Search results

This survey explores the application of real options theory to the field of health economics. The integration of options theory offers a valuable framework to address these challenges, providing insights into healthcare investments, policy analysis and patient care pathways.

This research employs the real options theory, a financial concept, to delve into health economics challenges. Through a systematic approach, three distinct models rooted in this theory are crafted and analyzed. Firstly, the study examines the value of investing in emerging health technology, factoring in future advantages, associated costs and unpredictability. The second model is patient-centric, evaluating the choice between immediate treatment switch and waiting for more clarity, while also weighing the associated risks. Lastly, the research assesses pandemic-related government policies, emphasizing the importance of delaying decisions in the face of uncertainties, thereby promoting data-driven policymaking.

Three different real options models are presented in this study to illustrate their applicability and value in aiding decision-makers. (1) The first evaluates investments in new technology, analyzing future benefits, discount rates and benefit volatility to determine investment value. (2) In the second model, a patient has the option of switching treatments now or waiting for more information before optimally switching treatments. However, waiting has its risks, such as disease progression. By modeling the potential benefits and risks of both options, and factoring in the time value, this model aids doctors and patients in making informed decisions based on a quantified assessment of potential outcomes. (3) The third model concerns pandemic policy: governments can end or prolong lockdowns. While awaiting more data on the virus might lead to economic and societal strain, the model emphasizes the economic value of deferring decisions under uncertainty.

This research provides a quantified perspective on various decisions in healthcare, from investments in new technology to treatment choices for patients to government decisions regarding pandemics. By applying real options theory, stakeholders can make more evidence-driven decisions.

Decisions about patient care pathways and pandemic policies have direct societal implications. For instance, choices regarding the prolongation or ending of lockdowns can lead to economic and societal strain.

The originality of this study lies in its application of real options theory, a concept from finance, to the realm of health economics, offering novel insights and analytical tools for decision-makers in the healthcare sector.

This study examines the effect of temperature-dependent material models for normal-strength (NSC) and high-strength concrete (HSC) on the thermal analysis of reinforced concrete (RC) walls.

The study performs an one-at-a-time (OAT) sensitivity analysis to assess the impact of variables defining the constitutive and parametric fire models on the wall's thermal response. Moreover, it extends the sensitivity analysis to a variance-based analysis to assess the effect of constitutive model type, fire model type and constitutive model uncertainty on the RC wall's thermal response variance. The study determines the wall’s thermal behaviour reliability considering the different constitutive models and their uncertainty.

It is found that the impact of the variability in concrete’s conductivity is determined by its temperature-dependent model, which differs for NSC and HSC. Therefore, more testing and improving material modelling are needed. Furthermore, the heating rate of the fire scenario is the dominant factor in deciding fire-resistance performance because it is a causal factor for spalling in HSC walls. And finally the reliability of wall's performance decreased sharply for HSC walls due to the expected spalling of the concrete and loss of cross-section integrity.

Limited studies in the current open literature quantified the impact of constitutive models on the behaviour of RC walls. No studies have examined the effect of material models' uncertainty on wall’s response reliability under fire. Furthermore, the study's results contribute to the ongoing attempts to shape performance-based structural fire engineering.

This paper aims to market analysis on the base many factors. Market analysis must be done correctly to increase the efficiency of smart grid technologies. On the other hand, it is not very possible for the company to make improvements for too many factors. The main reason for this is that businesses have constraints both financially and in terms of manpower. Therefore, a priority analysis is needed in which the most important factors affecting the effectiveness of the market analysis will be determined.

In this context, a new fuzzy decision-making model is generated. In this hybrid model, there are mainly two different parts. First, the indicators are weighted with quantum spherical fuzzy multi SWARA (M-SWARA) methodology. On the other side, smart grid technology investment projects are examined by quantum spherical fuzzy ELECTRE. Additionally, facial expressions of the experts are also considered in this process.

The main contribution of the study is that a new methodology with the name of M-SWARA is generated by making improvements to the classical SWARA. The findings indicate that data-driven decisions play the most critical role in the effectiveness of market environment analysis for smart technology investments. To achieve success in this process, large-scale data sets need to be collected and analyzed. In this context, if the technology is strong, this process can be sustained quickly and effectively.

