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The service sector is the key driver of a country’s economic growth. The quality of service is more important for the survival of any organization. It is the interactive process by which the organization understands the customer and satisfies their needs. The main purpose of this study is to identify the factors influencing service quality in ocean freight forwarding and to study the association between the factors.

This research uses a deductive approach, which understands the theory first and collects the data. A questionnaire is designed to collect the data. The sampling technique used is two-stage sampling. First, the freight forwarders are selected and then the customers, importers and exporters are selected randomly. Likert scales are used to measure quality factors such as tangibility, reliability, responsibility, value, empathy and assurance. The association of factors is empirically evaluated. The SPSS tool is used for the correlation analysis.

An extensive review of the literature has been done to study and identify these service quality factors influencing customer satisfaction and loyalty. The result of this extensive literature review revealed that tangibility, responsiveness, reliability, trust, empathy and value are the service quality. It has been proved that there exists a significant association between the service quality factors and is positively related to the customer satisfaction.

Some studies have examined the freight forwarders’ service quality, but not specifically related to any dimension. This study attempts to bring together the five dimensions of SERVQUAL scale and the value dimension evaluating the cost, freight charges, safety and security criteria in the industry and examines the association between the quality factors and customer satisfaction.

Occupants dwelling in hot climatic regions of India for a longer term are tolerable to high temperature levels than predicted by American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) standards. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the thermal sensations (TS) and neutral temperature of the occupants in naturally ventilated (NV) and air-conditioned (AC) classrooms of two technical institutions located in the same premises in the suburbs of Madurai. The main focus of this study is to understand the occupants’ behaviour in response to the thermal conditions of the educational buildings particularly in the warm and humid climatic zone of Madurai.

This research collected data through field studies. The data included 383 survey questionnaires from NV classrooms and 285 from AC classrooms, as well as on-site measurements of interior and exterior weather conditions. The TS results show that the students preferred well-designed NV classrooms than AC classrooms. A new adaptive comfort equation derived from this study can be applied to NV classrooms in warm and humid climates where mean outdoor temperature exceeds 40°C.

The neutral temperature derived for NV classrooms in Madurai ranged from 29°C to 34°C. Thus, the occupants in the NV classrooms of the higher learning educational institutions in the warm and humid climatic region of Madurai can adapt well to higher indoor temperature levels than predicted by ASHRAE comfort levels with minimum adjustments.

The study was limited to only occupants in two premier higher learning technical educational institutions located in Madurai region within 5–10 km within the city limits to understand the implications of microclimate with respect to the urban context. Thus, further research is required to examine the tendency under local conditions in other regions beyond those applied to this study.

The findings of this study showed that occupants in higher learning educational intuitions in Madurai prefer NV classrooms than AC classrooms. Therefore, with rising demands of energy use for mechanical ventilation and the associated high cost for running AC buildings, architects should prioritize the design of energy efficient buildings through the optimal use of passive design strategies for ventilation and thermal comfort. This study gives a base data for architects to understand the adaptive limitations of occupants and design NV buildings that can promote natural ventilation and provide better thermal environments that can help increase the productivity of students.

This paper was an attempt to develop the adaptive comfort model for NV classrooms in Madurai regions. There has been no attempt to identify the adaptive comfort levels of occupants in higher learning technical educational institutions located in warm and humid climatic region of India.

Heat gain in buildings occurs due to heat transfer through the building fabric or envelope, especially the walls and roof. The purpose of this paper is to identify and recommend the suitable wall materials for better thermal performance in buildings in warm and hot climatic zones of India. As India lies between the tropic of cancer and the equator, the solar radiation from the sun falls more on the walls than the roofs of the buildings. Thus, it is imperative to protect the walls from heat gain to promote thermal comfort in naturally ventilated buildings and reduce the energy loads due to artificial cooling systems in air-conditioned buildings.

In this paper, an investigation of heat flow characteristics in steady-state and the transient state for five different uninsulated wall structures using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software has been carried out. The climate conditions at Madurai, India have been considered for this study.

The findings of the study revealed that aerated autoclaved concrete (AAC) and hollow clay blocks (HCB) for external walls in naturally ventilated buildings in warm climatic regions could improve the building’s thermal performance index and reduce peak indoor operative temperature by about 6°C–7°C. The results of steady-state and transient state analysis were found to be in good agreement with the results of the reviewed literature.

Over the past few decades, only very few architects and builders have been successful in influencing their clients to accept alternate materials such as AAC blocks, HCB, stabilized earth blocks, adobe blocks, fly-ash bricks as an alternate to conventional bricks in an attempt of highlighting their benefits, such as; materials that are easily available, more energy-efficient, can withstand the extreme weather conditions, promote thermal comfort and cost-effective. This paper provides strong evidence that AAC and HCB blocks are the most appropriate materials for improving the thermal performance of envelope walls in regions where the outdoor temperatures are above 40°C.

