Thursday, October 31, 2019

The Practice of Sharing Housework Among Spouses Essay

The Practice of Sharing Housework Among Spouses - Essay Example According to Selle (2002), â€Å"The Family: A Proclamation to the World teaches that fathers and mothers have specific, God-ordained responsibilities within an equal partnership, with neither husband nor wife seeking to dominate the other.† (par. 1) It is actually a matter of taking the time to talk about the equal division of housework to ensure a smooth, stronger, happier and positive long-range relationship within the family. In USA Today (1998, 1), the discourse proffered that â€Å"while the roles of females outside the household have changed dramatically as more women get jobs, responsibilities in the home have shifted only slightly, maintains Vicki Fitzsimmons, a professor of family economics.† A survey of 450 married university employees and their spouses revealed that â€Å"women are reluctant to give up territory to spouses or to lower their standards of cleanliness. Thus, the view of a wife as homemaker continues even though many women are the primary or co-breadwinners.† The dilemma can actually be addressed by the spouses’ participation in the decision making regarding the division of housework. It is actually not a matter of the number of household tasks divided, but the quality of tasks both spouses agree to do. Further, commitment is tested on both parties’ ability to perform their responsibilities to the best of their abilities. After all, marriage is a longtime commitment in life to supplement and complement each other – especially in sharing housework.

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Joseph Andrews and Abraham Adams Essay Example for Free

Joseph Andrews and Abraham Adams Essay Such devotion is clearly evident in Adams, not only because of his position as a clergyman but also in his actions. During an episode in which Joseph and Adams are in great danger, Adams devotion to God is proven. Adams now fell on his Knees, and committed himself to the Care of Providence . Joseph is likewise devoted to God. he still settles himself to the wishes of God, making his devotion clear Mr. Abraham Adams was an excellent Scholar. He was a perfect Master of the Greek and Latin Languages In comparison to the normal human of the time, Adams seems to be more intelligent. The first meeting between Adams and Joseph depends upon Josephs similar aptitude for learning compared to similar people his age. After questioning Joseph about several subjects, Adams declares that, he answerd much better than Sir Thomas, or two other Despite their many similarities, Adams and Joseph differ on several points. One of them is their view on schools. The essential debate comes down to the quality of British public schools. Joseph Andrews throws his support towards public schools. Adams holds a different opinion on this matter, however, which coincides with his position as a clergyman and his devotion to God. Public Schools are the Nurseries of all Vice and Immorality. All the wicked Fellows whom I remember at the University were bread at them, Josephs willingness to contest Adams opinions shows that they must differ in some ways. The simplicity of Adams character is evident in his gullibility compared to Joseph. During one episode, they are promised several extravagant offers by a gentlemen who pretends to be sympathetic to their Case. After giving several excuses that prevent him from following through on his promise, Adams still doesnt understand the situation. This must be a sudden Accident, as the Sickness or Death of a Relation. Adams honestly believes that the man had intentions of honoring his promises. Joseph is less gullible, and know that the man has been playing with them.. Joseph sees through the lies he is being told and falls back upon his greater experience of the world than Adams. Throughout Joseph Andrews, the relationship between Adams and Joseph forms an important element of the story. Their great friendship brings them through difficult times and benefits them both. This friendship is composed of both their similarities, which help them get along, and their differences, which allow each of them to expand the others world view. The relationship would not be as dynamic without the interaction derived from these similarities and differences. In comparison, they devote themselves to God, rise above their peers in moral character, and posses greater learning than their peers. In contrast, they differ in their views of schools and their gullibility

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Case Study Formal And Informal Assessments Education Essay

Case Study Formal And Informal Assessments Education Essay Formal and informal assessments are two specific procedures that teachers use to evaluate and grade their students. Both formal and informal formative assessments involve gathering, interpreting, and acting on information (Ruiz-Primo Furtak,2004, p. 4). Formal assessments are standardized exams used by a state to reflect on particular grade level to measure a students academic abilities. These exams are administered in the same way every time with a time restriction and instructions to how the exam should be graded. In contrast, informal assessments are exams or activities designed to specially review or test students knowledge on a certain academic subject taught by their teacher. I will be discussing the advantage and disadvantage for two different forms of formal assessment and four types of informal assessments methods. The two formal assessments are norm-referenced and criterion-referenced. Norm-referenced are standardized tests and are linked to inter individual differences (Gargiulo, 2008, p.65). This test compares the students skill to other students in the similar age group. Statistical method is used to determine how the student did. For example first grade students were tested and the outcome is used in a statistical method. You would be able to see how each student ranked. For example, Jon scored at the 50th percentile among his class. There are advantages and disadvantages in using norm referenced testing. One advantage to this method is it can determine whether a student may need special services. For example, if the student scores less than standard norm for reading, they will receive special services to aid them in this subject. Another advantage to this method is it allows parents to see how their childs academic results are compared to their peers. For example, Julie performs at 86 percentile in her class. This means that Julie performed better than 86% from her classmates. As there are advantages, there are disadvantages. One disadvantage to this method is it consists of broad academic information and may not consist of current classroom content. Another disadvantage is it does not fully capture a students academic abilities on problem solving, decision making, social skills, nor their ability elaborate on certain topic. In contrast, Criterion-referenced tests are associated with intra individual differences and can provide data that is useful for instructional planning (Gargiulo, 2008, p.66). For example, a math problem is given to a student to see if the student is able to add two digit numbers. The outcome is strictly based on whether the student did or did not answer the problem correctly. The first advantage to this test is it can compare a students individual performance from their previous one. For example, Aprils current test indicated her reading skills have improved from last quarter. Aprils results are not compared to how well she did among her classmates instead it compares to her individual progress. Another advantage to this test it can assist a teacher to figure out each students academic strengths and weakness. A teacher can guide and assign additional help in the areas where students need improvement. The downfall to this method is it cannot compare student academic performance to ot her schools or districts. For example, a teacher will not be able to compare her students success to other classes nor to other schools. Another disadvantage is creating a valid exam for students. Designing an exam needs to meet specific standards plus its time consuming for teachers to work around their daily responsibilities. The following are the four types of informal assessments that can be used in a classroom which are an essay exam, a classroom game, walk around method, and a multiple choice exam. The first informal assessment is an essay exam. Essay exams are questions based on a certain lesson or topic where a student needs to provide a written answer. Depending on the exam instructions students may only need to write a couple of paragraphs or several pages in length. The following are two advantages in using an essay exam to test students. First, students have the opportunity to express their thoughts and demonstrate their level of comprehension on a certain question. The second advantage, students begin to construct and analyze how to answer each question. For example, the instruction on the essay says to please explain the difference between a mammal and an amphibian. The student first needs to analyze the differences between the two species and then construct examples to elaborate on the question. An issue does represent itself; this type of method is time consuming for both the student and teacher. The students need plenty of time to answer and write an essay and the te acher needs time to evaluate and grade each paper. The second disadvantage, teachers must be aware of their biases when writing a question where students need to agree or disagree on a certain topic. This disadvantage may get in the way of grading papers accurately. A teacher needs to be aware of their bias and base their grading on the students response not if they agree or disagree with their student. Another informal way to evaluate a students progress is a classroom game. A Classroom game creates an opportunity for students to apply their knowledge and encourages them to learn. For example, the class is divided into four groups to play a game of Jeopardy. The game of Jeopardy consists of questions on a certain academic subject. An advantage to this method is it promotes cooperative learning. Students are learning how to interact, collaborate, and work together with their peers to answer questions. Working together provides positive reinforcements for students to develop social skills and trust among their team members. Another advantage it motivates students to apply their own knowledge and retain new information as they play the game. A game will keep students alert and encourages participation which will lead to learning. Since students are divided into groups not every student is participating or collaborating on every question and this is downfall to this method. Even though each student has an opportunity to answer a question, the group is judged as a whole not the individual knowledge to every question but the ones they answer. Another disadvantage to this method does not provide enough feedback to a teacher to determine which students needs additional assistance in comprehending the current subject. The third informal assessment is the walk-around. This assessment requires the teacher to interact with each student as they work together as a group or individually. The teacher is actively observing and assisting students to stay on task. The advantage to this method it allows the teacher to interact with students individually or as a group to answer any concerns or assist them in understanding their assignment. The second advantage is the one on one conference. The teacher uses the one on one conference to talk to the students for five or ten minutes. This conference offers attention, and additional help in instructions for students(Cole,1999,p.4). This type of interaction builds trust and improves the communication between teacher and student. A downside to walk around assessment is giving each student or groups the same amount of time to answer questions or concerns. Since every student or groups have different questions, some may need additional assistance than others. This may cause some behavior issues or delay some students in completing their assignment. Another issue is making sure every student understands the material or contributing their work to their group. The teacher needs to give every student an opportunity to talk and demonstrate they understand the assignment. Lastly, the multiple-choice test is another assessment used in a classroom. Multiple choice tests consist of questions and a list of possible answers for each question. An upside to this method students begin to access their knowledge and apply it to every question by eliminating misleading choices. This method is also an advantage for teachers as well. The grading is less time consuming than other methods and easier to narrow down where the students are having difficulties. A disadvantage for students is it may cause them some confusion or frustration when the exams are poorly written. Poor written exams consist of tricky options to choose from, for instance having two possible answers. The second disadvantage for students is not being able to understand a question. This may lead the students to guess on answers they are not able to comprehend due to reading difficulties or a poor written exam. This may lead to inappropriate score on the students progress or knowledge. In conclusion, both formal and informal assessments consist of advantages and disadvantages that a teacher should consider and understand before administrating these assessments. Assessments are necessary to pinpoint students academic strengths and weaknesses. This allows a teacher to provide additional assistance to students that are struggling. Without assessments teachers will not be able to properly evaluate and assist students.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Grapes of Wrath Jim Casy The Silent Philosopher :: essays papers

