Search results for: typing efficiency

Authors: Sandeep Vasaikar, Lary Obi

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Rapid and discriminative genotyping methods are useful for determining the clonality of the isolates in nosocomial or household outbreaks. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) is a nucleotide sequence-based approach for characterising bacterial isolates. The genetic diversity and the clinical relevance of the drug-resistant Klebsiella isolates from Mthatha are largely unknown. For this reason, prospective, experimental study of the molecular epidemiology of Klebsiella isolates from patients being treated in Mthatha over a three-year period was analysed. Methodology: PCR amplification and sequencing of the drug-resistance-associated genes, and multilocus sequence typing (MLST) using 7 housekeeping genes mdh, pgi, infB, FusAR, phoE, gapA and rpoB were conducted. A total of 32 isolates were analysed. Results: The percentages of multidrug-resistant (MDR), extensively drug-resistance (XDR) and pandrug-resistant (PDR) isolates were; MDR 65.6 % (21) and XDR and PDR with 0 % each. In this study, K. pneumoniae was 19/32 (59.4 %). MLST results showed 22 sequence types (STs) were identified, which were further separated by Maximum Parsimony into 10 clonal complexes and 12 singletons. The most dominant group was Klebsiella pneumoniae with 23/32 (71.8 %) isolates, Klebsiella oxytoca as a second group with 2/32 (6.25 %) isolates, and a single (3.1 %) K. varricola as a third group while 6 isolates were of unknown sequences. Conclusions/significance: A phylogenetic analysis of the concatenated sequences of the 7 housekeeping genes showed that strains of K. pneumoniae form a distinct lineage within the genus Klebsiella, with K. oxytoca and K. varricola its nearest phylogenetic neighbours. With the analysis of 7 genes were determined 1 K. variicola, which was mistakenly identified as K. pneumoniae by phenotypic methods. Two misidentifications of K. oxytoca were found when phenotypic methods were used. No significant differences were observed between ESBL blaCTX-M, blaTEM and blaSHV groups in the distribution of Sequence types (STs) or Clonal complexes (CCs).

Keywords: phylogenetic analysis, phylogeny, klebsiella phylogenetic, klebsiella

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Authors: Khomkrit Mongkhuntod, Chatchawal Chaichana, Atipoang Nuntaphan

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Feed Water Heater is the important equipment for thermal power plant. The heating temperature from feed heating process is an impact to power plant efficiency or heat rate. Normally, the degradation of feed water heater that operated for a long time is effect to decrease plant efficiency or increase plant heat rate. For Mae Moh power plant, each unit operated more than 20 years. The degradation of the main equipment is effect of planting efficiency or heat rate. From the efficiency and heat rate analysis, Mae Moh power plant operated in high heat rate more than the commissioning period. Some of the equipment were replaced for improving plant efficiency and plant heat rates such as HP turbine and LP turbine that the result is increased plant efficiency by 5% and decrease plant heat rate by 1%. For the target of power generation plan that Mae Moh power plant must be operated more than 10 years. These work is focus on thermal efficiency analysis of feed water heater to compare with the commissioning data for find the way to improve the feed water heater efficiency that may effect to increase plant efficiency or decrease plant heat rate by use heat balance model simulation and economic value add (EVA) method to study the investment for replacing the new feed water heater and analyze how this project can stay above the break-even point to make the project decision.

Keywords: feed water heater, power plant efficiency, plant heat rate, thermal efficiency analysis

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Authors: Zhankun Wang, Timothy Makubuya

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The efficiency of public sports service of prefecture-level cities in Zhejiang from 2008 to 2012 was evaluated by applying the DEA method, then its influencing factors were also analyzed through Tobit model. Upon analysis, the results revealed the following; (i) the change in average efficiency of public sports service in Zhejiang present a smooth uptrend and at a relatively high level from 2008 to 2012 (ii) generally, the productivity of public sports service in Zhejiang improved from 2008 to 2012, the productivity efficiency varied greatly in different years, and the regional difference of production efficiency increased. (iii) The correlations for urbanization rate, aging rate, per capita GDP and the population density were significantly positive with the public sports service efficiency in Zhejiang, of which the most significant was the aging rate. However, the population density and per capita GDP had less impact on the efficiency of public sports service in Zhejiang. In addition, whether the efficiency of public sports services in different areas in Zhejiang reciprocates to overall benefits in public wellbeing in both rural and urban settings is still arguable.

