Search results for: small and medium scale enterprises

Authors: Mallikarjun Vaddenkeri, Suresh Jange

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This research study reports results of information behaviour by members of faculty and research scholars of various departments of social sciences working at universities with a sample of 300 and Members of Legislative Assembly and Council with 216 samples in Karnataka State, India. The results reveal that 29.3% and 20.3% of Social Scientists indicated medium and high level of awareness of primary sources - Primary Journals are found to be at scale level 5 and 9. The usage of primary journals by social scientists is found to be 28% at level 4, 24% of the respondent’s opined use of primary Conference Proceedings at level 5 as medium level of use. Similarly, the use of Secondary Information Sources at scale 8 and 9 particularly in case of Dictionaries (31.0% and 5.0%), Encyclopaedias (22.3% and 6.3%), Indexing Periodicals (7.0% and 15.3%) and Abstracting Periodicals (5.7% and 20.7%). For searching information from Journals Literature available in CD-ROM version, Keywords (43.7%) followed by Keywords with logical operators (39.7%) have been used for finding the required information. Statistical inference reveals rejection of null hypothesis `there is no association between designation of the respondents and awareness of primary information resources’. On the other hand, educational qualification possessed by Legislative members, more than half of them possess graduate degree as their academic qualification (57.4%) and just 16.7% of the respondents possess graduate degree while only 26.8% of the respondents possess degree in law and just 1.8% possess post-graduate degree in law. About 42.6% indicated the importance of information required to discharge their duties and responsibilities as a Policy Maker in the scale 8, as a Scholar (27.8%) on a scale 6, as a politician (64.8%) on a scale 10 and as a Councillor (51.9%) on a scale 8. The most preferred information agencies/sources very often contacted for obtaining useful information are by means of contacting the people of Karnataka State Legislative Library, listening Radio programmes, viewing Television programmes and reading the newspapers. The methods adopted for obtaining needed information quite often by means of sending their assistants to libraries to gather information (35.2%) and personally visiting the information source (64.8%). The null hypotheses `There is no association between Members of Legislature and Opinion on the usefulness of the resources of the Karnataka State Legislature Library’ is accepted using F ANOVA test. The studies conclude with a note revamp the existing library system in its structure and adopt latest technologies and educate and train social scientists and Legislators in using these resources in the interest of academic, government policies and decision making of the country.

Keywords: information use behaviour, government information, searching behaviour, policy makers

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Authors: Gregory Sullivan

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The evolution of global warming has escalated the number and complexity of forest fires around the world. As an example, the United States and Brazil combined generated more than 30,000 forest fires last year. The impact to our environment, structures and individuals is incalculable. The world has learned to try to take this in stride, trying multiple ways to contain fires. Some countries are trying to use cameras in limited areas. There are discussions of using hundreds of low earth orbit satellites and linking them together, and, interfacing them through ground networks. These are all truly noble attempts to defeat the forest fire phenomenon. But there is a better, simpler answer. A bigger piece of the solutions puzzle is to see the fires while they are small, soon after initiation. The approach is to see the fires while they are very small and report their location (latitude and longitude) to local first responders. This is done by placing a sensor at geostationary orbit (GEO: 26,000 miles above the earth). By placing this small satellite in GEO, we can “stare” at the earth, and sense temperature changes. We do not “see” fires, but “measure” temperature changes. This has already been demonstrated on an experimental scale. Fires were seen at close to initiation, and info forwarded to first responders. it were the first to identify the fires 7 out of 8 times. The goal is to have a small independent satellite at GEO orbit focused only on forest fire initiation. Thus, with one small satellite, focused only on forest fire initiation, we hope to greatly decrease the impact to persons, property and the environment.

Keywords: space detection, wildfire early warning, demonstration wildfire detection and action from space, space detection to first responders

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Authors: Bethany Leake, Samantha Caton, Paul Norman, Jill Edmondson

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With the majority of the UK population residing in urban areas and with the pressures both environmentally and socially on rural agriculture, the role of urban food production, particularly urban horticulture (UH), is increasingly important in the future of UK food security. UH has the potential to provide an important contribution to urban diets and to provide additional benefits to human health and well-being. While allotments are the traditional focus of UH and play an important role, as access to this type of land is limited and unequal across cities, other forms of UH space, such as domestic growing, will need to be utilized to provide a significant contribution to urban diets. It is theorized that this smaller scale of growing may also be a more accessible way of engaging novice growers in UH. A collaborative research project, Urban Harvest, was designed between the University of Sheffield and Sheffield-based food organizations, which aimed to engage inexperienced gardeners in UH by providing them with home food-growing kits (Grow-Kits). Grow-Kits were provided to 189 participants across Sheffield in 2022, 48% of whom had never grown food before. Data collected through surveys and interviews will help us to evaluate the effect of small-scale food growing on health and wellbeing and the potential of this type of scheme to encourage future UH engagement. This data and increasing evidence on the co-benefits of UH have important implications not only for local food security but also for urban health inequalities and the potential use of this activity for preventative healthcare.

