Strategy implementation obstacles encountered by Malaysian engineering contractors

Strategy implementation is one of the three fundamental components of the strategic management, besides strategy formulation and strategy evaluation and control. Strategy implementation is considered as most difficult because it affects the organizational culture, structure, resources and in fact the whole texture of an organization.Much of the studies on implementation indicate that the success rate of strategy implementation seems to be low. Despite, a review of the strategic management literature indicate that not much research emphasis given on the implementation side of strategy in Malaysia.This paper presents an attempt to examine strategy implementation among contractors registered with the Malaysian Department of Irrigation.More specifically this paper investigated the strategy implementation obstacles faced by the contractors. The population in this study consisted of personnel who had experience in handling problem projects of the Malaysian Irrigation Department. Structured interview and mail questionnaire were used to obtain data for the study.In this study the obstacles are broken down into eight dimensions which are purchasing, construction facility, human resource, finance, operations, management information system, sales, and environment. The three most challenging obstacles are those pertaining to the environment, management information systems, and human resource

Flavanones from the flower of Macaranga triloba

Macaranga triloba belongs to the family of Euphorbiaceae. Investigation on the dichloromethane extract of flower of Macaranga triloba collected at Hulu Terengganu, Malaysia has yielded four flavanone compounds known as 6-prenyl-3’-methoxy-eriodictyol (1), nymphaeol-B (2), nymphaeol-C (3) and 6-farnesyl3’,4’,5,7-tetrahydroxyflavanone (4). The structures of these compounds were elucidated based on spectroscopic methods including nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR-1D and 2D), UV, IR as well as mass spectrometry. This is the first report of 6-prenyl-3’-methoxy-eriodictyol(1) and 6-farnesyl-3’,4’,5,7-tetrahydroxyflavanone (4) from the genus of Macaranga

Flavonoids with antiplasmodial and cytotoxic activities of Macaranga triloba

A new flavanone derivative, malaysianone A (1), four prenylated flavanones, 6-prenyl-3′-methoxyeriodictyol (2), nymphaeol B (3), nymphaeol C (4) and 6-farnesyl-3′,4′,5,7-tetrahydroxyflavanone (5), and two coumarins, 5,7-dihydroxycoumarin (6) and scopoletin (7), were isolated from the dichloromethane extract of the inflorescences of Macaranga triloba. The structures of these compounds were elucidated based on spectroscopic methods including nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR-1D and 2D), UV, IR and mass spectrometry. The cytotoxic activity of the compounds was tested against several cell lines, with 5 inhibiting very strongly the growth of HeLa and HL-60 cells (IC50: 1.3 μg/ml and 3.3 μg/ml, respectively). Compound 5 also showed strong antiplasmodial activity (IC50: 0.06 μM)

Comparative analysis on virtual private network in the internet of things gateways

A virtual private network (VPN) connects a private network to the internet, primarily the public network, through a secure tunnel. Using a local area network (LAN) segment, users can send and receive data from their colleagues in different locations on the network. The development of VPN allows users to gain access to company applications and databases. Therefore, data can be transmitted through a secure tunnel without the need to configure port forwarding for the internet of things (IoT) gateway, allowing users to access it from any location in the world. A method such as dataplicity and pitunnel was examined to compare with the conventional setting. This research paper examines the current deployment of VPN connections in IoT gateways, discussing their characteristics, benefits, and drawbacks, as well as comparing them. The advantage of this method is that the IoT gateway is always accessible and has internet connectivity, which is a significant benefit. Dataplicity is a more trustworthy option because they offer excellent assistance for both the backend and frontend environments

Random amplified polymorphism DNA profile of Listeria monocytogenes from raw and ready-to-eat foods in Malaysia

Listeria monocytogenes subtyping is important in food processing environment or in epidemiological studies in order to identify the contamination sources and spreading routes, and to investigate the food-borne outbreaks. This study employs the combination of serotyping and random amplified polymorphism DNA (RAPD) analysis methods to characterize the isolated L. monocytogenes strains in food samples from local markets. Listeria antisera kit was used in serotyping which grouped L. monocytogenes isolates based on the expression of somatic and flagellar antigens. The L. monocytogenes serovars were further classified into RAPD types based on polymorphic banding patterns generated by using 10 random RAPD primers. The 23 isolated strains were divided into four different serotypes consisting 4b (43.5%), 1/2b (34.8%), 4d (8.70%) and 4e (4.35%) with two untypable isolates (8.70%). 11 banding patterns were obtained from each selected primer, OPA10 and OPA14 with DNA fragments ranging from approximately 0.15 kb to 1.1 kb. The constructed dendograms showed similarity percentage of 4% to 100% for OPA10, 12% to 100% for OPA14 and 4% to 100% for combination of primers. At a comparative genetic similarity of more than 90%, 21 distinguish RAPD profiles were obtained. The discriminatory of RAPD analysis method was proven as it could distinguish the isolates from the same serovar. However, between the two primers used, OPA14 provide better discriminatory results than OPA10 although it failed to type one isolate. These findings suggest that the application of RAPD analysis could be a useful tool in characterization of L. monocytogenes isolated from foods as it may provide important information on cross-contamination potential sites. Thus, the microbial monitoring should be applied and continuously performed in order to control listeriosis infection. The data may be useful for the food producers or epidemiological and public health studies of Listeria spp

Meaningful hybrid e-training model for web-based computer education

The main purpose of this study was to develop a model for meaningful hybrid e-training. Data collected from 213 ICT trainers were tested with confirmatory factor analysis using AMOS 7.0 to obtain two best-fit measurement models for the two latent variables. Overall reliability using Alpha-Cronbach test, items and persons reliability using the Rasch Model and content validation by experts suggested that the questionnaire is reliable and valid to measure a meaningful hybrid e-training program. The results showed that there is a positive strong relationship between hybrid e-training and meaningful e training. In brief the study showed a substantial effect of hybrid e-training towards achieving meaningful learning. In conclusion, the study suggested that, future training regarding the use of hybrid e-training should include all five components of a meaningful hybrid e-training instead of merely focusing on content

