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Article
Publication date: 1 December 2001

William N. Cooke

The USA is not only the largest foreign direct investor country in the world, it is also host to the largest inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the world. Although…

3358

Abstract

The USA is not only the largest foreign direct investor country in the world, it is also host to the largest inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the world. Although recent analyses have shown that multinational companies have invested less in countries with higher levels of union membership and contract coverage, more centralized negotiation structures and more restrictive workplace regulations, no similar analysis has been made of the influence of these factors on FDI in the USA. Also lacking in the literature is any analysis of the extent to which foreign‐owned affiliates have engaged in union avoidance in the USA as part of their investment and human resource management/labor relations strategies. This study first focuses on the estimated effects of the relatively low union penetration and decentralized negotiation structure of the USA on FDI in the USA. Second, the precipitous decline in union coverage of foreign subsidiaries in the USA over the last two decades is analyzed. The results of both inquiries strongly support the proposition that foreign multinationals have given substantial weight to union avoidance preferences as part of their FDI strategies.

Details

Employee Relations, vol. 23 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0142-5455

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 January 1973

Michael Cooke and William Alexander Gray

Since 1964 Newcastle University Computing Laboratory has had its own file handling systems for bibliographic records: two systems were developed in parallel for use on an ICL KDF9…

Abstract

Since 1964 Newcastle University Computing Laboratory has had its own file handling systems for bibliographic records: two systems were developed in parallel for use on an ICL KDF9 computer. In 1967 a third and more sophisticated system compatible with the two KDF9 systems was designed and implemented for use on the newly arrived IBM 360/67. This paper describes the record structure upon which the new system is based. Some of the utilities which make up the file handling system are briefly described, as are some of the projects, both ‘library’ and ‘non‐library’, which have made use of the new system.

Details

Program, vol. 7 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0033-0337

Article
Publication date: 14 June 2011

William Cooke, Rachel Anne Tomlinson, Richard Burguete, Daniel Johns and Gaëlle Vanard

The purpose of this paper is to rigorously determine the tensile properties of a selective laser sintering (SLS) material. Emphasis was placed on the anisotropy and inhomogeneity…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to rigorously determine the tensile properties of a selective laser sintering (SLS) material. Emphasis was placed on the anisotropy and inhomogeneity of the material, the repeatability of the SLS process, and the effect of age (actually moisture absorption) on the material properties.

Design/methodology/approach

Two builds of 144 dogbone tensile specimens each were tested, with 18 specimens stored for 43 days in a non‐desiccated environment before testing. Specimens were distributed throughout the build volume and aligned with the apparatus' principal axes. Tensile properties were treated statistically, using the t‐test to determine the differences between various samples.

Findings

The material was transversely isotropic in Young's modulus and strain to failure, and generally orthotropic in ultimate tensile strength. The material was inhomogeneous throughout the build volume and affected by age, with a 57 per cent reduction in University of Technology after 43 days (the changes in properties were suggested to be due to moisture absorption). Properties varied by up to 25 per cent from build‐to‐build with no change in nominal process parameters.

Research limitations/implications

It was not possible to confirm the “ageing” effect was caused by moisture absorption, and further work is suggested in this area. The causes of inhomogeneity and the effect of re‐coater action should also be studied further.

Originality/value

This is the most complete study of an SLS material's mechanical properties to date. The statistical analyses used further allow increased confidence in the conclusions drawn. This is also the only study to use cross‐fill scanning to produce specimens, and, therefore, isolate the effect of the re‐coater action.

Details

Rapid Prototyping Journal, vol. 17 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2546

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 May 1988

William B. Werther

The effectiveness of productivity improvement inputs of capital, technology and the like, is determined in the end by human factors.

Abstract

The effectiveness of productivity improvement inputs of capital, technology and the like, is determined in the end by human factors.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 26 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Article
Publication date: 1 July 1913

During the year the officers of the Board of Customs and Excise have taken numerous samples at the ports with a view to giving effect to the provisions of Section 1 of the Sale of…

Abstract

During the year the officers of the Board of Customs and Excise have taken numerous samples at the ports with a view to giving effect to the provisions of Section 1 of the Sale of Food and Drugs Act, 1899, and Section 5 of the Butter and Margarine Act, 1907, as to the importation of butter, margarine, milk, condensed milk, cream, and cheese.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 15 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Article
Publication date: 1 June 1970

Fenton Atkinson, L.J. Karminski and Gordon Willmer

October 24, 1969 Factory — Statutory duty — Dangerous machinery — Dangerous combination of machinery and material — Danger arising from “nip” between moving work‐piece and…

Abstract

October 24, 1969 Factory — Statutory duty — Dangerous machinery — Dangerous combination of machinery and material — Danger arising from “nip” between moving work‐piece and stationary bar — Automatic cooling device — Danger arising from coolant applied by hand — Practice known to employers — Whether foreseeable — Whether duty to fence — Factories Act, 1961 (9 & 10 Eliz. II, c. 34), s. 14(1).

