Why do over-deviated firms from target leverage undertake foreign acquisitions?

This paper examines how deviation from firms’ target leverage influences their decisions on undertaking foreign acquisitions. Using a sample of 5,746 completed bids by UK acquirers from 1987 to 2012, we observe that over-deviated firms are more likely to acquire foreign targets. Consistent with co-insurance theory, we find that over-deviated firms engage in foreign acquisition deals to relieve their financial constraints and to mitigate their financial distress risk. We also note that foreign acquisitions enhance over-deviated firms’ value and performance, measured by Tobin’s q and return on assets (ROA) respectively. These findings support the view that over-deviated firms pursue the most value-enhancing acquisitions. Overall, this paper suggests that co-insurance effects, value creation and performance improvements are the main incentives for over-deviated firms’ involvement in foreign acquisitions

Simulation Study on IWAG Assisted by Low Salinity Water Injection for Light Oil Reservoirs

Water alternating gas (WAG) injection is a widely practiced Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technique for light oil reservoirs. On the other hand, various researches have documented that using the Smart water concept can further enhance the oil recovery obtained from water-flooding. Although, there was extensive researches conducted on each of the WAG and the smart water techniques separately, yet there are a very few researches conducted on using the smart water concept as the injection water in WAG technique. Previous laboratory core flooding researches have shown that reducing the salinity of the injection water in miscible WAG process would decrease the ultimate oil recovery. The published literature attributed that to the fact that reducing the salinity of the injection water would increase the solubility of the injected gas in water and thus reducing the amount of available gas to be soluble in oil. Reservoir simulation processes were utilized in order to study the effect of using the smart water as the injection water in IWAG technique for light oil reservoirs. A synthetic model with 7,500 grid cells was used to evaluate the performance of several injection scenarios involving low salinity water and WAG techniques under the conditions of light oil reservoir at the depth of -6,000 ft. with oil API of 45°. The thickness of the reservoir is 30 ft. The simulated results showed that using low salinity water as the injection water in immiscible WAG process would increase the oil recovery by 3.5% of the original oil in place (OOIP) than when using conventional high salinity water for light oil reservoirs. The results obtained from the simulation processes do not contradict the laboratory experiments results because of two main reasons. The first reason is that the simulation operations were based on immiscible WAG processes while the core flooding experiments were based on miscible WAG processes, and the second one is due to the gravity effects. During core flooding operations, gravity effects are minimal, while it was taken in consideration during the simulation processes. Another important discovery by the reservoir simulation operations is that using a slug of low salinity water followed by high salinity drive water has much higher recoveries than conventional high salinity water flooding, and that adjusting the slug size can obtain recoveries almost as high as continuous low salinity water injectio

Early Results of Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Surgery with or without Coronary Endarterectomy

Background: Managing patients with diffuse coronary artery disease is challenging. The advantages of coronary endarterectomy (CE) combined with coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) compared to CABG alone are controversial. This study compared short-term outcomes, including ICU and hospital stays, arrhythmias, postoperative myocardial infarction, renal impairment, and hospital mortality, between patients who underwent CABG without and with CE. Methods: This randomized controlled study included 100 patients who underwent CABG with or without CE. Participants were randomly allocated into two equal groups. Group I (n=50) included patients who underwent CABG alone, and Group II (n=50) included patients who underwent CABG combined with CE. Results: The right coronary artery was the most common vessel affected by CE (44%), followed by the left anterior descending artery (42%). Low-output syndrome and pleural effusion were more frequently observed in Group II; however, these differences did not reach statistical significance. There was no difference in postoperative complications or ejection fraction between the groups. The ICU stay was significantly longer in Group II (3.02±0.84 vs. 2.58±0.5 days; p=0.007). Additionally, patients in Group II had significantly longer hospital stays (14.48±1.87 vs. 11.98±1.35, p<0.001). Conclusion: Compared with CABG alone, CABG with CE might not be associated with increased short-term mortality or morbidity. CABG with CE was associated with prolonged hospitalization, necessitating a careful assessment of the benefits versus an extended hospital stay when considering this adjunctive procedure

