Customer satisfaction, training and TQM: a comparative study of Western and Thai hotels

Managers within the hospitality industry make frequent reference to TQM principles. The extent to which these principles are applied effectively within the human resource management area of hospitality however remains under-researched. By applying TQM principles, this paper focusses on the relationship between customer service and training drawing upon comparative data from Western and Thai hotels. The paper also examines the perceptions of staff towards of hotels' guest-orientation and the provision of quality guest services. The researchers found that guest assessments of the performance of hotel frontline staff depend on their services function (e.g., front-office, housekeeping). The service quality skills needed by frontline staff were also found to differ in the case of Western and Thai hotels. Such differences merit proper consideration on the part of managers within the major hotel chains. The various findings may assist hospitality managers to determine appropriate strategies for the enhancement of guest services particularly in cross-cultural settings

Regulatory Futures in Retrospect

In our 1998 volume ‘The Politics of Chemical Risk: Scenarios for a regulatory Future’ we envisioned four ideal typical scenarios for the future of European chemicals policies. The scenarios focused on the nature of expertise (seen either as a universal or a localised phenomenon) and the organisation of the boundary between science and policy (as either diverging or converging). The four scenarios were titled International Experts, European Risk Consultation, European Coordination of Assessment, and Europe as a Translator. For all four scenarios, we hypothesized internal dynamics and articulated dilemmas related to the development of the sciences contributing to chemical assessment, the relation between the EU and member states and the role of the public. In this contribution, we look back on our four scenarios fifteen years later, to see which ones have materialized and to explore whether the dilemmas we saw have indeed surfaced. We conclude that the International Experts scenario by and large has materialized and explore some of the underlying tensions and dynamics in this development

Utilization of bitter vegetable leaves (Gongronema latifolium, Vernonia amygdalina) and Garcinia kola extracts as substitutes for hops in sorghum beer production

Sorghum beer was brewed using extracts of ‘utasi’ leaf (Gongronema latifolium), bitter leaf (Vernonia amygdalina) and bitter kola (Garcinia kola) to impact bitter taste and flavour as substitutes for hops used for beer production. The physicochemical and sensory characteristics of the beer samples were evaluated. The results showed that ‘utasi’ leaf, bitter leaf and bitter kola flavoured beer samples had alcohol values in the range of (12.50 - 12.55%), pH (3.37 - 4.44), specific gravity (1.0140 - 1.0400), titratable acidity (0.107 - 0.328%), volatile acidity (0.003 - 0.103%), soluble solids (0.12 - 0.97%), moisture content (95.71 - 98.37%), protein (0.17 - 0.85%), ash (0.20 - 0.29%) and fat (1.25 - 2.95%). Sensory evaluation of the beer by trained panelists (connoisseurs) showed that the utasi flavoured beer was preferred to the other beer samples and compared favourably with hopped beer in terms of flavour and taste.Keywords: Beer production, ‘utasi’ leaf, bitter kola, bitter leaf, hops substitute

Rising Level of Public Exposure to Mobile Phones: Accumulation through Additivity and Reflectivity

A dramatic development occurring in our daily life is the increasing use of mobile equipment including mobile phones and wireless access to the Internet. They enable us to access several types of information more easily than in the past. Simultaneously, the density of mobile users is rapidly increasing. When hundreds of mobile phones emit radiation, their total power is found to be comparable to that of a microwave oven or a satellite broadcasting station. Thus, the question arises: what is the public exposure level in an area with many sources of electromagnetic wave emission? We show that this level can reach the reference level for general public exposure (ICNIRP Guideline) in daily life. This is caused by the fundamental properties of electromagnetic field, namely, reflection and additivity. The level of exposure is found to be much higher than that estimated by the conventional framework of analysis that assumes that the level rapidly decreases with the inverse square distance between the source and the affected person. A simple formula for the exposure level is derived by applying energetics to the electromagnetic field. The formula reveals a potential risk of intensive exposure.Comment: 5 pages, 1 fugure; to appear in J. Phys. Soc. Jpn. Vol.71 No.2 in Feb 200

Constriction size distributions of granular filters: a numerical study

The retention capability of granular filters is controlled by the narrow constrictions connecting the voids within the filter. The theoretical justification for empirical filter rules used in practice includes consideration of an idealised soil fabric in which constrictions form between co-planar combinations of spherical filter particles. This idealised fabric has not been confirmed by experimental or numerical observations of real constrictions. This paper reports the results of direct, particle-scale measurement of the constriction size distribution (CSD) within virtual samples of granular filters created using the discrete-element method (DEM). A previously proposed analytical method that predicts the full CSD using inscribed circles to estimate constriction sizes is found to poorly predict the CSD for widely graded filters due to an over-idealisation of the soil fabric. The DEM data generated are used to explore quantitatively the influence of the coefficient of uniformity, particle size distribution and relative density of the filter on the CSD. For a given relative density CSDs form a narrow band of similarly shaped curves when normalised by characteristic filter diameters. This lends support to the practical use of characteristic diameters to assess filter retention capability

Potential role for clinical calibration to increase engagement with and application of home telemonitoring: a report from the HeartCycle programme

Aims: There is a need for alternative strategies that might avoid recurrent admissions in patients with heart failure. Home Telemonitoring (HTM) to monitor patient’s symptoms from a distance may be useful. This study attempts to assess changes in HTM vital signs in response to daily life activities (variations in medication, salt intake, exercise and stress) and to stablish which variations affect weight, blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR). Methods and results: We assessed 76 patients with heart failure (mean age 76 ± 10.8 years, 75% male, mainly in NYHA class II/III and from ischaemic etiology cause). Patients were given a calendar of interventions scheduling activities approximately twice-a-week before measuring their vital signs. Eating salty food or a large meal were the activities that had a significant impact on weight gain (+0.3 kg; p<0.001 and p=0.006, respectively). Exercise and skipping a dose of medication other than diuretics increased heart rate (+3 bpm, p=0.001 and almost +2 bpm, p=0.016, respectively). Conclusions: Our HTM system was able to detect small changes in vital signs related to these activities. Further studies should assess if providing such a schedule of activities might be useful for patient education and could improve long-term adherence to recommended lifestyle changes

Ocular sequelae of congenital toxoplasmosis in Brazil compared with Europe

Toxoplasmic retinochoroiditis appears to be more severe in Brazil, where it is a leading cause of blindness, than in Europe, but direct comparisons are lacking. Evidence is accumulating that more virulent genotypes of Toxoplasma gondii predominate in South America