scholarly journals Selecting E-Mobility Transport Solutions for Mountain Rescue Operations

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (24) ◽  
pp. 6613
Author(s):  
Christian Wankmüller ◽  
Maximilian Kunovjanek ◽  
Robert Gennaro Sposato ◽  
Gerald Reiner
Keyword(s):  
Selection Process ◽  
Technology Selection ◽  
Operational Performance ◽  
Validity Study ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Rescue Workers ◽  
Mountain Rescue ◽  
Best Worst Scaling ◽  
Study Results

This study introduces e-mobility for humanitarian purposes and presents the first investigation of innovative e-mobility transport solutions (e.g., e-bike, e-stretcher, and drone) for mountain rescue. In practice, it is largely unclear which e-mobility transport solutions might be suitable and what selection attributes are to be considered. The subsequent study supports the technology selection process by identifying and measuring relevant selection attributes to facilitate the adoption of e-mobility in this domain. For the purpose of this study, a multi-method research approach that combines qualitative and quantitative elements was applied. In the first step, results of a systematic search for attributes in literature were combined with inputs gained from unstructured expert interviews and discussions. The perceived importance of the identified selection attributes was then measured by analyzing survey data of 341 rescue workers using the best-worst scaling methodology. Finally, the results were reiterated in another expert discussion to assess their overall validity. Study results indicate that e-mobility transport solutions need to primarily enhance operational performance and support the safety of mountain rescue personnel. Surprisingly, economic and sustainability aspects are less of an issue in the process of technology selection.

scholarly journals Drones to the rescue? Exploring rescue workers' behavioral intention to adopt drones in mountain rescue missions

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Holzmann ◽  
Christian Wankmüller ◽  
Dietfried Globocnik ◽  
Erich J. Schwarz
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Intention ◽  
Practical Experience ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Operational Performance ◽  
Extended Model ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Rescue Workers ◽  
Mountain Rescue ◽  
Emergency Logistics ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeMountaineering and related activities are increasingly becoming popular and are accompanied by an increase in medical incidents. Emergency operations in mountainous terrain are time-critical and often pose major logistical challenges for rescuers. Drones are expected to improve the operational performance of mountain rescuers. However, they are not yet widely used in mountain rescue missions. This paper examines the determinants that drive the behavioral intention of mountain rescuers to adopt drones in rescue missions.Design/methodology/approachThis is a behavioral study that builds upon an extended model of the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) and investigates the relationship between individual attitudes, perceptions, and intentions for drone adoption. Original survey data of 146 mountain rescuers were analyzed using moderated ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analysis.FindingsResults indicate that the behavioral intention to use drones in mountain rescue missions is driven by the expected performance gains and facilitating conditions. Favorable supporting conditions and experience with drones further moderate the relationship between performance expectancy and behavioral intention. The effects for effort expectancy, social influence, and demonstrations were not significant.Practical implicationsRescue organizations and stakeholders are recommended to consider the identified determinants in the implementation of drones in emergency logistics. Drone manufacturers targeting mountain rescue organizations are advised to focus on operational performance, provide sufficient support and training, and promote the gathering of practical experience.Originality/valueA tailored-model that provides first empirical results on the relevance of personal and environmental factors for the acceptance of drones in emergency logistics is presented.

Perceived value of internship experience: a try before you leap

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 376-394 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonali Bhattacharya ◽  
Netra Neelam
Keyword(s):  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Performance Feedback ◽  
Work Experience ◽  
Selection Process ◽  
Learning Orientation ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Internship Experience ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Task Variety