Keywords: urban horticulture, health and wellbeing, food security, nutrition

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Authors: Dinesh Khanduja, Sahib Sartaj Singh

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In India, among the start ups, many new ventures fail and for the few that survive and grow, there are always numerous problems. In order to make these surviving units productive and cost effective-in today’s competitive environment, the traditional ways of supporting small enterprises and the related programs of governmental assistance need to be significantly transformed. In this context, ‘Business Incubation’ is emerging as one of the most innovative instruments to support small enterprise creation and development all over the world. Incubators, by providing on the-spot diagnosis and treatment of business problems, dramatically lower the early stage failure rate. In Europe, US and countries like China, Singapore, Thailand etc., the exceptionally fast growth of business incubators has baffled even the researchers. In this direction in India, following on the world pattern, several initiatives have been taken over the last decade to encourage the concept of business incubation. Besides profiling the existing ‘Business Incubators’ in India, the paper dwells upon a case study of SMEs in state of Punjab for exploring the relevance of business incubation for enhancing their productive capacity.

Keywords: business incubation, Technology Business Incubator (TBI), Rural Business Hub (RBH), entrepreneurship, Business Development Services (BDS), technology management

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Authors: O. Arikan, C. Kocatepe, G. Ucar, Y. Hacialiefendioglu

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In this paper, influence of harmonics on medium voltage distribution system of Bogazici Electricity Distribution Inc. (BEDAS) which takes place at Istanbul/Turkey is investigated. A ring network consisting of residential loads is taken into account for this study. Real system parameters and measurement results are used for simulations. Also, probable working conditions of the system are analyzed for %50, %75 and %100 loading of transformers with similar harmonic contents. Results of the study are exhibited the influence of nonlinear loads on %THDV, P.F. and technical losses of the medium voltage distribution system.

Keywords: distribution system, harmonic, technical losses, power factor, total harmonic distortion, residential load, medium voltage

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Authors: Kim Byung-Kon, Kim Young-Jin

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As project opportunities for the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry have grown more complex and larger, the utilization of BIM (Building Information Modeling) technologies for 3D design and simulation practices has been increasing significantly; the typical applications of the BIM technologies include clash detection and design alternative based on 3D planning, which have been expanded over to the technology of construction management in the AEC industry for virtual design and construction. As for now, commercial BIM software has been operated under a single-user environment, which is why initial costs for its introduction are very high. Cloud computing, one of the most promising next-generation Internet technologies, enables simple Internet devices to use services and resources provided with BIM software. Recently in Korea, studies to link between BIM and cloud computing technologies have been directed toward saving costs to build BIM-related infrastructure, and providing various BIM services for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This study addressed how to develop the usage metering functions of BIM software under cloud computing architecture in order to archive and use BIM data and create an optimal revenue structure so that the BIM services may grow spontaneously, considering a demand for cloud resources. To this end, the author surveyed relevant cases, and then analyzed needs and requirements from AEC industry. Based on the results & findings of the foregoing survey & analysis, the author proposed herein how to optimally develop the usage metering functions of cloud BIM software.

Keywords: construction IT, BIM (Building Information Modeling), cloud computing, BIM-based cloud computing, 3D design, cloud BIM

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Authors: Cheng Sheng, Yuemin Zhao, Chenlong Duan

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Air dense medium fluidized bed is a typical application of fluidization techniques for coal particle separation in arid areas, where it is costly to implement wet coal preparation technologies. In the last three decades, air dense medium fluidized bed, as an efficient dry coal separation technique, has been studied in many aspects, including energy and mass transfer, hydrodynamics, bubbling behaviors, etc. Despite numerous researches have been published, the fluidization features, especially dual dense medium fluidization features have been rarely reported. In dual dense medium fluidized beds, different combinations of different dense mediums play a significant role in fluidization quality variation, thus influencing coal separation efficiency. Moreover, to what extent different dense mediums mix and to what extent the two-component particulate mixture affects the fluidization performance and quality have been in suspense. The proposed work attempts to reveal underlying mechanisms of generation and evolution of two-component particulate mixture in the fluidization process. Based on computational fluid dynamics methods and discrete particle modelling, movement and evolution of dual dense mediums in air dense medium fluidized bed have been simulated. Dual dense medium fluidization experiments have been conducted. Electrical capacitance tomography was employed to investigate the distribution of two-component mixture in experiments. Underlying mechanisms involving two-component particulate fluidization are projected to be demonstrated with the analysis and comparison of simulation and experimental results.

