Designing university, government and industry community engagement to build informed and effective interventions in the area of road safety

Individuals, community organisations and industry have always been involved to varying degrees in efforts to address the Queensland road toll. Traditionally, road crash prevention efforts have been led by state and local government organisations. While community and industry groups have sometimes become involved (e.g. Driver Reviver campaign), their efforts have largely been uncoordinated and under-resourced. A common strength of these initiatives lies in the energy, enthusiasm and persistence of community-based efforts. Conversely, a weakness has sometimes been the lack of knowledge, awareness or prioritisation of evidence-based interventions or their capacity to build on collaborative efforts. In 2000, the Queensland University of Technology’s Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety – Queensland (CARRS-Q) identified this issue as an opportunity to bridge practice and research and began acknowledging a selection of these initiatives, in partnership with the RACQ, through the Queensland Road Safety Awards program. After nine years it became apparent there was need to strengthen this connection, with the Centre establishing a Community Engagement Workshop in 2009 as part of the overall Awards program. With an aim of providing community participants opportunities to see, hear and discuss the experiences of others, this event was further developed in 2010, and with the collaboration of the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads, the RACQ, Queensland Police Service and Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd, a stand-alone Queensland Road Safety Awards Community Engagement Workshop was held in 2010. Each collaborating organisation recognised a need to mobilise the community through effective information and knowledge sharing, and recognised that learning and discussion can influence lasting behaviour change and action in this often emotive, yet not always evidence-based, area. This free event featured a number of speakers representing successful projects from around Australia and overseas. Attendees were encouraged to interact with the speakers, to ask questions, and most importantly, build connections with other attendees to build a ‘community road safety army’ all working throughout Australia on projects underpinned by evaluated research. The workshop facilitated the integration of research, policy and grass-roots action enhancing the success of community road safety initiatives. For collaboration partners, the event enabled them to transfer their knowledge in an engaged approach, working within a more personal communication process. An analysis of the success factors for this event identified openness to community groups and individuals, relevance of content to local initiatives, generous support with the provision of online materials and ongoing communication with key staff members as critical and supports the view that the university can directly provide both the leadership and the research needed for effective and credible community-based initiatives to address injury and death on the roads.

A theory of waste behaviour in the construction industry

Levels of waste within the construction industry need to be reduced for environmental and economic reasons. Changing people's wasteful behaviour can make a significant contribution. This paper describes a research project that used Ajzen's 'theory of planned behaviour' to investigate the attitudinal forces that shape behaviour at the operative level. It concludes that operatives see waste as an inevitable by-product of construction activity. Attitudes towards waste management are not negative, although they are pragmatic and impeded by perceptions of a lack of managerial commitment. Waste management is perceived as a low project priority, and there is an absence of appropriate resources and incentives to support it. A theory of waste behaviour is proposed for the construction industry, and recommendations are made to help managers improve operatives' attitudes towards waste.

Vibration characteristics of concrete-steel composite floor structures

This paper discusses the vibration characteristics of a concrete-steel composite multi-panel floor structure; the use of these structures is becoming more common. These structures have many desirable properties but are prone to excessive and complex vibration, which is not currently well understood. Existing design codes and practice guides provide generic advice or simple techniques that cannot address the complex vibration in these types of low-frequency structures. The results of this study show the potential for an adverse dynamic response from higher and multi-modal excitation influenced by human-induced pattern loading, structural geometry, and activity frequency. Higher harmonics of the load frequency are able to excite higher modes in the composite floor structure in addition to its fundamental mode. The analytical techniques used in this paper can supplement the current limited code and practice guide provisions for mitigating the impact of human-induced vibrations in these floor structures.

Demonstration of cellulosic ethanol production from sugarcane bagasse in Australia : the Mackay Renewable Biocommodities Pilot Plant

The ready availability of sugarcane bagasse at an existing industrial facility and the potential availability of extra fibre through trash collection make sugarcane fibre the best candidate for early stage commercialisation of cellulosic ethanol technologies. The commercialisation of cellulosic ethanol technologies in the sugar industry requires both development of novel technologies and the assessment of these technologies at a pre-commercial scale. In 2007, the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) received funding from the Australian and Queensland Governments to construct a pilot research and development facility for the production of bioethanol and other renewable biocommodities from biomass including sugarcane bagasse. This facility has been built on the site of the Racecourse Sugar Mill in Mackay, Queensland and is known as the Mackay Renewable Biocommodities Pilot Plant (MRBPP). This research facility is capable of processing cellulosic biomass by a variety of pretreatment technologies and includes equipment for enzymatic saccharification, fermentation and distillation to produce ethanol. Lignin and fermentation co-products can also be produced in the pilot facility.

