Cost analysis error? Exploring issues relating to whole-life cost estimation in sustainable housing

2014 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Sloan ◽  
Olubukola Tokede ◽  
Sam Wamuziri ◽  
Andrew Brown
Keyword(s):  
Cost Estimation ◽  
Cost Models ◽  
Binomial Theorem ◽  
Value Analysis ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Zero Carbon ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Whole Life Costing ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Whole Life Cost

Purpose – The main purpose of the study is to promote consideration of the issues and approaches available for costing sustainable buildings with a view to minimising cost overruns, occasioned by conservative whole-life cost estimates. The paper primarily looks at the impact of adopting continuity in whole-life cost models for zero carbon houses. Design/methodology/approach – The study embraces a mathematically based risk procedure based on the binomial theorem for analysing the cost implication of the Lighthouse zero-carbon house project. A practical application of the continuous whole-life cost model is developed and results are compared with existing whole-life cost techniques using finite element methods and Monte Carlo analysis. Findings – With standard whole-life costing, discounted present-value analysis tends to underestimate the cost of a project. Adopting continuity in whole-life cost models presents a clearer picture and profile of the economic realities and decision-choices confronting clients and policy-makers. It also expands the informative scope on the costs of zero-carbon housing projects. Research limitations/implications – A primary limitation in this work is its focus on just one property type as the unit of analysis. This research is also limited in its consideration of initial and running cost categories only. The capital cost figures for the Lighthouse are indicative rather than definitive. Practical implications – The continuous whole-life cost technique is a novel and innovative approach in financial appraisal […] Benefits of an improved costing framework will be far-reaching in establishing effective policies aimed at client acceptance and optimally performing supply chain networks. Originality/value – The continuous whole-life costing pioneers an experimental departure from the stereo-typical discounting mechanism in standard whole-life costing procedures.

The impact of labor freedom on geographic cost of living differentials

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 385-395
Author(s):  
Richard Cebula ◽  
James E. Payne ◽  
Donnie Horner ◽  
Robert Boylan
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
State Level ◽  
The State ◽  
Annual Data ◽  
Significant Finding ◽  
Cost Of Living ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of labor market freedom on state-level cost of living differentials in the USA using cross-sectional data for 2016 after allowing for the impacts of economic and quality of life factors. Design/methodology/approach The study uses two-stage least squares estimation controlling for factors contributing to cost of living differences across states. Findings The results reveal that an increase in labor market freedom reduces the overall cost of living. Research limitations/implications The study can be extended using panel data and alternative measures of labor market freedom. Practical implications In general, the finding that less intrusive government and greater labor freedom are associated with a reduced cost of living should not be surprising. This is because less government intrusion and greater labor freedom both inherently allow markets to be more efficient in the rationalization of and interplay with forces of supply and demand. Social implications The findings of this and future related studies could prove very useful to policy makers and entrepreneurs, as well as small business owners and public corporations of all sizes – particularly those considering either location in, relocation to, or expansion into other markets within the USA. Furthermore, the potential benefits of the National Right-to-Work Law currently under consideration in Congress could add cost of living reductions to the debate. Originality/value The authors extend the literature on cost of living differentials by investigating whether higher amounts of state-level labor market freedom act to reduce the states’ cost of living using the most recent annual data available (2016). That labor freedom has a systemic efficiency impact on the state-level cost of living is a significant finding. In our opinion, it is likely that labor market freedom is increasing the efficiency of labor market transactions in the production and distribution of goods and services, and acts to reduce the cost of living in states. In addition, unlike previous related studies, the authors investigate the impact of not only overall labor market freedom on the state-level cost of living, but also how the three sub-indices of labor market freedom, as identified and measured by Stansel et al. (2014, 2015), impact the cost of living state by state.

The impact of law, religion, and culture on the ease of starting a business

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 242-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dana L. Haggard ◽  
K. Stephen Haggard
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
Cultural Dimension ◽  
Legal Origin ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Dynamic Factors ◽  
New Business ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Starting A Business

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of culture, legal origin and religion on four measures of the ease of starting a new business; the number of procedures required, the number days required, the ease of getting credit and the cost to start a business. Design/methodology/approach The authors use linear regression to test the hypotheses using publicly available data on legal origin and religion from La Porta et al. (1999), cultural dimension information from Hofstede (2009) and measures of the ease of starting a business from the World Bank’s (2017) Doing Business Initiative. The final sample consists of 71 countries for which information was available on all the variables of interest. Findings Legal origin affects the number of procedures and the length of time needed to start a business, as well as the ease of getting credit. Culture (power distance) and religion are important for explaining gender differences in the ease of starting a business. The cost of starting a business is unrelated to culture, legal origin or religion. Originality/value Economic development is an important determinant of a country’s political stability and standard of living. Although politicians play a significant role in how a friendly a country is toward business, the study demonstrates that other longer-term and less dynamic factors have a material influence on economic development.

