Kecenderungan kerjaya sebagai usahawan di kalangan pelajar bumiputera di Politeknik Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah, Kuantan, Pahang

Usahawan memainkan peranan penting dalam pembangunan ekonomi sesebuah negara. Walau bagaimanapun, jika dilihat senario sekarang, masih ramai Bumiputera yang kurang berminat untuk menceburi bidang keusahawanan. Justeru itu, kajian ini bertujuan untuk menyelidik tentang tahap kecenderungan keijaya sebagai usahawan di kaiangan pelajar Bumiputera tahun akhir Diploma Akauntansi Politeknik Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah, Kuantan (POLISAS). Secara khususnya, kajian ini akan menyelidik sejauh mana cita-cita pelajar Bumiputera untuk menjadi seorang usahawan dipengaruhi oleh ciri-ciri peribadi pelajar, faktor keluarga, faktor pengajian, pengalaman keija dan faktor persekitaran. Responden kajian terdiri daripada pelajar Bumiputera POLISAS iaitu seramai 51 orang. Data dikumpul menggunakan soal selidik dan dianalisis dengan menggunakan prosedur Ujian T, Crosstabs dan Korelasi Pearson melalui perisian SPSS (Statistical Package For Social Sciences). Dapatan kajian menunjukkan hanya faktor persekitaran (iaitu faktor pihak yang paling mempengaruhi pelajar untuk berniaga) yang dapat menarik minat pelajar untuk melibatkan diri dalam perniagaan. Faktor-faktor lain didapati kurang memberikan sumbangan dalam menarik minat pelajar untuk cenderung kepada bidang keusahawanan. Oleh itu, beberapa cadangan telah dibuat bagi menangani masalah ini agar kaum Bumiputera tidak jauh ketinggalan berbanding kaum lain dan seterusnya memenuhi hasrat kerajaan dalam merealisasikan matlamat Dasar Ekonomi Baru (DEB) yang masih belum dicapai sepenuhnya hingga ke hari ini

Assessing efficiency of private shrimp seed producers in selected hatcheries of Peninsular Malaysia

This study aims at estimating technical, allocative and cost efficiency of shrimp/prawn seed producers of Malaysia and determining costs and return in shrimp/prawn seed production. Data collected from 19 hatcheries (comprising 10 brackishwater shrimp hatcheries and 9 freshwater prawn hatcheries) from the states of Penang, Perak, Terengganu and Selangor were used in the study. Data Envelopment Analysis was applied to estimate efficiency scores of the hatcheries. Besides, cost, return and profitability of hatcheries was examined using farm management procedure. The TECRS (overall technical efficiency) was found to be 0.582 for brackishwater shrimp hatcheries and 0.692 for freshwater prawn hatcheries. Pure technical efficiency (TEVRS) averaged 0.907 for shrimp hatcheries and 0.918 for prawn hatcheries indicating that inefficiencies to the level of 9-10 percent do exist. Allocative efficiency (AE) and cost efficiencies (CE) were 0.78 and 0.70 for brackishwater shrimp hatchery and 0.79 and 0.73 for freshwater prawn hatcheries suggesting that the realized level of spawn/fry could be produced by the hatcheries by spending 21-22 percent less on inputs

To what extent should hospital be design for expected emergency and preparedness to manage unforseen disaster: sharing hospital design experiences as case study

Malaysian Government hospital emergency departments (EDs) has shown a steady increase in patients’ attendance for many types of emergencies. The designs of existing Emergency departments are to meet the services as stipulated by the Ministry of Health, Malaysia (MOH) according to the level of care. The current concern is the ability of the hospital emergency departments to provide adequate medical treatment with existing facilities when there is a surge capacity for earthquake-related disaster occurrence. The recent earthquake in 2015 and 2018 shows that Malaysia is no longer safe from such natural disasters. Hence, there is a need to review current provisions in existing emergency departments, especially in the state of Sabah to be more earthquake disaster-ready. A qualitative methodology was adopted using literature review and case studies. This paper surveyed existing hospital emergency services and facilities provided in the earthquake-prone areas of Sabah to identify the adequateness of services and facilities in Sabah’s local hospitals in meeting the surge capacity. For this paper, the study focuses on identifying the adequacy of existing services and facilities, including the building structure of the EDs to meet the surging demand from the earthquake disaster. The significant of the research contribute to the recommendation of improvements to existing and new Eds in earthquake-prone areas

