Source of output growth in small and medium scale enterprises in Malaysia

Small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in the Malaysian industrial development. SMEs comprise of more than 90 per cent of the total manufacturing establishments, contributing about 40 per cent of the total employments and 30 per cent of the total fixed assets in this sector. However, SMEs’ value added is very much lower than that of the large scale. A low productivity of physical inputs or factors efficiency may be attributed to low level of value added. In general the benefit gained from technological advancement and human resource development varies for different size and types of industry. Consequently, this leads to productivity differences of their physical inputs and quality of inputs. This paper aims to address this issue using data from the Manufacturing Industries Survey conducted by the Department of Statistics of Malaysia. The analysis will look at the source of output growth in different types of SMEs sub-industries.Growth; total factor productivity; manufacturing sector

Factors Affecting Production Traits in Dairy x Beef Cattle

Data from 96Angus-Holstein crossbred cows were analysed to study the effects of sire breed of calf, nutrition leve~ weaning age of calf and their interactions an the cows and calves. The cows were assigned to rations either with low or high energy leve~ whik all calves received the same diet until 224 days. Sire breeds used were Guernsey, Longhtfm, Brahman, Hereford and SimmentaL Body weights of cows and calves together with feed consumptions were taken cv"y 28 days whik body measurements were taken cve>y 56 days. Calf weaning age influenced age at first postpartum estrus and TDN consumption of cows. Weaning age also influenced progeny weaning weight and TDN consumption. Similarly, cow body weights at several production Periods were influenced lJy calf weaning age

Keanjalan penggantian antara kemahiran dalam sektor pembuatan di Malaysia

It is very crucial to know the elasticity of substitution among various sectors,skills and between skills and physical capital because it will help the producers in planning their manpower. The value of the elasticity of substitution between inputs is also important to policy makers because it determines the effectiveness of the policy regarding input price change. Besides this, the elasticity of substitution provides an important guideline to the education planner. This article analyses the elasticity of substitution between physical capital and labour and between various skills, namely professionals, supervisors, skilled labour, semi-skilled labour and unskilled labour in the Malaysia manufacturing sector based on the Manufacturing Survey of 1985-1996. The constant elasticity (CES) production function is used to estimate the elasticity of substitution. The results show that the elasticity of substitution for most combination inputs is greater than unity but in general they are still low. The elasticity of substitution between high rank job categories and skills is larger than the elasticity between the low rank job categories. Also more capitalintensive industries show higher elasticity of substitution between their inputs. This reflects high rank jobs like professional and technical careers are easily substituted by other skills in the production process when their price increases. Also workers in a more capital-intensive industries are more easily substituted by each other

It takes two to tango: how large the effects of job factors on wife’s work-family conflict?

Introduction Married couples often do influence each other’s emotions and behaviors. The effect of this interpersonal marriage relationship on emotional job demands and job performance toward work-family conflict (WFC) is still under research. This article aims to determine the effects of married couple’s job factors (emotional job demands and job performance) on wife’s WFC. Methods A total of 120 dyads in private sectors were recruited via private invitations to social gatherings. Packets of self-administered questionnaires were given included emotional domain of Demand-Induced Strain Compensation, Spielberger Trait Anger Scale, work-family conflict and job performance measures. Dyadic analysis using Actor-Partner Interdependence Model was used. Results The emotional demand of wife significantly contribute higher effect (ES= 0.34 (95%CI: 0.23, 0.45); p<0.001) compared to emotional job demand of husband on wife’s WFC (ES= 0.14 (95%CI: 0.03, 0.25); p=0.011). The job performance of wife significantly contribute higher effect (ES= 0.29 (95%CI: 0.17, 0.40); p<0.001) compared to job performance of husband on the wife’s WFC (ES= 0.17 (95%CI: 0.06, 0.29); p=0.003). Both wife and husband influenced each other pertaining to emotional job demands (r=0.35, 95%CI: 0.22, 0.48) and job performance (r=0.51, 95%CI: 0.38, 0.64) on the wife’s WFC. Overall, the APIM model explains of 22.9% and 25.1% of the total of non-independence of emotional job demands and job performance toward WFC, respectively. Conclusions Wife’s WFC was influenced by both herself and her partner’s emotional job demands and performance. All resources should be channeled to working wives to prevent any health and job outcomes resulted from the work-family conflict

Somatic chromosomes of the Bornean Sambar deer and Rusa deer interspecific hybrids

