To successfully comply with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's construction safety requirements, employers, supervisors, and safety and health personnel must first identify and understand the standards, and this compact, insider's guide written by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration provides the insight and guidance to do just that. Featuring the safety standards most frequently overlooked by employers and the standards covering particularly hazardous situations, this convenient handbook includes the Code of Federal Regulations Title 29 Part 1926 safety and health standards most pertinent to the construction industry. Readers will find overviews of each standard presented alphabetically a brief discussion of the essential elements of a safety and health program, key points to remember when planning employee training, and a description of OSHA's voluntary programs. An "All About OSHA" section examines fundamental issues related to OSHA.

As optimization techniques have developed, a gap has arisen between the people devising the methods and the people who actually need to use them. Research into methods is necessarily long-term and located usually in academic establishments; whereas the application of an optimization technique, normally in an industrial environment, has to be justified financially in the short term. The gap is probably inevitable; but there is no need for textbooks to reflect it. Teaching of optimization techniques separately from their connection with applications is pointless. This book gives a detailed exposition of the techniques.

In this first volume, T. A. J. Nicholson demonstrates the full range of techniques available to the practitioner for the solution of varying problems. For each technique, the background reasoning behind its development is explained in simple terms; where helpful it is supported by a geometrical argument; and the iterative algorithm for finding the optimum is defined clearly. These steps enable the reader not only to see plainly what is happening in the method but also to reach a level of understanding necessary to write computer programs for optimization techniques.

Problems are tackled in the same way--by searching a feasible region for an optimum. This approach helps the reader to develop the most essential of all skills--selecting appropriate techniques for different circumstances. The numerous worked examples in the text, supported by worked solutions, and the exercises at the end of the chapters are important aids to learning and to teachers. This book serves as an introduction to optimization techniques for students as well as a reference work for the practitioner in business and industry.

"T. A. J. Nicholson" is Senior Lecturer at the London Business School with research and consulting interests in industrial control systems.

The volume of relevant research and literature on this topic is growing but originates mainly from economists, sociologists, and political scientists; geographers have been slow to make contributions. One reason may be that geographers have been preoccupied with differentiation within the geography of production whereas this new field directs attention to the geography of consumption and a study of economies. This book aims to focus attention on the complex and inter-related problems--social, economic, political, and geographical--that come with development, placing particular emphasis on the problems which accompany attempts at industrialization. Focusing on the complex and interrelated social, economic, political, and geographic problems that attend under-development, this book presents one of the first contributions from a geographer on what has been called the most important economic problem of the modern world.

Contending that industrialization is no answer for under-developed countries that are striving to maintain expanding populations and to strengthen their economy, Alan B. Mountjoy traces the distribution, causes, and problems of under-development and the difficulties with and possibilities for industrialization as an aid in solving those problems. He defines development and under-development, considers problems of industrialization (including environmental and human problems), discusses the forms industrialization takes, and analyzes the progress of industrialization in specific under-developed areas.

The unique geographer's perspective and the ability of the author to select aspects of the study that most clearly reflect the problems of under-developed economies make this work a useful text and reference book for students and scholars of development, economic geography, and international relations.

Alan B. Mountjoy was lecturer in geography at Bedford College, University of London, where he specialized in economic geography and the study of underdeveloped countries. Some of his other books include "Industrialization and Developing Countries, Africa" (with David Hilling), and "Developing the Underdeveloped Countries."

This important book addresses the prospects for reconciling economic competitiveness with sustainable development. It shows that we cannot simply assume that changes in public attitudes, business policies and government regulation will guarantee the conditions for long-term ecological, social and economic sustainability. On the basis of new original case studies, the authors consider corporate environmental strategies, technological change and sustainable development as a social partnership between firms, citizens and government. They suggest that competitiveness must be considered as a dynamic process requiring proactive and reactive adjustments by business and government institutions all working towards sustainability. Sustainbility and Firms combines intellectual rigour with accessibility to communicate fundamental ideas to help policy decision-makers, enterprise managers, environmental scientists and economists grapple effectively with the problems of competitiveness, technological change, strategies of firms, governance and sustainable development.

United States aid to Israel averages a staggering $21 billion per year. Yet, as this insightful volume explains, that aid has failed to serve both U.S. and Israeli interests. The Politics of Foreign Aid discusses how the appropriation of foreign aid is often controlled by lobbyists and U.S. domestic concerns rather than by Israeli needs. This clear and thorough examination begins with a description of the objectives, major programs, and historical background of U.S. aid to Israel--military aid, economic aid, and private grants and subsidies. The final section analyzes the effect that foregin aid has had on Israel and predicts the role that aid will play in Israel's future. Finally, Rabie provides suggestions about how to change the role of lobbyists in influencing foreign policy.