Keywords: air dense medium fluidized bed, particle separation, computational fluid dynamics, discrete particle modelling

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Authors: W. A. D. P. Wanigasundera, P. C. B. Alahakoon

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Kandy district in Sri Lanka has small scale and rain-fed paddy farming, and highly vulnerable to climate change. In this study, the status of climate change was assessed using meteorological data and compared with the perceptions of paddy farming community. Factors affecting the adaptation to the climate smart farming were also assessed. Meteorological data for 33 years were collected and the changes over time compared with the perceptions of farmers. The temperature, rainfall and number of rainy days have increased in both locations. The onset of rains also has shifted. The perceptions of the majority of the farmers were in line with the actual changes. The knowledge and attitudes about the causes of climate change and adaptation were medium and related to level of adoption. Formulating effective communication strategies, and a collaborative approach involving state, private sector, civil society to make Sri Lankan agriculture ‘climate-smart’ is urgently needed.

Keywords: adaptation of climate-smart technology, climate change, perception, rain-fed paddy

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Authors: Ali E. Abbas

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This paper summarizes some of the discussions that occurred in a workshop in West Virginia, U.S.A which was sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF) in February 2016. The goal of the workshop was to explore the opportunities and challenges for applying systems engineering in large enterprises, and some of the issues that still persist. The main topics of the discussion included challenges with elaboration and abstraction in large systems, interfacing physical and social systems, and the need for axiomatic frameworks for large enterprises. We summarize these main points of discussion drawing parallels with decision making in organizations to instigate research in these discussion areas.

Keywords: decision analysis, systems engineering, framing, value creation

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Authors: Ivandic Kreso, Spiranec Miljenko, Kavur Boris, Strelec Stjepan

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This article discusses the possibility of using dilatometer tests (DMT) together with in situ seismic tests (MASW) in order to get the shape of G-g degradation curve in cohesive soils (clay, silty clay, silt, clayey silt and sandy silt). MASW test provides the small soil stiffness (G_o from v_s) at very small strains and DMT provides the stiffness of the soil at ‘work strains’ (M_DMT). At different test locations, dilatometer shear stiffness of the soil has been determined by the theory of elasticity. Dilatometer shear stiffness has been compared with the theoretical G-g degradation curve in order to determine the typical range of shear deformation for different types of cohesive soil. The analysis also includes factors that influence the shape of the degradation curve (G-g) and dilatometer modulus (M_DMT), such as the overconsolidation ratio (OCR), plasticity index (IP) and the vertical effective stress in the soil (s_vo'). Parametric study in this article defines the range of shear strain g_DMT and G_DMT/G_o relation depending on the classification of a cohesive soil (clay, silty clay, clayey silt, silt and sandy silt), function of density (loose, medium dense and dense) and the stiffness of the soil (soft, medium hard and hard). The article illustrates the potential of using MASW and DMT to obtain G-g degradation curve in cohesive soils.

Keywords: dilatometer testing, MASW testing, shear wave, soil stiffness, stiffness reduction, shear strain

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Authors: Ashish Shukla, K. P. Mishra, Pushplata Tripathi

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This paper investigates the production and optimization of β-galactosidase enzyme using synthetic medium by isolated wild strains (S1, S2) mutated strains (M1, M2) through SSF and SmF. Among the different cell disintegration methods used, the highest specific activity was obtained when the cells were permeabilized using isoamyl alcohol. Wet lab experiments were performed to investigate the effects of carbon and nitrogen substrates present in Vogel’s medium on β-galactosidase enzyme activity using S1, S2, and M1, M2 strains through SSF. SmF experiments were performed for effects of carbon and nitrogen sources in YLK2Mg medium on β-galactosidase enzyme activity using S1, S2 and M1, M2 strains. Effect of pH on β-galactosidase enzyme production was also done using S1, S2, and M1, M2 strains. Results were found to be very appreciable in all the cases.

Keywords: β-galactosidase, cell disintegration, permeabilized, SSF, SmF

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Authors: Margerita Topalli

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In this paper, we analyze the impact of corruption (business environment, informal payments and state capture), crime and tax time, on the enterprise's performance during economic transition in the Central and Eastern Europe and the role of privatization as a moderator. We examine this effect by comparing the performance of the privatized enterprises and the state-owned-enterprises, while controlling for various forms of selection bias. The present study is based on firm-level panel data collected by the BEEPS for 27 transition countries over 2002, 2005, 2007, and 2011. In addition to firm characteristics, BEEPS collects valuable survey information on different forms of corruption, crime, tax time and firm ownership. We estimate the impact of corruption, crime, tax time on the different performance measures (sales, productivity, employment, labor costs and material costs) of the enterprise, whereby we control for firm ownership, with a special focus on the role of the privatization as a moderator. It argues that in general terms, the privatization has positive effects on the performance of enterprises during transition, but these effects are significantly different, depending on the examined performance measure (sales, productivity, employment, labor costs and material costs). When the privatization is effective, the privatized enterprises show a considerable performance improvements, particularly in terms of revenue growth and productivity growth. It also argues that the effects of privatization are different depending on the types of owner (outsider or insider) to whom it gives control. The results show that privatization to insider owners has no significant performance effect.

