An Exploratory Study on the Role of Feasibility Study on Sustainability of Business in Kenya: A Case of Supermarkets in Nairobi County

Organizational strategic feasibility studies are critical in mitigating uncertainty in the business environment and enhancing growth and performance. This study sought to ascertain the role of feasibility studies in the sustainability of supermarkets in Nairobi County, Kenya. The study's specific objectives were to determine the impact of technical feasibility, economic feasibility, operational feasibility, and legal feasibility on the sustainability of supermarkets in Nairobi County, Kenya. A descriptive research design was used for the study. The study's target population was seven major supermarkets: Naivas, QuickMart, Cleanshelf, The Game Store, Chandarana, Eastmatt, and Carrefour. A questionnaire was used to collect primary data. Findings indicated that technical feasibility is positively and significantly related to the business sustainability of supermarkets in Nairobi County. The findings also revealed that economic feasibility is positively and significantly related to the business sustainability of supermarkets in Nairobi County. The findings revealed a positive and significant relationship between operational feasibility and business sustainability of supermarkets in Nairobi County. Finally, the findings revealed that the legal feasibility and business sustainability of Nairobi County supermarkets are positively and significantly related. The study concluded that technical feasibility, economic feasibility, operational feasibility, and legal feasibility all have a positive impact on supermarket business sustainability. The study recommends that supermarkets should become acquainted with the technical technology that is available on the market and evaluate those that are appropriate for their needs. Managers of Nairobi County supermarkets increase the level of internal and external benchmarking in their supermarkets for economic benefit assessments. Keywords: Technical Feasibility, Economic Feasibility, Operational Feasibility, Legal Feasibility, Sustainability & Supermarkets.

Results and Strategies for a Diversity-Oriented Public Health Monitoring in Germany

Germany is a country of immigration; 27% of the population are people with a migration background (PMB). As other countries, Germany faces difficulties in adequately including hard-to-survey populations like PMB into national public health monitoring. The IMIRA project was initiated to develop strategies to adequately include PMB into public health monitoring and to represent diversity in public health reporting. Here, we aim to synthesize the lessons learned for diversity-oriented public health monitoring and reporting in Germany. We also aim to derive recommendations for further research on migration and health. We conducted two feasibility studies (interview and examination surveys) to improve the inclusion of PMB. Study materials were developed in focus groups with PMB. A systematic review investigated the usability of the concept of acculturation. A scoping review was conducted on discrimination as a health determinant. Furthermore, core indicators were defined for public health reporting on PMB. The translated questionnaires were well accepted among the different migrant groups. Home visits increased the participation of hard-to-survey populations. In examination surveys, multilingual explanation videos and video-interpretation services were effective. Instead of using the concept of acculturation, we derived several dimensions to capture the effects of migration status on health, which were more differentiated. We also developed an instrument to measure subjectively perceived discrimination. For future public health reporting, a set of 25 core indicators was defined to report on the health of PMB. A diversity-oriented public health monitoring should include the following: (1) multilingual, diversity-sensitive materials, and tools; (2) different modes of administration; (3) diversity-sensitive concepts; (4) increase the participation of PMB; and (5) continuous public health reporting, including constant reflection and development of concepts and methods.

Techno–economic–environmental feasibility study of a photovoltaic system in northern part of Iran including a two-stage multi-string inverter with DC–DC ZETA converter and a modified P&O algorithm

Inverters play a significant role in the configuration of grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) systems. The perturb-and-observe (P&O) algorithm is a common method to derive the maximum power from grid-connected inverters; however, the possibility of losing maximum power due to sudden changes in radiation is a significant drawback of this control strategy. To overcome this barrier, the two-stage multi-string inverter using the ZETA DC–DC converter and a novel P&O algorithm has been proposed to increase the efficiency of these systems. The proposed inverter has been simulated in MATLAB/SIMULINK software. To investigate the performance of the proposed inverter, technical, environmental and economic feasibility studies have been performed for the construction of a 5-kW PV power plant in a northern city of Iran (Sari) using the RETScreen software developed by Natural Resources Canada. On the other hand, most feasibility studies for power-plant construction are based on the concept of inverter peak efficiency, which leads to non-optimal system design due to the short operation duration of the inverter at this value. However, the weighted European efficiency has been used in the feasibility study for more accurate computations. Moreover, the performance of the proposed inverter is compared to that of a two-stage multi-string inverter using a conventional P&O algorithm and the single-stage (central) inverter. The simulation results indicated that the proposed inverter injects 7.6 MW of power into the grid per year. Moreover, it prevents the emission of 88 tons of CO2 (over 20 years), which is equivalent to saving 1883.5 litres of gasoline per year.

Australian Renewable-Energy Microgrids: a Humble Past, a Turbulent Present, a Propitious Future

AAs the global energy market undergoes a wholesale transformation accelerated by the need to decarbonise, a rapid transition to renewable energy and the mass deployment of distributed energy resources, autonomous energy networks or microgrids are emerging as an attractive mechanism for the delivery of electricity to end users. Yet in Australia, at least, relatively little is known about key aspects of microgrids that are fundamental to their successful deployment, not least the more commercial and economic elements rather than the purely technical. Drawing on the extant global literature on microgrids, this paper explores the most important of these aspects including business models, ownership and investment. Identifying the ambiguity, inconsistency and uncertainty evident in many of the feasibility studies currently in train across Australia, this paper highlights specific areas for future research that need to be addressed if the full potential of microgrids is to be realised in the context of a global energy transition both domestically and internationally.