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how internship value is manifested in the context of a business school. The authors have examined the internship experience in terms of experiential learning and employability. Specifically, the authors investigate the factors that determine internship at four phases: design, conduct, evaluation and feedback. Design/methodology/approach The authors have applied a mixed method approach. In all, 110 students of a busines school were first surveyed on their expectation, motivation and level of preparation through a self-administered questionnaire before internship. Based on the survey result, eight of these students were interviewed in details about internship expectations from industry, the selection process for internship, communications or exchanges between intern and companies prior to internship and perceived industry expectation from interns. At the next phase, authors used a qualitative research approach by conducting semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 14 interns and their mentors after internship period. They were interviewed on design, conduct, evaluation and feedback process of the internship. Interviews tried capture what kind of leader-member exchange led to satisfactory internship experience and outcome from view of both inter and mentor. Findings The authors find that at various stages of internship program quality of mentor – intern exchanges (as defined by leadership exchange theory), and task characteristics as indicated by autonomy, task variety, task significance and performance feedback determine intern’s performance. An intern’s performance is antecedent to an intern’s and a mentor’s satisfaction and overall internship value. The authors also found that intrinsic capability of intern such as critical thinking ability and learning orientation result in enhanced value of internship experience. The proposed models, postulate that at designing stage, lower the level of communication from employers, higher the feeling of ambiguity and lower the perceived internship value in terms of experiential learning and perceived employability. Feeling of ambiguity is moderated by existence of prior work experience of interns. At conduction stage, mentor-intern exchange is directly related to flexibility in structure of the program and inversely related to dependency on peer learning. Mentor-intern exchange also related to mentor and intern’s learning value. However, the learning value is moderated by learning orientation of the intern. Originality/value The authors have tried the summer internship experience from the perspective of interns and mentors. This is the uniqueness of the research.

scholarly journals The role of salient beliefs in graduates’ intention to apply

2015 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Samantha Adams ◽  
François De Kock
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Support ◽  
Behavioural Control ◽  
Control Beliefs ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Application Process ◽  
Perceived Behavioural Control ◽  
Latent Variable Analysis ◽  
Study Results

Orientation: Organisations compete fiercely to recruit the best graduates, because they consider them a rich source of future talent. In the recruitment literature, it has become increasingly important to understand the factors that influence graduate applicant intentions. Research purpose: Drawing on the theory of planned behaviour (TPB), we tested a model proposing that applicant intention is a function of their attitude towards applying, beliefs about referent other’s expectations (subjective norms) and perceived behavioural control with respect to this behaviour.Motivation for the study: The study was motivated by the need to shed light on graduate applicants’ decisions to apply to an organisation of their choice. Research approach, design and method: The study used a quantitative design to test hypotheses that attitudes towards behaviour, norms and control beliefs would influence intention to apply. We surveyed prospective job seekers (N = 854) studying at a South African university about their beliefs regarding the job application process. Main findings: Structural equation modelling showed reasonable fit of the proposed model to the survey data. Latent variable analysis demonstrated that perceived behavioural control and subjective norm explained intention to apply. With the combination of all three variables, only attitude towards applying did not play a significant role in the prediction of intention to apply, which is contrary to previous research. Practical/managerial implications: The findings highlight the role of salient control beliefs in the application process. Efforts by universities and organisations to affect intentions to apply may potentially benefit from focusing on support services that could enhance feelings of control and minimise perceived obstacles. Recruiters could focus on control to increase potential recruitment pools. Contribution/value-add: The study contributes to the recruitment literature in three ways. Firstly, TPB is shown to be a useful framework to explain graduate applicants’ intention to apply, as this theoretical model found empirical support. In doing so, the present study advances our understanding of how graduates’ intentions to apply are formed. Secondly, the results showed that applicants’ control and normative beliefs dominate when considering applying. Lastly, the study results open up interesting avenues for future research on applicant intentions.

scholarly journals KPIs for Operational Performance Assessment in Flexible Packaging Industry

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 3498
Author(s):  
Ciprian Cristea ◽  
Maria Cristea
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Operational Performance ◽  
Manufacturing Plants ◽  
Manufacturing Facility ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Flexible Packaging ◽  
Packaging Industry ◽  
Hierarchy Process ◽  
Financial Issues ◽  
Activity Areas