This important book focuses on the idea that institutions matter for development, asking what lessons we have learned from past reform efforts, and what role lawyers can play in this field. What Makes Poor Countries Poor? provides a critical overview of different conceptions and theories of development, situating institutional theories within the larger academic debate on development. The book also discusses why, whether and how institutions matter in different fields of development. In the domestic sphere, the authors answer these questions by analyzing institutional reforms in the public (rule of law, political regimes, bureaucracy) and the private sectors (contracts, property rights, and privatization). In the international sphere, they discuss the importance of institutions for trade, foreign direct investment, and foreign aid. This book will be essential reading for those interested in a concise introduction to the academic debates in this field, as well as for students, practitioners and policy makers in law and development.

After twenty years of rapid economic growth, China is facing a critical decision on its agricultural policy. It can either continue to pursue a food self-sufficiency policy or further integrate its economy into the world market. This book examines key policy issues of China's agricultural reforms using the latest information.

In an increasingly technologically-led century the striking pattern emerging in firms' innovative activities is their competition for a technological leadership position in situations best described as races. A 'race' is an interactive pattern characterized by firms constantly trying to get ahead of their rivals, or trying not to fall too far behind. In high technology industries, where customers are willing to pay a premium for advanced technology, leadership translates into increasing returns in the market through positive network externalities. Innovation, Technology and Hypercompetition synthesizes and unifies the various methodological approaches for the industry-specific analysis of fast changing competitive positions driven by relentless innovation (hypercompetition). Game-theoretic and agent-based tools are applied to competitive industries in various market settings and in a global context. Rivalry of this sort is seen to extend to the catching up and forging ahead of regions and nations. In this revealing volume, Hans-Werner Gottinger brings his expert eye to this issue and employs various tools from economic theory to attain this end. He provides the behavioural foundations for what is driving globalization, in this, a volume of interest to academic economists, legal experts, management consultants and practitioners alike.

This important two volume reference work comprises the most important articles and papers on the history of industrial finance and capital formation from the 18th century to World War I. It covers all the main regions of the world with special emphasis on the United Kingdom, Continental Europe and the United States. By providing a careful selection of the most influential articles, these two volumes make a significant contribution to an issue of great and continuing importance.

Universities are increasingly expected to be at the heart of networked structures contributing to society in meaningful and measurable ways through research, the teaching and development of experts, and knowledge innovation. While there is nothing new in universities' links with industry, what is recent is their role as territorial actors. It is government policy in many countries that universities - and in some countries national laboratories - stimulate regional or local economic development. Universities, Innovation and the Economy explores the implications of this expectation. It sites this new role within the context of broader political histories, comparing how countries in Europe and North America have balanced the traditional roles of teaching and research with that of exploitation of research and defining a territorial role. Helen Lawton-Smith highlights how pressure from the state and from industry has produced new paradigms of accountability that include responsibilities for regional development. This book uses empirical evidence from studies conducted in North America and Europe to provide an overview of the changing geography of university-industry links.

This book examines comparative performance and best practice in National Tourism Organisations/ Administrations from extensive research carried out in 2003 and 2004. It compares qualitative and quantitative data in order to ascertain best performance.

Analysis is contained in detail for eight National Tourism Organisations based in four Continents, comprising: Australia, Canada, France, Ireland, The Netherlands, South Africa and Spain. Each country is examined and analysed in the following key areas: Travel and Tourism Performance, Organisation of Tourism, The National Tourism Organisation, structure, Role, Staffing and Offices, Resources and Funding as well as providing case studies of good practice. The book includes methodology of the research and provides discussion and comment of the main roles and success formula in comparable National Tourism Organisations.

- Useful, practical guide to government's involvement in tourism over the past decade or more

- Brings insight from both the academic and practitioner markets

- International Case Studies
- Useful, up-to-date and practical guide to governments' involvement in tourism over the past decade or more.
- Brings insight from both the academic and practitioner markets.
- International case studies

In order to effectively address global warming, many countries have significantly reduced the amount of carbon dioxide emissions that are put into the atmosphere. From the perspective of industrial structure, this volume examines the emission reduction potentials and abatement costs in China. By making an empirical analysis of the emission reduction, the author proposes some practical strategies. The book comprehensively summarizes related theories and research of contaminant disposal modeling, and estimates the shadow price of interprovincial CO2 emissions, the emission reduction potential of different regions, and the marginal emission reduction cost based on the parametric model. It finally puts forward the strategy to adjust the industrial structure in China. The book hence provides solid evidence for policy-makers to help mitigate CO2 emissions through industrial restructuring strategy.

Schumpeter's profoundly influential work developed the notion of the endogeneity of technology, and offered illuminating historical analyses of how and why some social systems have managed to generate innovation. This new interpretation explores Schumpeter's central ideas, and examines the ways in which the concept of endogeneity can illuminate recent American economic history.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203465350

Creativity is playing an ever more important role in the success or failure of organizations in the global competitive economy. The field of engineering is no exception. The objective of this book is to satisfy this vital need, which has been covered very little elsewhere. The book, which assumes no prior knowledge, will be useful to many people including all kinds of professional engineers, engineering managers, graduate and senior undergraduate students of engineering, and researchers and instructors in engineering, psychology, and business administration. At the end of each chapter there are numerous problems to test readers? comprehension. The book also includes a comprehensive list of references directly or indirectly related to creativity in engineering.