Keywords: DEA model, public sports service, efficiency, Tobit model, Malmquist productivity index, Zhejiang

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Authors: Bahram Fathi, Seyedhossein Sajadifar, Naser Khiabani

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Data envelopment analysis (DEA) has recently gained popularity in energy efficiency analysis. A common feature of the previously proposed DEA models for measuring energy efficiency performance is that they treat energy consumption as an input within a production framework without considering undesirable outputs. However, energy use results in the generation of undesirable outputs as byproducts of producing desirable outputs. Within a joint production framework of both desirable and undesirable outputs, this paper presents several DEA-type linear programming models for measuring energy efficiency performance. In addition to considering undesirable outputs, our models treat different energy sources as different inputs so that changes in energy mix could be accounted for in evaluating energy efficiency. The proposed models are applied to measure the energy efficiency performances of 12 OPEC countries and the results obtained are presented.

Keywords: energy efficiency, undesirable outputs, data envelopment analysis

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Authors: Aharouay Soumaya

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Efficiency is a relative concept. It is measured by comparing the productivity obtained in what is intended as standard or objective criteria. The quantity and quality of output achieved and the level of service are also compared to targets or standards, to determine to what extent they could cause changes in efficiency. Efficiency improves when more outputs of a specified quality are produced with the same resource inputs or less, or when the same amount of output is produced with fewer resources. This article proposes a review of the literature on strategies adopted by firms in the age of the financial crisis to overcome these negative effects, and tracks progress chosen by the organization to remain successful despite the plight of firms.

Keywords: effectiveness, efficiency, organizational capacity, strategy, management tool, progress, performance

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Authors: Aydin Azizi, Abdurrahman Tanira

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With the onset of climate change and limited fuel resources, improving fuel efficiency has become an important part of the motor industry. To maximize fuel efficiency, development of technologies must come hand-in-hand with awareness of efficient driving strategies. This study aims to explore the various driving habits that can impact fuel efficiency by reviewing available literature. Such habits include sudden and unnecessary acceleration or deceleration, improper hardware maintenance, driving above or below optimum speed and idling. By studying such habits and ultimately applying it to driving techniques, in combination with improved mechanics of the car, will optimize the use of fuel.

Keywords: fuel efficiency, driving techniques, optimum speed, optimizing fuel consumption

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Authors: Hiba Mezaache

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The study aims to assess the financial and social efficiency of microfinance institutions in india for the period 2015-2019 by using two models of economies of scale and choosing the output direction of the data envelope analysis (DEA) method and using the MIX MARKET database. The study concluded that microfinance institutions focus on achieving financial efficiency beyond their focus on achieving social efficiency to ensure their continuity in the market. Convergence in the efficiency ratios that have been achieved, but the optimum ratios have been achieved under the changing economies of scale; Efficiency is affected by the depth of reaching low-income groups, as serving this group raises costs and risks. The importance of lending to women in rural areas and raising their awareness to ensure their financial and social empowerment; Make improvements in operating expenses, asset management, and loan personnel control in order to maximize output.

Keywords: microfinance, financial efficiency, social efficiency, mix market, microfinance institutions

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Authors: Dongfang Qiu, Yilin Lu

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The measurement of enterprise-university-research cooperative efficiency has important meanings in improving the cooperative efficiency, strengthening the effective integration of regional resource, enhancing the ability of regional innovation and promoting the development of regional economy. The paper constructs the DEA method and DEA-Malmquist productivity index method to research the cooperation efficiency of Hubei by making comparisons with other provinces in China. The study found out the index of technology efficiency is 0.52 and the enterprise-university- research cooperative efficiency is Non-DEA efficient. To realize the DEA efficiency of Hubei province, the amount of 1652.596 R&D employees and 638.368 R&D employees’ full time equivalence should be reduced or 137.89 billion yuan of new products’ sales income be increased. Finally, it puts forward policy recommendations on existing problems to strengthen the standings of the cooperation, realize the effective application of the research results, and improve the level of management of enterprise-university-research cooperation efficiency.