The flexible packaging industry has registered a significant growth over the last years, especially due to rising demand from healthcare, automotive, construction, food, beverage, and retail industries. It is essential for the production plants to regularly assess their ability to achieve performance target objectives and, at the same time, to compare their performance with that of factories from the same industry. By combining qualitative and quantitative research, this study proposes a set of thirty-two key performance indicators (KPIs), grouped into six activity areas, believed to be adequate to the flexible packaging industry, for assessing the operational performance. The analytical hierarchy process (AHP) method was employed to obtain the weights of the KPIs and to select the best manufacturing facility from a leading flexible packaging company in line with the opinions of experts that activate in this field. The results indicated that the main aspects considered by experts for assessing manufacturing plants operational performance were financial issues followed by production, customers contentment, quality, employee satisfaction and environmental protection. The proposed practical framework for assessing the operational performance along with the detailed information obtained in the paper are expected to represent important benchmarks for stakeholders involved in the decision-making process for flexible packaging industry.

Taxpayer behavioural factors influencing entrenched tax gaps

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Divakaran Reddy
Keyword(s):  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Tax Compliance ◽  
Public Trust ◽  
Accurate Estimate ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
International Studies ◽  
Tax Revenues ◽  
Study Results ◽  
The Government ◽  
Tax Noncompliance

Tax compliance is the willingness of taxpayers to obey tax rules of a nation, whilst tax noncompliance is the unwilling behaviour of citizens to act under tax regulations. Taxpayer compliance enables the government to collect tax revenues, which is one of the most important sources of government income. Altering the non-compliant behaviour of citizens is an important barometer for increasing tax revenues that contribute to the socio-economic development of a nation. Numerous quondam studies have been conducted strikingly in the past few decades on taxpayer compliance. However, there is a dearth of sufficient research currently on tax noncompliance behaviour. Moreover, the phenomenon of tax noncompliance has limited exploration from the vantage point of meta-analysis of primary research studies conducted, focussing on interrogating, and systematically categorising their results. Resultantly, the purpose of this study was to examine the previously related primary studies to determine those factors that have been judged to have influenced the tax compliance behaviour of citizens. This study has adopted the quantitative research approach and followed the preferred reporting items for systematic review (PRISMA) method and meta-analysis to provide an accurate estimate of the relationship that exists in a population of relevant tax noncompliance behavioural studies. The population comprised of 45 international studies conducted between the period 2015 to 2020 is selected for analysis. The study results indicate that the quality of tax administration systems and public trust in institutional governance are factors that have influenced taxpayer compliance positively. Poor government accountability mechanisms entrenched tax gaps, and developing public trust in government institutions were found to be universal to promote voluntary taxpayer compliance. This study has contributed significantly to the open discussion on tax compliance among researchers, governments, and businesses.

Constraints and limitations of concrete 3D printing in architecture

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chien-Ho Ko
Keyword(s):  
3D Printing ◽  
Manufacturing Process ◽  
Computer Aided Design ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Layer By Layer ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Improve Design ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Computer Aided ◽  
Property Control

Purpose Additive manufacturing of concrete (AMoC) is an emerging technology for constructing buildings. However, due to the nature of the concrete property and constructing buildings in layers, constraints and limitations are encountered while applying AMoC in architecture. This paper aims to analyze the constraints and limitations that may be encountered while using AMoC in architecture. Design/methodology/approach A descriptive research approach is used to conduct this study. First, basic notions of AMoC are introduced. Then, challenges of AMoC, including hardware, material property, control and design, are addressed. Finally, strategies that may be used to overcome the challenges are discussed. Findings Factors influencing the success of AMoC include hardware, material, control methods, manufacturing process and design. Considering these issues in the early design phase is crucial to achieving a successful computer-aided design (CAD)/computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) integration to bring CAD and CAM benefits into the architecture industry. Originality/value In three-dimensional (3D) printing, objects are constructed layer by layer. Printing results are thus affected by the additive method (such as toolpath) and material properties (such as tensile strength and slump). Although previous studies attempt to improve AMoC, most of them focus on the manufacturing process. However, a successful application of AMoC in architecture needs to consider the possible constraints and limitations of concrete 3D printing. So far, research on the potential challenges of applying AMoC in architecture from a building lifecycle perspective is still limited. The study results of this study could be used to improve design and construction while applying AMoC in architecture.

