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1 – 10 of 137R.A. El‐Adly, E.A.M. Youssef, S.M. El‐Sayed and M.A. Abd El‐Ghaffar
This paper reports on the preparation of six formulations (G1‐G6) containing mixed soap greases based on cotton soap stock, aromatic extract, heavy alkylate and lube base oil. The…
Abstract
This paper reports on the preparation of six formulations (G1‐G6) containing mixed soap greases based on cotton soap stock, aromatic extract, heavy alkylate and lube base oil. The physicochemical properties of these ingredients were characterised. The consistency, dropping point and mechanical stability of the formulated greases were assessed and tested in accordance with the National Laboratory for Grease Institute standards, and compared with the Egyptian Standards. The properties of the formulated grease G4 proved to be the best. The work reported also includes preparation of itaconyl‐o‐tolidine‐, itaconyl bisaniline‐ and itaconyl m‐phenylene‐ amide polymers. The structure of these polymers was investigated using infrared spectroscopy, micro analysis and gel permeation chromatography. The polymers prepared were evaluated as antioxidants for the optimum formulated grease G4. The study revealed that the itaconyl m‐phenylene amide polymer was a weak antioxidant, while itaconyl bisaniline‐ and itaconyl‐o‐tolidine amide polymers showed good anti‐oxidation property.
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R.A. El‐Adly, Y.M. Moustafa and A.M.A. Omar
Acid sludge produced from regeneration of used lubricating oil was chemically treated in order to convert it in to a saleable product. Investigates treatment with different…
Abstract
Acid sludge produced from regeneration of used lubricating oil was chemically treated in order to convert it in to a saleable product. Investigates treatment with different inorganic formulations. Determines and discusses the optimum formulation composition. Characterizes the spectroscopic analysis, thermogravimetric and rheology behaviours, and hydrocarbon type analysis (asphaltene, oil and resin) of the extracted multicomponent resin (MCR‐1). Uses the MCR‐1 for the preparation of gilsonite varnish. The physico‐chemical properties of the latter were determined and compared with those of a standard gilsonite varnish. Concludes that treatment of acid sludge with different salt formulations provides a potentially lowest cost source of gilsonite varnish for news ink and also helps reduce an environmental problem created by re‐refining used oil.
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Bushra K. Mahadin, Amjad Abu Elsamen and Mohammed Ismail El-Adly
This study aims to examine the roles of advertising (ADV) and sales promotion (SP) in creating airline brand equity (BE) in the UAE, and to test the mediational effect of customer…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the roles of advertising (ADV) and sales promotion (SP) in creating airline brand equity (BE) in the UAE, and to test the mediational effect of customer perceived value on the proposed relationships. Additionally, the study examines the outcomes of airline BE (i.e. trust, satisfaction and loyalty).
Design/methodology/approach
A structured and self-administered survey was used targeting 234 passengers, from which 197 were valid for the analysis. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to assess the research constructs unidimensionality, validity and composite reliability.
Findings
The empirical findings support the direct relationship between ADV and BE. Perceived value fully mediates the effect of SP on BE. In addition, BE positively affects trust, satisfaction and loyalty.
Research limitations/implications
Future research could investigate BE and perceived value as multidimensional constructs. Additionally, future research should expand the effect of other variables such as airline type, airline class and other marketing mix elements.
Practical implications
The findings from this research highlight the importance of both ADV and sale promotion in enhancing airline BE, and the pivotal role of perceived value.
Originality/value
The originality of this research is highlighted in conceptualizing a parsimonious model of the preceding constructs (i.e. ADV, SP, customer perceived quality) and subsequent constructs of BE (i.e. customer trust, customer satisfaction, customer loyalty), which has never been investigated collectively in one model in the literature particularly in the airline’ context of emerging economies such as UAE.
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Zujian Shen, Fei Geng, Xinxin Fan, Zhichen Shen and Haiyan Wang
This paper aims to investigate and prepare the composite polyurea greases with excellent thermal stability and tribological properties.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate and prepare the composite polyurea greases with excellent thermal stability and tribological properties.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, composite Ba-based (Ba, barium) tetra-polyurea lubricating greases were prepared with two different methods: mixing Ba-based gelatinizer and tetra-polyurea gelatinizer by a physical method; and introducing barium carboxylate into tetra-polyurea molecules by a chemical method. The properties of the products, such as heat stability, water resistance and friction performance, were analyzed with thermogravimetry, water-resistance test and four-ball friction test.
Findings
The results indicated that the products obtained by chemically introducing barium carboxylate into tetra-urea molecules showed better elevated temperature tribological properties, and the disadvantages of the polyurea greases with high temperature hardening were also obviously improved. The cone penetration rate at 180°C for 24 h is only 3 per cent. The friction coefficient can be decreased to 0.44 and the last non-seizure load value was increased from 560 N to 1,120 N without any other additives.