Grapes of Wrath Jim Casy The Silent Philosopher Jim Casy: The Silent Philosopher It is a widely accepted theory, in numerous areas of study, that a whole is the sum of its parts. It has also been acknowledged that the reaction formed by a combination of forces is greater than the sum of the individual forces. Such a synergistic principle has become a strong motive behind many incidents in history, in which individuals have assembled into a group to become an increasingly powerful and influential force. This is the case in John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, in which thousands of farmers are affected by the economical, climatic, and agricultural crises of the 1930’s and forced to migrate to the promising valleys of California. As these migrants make their long, arduous journey across the deserts of America, they are faced with numerous predicaments, most of which place them on the brink of survival. In the end, they learn that it is their love for one another and their togetherness that will allow them to complete the journey and fulfill their lon g-lived dreams. As the story progresses, a marked growth becomes evident among each character as they make the transition from an â€Å"I† level of thinking to a â€Å"we† level of thinking. One such character is the itinerant preacher, Jim Casy. Although his actions are not directly influential to the story’s plot, it is his philosophies and outlooks on life and religion that affect the events, as well as the other characters, in the story. Perhaps the most significant theme interpreted from the journey of the Joad family is that of the shift from the â€Å"I† to the †we† mentality. This concept results mainly from the mutual relationships formed between the migrants and their willingness to help one another. As the migrants progress on their journey, their concern for the well being of others overshadows their concerns for themselves. Their actions become completely altruistic and intended to protect the functionality of the migrant force as a whole. They readily make sacrifices to one another and work to create mutual bonds that help one another survive. Another aspect of the â€Å"I† to â€Å"we† transition is that of the togetherness of the migrant families and the unions formed between them. As the migrants begin to face the all the same hardships and dilemmas, they begin to organize and function as a single unit. The individuals among this unit are capable of helping one another a nd advancing the progress off the whole unit.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Best Locations to Buy CBD Oil Near Me

Ever wondered how you can get your hands on a CBD oil near you? Then you have just stumbled across the right place. The sales of CBD oil have been on an upward trend since 2017, and forecasts indicate they will only get better. Restrictions put in place by State and Federal laws have created lots of misperceptions on who can purchase the CBD oils. So how does one go about it?Intending to Buy the CBD Oil near me?First, start by understanding the laws. Currently, only 9 states across the country allow for the use of marijuana on recreational grounds, Washington, D.C can be included. Not everyone has the opportunity to walk right into a dispensary and make an order for fine CBD oil, this privilege is determined by where you reside. Despite the acceptance of legal recreational weed, some of the 9 states require special medical marijuana cards or a medical prescription from a physician. If you are in a state that requires so, it's quite simple to obtain an online recommendation in a matte r of minutes. As of 2018, 29 of the 50 states within the union permit the use of medical weed in one way or the other. Cannabis CBD oil used for special treatment fall right within that category given it's an affiliate product. Now, where does the complication arise? When it comes to qualifying for a medical card, that's easy. The downside is having to go through a long and tiresome bureaucratic process with the state Health Board. All the best on that! Even after going through the entire charade, the most stringent medical states have few authorized dispensaries open. They are located in areas that are totally inaccessible. Our CBD oil is derived from Hemp, which is why it is legal in all 50 states. This article is the perfect guide for those anyone searching â€Å"Where to but CBD oil near me†.History of Hemp CBD oilCultivation of the first hemp plants began over 10,000 years ago. The first sighting was made in an ancient Taiwanese village. Distinguished as one of the first plants cultivated by man, hemp and cannabis are widely regarded as the foundation of Chinese medicine. As it thrived into mainland China, it gradually spread into India, Europe, and Arabia over the next millennia. Hemp found its way into America during the colonial times by explorers and was mainly used as medicines, fabrics, and textiles. Accidentally discovered from the hemp plant in 1940, CBD emerged as a powerful substance that can alter our percepti on of human health and disease.What is CBD?According to the latest research, cannabidiol extracts derived from cannabis plants can be used as oil. Mainly rich in Cannabinoids, they are bound to receptors within the brain. Another widely known cannabinoid is the tetrahydrocannabinol, abbreviated as THC. It was in 1960 when scientists were able to isolate the THC compound from cannabis. CBD is a structural isomer of THC that accounts for 80 percent of the plant extract. They both share the same chemical composition except for the atom arrangement which differs slightly. There is a unique ring in the stricture that opens and closes. When it opens its CBD when closed its THC. The CBD compound has existed much longer than THC but its true value has manifested in the past few decades. We have only begun to understand how it modulates the effects of THC and acts as a unique compound in itself. Within CBD are pain relieving properties, anti-seizure properties, anti-cancer properties, and blocks out the worst effects of THC. All this argument has been backed by research and testing where examinations are done out in the field among marijuana uses. Those with CBD registered less adverse effects from their marijuana usage. The research has also been corroborated in animal studies among other groups. We are seeing some cancer research groups champion for the use of CBD in cancer chemotherapy. Others have argues for its use in offsetting diabetic neuropathy that is the leading cause of blindness nationwide.Is there a Difference between Hemp and Cannabis CBD Oil?CBD oil has become the preferred term when talking about the different oils derived from the hemp plant. In the real sense though, they are quite different. Some Cannabis CBD oil varieties may have high concentrations of THC – just under 10 percent. In other cases, the concentration in CBD oil is less than 2 percent. Industrial hemp has even lower concentrations – under 0.3 percent. Cannabis Oil: Primarily derived from marijuana, cannabis oil has a high percentage of THC. In that regard, it can only be bought in a place where marijuana is legalized. Another alternative would be through prescription. The level of compound (CBD or THC) will vary in different products. Commercially produced cannabis oils tend to contain more standard CBD and THC concentrations. Hemp seed oils: Industrial hemp seeds get cold-pressed to create nutty oils. Such products contain few traces of cannabinoids, one of which is CBD. In addition, within the hemp seed oils are vitamin E and monounsaturated fats. This makes them suitable for cooking, creating biofuels or skin care products.Does CBD oil result in a high?From a user point of view, CBD simply tastes as an essential oil. To be more precise, the taste can be likened to that of a flower. Cannabinoid does not give you the buzzing high feel synonymous with smoking marijuana. Considerations Actually, it is common knowledge that the hemp-based oil creates no psychoactive responsiveness whatsoever. Contrary to misconception, it will not cure cancer or any other disease. It will, however, help when treating mild conditions like arthritis, pain or anxiety. It's best to consume to receive a prescribed dosage from a medical practitioner. Just as with most remedies in life, the positive effects start to kick in a week or so.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Creating New Employment and Business Opportunities