Keywords: effects of privatization, enterprise performance, state capture, corruption, firm ownership, economic transition, Central and Eastern Europe

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Authors: J. Janani, S. Gomathi

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Despite the new economy is embodied with the ample size of talent pool, the corporate world is facing the hardship in the mismatch of talent demand supply. Therefore to combat with this fallout crisis, here depicts the relevance of Employer Branding. Employer branding is gaining its popularity in Large sized companies especially IT companies but less employer branding awareness among IT SMEs (Small and Medium size Enterprises). There are N range of analysis has been dole out on employer branding from different perspectives and in different industries. The hidden factor behind the employer branding namely the post employment dissonance was not given a lot of importance into the research picture. The present study examines the employer branding as the employer image and the organizational identity. It focuses on the two fold dimensional branding initiatives namely job offer attributes and organizational attractiveness. The study will depict the dissonance level and their variations among the foresaid initiatives from the former employees and the post-employment dissonance from the present employees in IT SMEs and it will also examine the employer perception from the prospective employees towards the stated branding initiatives. The demographic factors such as generational factors (gen X and gen Y) and the career stages are majorly focused in the study. The study will promote the IT SMEs to strengthen their employer branding effectively and efficiently through implementing varied strategies and this will help them to enhance the talent pool at their best. This will eventually result in talent attraction and talent retention.

Keywords: employer image, organizational identity, post-employment dissonance, job offer attributes, organizational attractiveness, talent pool, career stages, generational factors, information technology, SMEs

Procedia PDF Downloads 488

Authors: Jocelyn B. Barbosa, Angeli L. Magbaril, Mariel T. Sabanal, John Paul T. Galario, Mikka P. Baldovino

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The use of technology has become ubiquitous in different areas of business today. With the advent of digital imaging and database technology, business owners have been motivated to integrate technology to their business operation ranging from small, medium to large enterprises. Technology has been found to have brought many benefits that can make a business grow. Hog or swine raising, for example, is a very popular enterprise in the Philippines, whose challenges in production monitoring can be addressed through technology integration. Swine production monitoring can become a tedious task as the enterprise goes larger. Specifically, problems like delayed and inconsistent reports are most likely to happen if counting of swine per pen of which building is done manually. In this study, we present iCount, which aims to ensure efficient swine detection and counting that hastens the swine production monitoring task. We develop a system that automatically detects and counts swine based on Sobel filter and ellipse fitting model, given the still photos of the group of swine captured in a pen. We improve the Sobel filter detection result through 8-neigbhorhood rule implementation. Ellipse fitting technique is then employed for proper swine detection. Furthermore, the system can generate periodic production reports and can identify the specific consumables to be served to the swine according to schedules. Experiments reveal that our algorithm provides an efficient way for detecting swine, thereby providing a significant amount of accuracy in production monitoring.

Keywords: automatic swine counting, swine detection, swine production monitoring, ellipse fitting model, sobel filter

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Authors: Gupta Indu

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This paper aims to examine the relationship between foreign direct investment and globalization. Foreign direct investment plays an important role in globalization. It is dramatically increasing in the age of globalization. It has played an important role for economic growth in this global process. It can provide new markets and marketing channels, cheaper production facilities, access to new technology, products to a firm. FDI has come to play a major role in the internationalization of business. FDI has become even more important than trade. Growing liberalization of the national regulatory framework governing investment in enterprises and changes in capital markets profound changes have occurred in the size, scope and methods of FDI. New information technology systems, decline in global communication costs have made management of foreign investments far easier than in the past. FDI provide opportunities to host countries to enhance their economic development and opens new opportunities to home countries to optimize their earnings by employing their ideal resources. Smaller and weaker economies can drive out much local competition. For small and medium sized companies, FDI represents an opportunity to become more actively involved in international business activities. In the past decade, foreign direct investment has expanded its role by change in trade policy, investment policy, tariff liberalization, easing of restrictions on foreign investment and acquisition in many nations, and the deregulation and privatization of many industries. In present competitive scenario, FDI has become a prominent external source of finance for developing countries.

Keywords: foreign direct investment, globalization, economic development, information technology systems new opportunities

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Authors: Riki H. Patel, Arpan H. Desai, Trushit Upadhyaya

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This paper presents a new small electrically antenna rectangular X- band micro-strip patch antenna loaded with material Rogers RT/duroid 5870 (tm). The present discussion focuses on small Electrically antenna which are electrically small compared to wave length the performance of electrically small antenna are closely related to their electrical size, the gain can be increased to maintain the efficiency of the radiator. Basically micro-strip Patch antennas have been used in satellite communications and for their good characteristics such as lightness, low cost, and so on. Here in the design H- shape folded dipole, which increase the band width of the antenna.