scholarly journals An empirical analysis of construction organisations’ competitive strategies and performance

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 417-431 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luqman Oyekunle Oyewobi ◽  
Abimbola Oluwakemi Windapo ◽  
Rotimi Olabode Bamidele James
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Financial Performance ◽  
Chief Executive Officers ◽  
Chief Executive ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Competitive Strategies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Financial Performance Measures ◽  
Executive Officers

Purpose – The essence of strategy formulation is to assist an organisation obtain a strategic fit with its environment and help enhance organisational continuous improvement in achieving performance excellence. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the type of competitive strategies used by construction organisations in attaining their strategic goals in South Africa. Design/methodology/approach – The study employs an inductive research approach using a well-structured questionnaire to elicit information from large construction organisations based in South Africa. Findings – The research identifies five strategic attributes that could assist organisations to grow their businesses and enhance their returns. It reveals that all Porters’ generic competitive strategies are significantly related to organisational financial performance measures except focus strategy. The research found that three generic competitive strategies are positively related to non-financial performance and that differentiation and cost-leadership strategies are capable of assisting organisations’ achieve their financial performance goals. Practical implications – The study results will be of immense benefit to chief executive officers as well as managers of construction organisations in growing their businesses and enhancing their corporate performance. Originality/value – The paper contributes both theoretically and empirically to the current discussion and findings on competitive strategy and its relationship with organisational performance. The results presented in the paper have important implications for the implementation of competitive strategies in construction companies and future studies in the area of strategic management.

scholarly journals Technology Selection Assistance Tool for Positive Energy Districts

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 18
Author(s):  
Andrea Gabaldón Moreno ◽  
Beril Alpagut ◽  
Cecilia Sanz Montalvillo
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Selection Process ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Technology Selection ◽  
Positive Energy ◽  
Innovative Technologies ◽  
Lack Of Information ◽  
Decision Making Tool ◽  
Assistance Tool

Positive energy districts (PEDs) consist of more than three interconnected buildings that annually produce more renewable energy than what is consumed within the district boundaries. To achieve the annual surplus of energy, implementation of renewable-driven and innovative technologies is needed. However, most cities struggle in deciding what technologies are more suitable for their environment due to the lack of information and experience in a holistic approach. A decision-making tool has been developed within MAKING-CITY, with the collaboration of ATELIER project, to assist in the PED technology selection process, empowering cities with information and recommendations, in line with their district context and city objectives.

scholarly journals PREDIKSI KREDIT DAN INDEKS MUSIMAN (SEASONAL INDEX) PADA BANK PERKREDITAN RAKYAT DI KABUPATEN JEMBER

BISMA ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 210
Author(s):  
Hari Sukarno ◽  
Ratna Pratiwi Nugroho ◽  
Susanti Prasetiyaningtiyas
Keyword(s):  
Moving Average ◽  
Linear Regression Analysis ◽  
Multiple Linear Regression Analysis ◽  
Development Pattern ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Financial Reports ◽  
Double Exponential ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Double Exponential Smoothing ◽  
Seasonal Index

This research aims to analyze the credit's predictive value, the development pattern of credit distribution, and the credit fluctuations of 13 Rural Banks in Jember, influenced by seasonal index variables, credit interest, NPL, LDR, ROA, CAR, and operational efficiency ratio. This study used an explanatory research approach. The sample consisted of all Rural Banks' quarterly financial reports in 2014-2019 taken by a purposive sampling method. Data were analyzed using three methods, i.e., double exponential smoothing, moving average ratio, and multiple linear regression analysis methods. Results showed that, according to each data analysis method, ten Rural Banks experienced increased credit distribution. However, the other three Rural Banks experienced a decrease in credit distribution. The study results also indicated an increasing trend in the development pattern of credit distribution. Meanwhile, the NPL and LDR variables partially influenced credit fluctuations. Keywords: credit prediction, rural bank, seasonal index

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