Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Burglary Prevention Program Essay

Type of Research Design   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The research is looking forward to adopt the Quantitative Tradition of research.   The Quantitative Tradition of Research employs the method that is based on testing of theories. In addition, such also uses measurement of numbers and statistical analysis. The idea behind quantitative research is often to ascertain that a generalized theory or the prediction of a theory will be confirmed by using a statistical method.   Initially, quantitative research starts with the hypothesis and the theories that require being tested (Benz and Newman, 1998). The approach of quantitative research includes the use of formal and generally recognized instruments. In most instances, quantitative research conducts studies with an underlying expectation that a consensus would be arrived at.   As such, quantitative research usually aims to conclude a predictable generalization, and a causal explanation(Benz and Newman, 1998). Quantitative research also studies controlled and manipulated the participants on experiments and puts immense emphasis on deduction and analysis; as the goal of the aforementioned is to establish consensus by reducing data to numerical indications.   In effect of this, it could be significantly noted that the goal of quantitative research is the determination a given prediction, as the aforementioned seeks to know if certain generalizations could be verified or confirmed. In general, the quantitative methodology assumes that there is an objective reality which is independent of the person doing the research, it also takes the position that the subject of study can be done in an objective manner. The researcher must maintain independence from the research object. And the research is not expected to be value affected as the researcher must make sure that he or she does not become a part of the research (Benz and Newman, 1998) . The quantitative methodology tests cause and effect by using deductive logic. When done correctly a quantitative research will be able to predict, and explain the theory in question (Benz and Newman, 1998). Type of Sampling   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Sampling is the process of identifying the respondents for a particular research in order to attain the data that is necessary for a particular study. Such is also relevant in order to avoid the difficulty of administering the survey on an entire population (Ghauri et al, 1995).   Ã‚  According to Aaker et al (1995) research should cater to a target population that has all the necessary information for the research such as sampling elements, sampling units, and area of coverage.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The research is looking forward to adopt a Cluster Sampling procedure from a number of participants from various police departments who have adopted the burglary prevention that is similar to the Burglary Prevention Program employed by the chief of police in the author’s respective state. Cluster sampling is the process wherein the respondents are chosen in clusters such as police departments in various cities and/or   states using the same burglary prevention and the likes.   This type of sampling is advantageous to save traveling time and cist reduction.   It is also convenient in order to find a good number of participants who since the aforementioned are grouped into clusters (Ghauri et al, 2000). Units of Sampling to be Employed   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Determining the sample size for the survey is very relevant because much of the validity of the quantitative data of the research rests upon it. For the purpose of this part of the research, the research will be focusing on the sample size’s confidence interval and confidence level.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The confidence interval is the plus-or-minus figure that determined the confidence results of a particular study. For the purpose of this research, the projected confidence interval is plus or minus 1.75 on a 95% confidence level and a 120 population size.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On the other hand, the confidence level tells the percentage on how the results of the study could be sure. Often times, the confidence level is expressed in percentage and tells how frequently the population on the study would pick an answer that is within the confidence interval. For the purpose of this study, the author used the 95% confidence level which is most used confidence level among researches (Benz and Newman, 1998).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As such, in analyzing the data for the survey, the research will have to look into a 95% confidence with a plus or minus 1.75 intervals. The wider that the confidence level that the research has to work on, the more certain as well that the population response would be more or less within that range.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   For the purpose of the research, the following formula will be used for the Sample Size (Benz and Newman, 1998). ss = z2 * (p) * (1-p) _________________ c2 Where as: ss= the minimum sample size z = z value (e.g. 1.96 for 95% confidence level) p = percentage picking a choice, expressed as decimal (.5 used for sample size needed) c = confidence interval, expressed as decimal (e.g., .04 =  ±4) There are three major factors that would affect the confidence intervals, these are the sample size, percentage and the population size.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A huge sample size would make the results of the research mirror exactly that of the population. This implies that a for every confidence level, a huge sample size reflects a more small confidence interval. Albeit it should be noted that the relationship between them is not linear that if one would double the sample size, such would also make the confidence interval go up (Benz and Newman, 1998).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The percentage of a particular response from the survey also is a determinant for accuracy. For instance if a particular response says 51%, therefore it implies that there is a 49% chance of the responses being erroneous. However if the response rates reveal a 99% positive response versus a 1% negative response, there would be no significant difference at all (Benz and Newman, 1998).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The population size also matters when one is studying a segment of population that is relatively small such as those from the specific hotels being studied. On the other hand, if a research would be conducting a study from a very huge population, like for instance 500,000 or more, the size of the sample a sample size that is close to that exact number does not appear to be that relevant (Benz and Newman, 1998). Reliability and Validity   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The study’s reliability and validity go hand in hand as patterns of measurement depend on both the dependent and independent variables (Zikmund, 1994). Reliability primarily focuses on the internal consistency and the repeatability of the variables within the research. On the other hand, validity centers on the correctness and appropriateness of the question that one intends to measure (Ghauri et al, 1995). According to Chisnall (1997), validity is generally considered and established through the relationship of the instrument to the content, criterion or construct that it attempts to measure. A lack of validity can lead to incorrect conclusion. Analysis of Data   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   For the purpose of the survey, the data that will be gathered will be analyzed using the SPSS Software. SPSS (Statistical Products and Service Solutions) is a powerful, easy to use statistical package designed in a Windows environment, which enabled researchers to tap into various options of interpreting data (Griego and Morgan, 2000, p. 2). SPSS has been viewed as the premiere statistical software that are primarily being used to interpret quantitative research results due to its ease of use, technical support, ease of installation, scope of capabilities, user interface, graphical components, and so forth (Hilbe, 2005, p. 68).   Independent and Dependent Variables Independent Variable   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The independent variable is the causal factor that shapes or determines the dependent variable.   This type of variable is subjected to arbitrary change that is necessary in order to test the results of a particular test (Crown, 1998). The independent variable for this research is the effectiveness of the Burglary Prevention Program. Dependent Variables   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Dependent variables are is a variable that depends on the independent variable for change.   It is also known as the criterion variable (Crown, 1998). The dependent variables of the research are risk management strategies employed by a particular department such as proper identification of criminal vulnerability areas, use of effective detection alarms, and employee training. Data Collection The researcher will collect data based on primary and secondary methods. Secondary Data Collection   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ghaury et al (1995) emphasized the importance of secondary data collection most especially through desk or library research. The review of related literature provided a scholarly perspective on the subject matter and at the same time made the researcher aware of both previous and contemporary research on the subject matter.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The data collection for secondary sources will be lifted from Questia Media America, an on-line Research Library and EBSCO Host with a special emphasis on literatures from London. Primary Data Collection   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   For the primary data collection, the researcher will be focusing on getting the data that are exactly needed for the research. With prior consideration on the objectives and the literature that will be collected by the researcher, a   seven-point survey will be formulated. Surveys  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The primary data that the research will use will be lifted based on distributing the questionnaires and survey forms through snail mail, e-mail, telephone conversation and personal interactions.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to Ritchie & Goeldner (1994) the process of telephone interview or survey for that matter includes conversing with an interviewee through the use of a telephone, rather than do it in person. In some ways, it could be said that a telephone survey is more preferred than a personal survey because it is relatively faster and could have prevented administrative problems. In addition with these, telephone surveys are relatively more cost effective and have the capability to reach those individuals that could not be reached locally. Although this method appears to be very cost effective,   it also proved to be impersonal in nature.   One major reason is the interviewer’s failure to see the exact reaction of the respondents on certain questions. .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On the other hand, Chisnall (1997) said that the process of mailing questionnaires include the use of mailing a set of questions to a certain sample population. Such a method could be said to be also relatively cheaper and assures anonymity and confidentiality. Such a method is also preferred when the respondents for the study are located in various locations and a phone interview appears to be not possible. Also, a mailed questionnaire could allow the respondents answer to the questions at their convenience; albeit, it could be significantly noted that it has also been perceived that there is a relatively low response rate on questionnaires. It is said by Chisnall (1977) that a 30% return of questionnaires is already relevant. In addition with this, it could be possible that the respondents might not have understood the questions in the survey form, and a discrepancy could also show in the results. Finally, similar to telephone interviews, the interviewer could also not see the body languages of the interviewee. Justification of the Selected Method   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   For the purpose of this research, the author will be conducting a pen and paper measurement survey that was sent via e-mail, mail, and personal administered basis. The respondents need to answer question based on a Likert Type Scale which ranks responses in seven different levels: Highly Agree, Agree, Somewhat Agree, Neutral, Somewhat Disagree, Disagree, Highly Disagree and Not Applicable. Whenever applicable, the questionnaires will be asked to be answered on a personal basis in order to avoid errors and discrepancy on the results.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The self-administered questionnaires offered a higher response rate and are also relatively cost effective (Bryman, 1992). Foremost of its advantage rests on the notion that the process of data gathering could be more personal and also the researcher could have clarify certain notions that could be unclear on the survey form. However, one distinct disadvantage of such a method is the difficulty of administrating the survey to multiple respondents all at the same time. In addition, the self-administered data gathering could be very time consuming as well.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Due to the time constraints and the monetary concerns that the research might post, the author perceived that it would be more effective for the survey to be administered on a personal or electronic basis, such as the e-mail. Whenever applicable, questionnaires will be also mailed. Questionnaire Design The questionnaire will be made in a manner that will promote a detailed, precise and logical construction of close-ended question. In addition with this, the questions will also be made in accordance with the hypotheses and the objectives of the research (Oppenheim, 1992).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The questions will be formulated using a 7-Point Likert Type Scale and will be Close-Ended in Nature. Such is relevant so that respondents would only have to encircle the designated number of their corresponding responses (Oppenhein, 1992). In addition with this, close-ended questions are very easy to answer and could enable the researcher create a summated value that could be use for data analysis. Ethical Considerations in Research   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To be ethical is to conform to accepted professional practices (Bailey, 1994, p. 454).   Utmost on the ethical considerations that this research will focus on is the notion of Informed Consent.   Informed consent is the process wherein respondents are made fully aware of the purpose of the study, possible dangers, and also the credentials of the researchers.   As such, in doing a survey, it is often the case that there is an introductory statement that will accompany the said questionnaire. The aforementioned are relevant in order to induce individuals to participate in a study in a voluntary manner.   For the purpose of the study, the researcher will be providing the respondents with an introductory statement that will accompany their questionnaire.  Ã‚   After reading such, the probable respondents will decide if they wanted to participate in the study or not.   This is very important in order to prevent duress and probable respondents would participate in the study on their own free will.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It has also been pointed out by Bailey (1994) that sampling could also pose some issues in research as they could have pose privacy issues.   It could be the case that on the course of primary data gathering upon 120 respondents in various police departments, and the respondents felt that there are a number of questions that appears to be invading their privacy, then it could be the case that such an issue could pose a problem in terms of not only the ethical considerations among the respondents but also the validity of the data to gathered as respondents may not choose to answer truthfully such an answer. In the nature of this research, the issue would be a matter of program effectiveness on burglary security.   As such, the research would be cautious to questions that would require respondents to reveal personal information and also specific experiences that could place the respondent in a disposition of inconvenience.  Ã‚   As such it is also then part of the proposed methodology for the study , the anonymity of the respondents.   The responses of the participants will be kept confidential and will only be used for the purpose of the study.       References Aaker, D. A. and Day G. S. 1990. Marketing Research, 4ed. Singapore: John Wiley & Sons. Bailey K. 1994, Methods of Social Research. New York, New York: The Free Press. Benz C. and Newman I, 1998. Qualitative-Quantitative Research Methodology: Exploring the Interactive Continuum. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press. Chisnall P. M., 1997. Marketing Research, 5ed., Berkshire: McGraw-Hill. Crown W. 1998.   Statistical Models for the Social and Behavioral Sciences Multiple Regression and Limited-Dependent Variable Models. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers. Ghauri, P., Gronhaug, K. and Kristianslund, I., 1995. Research Methods In Business Griego O. and Morgan G. (2000). SPSS for Windows: An Introduction to Use and Interpretation in Research. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Studies: A Practical Guide. Great Britain: Prentice Hall. Hilbe J. , 2005. A Review of SPSS 12.01, Part 2. The American Statistician 58 (2), pp. Oppenhein, A. N,, 1992. Questionnaire Design Interviewing and Attitude Measurement. London: Pinter. Ritchie B. and Goeldner C. R., 1994. Travel, Tourism and Hotel Researcher. New York: Wiley and Sons, Inc. Zikmund, G. W., 1994. Exploring Marketing Research. Dryden