Originality/value
The research is significant because the prepared composite grease showed excellent performances, such as the outstanding thermal stability, water resistance and excellent extreme pressure and anti-wear properties, which may be widely applied in steel, metallurgy, bearings and other industrial fields.
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Mohammed Ismail El-Adly and Amjad Abu ELSamen
This paper aims to measure customer-based brand equity in the context of hotels, and to develop and empirically validate a new scale, named guest-based hotel equity (GBHE), by…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to measure customer-based brand equity in the context of hotels, and to develop and empirically validate a new scale, named guest-based hotel equity (GBHE), by incorporating the customer perceived value of hotels as a multidimensional construct in addition to its traditional dimensions (i.e. brand awareness and brand image).
Design/methodology/approach
A structured and self-administered survey was used, targeting 348 hotel guests who were surveyed about their experience with the last hotel they had stayed in during the previous year. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to assess the research constructs dimensions, unidimensionality, convergent and discriminant validity and composite reliability.
Findings
The empirical findings indicate that GBHE is a multidimensional construct with nine dimensions, namely, hotel awareness, hotel overall image and seven dimensions of customer perceived value (i.e. the values of price, quality, self-gratification, aesthetics, prestige, transaction and hedonism). The new scale is found to have excellent psychometric properties; it has demonstrated its predictive power on behavioral intentions.
Research limitations/implications
Although the authors believe that the sample size was reasonable and adequate for conducting CFA analysis, a bigger sample would be better and might increase the robustness of the proposed scale. In addition, to avoid the retrieval failure problem, hotel guests should be surveyed just after their stay in the hotel or not long afterwards. Further, the hotel classification or hotel star rating was not considered in developing and validating the GBHE scale.
Practical implications
The findings of this study provide hotel managers with a new tool to use in assessing the experiential value of the hotel brand equity, other than conventional hotel awareness and brand image. Further, using the multidimensional construct of perceived value provides hotel managers with more insights into what aspects of hotel brand equity they should focus on to influence the behavioral intentions of their guests.
Originality/value
The originality of this research is highlighted in several points. First, it develops and empirically validates a new scale to measure customer-based brand equity in the hotel context, that is, GBHE. Second, it incorporates the customer perceived value of hotels not as a unidimensional construct that is concerned only with cost, but as a multi-dimensional construct which includes in the GBHE scale dimensions that are both cognitive (i.e. of price and quality) and affective (i.e. of self-gratification, aesthetics, prestige, transaction and hedonism) in addition to its traditional dimensions (i.e. brand awareness and brand image). Third, it assesses the predictive power and relative importance of the GBHE dimensions for behavioral intentions (i.e. loyalty to hotels). Finally, no research has been done so far on the brand equity of hotels in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), although it is considered a fertile soil for tourism in the Arabian region.
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Nisreen Ameen, Ali Tarhini, Mahmood Shah and Nnamdi O. Madichie
The transition from multichannel to omnichannel retailing requires a better conceptualisation, especially for customer experience in smart shopping malls. Therefore, this study…
Abstract
Purpose
The transition from multichannel to omnichannel retailing requires a better conceptualisation, especially for customer experience in smart shopping malls. Therefore, this study aims to propose a theoretical model that captures customers’ omnichannel experiences in smart shopping malls in terms of personal interaction, physical environment and virtual environment encounters. It examines the mediating role of flow experience on the relationship between the three types of encounters and customers’ intention to revisit smart shopping malls.
Design/methodology/approach
The study draws on four key theories: the service encounter model, trust-commitment theory, flow theory and experiential value theory. A total of 553 completed questionnaires were collected from customers (millennials) in the United Kingdom (UK). The data was analysed using partial least squares-structural equation modelling.
Findings
The findings show that physical environment encounters and personal interaction encounters play a significant role in customers’ omnichannel experiences in smart malls. Also, of significance are the following aspects of virtual environment encounters: interface design, personalisation, trust, privacy, consumer–peer interaction and relationship commitment. The findings highlight the significant mediating role of flow on the relationships between these three types of encounters and intention, and the effect of flow on omnichannel service usage in smart shopping malls.
Originality/value
The research contributes to the existing literature by proposing a conceptual model: the smart shopping mall omnichannel customer experience (SSMCE) model. The findings offer practical guidance to shopping malls and retailers who wish to enhance the customer omnichannel experience.
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Souad Djelassi, Delphine Godefroit-Winkel and Mbaye Fall Diallo
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the factors influencing customer loyalty to shopping centres across different emerging countries. Specifically, it seeks to determine…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the factors influencing customer loyalty to shopping centres across different emerging countries. Specifically, it seeks to determine how the cultural context moderates the direct effects of shopping centre perceived value and customer satisfaction on customer loyalty.