Creating New Employment and Business Opportunities Introduction Job creation remains one of the most important economic engagements for any business or organization. This process is normally coupled with economic development. Therefore, creating new employment and business opportunities is a contributor to economic development. Currently, world economies are struggling with a slow economy characterized by job cuts, layoffs and organizational restructuring.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Creating New Employment and Business Opportunities specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Due to this, an organization’s management faces various challenges while trying to re-adjust in order to remain competitive and profitable. This is the reason why the private sector is currently awash with innovations and technologies that are being tried and tested to ensure corporate competitiveness and profitability. While a balance within the private sector can be competitively achieved, t here is always a challenge as far as the public sector is concerned. Therefore, public sector organizations will cautiously and selectively apply practices that contribute to sustainable development. The reason for such a trend is most likely due to the public sector organizations’ resistance to restructuring. It can be noted also that the essence of such organizations is based on their defined structure. Olympics development authority (ODA) is a public sector organization under the department of culture, media and sports of the UK government. This organization is responsible for the organization of Olympics and Paralympics in London in the year 2012. ODA is working together with close to fifteen other stakeholders including Her Majesty’s government to ensure that the Olympic Games are a success and that the UK gets the long term benefits as the host. ODA has developed a number of related policies on various issues that are considered crucial to the success of the 2012 Olympic Games. The intention of this study is to highlight and assess the challenges facing ODA in ensuring the delivery of its employment and business objective which is to create new employment (job creation) and business opportunities locally, regionally and nationally.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Literature Review An evaluation of the ODA’s policy on the management of the upcoming games reveals an elaborate sustainability development policy framework. Indeed ODA has gone to great lengths to develop an employment creation and environment policy for the games. Presently, there are few facts on how an economy can be affected by a sustainable development approach. Nonetheless, ODA has professionally postulated such a sustainable development plan to manage the upcoming Olympics and Paralympics games. Research indicates that numerous economic models have been developed lately alluding to the fact that various economies across the globe are seriously considering implementing environmentally driven policies. However, it remains obvious that sustainability development planning and implementation remains a challenge basically because of social and political barriers. Towards a more positive note on this include research findings from recently held studies indicating positive employment and business impact as a result of sustainability development policy implementation. However, these findings suggest that a societal saturation point is what will ultimately result into such phenomenon. It is on the basis of such findings that ODA has focused in order to derive its policy framework for the games. At this point a foreseeable challenge facing ODA would likely be the context of applying this policy framework. It is likely to take enormous economic, political and social energy to ensure that this policy is seamlessly adopted among ODAâ€℠¢s fourteen partners working on the hosting of the games. Further still if these partners had a consensus on this policy, their approach and rates of implementation will vary greatly. Sustainable development researchers have asserted that employee involvement is increasingly showing a noticeable effect on pollution prevention activities. These findings are likely to be the reason behind restructured employment policies across Europe and the world over being evident in current employment trends that now advocate green jobs (Casey 2004; Jacob 2011; Lefresne 1999). This state is supported by the rapid growth in environmental technology sectors around Europe and beyond. Most importantly though is the fact that the focus in the near future is projected to be on pollution prevention and clean technologies (Hawken 2010; Hawken and Lovins 2008).Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Creating New Employment and Business Opportunities specifically for you for only $16.0 5 $11/page Learn More Basing on this trend, ODA has endeavored to ensure these facts are considered during the planning process for the games and evidently so, the committee is focused on setting up a clean energy generation plant to serve the games and the community thereafter (Olympic Development Authority (ODA), 2011). While attempting to link the employment and environmental policies, this study is intended to identify the correlation between these two variables and highlight the likely challenges with a focus on the planners of the 2012 games in London. According to Hewett and Foley 2000, â€Å"there appears to be plenty of evidence and research addressing the employment effects of environmental policies† (p.10). Therefore, ODA proposes an employment and business strategy that will focus on creating new employment and business opportunities locally, regionally and nationally during and after the 2012 games. Accordingly, ODA proposes new employment opportu nities at some stage in the infrastructure building phases of the games venues (ODA 2011). An important area of focus related to ODA’s preparation is the relocation of IBC/MPC close to Hackney Wick. This facility has been offering employment opportunities and this is expected to continue during and after the upcoming games. IBC/MPC will later be converted to legacy use as an educational or commercial centre providing full time employment. The venue itself and the park around it will attract further human resource requirements. This will be the source of employment at the Olympics Park and the neighbouring areas. The physical construction of the park itself is likely to be a labour intensive exercise leading to increase employment opportunities. ODA’s sustainability plan will cover a number of aims including the following: Ensuring that the recruitment and engagement process is fair and offers an opportunity to all. Ensuring that as much as possible and within the cons traints of time and budget, communities have access to training and work placement that will eventually result into sustainable employment opportunities. Ensuring that procurement of work and goods as well as services is transparently and competitively carried out to attract maximum diverse categories of suppliers. Therefore, a deliberate consideration by ODA for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) has been earmarked. These SMEs’ services as subcontractors will expand the employment opportunities bracket as new business opportunities are unveiled.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More ODA’s reliance on social media and internet based methods to reach out with information is aimed at creating awareness about the opportunities for business and employment available due to the hosting of the games. ODA runs a website which has a facility to enable businesses to register their interests concerning tendering for contracts related to the games. ODA will forecast the labour demands and skill requirements to assess the current requirements. This information can then be availed to key partners who will provide funds for training to meet ODA’s supply chain requirements. On a regional scale, ODA will work with members of the five boroughs partnership board sharing all the information necessary to create employment and business opportunities. This will be achieved through the five borough employment brokerage service (ODA 2011). Apparently partnerships here are vital to the success of ODA’s sustainability development plan on business and employment. Some of these partners include the London employment and skills taskforce (LEST) which is an initiative that looks beyond the games focusing on them just as a catalyst for comprehensive regeneration and improved productivity in London for the next two decades. There is also the local employment and training framework (LETF), which focuses on tackling employment barriers and enterprise competitiveness during start up. This is intended to reduce disparities in labour market outcomes, improve skills and maximize the potential for productivity and innovation (ODA 2011). Rationale and Justification of the Data Collection Methods Generally research approaches are either qualitative or quantitative. The qualitative approach to research is an explorative method used to collect data, analyze it and report the data analysis findings based on a certain research question or case study. Under this approach, the research area is identified and a purpose for the research is specified before the data is collected and analyzed and thereafter the results reported and recorded. Data organization and coding is a feature within the qualitative research approach. Quantitative research approach is the other option. This approach requires beginning with a theory. As the research progresses samples are selected based on a scientific theory. This approach also involves the use of mathematical models as a method of data validation. For this study the qualitative approach will be used because this approach allows for the development of ideas and interpretations and case studying which is what has been used here to get data from various ODA publications on policy and planning. The internet has also been used in this research to collect more data in relation to development and implementation of sustainable development strategy with a focus on creation of employment and business opportunities. Findings Analysis and Discussion At the moment a clear relationship between sustainable development age nda such as the one proposed by ODA and how this relates to the creation of employment opportunities may not be well defined. However, conclusions can be drawn from the general trend based on government targets as well as scholarly evaluation reports on future options that involve technological change (Hitchcock and Willard 2009; Illinitch and Schaltegger 2000). Technological change is a direct indicator of new opportunities that require job creation. Currently, the UK government’s climate change strategy intends to establish policies to cut UK CO2 emissions by 20% by 2010 (Harvard Business School Press 2007). It is also proposed to deliver 10% of electricity from renewable sources in the same period. Other government strategies like the landfill and waste have their targets as well. The bottom line to achieving these targets will probably involve increased implementation of clean technology which requires new or combined job skills (Senge, Smith, Kruschwitz, Laur and Schley 2010). All of these targets affect economies in different ways. The government will be preparing for employment consequences. Generally, the government policy in creating the right market framework to encourage sustainable development and planning is an important contributor towards the success of such policies as that laid down by ODA. ODA which comprises the committee responsible for organizing the 2012 London Olympics is going to face a number of challenges based on the committee’s employment and business objective. It is definite that a slowing global economy is not an incentive to business growth let alone employment. With this in mind, ODA is likely to experience challenges in creating these new employment opportunities. It is likely that the sustainability development plan proposed by ODA requires more funds to successfully implement. These funds must be used to try and reduce the disparities arising from diverse perceptions that may be held by ODA’s partners in planning of the games. Lobbying has been known to be one of the ways this can be achieved considering that sustainability strategy development continues to attract social and political barriers to implement (Casey 2004; Nichols and Ball 2006). As such ensuring the creation of employment and business opportunities requires a consideration of the various factors that will cause increased implementation costs. Typically, the UK government is focused on implementing a carbon free city by the turn of a few decades. However, with such a consideration is the need to reassess natural resource utilization that provides the sustainability indicators. Within this campaign and as a government affiliated organization, ODA relies on other partners to facilitate the planning of the London Olympics games 2012. ODA is currently challenged at having a collaborative approach towards sustainable development planning which may not be totally achieved. Since ODA will rely on other partners for funding a nd logistical support, it remains unlikely that all of these partners can fully subscribe to the sustainability development framework proposed by ODA. Therefore, at the local level ODA may easily implement sustainability policies related to employment opportunities which though remain short-lived probably lasting slightly beyond the games season unless a collaborated approach to the strategy implementation is adopted. Though sustainable development planning is considered as a government policy, the real cost of its implementation remains a challenge not just in the culture, media and sports department but in many other sectors within the government and beyond. Research has revealed that a general notion currently in the public domain proposes that the implementation of sustainability development policies will cause job losses. It is expected that this is the public perspective and ODA is likely to face skepticism even in trying to realize their objective of creation of employment op portunities, locally, regionally and nationally as proposed. Convincing the general public otherwise is definitely a cost intensive undertaking which is an indirect challenge as well. Therefore, it might be necessary for ODA to invest much more in public awareness campaign to amplify the employment opportunities that will be created locally, regionally and nationally by a successful implementation of the sustainability development plan for the games. It has been known for some time now that environmental issues have no social or political boundaries. As such it may be necessary for ODA to consider bringing on board all the stakeholders within the five boroughs involved in the planning (Reeves 2005). Conclusion Strategy formulation remains one of the most vital managerial undertakings. Apart from drafting the strategy to run the organization, there is a need to anchor the strategy on a competitive and profitable framework. Currently sustainable development strategy is considered as t he standard strategy formulation of the future. Sustainable development is a major feature in the UK’s government’s which focuses at future scenarios and technologies in the UK. The initial stage is the development and improvement of current technologies, especially within heavy industries thereby creating some ‘breathing space’ during which time policies can be altered to transform the model of economic behaviour. This is going to include the development of cleaner processing technologies which have improved energy efficiency. Most sectors in the UK are currently within this stage. The second stage involves preparing for the change. The change includes increased uptake of renewable energy technologies, transport modes that are sustainable and construction techniques that are less energy intensive. Therefore, the government’s targets for renewables, the decade long transport plan and waste strategy are featured as an attempt by the government to mov e the UK into the preparation for change stage. This stage will also promise increased employment and business opportunities. However, it will be noted that changes in behaviour and technology will not necessarily happen all at once as timing may depend on technological progress or events which change public attitudes. Hewett and Foley, 2000 in their writing indicate that: The University of Bath study also looked at a ‘bottom-up’ methodology developed by AEA Technology to examine the employment impact of energy taxation on manufacturing industry across Europe. The ‘bottom up’ modelling relies on specific information on the costs and characteristics of individual technologies available across different manufacturing sectors. The study concludes that both top down and bottom up models show the potential for modest employment gains flowing from an environmental tax reform. (p.12) ODA has drawn its sustainable development plan for the games based on such findin gs and the government strategy framework. Therefore, though the implementation may still be a little far off especially for certain areas of the policy, the accomplishment of the creation of employment and business opportunities remains in line with the government’s target indicators for achieving sustainable development although this may only be realized on a local level for a start. Recommendations Sustainable development planning is gaining support from many economies and governments around the world especially the developed nations that are quickly drawing and aligning their policies to this framework. These policies propose a green jobs boom as economies finally adapt and implement this strategy framework. However, the challenge lies with a determination of the exact cost of policy implementation based on such a strategy. It is basically true that most of the framework implementation is still in the infancy stages. Considering this fact, ODA will face various challenges when trying to measure the levels of success in creation of employment opportunities (Bach 2005). However, studies are showing that at an appropriate time, organizations around the world will eventually resort to sustainable development planning with noticeable benefits in the human resource sector (Price 2011). The implementation phase of such a plan is going to be actualized in a longer time frame than what was anticipated. As such, creation of employment opportunities as proposed by ODA in their sustainable policy on the games will be realized on local proportions. A more elaborate and sustainable result for such an objective will only be achievable after other related sectors have adopted similar strategy framework probably as formulated by the UK government. Therefore, at the moment challenges towards successful implementation are likely. Reference List Bach, S. ed., 2005. Managing human resources: Personnel management in transition. 4th ed. New York: Wiley-Blackwell. Casey, B. , 2004. The OECD jobs strategy and European employment strategy: Two views of the labour market and welfare state. European Journal of Industrial Relations, 10(3), pp.329-352. Casey, B., 2005. Building social partnership? Strengths and shortcomings of the European employment strategy. Transfer: European Review of Labour Research, 11(1), pp.45-63. Harvard Business School Press, 2007. Harvard business review on green business strategy (Harvard business review) Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Hawken, P., 2010. The ecology of commerce revised edition: A declaration of sustainability (Collins Business Essentials). London: Harper. Hawken, P. and Lovins, A., 2008. Natural capitalism: Creating the next industrial revolution. Boston: Back Bay Books. Hewett, C. and Foley, J., 2000. Employment creation and environmental policy a literature review. [Online] Web. Hitchcock, D. and Willard, M., 2009. The business guide to sustainability: Practical strategies and tools for organizations. 2n d ed. New York: Routledge. Illinitch, A., and Schaltegger, S., 2000. Developing a green business portfolio Long Range Planning, 28(3), pp. 29-38. Jacob, S., 2011. Employment policy confronted with new patterns of governance centred on coordination and performance. International Review of Administrative Science, 77(3), pp. 531-553. Lefresne, F., 1999. Employability at the heart of the European employment strategy. Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, 5(4), pp.460-480. Nichols, K. and Ball, C., 2006. Organization theory: A public and nonprofit perspective 3rd ed. Belmont: Wadsworth Publishing. Olympic Development Authority (ODA), 2011. Sustainable development strategy. [Online] Available at: https://www.olympic.org/documents Price, A., 2011. Fundamentals of human resource management. London, UK: Cengage Learning Emea. Reeves, T., 2005. Cases in public human resource management. 2nd ed. Belmont: Wadsworth Publishing. Senge, P., Smith, B., Kruschwitz, N., Laur, J., and Sch ley, S., 2010. The necessary revolution: Working together to create a sustainable world. New York: Crown Business.