The Industrial Revolution has been, and continues to be, the focus of massive historiographical as well as historical enquiry. This collection includes reappraisals by Phyllis Deane and by Francois Crouzet of their classic accounts of industrialization in Britain and in France, and more generally broaches the wider issue of 'new approaches' which have been emerging for the understanding of the industrializing process in nations where it came somewhat later. In addition to grappling with questions of technical skills, economic analysis and the process of industrialization, the authors also tackle questions of national politics and international relations. In addition to the roster of authors who examine individual national experiences, a general essay by Sidney Pollard takes into account the relative contributions of the distinct national experiences in Western and Eastern Europe, the USA and Japan, and assesses them as speical cases of a more general phenomenon.

Project managers in construction and civil engineering need to base their decisions on realistic information about risk and public perceptions of risk. This second edition of the original practical and straightforward text retains the easy-to-read format, but has been expanded to encompass the entire risk management process and to give a fuller presentation of how risk is generally perceived.

Two new chapters cover risk identification and risk response, and the chapters on risk analysis have been completely reorganized. There is also greater emphasis on the theory behind the principles, and an expanded bibliography is given to guide an exploration of the subject in greater detail. The book demystifies risk management by presenting the subject in simple and practical terms, free of technical jargon, and case studies are used extensively to enliven the text and to illustrate the concepts discussed.

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Project managers in construction and civil engineering need to base their decisions on realistic information about risk and public perceptions of risk. This second edition of the original practical and straightforward text retains the easy-to-read format, but has been expanded to encompass the entire risk management process and to give a fuller presentation of how risk is generally perceived.

Two new chapters cover risk identification and risk response, and the chapters on risk analysis have been completely reorganized. There is also greater emphasis on the theory behind the principles, and an expanded bibliography is given to guide an exploration of the subject in greater detail. The book demystifies risk management by presenting the subject in simple and practical terms, free of technical jargon, and case studies are used extensively to enliven the text and to illustrate the concepts discussed.

Kirchhoff blends economics, business, and governemnt policy to demonstrate that entrepreneurship's role in business formation and growth energizes and maintains the viability of capitalism. Entrepreneurs convert new ideas into marketable products and services and use these to grab market shares from older, established firms. This process not only produces economic growth, but also redistributes resources so as to assure equitable distribution within society. Acknowledging that this perception is descriptive but lacks predictive power, Kirchhoff offers a typology to assist in predictive theory building and to guide government policy development.

The construction industry pattern of most industrialized countries is often unsuited to the needs of developing countries. Case studies in Ghana and Sri Lanka suggest a new approach, and illustrate how existing frameworks could be changed.

It is widely believed that current disparities in economic, political, and social outcomes reflect distinct institutions. Institutions are invoked to explain why some countries are rich and others poor, some democratic and others dictatorial. But arguments of this sort gloss over the question of what institutions are, how they come about, and why they persist. They also fail to explain why institutions are influenced by the past, why it is that they can sometimes change, why they differ so much from society to society, and why it is hard to study them empirically and devise a policy aimed at altering them. This 2006 book seeks to overcome these problems, which have exercised economists, sociologists, political scientists, and a host of other researchers who use the social sciences to study history, law, and business administration. It presents a multi-disciplinary perspective to study endogenous institutions and their dynamics.

Previous research has generally shown a very small although statistically significant economic benefit from attending high-quality colleges. This small effect was at odds with what students' college choice and various social theories would seem to suggest. This study sought to reconcile the empirical evidence and theories. The effort was in two directions. First, the economic effect of college quality was expanded from examining only the economic benefit to considering other student outcomes including job satisfaction and graduate degree accomplishment. A new perspective regarding the social role of college quality was offered in conclusion.

Offering a detailed overview of state involvement in the rationalisation and reorganisation of British industry between the wars, this is the first work to address the issues in a comprehensive manner for over 50 years. Utilising a range of primary source material (including papers from the PRO, the Bank of England, the Federation of British Industry and various private archives), Julian Greaves has combined a selection of detailed case studies of selected industries with a broader overview of the national political and industrial situation. The resulting work, which manages to balance analytical depth with breadth of coverage, argues that despite numerous problems and limitations, 1930s' industrial reorganisation policy was reasonably successful in meeting the limited aims of the government.

Global Taiwan examines the impact of globalization on the industry and economy of Taiwan since the spectacular growth of the 1990s. Drawing on hundreds of interviews with firms in Taiwan, China, the United States, Japan, Europe, and other areas, the book analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of Taiwanese firms at a time when they face new competition from powerful global leaders and new producers in China. The contributors cover topics of enormous importance for Taiwan as well as the rest of the world, including transformations in the international economy, technological advances that enabled modularization and fragmentation of the production system, contract manufacturers, regionalization, and links with Chinese industry. The book addresses such questions as: Can Taiwanese companies be maintained and expanded with the same corporate strategies and public policies as in the past? Can these strategies still work for other countries? If changes are required, what resources can be mobilized in the public and private sectors? As massive relocation of manufacturing and services moves plants and jobs to low-wage countries like China and India, what will remain at home in societies like Taiwan?