Keywords: cooperation ability, DEA method, enterprise-university-research cooperation, Malmquist efficiency index

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Authors: Jale Çatak, Bayram Yılmaz, Mustafa Ozilgen

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The second law muscle work efficiency is obtained by multiplying the metabolic and mechanical work efficiencies. Thermodynamic analyses are carried out with 19 sets of arms and legs exercise data which were obtained from the healthy young people. These data are used to simulate the changes occurring during aging. The muscle work efficiency decreases with aging as a result of the reduction of the metabolic energy generation in the mitochondria. The reduction of the mitochondrial energy efficiency makes it difficult to carry out the maintenance of the muscle tissue, which in turn causes a decline of the muscle work efficiency. When the muscle attempts to produce more work, entropy generation and exergy destruction increase. Increasing exergy destruction may be regarded as the result of the deterioration of the muscles. When the exergetic efficiency is 0.42, exergy destruction becomes 1.49 folds of the work performance. This proportionality becomes 2.50 and 5.21 folds when the exergetic efficiency decreases to 0.30 and 0.17 respectively.

Keywords: aging mitochondria, entropy generation, exergy destruction, muscle work performance, second law efficiency

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Authors: Abdullah Erden, Filiz Erden

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In the present information society era, a change is seen in every field together with changing technology. Along with this change, importance given to information and human who is the producer of information increased. Work life and working conditions included in these changes have also been affected. The most important factors that disturb employees in offices are lighting, ventilation, noise and office furniture. Upon arrangement of these according to ergonomic principles, performance and efficiency of employees will increase. Fatigue and stress resulting from office environment are harmful for employees. Attention and efficiency of employee who feels bad will decrease. It should be noted that office employees are human and affected from environment. It should be allowed them to work in comfortable, healthy and peaceful environment. As a result, efficiency will increase and target will be reached. In this study, it has been focused on basic concepts such as office management and efficiency, effects of ergonomics on office efficiency has been examined. Also, a place is given to the factors affecting operational efficiency and effects of physical environment on employees.

Keywords: ergonomics, efficiency, office design, office

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Authors: Diep Thanh Tung

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This study aims to measure technical efficiency and examine productivity performance of livestock production in regions of Vietnam based on a panel data of 2008–2012. After four years, although there are improvements in efficiency of some regions, low technical efficiency, poor performance of productivity and its compositions are dominant features in almost regions. Households which much depend on livestock income in agricultural income or agricultural income in total income are more vulnerable than the others in term of livestock production.

Keywords: data envelopment analysis, meta-frontier, Malmquist, technical efficiency, livestock production

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Authors: Komal Fizza

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All around the world in every field professionals are taking great support from their computers. Computer assisted strategies not only increase the efficiency of the professionals but also in case of healthcare they help in life-saving interventions. The background of this current research is aimed towards two things; first to find out if computer assisted strategies are useful for Pharmacist for not and secondly how much these assist a Pharmacist to do quality interventions. Shifa International Hospital is a 500 bedded hospital, and it is running Antimicrobial Stewardship, during their stewardship rounds pharmacists observed that a lot of wrong doses of antibiotics were coming at times those were being overlooked by the other pharmacist even. So, with the help of MIS team the patients were categorized into adult and peads depending upon their age. Minimum and maximum dose of every single antibiotic present in the pharmacy that could be dispensed to the patient was developed. These were linked to the order entry window. So whenever pharmacist would type any order and the dose would be below or above the therapeutic limit this would give an alert to the pharmacist. Whenever this message pop-up this was recorded at the back end along with the antibiotic name, pharmacist ID, date, and time. From 14th of January 2015 and till 14th of March 2015 the software stopped different users 350 times. Out of this 300 were found to be major errors which if reached to the patient could have harmed them to the greater extent. While 50 were due to typing errors and minor deviations. The pilot study showed that computer assisted strategies can be of great help to the pharmacist. They can improve the efficacy and quality of interventions.