Monday, October 21, 2019

Analysis of Special Service Unit staffing and deployment Essays

Analysis of Special Service Unit staffing and deployment Essays Analysis of Special Service Unit staffing and deployment Essay Analysis of Special Service Unit staffing and deployment Essay Particular Service Unit Staffing and Deployment Abstraction The City of Alexandria, Virginia is located South of Washington D.C. , and is bordered by Arlington County Virginia to the North, Fairfax County Virginia to the South and West and the Potomac River and Prince George’s County Maryland to the E. The City of Alexandria Fire Department presently deploys from nine fire Stationss within 15.4 square stat mis and serves a population of 148, 892. ( census.gov ) The City of Alexandria operates nine fire stations ( a ten percent is under building ) . The Alexandria Fire Department works within the Fire Departments of Northern Virginia Standard Operating Procedures. In these operating processs, fire deployments require engine companies, ladder companies, deliverance companies, medic units and bid vehicles. In 2013, the eight engine companies, six medic units, three ladder trucks, heavy deliverance and haz-mat unit ran a sum of 32,190 calls for service. ( Gore, 2014 ) For the intents of warranting the statistics and hypothesis of this paper, in the first six months of 2014, the three ladder trucks ran a sum of 2357 calls for service with Truck 204 running 784, Truck 208 running 887 and Tower Ladder 203 running a sum of 486. The Rescue Company ran a sum of 310 calls for service. The intent of this paper is to warrant the demobilisation of Tower 203 and re-deploy the forces from that company to staff the Alexandria Rescue Squad, and cut down the sum of common adjutant Rescue Company response into the City. History of the Rescue Company The first Fire Department in the Country to develop a Rescue Company was the Fire Department of New York. Rescue 1 was placed in service on March 6, 1915, after General Order 10, dated January 18, 1915 by Fire Commissioner Adamson announced the pending formation of a squad, equipped with take a breathing setup and trained to manage unusual conditions such as smoky metro fires. ( Hashagen, 1989 ) Rescue Company 1 was formed after two serious incidents in New York City: the first being a fire at the Equitable Building where firemans worked madly to let go of the president of the Mercantile Safe Deposit Company and another adult male that were trapped behind two-inch steel bars that were protecting the bank windows. This deliverance required one hr and 15 proceedingss for firemans to cut through the bars with hack saw. The 2nd incident which prompted the F.D.N.Y. to develop Rescue 1 occurred on January 8, 1915, when a auto of a metro train caught fire between 50Thursdayand 59ThursdayStr eets. Approximately seven hundred people were either partly or wholly overcome by dense fume and exhausts, with two hundred necessitating to be hospitalized. The deliverance work by firemans was delayed due to the inability of firemans to run for any length of clip in the fume filled atmosphere of the metro. Although other fire sections across the state had squads , which were used as either extra work force or first assistance crews, F.D.N.Y. Rescue 1 was the first heavy rescue company in the United States. History of the Rescue Company in Alexandria The construct of a Rescue Company was non something new in the Alexandria Fire Department. The original squads were utilized for particular assignments such as first assistance, scene lighting and extra work force. The squad did non supply any heavy deliverance capablenesss. In 1987, Captain Terrance Kisner of Engine Company 54 developed a proposal of get downing a heavy deliverance company in the City. Prior to that clip, any vehicle unsnarling calls that were received in the City were handled by either Engine 54, that was located near the George Washington memorial Parkway, Engine 57, which had entree to the inner and outer cringle of the Capital Beltway, between the Fairfax County line and the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and Engine 58, which had entree to Interstate 395 between the Fairfax County Line and Arlington County. Captain Kisner’s proposal suggested that a deliverance company be developed to non merely manage vehicle unsnarling, but include the subjects of rope deliveran ce, trench and confined infinite deliverance and structural prostration. Several members of the Department enrolled in the Virginia Department of Fire Programs, Technical Rescue Training Program to have the necessary preparation and accomplishments development to be able to work as members of the squad. In 1988, Deputy Fire Chief Jack Roach approved the proposal to develop both a Technical Rescue Team and a company with multiple deliverance subjects. It was decided to non buy a separate heavy deliverance vehicle in 1988, but to put equipment on an engine company, and giving the company the appellation of Rescue Engine 56, seeing that the company would be re-located from Station 54 on First Street in Alexandria, to Station 56, located on Seminary Road. This fire station provided speedy entree to Interstate 395, Interstate 495 and the full City. Rescue Engine 56, so Rescue Engine 206, when the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments changed the wireless enumeration system respo nded to many deliverance calls within the City bounds, along with supplying common adjutant response to the Pentagon on September 11, 2001 and the Laplata, Maryland twister in 2002. After the Attack on the Pentagon in 2001, the United States Government, and the Department of Homeland Security began to pay out grant money through the Urban Area Security Initiative ( Office, 2004 ) Through this grant plan, the City of Alexandria purchased two vehicles ; a Tower Ladder that was placed at Station 203, located at 2801 Cameron Mills Road and a heavy deliverance vehicle, that would be housed at Station 206, on Seminary Road. This purchase was approved by the Alexandria City Council at the petition of so Fire Chief Thomas Hawkins. At the clip of the purchase, Alexandria Fire Administration did non do programs to add extra staffing, but alternatively, decided to utilize the Rescue as a individual pull, name type determined which unit should travel on the call. A Similar Dilemma In 1993 Edward Plaugher was appointed as the Fire Chief in Arlington County, Virginia, after the surrender of Fire Chief Thomas Hawkins. Chief Plaugher retired from Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department and was familiar with the construct of Rescue Companies. Fairfax County was the one of the legal powers that maintained staffed Rescue Companies in the Northern Virginia country. At that clip, Arlington County maintained staffing for 10 engine companies and four ladder truck companies. Extrication equipment was carried on the ladder trucks and there was non a designated deliverance company. ( Insley, 2014 ) Chief Plaugher saw a demand to increase particular service bringing to the citizens of Arlington County. It was decided by the fire disposal in Arlington County to add two Rescue Squads to their fleet. The initial Rescue companies were assigned to Station 104on the north side of the county and Rescue 109 to the south side of the county. ( Gray, 2006 ) The Rescue’s went i nto service in January 1997, and were used in a single pull position. At that clip, both Station 104 and 109 housed a ladder truck and a deliverance that was staffed by a individual crew, with the call type finding which setup to take to the incident. Both Stationss besides had an engine company assigned. Later that twelvemonth, Engine 104 and Engine 109 along with Truck 104 and Truck 109 were placed into modesty position and quints were purchased, altering the setup constellation to eight engine companies, two five companies, two deliverance companies and two ladder/tower companies. The five companies were staffed with six forces and when dispatched on fire calls, were used chiefly as engine companies ; nevertheless, the driver/operator of the deliverance company would work in concurrence with the five company if there was a demand to utilize the aerial ladder. ( Barksdale, 2014 ) After utilizing this theoretical account for several old ages, the fives were placed out of service. Arlington County Fire Administration under the way of Fire Chief James Schwartz went back to running nine engine companies, three ladder/tower companies, and two deliverance companies. Station 104 is the lone fire station in the County that does non hold an engine assigned. Station 104 now houses a deliverance and ladder truck. Engine company responsibilities are conducted through a common response understanding with Fort Meyer. ( Insley, 2014 ) Alexandria Rescue 206 During the building of Rescue 206 in 2002, Fire Chief Thomas Hawkins did non bespeak extra forces from City decision makers, to let for full clip staffing of the Rescue. It was decided to run the Rescue as a single pull from Firehouse 206. Between 2002 and the present, the Northern Virginia Fire Chief’s ( NOVA Chief’s ) came to the determination that all of the legal powers that work under the Northern Virginia Mutual Aid Agreement, should hold Standard Operating Procedure , that all of the take parting legal powers should run under. The NOVA Chief’s developed a group of forces from all of the legal powers to develop these manuals. Standard Operating Procedures have been developed for High Rise Operations, Garden Apartments, Single Family Dwellings, Strip Mall Shopping Centers and Townhomes, and Rapid Intervention Team Operations. ( Group ) These Standard Operating Procedures have specific assignments for the first through 4th due engine companies, the first and 2nd due ladder/tower companies, foremost and 2nd due Battalion Chiefs and the Rescue Companies. Rescue 206 is dispatched on several zone boxes within the City of Alexandria, but merely when the staffing is in the fire station and Engine 206 is note on the tally card. The Rescue assignments are filled by common assistance deliverance companies from Fairfax County and Arlington County. Fairfax County does non even acknowledge Rescue 206, seeing that it is non for good staffed. ( Fair, 2014 ) Rescue 206 is systematically dispatched on vehicle accidents within the first due district of Engine 206, along with vehicle accidents on Interstate 395. Dispatch processs have been late updated to include two deliverance companies on vehicle unsnarlings within the City. Rescue 206 is besides dispatched on all proficient deliverance calls within the City. Listed below are the unit call burden comparings for the Rescue Companies that respond into the City of Alexandria. ( Department, 2014 ) This will include ; Rescue 206, Rescue 104 and Rescue 109 from Arlington County, Rescue 411, Rescue 426, and Rescue 418 all from Fairfax County. This study includes financial twelvemonth 2013 and 2014. Rescue 206 Staffing Plan Proposal The Alexandria Fire Department has gone through the term of office of four Fire Chief’s that did non do staffing Rescue 206 a precedence. Knowing that for the financial budget twelvemonth 2015, the City of Alexandria eliminated 10 full clip places within the fire section. This staffing was to staff firehouse 210, which is presently under building. With the possibility of having 12 extra full clip employee places, in add-on to the 10 needed to staff the new fire station, excess staffing to staff the deliverance squad could be a tongueless point. However, the deliverance could be staffed on a lasting footing by de-commissioning Tower 203. Justification for De-Commissioning Tower 203 Listed below are grounds to de-commission Tower 203, and travel the forces to staff Rescue 206: Firehouse 203 is slated to be remodeled in financial twelvemonth 2016. The programs are to pulverize the fire station, change the footmark of the fire station and travel the tower ladder from the fire station after completion and puting a medic unit in its topographic point. The current tower ladder that is assigned to Firehouse 203, ( 2003 American LaFrance ) has been out of service for about six months, and the crew is presently staffing the City’s merely reserve ladder truck. A new tower ladder has been purchased, and has non been placed in service, and will non be until the company members receive developing on the operation of the new tower. Besides, the design of the new tower ladder does non let it to suit in Firehouse 203 due to its overall tallness and length. With the re-building of Firehouse 203, the current program is to relocate the new tower ladder to Firehouse 209, located at 2800 Main Line Boulevard. This would take a particular service unit from the north terminal of the City and doing delayed response times into that service country. With the resettlement of the tower ladder to Firehouse 209, the Jefferson Davis Highway corridor of the City, there would be an over copiousness of ladder trucks/tower ladders in a 2.5 mile line of Alexandria/Arlington. This resettlement would go forth the northwest corner dependent upon a common assistance ladder truck from Fairfax County to cover that district, conveying a longer response clip. With the Replacement for Tower 203 already being purchased, relocate the new tower ladder to Station 208 and put the tractor drawn forward pass that is presently in service into modesty position, to let the Department to hold a quality ladder truck in the modesty fleet. Benefits of Staffing Rescue 206 As stated earlier, Rescue 206 is staffed by the four individual crew of Engine 206, and is dispatched when on vehicle unsnarlings and a minimum sum of structural fire calls in the City. In the event of a proficient deliverance incident in the City, the current Technical Rescue Team despatch matrix is to despatch Rescue 206 and Truck 208. Listed below are several justifications on staffing Rescue 206 with full clip employees. The logical thinking below would ask the resettlement of Rescue 206, to Firehouse 203: Remove the staffing from Tower 203, and reassign this staffing to Firehouse 208 to staff Truck 208. This would let in maintain an experient truck crew in the fire station. Transfer the staffing from Engine 203 to staff Engine 206. Transfer the staffing from Truck 208 to Engine 203, doing an exclusion to the Department pattern of puting a captain in charge of an engine company, and using the lieutenant from Truck 208 to oversee the engine crew. This would function several intents. The crew of Engine 203 would now be the auxiliary crew for Rescue 206. All Technical Rescue Team forces would be in the same fire station to ease particular service preparation. This program would besides let for easy movable staffing when members or officers of the Rescue Company would be on leave. This program will besides let for sequence planning in the Tech Rescue Team, in the event of the Tech Rescue Captain being promoted to a higher rank, retire, or having another assignment. Puting the full clip staffed Rescue Company in Station 203 would supply a particular service unit in the northern subdivision of the City. The undertakings assigned to the Rescue Company and the Ladder/Tower Company are similar on construction fires. ( i.e. , hunt, deliverance, airing, public-service corporation suspension ) The lone actions different would be the loss of the aerial ladder. The ladder trucks/tower ladders that would supply service to the first due response country of Tower 203 would be handled by Alexandria Truck 204, Arlington County Truck 105 or Fairfax County Truck 410. Permanent staffing of Rescue 206 would supply the citizens of Alexandria deliverance capablenesss for vehicle entrapment with a faster response clip, alternatively of trusting on a deliverance company from Fairfax or Arlington County. Alexandria would be able to supply like service to common assistance spouses by holding a full clip staffed rescue company. ( capablenesss to carry through a deliverance response as listed in the NOVA Standard Operating Procedures ) Let for more Technical Rescue Team preparation by holding all Tech Rescue Team members assigned to the same fire station, heightening service bringings. A caution to this program as listed above is that the program would besides be practical go forthing the Rescue at Firehouse 206, seeing that the response to the district left unfastened by Tower 203 could be covered by Rescue 206, with merely a minimum hold due to a slightly larger response distance. Access from Seminary Road allows quicker entree to the major metropolis running paths than reacting out of the vicinity of Firehouse 203. By traveling the Rescue to Firehouse 203, it provides the capableness of keeping a composure in the response country of Firehouse 203 for removing/de-commissioning the tower ladder company. See maps below: * Note that the larger figure of calls for service occur in the response district of Firehouse 206. ( Cross, 2009 ) Plants Cited: Barksdale, B. ( 2014, July 8 ) . Assistant Fire Chief. ( D. Bogozi, Interviewer ) census.gov.( n.d. ) . Retrieved from United State Census Bureau: www.census.gov Cross, M. ( 2009 ) . Battalion Chief.Rescue 206 Response Maps. Alexandria, Virginia, United States. Department, C. O. ( 2014 ) .Unit Call Load Comparison.Alexandria. Fair, G. L. ( 2014, July 11 ) . Fire Captain/DEC Liason. ( D. Bogozi, Interviewer ) Gore, S. ( 2014, March ) .The Responder.Retrieved from www.alexandriava.gov: www.alexandriava.gov/uploaded/Files/fire/info/TheResponderSpring2014 Gray, R. ( 2006 ) . Rescue 104 and Rescue 109.Arlington Fire Journal, 6. Group, N. V. ( n.d. ) .Northern Virginia Regional Commission. Retrieved from www.nvrc.org: www.novaregion.org Hashagen, P. ( 1989 ) .FIRE RESCUE The History of F.D.N.Y. Rescue Company 1.Staten Island, New York: Fire Apparatus Journal Publications. Insley, D. ( 2014, July 7 ) . Deputy Fire Chief, Support Services. ( D. Bogozi, Interviewer ) Office, G. A. ( 2004 ) .Management of First Responders Grants in the National Capital Region Reflects the Need for Coordinated Planning and Performance Goals.Washington, District of Columbia: United States Government.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Shakespeares Ultimate Valentines Day Poem

