Maximo C. Gacula

This book discusses experimental designs which are very useful in sensory and consumer testing. As an added feature this coverage is fully illustrated with real-life examples. In addition, the importance of fractional factorial designs are explained more fully than in books now available. The heart of this book is product optimization which covers in great detail designs and analysis of optimization studies with consumers. A rundown of this chapter includes: preliminaries, test for adequacy of statistical model and least squares estimation of regression parameters; why use optimization technique; types of optimization experiments; Plackett and Burman design; Box and Behnken design, mixture designs; search for optimum areas in response surfaces; use of contour maps in product reformulation augmentation of fractional factorial design; optimization with discrete variables, dangers of fractional factorial designs, and optimization for robustness. This book will be valuable for a wide audience of professionals in the areas of sensory, marketing, advertising, statistics, quality assurance, food, beverage, personal care, pharmaceutical, household products, and cosmetic industries. The book could also serve as a text in applied statistics

The authors skillfully present different approaches to the same problem and even different ways to look at the same type of data. If you have ever been stumped by a controversy in product assessment, the design of studies, or the analysis of data, you will find the answer in this book.

In defining sensory properties of products, descriptive techniques that utilize trained panels are used. Arthur D. Little, Inc. pioneered a desriptive technique in the 1950's known as the "Flavor Profile" that laid the foundation for the development of current desriptive techniques used today in academia and industry. Several collections of published papers are reprinted in this book. The main areas covered include dairy products, meats, alcoholic beverages, textile materials and general applications. In addition, Dr. Gacula has prepared 40 pages of new text material on (1) Descriptive Sensory Analysis Methods, and (2) Computer Software. Methods for statistical systems (SAS) computer programs are provided