title: Delivery issues in E-commerce: The case of Saudi Arabia

authors: Aleid, Eid

subjects: delivery issues

abstract: The rapid proliferation of internet has turned the growth of E-commerce into a global phenomenon including both, in the developed and developing countries. Several studies have been conducted in the perspective of consumer level Ecommerce adoption for different developed countries. There felt a need to look into the adoption of E-commerce on other countries, especially the developing countries. This study aims at investigate the delivery issues on E-commerce, and how does it concerns consumers. The delivery factors (cost of delivery, duration of delivery, and the ability to deliver products to any destinations) are involved in the study in order to find their importance in consumers’ decisions in online shopping. Saudi Arabia, like many other developing countries, has – to a certain extent – acceptable delivery systems. However, the delivery situation is not as strong as it is in the developed world, thus, examining the delivery systems in developing countries could provide different results. This Study verified the importance of the delivery factors in consumers’ decisions with regard the preference and willingness of purchasing from online stores. Additionally, the study identified the importance of the delivery factors in purchasing different types of products. In general, delivery factors are highly important in purchasing expensive and sensitive products. These results assist all players in E-commerce (governments, business, and individuals). Further, the study provides extensive details about online shoppers in Saudi Arabia which would help in improving E-commerce in Saudi Arabia. Generally, the situation of the delivery system in E-commerce in Saudi Arabia is not as bad as it is in other developing countries.

text: Delivery issues in E-commerce: The case of Saudi Arabia The rapid proliferation of internet has turned the growth of E-commerce into a global phenomenon including both, in the developed and developing countries. Several studies have been conducted in the perspective of consumer level Ecommerce adoption for different developed countries. There felt a need to look into the adoption of E-commerce on other countries, especially the developing countries. This study aims at investigate the delivery issues on E-commerce, and how does it concerns consumers. The delivery factors (cost of delivery, duration of delivery, and the ability to deliver products to any destinations) are involved in the study in order to find their importance in consumers’ decisions in online shopping. Saudi Arabia, like many other developing countries, has – to a certain extent – acceptable delivery systems. However, the delivery situation is not as strong as it is in the developed world, thus, examining the delivery systems in developing countries could provide different results. This Study verified the importance of the delivery factors in consumers’ decisions with regard the preference and willingness of purchasing from online stores. Additionally, the study identified the importance of the delivery factors in purchasing different types of products. In general, delivery factors are highly important in purchasing expensive and sensitive products. These results assist all players in E-commerce (governments, business, and individuals). Further, the study provides extensive details about online shoppers in Saudi Arabia which would help in improving E-commerce in Saudi Arabia. Generally, the situation of the delivery system in E-commerce in Saudi Arabia is not as bad as it is in other developing countries.

year: 2012

title: Heat Integrated Milk Powder Production

authors: Walmsley, Timothy Gordon

subjects: Process integration

abstract: Dairy processing is critical to New Zealand’s (NZ) economy producing NZ$13 billion in exports for 2012 while consuming 32 PJ of fossil fuels for process heat. Three quarters of NZ dairy exports are milk powders. This thesis presents methods to reduce process heat use in Milk Powder Plants (MPP) through improved heat integration and addresses key technical challenges preventing industrial implementation. My original contributions to literature include: (1) a novel design method called the Cost Derivate Method (CDM) that cost optimally allocates area in direct heat exchange networks, (2) a new design methodology for integration of semi-continuous process clusters using a Heat Recovery Loop (HRL) with a Variable Temperature Storage (VTS) system for improved heat recovery, (3) an experimentally validated deposition model for predicting critical air conditions that cause milk powder fouling, and (4) a thermo-economic assessment tool for the optimisation of industrial spray dryer exhaust heat recovery projects via a Liquid Coupled Loop Heat Exchanger (LCHE) system.
By applying Pinch Analysis to an industrial MMP, this work confirms that heat must be recovered from the milk spray dryer exhaust air (~75 °C) to achieve maximum heat integration in MPPs. For stand-alone MPPs exhaust heat is best used to indirectly preheat the inlet dryer air reducing steam use by 12.7 % for a 55 °C exhaust outlet. Additional economic heat recovery from condensate and vapour flows decreased steam use by a further 6.9 %. Application of the CDM to the liquid and vapour sections of new MMP maximum energy recovery networks reduced total cost by 5.8 %. For multi-plant dairy factories, a second industrial case study showed the exhaust heat may be integrated with neighbouring plants via a HRL with VTS to increase site heat recovery by 10.8 MW including 5.1 MW of exhaust heat recovery, compared to 7.9 MW using a conventional HRL design method with constant temperature storage. 
A key barrier preventing exhaust heat recovery implementation in NZ MPPs is the possibility of milk powder fouling. Dryer exhaust air contains a low concentration of powder that when exposed to low temperatures at high humidity becomes sticky. For a heat exchanger face air velocity of 4 m/s, experimental data from milk powder fouling tests of flat plates, tubes and fins indicates particulate fouling becomes severe when the exhaust air temperature reaches 55 °C. Higher face velocities are shown to lower this critical exhaust temperature for avoiding severe fouling, which gives potential for increased heat recovery but for increased pressure drop. Lower face velocities show the opposite effect. Designing exhaust heat recovery systems entail an acute trade-off between heat transfer, pressure drop and fouling. Two important design parameters are the number of tube rows in the exhaust heat exchanger and the face velocity. The outputs of a thermo-economic spreadsheet tool suggest LCHE systems for a dryer producing 23.5 t/h is economic. With a face velocity of 4 m/s and 14 rows of finned round tube, the project had an estimated payback of 1.6 years, a net present value of NZ$3 million and internal rate of return of 71 %. This tool will empower industry with greater confidence to uptake exhaust heat recovery technology as a vital method for improving the heat integration of MPPs in NZ.