Details

Managerial Law, vol. 8 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0558

Article
Publication date: 1 May 1964

J. Lindley

The inert‐gas purification plant at Dounreay, the purpose of which is to purify and recycle argon gas returning from alpha‐active dry boxes, was commissioned in 1959 and ran…

Abstract

The inert‐gas purification plant at Dounreay, the purpose of which is to purify and recycle argon gas returning from alpha‐active dry boxes, was commissioned in 1959 and ran successfully for nearly three years when a sudden reduction in argon purity was noted. Upon investigation it was found that severe corrosion had taken place at the base of the refrigerant dryer units and a hole had opened up between the pure and impure argon flows in the plate‐like construction of the dryer.

Details

Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, vol. 11 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0003-5599

Article
Publication date: 20 June 2016

David Meyer and Steve Dunphy

Responding to Colbert’s (2004) call for research examining the complexity of work systems’ effect on performance, and following Meyer and Dunphy’s (2014, 2015) work determining…

Abstract

Purpose

Responding to Colbert’s (2004) call for research examining the complexity of work systems’ effect on performance, and following Meyer and Dunphy’s (2014, 2015) work determining the general manner by which the complex mechanism of strategy choice and its implementation effect corporate performance, the purpose of this paper is to specify and test a model of the effects of workplace factors affecting employee responses to the demand for increased knowledge in using technology.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on the literature on the resource-based view of strategy and the knowledge-based (KB) view of human resource management system implementation, theory is developed, and hypotheses are generated, regarding employee attitudes toward skill development, technology, employment security, and feedback and their impact on competence and impact. Meaningfulness, self-determination, work conditions, and intensity are controlled for. Data from a sample of 888 employees, 24 managers, and corporate executives across eight Detroit-area automotive supplier firms are used to test the model using structural equation modeling.

Findings

Individual psychological states of competence and impact are positively and strongly associated with KB psychological climates that foster and condition positive beliefs about the importance of learning new skills and about the effects of the diffusion of new technologies on employees.

Research limitations/implications

The complexity of the interactions of management implementation of workplace practices on employee performance still needs more sorting out. Only unionized employers pursuing high-involvement work systems were studied. Other types of employers would have very different workplace climates.

Practical implications

Only unionized employers pursuing high-involvement work systems were studied. Other types of employers would have very different workplace climates.

Social implications

In order to have employees be receptive to changing technology and the resulting, increased demands for knowledge and skill, employers have to provide long-term employment security.

Originality/value

The results provide the specific manner by which employers can increase employee receptiveness to increase workplace knowledge and training to have more impact on their performance.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 54 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 April 2014

Robert Charles Palmer

This article aims to assess the role of private nuisance as a common law tool for environmental protection, independent of the wider regulatory controls. It evaluates specific…

1119

Abstract

Purpose

This article aims to assess the role of private nuisance as a common law tool for environmental protection, independent of the wider regulatory controls. It evaluates specific areas of the tort that are theoretically unresolved in order to ascertain the potential future role it may play before highlighting the capacity for injunctions to coerce restorative environmental justice.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is predominately a classic doctrinal article as it is principally library-based analysing both primary sources (that both pre- and post-date the modern law reporting system) and secondary sources whilst engaging in leading academic commentary.

Findings

Nuisance developed to a point in the nineteenth century where a “theory of nuisance” emerged, which did not tolerate injury to health or the property of another. Recent judicial activity has visibly adulterated that theory: this article casts doubts on juridical restrictions regarding health and property suggesting they may not withstand the scrutiny of the Supreme Court if, and when, they are tested.

Originality/value

This paper recognises that nuisance law has a positive future in environmental protection provided that the courts are willing to embrace the historical paradigm which has served the common law in this field broadly well for hundreds of years.

Details

International Journal of Law in the Built Environment, vol. 6 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1756-1450

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 January 2018

Hindy Lauer Schachter

The purpose of this paper is to add information on which voices contributed to the scientific management narrative from Frederick Taylor’s 1915 death to the early 1930s with a…

4443

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to add information on which voices contributed to the scientific management narrative from Frederick Taylor’s 1915 death to the early 1930s with a focus on the role of labor union representatives. The strategy is to analyze the role of labor representatives as participants in Taylor Society meetings and publications. The research contributes to the management history literature by bolstering the picture of the Taylor Society as a liberal, pro-labor organization. The research also shows that the Taylor Society was an early proponent of the idea that assembling diverse groups for dialogue improves organizational problem-solving.

Design/methodology/approach

The research analyzes historical sources including all issues of the Society’s bulletin from 1914 to 1933 and unpublished material from the Morris Cooke papers and the papers in the Frederick Taylor archive at Stevens Institute of Technology.

Findings

Taylor Society leaders took a proactive view of encouraging labor voices to join managers and academics in society meetings. At the beginning, few labor leaders spoke at the society, and often, at least some of their comments were critical of scientific management. By 1925, labor participation increased with William Green, American Federation of Labor (AFL) president appearing several times. In addition, labor leaders became positively inclined toward having scientific management experts working in industrial settings. The labor leaders who participated at Taylor Society meetings in the late 1920s and early 1930s considered scientific management insights as useful for labor and wanted to cooperate with the researchers.

Originality/value

The paper augments a revisionist view of interwar scientific management as progressive and pro-labor, a contested point in the management history literature. The research also shows how the Taylor Society was an early proponent of the importance of diversity, at least in the areas of gender and socioeconomic status, for effective problem-solving.

Details

Journal of Management History, vol. 24 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1751-1348

Keywords

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