Towards a human resources management approach in supply chain management

Supply chain management (SCM) has grown as a discipline since the field attracted attention in the 1980s. However, it is observed that effective implementation of SCM is limited because the current focus is too task-based and information-centric. The concept is often conflated, in practice, with subcontractor management, where numerical flexibility is pertinent. At the same time, consideration of human resources management (HRM) in SCM has been limited. Strategic fit within supply chains tends to emphasise taskbased numerical flexibility, rather than genuine consideration and development of human resources. On the other hand, HRM has, until recently, rarely taken into account interorganisational characteristics that typify the construction industry. Therefore, this research intends to plug the gap by examining the use of human resources in construction supply chains, with a view of developing good practice for HRM in construction SCM. To achieve this, a two-phase research methodology comprising a scoping phase and case study phase will be ensued

The interorganisational influences on construction skills development in the UK

The UK construction skills shortage problem is well documented. To alleviate this, there is a political shift of emphasis in the UK towards employers and employees/ learners playing a more proactive role in skills development. This research seeks to examine the mechanisms that can enable such a demand-led skills development system to materialise. A desktop review and key-stakeholder analysis were undertaken to identify who participates in skills development in the construction industry in the North East of England. Exploratory interviews adopting an interpretive approach were undertaken with a sample of the key stakeholders to examine the pluralistic nature of skills development provision and the implications for the learner negotiating this environment when trying to develop skills. The interim findings suggest that whereas organisations consider skills development to be important, specific training for “upskilling” can be difficult to recognise and even more difficult to gain funding for. The complexity and fragmentation of the existing framework consequently subjects vocational skills development to the initiative and goodwill of employers, thereby reinforcing the voluntarist nature of skills development that is typical in the UK. The findings also suggest that skills development practices, at times, occur informally at the workplace and enabled through a network of local organisations. These findings highlight a need for further investigation into the efficacy of the inter-organisational dynamics and informal practices that could potentially make a demand-led skills development system a reality

Welfare Reform and Immigrant Participation in the Supplemental Security Income Program

We examine the effect of the 1996 welfare reform legislation on participation in the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program by immigrants. Although none of the immigrants on the SSI rolls before welfare reform lost eligibility, the potential exists for future impacts on the SSI caseload and the well-being of recent immigrants. We use microdata files from the Social Security Administration’s Continuous Work History Sample matched to administrative data on SSI participation for the period 1993 to 1999. We estimate simple models of SSI participation and compare our results to the existing literature. We then estimate a series of difference-in-differences models of SSI participation. These models compare SSI participation by immigrants relative to nativeborn individuals, and among affected immigrants relative to unaffected immigrants and native-born individuals, before and after welfare reform. Descriptive results indicate that the percentage of immigrants and natives receiving SSI decreased after welfare reform, but by a larger percentage for natives than for immigrants. The probability of SSI participation decreased after welfare reform for immigrants who were affected by the legislation relative to immigrants who were unaffected. The difference-in-differences estimate is positive for immigrants relative to otherwise similar natives, but the estimated effect among affected immigrants is about half as large as the effect for unaffected immigrants. When the sample is limited to low earners as a proxy for the SSI means test, the results are qualitatively unchanged but quantitatively much stronger. Authors’ Acknowledgements We are grateful to Ulyses Balderas for assisting with the collection of some data used here. A previous version of this paper was presented at the 2004 Western Regional Science Association Annual Meeting, February 25-28, 2004, Maui, HI.