Unpacking the entrepreneurial process : A step-by-step guide to a successful venture in the entertainment industry

Unpacking the Entrepreneurial Process: A Step-by-Step Guide to a Successful Venture in the Entertainment Industry introduces a step-by-step guide to either students, entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs to fully understand the necessary steps to both unleash their entrepreneurial capabilities and to foster the development of new ones.

Diversity interventions for a socially sustainable construction industry

Major construction sites in Australia have an above average presence of ethnic minorities. These groups and the interfaces between them require effective management in order to meet the social imperatives of sustainable design and construction. A survey of 1155 workers and 204 managers on Sydney construction sites respectively, found a significant level of normalisation of negative forms of cross cultural interaction. Yet it was also found that anti-racism programs are not currently a management priority and that they generally lack sophisticated community relations aspects. This paper presents the results of a desk-top study of leading global companies within and outside the construction sector which have won international awards and recognition for their cultural diversity strategies. A key insight is that the companies profiled see diversity as a key resource and as an opportunity rather than a risk which is best harnessed through long-term and on-going commitment of senior management. These leading companies also recognise that cultural diversity strategies operate at three levels - in terms of its relationship with its own workforce; its relationship with its clients and; its relationships with the communities in which it operates - and if properly managed it can be a source of competitive advantage.

Strategic dalliances as an enabler for discontinuous innovation in slow clockspeed industries: evidence from the oil and gas industry

The concept of ‘strategic dalliances’– defined as non-committal relationships that companies can ‘dip in and out of,’ or dally with, while simultaneously maintaining longer-term strategic partnerships with other firms and suppliers – has emerged as a promising strategy by which organizations can create discontinuous innovations. But does this approach work equally well for every sector? Moreover, how can these links be effectively used to foster the process of discontinuous innovation? Toward assessing the role that industry clockspeed plays in the success or failure of strategic dalliances, we provide case study evidence from Twister BV, an upstream oil and gas technology provider, and show that strategic dalliances can be an enabler for the discontinuous innovation process in slow clockspeed industries. Implications for research and practice are discussed, and conclusions from our findings are drawn.

Make-buy decisions in the face of technological change: does industry clockspeed matter?

Some evidence in the area of make-buy decisions for new technologies suggests that it is a good idea for a company to pursue a fairly rigorous ''make'' policy in the early days of a potentially disruptive innovation. Other studies prescribe exactly the opposite, promoting instead a ''buy'' strategy. This paper seeks to bridge the gap between these perspectives by suggesting that both strategies are valid, but that they are most successfully applied in different market environments. The ''make'' prescription may be more suited to either extremely fast or extremely slow rates of technological change, while a ''buy'' strategy might be more appropriate in market sectors where technologies evolve at a medium pace. This paper highlights the importance of industry clockspeed and supplier relationships in make-buy decisions for new technologies, and puts forward two new hypotheses that require empirical testing.

Outsourcing strategies for radical innovations: does industry clockspeed make a difference?

Purpose – To determine whether or not clockspeed is an important variable in outsourcing strategies throughout the development of radical innovations. Design/methodology/approach – An internet-based survey of manufacturing firms from all over the world. Findings – An industry's clockspeed does not play a significant role in the success or failure of a particular outsourcing strategy for a radical innovation. Research limitations/implications – Conclusions from earlier research in this area are not necessarily industry-specific. Practical implications – Lessons learned via previous investigations about the computer industry need not be confined to that sector. Vertical integration may be a more robust outsourcing strategy when developing a radical innovation in industries of all clockspeeds. Originality/value – Previous research efforts in this field focused on a single technology jump, but this approach may have overlooked a potentially important variable: industry clockspeed. Thus, this investigation explores whether clockspeed is an important factor.