A comparative review of design requirements for natural smoke ventilation in hospital buildings

Smoke is recognized as the main factor of fatality when fire occurred in a building. Thus, smoke management in the building is of paramount importance in order to achieve a tenable indoor environment in the event of fire other than ensuring passive means of escapes to the place of safety. In hospital building, where patients have limited movements, natural smoke ventilation through windows is the most common form of smoke control design. Nevertheless, inappropriate design of natural smoke ventilation through window may result to poor smoke air flow contributing to unwanted toxic gases inhaled by occupants that lead to fatalities in the event of fire. This study aims to analyse the design requirements and specifications of natural smoke ventilation system in buildings by exploring local and other prominent building regulations as well as code of practices around some countries. The study found that smoke ventilation system (natural and mechanical) is usually applied in windowless building, basement and in large open spaces. The natural smoke ventilation system employs smoke vents (gravity vents) located at a higher level in the roof or at the ceiling level. The regulations state that the size of smoke vents for effective natural smoke ventilation is in between 2% to 3% of the floor areas. Most regulations would allow openable windows for smoke ventilation in the event of fire. © 2018 by MIP

The importance of moving average convergence divergence as a part of indicators in technical analysis for the Malaysian stock market / Mohd Firdaus Mohd Aripin

There are two methods to analyze Malaysia stock market: Fundamental and Technical. Technical analysis is a very powerful tool and is a pre-requisite for anyone who wants to predict financial market movements and build successful trading system. Technical indicators, collectively called "technicals", are distinguished by the fact that they do not analyze any part of the fundamental business, like earnings, revenue and profit margins. Technical indicators look to predict the future price levels, or simply the general price direction, of a security by looking at past patterns. Examples of common technical indicators include Relative Strength Index (RSI), Money Flow Index, Stochastics, Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) and On Balance Volume (OBV). The MACD is the common indicator used by the trader. The MACD is a versatile indicator giving clear buy and sell signals and giving warnings of impending price changes

Cassava Peels for Alternative Fibre in Pulp and Paper Industry: Chemical Properties and Morphology Characterization

Without a proper waste management, the organic wastes such as cassava peels could result in increased amount of solid waste dump into landfill. This study aims to use non-wood organic wastes as pulp for paper making industries; promoting the concept of ‘from waste to wealth and recyclable material’. The objective  of this study is to determine the potential of casssava peel as alternative fibre in pulp and paper based on its chemical properties and surface morphology characteristic. Quantified parameters involved are holocellulose, cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, one percent of sodium hydroxide, hot water solubility and ash content. The chemical characterization was in accordance with relevant TAPPI Test, Kurscher-Hoffner and Chlorite methods. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to observe and determine the morphological characteristic of untreated cassava peels fibre. In order to propose the suitability of the studied plant as an alternative fibre resource in pulp and paper making, the obtained results are compared to other published literatures especially from wood sources. Results indicated that the amount of holocellulose contents in cassava peels (66%) is the lowest than of wood (70 - 80.5%) and canola straw (77.5%); however this value is still within the limit suitability to produce paper. The lignin content (7.52%) is the lowest than those of all wood species (19.9-26.22%). Finally, the SEM images showed that untreated cassava peel contains abundance fibre such as hemicellulose and cellulose that is hold by the lignin in it. In conclusion, chemical properties and morphological characteristics of cassava peel indicated that it is suitable to be used as an alternative fibre sources for pulp and paper making industry, especially in countries with limited wood resource

Optimisation of biopulping process by bacteria from rhynchophorus ferrugineus on empty fruit bunch for pulp industry