Design and optimization of an experimental maintenance system for yellow clam broodstock Amarilladesma mactroides (Reeve, 1854)

The yellow clam is a sand-burrowing bivalve that inhabits the dissipative beaches from southern Brazil to the north coast of Argentina. In the last decades, populations of this species have been impacted by mass mortality events, overfishing and other anthropogenic activities. The production of juveniles in captivity would allow feasibility studies to be carried out to restore the natural stock as well as the production in aquaculture systems. Given the scarcity of studies on the maintenance of this species in captivity, a culture system and a management protocol were developed and tested. Wild-caught clams (total length ≥50 mm) were used in a series of 14 day-long trials. Survival was higher in clams that were allowed to bury into the sand. A permanent ink marker covered with a thin layer of a quick-hardening adhesive proved to be a reliable method to tag clams. The maintenance of yellow clams in this system resulted in high survival and growth, increases in the condition factor and oocyte diameter, and a relative advancement of gonadal development.

US FDA best practices for initiating early feasibility studies for neurological devices in the United States

This article describes the efforts of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Neurological and Physical Medicine Devices to facilitate early clinical testing of potentially beneficial neurological devices in the US. Over the past 5 years, the FDA has made significant advances to this aim by developing early feasibility study best practices and encouraging developers and innovators to initiate their clinical studies in the US. The FDA uses several regulatory approaches to help start neurological device clinical studies, such as early engagement with sponsors and developers, in-depth interaction during the FDA review phase of a regulatory submission, and provision of an FDA toolkit that reviewers can apply to the most challenging submissions.

Mycelium-Based Composites in Art, Architecture, and Interior Design: A Review

Mycelium-based composites (MBCs) have attracted growing attention due to their role in the development of eco-design methods. We concurrently analysed scientific publications, patent documents, and results of our own feasibility studies to identify the current design issues and technologies used. A literature inquiry in scientific and patent databases (WoS, Scopus, The Lens, Google Patents) pointed to 92 scientific publications and 212 patent documents. As a part of our own technological experiments, we have created several prototype products used in architectural interior design. Following the synthesis, these sources of knowledge can be concluded: 1. MBCs are inexpensive in production, ecological, and offer a high artistic value. Their weaknesses are insufficient load capacity, unfavourable water affinity, and unknown reliability. 2. The scientific literature shows that the material parameters of MBCs can be adjusted to certain needs, but there are almost infinite combinations: properties of the input biomaterials, characteristics of the fungi species, and possible parameters during the growth and subsequent processing of the MBCs. 3. The patent documents show the need for development: an effective method to increase the density and the search for technologies to obtain a more homogeneous internal structure of the composite material. 4. Our own experiments with the production of various everyday objects indicate that some disadvantages of MBCs can be considered advantages. Such an unexpected advantage is the interesting surface texture resulting from the natural inhomogeneity of the internal structure of MBCs, which can be controlled to some extent.

TECHNICAL FEASIBILITY STUDY MODEL OF AGED APARTMENT RENOVATION APPLYING ANALYTIC HIERARCHY PROCESS

Residential buildings are being renovated around the world, especially apartments, their solutions are becoming increasingly important. The number of apartments in Korea that are more than 20 years old has reached 4.3 million, and the problem of aged apartments now needs to be addressed. Consequently, the government is promoting the improvement of the residential environment through renovation. In a renovation project, a feasibility study is conducted at the outset, but many apartments fail to complete the renovation process during the project. One reason is that feasibility studies focus on economics without sufficiently considering the technical aspects of the redesign. This study developed a feasibility study model that can pre-evaluate apartment renovation in terms of technology. We selected 27 criteria that affect technical feasibility, and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) was performed with experts to derive the relative importance of the criteria. Based on the weight of the criteria, we developed an apartment renovation technology feasibility study model. As a result of the study, unit and complex conditions were found to have a significant influence on renovation. Moreover, it was found that the technical feasibility study model can quantitatively evaluate the technical aspects of an apartment to be renovated.

Main Trends and Criteria Adopted in Economic Feasibility Studies of Offshore Wind Energy: A Systematic Literature Review

Offshore wind energy has been identified as one of the most promising and increasingly attractive sources of energy. This technology offers a long-term power-generation source, less environmental impact, and fewer physical restrictions. However, given the complexity of this technology, economic feasibility studies are essential. Thus, this study aims to identify the main trends and criteria or the methods used in the economic feasibility studies of offshore wind energy, providing a review of the state of the art in this literature. For this, a Systematic Literature Review was carried out. The article shows the growing interest in offshore wind power generation and highlights how recently the interest in the studies that assess the technical–economic feasibility of this source has grown; it presents the main milestones of the topic. Based on a structured literature review, this article identifies the main trends in this topic: (i) wind farms, (ii) risk, (iii) floating offshore wind farms, (iv) decommissioning and repowering, (v) net present value, (vi) life cycle cost, and (vii) multi-criteria decision-making; it provides a broad view of the methodological possibilities and specificities for investors and researchers interested in conducting studies on the economic feasibility of offshore wind generation. In addition, finally, a research agenda is proposed.