bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Long-term relationship of crude palm oil commodity pricing under structural break
Authors: Salami Monsurat Ayojimi , Haron Razali 
Published: November 2018

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the pricing efficiency of the Malaysian crude palm oil (CPO) market before and after the structural break. This study uses the daily closing price of CPO and CPO futures (CPO-F) for the period ranging from June 2009 to August 2016 while taking structural breaks into account.Design/methodology/approachIn this study, symmetric and asymmetric long-run relationship model are employed, such as the Johansen cointegration, VECM, TAR and M-TAR models, to examine the impact of structural breaks on the pricing efficiency of the Malaysian CPO market.FindingsThis finding establish that Malaysian CPO price is efficient before and after the structural break. The consistent efficiency of the Malaysian CPO market supports the trading of the CPO-F in Globex and the use of Malaysian CPO pricing as the reference price. This study establishes that a structural break in the Malaysian CPO price series does not affect the pricing efficiency of the market.Research limitations/implicationsThis study shows that using Malaysian CPO price as a reference price is sustainable even in the event of a structural break. Therefore, market participants in the Malaysian CPO market have less to worry about the CPO price as it supports the weak form of efficiency. Price deviation in the short run may not lead to arbitrage profit as transaction cost may not be covered.Practical implicationsThis study implies that if there is distortion in the price due to shocks, both manufacturers and producers need to hedge their positions in the futures market (subject to their positions in the underlying market). By entering into the futures market, pricing is locked in advance; hence, price risk is eliminated. Such a distortion could also affect the efficiency of the CPO price, therefore this study also addresses the issue of efficiency of the local CPO market.Originality/valuePrevious studies on Malaysian CPO pricing efficiency did not take the effect of structural break into consideration, making it difficult for these studies to show consistency in the efficiency of the Malaysian CPO market.
Hypertension and diabetes management: a policy perspective from Ghana
Authors: Owusu Mark Fordjour , Basu Arindam , Barnett Pauline 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to assess policy and management of hypertension and diabetes in Ghana.

Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted 26 key informant interviews with policy makers, payers, providers and participants from advocacy groups associated with the management of hypertension and diabetes both at national and district levels in Ghana; conducted focus group discussions with a total of 18 hypertensive and diabetic patients; and analyzed documentation detailing activities that have been undertaken in response to the management of hypertension and diabetes in Ghana. The authors then conducted a content analysis after combining the three sources of information.

Findings
Using a stepwise policy process, the Ghanaian health sector has developed overarching policies and strategies on management of diabetes, hypertension, other non-communicable diseases, tobacco, alcohol and nutrition-related issues. Availability of funds and over-concentration on communicable diseases are the main barriers to the implementation of policies. Besides, response of the health sector to address the problems of hypertension and diabetes is focused more on clinical management than prevention; while the structures and processes to manage diabetes and hypertension is available at all levels of service delivery, more needs to be done on preventive aspects.

Originality/value
This is the first study in Ghana to combine individual interviews, focus groups and document analysis to review policy development, implementation and response activities on the management of hypertension and diabetes. The authors believe that the evidence from this research will inform future policy initiatives on hypertension and diabetes management in Ghana.
Does firm performance increase with risk-taking behavior under information technological turbulence?
Authors: Pratono Aluisius Hery 
Published: November 2018

PurposeThis paper aims to contribute to the risk management studies in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by examining the complicated relationship between risk-taking behavior and firm performance.Design/methodology/approachThe study conducted a survey of the Indonesian SME owner-managers and used partial least square structural equation modeling to examine the mediating effect of pricing capability and moderating effects of information technological turbulence.FindingsThe results do not only confirm the positive impact of risk-taking behavior on firm performance but also identify that impact of risk-taking behavior on firm performance is more effective at the low information technological turbulence than at the high one.Research limitations/implicationsThis study relied on information from the owner-managers in SMEs, which may bias against the perspective of their employees and the business partners.Originality/valueThis study advances the risk-taking behavior research in SMEs context by introducing the effect of pricing capability and information technological turbulence.
Towards Chinese smart manufacturing ecosystem in the context of the one belt one road initiative
Authors: Al-Sayed Rafif , Yang Jianhua 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine empirically China’s determined thrust to attain a high level of technological innovation and the factors affecting moving towards a smart and sophisticated manufacturing ecosystem in conjunction with the Belt and Road Initiative (OBOR).