scholarly journals Earnings quality and the cost of equity capital: evidence on the impact of legal background

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmed Hassan Ahmed ◽  
Yasean Tahat ◽  
Yasser Eliwa ◽  
Bruce Burton
Keyword(s):  
Earnings Quality ◽  
Institutional Ownership ◽  
Equity Capital ◽  
Cost Of Equity Capital ◽  
Cost Of Equity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Earnings quality is of great concern to corporate stakeholders, including capital providers in international markets with widely varying regulatory pedigrees and ownership patterns. This paper aims to examine the association between the cost of equity capital and earnings quality, contextualised via tests that incorporate the potential for moderating effects around institutional settings. The analysis focuses on and compares evidence relating to (common law) UK/US firms and (civil law) German firms over the period 2005–2018 and seeks to identify whether, given institutional dissimilarities, significant differences exist between the two settings. Design/methodology/approach First, the authors undertake a review of the extant literature on the link between earnings quality and the cost of capital. Second, using a sample of 948 listed companies from the USA, the UK and Germany over the period 2005 to 2018, the authors estimate four implied cost of equity capital proxies. The relationship between companies’ cost of equity capital and their earnings quality is then investigated. Findings Consistent with theoretical reasoning and prior empirical analyses, the authors find a statistically negative association between earnings quality, evidenced by information relating to accruals and the cost of equity capital. However, when they extend the analysis by investigating the combined effect of institutional ownership and earnings quality on financing cost, the impact – while negative overall – is found to vary across legal backdrops. Research limitations/implications This paper uses institutional ownership as a mediating variable in the association between earnings quality and the cost of equity capital, but this is not intended to suggest that other measures may be of relevance here and additional research might usefully expand the analysis to incorporate other forms of ownership including state and foreign bases. Second, and suggestive of another avenue for developing the work presented in the study, the authors have used accrual measures of earnings quality. Practical implications The results are shown to provide potentially important insights for policymakers, creditors and investors about the consequences of earnings quality variability. The results should be of interest to firms seeking to reduce their financing costs and retain financial viability in the wake of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Originality/value The reported findings extends the single-country results of Eliwa et al. (2016) for the UK firms and Francis et al. (2005) for the USA, whereby both reported that the cost of equity capital is negatively associated with earnings quality attributes. Second, in a further increment to the extant literature (particularly Francis et al., 2005 and Eliwa et al., 2016), the authors find the effect of institutional ownership to be influential, with a significantly positive impact on the association between earnings quality and the cost of equity capital, suggesting in turn that institutional ownership can improve firms’ ability to secure cheaper funding by virtue of robust monitoring. While this result holds for the whole sample (the USA, the UK and Germany), country-level analysis shows that the result holds only for the common law countries (the UK and the USA) and not for Germany, consistent with the notion that extant legal systems are a determining factor in this context. This novel finding points to a role for institutional investors in watching and improving the quality of financial reports that are valued by the market in its price formation activity.

Internship impact on career consideration among business students

2016 ◽  
Vol 58 (9) ◽  
pp. 1003-1013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miriam Rothman ◽  
Ruth Sisman
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Job Search ◽  
Business Students ◽  
Career Path ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Non Profit ◽  
Job Functions ◽  
Analysis Methodology ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to report on the impact of the internship experience on business students’ career intentions in regard to pursuing a career path in the same job function or industry as their internship. Design/methodology/approach After completing and reflecting on an internship, 198 undergraduate students responded to the prompt: “discuss the impact of the internship on your career consideration.” Responses were analyzed using a content analysis methodology in order to determine whether or not interns would pursue the same job functions (e.g. sales) or industry (e.g. non-profit) as their internship in their post-graduation job search. Findings Across the job functions and industries identified within the internships, 54 and 45 percent of interns confirmed their expectations of career fit, respectively. The implications of confirming and disconfirming these expectations for students are discussed. Originality/value Given the value of internships to business students, surprisingly few studies have examined their influence on undergraduates’ career considerations. Students select internships with the intention of learning about job functions or industries for possible career fit, yet the authors know little about whether the experience confirms or disconfirms their expectations. This study seeks to address this gap. The authors suggest that internships, as experiential activities, merit greater attention as they provide students opportunities to learn what they do or do not want to do, where they do or do not want to work and whether their self-concept fits a possible career path – saving themselves and potential employers the cost of job dissatisfaction and turnover.

