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1 – 3 of 3Hisham Ali Yousef, ElHassan Anas ElSabry and Alaa Eldin Adris
Petroleum companies have various goals in light of high energy prices, uncertainty and potential fluctuations in demand in the current digital age, including making a profit while…
Abstract
Purpose
Petroleum companies have various goals in light of high energy prices, uncertainty and potential fluctuations in demand in the current digital age, including making a profit while maintaining long-term sustainability and lowering their environmental impacts. The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of technology management (TM) and its practices through process and maintenance technologies on sustainability performance (SP) for petroleum refineries and petrochemical companies in terms of economic, environmental and social sustainability.
Design/methodology/approach
A new proposed framework has been developed for a clearer understanding in relation to these aspects. The study was conducted among Egyptian refineries and petrochemical companies. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 65 petroleum experts and professionals, which was then summarized using statistical analysis, hypothesis testing and regression analysis.
Findings
The findings demonstrate that TM has a significant and direct impact on SP. Furthermore, the study shows that process technology (PT) has a positive influence on the three aspects of SP. Although maintenance technology has a positive impact on economic and environmental sustainability, it shows no direct effect on social sustainability.
Research limitations/implications
The degree to which TM and sustainability principles are implemented across petroleum companies in various countries varies significantly because of managerial and cultural dimensions. Therefore, when conducting the research, it is important to consider the study’s geographical area to comprehend how these practices are impacted by the distinctive managerial and cultural settings of each country. Also, respondents in developing countries do not participate in such surveys with much enthusiasm.
Practical implications
The study shows that implementing TM practices generates more economic stability and ensures environmental and social sustainability. The research studied how PT and maintenance practices affected each aspect of sustainability. These findings can apply to all downstream oil companies, regardless of their size or type of operations. Further research can be conducted to examine the relationship between variables in other industries.
Social implications
Decision-makers and managers may use the study's findings to improve their companies' performance and develop new plans and policies. The results demonstrate that companies will have a greater chance of achieving sustainable performance if they incorporate process and maintenance technologies into their activities. Besides economic and environmental sustainability, petroleum companies must strive for social sustainability.
Originality/value
The study is regarded as a significant contribution to the management of petroleum refineries and petrochemical companies, as it combined TM practices with SP in a single research framework. Industry executives and researchers can use this research as a guide that can be applied to all petroleum companies in the same country.
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ElHassan ElSabry and Koichi Sumikura
This study investigates the extent to which a company's usage of open access (OA) literature for R&D activities depends on its size. The authors’ assumption is that smaller…
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigates the extent to which a company's usage of open access (OA) literature for R&D activities depends on its size. The authors’ assumption is that smaller pharmaceutical companies have less access to (usually expensive) journal subscriptions.
Design/methodology/approach
A fixed-effect Poisson model was used to study a panel dataset of USPTO pharmaceutical company patents. The dependent variable is the count of citations to OA resources in a given company patent.
Findings
Results support current anecdotal evidence that many SMEs suffer from high journal prices.
Originality/value
This result justifies the assumption made by policymakers about the potentially positive impact OA mandates have on national innovation activity. It was also shown that collaborating with universities can be a potential coping mechanism for companies that struggle to gain access to the journals they need. In addition to the novelty of its findings, this study introduces a new way to study the impact of OA in nonacademic contexts.
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The purpose of this paper is to look at third party journal portals, which facilitate the low-cost publishing of open access journals. Portals have become very important enablers…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to look at third party journal portals, which facilitate the low-cost publishing of open access journals. Portals have become very important enablers for converting journals published by scholarly societies and universities to open access, in particular in the social sciences and humanities.
Design/methodology/approach
Portals were identified using a combination of methods including a literature search, interviews with experts, a key word web search and by analyzing web addresses and publishers in data from the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ).
Findings
In total, 21 portals fitting our definition were identified. Together these published more than 6,000 journals. They contribute around 10 percent of the journals indexed in the DOAJ, and the content is very highly skewed to certain countries, in particular Latin America and Asia.
Originality/value
While there have been earlier case study reports about individual portals, especially SciElo, this is probably the first systematic study of this phenomenon as a whole.
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