This paper has made an attempt to identify the appropriate wall materials for effective thermal performance in warm and hot climates. A comparative analysis between five different wall types under the existing solar conditions has been analyzed using CFD simulation study in steady-state and transient conditions under summer conditions and the appropriate wall materials have been suggested. There has been no attempt carried out so far to analyze the thermal performance of different walls using 24 h transient approach in CFD.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the dynamic relationship among Gold, Crude oil, Indian Rupee-US Dollar and Stock market-Sensex (gold, oil, dollar and stock market (GODS)) in the pre-crisis, the crisis and the post-crisis periods in the Indian context.

The authors use Johansen’s cointegration technique, Vector Error Correction Model (VECM), Vector Auto Regression, VEC Granger Causality/Block Exogeneity Wald Test, and Granger Causality and Toda Yamamoto modified Granger causality to study long-run relationship and causality.

Johansen’s cointegration test results indicate that there is a long-run equilibrium relationship among the variables in the pre-crisis and the crisis periods but not in post-crisis period. VECM results report that none of four models of the variables show long-run causality in the pre-crisis period. During the crisis period, both crude oil and Sensex models show long-run causality. However, in some cases, results indicate short-run causality. The authors find one-way causality from USD and Sensex to crude oil, and from gold and Sensex to USD. Thus, the authors conclude that the relationship among GODS is dynamic across global financial crisis.

The research findings of this study are vital to the large group of stakeholders and participants of gold, crude oil, US dollar and stock market in emerging economies like India. The results are useful to importers, exporters, government, policy makers, corporate houses, retail investors, portfolio managers, commodity traders, treasury and fund managers, other commercial traders, etc.

This study is one of its kinds as it investigates the relationship among GODS in India in different sub-periods like before, during and after the global financial crisis of 2008. None of the studies compare phase-wise relationship among GODS in the Indian context. The study contributes to the economic theory and the body of knowledge. It highlights the need to revisit the economic theory to explain the interplay mechanism among GODS.

The purpose of this paper is to explore illness beliefs among adults with type 2 diabetes (T2DM), studied in a clinical setting in the Indian context. Diabetes management lies primarily in the hands of the patient, which signifies the need for understanding the various dimensions of individuals’ illness beliefs. While past research from abroad has stressed the need for understanding the patient’s perspective in effective illness management, the lack of studies in the Indian context calls for further research in this area.

Drawing on the Self-Regulation Model (Leventhal et al., 1980), semi-structured interviews were carried out to understand the beliefs about diabetes among individuals diagnosed to have T2DM. In total, 70 individuals with T2DM were included, taking into account the disease duration, urban-rural, age and gender distinctions. The data were analyzed using content analysis method.

The results of the analysis revealed numerous sub-themes related to the perceived consequences of diabetes, control or cure issues, timeline and emotional issues as experienced by the subjects.

Carrying out a triangulated research with the various stakeholders, namely, diabetologists, general practitioners and other support staff like dieticians could add more value to this exploratory study.

There is a dearth of research work that explores the illness beliefs that patients’ hold about diabetes, as discussed in the Indian context. It is expected that the insight provided by the study can help the government bodies, healthcare organizations and practitioners design and develop interventions from a patient-centric view. Additionally, such a patient-centric approach will enable individuals to achieve their treatment goals.

Introduction: As the human population grows, consumer demand for digital services tailored to their specific needs also increases. To improve the financial performance of farms and meet the need for food of a growing population, farmers and agribusinesses have started incorporating distributed ledger technology into agricultural and farm management software. These developments in the agriculture sector may lead to realising sustainable development goals.

Purpose: Several researchers have done studies to explore the features and benefits of blockchain technology in the field of agriculture. There is a need to analyse the available literature to identify the use of this technology in agriculture and the scope of further research. This chapter will mainly focus on its publication trend, journal productivity and impact, prolific studies, and coherent themes.

Methodology: For a comprehensive review, bibliometric and content analysis of 71 open-access articles collected through a structured database of Mendeley is done. These articles were published during 2017–2021.

Findings: The execution of blockchain is continuously increasing in the agriculture sector, which has resulted in automation in supply chain management, land registrations, and crop insurance. The study revolves around supply chain management, digitisation of agriculture, and sustainable economic development. This study’s conclusions can help agriculturalists improve their understanding of blockchain implementation in agriculture. The study also gives directions for future research.

