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The purpose of this paper is to compare the evaporative resistance and thermal insulation of clothing measured by thermal manikin “Walter” using uniform and non-uniform skin.

The non-uniform skin with different perspiration rates was made by laminating a silicone layer on the inner side of a uniform skin. The thermal manikin was then covered with prepared non-uniform skin as well as uniform one. Four types of clothing ensembles were tested.

The relative intensity of perspiration rate was realized in different part of “Walter” skin, which was close to the perspiration rate of human being. There was a strong correlation between uniform skin and non-uniform skin. The thermal insulation and evaporative resistance of clothing measured on the non-uniform skin were higher than the ones determined on the uniform skin. However, their moisture permeability index showed the reversed tendency.

The implication of the research is to investigate the differences between uniform skin and non-uniform skin for manikin “Walter.” This is possibly useful in correcting and predicting more accurate thermal insulation and evaporative resistance of clothing measured by “Walter” with a uniform skin in future.

It was more accurate using non-uniform skin in evaluating thermal and wet comfort comparing to uniform skin.

We compare allocation rules in uniform price divisible-good auctions. Theoretically, a “standard allocation rule (STANDARD)” and a “uniform allocation rule (UNIFORM)” admit different types of low-price equilibria, which are eliminated by a “hybrid allocation rule (HYBRID).” We use a controlled laboratory experiment to compare the empirical performances of these allocation rules.

We conduct three-bidder uniform price divisible-good auctions varying the different allocation rules (standard, uniform, or hybrid) and whether or not explicit communication between bidders is allowed. For the case where explicit communication is allowed we also study six-bidder auctions.

We find that prices are similar across allocation rules. Under all three allocation rules, prices are competitive when bidders cannot explicitly communicate. With explicit communication, prices are collusive, and we observe collusive prices even when collusive agreements are broken. Collusive agreements are particularly fragile when the gain from a unilateral deviation is larger, and an implication of this is that collusive agreements are more robust under STANDARD.

We do not find conclusive evidence of differences in performance among allocation rules. However, there is suggestive evidence that STANDARD may be more vulnerable to collusion.

Divisible-good uniform price auctions are used in financial markets, but it is not possible to use naturally occurring data to test how alternatives to the standard format would perform. Using laboratory methods we provide an initial test of alternative allocation rules.

In this chapter, the author offers a horizontal comparison of interpretation standards contained in international legal instruments of different origin. These legal instruments range from international treaties to model laws. They also originate from different law makers such as the United Nations or individual states as well as trade or academic organisations, mainly regulating civil and commercial matters. The author argues that this comparison can provide the basis for the development of a uniform standard in the application of such law, which is often referred to as uniform law because it provides a single source of law to regulate a multitude of situations spanning across national boundaries. The main point of reference is the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, also known as the VCLT. This UN treaty specifically provides a general interpretation standard. From there newer standards occurring in subsequent uniform laws can be integrated using the lex specialis doctrine. This, in turn, provides opportunities for comprehensive usable methods to be developed for uniform law both in a public and private law settings. These then facilitate transparency, fairness and reasonableness. The correct identification of object and purposes of any given instrument is crucial for the successful interpretation of its content. It is this point that needs further research, and this chapter offers a starting point by providing some detailed examples from a range of uniform laws of varying nature including international sales laws, arbitration laws and Double Taxation Conventions.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a double-objective economic statistical design (ESD) of (X ‾) control chart under Weibull failure properties with the Linex asymmetric loss function. The authors have expressed the probability of type II error (β) as the statistical objective and the expected cost as the economic objective.

The design used in this study is based on a double-objective economic statistical design of (X ‾) control chart with Weibull shock model via applying Banerjee and Rahim's model for non-uniform and uniform schemes with Linex asymmetric loss function. The results in the least average cost and β in uniform and non-uniform schemes by Linex loss function, compared with the same schemes without loss function.

Numerical results indicate that it is not possible to reduce the second type of error and costs at the same time, which means that by reducing the second type of error, the cost increases, and by reducing the cost, the second type of error increases, both of which are very important. Obtained based on the needs of the industry and which one has more priority has the right to choose. These designs define a Pareto optimal front of solutions that increase the flexibility and adaptability of the X ‾ control chart in practice. When the authors use non-uniform schemes instead of uniform schemes, the average cost per unit time decreases by an average and when the authors apply loss function, the average cost per unit time increases by an average. Also, this quantity for double-objective schemes with loss function compared to without loss function schemes in cases uniform and non-uniform increases. The reason for this result is that the model underestimated the costs before using the loss function.

This research adds to the body of knowledge related to flexibility in process quality control. This article may be of interest to quality systems experts in factories where the choice between cost reduction and statistical factor reduction can affect the production process.

The cost functions for double-objective uniform and non-uniform sampling schemes with the Weibull shock model based on the Linex loss function are presented for the first time.

In recent years, a number of what could be described as “educational rituals” have come under challenge in many New Zealand secondary schools. These rituals include school assemblies, the prefect system, and school uniforms. This article recounts a recent attempt on the part of a New Zealand secondary school to resolve a challenge to the tradition of compulsory school uniforms. The course of events contained many of the elements of participative decision making, and is none the less significant for having failed to bring about immediate change. The article also questions the validity of some assumptions which are implicit in much of the contemporary writing about educational decision making.

