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The importance of the satisfaction derived by participants has escalated in all manufacturing sectors. Due to increased opposition and dissatisfied participants, the importance of participant satisfaction is being stressed in construction as well, despite the fact that only a few studies have been conducted thus far. Many stakeholders are involved in construction projects, and their satisfaction may result in having a direct effect on the successful delivery of the project. Construction projects have to do with several stakeholders; also, their satisfaction could straightforwardly impact the presentation of resulting projects. It is difficult to express participant satisfaction solely in terms of numbers. Achievement of specific objectives (successes) that lead to compensation of specific project goal could be achieved all through the recurring value–goal procedures at the design and development phases, when construction professionals are involved in the project. It can be inferred that participant satisfaction is critical to preserving the project's consistency and degree of collaboration.

When decision makers encounter new assurance services that can be customized for individual clients, they must include them in their pre-existing categorization of assurance, a cognitive task known as postclassification. This paper draws upon three literatures (classification research in accounting, theory of assurance, and cognitive psychology) in order to suggest how this task might be modeled and studied empirically, using the example of SysTrust™. The role of a necessary condition for successful postclassification called the category use effect (Ross, 2000), in which decision makers are reminded of pre-existing categories when they learn to use new categories, is explained.

Since much of the design work for vessels and offshore installations occurs in countries other than where the vessel may operate or where the installation may be located, it is particularly important that the expected user be considered and accommodated through the design and operational phases of a project.

Within the framework of engineering design and marine operations, this chapter will discuss “soft” issues, such as organizational and line management decisions and personnel selection procedures, as well as “hardware” issues related to design of living and working environments. In particular, the chapter will address how culture should be considered while identifying “user” needs and requirements.

The failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) is a technique used to identify and prevent various problems related to systems, designs, and processes. The main purpose of the technique is to increase the level of service offered to the customer, eliminate or reduce costs, increase safety, enhance corporate image through a detailed and stable quality management, and monitoring system.

After presenting the FMEA main characteristics, this chapters explains how to apply the FMEA to a process and how to create a FMEA worksheet. It also highlights strengths and weaknesses of this tool.

Using long-run trend data for US tactical and bomber aircraft, Norman Augustine’s Law 16 famously suggests continuously rising US armament unit costs. By the year 2054, the country’s entire defence budget would be expended on a single aircraft, which an industry colleague dubbed as the Battlestar Galactica. However, while it is thought provoking, what does Law 16 in fact entail? It appears that the mechanics of Augustine’s ‘Law’ has never been examined in detail. To help disentangle the matter and assess its relevance in the context of today’s battlefield technology, which is increasingly focussed on the application of large numbers of small, cheap, expendable, electronically linked, yet highly autonomous systems, this chapter introduces the concept of an Augustine weapons system.

Scholars have been conducting serious research mainstream on the human, organizational and cultural aspects of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) for more than three decades. The current globalization is faced by the challenge to meet the continuously growing worldwide demand for capital and consumer goods by simultaneously ensuring a sustainable evolvement of human existence in its social, environmental and economic dimensions. Currently, a new era of M&A is emerging through a wave of strategic investment decision-making toward Industry 4.0 (I4.0) strategy. The new waves of M&A can be viewed as comprehensive integration of manufacturing systems, production processes, digital communications technologies and automated machines. I4.0 strategy will make supply chains and production processes more interconnected, efficient and flexible, allowing mass-customization and virtual production. This chapter offers state of the art review of I4.0 based on recent developments in research and practice. This chapter offers an overview of opportunities and challenges associated with M&A activities toward I4.0, and suggestions for future research.