Keywords: electrically small antennas, X-band application, antenna, micro-strip patch, frequency antenna, feed, gain

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Authors: Sascha Kraus, Wolfgang Hora, Philipp Stieg, Thomas Niemand, Ferdinand Thies, Matthias Filser

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In most countries, small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) are the backbone of the economy due to their impact on job creation, innovation and wealth creation. Moreover, the ongoing globalization makes it inevitable – even for SME that traditionally focused on their domestic markets – to internationalize their business activities to realize further growth and survive in international markets. Thus, internationalization has become one of the most common growth strategies for SME and has received increasing scholarly attention over the last two decades. One the downside internationalization can be also regarded as the most complex strategy that a firm can undertake. Particularly for family firms, that are often characterized by limited financial capital, a risk-averse nature and limited growth aspirations, it could be argued that family firms are more likely to face greater challenges when taking the pathway to internationalization. Especially the triangulation of family, ownership, and management (so-called ‘familiness’) manifests in a unique behavior and decision-making process which is often characterized by the importance given to noneconomic goals and distinguishes a family firm from other businesses. Taking this into account, the concept of socio-emotional wealth (SEW) has been evolved to describe the behavior of family firms. In order to investigate how different internal and external firm characteristics shape internationalization success of family firms, we drew on a sample consisting of 297 small and medium-sized family firms from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. Thus, we include SEW as essential family firm characteristic and added the two major intra-organizational characteristics, entrepreneurial orientation (EO), absorptive capacity (AC) as well as collaboration intensity (CI) and relational knowledge (RK) as two major external network characteristics. Based on previous research we assume that these characteristics are important to explain internationalization success of family firm SME. Regarding the data analysis, we applied a Fuzzy Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA), an approach that allows identifying configurations of firm characteristics, specifically used to study complex causal relationships where traditional regression techniques reach their limits. Results indicate that several combinations of these family firm characteristics can lead to international success, with no permanently required key characteristic. Instead, there are many roads to walk down for family firms to achieve internationalization success. Consequently, our data states that family owned SME are heterogeneous and internationalization is a complex and dynamic process. Results further show that network related characteristics occur in all sets, thus represent an essential element in the internationalization process of family owned SME. The contribution of our study is twofold, as we investigate different forms of international expansion for family firms and how to improve them. First, we are able to broaden the understanding of the intersection between family firm and SME internationalization with respect to major intra-organizational and network-related variables. Second, from a practical perspective, we offer family firm owners a basis for setting up internal capabilities to achieve international success.

Keywords: entrepreneurial orientation, family firm, fsQCA, internationalization, socio-emotional wealth

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Authors: Tarek A. Mekail, Walid M. A. Elmagid

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Many researches have concentrated on improving the aerodynamic performance of wind turbine blade through testing and theoretical studies. A small wind turbine blade is designed, fabricated and tested. The power performance of small horizontal axis wind turbines is simulated in details using Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD). The three-dimensional CFD models are presented using ANSYS-CFX v13 software for predicting the performance of a small horizontal axis wind turbine. The simulation results are compared with the experimental data measured from a small wind turbine model, which designed according to a vehicle-based test system. The analysis of wake effect and aerodynamic of the blade can be carried out when the rotational effect was simulated. Finally, comparison between experimental, numerical and analytical performance has been done. The comparison is fairly good.

Keywords: small wind turbine, CFD of wind turbine, CFD, performance of wind turbine, test of small wind turbine, wind turbine aerodynamic, 3D model

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Authors: Yen Sun, Pariang Siagian

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The aim of this paper is to examine the progress of financial inclusion in Indonesia. The object of this paper is Micro Enterprises (MEs) and methodology used will be qualitative method by using surveys and questionnaires. The results show that there are still 20% MEs have no banking facilities at all and about 78% MEs still use their own capital to run their business. Furthermore, personal characteristics such as gender and education are factors that can explain financial inclusion. It is also said that in general MEs need banking product and services. However, there are still barriers that hinder them to be financially included. The most barriers they have to face are marketing exclusion. It shows that they have lack information about banking product and services since marketing strategy from bank is not disseminated clearly through various media.

Keywords: financial inclusion, financial exclusion, micro enterprises, Indonesia

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Authors: Moustafa Osman Mohammed

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This paper will explore formation of HCl aerosol at atmospheric boundary layers and encourages the uptake of environmental modeling systems (EMSs) as a practice evaluation of gaseous emissions (“framework measures”) from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The conceptual model predicts greenhouse gas emissions to ecological points beyond landfill site operations. It focuses on incorporation traditional knowledge into baseline information for both measurement data and the mathematical results, regarding parameters influence model variable inputs. The paper has simplified parameters of aerosol processes based on the more complex aerosol process computations. The simple model can be implemented to both Gaussian and Eulerian rural dispersion models. Aerosol processes considered in this study were (i) the coagulation of particles, (ii) the condensation and evaporation of organic vapors, and (iii) dry deposition. The chemical transformation of gas-phase compounds is taken into account photochemical formulation with exposure effects according to HCl concentrations as starting point of risk assessment. The discussion set out distinctly aspect of sustainability in reflection inputs, outputs, and modes of impact on the environment. Thereby, models incorporate abiotic and biotic species to broaden the scope of integration for both quantification impact and assessment risks. The later environmental obligations suggest either a recommendation or a decision of what is a legislative should be achieved for mitigation measures of landfill gas (LFG) ultimately.

