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1 – 10 of over 1000Maryam Shafiei Sabet, Ali Asgary and Adriano O. Solis
Responding to emergency incidents by emergency response organizations such as fire, ambulance and police during large disaster and emergency events is very important. The purpose…
Abstract
Purpose
Responding to emergency incidents by emergency response organizations such as fire, ambulance and police during large disaster and emergency events is very important. The purpose of this paper is to provide some insights into response patterns during the 2013 ice storm in the city of Vaughan, Ontario, Canada, using temporal and spatial analyses.
Design/methodology/approach
The City of Vaughan Fire and Rescue Service data set containing all responses to fire and other emergency incidents from January 1, 2009 to December 31, 2016 was used. The 2013 Southern Ontario ice storm occurred from December 20, 2013 to January 1, 2014, and, for this study, December 20–31 is considered the “study period.” Temporal, spatial and spatiotemporal analyses of responses during the study period are carried out and are compared with the same period in other years (2009–2012 and 2014–2016).
Findings
The findings show that temporal patterns of response attributes changed significantly during the 2013 ice storm. Similarly, the spatial pattern of responses during the 2013 ice storm showed some major differences with other years. The spatiotemporal analyses also demonstrate significant variations in responses in the city during different hours of the day in the ice storm days.
Originality/value
This study is the first study to examine the spatiotemporal patterns of responses made by a fire department during the 2013 ice storm in Canada. It provides some insights into the differences between response volumes, temporal and spatial distributions during large emergency events (e.g. ice storm) and normal situations. The results will help in mitigating the number of responses in the future through public education and technological changes. Moreover, the results will provide fire departments with information that could help them prepare for such events by possible reallocation of resources.
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Adriano O. Solis, Janithra Wimaladasa, Ali Asgary, Maryam Shafiei Sabet and Michael Ing
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many facets of urban life and operations, including emergency incidents. This study examines how COVID-19 has brought about changes in, and…
Abstract
Purpose
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many facets of urban life and operations, including emergency incidents. This study examines how COVID-19 has brought about changes in, and shifting patterns of, emergency incidents in the City of Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. This study aims to derive insights that could potentially inform planning and decision-making of fire and rescue service operations as further stages of the pandemic unfold.
Design/methodology/approach
Standard temporal analysis methods are applied to investigate the changes in the number and nature of emergency incidents, as recorded sequentially in the city's fire and rescue service incident report database, through various phases or waves of the pandemic and the associated public health measures that have been introduced.
Findings
The study analyses show a decrease in the number of emergency calls compared to previous reference years. Vehicle-related incidents show the highest decline, and changes in daily and hourly pattens are consistent with public health measures in place during each stage of the pandemic. The study concludes that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on demand for emergency services provided by the fire department.
Originality/value
The authors believe this is the first study applying temporal analysis on a city's emergency incident response data spanning various phases/waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis may be replicated for other municipal fire services, which can generate further insights that may apply to specific local conditions and states of the pandemic.
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The purpose of this paper is to understand better the formation of an industry and the movement toward agglomeration by examining the development of the furniture manufacturing…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to understand better the formation of an industry and the movement toward agglomeration by examining the development of the furniture manufacturing industry of Western North Carolina and Virginia.
Design/methodology/approach
In this general review, the initiation and growth of the furniture industry is traced, applying the theory of agglomeration and noting isomorphic tendencies and the primacy of the search for legitimacy among constituents.
Findings
The paper finds first of all, the pioneering efforts of Thomas Wrenn in High Point brought the industry to the region. An initial wave of furniture manufacturers followed closely behind Wrenn as the industry gained legitimacy and status in North Carolina. Important elements in building the industry included the establishment of the Southern Furniture Manufacturers Association and the Southern Furniture Market in High Point. A second wave of furniture producers arrived on the scene after the First World War. This group benefited from cooperative actions of the survivors of the first wave and brought the Western North Carolina and Virginia area to the forefront of the furniture manufacturing industry in the USA. Finally, the paper comments on the current state of the industry in relation to the threat of foreign competition.
Originality/value
The furniture industry is not alone in the need to understand the impact of globalization. Practitioners and researchers alike should be aware of the costs to stakeholder groups, such as employees and local communities.
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Josephine Vaughan, Kim Maund, Thayaparan Gajendran, Justine Lloyd, Cathy Smith and Michael Cohen
This study aims to address the research gap about value in the holistic discourse of creative placemaking. It identifies and synthesises the often discounted social and…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to address the research gap about value in the holistic discourse of creative placemaking. It identifies and synthesises the often discounted social and environmental values of creative placemaking along with typically emphasised economic values.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper builds upon two research phases; first, a review and extraction of creative placemaking value indicators from relevant current urban, cultural and planning literature; and second, the identification of relevant, practice-based, value indicators through interviews with 23 placemaking experts including practitioners, urban planners, developers and place managers from the two largest cities of NSW, Australia; Sydney and Newcastle.
Findings
This study identifies three broad thematics for valuing creative placemaking along with several sub-categories of qualitative and quantitative indicators. These indicators reveal the holistic value of creative placemaking for its key stakeholders, including expert placemakers, designers, building developers, government and community groups. A key conclusion of the research is the need for tools that grasp the interconnected, and at times conflicting, nature of placemaking’s social, economic and environmental outcomes.