An integrated framework to assess financial reward systems in construction projects

Motivation is a major driver of project performance. Despite team member ability to deliver successful project outcomes if they are not positively motivated to pursue joint project goals, then performance will be constrained. One approach to improving the motivation of project organizations is by offering a financial reward for the achievement of set performance standards above a minimum required level. However, little investigation has been undertaken into the features of successful incentive systems as a part of an overall delivery strategy. With input from organizational management literature, and drawing on the literature covering psychological and economic theories of motivation, this paper presents an integrated framework that can be used by project organizations to assess the impact of financial reward systems on motivation in construction projects. The integrated framework offers four motivation indicators which reflect key theoretical concepts across both psychological and economic disciplines. The indicators are: (1) Goal Commitment, (2) Distributive Justice, (3) Procedural Justice, and (4) Reciprocity. The paper also interprets the integrated framework against the results of a successful Australian social infrastructure project case study and identifies key learning’s for project organizations to consider when designing financial reward systems. Case study results suggest that motivation directed towards the achievement of incentive goals is influenced not only by the value placed on the financial reward for commercial benefit, but also driven by the strength of the project initiatives that encourage just and fair dealings, supporting the establishment of trust and positive reciprocal behavior across a project team. The strength of the project relationships was found to be influenced by how attractive the achievement of the goal is to the incentive recipient and how likely they were to push for the achievement of the goal. Interestingly, findings also suggested that contractor motivation is also influenced by the fairness of the performance measurement process and their perception of the trustworthiness and transparency of their client. These findings provide the basis for future research on the impact of financial reward systems on motivation in construction projects. It is anticipated that such research will shed new light on this complex topic and further define how reward systems should be designed to promote project team motivation. Due to the unique nature of construction projects with high levels of task complexity and interdependence, results are expected to vary in comparison to previous studies based on individuals or single-entity organizations.