Keywords: antibiotics, computer assisted strategies, pharmacist, stewardship

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Authors: F. Ahwide, Y. Aldali

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This article presents a current and future energy situation in Libya. The electric power efficiency and operating hours in power plants are evaluated from 2005 to 2010. Carbon dioxide emissions in most of power plants are estimated. In 2005, the efficiency of steam power plants achieved a range of 20% to 28%. While, the gas turbine power plants efficiency ranged between 9% and 25%, this can be considered as low efficiency. However, the efficiency improvement has clearly observed in some power plants from 2008 to 2010, especially in the power plant of North Benghazi and west Tripoli. In fact, these power plants have modified to combine cycle. The efficiency of North Benghazi power plant has increased from 25% to 46.6%, while in Tripoli it is increased from 22% to 34%. On the other hand, the efficiency improvement is not observed in the gas turbine power plants. When compared to the quantity of fuel used, the carbon dioxide emissions resulting from electricity generation plants were very high. Finally, an estimation of the energy demand has been done to the maximum load and the annual load factor (i.e., the ratio between the output power and installed power).

Keywords: power plant, efficiency improvement, carbon dioxide emissions, energy situation in Libya

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Authors: Marda Vidrianto, Tania Surya Utami

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Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) is an artificial lift of choice to produce oil on Offshore Java Sea. It is selected based on the production rate capacity and running life expectation. ESP performance in a mature field is highly affected by oil well conditions. The presence of sand, scale, gas, and low influx will create unstable ESP operation hence lowering the run life expectation and system efficiency. This paper reviews the current energy usage and efficiency on every part of the ESP system. The hydraulic and electrical losses, as well as system efficiency for each well, are calculated to identify energy losses and the possibility for improvement. It is shown that high back pressure on the system and low-efficiency pump are the major contributors to energy losses. It was found that optimized production rate and the use of advanced technology on pump and motor unit could improve energy efficiency.

Keywords: advance technology, energy efficiency, ESP, mature field, production rate

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Authors: J. B. G. Ibarra, J. M. A. Gagui, E. J. T. Jonson, J. A. V. Lim

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This paper focused on studying the performance of the solar panels that were equipped with water-spray cooling system, solar tracking system, and combination of both systems. The efficiencies were compared with the solar panels without any efficiency improvement technique. The efficiency of each setup was computed on an hourly basis every day for a month. The study compared the efficiencies and combined systems that significantly improved at a specific time of the day. The data showed that the solar tracking system had the highest efficiency during 6:00 AM to 7:45 AM. Then after 7:45 AM, the combination of both solar tracking and water-spray cooling system was the most efficient to use up to 12:00 NN. Meanwhile, from 12:00 NN to 12:45 PM, the water-spray cooling system had the significant contribution on efficiency. From 12:45 PM up to 4:30 PM, the combination of both systems was the most efficient, and lastly, from 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM, the solar tracking system was the best to use. The study intended to use solar tracking or water-spray cooling system or combined systems alternately to improve the solar panel efficiency on a specific time of the day.

Keywords: solar panel efficiency, solar panel efficiency technique, solar tracking system, water-spray cooling system

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Authors: Sonveer Singh, Sanjay Agrawal, D. V. Avasthi, Jayant Shekhar

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The aim of this paper is to improve the efficiency of photovoltaic thermal (PVT) system with the help of Genetic Algorithms with multi-objective function. There are some parameters that affect the efficiency of PVT system like depth and length of the channel, velocity of flowing fluid through the channel, thickness of the tedlar and glass, temperature of inlet fluid i.e. all above parameters are considered for optimization. An attempt has been made to the model and optimizes the parameters of glazed hybrid single channel PVT module when two objective functions have been considered separately. The two objective function for optimization of PVT module is overall electrical and thermal efficiency. All equations for PVT module have been derived. Using genetic algorithms (GAs), above two objective functions of the system has been optimized separately and analysis has been carried out for two cases. Two cases are: Case-I; Improvement in electrical and thermal efficiency when overall electrical efficiency is optimized, Case-II; Improvement in electrical and thermal efficiency when overall thermal efficiency is optimized. All the parameters that are used in genetic algorithms are the parameters that could be changed, and the non-changeable parameters, like solar radiation, ambient temperature cannot be used in the algorithm. It has been observed that electrical efficiency (14.08%) and thermal efficiency (19.48%) are obtained when overall thermal efficiency was an objective function for optimization. It is observed that GA is a very efficient technique to estimate the design parameters of hybrid single channel PVT module.