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Barriers of Critical Thinking Essay

There are many barriers to critical thinking. Barriers can distort your thinking a great deal. The way we are raised by our parents when are children can determine our religion, our political views, the way we view the world, and ultimately shapes our thinking and who we are as individuals. Our upbringing shapes our fears, our self-concept, and also shapes our emotions. Barriers can range from family, friends, peer pressure, the media, and so many more. To become a successful critical thinker, you have to face yourself and be completely honest with yourself. You have to do this so you can figure out exactly which barriers personally shapes your thinking. There are many barriers to critical thinking. Barriers can distort your thinking a great deal. The way we are raised by our parents when we are children can determine our religion, our political views, the way we view the world, and ultimately shapes our thinking and who we are as individuals. Our upbringing shapes our fears, our self-concept, and also shapes our emotions. Barriers can range from family, friends, peer pressure, the media, and so many more. To become a successful critical thinker, you have to face yourself and be completely honest with yourself. You have to do this so you can figure out exactly which barriers personally shapes your thinking. some more specific barriers are enculturation, self-concepts, ego defenses, self-serving bias, emotional influences, and the list goes on! I am going to describe the three barriers that influence my personal thinking. Self- concept is one of my biggest personal barriers. Self- concept is the way we view ourselves. I view myself in a negative way. I do not think I’m smart or pretty, and I realize that the way that I view myself is really unhealthy. I also view myself as an Ohio State fan, the average student, a middle-class family, a Christian, an American, and someone who values honesty and respect. Traits, physi cal things, values, and affiliations define everyone, including me and form our self- concept. I know I defend these components as I would defend myself because these elements define who I am. Since these  things define who I am I do not think critically about them, my emotions get involved, and I begin to use ego-defence mechanisms, self-serving biases, and that begins to distort reality to make sure that I am comfortable and to make sure I am â€Å"right.† Emotional influences are another one of my personal barriers. I am a very emotional and passionate person. I also suffer from depression and anger issues. Emotions can cause a lot of problems for a lot of individuals in the world including myself. When trying to think critically emotions tend to cloud your head and begin to distort reality and influence your thoughts without you even realizing it. If I feel strong about an issue, I will defend it till I can not talk anymore. I am very stubborn and bullheaded. I am passionate towards many things, and I know that being passionate towards some people can end up hurting me in the long run. But passion and selfishness can blind your intelligence. Depression is a pe rsonal barrier that runs in my family. With depression I have a hard time looking at the bright side of any situation, some days are better than others. The negative always outweighs the positive in my eyes. Stress is the last of my personal barriers I am going to share with you. Too much stress can cause a lot of psychological or physical strain on your mind and body. Stress comes in many shapes and sizes. My main stress triggers are work, school, family issues, boyfriend, and there are many more. I know it sounds silly, but stress contributes between 60 to 80 percent of diseases. Stress can obstruct our ability to make decisions. When I am under stress I have a tendency to snap at people when I do not mean to, I tend to cry a lot, and those things stress me out more. I work with people with developmental disabilities, and it is stressful, but it has also taught me patience. I work full-time and go to school full time. My boyfriend is in the Marine Corps and is currently stationed in California. Having a long distance relationship is extremely stressful and hard. I can overcome this barrier by thinking critically is the issue worth debating about? Does this directly affect me or my well being? Is it worth getting upset about? Many of these elements do not directly affect me, so these elements are not worth debating. I deal with my depression by spending time with my family and the few friends I have. I like to listen to music and spend time with my boyfriend when I am feeling depressed. I can overcome these emotional  barriers by stepping back and looking at the bigger picture. When I feel like my emotions are getting out of hand, step back, breathe, think about the situation rationally before things get out of control. I am beginning to overcome stress by working out. I work out about five to six times a week. When I work out it feels as if the stress completely disappears, and I feel so much better inside and out. The gym has become my escape from all the stressors in my life.

