50representatives from different functions within Scania?s organization was carriedthrough. The empirical data was then analyzed focusing on identifying thecross-functional needs and issues.The study points out that there is a big potential regarding improvement among themanagement of product data.

The purpose with this project was to invent a product that secures buildings sewersystems against rats. The problem was presented to us by a local building maintainer inHalmstad, who had experienced big problems with rats in his real estate. The project hasbeen carried out by Per Johansson, Robert Lidén and Niclas Nilsson under our ownauspices. We are primarily sponsored by AMLI Business Partner but also byInnvationsgruppen, Halmstad Fastighets AB and Anticimex.To be able to secure a whole building with only one product we came to the conclusionthat the product must be placed in the horizontal sewer pipe that connects with themunicipal sewer system. Our goal was to invent a product that prevent rats from passingand at the same time not affect the water flow.

The aim of this study is to make clear the conception ?Sustainable Urban Development? through an investigation dealing with how the sustainable goals are attained in today?s Swedish urban planning. And also try to clarify where and why sustainable development is failing or lacking. Besides that I have investigated how actors take position towards urban sustainability. The essay is based on a literature study about sustainable urban development and it?s changes through the time and place.

Miljö och hållbarhet är något som kommit att uppmärksammas allt mer sedan startskottet på 70-talet i samband med ökat fokus från regeringshåll och grundande av miljöorganisationer. I takt med konsumenters ökade medvetenhet har kraven höjts på svenska klädföretag och deras arbete med hållbar utveckling och hållbara produkter. Problematiken ligger i att svenska klädföretag utför sitt arbete på olika sätt och därav finns olika tolkningar av hur en hållbar produkt är framställd och vad denna ska innehålla. Det är även svårt för kunder att få ett grepp av en hållbar produkt, då de inte finns någon konkret definition.Den övergripande problemformuleringen i arbetet har berört hur olika svenska klädföretag och miljöorganisationer definierar en hållbar produkt. I uppsatsen presenteras olika definitioner av hållbar utveckling och den lagstiftning som ligger till grund för de produkter som produceras och säljs på den svenska marknaden.

AbstractThe rise of globalization has made ??the sustainability aspect emerged as a sign that peoples? actions must change. Tourism is now one of the fastest growing industries in the world that has an impact on people, nature and cultures. The purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding how different tourism actors use and express the concept of sustainable tourism development in the co-operation organization Kiruna Lapland. One of the most visited places in the north of Sweden.

The current debate regarding organizational strategies for sustainabledevelopment is influenced by the theory of global governance. Decentralizedstructures of the global society are taken to use in the realization of a sustainabledevelopment. New roles of transnational networks and partnerships raisesquestions of the ability of global governance to co-ordinate and implement longtermsolutions without assistance from centralized and hierarchic structures basedon government. The aim for this thesis is to illustrate the current conditions forwell-functioning networks of sustainable development and examine therelationship between global governance and government. Issues of participation,decision making and compliance are examined by a case study of the Marrakechprocess, a global process to support the implementation of sustainableconsumption and production.

Ett mönster är uppbyggt av ett motiv som upprepas. Denna upprepning kan fortsätta i all oändlighet. Hållbar antyder långsiktighet. Mönstrets övergripande egenskap är oändlighet. Hur kan denna egenskap hos mönstret nyttjas inom mönsterdesign för att främja hållbar utveckling? Det här kandidatarbetet undersöker mönsterdesignens möjlighet att verka för hållbar utveckling genom att se till begreppet mönster ur ett bredare perspektiv, samt i relation till design för hållbar utveckling.

The mission from IKEA of Sweden was to make a further development of their existing trolley in the FRAKTA -serial. IKEA wants that the new product would make the opportunities better for people who don't have cars to carry their goods home easily on the bus, train or walk after their purchase.The report includes a suggestion for a new product that will fit into the existing FRAKTA -serial. The new development product will continue the same standard as the other products in the serial and it will also make it possible for customers to carry their goods home by public transportations..

AbstractThe rise of globalization has made ??the sustainability aspect emerged as a sign that peoples? actions must change. Tourism is now one of the fastest growing industries in the world that has an impact on people, nature and cultures. The purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding how different tourism actors use and express the concept of sustainable tourism development in the co-operation organization Kiruna Lapland. One of the most visited places in the north of Sweden.

All inclusive travel has become a popular way to travel abroad. When tourists pay for everything in advance their need for contact with the local people will be reduced. The consequences of this can be dissatisfaction from the local people as they are left out and do not share the financial benefits created by tourism. During the purchasing cycle of an all inclusive travel, it is possible that the tour operator can influence a sustainable development.The aim of this paper is to compare how a large and a small tour operator in their purchase of all inclusive holidays interacts with local players to create sustainable development, thereby creating a surplus value to the customer. The hypothesis is that the amount of knowledge and application of this knowledge regarding sustainable development differs in the purchase process between large and small tour operators.This paper was carried out as a case study.

In Sweden according to the planning and building Act municipalities have planning monopoly. The question about shopping centres in the outskirts of cities is a regional issue, because they attract customers from a large area. Municipalities often find it hard to assert themselves against large commercial companies when it comes to their establishing new retail outlets on the outskirts of cities. Without a regional co-operation there is a risk that municipalities can be played up against one another, so that more and more companies are given permits without the municipalities having taken the strategic consideration necessary for a long term sustainable development. The focus in this work is on four municipalities in the Södertörn region (Södertälje, Botkyrka, Huddinge and Nynäshamn).

The mission from IKEA of Sweden was to make a further development of their existing trolley in the FRAKTA -serial. IKEA wants that the new product would make the opportunities better for people who don't have cars to carry their goods home easily on the bus, train or walk after their purchase.The report includes a suggestion for a new product that will fit into the existing FRAKTA -serial. The new development product will continue the same standard as the other products in the serial and it will also make it possible for customers to carry their goods home by public transportations..