Shakespeares Ultimate Valentines Day Poem Are you looking for the most romantic Valentine’s Day poem ever? Then look no further than Shakespeare’s greatest, most heart-tingling sonnet. It’s perfect for a Valentine’s Day poem! We are of course talking about Sonnet 18: Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day? ... considered by many to be the greatest love poem ever written. Sonnet 18: The Ultimate Valentines Day Poem The sonnet’s reputation is well deserved because of Shakespeare’s ability to capture the essence of love so cleanly and succinctly in only 14 lines. He compares his lover to a beautiful summer’s day and realizes that while summer days may fade and fall into Autumn, his love is eternal. It will last all year round – year in, year out – hence the famous opening lines of the poem: Shall I compare thee to a summers day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summers lease hath all too short a date: (...) But thy eternal summer shall not fade. Why not copy out the full text from the link below and leave it under a loved one’s pillow this Valentine’s Day? Here are the only two links you need this Valentine’s Day: Sonnet 18 - Read the full textSonnet 18 – A study guide to help you better understand the poem If you are looking for something shorter, then our list of the top 10 Shakespeare love quotes will surely set your heart aflutter.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Comment on the Response Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Comment on the Response - Essay Example I strongly agree with the point on the identity discovery process. I feel Janie strongly identified herself with nature. The fact that she related love to the relationship between the bees and the tree and the point where she allows a bug to walk on her face just to feel the legs of the bug makes one feel that Janie identified herself with nature. The fact that she found herself in conflict with her inner self when she was the mayor’s wife was a beautiful depiction of a situation which many of us feel time and again when confronted by different situations in life. I had also mentioned in my review that the language was hard to understand at first, due to the African dialect. I am not really sure whether that was the lesson which Hurston was trying to give about the fact that women should rule their own lives because after Janie did what she wanted her end was not one to be envied, she had to kill her husband, the one she had loved, but then again may be you are right in saying this because the book is centered around her feelings and dilemmas.

