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\nSummary Statement of Contribution A service is a commercial activity that a company offers. Companies must strive to provide a satisfactory experience to their customers, based on the feedback and preferences expressed by buyers during the purchasing process. As a result, the relationship between supermarket sellers and customers in southern Brazil was different during the COVID-19 pandemic. The scope of this research aimed to analyze the factors influencing supermarket customer satisfaction from the antecedents of built environment, location, perceived service quality, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic as a moderator between the investigated constructs. A survey was conducted with supermarket customers in southern Brazil in two moments: one before and one during the COVID pandemic. The data were analyzed through structural equations modeling and moderation tests. The main results show that the built environment and location positively impact perceived service quality and customer satisfaction. The perceived service quality positively impacts customer satisfaction, and this relationship is stronger during the pandemic. Our theoretical contribution points out the physical environment as a multidimensional construct that changed due to the pandemic of COVID-19 concerning the customers' perception. Our findings should also be used to evaluate the locations of retail services related to hospitality and tourism.The findings point to the perception of the physical aspects of retail services as the result of a multidimensional framework part that is related to the physical urban environment and part concerning the perceived dimensions of the retail built space. The physical environment changed due to the pandemic of COVID-19 concerning the customers' perception. Practical implications arise as different dimensions of physical retail aspects positively affect service perception and customer satisfaction in pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research goal was to analyze the built environment dimensions, namely appearance, comfort, configuration, functionality, and the relationship with customer satisfaction, service quality, and product price at a winery in Brazil. A survey was applied to customers, and data analyses were performed using Exploratory Factor Analysis to identify the dimensions and related attributes, followed by Multiple Linear Regression statistical analysis to test the relationships among the dimensions. The findings demonstrate the positive and significant impact of functionality and configuration on service quality and customer satisfaction, whereas functionality positively impacted the product price. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Service quality in a construction technology laboratory can result in an improvement in construction companies' competitiveness. This research aims to evaluate the service quality provided by a construction technology laboratory, specifically in the segment of performing testing through the rupturing of concrete samples. For this research, a survey was conducted using a structured questionnaire that was created based on a literature review regarding the surveying of laboratory customers at a university in the south of Brazil. Our research was both exploratory and quantitative, and the data were analyzed by applying multivariate data analysis. The conclusions of this study show that the dimensions of quality services are: communication, reliability, responsiveness, credibility, and tangibility. These five dimensions together provide a high explained variance standard of 79.75%. Having a suitable number of attendants available to serve customers and presenting agility in the construction laboratory is one of the managerial research contributions. Moreover, through information availability, this research generates greater traceability that can be used both by customers and by institutional management. Constantly and thoroughly monitoring the customer service cycle is another relevant factor that can improve the quality of the services provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this research was to investigate how customers of a technological control laboratory of civil construction materials perceive the quality of the services delivered by the laboratory, specifically, what concerns the service of ceramic brick and concrete blocks breaking. The SERVQUAL scale was used as reference for the application of a survey and, by means of an Exploratory Factor Analyses, the dimensions and attributes that comprehend this service were evaluated. As a result, 20 attributes grouped in three dimensions Responsiveness, Assurance and Reliability) were found, what has resulted in an explained variance of 77.621%and that characterize these dimensions as a modified SERVQUAL scale. From the results, it was possible to identify the existing discrepancies in service quality, since all gaps between the expectations and perceptions of services have resulted in negative values. The developed study is relevant by bringing contributions concerning the quality assessment of ceramic brick and concreate block breaking services provided by a technology laboratory. The assessment to the results can add value in the customer service and, consequently, empowering the increase of satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The intent of this research is to investigate how the customers of a technological control laboratory for civil construction materials perceived the quality of the services delivered by the lab, specifically in regard to the service of concrete compression testing. The popular SERVQUAL scale, a multidimensional instrument used to capture customer expectations and perceptions, was used as a model for the application of a survey. Exploratory factor analyses were employed to evaluate customers’ perceptions and experiences of service quality in regard to the dimensions and accompanying attributes of the SERVQUAL scale. Twenty attributes, which were grouped within five dimensions (Reliability, Assurance, Tangibles, Responsiveness, and Empathy), were identified, explaining 80.417% of the variance between customer expectations and perceptions and characterizing these dimensions on a modified SERVQUAL scale. Analysis of the results allowed us to identify discrepancies in perceived service quality compared with customers’ expectations. Most of the identified gaps between expectations and perceptions resulted in negative values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]