Service uniforms have often been studied from the customers’ perspective, as they contribute to service expectations and evaluations. Proposes that the influence of uniform should also be considered from the service provider’s perspective. Discusses the first stage in the development of a 17‐item scale to assess service providers’ perceptions of their uniform. Identifies four dimensions of these perceptions: service approach, the look, customer influence and company identification. The emergence of the dimensions entitled service attitude and the look draws attention to issues concerned with how uniform wearers feel about themselves, and highlights the importance of the aesthetic uniform needs of the wearer. Suggests that management should give due consideration to uniform requirements as perceived by the service provider, as this is likely to impact positively on service employees and thus service orientation.

The purpose of this paper is to extend two‐dimensional sequential uniform design and present three‐dimensional sequential uniform design which can optimize the problem of determining the extreme value of three‐factor polynomial.

Since there are limitations in two‐dimensional sequential uniform design, three‐dimensional sequential uniform design introduced in this paper is to arrange the experimental points by U₉(9³) uniform design table and to determine the maximum of the experimental values according to the demand. It is proven that the convergence of the experimental central point's sequence and that it can optimize the problem of determining the extreme value of no‐cross term quadratic polynomial monotone function class and the corresponding conditions are also proven. Taking the no‐cross term quadratic polynomial monotone function as an example, the superiority of it is testified.

Three‐dimensional sequential uniform design can optimize the problem of determining the extreme value of three‐factor polynomial. It can get higher precision and better convergence but do fewer experiments than general uniform design.

A very effective method in resolving the problem of selecting optimum on multi‐dimensional space.

A new method of three‐dimensional sequential uniform design which can get higher precision and better convergence is presented.

This study aims to suggest opportunities for enhancing the police uniform design with consideration to the emotional and physical satisfaction of the wearers, by assessing the wearing experience.

University police officers at a University in the Midwestern region of the USA were surveyed to examine both psychological and emotional aspects including performance, comfort, professionalism and empowerment, as well as their satisfaction levels with fit, fabrics, aesthetics and functionality.

The study found that the wearing experience was poor, and not surprisingly, fabric satisfaction ranked the lowest of all factors. In regard to color, results showed that the uniforms should be in colors that are suitable to the university context, which in this case the wearers preferred the University athletic colors of black and red. It is easier to consider these colors, as they are a part of their organization and also enable the police to stand apart from municipal police, contrary to previous research demonstrating dark colors have negative connotations. Findings suggest that the university police uniform should have an athletic style with a regular fit, using specific performance fabrics that allow for stretch and breathability.

This study assesses the police uniform design and wearing experience and suggests design details to enhance how well officers physically perform in their role and also to inspire them to feel proud of their job and organization.

The purpose of this study is to examine if consumers have substantially common color preferences in hospitality uniforms for destination brands. Employee uniforms with their dimensions of style, material and color are a crucial part of the coordinated brand message of a business or a destination; however, this has been a void in tourism and hospitality literature. Current visitors to Hong Kong were studied using intercept surveys in four different groups controlling for potential confounding factors. Although results reveal the common perception and preference for black-white-formal uniforms for Hong Kong’s hospitality industry across different treatment groups as well as different cultural groups, implications and discussions are provided as a call for further research in this venue of inquiry.

This is a cross-sectional study using a site intercept survey with structured questionnaires on Chinese and international travelers in Hong Kong. Four different surveys were used as different treatments for four groups of respondents that were randomly assigned into each group. Each group was presented with a different default pair of male and female uniform pictures for the initial evaluation on the first page of the survey, followed by a list of uniforms with different colors and styles on the second page of the survey to select and evaluate their own pairs of male and female uniforms.

Results revealed that consumers’ general favorite colors may not apply to their preferences for the employee uniforms for a destination they visit. Also, there were similarities in the favorite color and choice uniform color for the three general culture groups, such as Chinese, Asia-Pacific and Western consumers, included in the study. Besides, findings implied that Hong Kong may be a strong brand with a uniform color preference for hospitality uniforms for different consumer segments.

This study needs to be considered as an exploratory attempt to bring researchers’ attention to the several questions still to be answered by future research. The results and discussions provided in this study are beyond being robust or conclusive; insights about potential brand connotations with employee uniform colors need to be taken as potential leads for future studies because there is a need for further study in this area.

The importance of hotel employee uniforms for quality hotel experience was the highest for the Chinese group, whereas it was the lowest for the Western group. Chinese and Asia-Pacific respondents placed more importance on uniforms as a cue for a quality hotel experience, which signal a higher level of involvement in visible cues in the consumption environment. Hence, hotels as well as destinations catering to these groups need to take their market segment preferences into consideration before making decisions about brand cues for their products.

There is a lack of attention to the color aspect of service encounter in tourism and hospitality literature. Therefore, color needs attention from researchers as a new venue of research in tourism and hospitality, especially in the tourism destination context. This study is a spearhead to generate interest by intriguing questions for future attention from researchers.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of crack surfaces contact on the post-buckling behavior of a slender column with a non-propagating crack.

In this paper a 3D finite element model has been implemented to study the post-buckling behavior of a slender column with a non-propagating crack. According to this model, the column is discretized into three-dimensional solid elements. Contact conditions are considered between the crack surfaces. The non-linear equations for this model are solved using an incremental-iterative procedure, and the equilibrium path of the cracked column is extracted.

Load-displacement curves are presented for a cantilever column with a transverse surface crack of either uniform or non-uniform depth across the column cross-section. For both crack shapes, the load-displacement curves are presented for various values of crack depth and position. The results of this study are in good agreement with the results available in the literature. Comparisons with the results of the always-open crack were performed. The post-buckling behavior of a column with a uniform depth crack is more sensitive to variations in crack depth and position than the post-buckling behavior of a column with a non-uniform depth crack.

A 3D finite element approach for the post-buckling behavior of a transversely cracked column including contact between crack surfaces.