Lignin removal is an essential phase in pulping process. The conventional pulping process has many challenges such as high chemical and energy consumptions, as well as long period and sensitivity of fungal during fermentation process. A cleaner, cheaper, and more effective lignin removal method attracts the interest of industrialists. This research focuses on optimising lignin removal via biopulping process using several combinations of R. ferrugineus’s gut microbiome such as Klebsiella pneumoniae (K), Serratia marcescens (S), Pseudomonas citronellolis (P) and Enterobacter oryzae (E). The optimum conditions of biopulping process were determined through the design of experiment (DOE). DOE involves two phases: screening the significant parameter using Plackett-Burman design (PBD) and optimising conditions for biopulping process using Box-Behnken design (BBD). The chemical properties of EFB biopulp were characterised according to the Technical Association Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI), Chlorite and Kursher-Hoffner methods. On the application side, the handsheets produced were assessed on its physical and mechanical properties according to TAPPI methods. The results revealed that the quadruple culture (KSPE) combination having the highest capacity to degrade lignin by 61.86% (using alkali lignin) with the production of lignin degradation enzymes at 2230.10 U/mL (LiP), 314.84 U/mL (MnP) and 973.80 U/mL (Lac). The biopulping of EFB using KSPE combination identified the optimised conditions as follows; incubation time = 48 h, temperature = 35 °C and glucose load = 5 mL per 100 mL medium with 52.70% of lignin removal. Significantly, the cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, and extractive contents of the biopulp were recovered at 47.37%, 31.36%, 12.70% and 1.77% respectively. The impact of percentage lignin being removed was reflected on the quality of pulp produced. In this case, the brightness (32.50%), tensile index (9.65 Nm/g), burst index (0.98 kPa.m2/g) and tear index (2.71 mN.m2/g) of handsheet produced were acceptable for the production of printing and writing paper grades. This study had successfully demonstrated the optimised biopulping process of KSPE microbes on EFB. The alternative approach of delignification could promote an effective and greener technology for the future of pulp and paper industries

Save it for a rainy day! Lean strategies for cost saving: the role of lean maturity

Purpose: This study investigates the effect of lean implementation on production cost reduction and the moderating role of lean manufacturing maturity. Design/methodology/approach: This study employed a cross-sectional survey, of which the samples were drawn using a cluster sampling procedure from 151 middle and top-level management of medium and large manufacturing companies gathered from the Federation of Manufacturers Malaysia (FMM). Data were analyzed using the PLS-SEM approach through SmartPLS4 software. Findings: The result revealed that lean implementation does not leverage production cost reduction as the lean journey requires long-term orientation, which finally leads to valid cost reduction. The moderating role of lean manufacturing maturity was significant and positive in the relationship between lean manufacturing implementation and production cost reduction. Research limitations/implications: Future research should include longitudinal settings as this study is cross-sectional, and future research might put the present model to the test in multiple industries and regions, including a cross-country comparison to improve the generalizability of the findings. Additionally, further studies could extend this study using a mixed-method approach. Practical implications: By offering a holistic perspective, this study expands the existing literature, contributes to knowledge of integrated lean implementation and supports the management in planning their path towards cost-cutting performance. Originality/value: This study answers the inconclusive finding between lean implementation and operational performance in terms of production cost reduction. The study contributes to the body of knowledge and, most importantly, to the practitioners in planning their lean journeyPeer Reviewe

Cash flow management on ptptn loan among IPTA Bachelor Degree program students in Sabah and Sarawak / Corina Joseph, Tina Stephen Enggong and Rosmini Mohd Aripin

Perbadanan Tabung Pendidikan Tinggi Nasional (PTPTN) plays an important role in helping students who are unable to pursue studies because of financial problem. Every year, a group of students were identified as the recipient based on certain guidelines. However, majority of them are having financial difficulty due to lack of knowledge on cash management practice. In order to find out the level of cash management practice among them, a study was conducted to identify factors that might affect the level of cash flow management practice among the PTPTN loan recipients. i.e.IPTA undergraduates in Sabah and Sarawak. The data were obtained from questionnaire and were statistically analyzed using SPSS. The analysis of data revealed that majority of the respondents irregularly practised cash management. As a whole, it can be concluded that financial behaviour item such as pay bill on time has significant relationship with gender, university course, location of university, place of students' residence and Bumiputera status. This is followed by items such as keep ATM transaction receipts, save for large purchases, know cost of buying on credit and know about investment which have significant relationship with any 4 determinants. However, there is no significant relationship between self-efficacy item that is confident in making decision about cash flow with all the 5 determinants namely gender, university course, location, place of parents' residence and Bumiputera status. Thus it can be concluded that most of our respondents are risk adverse despite practising irregular cash management practice. Some recommendation has also been made to improve the existing scenario