Faktor Kesukaran dalam Proses Memodelkan Sebuah Tapak Arkeologi Menerusi Pendekatan Geospatial

Selama bertahun-tahun, ahli arkeologi telah bergantung pada peta dan analisis ruangan untuk memahami taburan artifak dan ciri di seluruh tapak arkeologi secara visualisasi. Walau bagaimanapun, pengenalan foto udara, penderiaan jauh digital, sistem maklumat geografi (GIS) dan sistem keletakan global (GPS) telah menyediakan ahli arkeologi dengan alat canggih untuk menganalisis dan menggambarkan taburan dan data arkeologi dengan cara yang inovatif. Oleh yang demikian, analisis geospatial telah mendapat pengiktirafan yang penting sebagai salah satu alat untuk membantu ahli arkeologi. Dengan menyepadukan foto udara, penderiaan jauh, GIS dan GPS ke dalam penyelidikan mereka, ahli arkeologi kini dapat menganalisis kuantiti data yang besar dalam masa yang sama memahami peranan ruangan. Ini telah membolehkan mereka memperoleh pandangan baru tentang taburan dan corak ciri arkeologi tersebut. Artikel ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji faktor kesukaran dalam proses memodelkan sebuah tapak arkeologi menerusi pendekatan geospatial. Antara faktor kepelbagaian yang menimbulkan kesukaran dalam proses memodelkan tapak arkeologi adalah tapak arkeologi, persekitaran, tingkah laku atau kelakukan dan faktor teknikal. Dengan kemajuan teknologi, pendekatan geospatial merupakan kaedah terbaik untuk penyelidikan arkeologi manakala ahli arkeologi perlu berhati-hati dan menimbang faedah dan cabaran yang berkaitan dengan analisis geospatial, memastikan kaedah ini digunakan secara berhemah dan beretika

Faktor Kesukaran dalam Proses Memodelkan Sebuah Tapak Arkeologi Menerusi Pendekatan Geospatial

Selama bertahun-tahun, ahli arkeologi telah bergantung pada peta dan analisis ruangan untuk memahami taburan artifak dan ciri di seluruh tapak arkeologi secara visualisasi. Walau bagaimanapun, pengenalan foto udara, penderiaan jauh digital, sistem maklumat geografi (GIS) dan sistem keletakan global (GPS) telah menyediakan ahli arkeologi dengan alat canggih untuk menganalisis dan menggambarkan taburan dan data arkeologi dengan cara yang inovatif. Oleh yang demikian, analisis geospatial telah mendapat pengiktirafan yang penting sebagai salah satu alat untuk membantu ahli arkeologi. Dengan menyepadukan foto udara, penderiaan jauh, GIS dan GPS ke dalam penyelidikan mereka, ahli arkeologi kini dapat menganalisis kuantiti data yang besar dalam masa yang sama memahami peranan ruangan. Ini telah membolehkan mereka memperoleh pandangan baru tentang taburan dan corak ciri arkeologi tersebut. Artikel ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji faktor kesukaran dalam proses memodelkan sebuah tapak arkeologi menerusi pendekatan geospatial. Antara faktor kepelbagaian yang menimbulkan kesukaran dalam proses memodelkan tapak arkeologi adalah tapak arkeologi, persekitaran, tingkah laku atau kelakukan dan faktor teknikal. Dengan kemajuan teknologi, pendekatan geospatial merupakan kaedah terbaik untuk penyelidikan arkeologi manakala ahli arkeologi perlu berhati-hati dan menimbang faedah dan cabaran yang berkaitan dengan analisis geospatial, memastikan kaedah ini digunakan secara berhemah dan beretika

Kontrak, perancangan & prosedur berkontrak edisi kedua

Buku ini mengandungi beberapa bab iaitu kandungan bab 1 proses perancangan peringkat perancangan yang terdapat di dalam proses pembinaan peringkat perancangan pratawaran peringkat perancangan prakontrak perancangan kontrak. Bab 2 perancangan pratawaran polisi tawaran – keputusan untuk menyertai tawaran mesyuarat awal pratawaran maklumat laporan lawatan tapak objektif penyata kaedah. Bab 3 perancangan prakontrak tatacara prakontrak sebelum memulakan projek perancangan tata atur tapak menyediakan tempahan bagi subkontraktor dan pembekal jadual keperluan. Bab 4 teknik perancangan kontrak teknik perancangan yang ada untuk kontraktor turutan program untuk kontrak perumahan, turutan program untuk membina 24 tiang konkrit bertetulang, program jangka pendek untuk blok makmal tatacara perancangan, jangka pendek dan merekodkan kemajuan perancangan kontrak, jangka pendek mesyuarat tapak bulanan teknik perancangan mingguan laporan tapak mingguan dan merekodkan kemajuan.

Implications of ChatGPT in Library Services: A systematic review

Libraries play a crucial role in delivering reliable information using emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), specifically ChatGPT. This study systematically reviews 11 articles from Scopus and Web of Science, focusing on ChatGPT's implications for library services. The identified themes include information retrieval, reference assistance, language support, user engagement, personalization, information literacy, collection development, and cataloging and classification. While ChatGPT offers various benefits, challenges such as intellectual property, privacy, bias, accuracy, and reliability limitations exist. This article underscores the need for in-depth qualitative or quantitative studies to explore ChatGPT's potential in library services