To outsource or not to outsource!

In this article we will take a look at the phenomena of outsourcing as an overarching business concept that is, in short, about contracting of a specific bit of our business to a third part organisation. Consequently, outsourcing is a natural part of the make, share or buy continuum, as illustrated in Figure 1. We would, therefore, argue that outsourcing is not a new business phenomena as it has been commonly practiced since the early times of industrialisation, even though recently it has been enjoying renewed attention fuelled by the globalising forces

Ion-exchanged waveguide add/drop filter

An add/drop filter is fabricated using ion-exchanged waveguides and photowritten Bragg gratings. The device exhibits 20 dB extinction ratios and 3 dB bandwidths of 0.4 nm (100 GHz)

Gratings photowritten in ion-exchanged glass channel waveguides

Gratings are photowritten in ion-exchanged glass channel waveguides. The transmission of these waveguides shows a rejection dip of almost 20dB. The polarisation dependence of these waveguide gratings is measured and discussed

Grating formation in BGG31 glass by UV exposure

A three-dimensional index variation grating in bulk BGG31 glass written using neither hydrogen loading nor germanium doping is demonstrated. This material is useful for fabricating ion-exchanged waveguides, and its photosensitivity to ultraviolet (UV) radiation at 248nm has not been previously explored. Intensity measurements of the Bragg diffracted spots indicated a maximum index variation (Delta n) of similar to 4 x 10(-5)

African immigrant parents\u27 understanding of their teenager\u27s newly diagnosed diabetes status in Western Australia

Background: Recently Western Australia has seen a rise in African population due to both economic and refugee migration. Concurrently, a rise in the numbers of teenagers of African origin diagnosed with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes and associated complications has been noticeable. Different ethnic background is a known risk factor for poor metabolic control; this trend is reflected in studies wherein people of African origin have been found to have a high risk of developing diabetes. What is evident from health promotion literature is that parents of teenagers with a chronic health condition, when they are well informed about that condition, play a key part its management. Little is known, though, about what African migrant parents understand about diabetes and its dietary control

Polarisation-independent Bragg gratings in ion-exchanged glass channel waveguides

The polarisation dependence of Bragg gratings photowritten in ion-exchanged glass waveguides is characterised for waveguides with different mask-opening widths and burial depths. It is found that polarisation-independent gratings can be written in waveguides with a wide variation in fabrication parameters