Design/methodology/approach
This research provides empirical determination of the factors affecting moving towards smart manufacturing ecosystems in China. The method is based on combining two approaches: semi-structured interview and questionnaire-based with academics, experts and managers in various Chinese industrial sectors. The results are based on the multivariate analysis of the collected data. A case study of the current manufacturing ecosystem was also analyzed, in order to understand the present state as well as the potential for China’s competitive edge in the developed OBOR countries.

Findings
The results illustrate the importance of the infrastructure dimension comprising variables related to ecosystems, industrial clusters and Internet of Things IoT and other advanced technologies. A case study of the city of Shenzhen’s transformation into a smart cluster for innovative manufacturing points out how China’s OBOR initiative for regional collaboration will further transform the regional smart clusters into an ultra-large innovation based smart ecosystem.

Originality/value
This research is the first to study China’ policies towards playing a prominent role in the Fourth Industrial Revolution 4IR in the context of the OBOR initiative, through empirically defining the factors affecting moving towards a knowledge-intensive smart manufacturing ecosystem where the added value is mostly innovation based.
Multi-dimensional flexibility-complexity trade-off modeling in manufacturing systems
Authors: Javid Nasser , Khalili-Damghani Kaveh , Makui Ahmad , Abdi Farshid 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
This paper aims to propose a multi-dimensional model on the basis of the key factors of the flexibility and the complexity through structural equation modeling (SEM). Dimensions of the flexibilities and complexity, including 16 main factors and 34 sub-factors, are investigated. The sampling of the research is accomplished using both academic and industrial experts.

Design/methodology/approach
A huge electronic questionnaire analysis, including 1,250 samples from which 1,036 were returned, was accomplished in various universities and manufacturing companies throughout the USA, Europe and Asia. Partial least square-SEM (PLS-SEM) is used to test the hypotheses through confirmatory factor analysis.

Findings
The results reveal insightful information about the impacts of different dimensions of flexibility on each other and also the effect of the flexibility on the complexity. Finally, system of linear mathematical equations for flexibility-complexity trade-off is proposed. This can be applied to realize the trade-off among dimensions of flexibility and complexity.

Originality/value
Flexible manufacturing systems are formed to meet the needs of the customers. Such systems try to produce products in appropriate quality at the right time and at the specified quantity. These, in turn, require flexibility and will cause complexity. Although flexibility and complexity are both important, there is no comprehensive framework in which the multi-dimensional relationships of the manufacturing flexibility and complexity, as well as their dimensions, are demonstrated.
Intra- and inter-regional expansion: a nonlinear model
Authors: Zhang Hua , Qian Gongming , Li Lee , Qian Zhengming 
Published: November 2018

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to differentiate between intra- and inter-regional diversification and explore how each affects firm performance. Existing studies show that both intra- and inter-regional expansion provide benefits and incur costs but the findings are mixed. This study aims to explain the mixed findings.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses secondary data and quantitative methodologies to test hypotheses.FindingsUsing data from 663 Canadian firms over a six-year period (2006–2011), the authors find that the relationship between firm performance and the depth and width of intra-regional expansion is nonlinear. The authors also find a sigmoid-shaped relationship between firm performance and inter-regional diversification, i.e., performance initially increases with home regional diversification, decreases with bi-regional diversification and finally increases again with multi-regional diversification.Originality/valueThe findings of this study shed light on the current debate on the merits of inter- and intra-regional diversification and have important theoretical and managerial implications.
A cradle-to-cradle analysis in the toner cartridge supply chain using fuzzy recycling production approach
Authors: Lin Chun-Wei , Jeng Shiou-Yun , Tseng Ming-Lang , Tan Raymond 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to develop an integrated approach for a green product cradle-to-cradle (C2C) fuzzy recycling production planning model.

Design/methodology/approach
This paper applies the failure mode and effects analysis technique and Taguchi experimental design method, develops a green product C2C performance evaluation system that considers the fuzzy impacts of environmental laws and regulations, green goodwill, and environmental efficiency of targeting countries, and decides both the optimal green production plan and estimated optimal life cycles.

Findings
This study compares the different degree of maturity in environmental regulations, and various recycling situations are simulated to demonstrate the successful applicability of the proposed model as well as the incentive policy for Taiwan, the USA and Bangladesh.