Friday, October 18, 2019

Helicopter vs Planes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Helicopter vs Planes - Essay Example Research indicates that a person on the helicopter has high chances of making it safely to the ground than one on an airplane. Survival on a helicopter is possible because of autorotation of the rotor blade. The rotor blades of a helicopter go on rotating when engine fails. Helicopter pilots are well aware of this phenomenon because they practice a lot during training. They are thought to switch off the engine and land a helicopter (Hiskey, 2012). A significant number of accidents happen as a result of human error. If one travels using a helicopter on bad weather or flying onto wires he or she is likely to cause accident. Someone might argue that planes are much safer because it always fly at high altitude than a helicopter making it much safer. However, as mentioned above, accidents only happen due to pilot error. An airplane could be more dangerous than helicopter in case engines fails. It will fall at high speed than a helicopter; helicopter utilizes autorotation as mentioned earlier (Hiskey, 2012). In conclusion, it is much safer to travel on a helicopter than an airplane. It is easy to control helicopter when engine fails. Hiskey, D. (2012). Helicopters Won’t Just Drop Like a Rock if the Engine Dies, They are Actually Designed to Be Able to Land Safely This Way. Retrieved from

Health Insurance Matrix Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Health Insurance Matrix - Assignment Example However, these payments are only released once an individual has cleared a deductable amount. This is usually an annual payment that ought to be cleared before discharges takes place. Who pays for care: The consumer and the insurer pay for care. This sort of arrangement is known as coinsurance and may be 80% of the total medical charge (Goodman, 2008). Consumers are expected to pay for the remainder as well as extra charges that arise from a physician’s charge. In this scheme, insurers determine what is reasonable and usual for medical services under consideration. They will consider inflation as well as market rates for this. If a provider charges more than normal, the consumer will also pay for the difference. Access Structure: One of the key advantages of indemnity cover is that it has open access. Here, consumers have the liberty to select a healthcare provider of their choice. They do not require special referrals to a network of medical practitioners. Such a mechanism is quite useful to patients with lifetime diseases like cerebral palsy. They are also suitable for individuals with little concern for healthcare costs. How patients are affected: Patients can benefit from greater flexibility under this model. Since the plan is non-networked, persons who require specialized care gain a lot from it. They also pay for services only after accessing healthcare services so reimbursements are understood. Conversely, financial costs are quite high as out of pocket coverage and deductibles are included. Furthermore, this plan places caps on what one can get throughout their lifetime. It even determines rates and what is a reasonable charge. How providers are affected: The major pros for providers under such a scheme are that they get to provide quality care. They are not under pressure from a gatekeeper on the services they can provide. They have the freedom to charge what they see is fit. Conversely, they lack a set standard against which to charge

The assignment - Background information - You are the financial Essay

The assignment - Background information - You are the financial director of a large, ficticious company called Manac plc, which - Essay Example The target profit of the company is not being achieved and as a result of that it is impacting the entire organization. The company has also adopted several cost cutting methods, which impacted the production and reduced competitive advantage of the firm. The report will mainly focus on three areas of strategic management accounting. In the first part, it will mainly emphasize on the models and concepts on pricing decision. In the second part, the study will primarily focus on role of standard costing and variance analysis in management accounting. The third part is about uncovering the pros and cons of activity based costing. The report will then conduct an in depth analysis of the strategic management accounting. On the basis of that a conclusion will be drawn and some recommendations will be made. Models and Concepts on Pricing Decision The organization is currently dealing or facing challenge pertaining to the issue of profit maximization. The problem is that company is not achie ving its target profit. According to several authors, maximization of profit is only possible only when the organizations are able to implement the models and concepts used in pricing decision. ... In order to cite an example, if the products of a company are priced higher than its competition; it may suffer losses and slow income growth. Such firms ignore the impact of pricing, but later understand when it gets actually affected. Similarly, if the prices of products and services of a company are extremely low, their return of profit will be also low. Hence it is important for every firm that they should consider adopting some of the best models or principles based on which they can make pricing decisions. The model should also satisfy the two objectives of pricing. The first one is to achieve maximum profit and the second objective is to meet the market demand. One of the most common models that are considered by the companies is consumer’s preferences and behaviour. According to this model, it is the consumers who make the purchasing decision and other factors hardly play any role (Heidhues and K’oszegi, 2005). Therefore if the firms closely monitor the buying b ehaviour of the consumers, companies will be able to take its pricing decisions with ease. For example, if the study of consumer behaviour reflects that consumers prefer products that are priced low, the companies will be able to make the prices of their products low by reducing the overall cost. The next model pertaining to pricing decision of a firm is about the market equilibrium. Market equilibrium is actually a situation considered by the firms while developing the pricing strategies. This is actually the stage where the market demand and market supply overlaps with each other. The market equilibrium (demand and supply) is highly responsible for driving price changes (Vives, 2010). For example, if the price of a 3D TV is low in a particular market, the

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Herman Melville's Billy Budd and Bartleby; Mark Twain's Pudd'nhead Essay

Herman Melville's Billy Budd and Bartleby; Mark Twain's Pudd'nhead Wilson and Those Extraordinary Twins - Essay Example It’s name means the Atheist and it is the French ship that engages the â€Å"Bellipotent† after Billy’s death. It’s shot leads to the death of Captain Vere, removing the guiding spirit of the â€Å"Bellipotent† which has been corrupted by adherence to tradition. These lines are spoken by Claggart after Billy’s soup spills and leaks across the master-at-arms’ path. They reveal Claggart’s singular attention on Billy, if not his animosity toward him, and indicate the reason why Claggart hates Billy as much as he does. The Dansker says this to Billy after the incident with the gold guineas, warning him that the after-guardsman is working for Claggart to try to implicate Billy in a mutiny scheme. If Billy were smart, he would have gone directly to the authorities about the incident, but, in keeping with his personality and understanding, he keeps quiet. Billy Budd says these words just before he is hoisted up into the rigging as his execution. The phrase is echoed by all the men on the ship and demonstrates Billy’s continued loyalty to the Captain as well as his respect for the rule of law that the Captain upheld in executing Billy. The significance of the brick wall is its ability to personify the character of Bartleby. Like a brick wall, he is described as having very little personality of his own, which makes him ideal for his role as a scrivener. However, he also proves to be equally as unmovable, as uncommunicative and progressively less useful as a brick wall. This was a friend of Judge Driscoll who died at about the same time as Percy Driscoll. Toward the end of the story, Roxy reveals that he was the father of her son, the man most people have known as ‘Tom’ through most of his life. This is Roxy’s real son who is switched with the baby Thomas a Becket Driscoll, the son of Roxy’s owner to be raised as a white man. He is the spoiled and rotten main character who abuses his ‘slave’, the true heir. They are both involved in the case

English-Rule Only Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

English-Rule Only - Research Paper Example Advantages of the Rule The subject that only English should be used at work places creates very strong feelings. Some individuals may believe that it is wrong to speak in a language that others do not understand. In the same way, speakers of languages other than English may believe that complaints against the usage of another language stem from racism or unnecessary suspicion of what is being spoken. But the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regulations state that a restriction to speaking English at all times is disadvantageous to an individual’s employment opportunity on the basis of national origin. The commission believes that English-only rules create an atmosphere of inferiority, isolation and intimidation which is based on national origin that could result in discriminatory working environment (Bothwell-Marketing-Inc, 2011). EEOC regulation clearly states that the rule English-only rule is permissible only where the employer can show that the rule is justified by the necessity of the business. Spun Steak offered a justification that the non-Spanish speaking employees felt bad because they were being insulted in Spanish. The company also noted there were some safety benefits to using a language common to most employees. Employers in areas where the rule applied pointed to safety issues, customer service, and business related justifications which are related to their businesses. But opponents say that the U.S has been a country of immigrants coming from various cultures speaking different languages. In the past the new migrants wanted to quickly assimilate into the local culture and adopt the local language. This helped them in their integration with the local society. However currently, many new migrants foster separate almost ghetto-like communities which interact on a limited basis with the outside. As many of them fail to learn English they do not gain the ability to interact outside their own community and thus cannot easily integrate in the society. This inability to communicate is the basis of mistrust, fear and war among the different cultures (ask-Vile, 2006). Statistics show that about 215 million Americans speak English while only 2 million people speak Spanish (Juggle, 2011). There are already 26 states where English is the only official language Most of the migrants also state that they think everyone should learn English if they are to live in the United States. English is spoken in Congress, courthouses, national parks, and Presidential speeches. It is also spoken in almost every business corner. Every where the English language is spoken (Juggle, 2011). But accounting office report that was released shows that 99.94 percent of all federal government documents are produced in English. The English proponents argue that more than 300 languages are

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

The assignment - Background information - You are the financial Essay

The assignment - Background information - You are the financial director of a large, ficticious company called Manac plc, which - Essay Example The target profit of the company is not being achieved and as a result of that it is impacting the entire organization. The company has also adopted several cost cutting methods, which impacted the production and reduced competitive advantage of the firm. The report will mainly focus on three areas of strategic management accounting. In the first part, it will mainly emphasize on the models and concepts on pricing decision. In the second part, the study will primarily focus on role of standard costing and variance analysis in management accounting. The third part is about uncovering the pros and cons of activity based costing. The report will then conduct an in depth analysis of the strategic management accounting. On the basis of that a conclusion will be drawn and some recommendations will be made. Models and Concepts on Pricing Decision The organization is currently dealing or facing challenge pertaining to the issue of profit maximization. The problem is that company is not achie ving its target profit. According to several authors, maximization of profit is only possible only when the organizations are able to implement the models and concepts used in pricing decision. ... In order to cite an example, if the products of a company are priced higher than its competition; it may suffer losses and slow income growth. Such firms ignore the impact of pricing, but later understand when it gets actually affected. Similarly, if the prices of products and services of a company are extremely low, their return of profit will be also low. Hence it is important for every firm that they should consider adopting some of the best models or principles based on which they can make pricing decisions. The model should also satisfy the two objectives of pricing. The first one is to achieve maximum profit and the second objective is to meet the market demand. One of the most common models that are considered by the companies is consumer’s preferences and behaviour. According to this model, it is the consumers who make the purchasing decision and other factors hardly play any role (Heidhues and K’oszegi, 2005). Therefore if the firms closely monitor the buying b ehaviour of the consumers, companies will be able to take its pricing decisions with ease. For example, if the study of consumer behaviour reflects that consumers prefer products that are priced low, the companies will be able to make the prices of their products low by reducing the overall cost. The next model pertaining to pricing decision of a firm is about the market equilibrium. Market equilibrium is actually a situation considered by the firms while developing the pricing strategies. This is actually the stage where the market demand and market supply overlaps with each other. The market equilibrium (demand and supply) is highly responsible for driving price changes (Vives, 2010). For example, if the price of a 3D TV is low in a particular market, the