Keywords: air pollution, landfill emission, environmental management, monitoring/methods and impact assessment

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Authors: Yaser Miaji, Mohammad Sabbagh

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Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a technology which shares a similar concept with bar code. With RFID, the electromagnetic or electrostatic coupling in the RF portion of the electromagnetic spectrum is used to transmit signals. Supply chain management is aimed to keep going long-term performance of individual companies and the overall supply chain by maximizing customer satisfaction with minimum costs. One of the major issues in the supply chain management is product loss or shrinkage. In order to overcome this problem, this system which uses Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology will be able to RFID track and identify where losses are occurring and enable effective traceability. RFID brings a new dimension to supply chain management by providing a more efficient way of being able to identify and track items at the various stages throughout the supply chain. This system has been developed and tested to prove that RFID technology can be used to improve traceability in supply chain at low cost. Due to its simplicity in interface program and database management system using Visual Basic and MS Excel or MS Access the system can be more affordable and implemented even by small and medium scale industries.

Keywords: supply chain, RFID, tractability, radio frequency identification

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Authors: Guohua Tu, Zhi Fu, Zhiwei Hu, Neil D Sandham, Jianqiang Chen

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Tripping of boundary-layers from laminar to turbulent flow, which may be necessary in specific practical applications, requires high amplitude disturbances to be introduced into the boundary layers without large drag penalties. As a possible improvement on fixed trip devices, a technique based on vortex shedding for enhancing supersonic flow transition is demonstrated in the present paper for a Mach 1.5 boundary layer. The compressible Navier-Stokes equations are solved directly using a high-order (fifth-order in space and third-order in time) finite difference method for small-scale cylinders suspended transversely near the wall. For cylinders with proper diameter and mount location, asymmetry vortices shed within the boundary layer are capable of tripping laminar-turbulent transition. Full three-dimensional simulations showed that transition was enhanced. A parametric study of the size and mounting location of the cylinder is carried out to identify the most effective setup. It is also found that the vortex shedding can be suppressed by some factors such as wall effect.

Keywords: boundary layer instability, boundary layer transition, vortex shedding, supersonic flows, flow control

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Authors: E. Al-Essa, R. Bello-Mendoza, D. G. Wareham

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Anaerobic batch experiments were conducted to investigate the effect of magnetite-supplementation (7 mM) on methane production from digested sludge undergoing two different microbial growth phases, namely fresh sludge (exponential growth phase) and degassed sludge (endogenous decay phase). Three different particle sizes were assessed: small (50 - 150 nm), medium (168 – 490 nm) and large (800 nm - 4.5 µm) particles. Results show that, in the case of the fresh sludge, magnetite significantly enhanced the methane production rate (up to 32%) and reduced the lag phase (by 15% - 41%) as compared to the control, regardless of the particle size used. However, the cumulative methane produced at the end of the incubation was comparable in all treatment and control bottles. In the case of the degassed sludge, only the medium-sized magnetite particles increased significantly the methane production rate (12% higher) as compared to the control. Small and large particles had little effect on the methane production rate but did result in an extended lag phase which led to significantly lower cumulative methane production at the end of the incubation period. These results suggest that magnetite produces a clear and positive effect on methane production only when an active and balanced microbial community is present in the anaerobic digester. It is concluded that, (i) the effect of magnetite particle size on increasing the methane production rate and reducing lag phase duration is strongly influenced by the initial metabolic state of the microbial consortium, and (ii) the particle size would positively affect the methane production if it is provided within the nanometer size range.

Keywords: anaerobic digestion, iron oxide, methanogenesis, nanoparticle

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Authors: Y. Boulaksil, J. C. Fransoo, E.E. Blanco, S. Koubida

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In this paper, we study the small traditional retailers that are located in the neighborhoods of big cities in emerging markets. Although modern retailing has grown in the last two decades in these markets, the number of small retailers is still increasing and serving a substantial part of the daily demand for many basic products, such as bread, milk, and cooking oil. We conduct an empirical study to understand the business environment of these small traditional retailers in emerging markets by collecting data from 333 small retailers, spread over 8 large cities in Morocco. We analyze the data and describe their business environment with a focus on the informal credits they offer to their customers. We find that smaller small retailers that are funded from personal savings and managed by the owner himself offer relatively the most credits. Our study also provides interesting insights about these small retailers that will help FMCG manufacturers that are (planning to be) active in Morocco and other emerging markets. We also discuss a number opportunities to improve the efficiency of the supply chains that serve them.