Cost Comparison of Panel Level and Wafer Level Fan-out Packaging

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 (DPC) ◽  
pp. 000141-000164
Author(s):  
Amy Lujan
Keyword(s):  
Cost Reduction ◽  
Cost Comparison ◽  
Cost Modeling ◽  
Cost Models ◽  
Wafer Level ◽  
Process Flow ◽  
Total Cost ◽  
Large Panels ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

In recent years, the possibility of panels replacing wafers in some fan-out applications has been a topic of interest. Questions of cost and yield continue to arise even as the industry appears to be full steam ahead. While large panels allow for more packages to be produced at once, the cost does not scale simply based on how many more packages can be generated from a panel over a wafer. This analysis begins by breaking down the types of cost and will discuss how those types of cost are impacted (or not) by the shift from wafer to panel. Activity based cost modeling is used; this is a detailed, bottom-up approach that takes into account each type of cost for each activity in a process flow. Two complete cost models were constructed for this analysis. A variety of package sizes are analyzed, and multiple panel sizes are included as well. For each set of activities in the fan-out process flow, there is an explanation of how the process changes with the move to panel, including assumptions related to throughput, equipment price, and materials. The cost reduction that may be achieved at each package and panel size will be presented for each processing segment. The focus of this analysis is on the details of each segment of the process flow, but results for the total cost of various packages will also be presented. There is also a section of analysis related to the impact of yield on the competitiveness of panel processing.

Does intellectual capital disclosure affect the cost of equity capital? An empirical analysis in the integrated reporting context

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (6) ◽  
pp. 985-1007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Salvi ◽  
Filippo Vitolla ◽  
Nicola Raimo ◽  
Michele Rubino ◽  
Felice Petruzzella
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Equity Capital ◽  
Corporate Disclosure ◽  
Cost Of Equity Capital ◽  
Cost Of Equity ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Empirical Examination ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the impact of intellectual capital disclosure on the cost of equity capital in the context of integrated reporting, which represents the ultimate frontier in the field of corporate disclosure.Design/methodology/approachThe authors employ content analysis to measure intellectual capital disclosure levels along with a panel analysis on a sample of 164 integrated reports.FindingsEmpirical outcomes indicate that intellectual capital disclosure levels have a significantly negative association with the cost of equity capital.Originality/valueThis study's major contribution lies in its originality in terms of empirical examination of the relationship between intellectual capital disclosure in integrated reports and the cost of equity capital.

A hybrid framework to model factors affecting construction labour productivity

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 630-654 ◽  
Author(s):  
Majid Parchami Jalal ◽  
Shahab Shoar
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Labour Productivity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Schedule Delay ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Hybrid Framework ◽  
Novel Method ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This paper aims to model different causal relations among factors interacting with labour productivity in order to recognize the most important factors influencing and influenced by it. Design/methodology/approach Top 60 factors affecting labour productivity were determined and grouped into 5 major groups by reviewing previous research and interviewing relevant experts. The interactions of factors were modelled using system dynamics (SD) approach. The resulting causal loop diagrams obtained from SD were then applied for identifying the most crucial factors influencing and influenced by labour productivity through the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method. The impact of factors on each other was finally determined based on the opinions of 63 experts selected from the Iranian construction industry. Findings The results indicated that factors such as fatigue, lack of labour motivation and lack of skill are the most influencing, and factors such as schedule delay and inflation in the cost of execution are the most influenced by labour productivity. In the end, a set of recommendations to improve construction labour productivity was also presented. Originality/value The main contribution of the study is proposing a novel method which is capable of providing insights into how causes and effects of construction labour productivity are interrelated. Furthermore, the proposed method makes this study distinct from previous research in the light of prioritizing factors and offering recommendations according to the interrelationships among factors.