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

English-Rule Only Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

English-Rule Only - Research Paper Example Advantages of the Rule The subject that only English should be used at work places creates very strong feelings. Some individuals may believe that it is wrong to speak in a language that others do not understand. In the same way, speakers of languages other than English may believe that complaints against the usage of another language stem from racism or unnecessary suspicion of what is being spoken. But the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regulations state that a restriction to speaking English at all times is disadvantageous to an individual’s employment opportunity on the basis of national origin. The commission believes that English-only rules create an atmosphere of inferiority, isolation and intimidation which is based on national origin that could result in discriminatory working environment (Bothwell-Marketing-Inc, 2011). EEOC regulation clearly states that the rule English-only rule is permissible only where the employer can show that the rule is justified by the necessity of the business. Spun Steak offered a justification that the non-Spanish speaking employees felt bad because they were being insulted in Spanish. The company also noted there were some safety benefits to using a language common to most employees. Employers in areas where the rule applied pointed to safety issues, customer service, and business related justifications which are related to their businesses. But opponents say that the U.S has been a country of immigrants coming from various cultures speaking different languages. In the past the new migrants wanted to quickly assimilate into the local culture and adopt the local language. This helped them in their integration with the local society. However currently, many new migrants foster separate almost ghetto-like communities which interact on a limited basis with the outside. As many of them fail to learn English they do not gain the ability to interact outside their own community and thus cannot easily integrate in the society. This inability to communicate is the basis of mistrust, fear and war among the different cultures (ask-Vile, 2006). Statistics show that about 215 million Americans speak English while only 2 million people speak Spanish (Juggle, 2011). There are already 26 states where English is the only official language Most of the migrants also state that they think everyone should learn English if they are to live in the United States. English is spoken in Congress, courthouses, national parks, and Presidential speeches. It is also spoken in almost every business corner. Every where the English language is spoken (Juggle, 2011). But accounting office report that was released shows that 99.94 percent of all federal government documents are produced in English. The English proponents argue that more than 300 languages are

Rebellion and Social Norms Among Youth Essay Example for Free

Rebellion and Social Norms Among Youth Essay Young people have a tendency not to comply with any laws when it’s come to their wellbeing. Young people always try to express their opinions and restrain from obeying their leaders which sometimes lead to a disaster result of their poor decisions in life. According to Gary Schwartz book, explain what happens in Sammy’s mind and what causes the reaction of quitting his job at the end (Schwartz 55). Therefore, the issue of young people is rebellion against their social norms is the central theme of the â€Å"AP† john Updike story. At the beginning of the story, Sammy is fully within his place in society as a whole (Saldana 95). Meaning that he is just an average teenager with an average job in a small town where everyone knows each other. At that time, Sammy was a cashier at a supermarket named AP in a small town north of Boston in 1961. There begins Sammy’s rebellion when the trio of girls enter the supermarket with bathing suits on and barefoot. After the girls enter the Supermarket and walk in every department to look for the item they need. Lengel the manager of the supermarket approaches the girls and lectures them on what they are wearing on them inside of the supermarket. After the girls walk away, Sammy gets mad and decides to quit his job at this point. Sammy unleashes an impression identity style behavior against Lengel (Schwartz 35). Which mean Sammy feels for the first time in his life that he has to let go his timidity and confront Lengel without thinking of his action to get Queenie attention. The way Lengel undresses the girls with his eyes make Sammy sick to his stomach. That is what triggers Sammy’s anger to react as if he does not care of what happens to him. As long he receives Queenie’s attention, it’s enough for him. Today, young people wear any kind of clothes that attract people’s attention. Sometimes the way they dress can be very provocative. Even though Sammy is gloomy at the beginning of the story, he begins to feel his happiness at the end but not the way he has plan it would be for his action. Sammy has gone from being judgmental to a hero Fritz 2 and then he starts regretting his decisions (Saldana 96). He experiences a transformation; he knows that life will be harder for him hereafter. That is why an old priest of Haiti said â€Å"one must never act in conformity with society and should be willing to take risks†. Meaning a wrong move at any time can make the society reject you. Social class structures have a significant role in this story and can be viewed as one of the norms that Sammy is rebelling against (Schwartz 45). Perhaps in Lengel mind, he thinks that they come from a low class family that does not teach them how to act in public. When Lengel makes it his business to reprimand Queenie and the other girls, she maintains her stubborn comportment and explains that she is here to pick up an item that her mother requests her to buy. In response to this, Lengel takes a step further by first repeating himself and then explains to the girls, â€Å"We want you decently dressed when you come in here† (Updike). According to Sammy, Lengel is a heart cold person, whose interpretation of the ideal person in this society: God fearing, church people who know their place and not go against their will. It is at this point in the story that Queenie loses her bearing for the first time. Sammy’s response to this predicts that his decision to defy Lengel and the supermarket rules will be signified by his exposing his own shoulders, and that is precisely what occurs. Rebellion and social norms appear to have an impact among young people this day. Most of the time, they stand up for what they feel is right and neglect the consequences. Sammy was able to bring attention to him, but it did not work the way that he had planned it would be. The girls most likely didn’t even know that Sammy even quit his job. He tried very hard to get Queenie to see him and accept him, but that didn’t work either. That is why people can never sympathize with Sammy’s action because it results to an act of rebellion against his social norms.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Design And Build Procurement