Keywords: genetic algorithm, energy, exergy, PVT module, optimization

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Authors: S. P. Singh

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This paper measures technical and scale efficiencies of 40 Indian sugar companies for the period from 2004-05 to 2013-14. The efficiencies are estimated through input-oriented DEA models using one output variable—value of output (VOP) and five input variables—capital cost (CA), employee cost (EMP), raw material (RW), energy & fuel (E&F) and other manufacturing expenses (OME). The sugar companies are classified into integrated and non-integrated categories to know which one achieves higher level of efficiency. Sources of inefficiency in the industry are identified through decomposing the overall technical efficiency (TE) into pure technical efficiency (PTE) and scale efficiency (SE). The paper also estimates input-reduction targets for relatively inefficient companies and suggests measures to improve their efficiency level. The findings reveal that the TE does not evince any trend rather it shows fluctuations across years, largely due to erratic and cyclical pattern of sugar production. Further, technical inefficiency in the industry seems to be driven more by the managerial inefficiency than the scale inefficiency, which implies that TE can be improved through better conversion of inputs into output.

Keywords: DEA, slacks, sugar industry, technical efficiency

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Authors: Gona Ayuba, Isiaka Mohammed, Kotom Mohammed Baba, Mohammed Aabubakar Maikasuwa

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The study examined the technical efficiency and its determinants of cattle fattening enterprises in Kebbi state, Nigeria. Data were collected from a sample of 160 fatteners between June 2010 and June 2011 using the multistage random sampling technique. Translog stochastic frontier production function was employed for the analysis. Results of the analysis show that technical efficiency indices varied from 0.74 to 0.98%, with a mean of 0.90%, indicating that there was no wide gap between the efficiency of best technical efficient fatteners and that of the average fattener. The result also showed that fattening experience and herd size influenced the level of technical efficiency at 1% levels. It is recommended that credit agencies should ensure that credit made available to the fatteners is monitored to ensure appropriate utilization.

Keywords: technical efficiency, determinants, cattle, fattening enterprises

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Authors: Houxiang Zhu, Chun Liang

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The CRISPR-Cpf1 system has been successfully applied in genome editing. However, target efficiency of the CRISPR-Cpf1 system varies among different gRNA sequences. The published CRISPR-Cpf1 gRNA data was reanalyzed. Many sequences and structural features of gRNAs (e.g., the position-specific nucleotide composition, position-nonspecific nucleotide composition, GC content, minimum free energy, and melting temperature) correlated with target efficiency were found. Using machine learning technology, a support vector machine (SVM) model was created to predict target efficiency for any given gRNAs. The first web service application, CRISPR-DT (CRISPR DNA Targeting), has been developed to help users design optimal gRNAs for the CRISPR-Cpf1 system by considering both target efficiency and specificity. CRISPR-DT will empower researchers in genome editing.

Keywords: CRISPR-Cpf1, genome editing, target efficiency, target specificity

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Authors: Loice K. Gudukeya, Charles Mbohwa

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The research investigates hydropower plant efficiency with a view to improving the power output while keeping the overall project cost per kilowatt produced within an acceptable range. It reviews the commonly used Pelton and Cross-flow turbines which are employed in the region for micro-hydro power plants. Turbine parameters such as surface texture, material used and fabrication processes are dealt with the intention of increasing the efficiency by 20 to 25 percent for the micro hydro-power plants.

Keywords: hydro, power plant, efficiency, manufacture

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Authors: Aigerim Uyzbayeva, Valeriya Tyo, Nurlan Ibrayev

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Kazakhstan is currently one of the dynamically developing states in its region. The stable growth in all sectors of the economy leads to a corresponding increase in energy consumption. Thus, country consumes a significant amount of energy due to the high level of industralisation and the presence of energy-intensive manufacturing such as mining and metallurgy which in turn leads to low energy efficiency. With allowance for this the Government has set several priorities to adopt a transition of Republic of Kazakhstan to a “green economy”. This article provides an overview of Kazakhstan’s energy efficiency situation in for the period of 1991-2014. First, the dynamics of production and consumption of conventional energy resources are given. Second, the potential of renewable energy sources is summarised, followed by the description of GHG emissions trends in the country. Third, Kazakhstan’ national initiatives, policies and locally implemented projects in the field of energy efficiency are described.