Properties of lignin and poly(hydroxybutyrate) blends

The Queensland University of Technology (QUT) allows the presentation of a thesis for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the format of published or submitted papers, where such papers have been published, accepted or submitted during the period of candidature. This thesis is composed of Seven published/submitted papers and one poster presentation, of which five have been published and the other two are under review. This project is financially supported by the QUTPRA Grant. The twenty-first century started with the resurrection of lignocellulosic biomass as a potential substitute for petrochemicals. Petrochemicals, which enjoyed the sustainable economic growth during the past century, have begun to reach or have reached their peak. The world energy situation is complicated by political uncertainty and by the environmental impact associated with petrochemical import and usage. In particular, greenhouse gasses and toxic emissions produced by petrochemicals have been implicated as a significant cause of climate changes. Lignocellulosic biomass (e.g. sugarcane biomass and bagasse), which potentially enjoys a more abundant, widely distributed, and cost-effective resource base, can play an indispensible role in the paradigm transition from fossil-based to carbohydrate-based economy. Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate), PHB has attracted much commercial interest as a plastic and biodegradable material because some its physical properties are similar to those of polypropylene (PP), even though the two polymers have quite different chemical structures. PHB exhibits a high degree of crystallinity, has a high melting point of approximately 180°C, and most importantly, unlike PP, PHB is rapidly biodegradable. Two major factors which currently inhibit the widespread use of PHB are its high cost and poor mechanical properties. The production costs of PHB are significantly higher than for plastics produced from petrochemical resources (e.g. PP costs $US1 kg-1, whereas PHB costs $US8 kg-1), and its stiff and brittle nature makes processing difficult and impedes its ability to handle high impact. Lignin, together with cellulose and hemicellulose, are the three main components of every lignocellulosic biomass. It is a natural polymer occurring in the plant cell wall. Lignin, after cellulose, is the most abundant polymer in nature. It is extracted mainly as a by-product in the pulp and paper industry. Although, traditionally lignin is burnt in industry for energy, it has a lot of value-add properties. Lignin, which to date has not been exploited, is an amorphous polymer with hydrophobic behaviour. These make it a good candidate for blending with PHB and technically, blending can be a viable solution for price and reduction and enhance production properties. Theoretically, lignin and PHB affect the physiochemical properties of each other when they become miscible in a composite. A comprehensive study on structural, thermal, rheological and environmental properties of lignin/PHB blends together with neat lignin and PHB is the targeted scope of this thesis. An introduction to this research, including a description of the research problem, a literature review and an account of the research progress linking the research papers is presented in Chapter 1. In this research, lignin was obtained from bagasse through extraction with sodium hydroxide. A novel two-step pH precipitation procedure was used to recover soda lignin with the purity of 96.3 wt% from the black liquor (i.e. the spent sodium hydroxide solution). The precipitation process is presented in Chapter 2. A sequential solvent extraction process was used to fractionate the soda lignin into three fractions. These fractions, together with the soda lignin, were characterised to determine elemental composition, purity, carbohydrate content, molecular weight, and functional group content. The thermal properties of the lignins were also determined. The results are presented and discussed in Chapter 2. On the basis of the type and quantity of functional groups, attempts were made to identify potential applications for each of the individual lignins. As an addendum to the general section on the development of composite materials of lignin, which includes Chapters 1 and 2, studies on the kinetics of bagasse thermal degradation are presented in Appendix 1. The work showed that distinct stages of mass losses depend on residual sucrose. As the development of value-added products from lignin will improve the economics of cellulosic ethanol, a review on lignin applications, which included lignin/PHB composites, is presented in Appendix 2. Chapters 3, 4 and 5 are dedicated to investigations of the properties of soda lignin/PHB composites. Chapter 3 reports on the thermal stability and miscibility of the blends. Although the addition of soda lignin shifts the onset of PHB decomposition to lower temperatures, the lignin/PHB blends are thermally more stable over a wider temperature range. The results from the thermal study also indicated that blends containing up to 40 wt% soda lignin were miscible. The Tg data for these blends fitted nicely to the Gordon-Taylor and Kwei models. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) evaluation showed that the miscibility of the blends was because of specific hydrogen bonding (and similar interactions) between reactive phenolic hydroxyl groups of lignin and the carbonyl group of PHB. The thermophysical and rheological properties of soda lignin/PHB blends are presented in Chapter 4. In this chapter, the kinetics of thermal degradation of the blends is studied using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). This preliminary investigation is limited to the processing temperature of blend manufacturing. Of significance in the study, is the drop in the apparent energy of activation, Ea from 112 kJmol-1 for pure PHB to half that value for blends. This means that the addition of lignin to PHB reduces the thermal stability of PHB, and that the comparative reduced weight loss observed in the TGA data is associated with the slower rate of lignin degradation in the composite. The Tg of PHB, as well as its melting temperature, melting enthalpy, crystallinity and melting point decrease with increase in lignin content. Results from the rheological investigation showed that at low lignin content (.30 wt%), lignin acts as a plasticiser for PHB, while at high lignin content it acts as a filler. Chapter 5 is dedicated to the environmental study of soda lignin/PHB blends. The biodegradability of lignin/PHB blends is compared to that of PHB using the standard soil burial test. To obtain acceptable biodegradation data, samples were buried for 12 months under controlled conditions. Gravimetric analysis, TGA, optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), FT-IR, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used in the study. The results clearly demonstrated that lignin retards the biodegradation of PHB, and that the miscible blends were more resistant to degradation compared to the immiscible blends. To obtain an understanding between the structure of lignin and the properties of the blends, a methanol-soluble lignin, which contains 3× less phenolic hydroxyl group that its parent soda lignin used in preparing blends for the work reported in Chapters 3 and 4, was blended with PHB and the properties of the blends investigated. The results are reported in Chapter 6. At up to 40 wt% methanolsoluble lignin, the experimental data fitted the Gordon-Taylor and Kwei models, similar to the results obtained soda lignin-based blends. However, the values obtained for the interactive parameters for the methanol-soluble lignin blends were slightly lower than the blends obtained with soda lignin indicating weaker association between methanol-soluble lignin and PHB. FT-IR data confirmed that hydrogen bonding is the main interactive force between the reactive functional groups of lignin and the carbonyl group of PHB. In summary, the structural differences existing between the two lignins did not manifest itself in the properties of their blends.