Design And Build Procurement In this chapter, the definitions of Design and Build procurement including its concept and characteristics will be revealed. The success factors of using Design and Build procurement and the major task of developing the projects scope of work will be covered in great detail in this chapter. The definitive performance criteria of a project specifically in major aspects of time, cost and quality will deeply explained. The chapter then moves forward to the affect of features of Design and Build on roles and responsibilities of the contractor within the process. The explanation on ways of the contractor proposes to achieve them. This chapter then also describes the implementation of Design and Build in Malaysia accordingly to its history performance and problems that have been occurred in Malaysia by using Design and Build procurement. 2.1 INTRODUCTION OF DESIGN AND BUILD PROCUREMENT It is clear that there are many different variables to take into account when selecting the procurement method for our project. It is quite difficult due to each procurement methods differ from each other in unique ways. The key on making decisions on choosing the right procurement method is that each differs from the other on its own basis. Thus, it takes a few key questions to help decide which one should be use. The flow chart below shows the key questions and decisions on which procurement method should be used. The process of building procurement involves a series of different specialists in contributing to the construction work at different times. Design and build procurement has been in use for a very long time for more than a decade in the twentieth century. It has become more widespread across United State as well as around the world and had found in many industries. From a survey of trends in methods of procurement that were carried out by RICS from Davis Langdon and Everest revealed that in 1984, 5.06% of construction projects were procured on a Design and Build basis. Added that by 1991, this had risen to 14.78% .Revealing proudly by the Contract Journal July 1994, that the Design and Build turnover of the United Kingdoms top 70 Design and Build contractors increased by 15% during the period 1992 to 1993. The growth in the use of Design and Build recently as a procurement route is seen as being such radical change that could allow the industry to develop cost radical change that allo w the industry to develop cost models that automatically can reflect the construction rather than design processes. It seems as the most logical way to procure a building and thus given a clean slate to start with. However, many design professionals and owners had feared that this would result in the minimization or even destruction of the designers responsibility. This procurement is said to be able to furnish a design that maximizes quality within the projects budgetary constraints. Numerous successfully completed Design and Build projects range from housing, through industrial and commercial projects, to major complexes. It proves that this procurement method has very wide applicability. Frequently, the Design and Build contractor would be asked to contract with the clients designers, so that there is some continuity of the design effort, but the remaining design work is the contractors responsibility. This involves formally transferring the designers contracts from the client to the builder which is called novation. 2.1.1 DEFINITIONS OF DESIGN AND BUILD PROCUREMENT Design and build procurement is a procurement where it combine the design and construction process under a single entity. Design and Build terms are taken from its strategy itself where it would entail the contractor to carry out the work; the design work as well as the construction and also the completion of the work. As according to Turner (1990) and Jansen (1991) has supported that design and build contractor is supplying the procurement option of buying a finished building. While according to Masterman (1992) the term Design and Build has almost been unanimously interpreted and defined as being an arrangement where one contracting organization takes sole responsibility, normally on a lump sum fixed price basis, for the bespoke design and construction of a clients project. he then elaborate that this contains three elements; the responsibility for design and construction, contractors reimbursement is generally by means of a fixed price lump sum and the project is designed and built specifically to meet the clients need. Furthermore, as according to David Cappell (1997), Design and Build place responsibility for both design and erection in the hands of the contractor one point of responsibility for everything. However, theres an existence of one common thread that all Design Build delivery systems share which would be a single point of responsibilities for both design and construction. In other definition, Design and Build can be said as arrangement where one organization design and construct to the firm orders of the client for a single financial transaction. In general, the definition of Design and Build can be summarized as providing a single point responsibility for the whole design and construction. Below is a chart to differentiate between Design and Build procurement with traditional procurement. (a) (b) Figure 2.2: (a) Single point responsibility Design and Build Procurement (b) Fragmented responsibility Traditional Procurement (Source: Bennett and Grice, 1992) 2.1.2 CONCEPT AND CHARACTERISTICS OF DESIGN AND BUILD A basic concept in Design and Build procurement is that it requires the project to be contracted to a single organization which is responsible for design, procurement, and engineering and commissioning. The first step before choosing a procurement method should be through analysis of the projects characteristics on a global basis, including those technical requirements for design and construction. The projects owner will ensure that the entire context in which the project be delivered is thorough understood and can be accounted for in plans for schedule, price and quality. Once the owner has determined all the external constraints that might impact on its project, a project procurement method can be selected. There are quite many good reasons why an owner would select Design and Build for a given project. Theres a list of reasons for which an owner might decide that a project is suitable for the use of Design and Build procurement method. It would be: Where a compressed delivery schedule is required; A single point responsibility is required, Constructability consideration drive the design concept or details, Unique factors require special knowledge or experience to produce the least-cost design, The owner/designer must rely on the builder to optimize technology wit cost, The project will site-adapt a previous design, The project is a common commercial facility, The project is beyond the owners technical capability, Lastly, where risk can be shared to reduce cost. This can be supported by Masteman (2002), who argued that the definitions of the Design and Build contains three elements that would fundamental characteristics of this system, which are; the responsibility for design and construction lies with one organization, reimbursement is generally by means of a fixed price lump sum, and project is designed and built specifically to meet the needs of the client. 2.2 PERFORMANCE OF DESIGN AND BUILD An owner of a project would definitely want to obtain a building that satisfies his needs of good performance. The meaning of a good performance here require the project to form a high level of quality, of which including optimum economic price within the agreed time. Hashim (1996) concluded that the major factors tat affect the time and cost overruns would be; (1) the procurement systems adopted, (2) the variation works, (3) delay in subcontractors work, and lastly (4) shortage of building materials. She also provides her findings to prove the relation to the procurement systems used and their impact on time cost overruns. It is very crucial that the selection of the procurement method lies in the clients responsibility. Because of that, the selected procurement should; Meets the needs of the client, the type of project and the risks that might occur, can be handle by the client Related to the expertise available within the clients organization, resource and funding facility. Before the client decides which procurement method to be use, the relative importance of the three key criteria that need to be taken into account in procurement would be; time, cost and quality performance. TIME COST QUALITY The three criteria are inter-related. For instance, decisions affecting time will affect cost or both cost and performance. The key objective are exists to ensure that the clients objective are met effectively, efficiently and economically. 2.2.1 TIME Early completion of a project rather one of the most required by the client. Nevertheless, most construction project fails to achieve this requirement. Because of that the selection of procurement method to be use should be done wisely. This requirement of early completion can be achieved if construction starts before the design is completed. It can be said that the greater overlap between the construction and the design stage, the less time will be required to complete the project. However, the amount of variation is likely to increase because of this relation. Form the studies by University of Reading (United Kingdom) evaluate that the construction speed of design and build projects is 12% faster than traditional approaches and the overall project delivery speed (including design and construction) is 30% faster than traditional methods. Added that, the certainty of completion in time increases with the earlier the contractors involve in the design processes. 2.2.2 COST Lower cost of the construction project is another factor that is most important in ones employer requirement. The overlap between the design and construction means that construction starts before the cost is fixed, which will increase the uncertainty over the cost. This will drag the cost forecasting to become critical. Research had found out that time or cost have a real strong interactions between the design and build system. Also, from findings it stated that by combining the full overtime schedule, average ordering and also fast track construction with moderate crashing of design can made achieve towards improvements in both time and cost. By the researchers findings, it had stated that 75% of design and build project were completed within 5% of budget, compared with 63% of traditional projects. Design and build projects are at least 13% cheaper than traditionally procured projects. Greatest cost certainty is achieved for design and builds projects when the owners requirements are detailed. 2.2.3 QUALITY The issue of building quality is very important. From the facts, the quality performance characteristics determine the project time and cost. The performance of a project includes the function of the facility, its quality and appearance and durability, together with reliability and efficiency of the operation. The quality performance required from the completed facility is where it has the ability to control and make changes to the detailed specification after the contracts have been let. Design and build consistently better in meeting quality requirements for complex or innovative buildings rather than simple, standard, traditional buildings. 2.2.4 ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE CONTRACTOR The roles and responsibilities of each of the members of the project team should be considered carefully to avoid problems associated with assembling temporary teams of professionals. The contractors are responsible to; (1) undertake the design work outlined in contractors proposal which match with the employers requirements, (2) to fabricate the building, (3) to coordinate and integrate the entire process. The figure below shows the relationship of project team in design and build procurement. This contractual relationship in design and build is clearly shows that the contractor is responsible for everything. The design and build process increases the opportunities to use the contractors experience during the design stages of the project and their key strengths in management of the construction works. The extension of the contractors role design role is sometimes much less than the associated design responsibilities. The contractor then takes the responsibility for the design, without having any previous involvement with the design team. However, with the variability of types of construction projects and the experiences of clients in such projects, recent research had found that contractors may lack proper understanding of managing the varying types of design processes. The contractor must do whatever it takes to achieve the employers requirements. A single point responsibility means that the contractor is responsible for ensuring that the project is completed in time within the specified budget. Any delays beyond the control of the employer would be at the risk of the contractor. Other than that, the contractor also has to take into account the qualities that are agreed between the employers. Design and build contractors should understand the aesthetics or architecture value because the clients might not understand this kind of things. However, to ensure a contractor to produce what is specified by the client is not the same as ensuring the contractor producing a good and high quality building. 2.3 IMPLEMENTATION OF DESIGN AND BUILD PROCUREMENT IN MALAYSIA Construction activities occurred mostly on the more developed western side of peninsular Malaysia, which would be around KL. It began to gain importance in the economy in the 1990s through its roles in the areas of reconstruction and modernization. There are seven main elements of the processes of construction procurement considered to be specific to Malaysia. These seven elements are divided into two broad categories; (1) the processes during preconstruction stage, and (2) the processes during construction stage. The processes of construction procurement during preconstruction stage are: Initiation / promotion Funding Design schematic design, detailed design and specialist design. Statutory approval approval to initiate and to construct a facility and final approval to occupy the completed facility. Tendering The processes of construction procurement during construction stage are: Construction management and physical construction processes. Risk allocation The mostly used procurement are listed below in order of their importance that has been identified as the dominant procurement systems in Malaysia. Traditional lump sum system Design and build / turnkey system Management contracting 2.3.1 HISTORY AND BACKGROUND OF STUDY Design and build procurement was first launched in the Public Works Department by the Malaysian Prime Minister in 1983. The first unit that has applied the system would be by the Kuala Terengganu Hospital, which was completed in 1985. Research has shown that there is a continuous increase in the use of Design and Build over the last 24 years. The system use in Malaysia was pioneered by the JKR. In this system, there exist only two parties, i.e., the client and the contractor. In Malaysia, comprehensive data on the use of different types of procurement systems is not available. However, design and build is one of the procurement systems frequently used in Malaysia. 2.3.2 CONTRACTORS IN MALAYSIA The total goals of a project to significant cost savings, time savings and better quality can be achieve in considering the contractors construction experience in earlier construction phases. Since the system of design and build become successfully growing in recent years, many contractors are successfully operate in this market and they bring appropriate skills to bare in regard to the management and co-ordination of the overall process. However, the studies from Nima, M.A. M.R. Abdul-Kadir et al. (2001) also Rosli M.Z. (2004) show a shortage of knowledge among Malaysian contractors. They added that, a contractor have a supreme position in developing the constructability issue in different stages of construction projects which decreases probability of stoppages, delays and contract modifications. Any contribution from construction players in early stages of project can supply a useful guidance to bring deconstruction rules to design phase (Herman et al., 2003). The issue in this country is where the construction contractors are not invited to participate in design activities, before the design reaches to end. This will reduce their ability to influence the project specification finally. Other researches had state that different sources of knowledge has emphasized on importance of design phase and decisions that can make tremendous changes in the project output (BCA, 2005; Construction Industry Review Committee, 2001; Galvinich, 1995; Gray Hughes, 2001; Nima et al., 2002; Unlik Lones, 1998). The more integration will result in greater amount of cost savings, labor savings and also less substance wastage. The design itself can lead the contractors to choose a better construction method which helps to an improved constructability. In addition, the contractors can use their construction experience to help the designers in better designs, then they can try to increase the flexibility of the project to avoid any later design modifications that requires more money injections to the projects (Lam et al., 2007). 2.3.3 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES IN DESIGN AND BUILD Ndekugri Turner (1994) suggests that by using design and build can provide better value for money and can give rise to fewer disputes than other procurement methods. One of the key advantage by using design and build is the opportunity to integrate the design and construction components. Argues by Saxon (2000) include that design and construction offers better performance in time and costs and results in lesser defects. The main advantages of design and build system that are obviously shown include: Single point responsibility for both design and construction processes Price is fixed in advance of construction Overlapping of design and construction process (in contrast to the traditional system) The design and build contractor could incorporate the concept of buildability into the design which in turn would facilitate speedier and economical construction production. However, implementing design and build procurement also have the cons that need to be aware of. Its disadvantages are: Unclear client brief (Ho et al., 1996; Chan, 1997; Ernzan Schexnayder,2000) Lack of standard forms of contract (Ho et al., 1996; Gunning McDermott, 1997) Inadequate and insufficient information and coordination among parties (Ndekugri Church, 1996; Ho et al., 1996) Late design changes (Gunning McDermott, 1997; Chan, 1997). The projects costs could be higher than the traditional system Projects often lacks of aesthetic values The system is not very accommodative to changes Other than that, Smith (1992) stated some of his research of design and build difficulties that may have to be faced: Contractor dominated by staff who are unfamiliar with the design process Inadequate fee quoted for design services by consultants Contractors operational staff too busy to consider design issues Contractors lacks expertise to manage the design interface between consultants and subcontract designers Contractor leaves subcontractors to co-ordinate work amongst themselves 2.4 CONCLUSION Alternative project system or delivery is gaining popularity towards Malaysia and outside countries. From this literature, we can see that the implementation of design and build in Malaysia proven to be one of the successfully delivering method in an expeditious manner without sacrificing quality or economy. As for the contractors in Malaysia, the lack of knowledge can become the main reason to the unsuccessful of design and build delivery. Other than that, design and build seems the most appropriate delivery method that can improve ones project performance. DRAFT OF CHAPTERS CHAPTER 1 ABSTRACT CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW CHAPTER 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY CHAPTER 4 DATA ANALYSIS (CONTRACTORS VIEW ON DB) CHAPTER 5 DATA ANALYSIS (DB ACHIEVEMENT) CHAPTER 6 CONCLUSION TABLE OF CONTENT CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.0 INTRODUCTION 2.1 INTRODUCTION OF DESIGN AND BUILD PROCUREMENT 2.1.1 Definitions of Design and Build Procurement 2.1.2 Concept and Characteristics of Design and Build Procurement 2.2 PERFORMANCE OF DESIGN AND BUILD 2.2.1 Time 2.2.2 Cost 2.2.3 Quality 2.2.4 Roles and Responsibilities of the Contractor 2.3 IMPLEMENTATION OF DESIGN AND BUILD PROCUREMENT IN MALAYSIA 2.3.1 History and Background of Study 2.3.2 Contractors in Malaysia 2.3.3 Advantages and Disadvantages of Design and Build 2.4 CONCLUSION