Keywords: small retailers, big cities, emerging markets, empirical study, supply chain management, Morocco

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Authors: V. Suganya, V. Balasuriya

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The functioning of Micro and Small Scale (MSS) businesses in the northern part of Sri Lanka was vulnerable due to three decades of internal conflict and the subsequent post-war economic openings has resulted new market prospects for MSS businesses. MSS businesses survive and operate with limited resources and struggle to access finance, raw material, markets, and technology. This study attempts to identify the manner in which entrepreneurial orientation puts into practice by the business operators to overcome these business challenges. Business operators in the traditional food processing sector are taken for this study as this sub-sector of the food industry is developing at a rapid pace. A review of the literature was done to recognize the concepts of entrepreneurial orientation, defining MMS businesses and the manner in which business performance is measured. Direct interview method supported by a structured questionnaire is used to collect data from 80 respondents; based on a fixed interval random sampling technique. This study reveals that more than half of the business operators have opted to commence their business ventures as a result of identifying a market opportunity. 41 per cent of the business operators are highly entrepreneurial oriented in a scale of 1 to 5. Entrepreneurial orientation shows significant relationship and strongly correlated with business performance. Pro-activeness, innovativeness and competitive aggressiveness shows a significant relationship with business performance while risk taking is negative and autonomy is not significantly related to business performance. It is evident that entrepreneurial oriented business practices contribute to better business performance even though 70 per cent prefer the ideas/views of the support agencies than the stakeholders when making business decisions. It is recommended that appropriate training should be introduced to develop entrepreneurial skills focusing to improve business networks so that new business opportunities and innovative business practices are identified.

Keywords: Micro and Small Scale (MMS) businesses, entrepreneurial orientation (EO), food processing, business operators

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Authors: Van Chung Nguyen

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The purpose of this study is to study the current status of the value chain for fish distribution at Quang Binh Fishing Port with 360 research samples in which the research subjects are fishermen, traders, retailers, and businesses. The research uses the approach of applying the value chain theoretical framework of Kaplinsky and Morris to quantify and describe market channels and actors participating in the value chain and analyze the value-added process of these companies according to market channels. The analysis results show that fishermen directly catch fish with high economic efficiency, but processing enterprises and, especially retailers, are the agents to obtain higher added value. Processing enterprises play a role that is not really clear due to outdated processing technology; in contrast, retailers have the highest added value. This shows that the added value of the fish supply chain at Quang Binh fishing port is still limited, leading to low output quality. Therefore, the selling price of fish to the market is still high compared to the abundant fish resources, leading to low consumption and limiting exports due to the quality of processing enterprises. This reduces demand and fishing capacity, and productivity is lower than potential. To improve the fish value chain at fishing ports, it is necessary to focus on improving product quality, strengthening linkages between actors, building brands and product consumption markets at the same time, improving the capacity of export processing enterprises.

Keywords: Quang Binh fishing port, value chain, market, distributions channel

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Authors: Suzhou Wei, Isobel Cunningham, Laura Bradley McCauley

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Social enterprises play a significant role in resolving social issues in the modern world. In contrast to traditional commercial businesses, their main goal is to address social concerns rather than primarily maximize profits. This phenomenon in entrepreneurship is presenting new opportunities and different operating models and resulting in modified approaches to measure success beyond traditional market share and margins. This paper explores social enterprises to clarify their roles and approaches in addressing grand challenges related to social issues. In doing so, it analyses the key differences between traditional business and social enterprises, such as their operating model and value proposition, to understand their contributions to society. The research presented in this paper responds to calls for research to better understand social enterprises and entrepreneurship but also to explore the dynamics between profit-driven and socially-oriented entities to deliver mutual benefits. This paper, which examines the features of commercial business, suggests their primary focus is profit generation, economic growth and innovation. Beyond the chase of profit, it highlights the critical role of innovation typical of successful businesses. This, in turn, promotes economic growth, creates job opportunities and makes a major positive impact on people's lives. In contrast, the motivations upon which social enterprises are founded relate to a commitment to address social problems rather than maximizing profits. These entities combine entrepreneurial principles with commitments to deliver social impact and grand challenge changes, creating a distinctive category within the broader enterprise and entrepreneurship landscape. The motivations for establishing a social enterprise are diverse, such as encompassing personal fulfillment, a genuine desire to contribute to society and a focus on achieving impactful accomplishments. The paper also discusses the collaboration between commercial businesses and social enterprises, which is viewed as a strategic approach to addressing grand challenges more comprehensively and effectively. Finally, this paper highlights the evolving and diverse expectations placed on all businesses to actively contribute to society beyond profit-making. We conclude that there is an unrealized and underdeveloped potential for collaboration between commercial businesses and social enterprises to produce greater and long-lasting social impacts. Overall, the aim of this research is to encourage more investigation of the complex relationship between economic and social objectives and contributions through a better understanding of how and why businesses might address social issues. Ultimately, the paper positions itself as a tool for understanding the evolving landscape of business engagement with social issues and advocates for collaborative efforts to achieve sustainable and impactful outcomes.

