Development of Foreign Competitor Identification Index (FCII) in Malaysia

Most previous studies have dealt with foreign competitors in host country by considering how the contractors compete in international environment. The purpose of this study is to develop a foreign competitor identification index (FCII) by assessing the global orientation of international contractors in Malaysia using various characteristics. The exploratory study is based on the secondary data from Engineering News Record (ENR, 2013) and Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB, 2013) Malaysia. The sampling frame was from the ENR top 250 international contractors operating in more than 100 countries worldwide. Their involvement in international projects includes general building, manufacturing, power, water supply, sewerage/solid waste, industrial process, petroleum, transportation, hazardous waste and telecommunications. Six (6) measurements were used to develop the FCII mode which were based on number of years of experience and number of consecutive years operating in Malaysia, number of countries they are working outside Malaysia, number of projects and number of diversity of projects undertaken in Malaysia, and ranking in ENR. The data was analysed descriptively to make the comparison and establish the findings. Thirty eight (38) out of 250 top international contractors listed by the ENR have been operating in Malaysia. It was observed that that the most competitive contractor with the highest FCII score has more than 12 year of consecutive years working in Malaysia working on 99 projects, operating in more than 20 countries outside Malaysia and ranked at 17th place by the ENR (2013). The study used a sampling frame of population based on ENR. Therefore, the proposed measurements shall be further validated by the subject matter experts. The study will assist local contractors to recognize the foreign competitors in Malaysia and a competitive index model will be further developed to guide the local contractors to prepare themselves to compete with the foreign contractors in Malaysia. Neglecting to properly assess the foreign contractors’ characteristics can lead to poor performance in their local business ventures. This study intends to contribute to an improved understanding foreign contractor’s competitiveness in relation to the local contractors towards the development of the FCII model. Although there have been various models related to competitive index, there is currently no model that attempts to show the effects of foreign contractors on the local contractors

Globalization and liberalization in the Malaysian construction industry

As a developing country, Malaysia has been gone through a lot of development works in the country. These activities give positive impact on the growth of the Malaysian economy. Globalization and liberalization have taken part in this growth by bringing in foreign direct investment (FDI) especially to the construction industry. As a result of the globalization and liberalization, the Malaysian government has signed free trade agreements (FTA) either the regional or bilateral free trade agreements. This paper which is undertaken via literature review aims at appraising globalization and liberalization in the Malaysian construction industry through the identification of the impacts of globalization and liberalization in construction industry by looking at the FTA signed by the Malaysian government from the perspectives of foreign contractors’ registration and project by foreign contractors. This paper shows the trend of the current foreign firm participation in the Malaysian construction industry of which the Malaysian government can promote various development programs for local contractors in giving positive competition to foreign firms in the Malaysian construction industry

No effect of arm exercise on diaphragmatic fatigue or ventilatory constraint in Paralympic athletes with cervical spinal cord injury

Cervical spinal cord injury (CSCI) results in a decrease in the capacity of the lungs and chest wall for pressure, volume, and airflow generation. We asked whether such impairments might increase the potential for exercise-induced diaphragmatic fatigue and mechanical ventilatory constraint in this population. Seven Paralympic wheelchair rugby players (mean ± SD peak oxygen uptake = 16.9 ± 4.9 ml·kg–1·min–1) with traumatic CSCI (C5–C7) performed arm-crank exercise to the limit of tolerance at 90% of their predetermined peak work rate. Diaphragm function was assessed before and 15 and 30 min after exercise by measuring the twitch transdiaphragmatic pressure (Pdi,tw) response to bilateral anterolateral magnetic stimulation of the phrenic nerves. Ventilatory constraint was assessed by measuring the tidal flow volume responses to exercise in relation to the maximal flow volume envelope. Pdi,tw was not different from baseline at any time after exercise (unpotentiated Pdi,tw = 19.3 ± 5.6 cmH2O at baseline, 19.8 ± 5.0 cmH2O at 15 min after exercise, and 19.4 ± 5.7 cmH2O at 30 min after exercise; P = 0.16). During exercise, there was a sudden, sustained rise in operating lung volumes and an eightfold increase in the work of breathing. However, only two subjects showed expiratory flow limitation, and there was substantial capacity to increase both flow and volume (<50% of maximal breathing reserve). In conclusion, highly trained athletes with CSCI do not develop exercise-induced diaphragmatic fatigue and rarely reach mechanical ventilatory constraint

Calsyntenin-1 mediates axonal transport of the amyloid precursor protein and regulates Aβ production