City of Mount Rainier Essay

Neither does the department of Economic Development for the City of Mount Rainier handle nor is it involved with any matrix of the pricing strategy. As the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 2006 stated on production, packaging and pricing, production cycle involves a flow from the dealers, employees and customers automatically between the functional areas and internationally. Reduced ‘product to market’ cycle meant to ensure full and on time delivery to customers keeps a business on track by reducing errors, inefficiencies and high running costs. However, the City does offer a mix of products solely based on promoting development of blighted or under used parcels. Thus, it is critical that any incentive or business assistance be directed to accomplish the marketing objectives of the City of Mount Rainier. For example, the city will offer or sponsor Tax Increment Financing, State grants or Infrastructure Grants to developers to increase interest and make the area more attractive. This is very necessary for the City to be able to compete with other local municipalities and the District of Columbia, making it imperative for the City to use incentives for redevelopment of the downtown business district. Especially considering that the addition of businesses will create higher paying jobs, large capital investment, tourism and greater benefits to the local community. With this in mind, its primary objective is to add to the diversity of the current business population, increase essential tax base in the area, and pursue the highest quality of jobs and investment by providing an overall balanced approach to economic development for the City. Organizations channel design. A good organizations’ channel design enables exchange of information and ideas with external or outsourced personnel such as financial assistants, engineers, designers, and other partners. It is a system that provides solutions including help to speed up development processes and enhance further future improvements in efficiency With this the City of Mount Rainier can be able to streamline the entire value chain, including all key suppliers, subcontractors, and service providers. The system platform raises transparency of production processes, permitting them to identify potential problems at an early stage, and to take immediate action. According to Kotler and Keller (2008), â€Å" a marketing channel performs the work of moving products from producers to consumers, overcoming the time, place, and possession gaps that separate goods and services from those that want them† (p. 232). The Department of Economic Development for the City of Mount Rainier employs a two –level channel of marketing with at least two intermediaries. The City’s intermediately roles are that of an agent and facilitator. Attracting entrepreneurs and private investment opportunities is the primary goal of economic development in the City of Mount Rainier. As for the Department of Economic Development, the greatest aspiration is to turn around Mount Rainier, making the City one of the best places in the world in which to start a profession or grow a business. The department is working to reposition Mount Rainier as the next great American city for business investment and economic opportunity. This entails employing a balanced attack with corresponding efforts to improve business development, while pursuing transformative public policy changes planned to enhance the magnetism of Mount Rainier as a place in which to invest. On the other hand, an integrated logistics system consists of materials management, material flow systems, and although the City of Mount Rainier does not use such a system as a tool for economic development, A fully integrated accurate unit tracking system is a critical component of modern customer relations and service that is in use, and it is also important for inventory and cost control. Just like integrated logistics system, it monitors all the key movements of goods and services in any transaction. Tracking of the way financial agreements are facilitated for business assistance is important because the gathered data is useful for financial analysis. In support of business analysis, the system ought to have a tool that provides the reporting intelligently. (OECD, 2006) Business information across all assistants can be automatically converted into business intelligence reports benchmarking the performance of the business transactions. At the same time analysis on dealerships can show the best business practices for individual or the group of partners. Marketing and communication strategy Considering that City of Mount Rainier is recognizing a need for business retention and attraction efforts, they have partnered with other public and private businesses stakeholders to create an Economic Development Corporation (EDC) to promote the City and its business advantages and opportunities to local, regional, national and international markets. The purpose of the EDC is to enhance the economic vitality of the City and its residents through creating marketing initiatives, business retention programs, business attraction efforts and dissemination of information. Created as a public-private partnership, the EDC can generate business leads and opportunities that the City could otherwise not do, furthering development. In addition, this partnership serves as the first line of contact with the public, business prospects and developers who are seeking information about doing business in the City. Furthermore, the EDC facilitates development, cultivates business opportunities and creates partnerships that will result in increased economic development in the City of Mount Rainier. The question remains, which supreme marketing and communication strategy would boost this collaboration for better growth? For any company to prosper in any of its transactions, a strong and optimal management system ought to be put in place. In line with Poirier and Reiter, (1996), success in a company is enhanced by rapid and reliable exchange of data within its group members and with its business partners. This is vital to the further development products and deliverance of quality services. Technically one important communication strategy would calls for a highly effective communications infrastructure that allows effective coordination and management of highly complex, highly flexible development, design and production processes. In line with Poirier and Reiter, on Advanced Planning and Optimization in (1996), the main aims of marketing managers should be to process aftermarket into one system, plan for wide coverage and include all parties involved in the planning process. P. 160) In other words, high-speed data communications have to be one of the engines driving the growth of any organization or company offering services or dealing with businesses stakeholders. Any marketing strategy should take establishment and enhancement of a quality communications infrastructure in it key aims. This is a reliable system that ought to augment cooperation among virtual elements regardless of their position at the time of requirement. It permits all around the globe contribution to projects without duplication or underutilization of human effort or technical resources. Consideration for one of the various information systems and networks is a standard solution that can be tailored to particular needs. A system that supports all the data and allows for data interchange with outside suppliers and other partners naturally always gives a good return on investment. This is not a matter of just laying down the network system within the company. Efficiency, Security, reliability and scalability of the system are some of the vital parts to be fulfilled by a system so as to support diverse access methods and service levels. As Poirier and Reiter emphasizes, a good system is one that can be geared to the needs of each individual supplier and business partner. (P. 160). Needless to say, this new ways of revitalizing the City’s commercial corridors by encouraging continued and private investment, would highly revitalize strategies allowing the city to target its assistance and support in ways that are sustainable at the local level.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Discuss the relevance of anthropological concepts, like 'spheres of Essay

Discuss the relevance of anthropological concepts, like 'spheres of exchange' - Essay Example Lastly, the essay will end with a conclusion, which sums up all the arguments and ideas discussed in the paper. Introduction Spheres of exchange refer to an anthropological concept, which entails the analysis of restrictions in trade and societies that share communal resources. In discussing spheres of exchange, the main focus is on whether principles of the market and economic theories can be considered as true in economies of all societies (Hart & Ortiz 1). This concept is based on the assumption that maximization of profit is what motivates all exchanges. All people have the sole motive to accumulate considerable profits when they engage in exchange. Therefore, the concept seeks to examine the economics behind any form of exchange in the society (Hart & Ortiz 1). Anthropologists examine this concept under economic anthropology. Based on this, the concept seeks to compare and analyze consumption, production, and exchange in societies not based in the west. In studying spheres of ex change, economic anthropologists have had two aims. One of the aims includes establishing economic activities based on the social and cultural context. The second aim entails understanding the rationality behind the systems of exchange, which seem irrational and unconventional (Hart & Ortiz 1). The anthropologists who studied spheres of exchange include Laura and Paul Bohannan; they studied this concept in their field work, in Nigeria. They provided three types of spheres: the subsistence sphere, wealth, and marriageable female relatives. The subsistence sphere consisted of food, such as grains, yams, vegetables, among others. Wealth comprised cattle, slaves, white cloth, and brass rods (Hart & Ortiz 3). Economic anthropologists Karl Polyani, Marcel Mauss, and Karl Marx have had an impact in the explanations of spheres of exchange. Polyani made a significant contribution through his comparison of economic institutions. His ideas outlined in Trade and Market in the Early Empires repr esent his beliefs. He argued that the economy of capitalistic societies is guided by values and not aim for profit (Hart & Ortiz 3). In his works, known as the gift, Mauss examines the exchange of gifts in various societies. He holds that gifts have a reciprocal nature since the receiver has an obligation to pay back what he or she got from the giver. Karl Marx made contributions in the field of anthropology through his dialectics and his arguments of social class. Neoliberal Globalization Neoliberal globalization entails efforts to remove barriers to trade and privatization of services as well as resources. The main objective of neoliberal globalization of the economy is to leave prices at the control of market forces. This tends to benefit a few in the society, while the majority suffers due to increased prices and unfavorable conditions in the market. Neo-liberalism and globalization develops within certain circumstances, which tend to be social and historical. Neo-liberalists ar gue that this concept is a law of nature. Anthropologists take globalization to mean the escalation in flows and improvement, in connections of people, values, goods, ideas, symbols, and knowledge (Hart & Ortiz 1). In anthropology, the term entails descriptions on how the market has prevailed. As a result, the economy became less dependent on political, social, and cultural forces. This has led to profound dominance of the market in

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Introduction to Organisations and Management Essay - 7

Introduction to Organisations and Management - Essay Example The labour force is the one of the most crucial resources for a business organisation and its productivity depends on the organisational culture, structure, leadership, motivation, communication etc. Therefore, management has to take these necessary factors into account for bringing enhancement in productivity level contributed by the labour force. Traditionally, the business owners used to perceive the employees’ related expenses as an added cost of the company; whereas, as per the post-modern organisational concepts, the managements have realised the employees as vital investments for a company which will have return in future. Therefore, the nature structure and process of for completing a task has changed significantly in comparison to the earlier periods (Sole and Costa, 2001, p.2-3). Dodgson, Gann and Salter have identified the two paradigm of managements based on traditional and modern concept. The following the table depict the old paradigm of the managements and the c hanged paradigm of management. Table 1: Old and New Paradigm of Management (Source: Dodgson, Gann and Salter, 2008, p.42) As per the above table, it can be observed that the organisation in the post-modern age become very flexible and growth oriented. The organisations that have successfully understood and incorporated these changes are successful in an industry in comparison to companies following old paradigm of management (Dodgson, Gann and Salter, 2008, p.42-43). This paper will attempt to discuss organisation management of the separate companies i.e. Watsons Engine Components and H & M Consulting based on two case studies. The paper will focus on comparison of the certain areas of the both companies through analyses by using models and theories. The major areas relating to organisation management of the two companies will be organisational design and structure, teams and team working, approach to leadership and management, and approach to leadership and management. 2. Organisat ional design and structure The first step in the successful managing organisation is to create a healthy and smooth management decision making process which is crucial for achieving the organisational growth. Senior and Fleming has described that â€Å"the structure of an organisation is the formal way of identifying who is taking responsibility for what; who is to execute authority over who; and who is to be answerable to whom† (Senior and Fleming, 2009, p.78). Therefore, the organisation structure mainly focuses on the process of the decision making and it involves the top managements who are responsible for taking critical management decisions. For designing a growth oriented organisation, a favourable organisation structure is mandatory and each of the top level management must identify the plays their responsibility considering prevailing scenario for achieving the best possible outcome. Mcshane and Travaglione have identified two fundamental essentials for developing or ganisational structure. These two fundamental requirements are division of labour and coordination. The division of labour is helpful in shaping the specialized skills and coordination means the relationship status among the employees and top level managements. The coordination can be achieved through â€Å"Informal communication†, â€Å"Formal hierarchy†