Design/methodology/approach
A shopping centre-intercept survey was conducted among 244 consumers in Morocco and 203 consumers in Tunisia. The proposed model was analysed using partial least squares path modelling.
Findings
The results demonstrate the impacts of perceived utilitarian and non-utilitarian value on customer satisfaction with a shopping centre, both moderated by the cultural context. Specifically, utilitarian, hedonic and relaxation values exert stronger influences on satisfaction in Tunisia than in Morocco; but socialisation value has a stronger impact on it in Morocco than in Tunisia. The influences of value dimensions on customer loyalty to the shopping centre do not vary between Tunisia and Morocco.
Practical implications
With these results shopping centre developers and retailers can develop more efficient strategies to target Maghreb emerging countries. For example, they should focus on factors that may increase the utilitarian, hedonic and relaxation values offered by shopping centres in Tunisia but address factors that facilitate socialisation value in Morocco.
Originality/value
By using a cross-culture perspective, this paper extends and enriches knowledge on shopping centre patronage in Maghreb countries. Also, it considers two non-utilitarian values (socialisation and relaxation), which are relevant in Maghreb countries.
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Ajay Kumar and Anil Kumar Kashyap
The purpose of this study is to identify distinct segments of apparel shoppers based on their fashion shopping orientation. The difference among the segments based on mall…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to identify distinct segments of apparel shoppers based on their fashion shopping orientation. The difference among the segments based on mall attractive dimension is also examined.
Design/methodology/approach
The data were collected through mall intercept survey from the mall shoppers. Samples of 375 respondents are used for data analysis purpose. Exploratory factor analysis is used to extract the factors of fashion shopping orientation and mall attractive dimensions while K-means cluster analysis is applied to identify the segments.
Findings
This study resulted in three factors of fashion orientation of apparel shoppers, i.e. fashion involvement, variety seeking and economic value, and four factors of mall attractive dimensions: convenience, entertainment, atmosphere and architecture design. Based on these factors, this study came out with three distinct segments of fashion shoppers: pragmatic shoppers, variety seeking shoppers and highly fashioned shoppers. These three segments are attracted towards the mall dimension differently.
Originality/value
This paper presents the three distinct profiles of fashion shoppers based on their fashion shopping orientation and mall attractive dimensions. The findings of this study may help retailers and mall developers to target mall visitors appropriately.
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Cristina Calvo-Porral and Jean-Pierre Lévy-Mangín
This study addresses the following question: “What factors attract customers to the shopping mall?”, since the commercial attraction of this major retailing format is an…
Abstract
Purpose
This study addresses the following question: “What factors attract customers to the shopping mall?”, since the commercial attraction of this major retailing format is an undertaken variable. So, the purpose of this paper is to provide an empirical analysis of the main commercial pull factors of the shopping malls in order to attract potential customers.
Design/methodology/approach
For this purpose, the authors provide and empirically test a conceptual model considering the variables convenience, tenant variety and specialisation, internal environment, leisure and communication. Data were analysed through structural equation modelling on a sample of 253 customers.
Findings
The findings suggest that tenant variety and the internal environment of the mall – understood as an adequate tenant mix and a pleasant, attractive environment – are the main determinants of attracting customers. However, the convenience of the shopping mall and the communication activities do not show a significant influence as pull factors.
Originality/value
The results obtained suggest that marketing managers have numerous tools to influence customers’ intention to visit and patronise shopping malls.
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Neale Slack, Gurmeet Singh and Shavneet Sharma
The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into the impact of customer perceived value and its dimensions on customer satisfaction in a developing country, and practical…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into the impact of customer perceived value and its dimensions on customer satisfaction in a developing country, and practical suggestions for marketing strategies.
Design/methodology/approach
A cross-sectional survey collected data from five-hundred supermarket customers in Fiji. SPSS was used to provide descriptive and inferential analysis.
Findings
Results reveal that customer perceived value (CPV) has a positive impact on customer satisfaction; and functional value (price/value for money) has more positive impact than social value, emotional value has a negative impact and functional value (performance/quality) has no significant impact on customer satisfaction.
Research limitations/implications
Considering this research was undertaken in the supermarket sector of only one country, other researchers are urged to replicate this research in Fiji and other developing countries, to yield further insight into the context-specific nature of CPV.
Practical implications
It is suggested that marketers note these findings (to understand better the conceptualisation and context-dependent nature of CPV, its dimensional interrelationships and its impact on customer satisfaction) in order to enhance CPV and ultimately customer satisfaction.
Originality/value
This study makes several contributions to research on CPV by providing insight into how developing country customers perceive the value of supermarkets from a construct and multidimensional perspective, the inter-relatedness of CPV dimensions and the impact of CPV and its dimensions on customer satisfaction.
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