Problem statement: Hybridization has potential benefits to the Malaysian farmed deer industries in terms of increased growth rate and increased proportion of muscle and an improved alignment of feed supply and annual energy requirement. Species or subspecies of different chromosome constitution could mate to produce healthy hybrid offspring in a normal ratio of males and females. If any of the hybrid offspring were sterile, the sterile offspring would be the heterogametic offspring. The study investigated the use of chromosome banding method to detect chromosomal variation and to define the chromosome homology and the possibility of the Bornean Sambar deer (Cervus unicolor brookei) and Rusa deer (Cervus timorensis) hybrids to reproduce. Approach: Samples were collected from the Livestock Breeding Station, Sabrang, Keningau, Sabah, East Malaysia. The animals studied consisted of two deer subspecies namely the Bornean Sambar deer, Rusa deer and their hybrids. The karyotypes of the Bornean Sambar deer, Rusa deer and their F1 hybrids have been investigated by solid giemsa staining, G-banding and Ag-NOR banding techniques. Results: Rusa and Bornean Sambar have different chromosome number; 60 and 62 respectively, but share the same fundamental number of chromosome arm, 70. The hybrids have 2n = 61, consisting of 9 metacentric to submetacentric autosomes and 24 pairs of acrocentric autosomes with two acrocentrics and one submetacentric chromosome being unpaired. The morphology of the sex chromosomes in the F1 hybrids was similar to that of the parental species. The Ag-NOR pattern and the conventional Giemsa staining of chromosomes were effective as markers in the characterization of the karyotypes of the parental lines and hybrids because of the presence of active NORs on different chromosomes of different species. G-band, in contrast, showed complete homology in the presence of euchromatic bands and heterochromatin blocks respectively on each chromosome, suggesting that the two species have few genetic differences. Conclusion: In the present study, natural mating between Bornean Sambar deer and Rusa deer were conducted and the number and chromosomal location of the nucleolar organizer regions in their offsprings were analyzed by the silver staining method. Apart from that, the interspecific dissimilarities with regards to chromosome number and morphology are less extensive and the production of chromosomally balanced gametes could be expected

Sumbangan perubahan teknologi terhadap pertumbuhan output industri skel kecil dan sederhana di Malaysia

Purpose – The article has two main objectives. Firstly, it analyses technical efficiency, technological change, and total factor productivity (TFP) growth in small and medium industries (SMEs) in Malaysia. Secondly, it examines to what extent technological change influences SMEs output growth. Design/Methodology/Approach – The analysis was based on the Manufacturing Industrial Survey data of 1985-2003 collected by the Department of Statistics Malaysia. SMEs are defined as an industry with less than 200 full-time workers. The study covers 10 SMEs sub-industries at 3 digits of the Manufacturing Standard Industrial Classifi cation (MSIC). In achieving the first objective, the study used Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The value of technological change derived from DEA was then used as the dependent variable in the production function to achieve the second objective. Findings – The study showed that TFP growth for the overall SMEs is negative due to negative change of both technical change and technological change. However, analysis at the sub-industry level showed positive TFP growth for food and beverages, textiles, and plastic products, which was due to positive growth of their technical change. Technological change has positive impact on six SMEs sub-industries, i.e. food and beverages, textiles, wood-based products, plastic products, electrical electronics, and transport equipments. Originality/Value – This article introduces a new measurement for technological change from a DEA approach to be incorporated in the production function. Paper type – Research Paper

BRAND ASSOCIATION ATTRIBUTES FOR INDONESIAN NATIONAL AIRLINE

Brand image, in brief is a series of private values that perceived by company to create identity of its product or service. Brand Association is anything related memory to brand (Tjiptono, 2005). Brand Association is one of assets of brand equity, which shows advantages and differences of a product or service while a person recall the brand of product or service. This paper is a research to discover brand attributes associated in consumers’ mind that create brand image of state owned national airline (Garuda Indonesia-GI), and then to discover harmonization between brand identity with brand image. The respondents of this research are passengers of GI airline at Sukamo-Hatta airport. Cochran test is one of methods applied in this paper. The result of this research shows that there are six brand associations which create GI brand image, but brand identity has not yet stuck completely in consumer’s mind, although there are three additional brand image perceived by consumers. These show that there is a positive gap which bring advantages to company. Company must also maintain the harmony of built brand image and brand identity to avoid the creation of negative gap