Does opening high-speed railways affect the cost of debt financing? A quasi-natural experiment

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 473-496
Author(s):  
Hongling Guo ◽  
Keping Wu
Keyword(s):  
High Speed ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
Debt Financing ◽  
Cost Of Debt ◽  
High Speed Railway ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Financing Cost ◽  
Debt Market ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis study aims to investigate how opening high-speed railways affects the cost of debt financing based on China's background.Design/methodology/approachUsing panel data on Chinese listed firms from 2008 to 2017, this study constructs a quasi-natural experiment and adopts a difference-in-difference model with multiple time periods to empirically examine the relation between the high-speed railway openings and debt financing cost.FindingsOur results show that opening high-speed railways reduces the cost of debt financing, and this negative correlation is more significant in non-state firms, firms with weaker internal control, and firms that hire non-Big Four auditors. Besides, we explore the impact mechanisms and find that opening high-speed railways improves analyst attention, institutional investor participation, and information disclosure quality, which in turn lowers the cost of debt financing.Research limitations/implicationsThe results imply that the opening of high-speed railways helps to alleviate the information asymmetry and adverse selection between firms and creditors and ultimately reduces the cost of corporate debt financing.Practical implicationsThis paper can inform firms and stakeholders about the impact of opening high-speed railways on debt financing cost: it improves the information environment, reduces the geographical location restrictions of debt financing, ensures the reasonable pricing of corporate debt, and thus promotes the healthy and sound development of the debt market.Originality/valueThis paper provides theoretical support and empirical evidence for the impact of infrastructure construction on the information environment of the debt market in China, which enriches the research on the “high-speed railway economy.” In addition, as an exogenous event, the opening of high-speed railways instantly shortens the time distance between firms and external stakeholders, which gives us a natural environment to conduct empirical research, thus providing a new perspective for financial research on firms' geographical location.

Factors influencing the borrower loan size in microfinance group lending: a survey from Indian microfinance institutions

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sunil Sangwan ◽  
Narayan Chandra Nayak
Keyword(s):  
Size Variation ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Individual Member ◽  
Limited Information ◽  
Microfinance Institutions ◽  
Group Lending ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Loan Size ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of the cost of microfinance intermediation on borrowers’ loan size. The identified transaction cost and credit risk factors tell about what a lender takes into accounts while screening and allocating loan amounts to the borrowers, where the lender has limited information about the client’s ability to repay. Design/methodology/approach The analysis is based on the primary data collected from a sample of 498 microfinance institutions (MFI) linked group clients covering two microfinance leading states of India. Findings Empirical findings suggest that the cost of microfinance intermediation has an impact on borrowers’ loan size. To reduce the cost, the MFIs lend big loans to clients having a high income, assets, land size, lower informal borrowings and having longer loan experiences. In MFI lending, the younger and less educated people are the ones who demand bigger loan amounts. The geographical distance of borrowers’ location from MFI offices, group size and interest rate are the other factors that influence the loan size. Originality/value The past empirical works seem to have not focused on how the cost of microfinance intermediation creates loan size variation among the borrowers in joint liability group lending. The endogeneity problem has not been resolved. The present article thus identifies the factors that influence the individual member loan size by using two-stage least squared regression to tackle the issue of endogeneity.

Consumer based brand equity in the 21st century: an examination of the role of social media marketing

2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 243-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atefeh Yazdanparast ◽  
Mathew Joseph ◽  
Fernanda Muniz
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Brand Equity ◽  
Social Media Marketing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Population ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The present research investigates the influence of brand-based social media marketing (SMM) activities on metrics of consumer-based brand equity (CBBE). Specifically, the study examines the role of consumer-brand social media experiences on attitude toward SMM activities of brands and its consequent impact on brand perceptions. Design/methodology/approach Paper-and-pencil surveys were administered to undergraduate students in a Southwestern university in exchange for extra credit. Survey questions were adapted from previously validated scales, and measurement adaptations were minimal and only related to the context of questions to assure their relevance with the context of this study. Bi-variate correlation, bootstrapping technique, Sobel test, ANOVA and linear regression were used to test the hypotheses. Findings The results indicate that brand-based SMM is essential in impacting consumers’ attitudes toward brands and consequently, CBBE reflected via perceived value for the cost, perceived uniqueness and the willingness to pay a price premium for a brand. Additionally, the main reason for individuals to use social media impacts their attitudes toward and receptiveness of SMM activities of brands. Research limitations/implications This study used a sample of college students to address the research questions. Considering the higher adoption rate and interest in social media among younger consumer groups, the results may not be representative of the entire population. Much of the existing research on social media, however, has focused on undergraduate college students and is primarily based on studies utilizing the similar research population. Originality/value The present research is one of the few studies that empirically examine the impact of consumer-brand interactions/experiences on consumers’ attitudes toward SMM activities of brands, as well as brand-related knowledge and perceptions as reflected by CBBE. The results indicate that the CBBE model of the twenty-first century should incorporate the role of brand-based SMM activities as facilitators of brand knowledge (i.e. brand awareness and brand image) by reinforcing or even shaping important brand-based associations.

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