Saturday, July 27, 2019

A critical response to the Marketing Myopia Assignment

A critical response to the Marketing Myopia - Assignment Example Additionally, the article presents marketing strategies that can help business management overcome competition and other external forces, which threaten a business. Therefore, this discussion seeks to critically analyze the strengths and weakness of this article, with a focus to understanding the plausibility of the ideas it present. The strength of this article is identifiable in addressing the causative factors for business success or failure. The article clarifies on the misconception held by many people that external forces are the major causes of a business failure. However, according to the article, the reason behind the success or failure of any business is not due to environmental factors such as market saturation, threatened growth or competition. The success or failure of any business or organization is solely determined by the management (Levitt, 2004). The reason the failure of any business has to be attributed to the management because; when the business of an industry d eclines, it is not because the industry was not best suited to serve the people. The industry declines because the management is not able to protect its business from their competitors, who eventually take their customers away from them (Levitt, 2004). If the management can apply strategies for protecting their customer base, their business in any industry will continue thriving. This is one of the strengths of this article, since it emphasizes on the role of prudent management in ensuring the success of a business. Secondly, the article presents another credible argument that serves as another of its strength. Broader focus is the key to success of any business or industry (Levitt, 2004). The article observes that businesses fail because they perceive their investment narrowly, considering competitors to be only those offering similar products and services. This makes the management of the business forget to focus on the whole industry and how it can affect their business. For exam ple, people operating in the railway business will only focus their competitors as those other companies or individuals who own trains, forgetting that they are not in the narrow railroad business, but operating in the transport industry (Levitt, 2004). Therefore, the elaboration given by the article is credible because, in focusing narrowly at the business, the owners of a business are only concerned about the product or service they offer, at the expense of focusing on the customer (Levitt, 2004). Thus, for the success of any business, a wider focus on customer needs is important than focusing on the suitability of the products and services which a business offers. Businesses will succeed more if they focus on understanding and meeting customer needs. Therefore, a business should focus on the overall needs of the customer in the industry it is operating, rather than focusing narrowly on direct competitors. This is because, customer needs can be met by the indirect competitors, who take away the customers served by a business, and meet their needs in a different manner (Levitt, 2004). According to this article, the strength and success of any business lies in its internal innovation. If a business can tailor its innovativeness towards meeting customer needs at the expense of improving the efficiency of its products, the business is sure to succeed (Levitt, 2004). For example, a business operating in the petroleum industry should focus on the needs of the customers in the whole of the energy industry. This would mean that the business works towards meeting the needs of the

Friday, July 26, 2019

PHILOSOPHY AND TRADITIONS IN MANAGAMENT RESEARCH Assignment

PHILOSOPHY AND TRADITIONS IN MANAGAMENT RESEARCH - Assignment Example Despite these assumptions of agent control and responsibility, human social, political, and economic aspects make business hardly imaginable. In this paper, I will critically evaluate some of the major business operations and use them in gauging whether they are free will, are there alternatives or simply not free at all. The organization’s operations include a firm’s establishments, finances, employees-boss relationship, public relations, the firm’s disciplinary, success, and moral responsibilities Before critically analyzing a firm, the firm must have started somewhere. Someone must have conceptualized the idea before making it real. Thus, the question is whether the entrepreneur or business owner started the firm out of free will or not. One definition of â€Å"free will† is that, it is means of fulfilling a certain desire through a selected line of action (OConnor, 2002). In such a scenario then, the entrepreneur’s choice to start a firm is free will when he/she accepts the notion. Thus, such endeavors also cement the idea of genuine will. Therefore, from a genuine free-will position, the entrepreneur can have done otherwise, but the â€Å"free will† aspect influences his/her decisions (Fiese, 2009). However, from the agent causal theory, one philosopher David Hume, holds that our preferences and decisions are results of other proceedings in the brain’s desires, beliefs, favorites, feelings, and so forth (OConnor, 2002). Therefore, regarding this theory it is clear that something informed the entrepreneur’s choice for the business and the decision to start a firm. For instance, the innate desires for best business outcomes such as profits, fame and riches and stability form the major determinants influencing an individual’s decisions about forming a company. Once a firm develops and manufactures products, an enormous task of

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Strategic Tourism Planning and Development in London Essay

Strategic Tourism Planning and Development in London - Essay Example The objective is then to proceed to external focus that will solidify the promotion of the London by addressing natural and made-made environmental issues. Therefore, the main observations provide the aim to effectively describing current tourism issues that stalls the sustainability in development. Thus, the designed aspect provides an opportunity to creating a sufficient resolution towards the identified different sustainability protocols for successful private and public sectors endeavors (Dibbs, 2007,pp.107). Current trends in tourism present challenging in the pursuit for sustainability and profitability within the targeted industry. The tourism planning is vital to determining how a particular locale is performing within the private and public sectors aspect but also the environmental concerns. The most damaging issues arises out of balancing out the concerns relates to focuses on operation of tourism enterprises. The consideration in tourism operation management offers a strategy to identify and resolving certain issues that arises in a given season. The effort demonstrates the presentation of resources for maneuvering through the public and private markets. The community attitudinal studies relates to how the particular city challenges to managed resources can reduce significantly interests for tourism planning and development. The designed concept to promote the London as the designation for a tourist private and public sectors objectives will only be successful if stated issues are addressed. Therefore, the awareness level provides an open forum for the concerns of tourism environmental concerns are addressed accordingly to brainstorm suggestions. The tourism planning and development for the promotion of the London is dependable of mastering the economic and employment dependency.

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Theories of Counseling Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Theories of Counseling - Term Paper Example If he gets demotivated and stops working hard his grades may even drop. The bottom line is that an individual endeavors to achieve success through hard work thereby overcoming the weaknesses. This contributes towards a personal drive to completeness. Hence, my view of the nature of people is closest to Alfred Alder’s Individual Psychology according to which people strive towards achieving success and this is referred to as a personal growth towards perfection. Also, according to Alder social interest was affected by social training and was not inborn. Unlike Freud’s theory, Alder believed that the conscious behavior was the backbone of an individual’s personal development. As a result, this theory makes an individual responsible for their perception and adaptations to the different events. An individual’s own lack of properly adjustment explains their lack of growth. If an individual is discouraged or his or her positive gestures do not result in required outcome, misbehavior occurs (University of Nevada Las Vegas, 2010). Individuals act as the components upon which the structure of family is made up of. An individual is affected by the family system very deeply as the family as a whole is a complex and dynamic collection of these individuals playing their roles (Hammond, 2010). The behavior of an individual in their family is shaped by the expectation of the family. This is the same reason why an individual may behave differently with their family members and their friends. This is because an individual is aware of what is expected of him as a brother, sister, daughter, son, parent, or grandparent. The theory which is closest to me view is the Family Systems theory according to which a family is a group of individuals, components and subparts. Similar to any mechanical system, a family can also be diagnosed by researchers and therapists so as to locate the point of repair by investigating its members (Hammond, 2010).

Explain why United States based media conglomerates are so successful Essay

Explain why United States based media conglomerates are so successful on the world media markets - Essay Example Yet, the synthesis between the local and the global in content has become the order of the day as it is successfully adopted and implemented by the United States based media conglomerates. Since media plays a vital role in the cultural lives of millions of people and the fact that media sector is by and large controlled by American interests, there have been arguments in favour of the idea ‘cultural imperialism’. Although the central postulate of cultural imperialism thesis remains valid due to the lopsidedness in the global media market, the so-called cultural imperialism through the American cultural products cannot be seen as one sided as the theorists of cultural imperialism perspective understood it to be. In the light of the recent developments taking place in the media sector, especially the regional media in the developing countries and the changes bought by the new media technologies, this paper intends to examine the case of United States based media conglomerates and their role in what is happening around us. The core concern of the essay is to examine what is remaining relevant with the arguments and concerns regarding American media supremacy and the criticisms provided by the contesting theoretical doctrines from the vantage point of the tremendous transformations occurring with the global media conditions from the very beginning of twenty first century. The term global media denotes the collective of big media players and multinationals working in the integrated global media environment. They spread around the globe and significant share of the national markets and have the ability to pace up the opening up of new markets or even invent emergent markets. However, both global and local media organisations represent the characteristics of each other. Thussu (2007) has asserted that the development of

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Amygdala and Hippocampus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Amygdala and Hippocampus - Essay Example The second experiment was made to record effects of lesions of different brain parts, which were amygdala, dorsal hippocampus, and cortex dorsal to the hippocampus. It was revealed that animals with amygdala lesions showed a significant difference in both pre-CS and CS during the experiment. Animals with lesions on hippocampus showed no significant change in time of freezing during the CS on any day but did show a significantly reduced freezing time during pre-CS condition. Lesions of the neocortex above the hippocampus had no obvious change on freezing to neither CS nor pre-CS compared with unoperated control group (Phillips R. G. and LeDoux, 1992, p.276).This study indicates that amygdala is an essential component in fear conditioning, regardless of the type of stimulus input serving as the CS. Amygdala is involved in the formation of associations between the aversive US and of any of a variety of types of CSS, ranging from the simplest to the most complex. Hippocampus, although no t necessary for conditioning with an explicit CS, is necessary for the conditioning of fear responses to contextual stimuli. Also, the study indicates the contextual conditioning may not be a necessary aspect of fear conditioning. I agree with, it because when intensities of the US are low, conditioning only developed to the explicit CS. When intensities increases, freezing time increases in the both explicit CS and the context, but contextual conditioning required a greater number of exposures to the US.