Competition and innovation : independent production in the Chinese TV industry

Independent television production is recognised for its capacity to generate new kinds of program content, as well as deliver innovation in formats. Globally, the television industry is entering into the post-broadcasting era where audiences are fragmented and content is distributed across multiple platforms. The effects of this convergence are now being felt in China, as it both challenges old statist models and presents new opportunities for content innovation. This thesis discusses the status of independent production in China, making relevant comparisons with independent production in other countries. Independent television production has become an important element in the reform of broadcasting in China in the past decade. The first independent TV production company was registered officially in 1994. While there are now over 4000 independent companies, the term „independent. does not necessarily constitute autonomy. The question the thesis addresses is: what is the status and nature of independence in China? Is it an appropriate term to use to describe the changing environment, or is it a misnomer? The thesis argues that Chinese independents operate alongside the mainstream state-owned system; they are „dependent. on the mainstream. Therefore independent television in China is a relative term. By looking at several companies in Beijing, mainly in entertainment, TV drama and animation, the thesis shows how the sector is injecting fresh ideas into the marketplace and how it plays an important role in improving innovation in many aspects of the television industry. The thesis shows how independent television companies in China are looking to protect their property rights. It demonstrates that far from being at the cutting edge, independents are reliant on a system that has many inbuilt structural problems. The thesis outlines many of the challenges facing 'independents'.

Social outcomes in the construction industry : the case of the Western Australia ‘Percent for Art’ policy

Social outcomes, in particular intangible social outcomes, are generally difficult to achieve in the construction industry due to the predominantly episodic, fragmented and heavily regulated nature of construction that presupposes a tendency towards mainstream construction processes and design. The Western Australian ‘Percent for Art’ policy is recognized for stimulating social outcomes, by creating richer and more aesthetically pleasing social environments through the incorporation of artwork into public buildings. A case study of four Percent for Art projects highlights the role of the Artwork Selection Committee in incorporating artwork into construction. A total of 20 semi-structured interviews were conducted with committee members and policy officers. Data analysis involved a combination of pattern coding and matrix categorization, and resulted in the identification of the committee’s three key elements of collaborative communication, democratic decision-making and project champions. The findings suggest these key elements foster the interaction, communication and relationships needed to facilitate feedback, enhance relationships, create cross-functional teams and lower project resistance, which are all necessary to overcome constraints to social outcomes in construction. The findings provide greater insight into the mechanisms for achieving social outcomes and a basis for future discussion about the processes for achieving social outcomes in the construction industry.

Triangular Linguistic Fuzzy based performance measurement model for supply chain to assess leanness attributes

Increasing global competitiveness worldwide has forced manufacturing organizations to produce high-quality products more quickly and at a competitive cost. In order to reach these goals, they need good quality components from suppliers at optimum price and lead time. This actually forced all the companies to adapt different improvement practices such as lean manufacturing, Just in Time (JIT) and effective supply chain management. Applying new improvement techniques and tools cause higher establishment costs and more Information Delay (ID). On the contrary, these new techniques may reduce the risk of stock outs and affect supply chain flexibility to give a better overall performance. But industry people are unable to measure the overall affects of those improvement techniques with a standard evaluation model .So an effective overall supply chain performance evaluation model is essential for suppliers as well as manufacturers to assess their companies under different supply chain strategies. However, literature on lean supply chain performance evaluation is comparatively limited. Moreover, most of the models assumed random values for performance variables. The purpose of this paper is to propose an effective supply chain performance evaluation model using triangular linguistic fuzzy numbers and to recommend optimum ranges for performance variables for lean implementation. The model initially considers all the supply chain performance criteria (input, output and flexibility), converts the values to triangular linguistic fuzzy numbers and evaluates overall supply chain performance under different situations. Results show that with the proposed performance measurement model, improvement area for each variable can be accurately identified.

School education as social and economic governance : responsibilising communities through industry-school engagement

This article examines shifts in educational and social governance taking place in Queensland, Australia, through Industry School Engagement Strategy of Education Queensland and its Gateway Schools program. This significant educational initiative is set within the context of the social investment agenda first articulated in the education policy framework, Queensland State Education-2010. The article traces the historic extension of this governmental strategy through establishment of the Gateway Schools concept that brokers industry-school partnerships with global players in the Queensland economy. Industry sectors forming the partnerships include Minerals and Energy, Aerospace, Wine Tourism, Agribusiness, Manufacturing and Engineering, Building and Construction and ICT. We argue that this ‘post-bureaucratic’ model of schooling represents a new social settlement of neoliberal governance, in which educational outcomes align with economic objectives, and frame the conditions for community self-governance.