Understanding the mechanisms that control processing of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) to produce amyloid-β (Aβ) peptide represents a key area of Alzheimer's disease research. Here, we show that siRNA-mediated loss of calsyntenin-1 in cultured neurons alters APP processing to increase production of Aβ. We also show that calsyntenin-1 is reduced in Alzheimer's disease brains and that the extent of this reduction correlates with increased Aβ levels. Calsyntenin-1 is a ligand for kinesin-1 light chains and APP is transported through axons on kinesin-1 molecular motors. Defects in axonal transport are an early pathological feature in Alzheimer's disease and defective APP transport is known to increase Aβ production. We show that calsyntenin-1 and APP are co-transported through axons and that siRNA-induced loss of calsyntenin-1 markedly disrupts axonal transport of APP. Thus, perturbation to axonal transport of APP on calsyntenin-1 containing carriers induces alterations to APP processing that increase production of Aβ. Together, our findings suggest that disruption of calsyntenin-1-associated axonal transport of APP is a pathogenic mechanism in Alzheimer's disease

Nanofabrication of Conductive Metallic Structures on Elastomeric Materials.

Existing techniques for patterning metallic structures on elastomers are limited in terms of resolution, yield and scalability. The primary constraint is the incompatibility of their physical properties with conventional cleanroom techniques. We demonstrate a reliable fabrication strategy to transfer high resolution metallic structures of <500 nm in dimension on elastomers. The proposed method consists of producing a metallic pattern using conventional lithographic techniques on silicon coated with a thin sacrificial aluminium layer. Subsequent wet etching of the sacrificial layer releases the elastomer with the embedded metallic pattern. Using this method, a nano-resistor with minimum feature size of 400 nm is fabricated on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and applied in gas sensing. Adsorption of solvents in the PDMS causes swelling and increases the device resistance, which therefore enables the detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Sensitivity to chloroform and toluene vapor with a rapid response (~30 s) and recovery (~200 s) is demonstrated using this PDMS nano-resistor at room temperature

Local host-dependent persistence of the entomopathogenic nematode Steinernema carpocapsae used to control the large pine weevil Hylobius abietis

Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPN) applied inundatively to suppress insect pests are more likely to persist and establish in stable agroecosystems than in annual crops. We investigated a system of intermediate stability: three stumps harbouring the large pine weevil (Hylobius abietis L.; Coleoptera: Curculionidae), a major European forestry pest. We tested whether persistence of EPN Steinernema carpocapsae Weiser (Rhabditida: Steinernematidae) applied around stumps is maintained by recycling of EPN through pine weevils developing within stumps. Steinernema carpocapsae was detected in soil around and under the bark of treated tree stumps up to two years, but not 4–5 years after application. Differences in nematode presence between sites were better explained by tree species (pine or spruce) than soil type (mineral or peat). Presence of S. carpocapsae in soil was positively correlated with the number of H. abietis emerging from untreated stumps the previous year, which was greater for pine stumps than spruce stumps

Using a whole-body 31P birdcage transmit coil and 16-element receive array for human cardiac metabolic imaging at 7T.

PURPOSE: Cardiac phosphorus magnetic resonance spectroscopy (31P-MRS) provides unique insight into the mechanisms of heart failure. Yet, clinical applications have been hindered by the restricted sensitivity of the surface radiofrequency-coils normally used. These permit the analysis of spectra only from the interventricular septum, or large volumes of myocardium, which may not be meaningful in focal disease. Löring et al. recently presented a prototype whole-body (52 cm diameter) transmit/receive birdcage coil for 31P at 7T. We now present a new, easily-removable, whole-body 31P transmit radiofrequency-coil built into a patient-bed extension combined with a 16-element receive array for cardiac 31P-MRS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A fully-removable (55 cm diameter) birdcage transmit coil was combined with a 16-element receive array on a Magnetom 7T scanner (Siemens, Germany). Electro-magnetic field simulations and phantom tests of the setup were performed. In vivo maps of B1+, metabolite signals, and saturation-band efficiency were acquired across the torsos of eight volunteers. RESULTS: The combined (volume-transmit, local receive array) setup increased signal-to-noise ratio 2.6-fold 10 cm below the array (depth of the interventricular septum) compared to using the birdcage coil in transceiver mode. The simulated coefficient of variation for B1+ of the whole-body coil across the heart was 46.7% (surface coil 129.0%); and the in vivo measured value was 38.4%. Metabolite images of 2,3-diphosphoglycerate clearly resolved the ventricular blood pools, and muscle tissue was visible in phosphocreatine (PCr) maps. Amplitude-modulated saturation bands achieved 71±4% suppression of phosphocreatine PCr in chest-wall muscles. Subjects reported they were comfortable. CONCLUSION: This easy-to-assemble, volume-transmit, local receive array coil combination significantly improves the homogeneity and field-of-view for metabolic imaging of the human heart at 7T