Monday, July 22, 2019

Creative Photography Essay Example for Free

Creative Photography Essay This paper would seek to provide a comparative analysis between some of the most talented and creative photographers ever introduced to this genre of arts by examining their individual creative sense and sensibilities. Annie Leibovitz, Diane Arbus and lastly Richard Avedon. All three had three equally different styles and were truly exceptional in their own styles. Annie Leibovitz established herself as a photographer who was truly experimental as was indicated by her images and hence, was widely recognized as someone who was not afraid to portray what she truly believed in. In fact her sudden rise to fame and popularity at the tender age of 20 resulted in her being one of the most revered photographers of the modern times. One of her most famous photos was that of John Lennon as it highlighted Lennon as he was; an unpretentious image who was unfazed by all the popularity and success and hence, this image showcased Leibovitz’s ability to capture the â€Å"inner† sense of people-to go beyond the mere public image. Her bold and modern images such as that of John Lennon and his wife were an indicator of Leibovitz’s ability to capture the essence of emotions and relationships; a highly intriguing concept for this photographer. This image represented the strong connected between the pair and was a landmark in the sense that it allowed the viewer to connect with John Lennon and his wife’s emotions. Throughout her career, Leibovitz has always been considering something of a controversy as a result of her ability to capture images under a theme of subtle nudity. This very ability allow this artist to portray an image of honesty and over time, this same creative talent has been inconsistent as she moved across different forums and themes but there has always been a need to capture the inner honestly and emotion. In comparison to this, Richard Avedon was a photographer who was more interested in the way images could be used to highlight the soul and the personality of the person in question. His main source for taking cameras was his 8 by 10 camera which became sinuous with his name and he was widely recognized for his ability to take large images of famous faces. He focused more on people who made up the list of commoners and hence, his work titled the American West was criticized for showing a negative imagery of American cultural system. Audrey Hepburn was his muse and this signifies the extent to which Avedon’s talent was appreciated by his peers and other people alike and he himself however, felt that he could not translate Hepburn’s personality on camera due to its immense height. The last photographer who would be analyzed and compared would be Diane Arbus, who represented a totally different creative sense from the other two; one who believed in capturing the emotions while the other wanted to capture the inner soul. The mediums used by both were quite different as were their focuses as while Annie focused more on the capturing the famous faces, Richard showed an extensive interest in the commoners. Diane Arbus however, showed an entirely different creative sense as she focused more on capturing the relationships between specific people and a bond was highlighted which was not considered to be in tune with the normal bonds. She has been perceived as one of the most influential members of the photography genre as a result of her unfailing ability to capture a side of her subjects which seemed to want a sense of understanding on the behalf of the viewer. John Szarkowski ‘s exhibition of her works made Diane Arbus one of the most recognizable faces of photograph and her eventual suicide portrayed the tragedy of a woman who seemed incline to capture the more tragic aspect of her characters unlike the aforementioned artists who were in touch with other aspects of their subjects. Works Cited Farley, Christopher John. â€Å"Shooting to Thrill. † Retrieved from Dow Jones Company. 27 Apr 2009. http://s. wsj. net/article/SB122670139623729593. html. Leibovitz, Annie. â€Å"John Lennon. † Retrieved from RealNetworks, Inc. 27 Apr 2009. http://www. rollingstone. com/news/coverstory/10247676/1/John_Lennon. Bosworth, Patricia. 2005. Diane Arbus: A Biography. W. W. Norton, 2005. Diane Arbus: Revelations. Random House, 2003. PBS American Masters, Richard Avedon: Darkness and Light, Directed by Helen Whitney, 1995

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Healthy Vending Machine Business Plan

Healthy Vending Machine Business Plan Food awareness is one of the most common areas over which people have started focusing as it is directly related to their health. Irrespective of their background, age, income, or any other factor they are concerned about their eating habits. Based on this very particular aspect, we have come up with our product, i.e. Healthy Vending Machine which will target customers in a niche segment during its start. Our vending machine will be exactly like any other vending machine, but difference lies in its contents. All the content like snacks, drinks, juice, bars, chocolate, etc. in our vending machine will be chosen in a highly particular manner based on their effect on health. We will be giving very high end concern over quality of food that we place in our vending machine as maintaining healthy food will be acting as our USP (Unique Selling Proposition). We are planning to place our healthy vending machine at all the places where footfall is remarkably high like metro stations, railway stations, shopping malls, crowded market places, etc. We are planning to keep price of our products quite nominal as it will help us in attracting customers are they able to fulfill their need in a healthy way by getting healthy snacks without spending extra money. SWOT (S)trengths Primary strength of our venture Good Luck Food would be its uniqueness in the market. Weve performed extensive research and so far none other vendor is operating in this domain. Thus following a blue ocean strategy, we will be able to capture maximum percentage of the market without any competition. Based on this trend, there had been several restaurant take away places that started in recent past in order to serve healthy food in a community which is struggling to get such options. This particular factor will act as the primary strength for our business. (W)eakness Weakness of this Healthy Vending Machine will be to attract people towards itself during initial times along with ensuring that it is able to form a clientele. It is one of the most difficult tasks to be performed by any new business, especially for those which are not associated with any big brands. Being a startup (though with excellent business idea), it will act as a weakness for us, had it been started by another vendor which is already operating in this segment and has reputation in the market. Another weakness would be that well not be able to spend large sum of money over its marketing and increasing awareness among masses regarding our product. We would be having very limited amount of resources which we would be spending over its marketing and promotion during initial times. Once it starts generating revenue, we will be able to allocate more funds in this domain, but during initial times, new name in the market will act as a weakness for our business. (O)pportunities In recent past, bad and unhealthy eating habits of people have resulted into unnatural physical changes. According to a report, amongst most obese countries in the world, UAE ranked fifth. An average person in UAE is consuming 20% more calories than required on a daily basis. Thus it has become a major problem for authorities to take care of this problem. (UAE the fifth most obese country in the world, 2012) Based on this particular factor, our venture will pose great support to such authorities and we will get initial push without much effort. Also many of such authorities are owned by government, which will provide government support to our venture. It will also help us in getting required permissions from Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority and Dubai municipality in a hassle free manner as we are helping them solve the problem along with complying with their Policies and Regulations. (Policies and Regulations) (T)hreats As per our research, there is a high demand of healthy food in almost all the parts of UAE. Also people would be willing to pay more amount of money for this category of food which makes it a lucrative segment of food industry. Also it is one of those segments which have still not been tamed by few market leaders; there is a high end possibility that many new entrants could enter the market soon after us. We ourselves being new entrant in the market would make it extremely difficult to survive for a longer period of time in the market in which echelon of competition is continuously increasing. Another important parameter which should be taking into consideration is that after sometime, if already existing vendors like Snackzone, Coffee Planet, etc. also enters into the same segment of the market as they are always looking for opportunities, it will become highly difficult to ensure our survival if substantially remarkable survival strategies are not adopted by us. Thus we need to focus over our progress throughout our tenure in the market along with taking care of our survival. (Next generation vending machines launched at UAE-based Coffee Planet, 2012) Risk Analysis Basic parameter associated with any new venture is Risk. There is no way one can eliminate the risk completely, but by adopting certain measures it is possible to reduce the level of risk. Intimidations First parameter is level of increasing competition which will be a problem in near future based on the prosperous aspects associated with this market segment. Although new entrant will not pose such high degree of risk, but they will still make an affect over our strategies. Major risk is from existing players. If they also enter the healthy vending machine segment, it will make a high end impact over our profitability and operations. Also they would have ample resources to sell products at lower margins and kick us out of the market. Estimate Risks With every threat, there is an associated factor of risk. Increasing competition over the period of time had already been estimated by us as it is inevitable. It will make an impact over our market capturing and market penetration. If new players will enter this market segment of healthy snacks, it will make an impact over our profitability as it will hamper our profit margins. Although it might not be the case in all the regions, but there is a high end certainty of this particular factor. If existing players enter this market segment, it will make a direct impact over our survival. We may have to follow a separate strategy for survival, but there is also a possibility that we may get extinct if we are not able to handle the competition. Managing Risks To handle new entrants, we will have to cover as much market as possible in our first phase before our competition arises. This particular aspect will give us more market visibility as compared to any other vendor. Also being the first player in the segment, we have a chance to establish our monopoly during initial times and earn large profits which will help us in fighting competition at later stages. To manage the risk of existing players entering in this segment, we will have to ensure that we establish our unique image in the market. Although we do not have ample time, but in order to tackle this risk, we will have to build our brand value and ensure our survival. (Risk Analysis) Form of Business Ownership Defining the form business ownership is extremely important as it will define way of our operations along with our liabilities. We can either form Partnership or Corporation. But as the food industry, especially healthy food industry is not generally liable to go into heavy debts; it is not required to go for Corporation option. We can choose Partnership for our business venture as amount of initial investment is also not extremely high. Specifying details of Partnership firm, we can go for General Partnership as it will ensure equal involvement, responsibility and liability of all the partners in the firm. Thus all the owners will also be responsible for any legal actions if taken against the company which is very less likely as we trying to solve a problem. Business Goals Following are the Business Goals of Good Luck Food: Ensure its profitable existence throughout its lifetime so that we are able to conduct our operations adequately. Build Good Luck Food a brand in Middle East part of the world. Provide healthy food to all the people to ensure that they are following a good lifestyle. Spread health awareness amongst people which is a noble cause and also act as our Corporate Social Responsibility. It will also help in boosting our business in long run. Generate healthy competitive environment in the Middle East region so that customers are also benefitted from our existence. Work in compliance with government norms and help it in solving one of the biggest challenges of near future. Mission Statement Mission of Good Luck Food is to provide easy accessibility of healthy munching options to individuals and become a leader in the market. Marketing Marketing Analysis In the recent few years, UAE has been emerged as one of the biggest business capital in the world. People from all around the world have come in this country to either open up a business venture or work in some countries. With such a great diversity of people coming in this country, the level of health security has also increased. This gives a great leverage to our product Good Luck Food. With an increasing popularity for one-stop-shop or one-stop-machines, the target population for our product is not restricted to any particular age, gender or income level. But still, there are some groups which can be considered as a higher buying level group and there is some other which is considered low. Looking at the demographics of the country, the total population is 7,890,924, as estimate in the year 2011. Around 71% of the people living in this country are immigrants. There is a gender ratio 70:30 (male: female). Talking about the main target market of the product, this product is reachable to all the customers irrespective of their age, gender, or income level. But, the company is mainly focusing upon the people of the working age group and people who are more into sports (mainly kids). As far as the income level of the target population is considered, middle class people and high class people are the main target customers. Main reason for keeping kids and the working age people to be the target market for the product is that our product will mainly be located in Metro Stations, railway stations, Shopping malls, etc. Hence, the specified groups of people visit these places more often as compared to the other groups. Talking about the geographical distribution about the target market, our product will initiate its business in three main cities of UAE Abu Dhabi and Dubai. According to ICD Research, the potential market for vending machine is UAE as per the year 2015 is going to be huge. Already, there are several companies putting their vending machines at different locations in UAE. The popularity of vending machines is continuously increasing because of the changing needs of the people. Today, nobody would like to go to a shopping mall to buy eatables for immediate consumption, everybody wants vending machines they are easy to reach and they are cool! There is a change in the needs to the customers as well. The customer, whichever age may he be from, is now becoming more concerned about his or her health. With such a changing need, Good Luck Food will serve fruitful to the customers because it will be the first vending machined which will help the customers to chose according to their health status. The sales of various products from the vending machines will depend upon the requirement in a particular season; for example, in Soft Drinks will be more popular in the summer season whereas in the winters, coffee and tea will be preferable. Hence, the sales of few of the products from vending machines will be season. The collection of products in the vending machines should be set keeping in mind their popularity in the market and among the customers. It is very much important that the vending machine should contain all the food which is preferable by the customers. Hence, sales from the vending machines depend a lot on the popularity of the products kept inside the machines. Marketing Plan Advertising and Promotional Campaign There are different types of promotional techniques to be used in the marketing of Good Luck Food among the customers. These promotional techniques used by the company are as follows: Using Print Media (Newspapers and magazines advertisements): Not in comparison with the earlier times, but still newspapers and magazines are mostly used by the people when they are travelling or when they are not doing anything else. Almost every age group is acquitted with these. Keeping in mind the diversity of the population of UAE, the advertisement will have to publish in both Arabic and English Newspapers. At the starting stage of the business, it will cost AED 50,000 and the frequency of the usage of the advertisements will be once in a week three months before the launch and daily, one month before the launch and at least three months after the launch. This is one of the most expensive advertisement technique used by the company but is effective as well Using Digital Media (Television, FM): This is again an expensive technique of advertising. Main target market is the kids, ladies, husbands watching sports channel, daily soaps, and news channels, respectively. The frequency of the advertisements from the digital media would be same as the print media. It would cost a little more than the print media i.e. AED 60,000 Web Advertising: This is one of the most preferred ways of advertising. In the present era, almost everyone is acquainted with the internet. Good Luck Food will be promoted on the websites which are highly popular, for example, advertisement will be put in almost every social networking site facebook.com, twitter.com, etc. These are several other websites where the advertisement will be displayed by the company. The cost of web advertisement would be AED 35,000 Posters, Hoardings, etc.: Digital and non-digital posters will be displayed on various important places (mostly the places where these vending machines are to be placed) like shopping malls, railway stations, metro stations, etc. These are available for all the passing by customers. This is one of the most effective ways of promotion in case of promoting the product through an eye to eye catch. Total cost of promotion through these techniques would be around AED 35,000 Web Presence As this has been presented earlier that internet advertisements would be one of the best ways to promote the product because almost all the people at present are acquainted with internet in the present era. Hence, there is a huge web presence of the product before it gets started off in the market as well as the time when it gets launched because at the present times, it is highly important to continue promoting the products during its operations as well otherwise, its popularity degrades. Location Layout Location Good Luck Food vending machines will be available in various places like metro stations, railway stations, shopping malls, crowded market places, etc. These places are chosen for the placement of these vending machines because these have high footfall which clearly means that a lot of people would visit these place on a daily basis. All of these locations would be considered crowded with obviously crowd in the railway stations and metro station would be more than the crowd in the shopping malls as far as the daily frequency is concerned. Hence, these places are chosen because of the fact that they produce high human traffic. As these vending machines would be placed at the railway stations and metro stations in the open, a deal with the Abu Dhabi and Dubai Municipality has to be done. Permission will need to be taken before launching the same. This deal will be cracked in an approximate average lease of AED 100,000 per year per location. As we are planning to have 25 locations in Abu Dhabi and 25 in Dubai at the start of the business, hence for the location charges, the company will have to pay AED 5,000,000 to the municipality. Other stakeholders involved Other stakeholders involved in the business are as follows: Founder and CEO of the company: The company is founded in partnership of two person Mr. A and Mr. B. Mr. A has done his MBA in marketing from UK and has a total experience of 10 years in the CPG industry in UK and UAE both. Mr. B has done his masters in Finance from Abu Dhabi. He has a total experience of 12 years in the CPG industry Suppliers: Our prime suppliers are few of the very important brands in the industry like Dabur, Pepsi, etc. These are the reputed brands in the industry and hence contribute a lot in the sales of the products. Legal and Auditing Firm Companys yearly financial statements will be audited by XYZ firm with an annual charge of AED 50,000. Human Resource Plan Legal Issues with the Employees All the employees in the company will be hired with a legal obligation to work for at least one year in the company. This will be a mandatory bond which the employee will have to sign with the company before joining. Projection for the employees for Future Total Investment Made 42,870,000 Syndicated Loan of AED 30,009,000 has been taken from two different banks of UAE. These loans are promised to be repaid in the time span of 10 years with an interest rate of 10% per annum.