Originality/value
Previous studies failed both to develop a holistic recycling production plan which is able to consider both the optimal combination of recycled components used and final green products produced with the maximum total resultant sales profit and to consider the potential failure phenomenon of recycled components adopted in the final product. Furthermore, most prior studies ignored the influence of environmental law, goodwill of the product and the efficiency of recycling mechanism of the community.
Measuring the effects of a laser beam on melt pool fluctuation in arc additive manufacturing
Authors: Näsström Jonas , Brückner Frank , Kaplan Alexander F.H. 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
The steadily growing popularity of additive manufacturing (AM) increases the demand for understanding fundamental behaviors of these processes. High-speed imaging (HSI) can be a useful tool to observe these behaviors, but many studies only present qualitative analysis. The purpose of this paper is to propose an algorithm-assisted method as an intermediate to rapidly quantify data from HSI. Here, the method is used to study melt pool surface profile movement in a cold metal transfer-based (CMT-based) AM process, and how it changes when the process is augmented with a laser beam.

Design/methodology/approach
Single-track wide walls are generated in multiple layers using only CMT, CMT with leading and with trailing laser beam while observing the processes using HSI. The studied features are manually traced in multiple HSI frames. Algorithms are then used for sorting measurement points and generating feature curves for easier comparison.

Findings
Using this method, it is found that the fluctuation of the melt surface in the chosen CMT AM process can be reduced by more than 35 per cent with the addition of a laser beam trailing behind the arc. This indicates that arc and laser can be a viable combination for AM.

Originality/value
The suggested quantification method was used successfully for the laser-arc hybrid process and can also be applied for studies of many other AM processes where HSI is implemented. This can help fortify and expand the understanding of many phenomena in AM that were previously too difficult to measure.
Stakeholder considerations in public-private partnerships
Authors: Anderson Beverlee B. , Ratiu Catalin 
Published: November 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore how an understanding of the alignment of goals of customers, employees and investors can aid in the partner selection process. The paper explains the opportunities and challenges offered by a keen examination of a restrained stakeholder view of the firm. It also explains the relational challenges of partner selection together with the interactive effects of these variables.

Design/methodology/approach
The design uses secondary data focused on customers, employees and investors’ goals and their alignment with sustainable development goals (SDGs). Consumer behaviour data on issues related to SDGs, research on employee’s work motivation and the goals of investors, both institutional and individual, are investigated.

Findings
To develop effective public–private partnerships (PPPs), the goals and behaviours of both parties must be recognised, considered and addressed. The goals and priorities of these entities are not always well aligned with SDG goals. In selecting partners, non-government organisations will benefit from recognising the differing goals of stakeholders and common ground for actions.

Research limitations/implications
The model examines only three stakeholder groups: consumers, investors and employees.

Practical implications
A selection process based on a solid understanding of key stakeholders can offer the necessary information to target partners that are more likely to succeed in implementing strategies geared towards the SDGs.

Social implications
While PPPs have the potential to be successful, to achieve significant gains in advancing the SDG agenda, there must be “buy-in” from relevant stakeholders associated with the partnerships.

Originality/value
The paper addresses some issues seldom addressed in SDG PPP writing.
Seeing the forest for the trees: Putting multilayer networks to work for community ecology
Authors: Hutchinson Matthew C. , Bramon Mora Bernat , Pilosof Shai , Barner Allison K. , Kéfi Sonia , Thébault Elisa , Jordano Pedro , Stouffer Daniel B. 
Published: November 2018

Abstract

A framework for the description and analysis of multilayer networks is established in statistical physics, and calls are increasing for their adoption by community ecologists. Multilayer networks in community ecology will allow space, time and multiple interaction types to be incorporated into species interaction networks.

While the multilayer network framework is applicable to ecological questions, it is one thing to be able to describe ecological communities as multilayer networks and another for multilayer networks to actually prove useful for answering ecological questions. Importantly, documenting multilayer network structure requires substantially greater empirical investment than standard ecological networks. In response, we argue that this additional effort is worthwhile and describe a series of research lines where we expect multilayer networks will generate the greatest impact.

Inter‐layer edges are the key component that differentiate multilayer networks from standard ecological networks. Inter‐layer edges join different networks—termed layers—together and represent ecological processes central to the species interactions studied (e.g., inter‐layer edges representing movement for networks separated in space). Inter‐layer edges may take a variety of forms, be species‐ or network‐specific, and be measured with a large suite of empirical techniques. Additionally, the sheer size of ecological multilayer networks also requires some changes to empirical data collection around interaction quantification, collaborative efforts and collation in public databases.