Potential of short wavelength laser ablation of organic materials

Although the literature contains several articles on UV laser ablation of synthetic polymers [1] and human tissue for surgical applications, to our knowledge there is no published record on organic geochemical applications for UV laser pyrolysis–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (LA-GC-MS). In this study we have demonstrated the use of a 213 nm UV laser beam for ablating kerogens and organic rich rocks to liberate and analyse hydrocarbon signatures and compared the results against IR laser pyrolysis and traditional Py-GC-MS. It is possible to equate laser wavelength to electron volts where 1064 nm (IR) = 1.2 eV and 213 nm (UV) = 5.8 eV. Most chemical bonds have an energy between 2-4 eV and C-C bonds are ~3.6 eV. Organic materials can absorb radiation from a UV laser and chemical bonds can be cleaved cleanly by complex photochemical pathways by a single photon [2]. Ablation occurs with almost no heating of the sample and hence the term laser ablation instead of pyrolysis. Visible or IR lasers have insufficient energy to break bonds with a single photon this results in the heating of sample by the absobtion of energy into the vibrational modes of the molecule which can then result in pyrolysis. A solvent-extracted kerogen consisting mainly of higher plant material (Brownie Butte, Montanna, ~ 70 Ma) was used for initial experiments. A number of other samples have also been analysed. Laser ablation work was performed off-line in a static helium cell followed by solvent extraction of the laser cell. Separate analysis of the same samples using a more traditional flash pyrolysis approach was performed with a CDS pyroprobe and IR laser pyrolysis [3] for comparative purposes. As can be seen in Fig 1 UV laser ablation is able to liberate relatively high molecular weight fragments with no alkenes or other pyrolysis artefacts detected. SEM images of ablation pits indicate there is no obvious thermal alteration of the sample. The results of the pyrolysis techniques (on-line and IR laser pyrolysis) are similar and display a number of artefacts related to the pyrolysis process. Laser ablation of a number of samples has also shown that the distributions of biomarkers are comparable with the solvent extracts. Product yields although not quantified appear to be much higher than traditional pyrolysis technique

Is UV laser ablation a suitable tool for geochemical analysis of organic rich source materials?

Abstract not available

Frequency Transition from Diffusion to Capacitive Response in the Blocked-Diffusion Warburg Impedance for EIS Analysis in Modern Batteries

The use of the Blocked-diffusion Warburg (BDW) impedance within electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements can unveil diffusion properties of the electroactive material of modern batteries at different states-of-charge. The impedance response of the BDW comprises a diffusion response of charge carriers through a short-diffusion distance (e.g. the solid-phase in electroactive material of battery electrodes) and a capacitive response due to accumulation of charge carriers in a blocked-interface (e.g. impermeable current collector of a thin film electrode). This study has developed a mathematical expression based on the Newton-Raphson iteration method to calculate the frequency and time constant during the transition from diffusion to capacitive response in the BDW impedance. The mathematical procedure to calculate the frequency during the diffusion-capacitive transition response in the BDW has been written in a script in Matlab® software and is applied to BDW impedance responses reported in previous studies and extracted from EIS measurements in Li-ion and NiMH batteries. This study demonstrates that the time constant during the transition from diffusion to capacitive response in the BDW differs from the characteristic time constant commonly represented in the BDW mathematical expression. The characteristic time constant represented in the BDW mathematical expression is related to the rate of accumulation of charge carriers in the blocked-interface of the electrode. On the other hand, the time constant during the transition from diffusion to capacitance responses in the BDW impedance can be related to diffusion properties in solid-phase particles with heterogeneous size distribution in the electroactive material of modern battery electrodes

Issues Determining the Development of Cruise Itineraries: A Focus on the Luxury Market

While the cruise industry has been identified as an ever increasingly important aspect of the wider tourism industry, this sector remains relatively under researched. Cruises have shown strong year on year growth and, in 2004, was the holiday of choice for more than 12 million tourists worldwide. Challenges facing the industry are concerned with market segmentation and the development of new and exciting ports of call. This research focuses on one aspect of the luxury cruise industry: that of the development of cruise itineraries. Specifically, this research will identify the itinerary planning process in the luxury cruise industry, determine the main issues and challenges faced when developing itineraries and finally present an overview of the influences that might shape luxury cruise itinerary planning in the future

An impedance model for EIS analysis of nickel metal hydride batteries

Based on fundamental electrochemical theory, an impedance model for analysis of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) of Nickel-Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries is presented in this study. The resulting analytical expression is analogous to the impedance response of the Randles electrical circuit used for EIS analysis on NiMH batteries. The impedance model is validated against EIS measurements carried out whilst decreasing the state of charge (SOC) of a NiMH battery pack. The diffusion mechanisms during the discharge of the NiMH battery is modelled through a Warburg element derived from diffusion theory considering reflective boundary conditions. ZView® Scribner Associates Inc. software allowed the estimation of electrochemical and diffusion parameters from EIS measurements of the NiMH battery. The effect of diffusion mechanisms on EIS measurements is discussed. The results demonstrate that ion transport is the rate-limiting process during the discharge of the NiMH battery. This EIS-modelling study has provided an insight into the interpretation of battery electrochemical mechanisms represented in the Nyquist plot from EIS. It can assist to further EIS-modelling to study and correlate State of Health (SOH) in NiMH batteries for different applications