Comparative study of tricuspid valve repair using ring vs. synthetic band in severe functional tricuspid valve regurgitation

Background: Functional tricuspid valve regurgitation secondary to left-sided valve disease remains a common problem. There are different surgical techniques for tricuspid valve repair; however, the superiority of one approach over the other has not been proven. Our objective was to compare the short-term results of ring versus synthetic band annuloplasty to repair functional severe tricuspid regurgitation in patients with left-sided valve lesions. Methods: This retrospective study includes 60 patients who underwent left-sided valve replacement with concomitant tricuspid valve repair for severe tricuspid regurgitation. Patients were divided into group A (n= 30), patients with rigid rings, and group B (n= 30), patients with synthetic bands. Results: The preoperative demographic and clinical data were non-significant between both groups. In the preoperative data, the tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) was significantly higher in the ring group (2.84 ± 0.53 vs. 2.3 ± 0.4, P< 0.001). Hospital stay was more prolonged in group B (10.05 ± 1.57 vs. 11.7 ± 2.76 days, P=0.006). There were no differences in other operative and postoperative data between groups. After a six-month follow-up, both groups had no significant difference regarding the clinical data or the degree of tricuspid valve regurgitation. Conclusion: Tricuspid valve annuloplasty with a rigid ring or synthetic band for tricuspid regurgitation could have a good short-term outcome

Simulation Study on IWAG Assisted by Low Salinity Water Injection for Light Oil Reservoirs

Water alternating gas (WAG) injection is a widely practiced Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technique for light oil reservoirs. On the other hand, various researches have documented that using the Smart water concept can further enhance the oil recovery obtained from water-flooding. Although, there was extensive researches conducted on each of the WAG and the smart water techniques separately, yet there are a very few researches conducted on using the smart water concept as the injection water in WAG technique. Previous laboratory core flooding researches have shown that reducing the salinity of the injection water in miscible WAG process would decrease the ultimate oil recovery. The published literature attributed that to the fact that reducing the salinity of the injection water would increase the solubility of the injected gas in water and thus reducing the amount of available gas to be soluble in oil. Reservoir simulation processes were utilized in order to study the effect of using the smart water as the injection water in IWAG technique for light oil reservoirs. A synthetic model with 7,500 grid cells was used to evaluate the performance of several injection scenarios involving low salinity water and WAG techniques under the conditions of light oil reservoir at the depth of -6,000 ft. with oil API of 45°. The thickness of the reservoir is 30 ft. The simulated results showed that using low salinity water as the injection water in immiscible WAG process would increase the oil recovery by 3.5% of the original oil in place (OOIP) than when using conventional high salinity water for light oil reservoirs. The results obtained from the simulation processes do not contradict the laboratory experiments results because of two main reasons. The first reason is that the simulation operations were based on immiscible WAG processes while the core flooding experiments were based on miscible WAG processes, and the second one is due to the gravity effects. During core flooding operations, gravity effects are minimal, while it was taken in consideration during the simulation processes. Another important discovery by the reservoir simulation operations is that using a slug of low salinity water followed by high salinity drive water has much higher recoveries than conventional high salinity water flooding, and that adjusting the slug size can obtain recoveries almost as high as continuous low salinity water injectio