Keywords: energy efficiency in Kazakhstan, greenhouse gases, renewable energy, sustainable development

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Authors: A. Berraf-Tebbal, Z. Bouznad, , A.J.L. Phillips

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Phaeomoniella is a fungus genus in the mitosporic ascomycota which includes Phaeomoniella chlamydospora specie associated with two declining diseases on grapevine (Vitis vinifera) namely Petri disease and esca. Recent studies have shown that several Phaeomoniella species also cause disease on many other woody crops, such as forest trees and woody ornamentals. Two new species, Phaeomoniella zymoides and Phaeomoniella pinifoliorum H.B. Lee, J.Y. Park, R.C. Summerbell et H.S. Jung, were isolated from the needle surface of Pinus densiflora Sieb. et Zucc. in Korea. The identification of species in Phaeomoniella genus can be a difficult task if based solely on morphological and cultural characters. In this respect, the application of molecular methods, particularly PCR-based techniques, may provide an important contribution. MSP-PCR (microsatellite primed-PCR) fingerprinting has proven useful in the molecular typing of fungal strains. The high discriminatory potential of this method is particularly useful when dealing with closely related or cryptic species. In the present study, the application of PCR fingerprinting was performed using the micro satellite primer M13 for the purpose of species identification and strain typing of 84 Phaeomoniella -like isolates collected from grapevines with typical symptoms of dieback. The bands produced by MSP-PCR profiles divided the strains into 3 clusters and 5 singletons with a reproducibility level of 80%. Representative isolates from each group and, when possible, isolates from Eutypa dieback and esca symptoms were selected for sequencing of the ITS region. The ITS sequences for the 16 isolates selected from the MSP-PCR profiles were combined and aligned with sequences of 18 isolates retrieved from GenBank, representing a selection of all known Phaeomoniella species. DNA sequences were compared with those available in GenBank using Neighbor-joining (NJ) and Maximum-parsimony (MP) analyses. The phylogenetic trees of the ITS region revealed that the Phaeomoniella isolates clustered with Phaeomoniella chlamydospora reference sequences with a bootstrap support of 100 %. The complexity of the pathosystems vine-trunk diseases shows clearly the need to identify unambiguously the fungal component in order to allow a better understanding of the etiology of these diseases and justify the establishment of control strategies against these fungal agents.

Keywords: Genotyping, MSP-PCR, ITS, phylogeny, trunk diseases

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Authors: Carlos Gonzalez

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When communicating using private and secure keys, there is always the doubt as to the identity of the message creator. We introduce an algorithm that uses the personal typing rhythm (keystroke dynamics) of the message originator to increase the trust of the authenticity of the message originator by the message recipient. The methodology proposes the use of a Rhythm Certificate Authority (RCA) to validate rhythm information. An illustrative example of the communication between Bob and Alice and the RCA is included. An algorithm of how to communicate with the RCA is presented. This RCA can be an independent authority or an enhanced Certificate Authority like the one used in public key infrastructure (PKI).

Keywords: authentication, digital signature, keystroke dynamics, personal rhythm, public-key encryption

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Authors: Latef M. Ali, Farah A. Abed, Zheen L. Mohammed

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In this paper, the effect of the Barium fluoride (BaF2) layer on the absorption efficiency of GaAs/InAs nanowire solar cells was investigated using the finite difference time domain (FDTD) method. By inserting the BaF2 as antireflection with the dominant size of 10 nm to fill the space between the shells of wires on the Si (111) substrate. The absorption is significantly improved due to the strong reabsorption of light reflected at the shells and compared with the reference cells. The present simulation leads to a higher absorption efficiency (Qabs) and reaches a value of 97%, and the external quantum efficiencies (EQEs) above 92% are observed. The current density (Jsc) increases by 0.22 mA/cm2 and the open-circuit voltage (Voc) is enhanced by 0.11 mV. it explore the design and optimization of high-efficiency solar cells on low-reflective absorption efficiency of GaAs/InAs using simulation software tool. The changes in the core and shell diameters profoundly affects the generation and recombination process, thus affecting the conversion efficiency of solar cells.

