Berth Management in Container Terminals: Quality of Service

This paper empirically evaluates container terminal service attributes. The methodology proposed focuses on statistical control. Based on the concept of service segmentation, the authors employed control charts to classify container terminal services. The purpose of control charts is to allow simple detection of events that are indicative of actual process change. This simple decision can be difficult where the process characteristic is continuously varying, the control chart provides statistically objective criteria of change. When change is detected and considered good its cause should be identified and possibly become the new way of working, where the change is bad then its cause should be identified and eliminated. Both theoretical and practical implications of the research findings are discussed in this paper.

Berth management in container terminals: quality of service

This paper empirically evaluates container terminal service attributes. The methodology proposed focuses on statistical control. Based on the concept of service segmentation, we employed control charts to classify container terminal services. The purpose of control charts is to allow simple detection of events that are indicative of actual process change. This simple decision can be difficult where the process characteristic is continuously varying; the control chart provides statistically objective criteria of change. When change is detected and considered good its cause should be identified and possibly become the new way of working, where the change is bad then its cause should be identified and eliminated. This paper is organized as follows: Section 1 is the introduction, Section 2 provides a brief note on other studies that inspired this research, section 3 focuses on the methodology used, and develops the results obtained and finally conclusions are shown in Section 4. Theoretical and practical implications of the research findings are discussed.

The analytic hierarchy process to support decision-making processes in infrastructure projects with social impact

There is an increasing awareness among all kinds of organisations (in business,government and civil society) about the benefits of jointly working with stakeholders to satisfy both their goals and the social demands placed upon them. This is particularly the case within corporate social responsibility (CSR) frameworks. In this regard, multi-criteria tools for decision-making like the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) described in the paper can be useful for the building relationships with stakeholders. Since these tools can reveal decision-maker’s preferences, the integration of opinions from various stakeholders in the decision-making process may result in better and more innovative solutions with significant shared value. This paper is based on ongoing research to assess the feasibility of an AHP-based model to support CSR decisions in large infrastructure projects carried out by Red Electrica de España, the sole transmission agent and operator of the Spanishelectricity system.

Quality management, environmental management and firm performance in the Spanish hotel industry

Comunicación presentada en el XVI Simposio Internacional de Turismo y Ocio, ESADE, 23 mayo 2007.

Organizational design, quality management and competitive advantage in hotels

Purpose – The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between practices of quality management (QM) and the characteristics of organizational design, and QM and competitive advantage. Design/methodology/approach – The study uses a partial least squares approach to test these relationships in 350 hotels in Spain. Findings – The findings show that QM influences specialization, formalization and interdepartmental interactions, and that QM practices influence both cost and differentiation competitive advantage. The results also indicate the importance of QM strategic and operational systems as practices that have a key impact on the characteristics of organizational design. Similarly, the QM operational system is key in the relationship between QM and cost competitive advantage. Finally, the QM operational, information and strategic systems positively influence differentiation competitive advantage. Practical implications – When hotels adopt QM practices, there will be significant changes in a number of organizational variables, including specialization, formalization and interdepartmental interactions. This paper provides empirical evidence that QM practices improve both cost and differentiation competitive advantage in the hotel industry. Originality/value – There has been little research on the effects of QM on organizational design in the hotel industry. The contribution of this paper is that analyze the effects of QM on organizational design and competitive advantage, extending knowledge about these issues in a specific sector.

Performance management in the District of Columbia : a progress report : hearing before the Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, Restructuring, and the District of Columbia of the Committee on Governmental Affairs, United States Senate, One Hundred Sixth Congress, second session, May 9, 2000.

Shipping list no.: 2001-0042-P.

Assessing the progress of performance management in the District of Columbia : hearing before the Oversight of Government Management, Restructuring, and the District of Columbia Subcommittee of the Committee on Governmental Affairs, United States Senate, One Hundred Sixth Congress, second session, October 3, 2000.

Shipping list no.: 2001-0130-P.

Toward effective performance management in the federal government : a report to the President and the Congress of the United States /

Mode of access: Internet.

Non-point water quality modeling in wildland management : a state-of-the-art assessment /

Issued April, July 1977.

Differences in the total employment effects of government purchases from the private sector and direct government hiring of the unemployed /

Cover title.

Effects of hatchery shading and nest depth on the development and quality of Chelonia mydas hatchlings: implications for hatchery management in Peninsular, Malaysia

One of the decisions made by hatchery managers around the world is what degree of shading and nest depth are required to maximise the production of high-quality hatchlings at optimal sex ratios. The primary objectives of this study were to determine the effects of (1) hatchery shading and nest depth on nest temperatures and emergence lag, and (2) nest temperatures and nest depth on hatchling sex ratio and quality. In 2001, 26 Chelonia mydas clutches from Ma'Daerah beach, Terengganu, Malaysia, were relocated alternatively at depths of 50 cm and 75 cm into a 70%-shaded and a 100%-shaded hatchery. Data loggers were placed into the centre of each relocated clutch to record the temperature every hour over the course of incubation. When the hatchlings emerged, a sample of the clutch was run, measured and weighed and a separate sample was examined histologically for sex characteristics. Nest temperatures ranged between 28 degrees C and 30 degrees C and generally showed increases over the second half of incubation due to metabolic heating of the clutch. There was no significant correlation found between nest temperature and any of the hatchling parameters measured. Hatchlings from 75-cm-deep nests had a longer emergence lag (46.4 (+/- 10.2) h) than hatchlings from 50-cm-deep nests. Hatch and emergence success were similar to those of natural populations and hatchling sex ratios were male dominant, with an average of 72% males. There was a poor correlation between mean middle-third incubation temperatures and sex ratio. Hatchlings from 75-cm-deep nests had similar running speeds but lower condition index than their conspecifics from 50-cm-deep nests.

Managing healthcare technology in quality management framework

Healthcare services available these days deploy high technology to satisfy both internal and external customers by continuously improving various quality parameters. Quality improvement in healthcare services is a complex and multidimensional task. Although various quality management tools are routinely deployed for identifying quality issues in healthcare delivery, there is absence of an integrated approach, which can identify and analyse issues, provide solutions to resolve those issues and develop a project management framework to implement and evaluate those solutions. This study introduces an integrated and uniform quality management framework for healthcare services. This study uses the Logical Framework Analysis (LFA) to improve the performance of healthcare services. LFA has three major steps - problem identification, solution derivation and formation of a planning matrix for implementation and evaluation. LFA has been applied in a case study environment to three acute healthcare services (Operating Room (OR) utilisation, Accident and Emergency (A&E) and intensive care) in order to demonstrate its effectiveness. Copyright © 2007 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.