text: Heat Integrated Milk Powder Production Dairy processing is critical to New Zealand’s (NZ) economy producing NZ$13 billion in exports for 2012 while consuming 32 PJ of fossil fuels for process heat. Three quarters of NZ dairy exports are milk powders. This thesis presents methods to reduce process heat use in Milk Powder Plants (MPP) through improved heat integration and addresses key technical challenges preventing industrial implementation. My original contributions to literature include: (1) a novel design method called the Cost Derivate Method (CDM) that cost optimally allocates area in direct heat exchange networks, (2) a new design methodology for integration of semi-continuous process clusters using a Heat Recovery Loop (HRL) with a Variable Temperature Storage (VTS) system for improved heat recovery, (3) an experimentally validated deposition model for predicting critical air conditions that cause milk powder fouling, and (4) a thermo-economic assessment tool for the optimisation of industrial spray dryer exhaust heat recovery projects via a Liquid Coupled Loop Heat Exchanger (LCHE) system.
By applying Pinch Analysis to an industrial MMP, this work confirms that heat must be recovered from the milk spray dryer exhaust air (~75 °C) to achieve maximum heat integration in MPPs. For stand-alone MPPs exhaust heat is best used to indirectly preheat the inlet dryer air reducing steam use by 12.7 % for a 55 °C exhaust outlet. Additional economic heat recovery from condensate and vapour flows decreased steam use by a further 6.9 %. Application of the CDM to the liquid and vapour sections of new MMP maximum energy recovery networks reduced total cost by 5.8 %. For multi-plant dairy factories, a second industrial case study showed the exhaust heat may be integrated with neighbouring plants via a HRL with VTS to increase site heat recovery by 10.8 MW including 5.1 MW of exhaust heat recovery, compared to 7.9 MW using a conventional HRL design method with constant temperature storage. 
A key barrier preventing exhaust heat recovery implementation in NZ MPPs is the possibility of milk powder fouling. Dryer exhaust air contains a low concentration of powder that when exposed to low temperatures at high humidity becomes sticky. For a heat exchanger face air velocity of 4 m/s, experimental data from milk powder fouling tests of flat plates, tubes and fins indicates particulate fouling becomes severe when the exhaust air temperature reaches 55 °C. Higher face velocities are shown to lower this critical exhaust temperature for avoiding severe fouling, which gives potential for increased heat recovery but for increased pressure drop. Lower face velocities show the opposite effect. Designing exhaust heat recovery systems entail an acute trade-off between heat transfer, pressure drop and fouling. Two important design parameters are the number of tube rows in the exhaust heat exchanger and the face velocity. The outputs of a thermo-economic spreadsheet tool suggest LCHE systems for a dryer producing 23.5 t/h is economic. With a face velocity of 4 m/s and 14 rows of finned round tube, the project had an estimated payback of 1.6 years, a net present value of NZ$3 million and internal rate of return of 71 %. This tool will empower industry with greater confidence to uptake exhaust heat recovery technology as a vital method for improving the heat integration of MPPs in NZ.