Keywords: nanowire solar cells, absorption efficiency, photovoltaic, band structures, FDTD simulation

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Authors: Christelle Tchoupé Makougoum

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In the context of agriculture, differences across localities in term of climate change can create systematic variation among farmers technical efficiency. Failure to account for climate variability could lead to wrong conclusions about farmers’ technical efficiency and also it could bias the ranking of farmers according to their managerial performance. The literature on agricultural productivity has given little attention to this issue whereas it is necessary for establishing to what extent climate affects farmers efficiency. This article contributes to the preview literature by two ways. First, it proposed a new econometric model that accounting for the climate change influences on technical efficiency in the specific area of agriculture. Second it estimates the inefficiency due to climate change and the real managerial performance of Malian farmers. Using the Mali’s data from agricultural census and CRU TS3 climatic database we implemented an adjusted stochastic frontier methodology to account for the impact of environmental factors. The results yield three main findings. First, instability in temperatures and rainfall decreases technical efficiency on average. Second, the climate change modifies the classification of the farmers according to their efficiency scores. Thirdly it is noted that, although climate changes are partly responsible for the deviation from the border, the capacity of farmers to combine inputs into the optimal proportion is more to undermine. The study concluded that improving farmer efficiency should include fostering their resilience to climate change.

Keywords: agriculture, climate change, stochastic production function, technical efficiency

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Authors: Panos Xenos, Milton Nektarios, John Yfantopoulos

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Background: Policy makers, professional organizations and payers have introduced a variety of initiatives and reforms for the health systems worldwide, aimed at improving hospital efficiency. Their efforts are concentrated in two main categories: to constrain increasing healthcare costs and to enhance quality of services provided. Research Objectives: This study examines the efficiency of 112 Greek public hospitals for the year 2009, evaluates the importance of bootstrapping techniques and investigates the effect of contextual factors on hospital efficiency. Furthermore, the effect of qualitative evidence, on hospital efficiency is explored using data from 28 large hospitals. Methods: We applied Data Envelopment Analysis, augmented by bootstrapping techniques, to estimate efficiency scores. In order to measure the effect of environmental factors on hospital efficiency we used Tobit regression analysis. The significance of our models is evaluated using statistical tests to compare distributions. Results: The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test between the original and the bootstrap-corrected efficiency indicates that their distributions are significantly different (p-value<0.01). The environmental factors, that seem to influence efficiency, are Occupancy Rating and the ratio between Outpatient Visits and Inpatient Days. Results indicate that the inclusion of the quality variable in DEA modelling generates statistically significant variations in efficiency scores (p-value<0.05). Conclusions: The inclusion of quality variables and the use of bootstrap resampling in efficiency analysis impose a statistically significant effect on the distribution of efficiency scores. As a policy conclusion we highlight the importance of these methods on hospital efficiency analysis and, by implication, on healthcare resource allocation.

Keywords: hospitals, efficiency, quality, data envelopment analysis, Greek public hospital sector

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Authors: Rebecca Owusu Coffie, Atakelty Hailu

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Variants of production frontier models have emerged, however, only a limited number of them are applied in empirical research. Hence the effects of these alternative frontier models are not well understood, particularly within sub-Saharan Africa. In this paper, we apply recent advances in the production frontier to examine levels of technical efficiency and efficiency drivers. Specifically, we compare the heteroscedastic parametric and the semiparametric stochastic smooth coefficient (SPSC) models. Using rice production data from Ghana, our empirical estimates reveal that alternative specification of efficiency estimators results in either downward or upward bias in the technical efficiency estimates. Methodologically, we find that the SPSC model is more suitable and generates high-efficiency estimates. Within the parametric framework, we find that parameterization of both the mean and variance of the pre-truncated function is the best model. For the drivers of technical efficiency, we observed that longer farm distances increase inefficiency through a reduction in labor productivity. High soil quality, however, increases productivity through increased land productivity.

