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1 – 4 of 4Alexander Pons, Hassan Aljifri and Khalid Fourati
This paper focuses on the disparity that exists between Arab and non‐Arab trading blocs and the potential that e‐commerce offers in narrowing this gap. The current Arab…
Abstract
This paper focuses on the disparity that exists between Arab and non‐Arab trading blocs and the potential that e‐commerce offers in narrowing this gap. The current Arab intra‐trade state of affairs is analyzed, targeting potential trade opportunities. These prospects are evaluated, along with the adoption of technology to render advantages to the Arab world. Many countries have and continue to benefit from the acceptance of e‐commerce; understanding its applicability and effectiveness beyond and within the Arab trading blocs is of vital importance to increase trade. Our analysis presents a perspective on regional trade and utilization of technology within the global community and broadening trade possibilities among Arab countries.
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Adeel Shah, Musawir Ali Soomro, Arsalan Zahid Piprani, Zhang Yu and Muhammad Tanveer
The desire of international retail brands to implement sustainable supply chain practices in the fashion value chain and improve suppliers' sustainability efforts; this research…
Abstract
Purpose
The desire of international retail brands to implement sustainable supply chain practices in the fashion value chain and improve suppliers' sustainability efforts; this research paper elucidates the relationship between blockchain technology and sustainability to impact apparel firms' triple bottom line.
Design/methodology/approach
For studying the impact of sustainable supply chain practices on the triple bottom line, a survey questionnaire was chosen and sent out to 500 garment companies simultaneously, of which 371 responded. The data collected is cross-sectional. The questionnaire survey was developed keeping in mind a few demographic elements such as experience, age and qualification to generalize the findings. For analysis, SmartPLS is used to run model structuring and regression analysis.
Findings
Test runs on model structure confirm the instrument's validity and reliability. Bootstrapping on the theoretical model to test developed hypotheses suggests that supply chain sustainability practices positively affect social, environmental and economic performance in a direct relationship. Further, indirect relation testing conducted to test blockchain technology's moderation influences only the constructs' relations.
Research limitations/implications
The clubbing of sustainable supply chain practices and blockchain technology is a novel idea in the apparel industry; however, there are more constructs in the context of practice-based theory and supply chain which impact firm performance. Also, the research limits itself from discussing IT infrastructure and smart contract types that impact the technology's performance.
Practical implications
The study provides a framework for interpreting the synergetic influence of SSCP on firm social, environmental and economic performances, which is demanded both by consumers and regulators in an industry. The results suggest that managers sustainably design the production ecosystem, thus eliminating any discrepancy or slackness in the complete chain. Usually, suppliers are ignored, which are precursors in implementing SSCP.
Originality/value
The paper studies sustainability problems through ecological modernization theory and practical-based theory giving a unique perspective on the issue faced by the apparel industry and combining sustainable supply chain practices and blockchain.
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Hao Guo, Feng Ju, Ning Wang, Bai Chen, Xiaoyong Wei, Yaoyao Wang and Dan Wang
Continuum manipulators are often used in complex and narrow space in recent years because of their flexibility and safety. Vision is considered to be one of the most direct…
Abstract
Purpose
Continuum manipulators are often used in complex and narrow space in recent years because of their flexibility and safety. Vision is considered to be one of the most direct methods to obtain its spatial shape. However, with the improvement of the cooperation requirements of multiple continuum manipulators and the increase of space limitation, it is impossible to obtain the complete spatial shape information of multiple continuum manipulators only by several cameras.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper proposes a fusion method using inertial navigation sensors and cameras to reconstruct the shape of continuum manipulators in the whole workspace. The camera is used to obtain the position information, and the inertial navigation sensor is used to obtain the attitude information. Based on the above two information, the shape of the continuum manipulator is reconstructed by fitting Bézier curve.
Findings
The experiment result of single continuum manipulator shows that the cubic Bézier curves is applicable to curve fitting of variable curvature, the maximum fitting error is about 2 mm. Meanwhile, the experiment result shows that this method is not affected by obstacles and can still reconstruct the shape of the continuum manipulators in 3-D space by detecting the position and attitude information of the end.
Originality/value
According to the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study on spatial shape reconstruction of multiple continuum manipulators and the first study to introduce inertial navigation sensors and cameras into the field of shape reconstruction of multiple continuum manipulators in narrow space. This method is suitable for shape reconstruction of manipulator with variable curvature continuum manipulator. When the vision of multiple continuum manipulators is blocked by obstacles, the spatial shape can still be reconstructed only by exposing the end point. The structure is simple, but it has certain accuracy within a certain range.
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