The purpose of this paper is to numerically study the unsteady double-diffusive mixed convective stagnation-point flow of a water-based nanofluid accompanied with one salt past a vertical flat plate. The effects of Brownian motion and thermophoresis parameters are also introduced through Buongiorno’s two-component nonhomogeneous equilibrium model in the governing equations.

In the present explanation of double-diffusive mixed convective model, there are four boundary layers entitled: velocity, thermal, solutal concentration and nanoparticle concentration. The resulting basic equations are solved numerically via an efficient Runge–Kutta fourth-order method with shooting technique after the governing nonlinear partial differential equations are converted into a system of nonlinear ordinary differential equations by the use of similarity transformations.

To avail the physical insight of problem, the effects of the mixed convection parameter, unsteadiness parameter and salt/nanoparticle parameters on the boundary layers behavior are investigated. Moreover, four possible types of diffusion problems entitled: double-diffusive nanofluid (DDNF), double-diffusive regular fluid (DDRF), mono-diffusive nanofluid (MDNF) and mono-diffusive regular fluid (MDRF) are considered to analyze and compare them in concepts of heat and mass transfer.

The results demonstrate that, for a regular fluid, without nanoparticle and salt (MDRF), the dimensionless heat transfer rate is smaller than other diffusion cases. As we include nanoparticle and salt (DDNF), the rate of heat transfer increases due to an increase in thermal conductivity and rate of diffusion of salt. Moreover, it is observed that the highest heat transfer rate is obtained for the situation that the thermophoretic effect of nanoparticles is negligible. Besides, the heat transfer rate enhances with the increase in the regular double-diffusive buoyancy parameter of salt.

The purpose of this paper is to focus on the application of Chebyshev spectral collocation methodology with Gauss Lobatto grid points to micropolar fluid over a stretching or shrinking surface. Radiation, thermophoresis and nanoparticle Brownian motion are considered. The results have attainable scientific and technological applications in systems involving stretchable materials.

The model equations governing the flow are transformed into non-linear ordinary differential equations which are then reworked into linear form using the Newton-based quasilinearization method (SQLM). Spectral collocation is then used to solve the resulting linearised system of equations.

The validity of the model is established using error analysis. The velocity, temperature, micro-rotation, skin friction and couple stress parameters are conferred diagrammatically and analysed in detail.

The study obtains numerical explanations for rapidly convergent solutions using the spectral quasilinearization method. Convergence of the numerical solutions was monitored using the residual error analysis. The influence of radiation, heat and mass parameters on the flow are depicted graphically and analysed. The study is an extension on the work by Zheng et al. (2012) and therefore the novelty is that the authors tend to take into account nanoparticles, Brownian motion and thermophoresis in the flow of a micropolar fluid.

This paper aims to report the investigation of over heat and mass transfer of convective Casson fluid flow over a moving vertical plate with nonlinear thermal radiation and convective boundary conditions.

The main partial differential equations of the flow, heat and concentration profiles were rehabilitated to nonlinear ordinary differential equations by using an appropriate similarity transformation. The resultant nonlinear ordinary differential equations (ODEs) are solved numerically applying fourth-order Runge–Kutta shooting technique and functions of ODE45 from MATLAB.

The effect of convective heat transfer, buoyancy ratio parameter, nonlinear thermal radiation, Prandtl number, Rayleigh number and Schmidt number over velocity, temperature and concentration profiles, equivalent to abundant somatic parameters were graphically scrutinized.

All the results are very promising and further there is got good agreement of results when compared with earlier published results at limiting conditions.

The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of non‐uniform double slot suction (injection) into a steady laminar boundary layer flow over a yawed cylinder when fluid properties such as viscosity and Prandtl number are inverse linear functions of temperature. Non‐similar solutions have been obtained from the starting point of the streamwise co‐ordinate to the exact point of separation.

The governing equations are tackled by the implicit finite difference scheme in combination with the quasi‐linearization technique. Quasi‐linear technique can be viewed as a generalization of the Newton‐Raphson approximation technique in functional space. An iterative sequence of linear equations is carefully constructed to approximate the nonlinear equations for achieving quadratic convergence and monotonicity. The quadratic convergence and monotonicity are unique characteristics of the quasilinear implicit finite difference scheme, which makes this scheme superior to built‐in iteration of upwind or finite amplitude techniques.

The results indicate that the separation can be delayed by non‐uniform double slot suction and also by moving the slot downstream. However, the effect of non‐uniform double slot injection is just the opposite. Yaw angle has very little affect on the location of the point of separation.

This analysis is useful in understanding many boundary layer problems of practical importance for undersea applications, for example, in suppressing recirculating bubbles and controlling transition and/or separation of the boundary layer over submerged bodies.