year: 2014

title: Maori and goldfields revenue

authors: Hart, Philip

abstract: When gold was first discovered, the Crown accepted that it needed Maori consent to open their land for mining and had to assuage fears of losing their land. Accordingly, officials devised agreements to protect Maori interests and to provide a financial return. Because of what had occurred in other countries after goldfields opened, both Maori and the government agreed that these must be well controlled. Over time, the regulations increasingly favoured the mining industry rather than the original landowners, who were not informed about the true value of their land, auriferous or otherwise. Maori were confused about their financial entitlement because of changes made by the government to the fees payable to them. 
Some rangatira, most notably Wirope Hoterene Taipari of Ngati Maru, saw a chance to obtain unexpected (and unearned) wealth, as shown by his insistence on opening Thames to miners despite the opposition of most of his hapu. Later, other rangatira wanted to open Ohinemuri and other potential fields because of the money they were promised by impatient miners and by more patient officials. For a brief time, some Maori considered controlling the potential Ohinemuri goldfield themselves. The main incentive to opening land was the wealth received by landowners during the early days of the Thames goldfield, but as mining faded later so did goldfields revenue. Changes to mining regulations diminished the amount distributed to Maori in ways that some Pakeha considered unfair, and these provoked complaints from Maori.
A continuing problem for officials was to ensure that revenue was allocated to the right owners. The system was complex, resulting in delays in paying money and in some Maori obtaining too much and others too little (or none at all), an outcome often resulting from rangatira distributing it as they chose rather than caused by government officials, who did their best to ensure fairness. Over time, the government unilaterally made changes to the system. For their part, miners complained about being required to pay for the right to mine, and encouraged the government to acquire the freehold of goldfield land because miners’ rights on Crown land were one-quarter the cost of those on Maori land. 
The revenue received by the landowners soon slipped through their fingers, sometimes in traditionally competitive gatherings such as tangi. It can be argued that Taipari, who very shrewdly adapted to the new economy (and experienced its perils, becoming bankrupt in 1870), used his income not just to give himself a luxurious lifestyle but also to boost the mana of his hapu. The government has been blamed for not insisting that revenue be protected for the use of future generations, a concept that occurred to only a few Pakeha at the time and to no Maori; far from considering the interests of their descendents, cultivating the land decreased while this revenue was received. But due to the nature of mining, by the twentieth century the landowners were lamenting the serious decline in their income from this source; despite having sold so much of their goldfield lands, some complained at not receiving any more revenue. 
Evaluating the outcome, the Waitangi Tribunal indulged in some counter-factual history by suggesting that the government should have encouraged rangatira to set up trusts to protect the income for future generations, but no rangatira had suggested this idea, nor did they ask that they should manage goldfields jointly with the Crown. After imagining that Maori in partnership with Pakeha capitalists could have developed the goldfields without the involvement of the Crown, the Tribunal had to accept that the outcome would have been the same: loss of money (because apart from anything else mining could not remain payable indefinitely) combined with the loss of much of their land.

text: Maori and goldfields revenue When gold was first discovered, the Crown accepted that it needed Maori consent to open their land for mining and had to assuage fears of losing their land. Accordingly, officials devised agreements to protect Maori interests and to provide a financial return. Because of what had occurred in other countries after goldfields opened, both Maori and the government agreed that these must be well controlled. Over time, the regulations increasingly favoured the mining industry rather than the original landowners, who were not informed about the true value of their land, auriferous or otherwise. Maori were confused about their financial entitlement because of changes made by the government to the fees payable to them. 
Some rangatira, most notably Wirope Hoterene Taipari of Ngati Maru, saw a chance to obtain unexpected (and unearned) wealth, as shown by his insistence on opening Thames to miners despite the opposition of most of his hapu. Later, other rangatira wanted to open Ohinemuri and other potential fields because of the money they were promised by impatient miners and by more patient officials. For a brief time, some Maori considered controlling the potential Ohinemuri goldfield themselves. The main incentive to opening land was the wealth received by landowners during the early days of the Thames goldfield, but as mining faded later so did goldfields revenue. Changes to mining regulations diminished the amount distributed to Maori in ways that some Pakeha considered unfair, and these provoked complaints from Maori.
A continuing problem for officials was to ensure that revenue was allocated to the right owners. The system was complex, resulting in delays in paying money and in some Maori obtaining too much and others too little (or none at all), an outcome often resulting from rangatira distributing it as they chose rather than caused by government officials, who did their best to ensure fairness. Over time, the government unilaterally made changes to the system. For their part, miners complained about being required to pay for the right to mine, and encouraged the government to acquire the freehold of goldfield land because miners’ rights on Crown land were one-quarter the cost of those on Maori land. 
The revenue received by the landowners soon slipped through their fingers, sometimes in traditionally competitive gatherings such as tangi. It can be argued that Taipari, who very shrewdly adapted to the new economy (and experienced its perils, becoming bankrupt in 1870), used his income not just to give himself a luxurious lifestyle but also to boost the mana of his hapu. The government has been blamed for not insisting that revenue be protected for the use of future generations, a concept that occurred to only a few Pakeha at the time and to no Maori; far from considering the interests of their descendents, cultivating the land decreased while this revenue was received. But due to the nature of mining, by the twentieth century the landowners were lamenting the serious decline in their income from this source; despite having sold so much of their goldfield lands, some complained at not receiving any more revenue. 
Evaluating the outcome, the Waitangi Tribunal indulged in some counter-factual history by suggesting that the government should have encouraged rangatira to set up trusts to protect the income for future generations, but no rangatira had suggested this idea, nor did they ask that they should manage goldfields jointly with the Crown. After imagining that Maori in partnership with Pakeha capitalists could have developed the goldfields without the involvement of the Crown, the Tribunal had to accept that the outcome would have been the same: loss of money (because apart from anything else mining could not remain payable indefinitely) combined with the loss of much of their land.

year: 2016