Network ecology has already touched on a wide swath of ecology and evolutionary biology. Because network stability and patterns of species linkage are the most developed areas of network ecology, they are a natural starting place for multilayer investigations. However, multilayer networks will also provide novel insights to niche partitioning, the connection between traits and species’ interactions, and even the geographic mosaic of co‐evolution.

Synthesis. Multilayer networks provide a formal way to bring together the study of species interaction networks and the processes that influence them. However, describing inter‐layer edges and the increasing amounts of data required represent challenges. The pay‐off for added investment will be ecological networks that describe the composition and capture the dynamics of ecological communities more completely and, consequently, have greater power for understanding the patterns and processes that underpin diversity in ecological communities.

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Phenotypic plasticity of Capsella bursa‐pastoris (Brassicaceae) and its effect on fitness in response to temperature and soil moisture
Authors: Choi Byungwook , Jeong Hyungsoon , Kim Eunsuk 
Published: November 2018

AbstractCapsella bursa‐pastoris is one of the most common plants on earth. Although phenotypic plasticity of ecologically important traits possibly contributes to its wide geographic range, little is known about the plasticity of C. bursa‐pastoris and its effects on its fitness. In a laboratory, we assessed the phenotypic plasticity in response to two representative climatic conditions: temperature and soil moisture. In addition, we quantitatively evaluated the relationship between phenotypic plasticity and fruit production. Most measured morphological and physiological traits exhibited plastic responses to temperature and fitness based on fruit production was maintained across temperatures. In contrast, no plasticity to soil moisture was detected, and plants produced fewer fruits in dry soil. Selection analysis revealed that the plasticity of the flowering time and the water‐use efficiency had positive effects on fruit production over the tested temperature regime. These experimental results suggest that phenotypic plasticity probably enables C. bursa‐pastoris to cope with heterogeneous temperature environments and thereby probably contributes to its wide geographic range.
Effects of organic matter and low oxygen on the mycobenthos in a coastal lagoon
Authors: Ortega‐Arbulú Ana‐Sofia , Pichler Monica , Vuillemin Aurèle , Orsi William D. 
Published: November 2018

SummaryFungi living in sediments (‘mycobenthos’) are hypothesized to play a role in the degradation of organic matter deposited at the land‐sea interface, but the environmental factors influencing the mycobenthos are poorly understood. We used mock community calibrated Illumina sequencing to show that the mycobenthos community structure in a coastal lagoon was significantly changed after exposure to a lignocellulose extract and subsequent development of benthic anoxia over a relatively short (10 h) incubation. Saprotrophic taxa dominated and were selected for under benthic anoxia, specificallyAquamyces(Chytridiomycota) andOrbilia(Ascomycota), implicating these genera as important benthic saprotrophs. Protein encoding genes involved in energy and biomass production from Fungi and the fungal‐analogue group Labyrinthulomycetes had the highest increase in expression with the added organic matter compared with all other groups, indicating that lignocellulose stimulates metabolic activity in the mycobenthos. Flavobacteria dominated the active bacterial community that grew rapidly with the lignocellulose extract and crashed sharply upon O2depletion. Our findings indicate that the diversity, activity and trophic potential of the mycobenthos changes rapidly in response to organic matter and decreasing O2concentrations, which together with heterotrophic Flavobacteria, undergo ‘boom and bust’ dynamics during lignocellulose degradation in estuarine ecosystems.
The Boundary of Smallholder Producers’ Cooperatives: A Conceptual and Empirical Analysis
Authors: Tadesse Getaw , Abate Gashaw T. , Ergano Kebebe 
Published: November 2018

AbstractIn this study we explain the concepts, determinants and imperatives of boundary in smallholder producers’ cooperatives both conceptually and empirically. The conceptual framework indicates the importance of the type of goods (being a club good or not) and range of activities that a cooperative provides to its members in defining a competitive boundary. Using unique organisational and market level data from Ethiopia, we then test empirically whether the observed (weak) performance of producers’ cooperatives in Africa is explained by their organisational boundary – the type and range of goods or services they provide to members. The empirical results confirm that the competitiveness of producers’ cooperatives is significantly correlated with the type and number of services – i.e. cooperatives that provide club goods and a limited range of services are found to be more competitive. The results also suggest that a considerable number of cooperatives in Ethiopia engage in markets where they do not have competitive advantage. Overall, we demonstrate the importance of properly defining a viable boundary – proper selection of services (or markets) and limiting the range of services – for improving the competitiveness of membership‐based producer cooperatives in Africa.