Effective Treatment for Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Effective Treatment for Generalized Anxiety Disorder Introduction In primary care, as in other fields of medical practice, it is essential that doctors are able to apply the findings of scientific research to the circumstances of individual patients as part of their clinical decision-making process. This is known as evidence based medicine. In this review I have taken an illness which often presents in primary care, namely Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), and by researching possible treatments have developed the skills necessary to search various databases for relevant articles and the ability to assess the validity of the evidence found. In this review I focus specifically on Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT) as a potential treatment for GAD. Generalized anxiety disorder is characterized by chronic, uncontrollable worry associated with a wide range of physical symptoms including fatigue, headaches, muscle aches, difficulty swallowing, trembling, twitching, sweating, nausea and shortness of breath. A diagnosis of GAD is made when a person worries excessively about a variety of every day problems for at least 6 months. The disorder is common in later life, with a prevalence of 11.2% in primary care where older adults most often seek treatment and overall is more prevalent than either severe cognitive impairment or depression in the over 65s. Despite this, anxiety disorders in the ageing population have received relatively little research attention. Anxiety in later life has been linked to increased risk of physical disability, memory difficulties, decreased quality of life and inappropriate use of medical services . There are currently several treatment options available for GAD including drugs such as Benzodiazepines, Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), Azapirones, Barbituates and Pregablins. There are also alternative treatment options such as herbal remedies and psychotherapy such as Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy and Psychodynamic Psychotherapy. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is a form of psychotherapy which targets problematic emotions and behaviours via a range of approaches and can be used alongside medication or as an alternative to it. When used to treat anxiety disorders the principle methods include education and awareness, motivational interviewing, relaxation training, cognitive restructuring, exposure, problem-solving skills training and behavioural sleep management. Unlike anxiolytics, CBT has no known side effects or risk of physical dependence. Anxiolytics are currently the most common treatment for late-life anxiety and surveys suggest that up to 20% of non-instituti onalized elderly persons may be using benzodiazepines. However, the use of these medications as a long term treatment for anxiety disorders is associated with potential risks for elderly patients such as cognitive impairment, falls and hip fractures, drug interactions and toxicity. Also an over-reliance on medication may neglect potentially important psychosocial factors such as social support, coping skills and interpersonal relationships. In light of this it is important that the effectiveness of CBT is assessed as it could prove a useful alternative to long term medication particularly in the ageing population. Method I conducted initial research using textbooks and the internet and then used different databases to search for relevant papers and articles. Searches were primarily conducted using MedLine (Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System) as it contains information from a wide range of fields including Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Biology and Biochemistry and contains over 18 million records from approximately 5,000 publications. Web of Knowledge was also used as it encompasses not only MedLine but also other databases such as the Social Sciences Citation Index. I also conducted searches using Scopus and the Cochrane Library but often found that the Cochrane Library yielded few or no results so these searches have been omitted. By beginning with broad search terms it was possible to refine these to yield fewer, more relevant results. An initial search of the terms cognitive-behavioral therapy and generalized anxiety disorder yielded the following results. The search was also limited to include articles which had both these terms in the title and in the abstract. Various spellings and abbreviations such as CBT and GAD were used when searching for cognitive-behavioural therapy and generalized anxiety disorder in order to achieve a high number of results and to ensure articles werent overlooked. After searching through the results, reading abstracts and dismissing articles which werent relevant to this topic or freely available, 4 articles were chosen to be included in this review. I chose to specifically focus on RCTs as this is the strongest study design for testing cause and effect relationships. When critically appraising the papers included in this review, a series of questions primarily derived from the CASP (Critical Appraisal Skills Programme), but also incorporating other sources, were used and articles were judged on how much information they provide and the quality of the evidence. Examples of these questions are as follows. Did the trial have a clear objective? Is an RCT an appropriate study design to answer this question? How were the participants randomized? What was the average age of the participants? What were the exclusion criteria for participants? Were the subjects in each of the groups similar on demographic and baseline clinical variants? How did the trial adjust for attrition? When/how often was data collected from participants during follow up? How were outcomes measured? Were details of effect sizes and statistical significance given? Did the study have enough participants? Does the paper present a clear result? Results Discussion The first study looked at was an RCT published in 1996 entitled Treatments of Generalized Anxiety in Older Adults: A Preliminary Comparison of Cognitive-Behavioural and Supportive Approaches. This trial compared CBT with non directive Supportive Psychotherapy (SP), a form of therapy which involves education, guidance, listening to the patient and encouraging expression of emotions. Results showed significant improvement in all measured outcomes for both interventions and generally large effect sizes. However, no significant differences were found between the the two groups. The authors gave an extensive list of exclusion criteria, including current involvement in psychotherapy and low MMSE scores, which limits confounding factors and therefore the likelihood of type 1 errors. A major limitation of this study however is the high level of attrition. This study design could possibly be improved if it were to include another control group, which receives no treatment, with which to compa re the two interventions with. In this respect the more recent trial Treatment of generalized anxiety disorder in older adults, which is discussed later, improves on this trial and has a significantly lower attrition rate. However, the authors of this trial argue that by failing to include a waiting-list control group they alleviated the need to withhold treatment from any patients, which could be deemed ethically questionable. This trial had a follow-up assessment period of 6 months which is relatively short compared to the other studies in this review, one of which has a follow-up period of 15 months. It is arguable that this will limit conclusions made in this study regarding the long-term durability of treatment. Unlike other studies this study did not measure the effect of either intervention on the participants quality of life which is an important factor to consider as GAD has such a profound effect on the sufferers quality of life. An RCT published February 2003 entitled Treatment of generalized anxiety disorder in older adults, compared CBT with a discussion group (DG) and patients receiving no treatment on a waiting list period (WL). The discussion group was organized around worry provoking topics and was designed to be structurally comparable to CBT. DG consisted of a series of 12 discussions focused on topics known to be worry-provoking for older adults, including memory problems, health concerns, loss of independence and death of friends and family. Both the CBT and DG groups consisted of 4-6 participants and a group leader, one of four advanced doctoral students in clinical psychology. These leaders were spread across the two interventions and each leader chaired at least one CBT group and one DG in order to avoid confounding the effectiveness of the therapist with the effectiveness of the therapeutic model. Participants in both CBT and DG were asked to spend approximately 30 minutes a day on homework exe rcises. The study gave full details of exclusion criteria including commencement of psychotropic medication within the past 2 months. Patients who had started medication more than 2 months ago were included but were asked not to change their dose or type of medication for the duration of the trial. However, in light of this it is possible to argue that including participants on any form of anxiolytic medication restricts conclusions about the impact of CBT without concomitant pharmacological treatment. The authors included a table detailing demographic information about their study sample in order to support the generalisability of their findings. The table showed that participants came from a range of races, had differing marital and work statuses and suffered from a range of different medical conditions, the most common being osteoarthritis (36%) and hypertension (32%). Compared to the first study, participants not only scored themselves but were also assessed by trained research assistants who were unaware of which group the patient had been assigned to. This adds an element of blinding which is not present in the first study. This was the only study in which patients rated their impression of the treatment after the first session. The participants rated the credibility of the intervention, their enjoyment, perceived effectiveness, likelihood of recommending the intervention to a friend, likelihood of participating again in the future and perceived improvement. This is a useful addition to the trial as a patients satisfaction with a treatment method has a big impact on adherence and possibly symptom improvement. The results showed that participants in both CBT and DG improved compared to the waiting period but there was no significant difference between the two interventions. However, when effect sizes were calculated showed large effects whereas DG showed medium sized effects. Essentially this study shows that CBT is better than no treatment but gives no s ignificant evidence to suggest that it is better than other forms of intervention such as group discussion. This is an interesting point which mirrors the findings of the first trial which compared CBT to SP. An RCT published in April 2003 entitled Cognitive- Behavioral Treatment of late-life generalized anxiety disorder (M A Stanley et al. 2002) evaluated the efficacy of CBT compared to minimal contact control (MCC). The results showed a significant improvement in worry, anxiety, depression and quality of life following CBT compared to MCC. 45% of patients were classed as responding to treatment compared with 8% who received MCC. Importantly these gains were maintained or enhanced over a 1 year follow-up. However, as in the other RCTs in this review, patients did not report a complete return to normal functioning or a complete removal of symptoms. When recruiting participants for this trial the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule-IV was used as a diagnostic tool. Patients underwent two separate diagnostic interviews conducted by two different evaluators over a period of at least two weeks. These evaluators were unaware of any previous diagnoses made. This shows that all participants in the study had symptoms which were consistent and were not prone to varying over time, which means that any change during follow up assessment was more likely to be due to the intervention than to fluctuations in the severity of their GAD. The study commented on potential variance in results due to gender and explained how they had adjusted for this. Similarly to the last study, this study used not only self-reported scores but also independent clinician rated scores. Unlike previous studies this trial did not include any participants currently receiving medication for their GAD or associated symptoms in order to assess the effectiveness of CBT alone and not in conjunction with medication. A Randomised Control Trial, conducted by M A Stanley et al. entitled Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Generalized Anxiety Disorder Among Older Adults in Primary Care (2009) compared group CBT conducted in primary care clinics over 3 months with a control of enhanced usual care (EUC). The authors chose to use group CBT rather than individual, one-on-one CBT as they believed that the loss of social support often experienced as a consequence of ageing indicated the potential benefits of group treatment. The results of this trial showed that CBT significantly improved worry severity, depressive symptoms and general mental health but there was no difference in GAD severity between the two groups. The authors clearly set out their objective and gave detailed information on where the study was set, where participants were chosen from, details of the intervention and main outcome measures at the start of the paper. The fact that the patients were recruited exclusively from a primary care sett ing and that the intervention was delivered in primary care makes this evidence particularly useful for this review. During recruitment all potential participants were screened using two questions from the Primary Care Evaluation of Mental Disorders, as well as undergoing the Mini-Mental State Examination and a Structured Diagnostic Interview, in order to ensure that all had the same diagnosis and similar GAD severity. Race and ethnicity of participants were identified and the data used to facilitate conclusions about the generalizability of the data. The authors commented on effect sizes and stated that the effect sizes for symptom improvement were comparable to or greater than those in recent primary care studies of younger adults with GAD and older adults with depression. The authors also commented that participants in this trial scored slightly lower mean change in worry severity over time scores in comparison with Treatment for Generalized Anxiety Disorder in older adults that was conducted several years earlier. One possible limitation of both this study and the previous study is that patients in the control group received minimal contact with health professionals compared to the intervention group. This may leave patients feeling neglected and as they are aware that theyre not receiving any form of treatment, they may not expect to get better and subsequently score themselves lower on assessment than otherwise. In this respect the first two studies are somewhat better designed, as they compare CBT to interventions which involve a similar contact. The second study in particular deals with this issue well by comparing CBT with a discussion group, which requires the patient to be involved with the intervention, and a waiting list period in which the patient is very much aware that they are receiving no treatment. Several studies of anxiety in older adults have been conducted using community or senior centre volunteers with self-diagnosed, subjective anxiety symptoms and therefore the findings from these studies may not be applicable to a clinical population. In contrast the four RCTs included in this review were all conducted on patients with diagnosed GAD and CBT and was delivered in a primary care setting. All the studies gave detailed information on how the participants were randomized and how drop-outs were dealt with and had a follow-up period of at least 6 months. Conclusion In conclusion, all four studies showed that CBT improves levels of anxiety, as well as other associated symptoms of GAD, when compared to both baseline measures and no treatment. However these studies also showed that when CBT is compared to other forms of therapy, namely Supportive Psychotherapy and discussion groups, there are no significant differences between the two interventions. Although CBT does lead to significant alleviation of symptoms, this evidence does not indicate that CBT is a long lasting cure for GAD and it does not prove CBT to be a better treatment option than other forms of psychotherapy. Therefore it is important to question whether or not the benefits felt by participants receiving CBT, SP or DG are due to a placebo effect compared to participants who are left on a waiting list who may feel they are being neglected and do not expect any improvement in symptoms. This raises the issue of blinding which is a limitation of most conceivable trials including CBT as i t is not possible to make the participant unaware of what intervention they are receiving when when they have to actively participate in treatment. The dearth of clinical trials, particularly RCT trials, investigating CBT as a treatment for GAD needs to be addressed if an acceptable amount of evidence in favour of CBT is to be established. Suggestions for future trials include RCTs comparing the effectiveness of group CBT compared with individual CBT for older adults and trials comparing CBT with anxiolytic medications such as benzodiazepines. This is a particularly pertinent issue considering the side effects associated with anxiolytics and old age, as previously mentioned. Future trials should aim to recruit a larger number of participants than seen in most of the studies discussed. In theory this should not be difficult if the prevalence of GAD in the elderly population is as alarmingly high as some statistics indicate.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Summary and Analysis of The Merchants Tale Essays -- Canterbury Tales