It is also identified that personalized energy schedule with smart meters is the most essential smart grid technology investment alternative. Smart meters provide data on energy consumption in real time.

This study aims to provide an alternative adoption to overcome the energy crisis and environmental effluence by comparative theoretical and trial testing analysis of an innovative combined condenser unit over traditional individual condenser unit water heating systems.

The presented innovative new unit of the combined condenser heat pipe works efficiently through its improved idea and unique design, providing uniform heating to improve the heat transfer and, finally, the temperature of water increases without enhancing the cost. In this design, all these five evaporator units were connected with a single combined condenser unit in such a manner that after the condensation of heat transfer fluid vapour, it goes equally into the evaporator pipe.

The maximum temperature of hot water obtained from the combined condenser heating system was 60.6, 55.5 and 50.3°C at a water flow rate of 0.001, 0.002 and 0.003 kg/s, respectively. The first and second law thermodynamic efficiency of the combined condenser heating system were 55.4%, 60.5% and 89.0% and 2.6%, 3.7% and 4.1% at 0.001, 0.002 and 0.003 kg/s of water flow rates, respectively. The combined condenser heat pipe solar evacuated tube heating system promoting progressive performance is considered efficient and environment-friendly compared to the traditional condenser unit water heating system.

Innovative combined condenser heat pipe evacuated tube collector assembly was designed and developed for the study. A comparative theoretical and experimental energy-exergy performance analysis was performed of innovated collective condenser and traditional individual condenser heat pipe water heating system at various mass flow rate.

Green innovation in supply chains is crucial for socioeconomic development and stability. Factors that influence collaborative green innovation in the supply chain are complex and diverse. Exploring the main influencing factors and their mechanisms is essential for promoting collaborative green innovation in supply chains. Therefore, this study analyzes how upstream and downstream enterprises in the supply chain collaborate to develop green technological innovations, thereby providing a theoretical basis for improving the overall efficiency of the supply chain and advancing green innovation technology.

Based on evolutionary game theory, this study divides operational scenarios into pure market and government-regulated operations, thereby constructing collaborative green innovation relationships in different scenarios. Through evolutionary analysis of various entities in different operational scenarios, combined with numerical simulation analysis, we compared the evolutionary stability of collaborative green innovation behavior in supply chains with and without government regulation.

Under pure market mechanisms, the higher the green innovation capability, the stronger the willingness of various entities to collaborate in green innovation. However, under government regulation, a decrease in green innovation capability increases the willingness to collaborate with various entities. Environmental tax rates and green subsidy levels promote collaborative innovation in the short term but inhibit collaborative innovation in the long term, indicating that policy orientation has a short-term impact. Additionally, the greater the penalty for collaborative innovation breaches, the stronger the intention to engage in collaborative green innovation in the supply chain.

We introduce the factors influencing green innovation capability and social benefits in the study of the innovation behavior of upstream and downstream enterprises, expanding the research field of collaborative innovation in the supply chain. By comparing the collaborative innovation behavior of various entities in the supply chain under a pure market scenario and government regulations, this study provides a new perspective for analyzing the impact of corresponding government policies on the green innovation capability of upstream and downstream enterprises, enriching theoretical research on green innovation in the supply chain to some extent.

The purpose of this study is to advance a novel evaluation index system and evaluation approach for ability of older adults in China.

This study constructed a comprehensive older adult ability evaluation index system with 4 primary indicators and 17 secondary indicators. Grey clustering analysis and entropy weight method are combined into a robust evaluation model for the ability of older adults.

The result demonstrates that the proposed grey clustering model is readily available to calculate the disability level of elderly individuals. The constructed index system more comprehensively considers all aspects of the disability of the elderly.

This study provides a quantitative method and a more reasonable index system for the determination of the disability level of the elderly.

Sustainable development goals (SDGs) are gaining significant importance in the current environment. Many businesses are keen to adopt SDGs to get a competitive edge. There are certain challenges in realigning the present working scenario for sustainable development, which is a primary concern for society. Various firms are adopting sustainable engineering (SE) practices to tackle such issues. Artificial intelligence (AI) is an emerging technology that can help the ineffective adoption of sustainable practices in an uncertain environment. In this regard, there is a need to review the current research practices in the field of SE in AI. The purpose of the present study is to comprehensive review the research trend in the field of SE in AI.