Interactive eshopping experience: an empirical investigation

Utilizing an experimental design, the study investigates the effects of eshopping behavior (experiential, utilitarian, or mixed) and interactivity level (low or high) on the consequences of eshopping (site attitude and future purchase intentions), as mediated by eshopping experience (sensory, affective, and cognitive) and flow experience (control, attention focus, and cognitive enjoyment). Structural equation modeling was used for data analysis. Eshopping behavior had a weak negative effect, and interactivity level had a weak positive effect, on eshopping experience. Experiential eshopping behavior decreased eshopping experience more than mixed or utilitarian eshopping behavior did. The latter two behaviors were not significantly different from each other in terms of eshopping experience. High interactivity level web sites increased eshopping experience more than low interactivity level sites did. Interactivity level had a weak negative effect on flow's control dimension and a moderate positive effect on flow's cognitive enjoyment component. High interactivity level sites moderately increased cognitive enjoyment more than low interactivity level sites did. Eshopping experience strongly and positively influenced flow experience in terms of control and cognitive enjoyment, and moderately impacted attention focus. Cognitive enjoyment had a strong positive effect on site attitude and future purchase intentions. However, control and attention focus did not significantly affect future purchase intentions. The study found an indirect effect of eshopping behavior on site attitude, instead of the traditional effect of attitude on behavior based on the theory of reasoned action and technology acceptance model. The results of the pilot study (N = 105) were consistent with the final study (N = 310). The study attempts to add to the small base of existing studies that examine eshopping experience and flow theory in an ecommerce setting (Novak et al. 2003; Skadberg and Kimmel 2004). The present study contributes to the online consumer behavior literature by utilizing flow theory and investigating the mediating effects of eshopping experience and flow experience on the consequences of eshopping. The findings should help inform web site design, facilitating the creation of sites which are more responsive to users by providing interactive features and understanding eshopping behaviors which users exhibit

A Circular Framework for Evaluating Highway Construction Projects Success: AHP Approach

Success has always been the ultimate goal of every activity, and a construction project is no exception. There are few topics in the field of project management that are so frequently discussed and yet so rarely agreed upon as that the notion of project success criteria. Usually much of the national budget on infrastructure development is channelled to highway construction projects. However, no official studies have been presented before to evaluate the performance this industry in Egypt. Consequently, this reflects the importance of this study which aims at laying out a standard framework which identifies the criteria for measuring projects success. The identified criteria, in turn, can be used as a tool to help the stakeholders of the highway projects in Egypt in judging the project performance and success during the project's post-construction phase. Using a detailed literature review thirteen success measures are identified (four objectives and nine subjective). Furthermore, the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is adopted to prioritize the identified measures based on accumulative knowledge of academic experts in highways construction industry through the application of questionnaire survey. The study establishes that project completed on time, project completed within budget, health, safety and number of accidents, profitability and quality in construction are the most significant measures used for assessing the highway projects performance and success

Self-healing mortar using different types, content, and concentrations of bacteria to repair cracks.

The creation of cracks, which are the most common cause of structural failure, has a significant impact on the structure's strength and durability. As a result, effective repair and maintenance are vital and unavoidable for treating any of these issues. Self-healing mortar holds promising benefits for reducing the cost of repair as cracks are autonomously repaired without any human intervention. This study investigated the effect of bacteria type, bacteria content, bacteria concentration, and nutrient type on the properties of the self-healing mortar. Three types of bacteria, Bacillus sphaericus, Bacillus Megaterium, and Bacillus subtilis encapsulated in calcium alginate beads, were introduced into the mortar. Two concentrations of bacteria, 2× 108 and   2× 109 Colony Forming Units per milliliter, and different percentages of bacteria of cement weight were selected for the study. In addition, calcium lactate and calcium acetate were used at 0.5% of cement weight as nutrition for bacteria. Tests were performed for compressive strength, bending strength, SEM, EDX, and TGA/DTG. The results show a significant development in the mechanical behaviour of mortar, especially with Bacillus Megaterium using a 2.5% bacterial proportion with a concentration 2× 109 CFU/ml. This can be related to the filling of voids and cracks in microbial mortar by calcite, which was confirmed by SEM and EDX

Experimental and numerical study of the behavior of RC slabs with openings reinforced by metal mesh under impact loading

The main objective of the following work is to inspect the effect of reinforcing metal mesh on the behavior of slabs with openings under impact loadings. Based on an earlier numerical study by Shaheen et al. (2017), slabs with mid-side openings revealed the worst behavior regarding to deflection and cracked pattern when subjected to impact loading compared to other slabs with different locations of openings. Hence, the present work focuses specifically on this type of slabs and the variation in their behavior when reinforced by welded or expanded metal mesh. Seven specimens were prepared and tested in Faculty of Engineering, Menoufia University, Egypt. Moreover, a FE model for the slabs was built using Abaqus 6.14 and verified against test results. It was found that expanded metal mesh had a significant effect on reducing deflection due to impact load as well as controlling of cracks in contrast with welded metal mesh