Search results

In a typical additive manufacturing (AM) system, it is critical to make a trade-off between the resolution and the build area for applications in which varied dimensions, feature sizes and accuracies are desired. Conventional solutions to this challenge are based on curing of multiple areas with a single high resolution and stitching them to form a large layer. However, because of the lack of the capability in adjusting resolution dynamically, such stitching approaches will elongate the build time greatly in some cases. To address the challenge without sacrificing the build speed, this paper aims to design and develop a novel AM system with dynamic resolution control capability.

A laser projector is adopted in a vat photopolymerization system. The laser projection system has unique properties, including focus-free operation and capability to produce dynamic mask image irrespective of any surface (flat or curved). By translating the projector along the building direction, the pixel size can be adjusted dynamically within a certain range. Consequently, the build area and resolution could be tuned dynamically in the hardware testbed. Besides, a layered depth image (LDI) algorithm is used to construct mask images with varied resolutions. The curing characteristics under various resolution settings are quantified, and accordingly, a process planning approach for fabricating models with dynamically controlled resolutions is developed.

A laser projection-based stereolithography (SL) system could tune resolution dynamically during the building process. Such a dynamic resolution control approach completely addresses the build size-resolution dilemma in vat photopolymerization AM processes without sacrificing the build speed. Through fabricating layers with changing resolutions instead of a single resolution, various build areas and feature sizes could be produced precisely, with optimized build speed.

A focus-free laser projector is investigated and adopted in a SL system for the first time. The material curing characteristics with changing focal length and therefore changing light intensities are explored. The related digital mask image planning and process control methods are developed. In digital mask image planning, it is the first attempt to adopt the LDI algorithm, to identify proper resolution settings for fabricating a sliced layer precisely and quickly. In the process of characterizing material curing properties, parametric dependence of curing properties on focal length has been unveiled. This research contributes to the advancement of AM by addressing the historical dilemma of the resolution and build size, and optimizing the build speed meanwhile.

God promised pious individuals who obey to His commandments, to increase their economic well-being. Although it is difficult to demonstrate with figures in hand this causality relationship, Muslims must believe in its existence and robustness at both the individual and collective levels, as it is argued in Qur'an and the Prophetic Narration. We aim in this paper to model this positive relationship between Islamic work ethics and economic growth and prove theoretically its existence.

We develop an endogenous growth model very close technically to Lucas–Uzawa model (1988) in which the human capital defined as the individual's skill level acquired through formal education and learning by doing is replaced by ethical capital (piety).

The model proves theoretically that Islamic ethics are a key engine of endogenous economic growth and that the underdevelopment of Muslim populations is due to their low ethical capital (lack of piety).

The study recommends some policies such as providing formal religious education at all educational levels (elementary, secondary and higher levels) and promoting ethical values such as piety, sincerity, transparency, etc., through media and cultural institutions. Also, managers could provide courses and training to their workers to teach them Islamic work ethics.

This paper is the first to mathematically model Islamic work ethics as endogenous phenomena in socioeconomic systems and study theoretically their contributions to economic growth.

Nederburg Wine Auction, celebrating its 20th event this year (1994), has truly established itself internationally alongside auctions in France, Germany and America. It was the brainchild of a past managing director of the giant winemaker wholesalers Stellenbosch Farmers Winery. Dignitaries from all over the world attend this South African fine wine showcase. The organisation involved in getting more than a thousand people together also includes a prestigious fashion show and, at the end, a charity auction. Preparations are ongoing throughout the year, for the occasion which is becoming increasingly ambitious and innovative.

This chapter considers young people’s experiences of inequality as being unemployed in a small seaside town in the United Kingdom which has high levels of deprivation. It draws upon qualitative data from a study undertaken with 52 young people aged between 16 and 24, undertaken in 2015, to examine the impact of the economic recession on their lived experiences of seeking work and poverty. All the young people who participated in the study stated that they wanted to work but that there simply were not jobs available for them to do. What work they could find was often poorly paid, temporary and involved travel which they could not afford. The financial sanctions imposed on them by the Job Centre resulted in extreme hardship, hunger and homelessness. Often the young people talked about various forms of crime including drug-dealing and drug-taking as a way of dealing with the consequences of unemployment.

The reported inquiry-based learning (IBL) study was designed in 2012–2013 for the highest achieving undergraduate students at a research-intensive university in the United Kingdom (U.K.). In 2005, the University received national funding from the U.K. Higher Education Academy (HEA) to develop an innovative model of IBL to be used in a multidisciplinary context (Tosey, 2006). As a consequence, IBL was an obvious tool when, in 2012, the authors set out to design learning interventions to improve the teamwork and leadership skills of high-attaining students. In the process of exploring the application of IBL to this task, the need to ensure the intervention allowed for development in the conative domain was considered important. Historically, IBL practice at the University had catered well for cognitive and affective learning but had not been focussed to develop conation. A conative-heavy element was therefore purposefully designed into the latest IBL intervention.