Originality/value
While a variety of value indicators exist to understand the need for ongoing resourcing of creative placemaking, stakeholders identified the limitations of current approaches to determine, represent and appraise the value of creative placemaking. The indicators of value proposed in this research consolidate and extend current discourse about the value of creative placemaking specifically. The indicators themselves have profound practical implications for how creative placemaking is conceived, executed and evaluated. Theoretically, the study builds on the deep relationships between values and practice in creative placemaking, as well as critiquing narrow forms of evaluation that entrench economic benefits over other outcomes.
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Margaret Latshaw, Beth Harmon‐Vaughan and Bob Radford
With corporations reinventing and changing themselves with increasing frequency and speed, what is the real estate industry doing to enable that change? This paper presents the…
Abstract
With corporations reinventing and changing themselves with increasing frequency and speed, what is the real estate industry doing to enable that change? This paper presents the perspectives of a corporate tenant, a developer and an interior designer to answer the question of what some companies are doing to make workspace more flexible and to shorten the cycle time for the processes by which workspace is constructed, procured and fitted‐out for new occupancy. The following questions will be answered ‐ In the low vacancy market prevalent in so many parts of the United States, what strategies are corporate real estate executives in high‐growth companies using to acquire space fast? ‐ What trends are emerging in the industry to streamline the processes to build, acquire, fit‐out and manage space? ‐ How is the industry changing its product to ensure that the space that is delivered can meet a variety of users and uses as occupants churn through the space in unforeseen ways?
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Francine Richer and Louis Jacques Filion
Shortly before the Second World War, a woman who had never accepted her orphan status, Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel, nicknamed ‘Little Coco’ by her father and known as ‘Coco’ to her…
Abstract
Shortly before the Second World War, a woman who had never accepted her orphan status, Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel, nicknamed ‘Little Coco’ by her father and known as ‘Coco’ to her relatives, became the first women in history to build a world-class industrial empire. By 1935, Coco, a fashion designer and industry captain, was employing more than 4,000 workers and had sold more than 28,000 dresses, tailored jackets and women's suits. Born into a poor family and raised in an orphanage, she enjoyed an intense social life in Paris in the 1920s, rubbing shoulders with artists, creators and the rising stars of her time.
Thanks to her entrepreneurial skills, she was able to innovate in her methods and in her trendsetting approach to fashion design and promotion. Coco Chanel was committed and creative, had the soul of an entrepreneur and went on to become a world leader in a brand new sector combining fashion, accessories and perfumes that she would help shape. By the end of her life, she had redefined French elegance and revolutionized the way people dressed.
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Miljenka Perovic, Vaughan Coffey, Stephen Kajewski and Ashok Madan
The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the diverse issues that affect heritage projects during their lifecycle and in particular, why heritage-listed projects…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the diverse issues that affect heritage projects during their lifecycle and in particular, why heritage-listed projects often fail to meet the delivery goals of time, budget, quality and scope.
Design/methodology/approach
This research was undertaken on a qualitative basis by conducting series of semi-structured interviews drawn from three case studies in SE Queensland. Qualitative research involves the evaluation of people’s experiences, feelings, social interactions, and the data gathered from this type of methodology is often varied and rich. A case study allows a researcher to test and generate theories based on real-world practice.
Findings
This paper presents the findings from a data collection exercise accomplished by conducting a series of qualitative case studies. Using a cross-case analysis approach, this paper highlights critical heritage project delivery issues and their causes.
Practical implications
The lessons learned from the study cases could be used in helping to prevent potential heritage project failures in the future.
Originality/value
The paper aims to bring greater awareness to practitioners and academics of the repeating issues that every heritage project is likely to face and offers some insight in how these may be mitigated.
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Clair White and Victoria Goldberg
A strong body of research has established the concentration of crime in a small number of street segments or “hot spots” throughout urban cities, but the spatial distribution of…
Abstract
Purpose
A strong body of research has established the concentration of crime in a small number of street segments or “hot spots” throughout urban cities, but the spatial distribution of mental health-related calls for services is less well known. The extent to which these calls are concentrated on a small number of street segments, similar to traditional crime calls for service is understudied. The purpose of this paper is to examine the concentration of mental health calls and the spatial distribution of street segments with mental health calls to provide directions for law enforcement and place-based policing.
Design/methodology/approach
Using call for service data from a large city on the East coast, the current study examines whether mental health calls for service are concentrated on street segments, and tests spatial dispersion to whether these “mental health hot spots” are spread throughout the city or clustered in space. Finally, the authors explore the relationship between mental health calls and violent and drug calls by calculating the correlation and using a spatial point pattern test to determine if mental health calls are spatially similar to violent and drug calls.
Findings
The authors found that mental health calls are concentrated on street segments; specifically 22.4 percent of calls are located on 0.5 percent of city street segments. Additionally, these street segments are fairly dispersed throughout the city. When comparing the spatial similarity of mental health calls to violent and drug calls, they are highly correlated suggesting a relationship between the calls types, but the location of mental health calls appears to be different from violet and drug calls.
Originality/value
Very few studies have examined the location of mental health calls and whether they are concentrated in small areas similar to crime, but such research can provide police officers new approaches to working with people with mental health problems. The police are the primary emergency response for calls involving someone with a mental illness or experiencing a mental health crisis and the authors provide suggestions for policing that draw from strategies used in hot spot policing and mental health responses, like CIT, to address challenges of modern policing and working with people with mental health problems.
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