Keywords: business, social enterprises, collaboration, social issues, motivations

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Authors: Lin Li, P. G. R. N. I. Pussella

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When representing spatial data and their attributes on different types of maps, the scale plays a key role in the process of map generalization. The process is consisted with two main operators such as selection and omission. Once some data were selected, they would undergo of several geometrical changing processes such as elimination, simplification, smoothing, exaggeration, displacement, aggregation and size reduction. As a result of these operations at different levels of data, the geometry of the spatial features such as length, sinuosity, orientation, perimeter and area would be altered. This would be worst in the case of preparation of small scale maps, since the cartographer has not enough space to represent all the features on the map. What the GIS users do is when they wanted to analyze a set of spatial data; they retrieve a data set and does the analysis part without considering very important characteristics such as the scale, the purpose of the map and the degree of generalization. Further, the GIS users use and compare different maps with different degrees of generalization. Sometimes, GIS users are going beyond the scale of the source map using zoom in facility and violate the basic cartographic rule 'it is not suitable to create a larger scale map using a smaller scale map'. In the study, the effect of map generalization for GIS analysis would be discussed as the main objective. It was used three digital maps with different scales such as 1:10000, 1:50000 and 1:250000 which were prepared by the Survey Department of Sri Lanka, the National Mapping Agency of Sri Lanka. It was used common features which were on above three maps and an overlay analysis was done by repeating the data with different combinations. Road data, River data and Land use data sets were used for the study. A simple model, to find the best place for a wild life park, was used to identify the effects. The results show remarkable effects on different degrees of generalization processes. It can see that different locations with different geometries were received as the outputs from this analysis. The study suggests that there should be reasonable methods to overcome this effect. It can be recommended that, as a solution, it would be very reasonable to take all the data sets into a common scale and do the analysis part.

Keywords: generalization, GIS, scales, spatial analysis

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Authors: I. Rodionov, A. Semenov, E. Gosteva, O. Sokolova

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Currently, the venture capital becomes more and more advanced and effective source of the innovation project financing, connected with a high-risk level. In the developed countries, it plays a key role in transforming innovation projects into successful businesses and creating prosperity of the modern economy. Actually, in Russia there are many necessary preconditions for creation of the effective venture investment system: the network of the public institutes for innovation financing operates; there is a significant number of the small and medium-sized enterprises, capable to sell production with good market potential. However, the current system does not confirm the necessary level of efficiency in practice that can be substantially explained by the absence of the accurate plan of action to form the national venture model and by the lack of experience of successful venture deals with profitable exits in Russian economy. This paper studies the influence of various factors on the venture industry development by the example of the IT-sector in Russia. The choice of the sector is based on the fact, that this segment is the main driver of the venture capital market growth in Russia, and the necessary set of data exists. The size of investment of the second round is used as the dependent variable. To analyse the influence of the previous round such determinant as the volume of the previous (first) round investments is used. There is also used a dummy variable in regression to examine that the participation of an investor with high reputation and experience in the previous round can influence the size of the next investment round. The regression analysis of short-term interrelations between studied variables reveals prevailing influence of the volume of the first round investments on the venture investments volume of the second round. Because of the research, the participation of investors with first-class reputation has a small impact on an indicator of the value of investment of the second round. The expected positive dependence of the second round investments on the forecasted market growth rate now of the deal is also rejected. So, the most important determinant of the value of the second-round investment is the value of first–round investment, so it means that the most competitive on the Russian market are the start-up teams which can attract more money on the start, and the target market growth is not the factor of crucial importance.

Keywords: venture industry, venture investment, determinants of the venture sector development, IT-sector

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Authors: Sunthari Tharapan, Chockpisit Thepsithar, Kullanart Obsuwan

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This study was aimed to investigate the effect of various organic supplements on growth and development of Dendrobium discolor’s protocorms and seedlings growth of Dendrobium Judy Rutz. Protocorms of Dendrobium discolor with 2.0 cm. in diameter and seedlings of Dendrobium Judy Rutz at the same size (0.5 cm. height) were sub-cultured on Hyponex medium supplemented with cow milk (CM), soy milk (SM), potato extract (PE) and peptone (P) for 2 months. The protocorms were developed to seedlings in all treatments after cultured for 2 months. However, the best results were found on Hyponex medium supplemented with P was the best in which the maximum fresh and dry weight and maximum shoot height were obtained in this treatment statistically different (p ≤ 0.05) to other treatments. Moreover, Hyponex medium supplemented with P also stimulated the maximum mean number of 5.7 shoots per explant which also showed statistically different (p ≤ 0.05) when compared to other treatments. The results of growth of Dendrobium Judy Rutz seedlings indicated the medium supplemented with 100 mL/L PE enhanced the maximum fresh and dry weigh per explants with significantly different (p ≤ 0.05) in fresh weight from other treatments including the control medium without any organic supplementation. However, the dry weight was not significantly different (p ≤ 0.05) from medium supplemented with SM and P. There was multiple shoots induction in all media with or without organic supplementation ranging from 2.6 to 3 shoots per explants. The maximum shoot height was also obtained in the seedlings cultured on medium supplemented with PE while the longest root length was found in medium supplemented with SM.

Keywords: fresh weight, in vitro propagation, orchid, plant height

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