Summary and Analysis of The Merchant's Tale (The Canterbury Tales) Prologue to the Merchant's Tale: The merchant claims that he knows nothing of long-suffering wives. Rather, if his wife were to marry the devil, she would overmatch even him. The Merchant claims that there is a great difference between Griselde's exceptional obedience and his wife's more common cruelty. The Merchant has been married two months and has loathed every minute of it. The Host asks the Merchant to tell a tale of his horrid wife. Analysis The prologues that link the various Canterbury Tales shift effortlessly from ponderous drama to light comedy. The lamentable tale of Griselde gives way to the Host's complaint about his shrewish wife. This prologue further illustrates how each of the characters informs the tale he tells. The travelers largely tell tales that conform to their personal experiences or attitudes, such as the Merchant, whose awful marriage is the occasion for his tale about a difficult wife. In most cases the influence of the narrator on his tale is apparent, but the authorial touch lightly felt. The Merchant's Tale, for example, gains little from the prologue's information that the Merchant is disenchanted with his own marriage. Only a few of these tales exist largely as extensions of the characters who tell them; the Wife of Bath's Tale is the most prominent of these stories. The Merchant's Tale: The Merchant tells a tale of a prosperous knight from Lombardy who had not yet taken a wife. But when this knight, January, had turned sixty, whether out of devotion or dotage, he decided to finally be married. He searched for prospects, now convinced that the married life was a paradise on earth. Yet his brother, Placebo, cited... ...y. January's repeated insistence that their intercourse includes a rationalization that a man and wife are one person, and no man would harm himself with a knife, an unpleasant phallic image. January uses May only as a sexual object; he hammers away upon her, bringing her only pain and boredom. The Merchant's Tale also stretches the conventions of fabliau through the climax of the tale in which Pluto and Proserpina intrude upon the sexual intrigues among January, May and John. Proserpina and Pluto discuss the virtues of men and women in marriage, coming to the conclusion that few men are commendable, but absolutely no women are worthy. Their intervention in the situation gives divine sanction to the condemnation of women, purposely giving January his sight so that he can condemn his wife (although in a mordant twist, January can literally not believe his eyes).