This work presents a review of AI applications in SE for decision-making in an uncertain environment. SCOPUS database was considered for shortlisting the articles. Specific keywords on AI, SE and decision-making were given, and a total of 127 articles were shortlisted after implying inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Bibliometric study and network analyses were performed to analyse the current research trends and to see the research collaboration between researchers and countries. Emerging research themes were identified by using structural topic modelling (STM) and were discussed further.

Research propositions corresponding to each research theme were presented for future research directions. Finally, the implications of the study were discussed.

This work presents a systematic review of articles in the field of AI applications in SE with the help of bibliometric study, network analyses and STM.

This study illustrates the economic and financial dynamics of the sector, analysing the evolution of the main ratios of profitability and financial structure of 1,559 Italian real estate companies divided into the three macro-regions: North, Centre and South, in the period 2011–2020. In this way, it is also possible to verify the responsiveness to the 2020 pandemic crisis.

The analysis uses descriptive statistics tools and the ANOVA method of analysis of variance, supplemented by the Tukey–Kramer test, to identify significant differences between the three Italian macro-regions.

The study shows the increase in profitability after the 2008 crisis, despite its reverberation in the years 2012–2013. The financial structure of companies improved almost everywhere. The pandemic had modest effects on performance.

In the future, other indices should be considered to gain a more comprehensive view. This is a quantitative study based on financial statements data that neglects other important economic and social factors.

Public policies could use this study for better interventions to support the sector. In addition, internal management can compare their company's performance with the industry average to identify possible improvements.

The research analyses an economic field that employs a large number of people, especially when considering the construction and real estate services covered by this analysis.

The study contributes to the literature by providing a quantitative analysis of industry dynamics, with comparative information that can be deduced from financial statements over the years.

The study examines the IPO resilience grounded on the firm’s intrinsic factors.

We examine the association of IPO performance and post-listing firm’s performance with issuers' pre-listing financial and qualitative traits using panel data regression.

IPOs floated in the Indian market from July 2009 to March 31, 2022, evince the notable influence of issuers' pre-IPO fundamentals and legitimacy traits on IPO returns and post-listing earning power. Where the pandemic’s favorable impact is discerned on the post-listing year earning power of the issuer firms, the loss-making issuers appear to be adversely affected by the Covid disruption. Perhaps, the successful listing equipped the issuers with the financial flexibility to combat market challenges vis-à-vis failed issuers deprived of desired IPO proceeds.

High initial returns followed by a declining pattern substantiate the retail investors to be less informed vis-à-vis initial investors, valuers and underwriters, who exit post-listing after profit booking. Investing in the shares of the newly listed ventures post-listing in the secondary market can shield retail investors from the uncertainty losses of being uninformed. The IPO market needs stringent regulations ensuring the verification of the listing valuation, the firm’s credentials and the intent of utilizing IPO proceeds. Healthy development of the IPO market merits reconsidering the listing of ventures with weak fundamentals suspected to withstand the market challenges.

Given the tremendous rise in the new firm venturing into the primary market and the spike in IPOs countering the losses immediately post-opening, the study examines the loss-making and young firms IPOs separately, adding novelty to the study.

Acknowledging, on the one hand, the increasing fragility of supply chains and the number of risks involved in supply chain operations and, on the other hand, the role of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in supply chains and the high exposure of these firms to risks of different types, this study aims to examine the relationship between supply chain risk management (SCRM) and innovation performance in SMEs. Furthermore, the impact of technological turbulence on this relationship was studied to take into account recent technological changes.

Structural equation modelling was carried out on a sample of Turkish SMEs to test the hypotheses developed.

The findings presented allow the authors to better understand the link between SCRM and innovation performance in SMEs. More precisely, empirical evidence is provided about the impact of SCRM components such as maturity and ability on innovation performance. Furthermore, the findings show the impact of technological turbulence on both SCRM and innovation performance.

By focusing on SCRM in SMEs, this paper contributes to the body of knowledge with regard to SCRM in general and with regard to SMEs in particular; research on the latter has only started recently. Moreover, by having studied SMEs from a developing country (other than China), this paper helps to develop a broader and more diverse perspective of SCRM.