Keywords: pre-truncated, rice production, smooth coefficient, technical efficiency

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Authors: R. Nasrin, M. Ferdows

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Among the renewable energy sources, photovoltaic (PV) is a high potential, effective, and sustainable system. Irradiation intensity from 200 W/m2 to 1000 W/m2 has been considered to observe the performance of PV module. Generally, this module converts only about 15% - 20% of incident irradiation into electrical energy and the rest part is converted into heat energy. Finite element method has been used to solve the problem numerically. Simulation has been performed by considering the ambient temperature 30°C. Higher irradiation increase solar cell temperature and electrical power. The electrical efficiency of PV module decreases with the variation of solar radiation. The efficiency of PV module can be increased if cell temperature is reduced. Thus the effect of irradiation is significant to enhance the efficiency of PV module if the solar cell temperature is kept at a certain level.

Keywords: PV module, solar radiation, efficiency, cell temperature

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Authors: Wan-Ling Jiang, Hsin Chi, Jia-Lu Cheng, Ming-Fang Cheng

Abstract:

Background: Investigating the risk factors for the fecal carriage of third-generation cephalosporin-resistant E.coli could contribute to further disease prevention. Previous research on third-generation cephalosporin-resistant prevalence in children in different regions of Taiwan is limited. This project aims to explore the risk factors and regional differences in the prevalence of third-generation cephalosporin-resistant and other antibiotic-resistant E. coli in the northern, southern, and eastern regions of Taiwan. Methods: We collected data from children aged 0 to 18 from community or outpatient clinics from July 2022 to May 2023 in southern, northern, and eastern Taiwan. The questionnaire was designed to survey the characteristics of participants and possible risk factors, such as clinical information, household environment, drinking water, and food habits. After collecting fecal samples and isolating stool culture with E.coli, antibiotic sensitivity tests and MLST typing were performed. Questionnaires were used to analyze the risk factors of third-generation cephalosporin-resistant E. coli in the three different regions of Taiwan. Results: In the total 246 stool samples, third-generation cephalosporin-resistant E.coli accounted for 37.4% (97/246) of all isolates. Among the three different regions of Taiwan, the highest prevalence of fecal carriage with third-generation cephalosporin-resistant E.coli was observed in southern Taiwan (42.7%), followed by northern Taiwan (35.5%) and eastern Taiwan (28.4%). Multi-drug resistant E. coli had prevalence rates of 51.9%, 66.3%, and 37.1% in the northern, southern, and eastern regions, respectively. MLST typing revealed that ST131 was the most prevalent type (11.8%). The prevalence of ST131 in northern, southern, and eastern Taiwan was 10.1%, 12.3%, and 13.2%, respectively. Risk factors analysis identified lower paternal education, overweight status, and non-vegetarian diet as statistical significance risk factors for third-generation cephalosporin-resistant E.coli. Conclusion: The fecal carriage rates of antibiotic-resistant E. coli among Taiwanese children were on the rise. This study found regional disparities in the prevalence of third-generation cephalosporin-resistant and multi-drug-resistant E. coli, with southern Taiwan having the highest prevalence. Lower paternal education, overweight, and non-vegetarian diet were the potential risk factors of third-generation cephalosporin-resistant E. coli in this study.

Keywords: Escherichia coli, fecal carriage, antimicrobial resistance, risk factors, prevalence

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Authors: Stephan Koehler, Thomas Friedli

Abstract:

Performance measurement has evolved over time from a unidimensional short-term efficiency focused approach into a balanced multidimensional approach. Today, integrated performance measurement frameworks are often used to avoid local optimization and to encourage continuous improvement of an organization. In literature, the multidimensional characteristic of performance measurement is often described by competitive priorities. At the same time, on the highest abstraction level an effectiveness and efficiency dimension of performance measurement can be distinguished. This paper aims at a better understanding of the composition of effectiveness and efficiency and their relation in pharmaceutical quality control labs. The research comprises a lab-specific operationalization of effectiveness and efficiency and examines how the two dimensions are interlinked. The basis for the analysis represents a database of the University of St. Gallen including a divers set of 40 different pharmaceutical quality control labs. The research provides empirical evidence that labs with a high effectiveness also accompany a high efficiency. Lab effectiveness explains 29.5 % of the variance in lab efficiency. In addition, labs with an above median operational excellence performance have a statistically significantly higher lab effectiveness and lab efficiency compared to the below median performing labs.

Keywords: empirical study, operational excellence, performance measurement, pharmaceutical quality control lab

Procedia PDF Downloads 132