Abstract—In modern market, consumer choice behavior attracts attention from researchers and manufacturers for its importance and unpredictability. Many factors influence consumer choice behavior, country of manufacture (COM), price, quality, design, and awareness are the most commonly mentioned in literature. This study aims at investigating the impact of COM effect on consumer choice behavior, and the most important factor in consumers’ mind. Brand choice models are employed to evaluate consumer choice probabilities of seven countries of manufacture. The results show that quality is the most important product attribute, COM, design, price go next, followed by awareness. The choice probabilities are also estimated to show the competitiveness of these COMs in Taiwan market. This may provide manufacturers in these COMs relative information, and help promote their competitiveness.

Index Terms—Computer aided design (CAD), e-Learning, product data management (PDM), quality function deployment (QFD).

N. Gwangwava and S. Mhlanga are with the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, National University of Science and Technology, P. O. Box AC 939, Ascot, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe (e-mail: eng.normie@ gmail.com). 
S. Mhlanga is also PhD student in the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of Johannesburg, South Africa (e-mail: smhlanga126@gmail.com).

Cite: Norman Gwangwava and Samson Mhlanga , "Automation of QFD an e-Learning Tool for Product Development with an Integrated Product Data Management Platform in e-Business ," International Journal of e-Education, e-Business, e-Management and e-Learning vol. 1, no. 5, pp. 384-389, 2011.