Upon completion of this case study, students should be able to apply lessons learned in core readings, analysis and discussion to a specific case study dealing with a current, real-world situation, specifically: critically assess Livestock Wealth’s case facts and present and justify their point of view – based on attentive reading, critical analysis and engagement – about the company; use a range of strategic tools such as strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats analysis, PESTLE analysis and the Ansoff matrix to thoroughly evaluate Livestock Wealth’s internal and external business environment for developing strategic options for business growth and improvements to marketing strategy; use strategic thinking to develop a range of creative solutions to guide the company’s business growth and improvements to marketing strategy; and assess their own growth and development in terms of personal preparation and organisation, collaboration, critical thinking, decision-making skills, participation and problem-solving.

By February 2022, Ntuthuko Shezi, the founder and chief executive officer of Livestock Wealth, had turned his idea of “crowd farming”, which enables anyone to invest in living farm assets and earn a profit at harvest, into a full-fledged business that was creating wealth for both investors and farmers. Underpinning this case study is Shezi’s vision of an African continent where there is “no ground that is not planted with something of value”, local economies are created in those areas, communities are wealthy, there is abundance, there is money for children to attend school and ultimately where “cows (and agricultural produce in general) are seen as money”. Shezi had grown up in a rural area with grandparents who owned a couple of cows, realizing that the cows were the bedrock of the family’s finances. Describing his business, he says, “Cattle are like a walking bank, and we see ourselves as the bank of the future, where every person who owns a cow can access financial services through Livestock Wealth, just like it has always been in Africa.” This case study describes the two key decisions that Shezi needed to make – what direction to take in terms of business growth and how to improve his marketing strategy (with a limited budget) to attract sufficient investment into Livestock Wealth to make his dreams a reality.

This case study is suitable for use for a post-graduate diploma in business, master of business administration or master’s in management.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 11: Strategy.

This study aims to explore virtual leadership work within educational settings in the light of social disruption. In 2020, a global pandemic changed the way we work. For school leaders, that involved running a virtual school overnight. Although there is a stream of research that explores leadership in solely virtual communities, there is a gap in the literature regarding practices that transition from analog to virtual practices and the changes in leadership in those types of work practices.

The data gathering method constitutes a questionnaire to explore school leaders’ experiences of virtual work and virtual leadership in light of social disruption. One hundred and five Swedish school leaders answered the questionnaire covering both fixed and open questions.

The results show that school leaders’ general experiences of transition to virtual school have worked relatively well. We show how the work changes and shift the focus in the virtual workplace.

The author’s contributions include theorizing about leadership affordances in virtual schools and providing implications for practice. The authors summarize our main contribution in five affordances that characterize virtual leadership, including a focus on core activities, trust-based government, 1:1 communication with staff, structure and clarity and active outreach activities. The results could be interesting for understanding the radical digitalization of leadership in the digital workplace.

The study aims to deepen the understanding of why risk management principles are circumvented, thereby contributing to transgressions in public procurement for South African state-owned enterprises (SOEs). A deeper understanding of why risk management principles are circumvented is especially important in South Africa, given the high social, economic and environmental risks to which national and major SOEs are exposed in the procurement process.

The study uses a qualitative design, based on detailed semi-structured interviews with 19 participants comprising management advisors, forensic investigators and auditors to explore why risk management principles are circumvented by South Africa SOEs.

The results of the study indicate that the tone that is set at political and executive level plays an important role in determining compliance with risk management principles by lower-level staff. Intense levels of political influence at SOEs are the main reason behind risk management systems being undermined.

The current study is one of the first explorations of why transgressions in public procurement continue to be evident despite risk management reforms being adopted by South Africa public sector. The research responds to the call for more studies on why reforms in South Africa public sector are not reducing transgression in public procurement. The study provides primary evidence on the importance of political and executive leadership in influencing the effectiveness of risk management reforms in the public sector.

VINE is produced at least four times a year with the object of providing up‐to‐date news of work being done in the automation of library housekeeping processes, principally in the UK. It is edited and substantially written by The Information Officer for Library Automation based in Southampton University Library and supported by a grant from the British Library Research and Development Department. Copyright for VINE articles rests with the British Library Board, but opinions expressed in VINE do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the British Library. The subscription for 1983 for VINE is £22 for UK subscribers and £25 for overseas subscribers. The first copy will be charged at normal rate, but all others will be supplied for only £12 per year UK and £14 per year overseas. VINE is available in either paper copy or microfiche and all back issues are available on microfiche.

It's been three years since my previous survey in RSR. Superb reference books in pop music have been appearing so frequently that I've been having trouble keeping up. Let's hope “next year's” survey will only be 12 months in the making and not 36.