Friday, July 19, 2019

A Glimpse of Culture From the Eyes of an Engineer :: Personal Narrative Cultural Essays

The 8:50 a.m. bell rings. Thirty faces look up at the board. "The Refrigeration cycle begins with refrigerant R-134a proceeding to ..." Most pencils are hard at work, taking diligent notes. Some students stare into the board, attempting to imprint the entire schematic of the Refrigeration cycle into their memories. Others take a shot of Mountain Dew to clear the mental passages, or wake up from the previous evening. Concentration levels run high, as we all endeavor to excel at what we have been doing for the last several years -- pursuing an engineering degree. Each student in that Thermodynamics classroom had by this point in his or her undergraduate engineering career settled comfortably into the American engineering lifestyle. We had all gone through Statics as freshman, struggled with Dynamics as sophomores, and went on to tackle the curriculum that lay ahead. Gradually many of us became involved in campus organizations or committees. We bought organizer calendars, and watched the days fill up with meetings and activities that quenched our thirst for involvement and drove us to achieve in and out of the classroom. We dove into the crazy, driven and exciting pace of life at a very reputable Big Ten University, ready to reap all of the benefits that an undergraduate degree has to offer. As one of the thirty students in that very classroom, I had come to know this lifestyle well. To me it was the best and most intense of all worlds that I had seen up to that point in life, and it was the most satisfying. Yet being comfortable in the realm of undergraduate engineering arose in me a curiosity about other worlds. The curiosity developed into an urge to deviate from the well-founded path, and risk stepping into a complete unknown. The wheels began to turn, the plans formed, and several semesters later I was sitting in a somewhat different classroom. The students numbered around 60. They sat at long desks, ten seats in a row, elbow to elbow. Their style of dress was similar to what I knew, though there was not a baseball cap to be found on top of anyone's brow. They sat attentively, pens in hand, paper ready for taking serious notes. The professor stood before the room, waiting as stragglers walked in. No bell rang to signify the start of class. When enough stragglers had made it in, the professor walked over to the door and shut it.

Thursday, July 18, 2019

Laundry service Industry Essay

India has a huge market for laundry business which is yet to be tapped to its potential. However, with the coming up of a number of hospitals & hotels and even the Indian Railways turning to outsourcing of laundry activities, the industrial laundry sector in India is attracting foreign players. The hotel industry is witnessing a growing trend towards outsourcing its laundry. India is expected to add another 90,000 hotel rooms over the next five years, all of which are in the private sector, especially to meet the tourism demand. In 2010, 10 million people are expected to visit India. The Indian Railways run approximately 12,000 trains every day. The capacity is to carry 1. 4 Crore passengers/day. It employs around 17 lakh employees (10 lakh in Group C), including 10,000 officers. This presents a huge benefit to global players to quickly set up their laundries in India, and cater to the ever growing market. The healthcare industry, the upcoming and the existing, has started outsourcing laundry services. This sector which has been registering a growth of 9. 3% per annum between 2000 and 2009 is projected to grow by 15% per annum by 2013. Laundry services in India are classified into Industrial Laundry and Retail Laundry. Industrial laundry is in its infant stage with major demand coming from hospitals and hotels which have their in-house laundry. Retail laundry is a much organised market with some professionally managed companies catering to the retail needs. Overall, the laundry market in India is still untapped and unorganised. Industrial laundries generally require heavy capital investment in machinery and equipment for washing, spinning, ironing & drying besides land and property to set-up a laundry. Since laundry market in India is dominated by the small local laundry stores and local dhobis, they are not equipped to handle the huge capital requirement. Equipment for industrial laundry An industrial laundry would require equipment for: Washing Drying Ironing * The type of equipment to be purchased would be depend on the volumes that the laundry expects from potential clientele on a daily basis. Equipment for industrial laundries are available in different sizes with varying capacities. Equipment are available in the market for small, medium as well as large industrial laundries. Equipment for industrial laundries should optimise the washing system considering criteria such as: * Usage of appropriate washing machinery which would guarantee maximum efficiency with appropriate wash cycles, high spin capacity and minimum energy consumption * Drier equipment should assure proper drying in the least amount of time with minimum energy consumption * Flatwork ironers capable of absorbing the production of the driers to assure a high quality press * Automation of the laundry handling processes in order to save personnel costs and increase productivity Stages in industrial laundry An industrial laundry generally involves five stages namely: * Soiled Retrieval The linen collected usually is dropped down a laundry chute. Laundry workers collect the soiled linen, in reserved carts and transport it to the laundry facility. * Soil Sorting The retrieved linen is unloaded and sorted. Different items often require different washing formulas. Heavy or bio hazardous stains such as blood and faeces may require longer wash times and stronger formulas. Large institutions often use a production-line method for soil sorting, with several full-time employees assigned to the task. Since soiled linen may be contaminated with biohazards or sharp objects, employees involved in the sorting process are required to use personal protective equipment and standard safety precautions. * Washing The sorted linen is weighed according to the washing machine’s load limit. Certified washer operator loads and unloads the large washing machines, decides what is to be washed according to the laundry’s schedule and monitors the chemical levels in the water. Since modern tunnel washers monitor their own chemical levels and unload linen directly into the laundry’s clean area, the operator is required only to load the linen. Over the past 20 years, many industrial laundries have switched from conventional washers to tunnel washers, also called continuous-batch washers. Since tunnel washers don’t have to be stopped for loading and unloading of linen, they provide a more continuous flow of clean laundry. Higher-volume facilities which may process over 15,000kg of linen per day often rely heavily on tunnel washers * Processing The clean linen is dried, ironed and folded. Some items, such as towels and blankets, are put through a dryer until they are no longer damp, then sent to mechanical folders. Wet work items, such as sheets, are sent through steam-powered ironers which dry, press and fold them. Ironers use heavy steam-heated rollers to dry the linen while pressing out wrinkles. Some items, such as wash cloths, may be too small to be handled mechanically. These items must be packaged by hand. * Packaging & Distribution The processed linen is prepared for delivery. Individual orders are filled, based on the needs and requests of the laundry’s customers and sent to the laundry’s main distribution points and storage areas. Linen not used for orders is placed in storage areas, giving the facility a reserve of clean laundry. Trained delivery people transport the clean linen back to the customers. This is a skilled position, since the delivery person must have a thorough knowledge of both laundry operation and the principles of good customer service. In hospitals, delivery people must be familiar with patient relations, confidentiality policies. Large institutions will usually employ several full-time delivery people. Eco-friendly Chemicals Halide Chemicals has launched a new range of eco-friendly laundry chemicals. The complete professional range consists of 10 products in powder and liquid formulations. The Laundro Det and Boost-E is a powder detergent and booster; Laundro Mulse-E is a liquid emulsifier for F&B laundry; Laundro Bleach-O s a powder oxygen bleach for coloured and whites; Laundro Rinse is a liquid organic neutralising rinse; Laundro Complete is a powder all-in-one detergent and oxygen bleach for coloured and whites; Laundrokleen is a liquid all-in-one detergent for guest and domestic laundry; Laundro Soft is a liquid softener for towels and linen; Laundro Soft-N is a liquid 2-in-1 neutraliser and softener for towels and linen; Laundro Chlor-10 is a liquid chlorine bleach 10% for white linen and Laundro Rinse-C is a liquid neutralizing rinse after chlorine bleaching. The range is phosphate free. The base detergent is free from slurry based detergents and made from biodegradable surfactants. Haylide has used organic biodegradable acids in rinses & softeners in place of harmful, inorganic and traditional laundry rinses. The oxygen bleaches and all-in-one single shot formulations reduce cycles of bleach and rinse. The softener range with combination of cationic & water soluble silicones provide softest results. The emulsifier for F&B stains is biodegradable and utilises denatured ethanol in place of IPA as a natural solvent.