This study proposes a "Flexible Cost Model" (FCM) for settings in which firms may be unable or unwilling to optimally manage their cost structures. FCM, which nests a wide range of more restrictive models, allows for a flexible specification not only of the technology but also of firm-level...

This paper briefly reviews the existing methods of capacity utilization in nonparametric framework from economic perspectives, and then suggests an alternative in the light of limitations therein. In the spirit of work by Coelli et al. [Coelli, T.J., Grifell-Tatje, E., Perelman, S., 2002....