Once the shovel hits the ground : Evaluating the management of complex implementation processes of public-private partnership infrastructure projects with qualitative comparative analysis

Much attention is being paid to the planning of public-private partnership (PPP) infrastructure projects. The subsequent implementation phase – when the contract has been signed and the project ‘starts rolling’ – has received less attention. However, sound agreements and good intentions in project planning can easily fail in project implementation. Implementing PPP infrastructure projects is complex, but what does this complexity entail? How are projects managed, and how do public and private partners cooperate in implementation? What are effective management strategies to achieve satisfactory outcomes? This is the fi rst set of questions addressed in this thesis. Importantly, the complexity of PPP infrastructure development imposes requirements on the evaluation methods that can be applied for studying these questions. Evaluation methods that ignore complexity do not create a realistic understanding of PPP implementation processes, with the consequence that evaluations tell us little about what works and what does not, in which contexts, and why. This hampers learning from evaluations. What are the requirements for a complexity-informed evaluation method? And how does qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) meet these requirements? This is the second set of questions addressed in this thesis

Barreiras e oportunidades para a implementação dos princípios de IPD e práticas de LPDS na gestão dos projetos de instalações da indústria de base brasileira

ResumoA abordagem tradicional de gestão de projetos desconsidera a natureza dos projetos de construção atuais, e a teoria implícita que fundamenta esta abordagem tem sido apontada como obsoleta. Além disso, projetos com diferentes características são gerenciados da mesma forma, independentemente do nível de complexidade envolvida. Como consequência disto, muitos projetos não têm atingido seus objetivos, principalmente os de natureza complexa. O presente trabalho propõe um modelo de implantação gradual de um Sistema de Gestão de Projeto (SGP) baseado nos princípios de Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) e práticas de Lean Project Delivery System (LPDS) para o contexto dos projetos de instalações da indústria de base. O método de pesquisa envolveu a realização de um estudo inicial numa indústria de base, seguido da realização de entrevistas com agentes chaves do segmento de projetos de instalações da indústria de base. Por fim, foram realizados dois estudos de caso breves em projetos já concluídos. As principais contribuições do estudo foram a identificação das principais barreiras e oportunidades para a implementação do SGP proposto no contexto atual brasileiro e a proposição de um modelo para a sua implantação gradual

Growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor-I action on progesterone secretion by porcine corpora lutea isolated at various periods of the luteal phase

This study was conducted to investigate the interactions between growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) on progesterone (P4) secretion by porcine luteal cells cultured in vitro. Cells isolated from corpora lutea (CL) collected at three different periods of the luteal phase (CL1 - early luteal phase; CL2 - middle luteal phase and CL3 - late luteal phase) were incubated with different doses of GH (10, 100 or 200 ng/ml). After 48 h cultures were terminated and the media were frozen until further P4 concentration analysis. GH (100 ng/ml) increased P4 secretion by CL1 and CL2 and had no effect on CL3. In separate studies these cells were treated for 48 h with IGF-I alone or with GH combined with IGF-I. IGF-I alone increased basal P4 secretion only by cells collected from CL1 while concurrent treatment with GH had no effect on P4 secretion by any type of CL. To investigate the possible mechanism of GH and IGF-I mediated induction of P4 secretion, an inhibitory study was conducted. In this experiment, luteal cells collected from CL1 were cultured in the absence or presence of cycloheximide (an inhibitor of protein synthesis) or actinomycin D (an inhibitor of DNA transcription). Cycloheximide or actinomycin D completely blocked the stimulatory effect of both GH and IGF-I on P4 production but did not reduce basal progesterone secretion suggesting involvement of gene transcription and translation in the GH and IGF-I action on luteal cells. Additionally, the activity of 3ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3ß-HSD) under the influence of GH added alone or together with IGF was measured by the conversion of pregnenolone to progesterone. Stimulation of P4 secretion in P5-treated cells in GH-stimulated cultures was not observed, however, high stimulatory effect was noted in IGF-I treated cultures. In conclusion, the present studies indicate that there is direct and cycle stage dependent influence of GH and IGF-I on steroidogenesis in porcine luteal cells. It is suggested that both IGF and GH may exert some regulatory action during CL development in the pig