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The tender documents, an essential data source for internet-based logistics tendering platforms, incorporate massive fine-grained data, ranging from information on tenderee, shipping location and shipping items. Automated information extraction in this area is, however, under-researched, making the extraction process a time- and effort-consuming one. For Chinese logistics tender entities, in particular, existing named entity recognition (NER) solutions are mostly unsuitable as they involve domain-specific terminologies and possess different semantic features.

To tackle this problem, a novel lattice long short-term memory (LSTM) model, combining a variant contextual feature representation and a conditional random field (CRF) layer, is proposed in this paper for identifying valuable entities from logistic tender documents. Instead of traditional word embedding, the proposed model uses the pretrained Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) model as input to augment the contextual feature representation. Subsequently, with the Lattice-LSTM model, the information of characters and words is effectively utilized to avoid error segmentation.

The proposed model is then verified by the Chinese logistic tender named entity corpus. Moreover, the results suggest that the proposed model excels in the logistics tender corpus over other mainstream NER models. The proposed model underpins the automatic extraction of logistics tender information, enabling logistic companies to perceive the ever-changing market trends and make far-sighted logistic decisions.

(1) A practical model for logistic tender NER is proposed in the manuscript. By employing and fine-tuning BERT into the downstream task with a small amount of data, the experiment results show that the model has a better performance than other existing models. This is the first study, to the best of the authors' knowledge, to extract named entities from Chinese logistic tender documents. (2) A real logistic tender corpus for practical use is constructed and a program of the model for online-processing real logistic tender documents is developed in this work. The authors believe that the model will facilitate logistic companies in converting unstructured documents to structured data and further perceive the ever-changing market trends to make far-sighted logistic decisions.

The mesoscale structure (MS) has a significant impact on the mechanical performance of parts made by additive manufacturing (AM). This paper aims to explore the design and fabrication of force-flow guided reinforcement mesoscale structure (FFRMS) compared with the homogeneous mesoscale structure (HMS), which is inconsistent with the stress field for a given load condition. Some cases were presented to demonstrate the mechanical properties of FFRMS in terms of MS combined with quasi-isotropy and anisotropy.

The paper consists of four main sections: the first developed the concept of FFRMS design based on HMS, the second explored volume fraction control for the proportion of force-flow lines in terms of mechanical property requirement, and the third presented a sequence stacking theory and practical manufacturing process framework and the final sections provided some application case studies.

The main contributions of this study were the definition and development of the FFRMS concept, the application framework and the original case studies. As an example, a typical lug designed with the proposed FFRMS method was fabricated by three different AM processes. The test results showed that both the strength and stiffness of the specimens are improved greatly by using the FFRMS design method.

The superposition of HMS as the basement and force-flow as an indication of the stiffener, leading to a heterogeneous structure, which exhibits more efficient and diversified means compared with the traditional way of increasing the HMS density merely.

Polymeric parts produced by 3D stereolithography (SL) process have poorer mechanical properties as compared to their counterparts fabricated via conventional methods, such as injection or compression molding. Adding nanofillers in the photopolymer resin for SL could help improve mechanical properties. This study aims to achieve enhancement in mechanical properties of parts fabricated by SL, for functional applications, by using well-dispersed nanofillers in the photopolymers, together with suitable post-processing.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have high strength and Young’s modulus, making them attractive nanofillers. However, dispersion of CNTs in photopolymer is a critical challenge, as they tend to agglomerate easily. Achieving good dispersion is crucial to improve the mechanical properties; thus, suitable dispersion mechanisms and processes are examined. Solvent exchange process was found to improve the dispersion of multiwalled carbon nanotubes in the photopolymer. The UV-absorbing nature of CNTs was also discovered to affect the curing properties. With suitable post processing, coupled with thermal curing, the mechanical properties of SL parts made from CNTs-filled resin improved significantly.

With the addition of 0.25 wt.% CNTs into the photopolymer, tensile stress and elongation of the 3D printed parts increased by 70 and 46 per cent, respectively. With the significant improvement, the achieved tensile strength is comparable to parts manufactured by conventional methods.

This allows functional parts to be manufactured using SL.

In this paper, an improved procedure to incorporate CNTs into the photopolymer was developed. Furthermore, because of strong UV-absorption nature of CNTs, curing properties of photopolymer and SL parts with and without CNT fillers were studied. Optimized curing parameters were determined and additional post-processing step for thermal curing was discovered as an essential step in order to further enhance the mechanical properties of SL composite parts.

The peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodation-sharing market has developed rapidly on the strength of information technology in recent years. Matching providers and customers in an information technology (IT)-enabled platform is a key determinant of both parties' experiences and the healthy development of the platform. However, previous research has not sufficiently explained the mechanism of provider–customer matching in accommodation sharing, especially at the psychological level. Based on field cognitive style theory, this study examines how the match and mismatch affect customers' online and offline satisfaction and whether a significant difference exists between online and offline satisfaction under different matching patterns.

The authors test the proposed theoretical model using 122 provider–customer dyad data collected through a field study.

The results suggest that customers' online and offline satisfaction under match is significantly higher than that under mismatch. In addition, customers' online satisfaction is significantly higher than their offline satisfaction under mismatch, but there is no significant difference between the two under match. The perceived price fairness also plays a moderating role in the case of mismatch.

In summary, these findings provide a novel understanding about the matching patterns and their outcomes in the accommodation-sharing context and expand the contents and applications of field cognitive style theory and matching theory. This study will help these IT-enabled platforms to provide personalized matching services at the psychological level, thereby enhancing user experience and corporate competitiveness. 10; 10;

Drawing on social identification theory, this research aims to explore an important mechanism – patients’ perceived empathy from a hospital, which is defined as caring, individualized attention provided by the hospital – that explains how service quality influences patients’ loyalty to the hospital.

This study adopts a structural equation modelling framework to estimate the mediation relationship between service quality and patient loyalty using two studies based on hospital employees and patients.

In Study 1, hospital staff survey data showed that service quality enhanced patients’ perceived empathy from the hospital. In Study 2, the authors confirmed and extended the findings of Study 1 by using patient survey data that suggested that patients’ empathy mediated the relationship between service quality and patients’ loyalty to the hospital.

The results of the two studies suggested that service quality increased patients’ empathy, which in turn improved patients’ loyalty to a hospital. The results extend the customer loyalty literature by exploring the critical antecedents and mechanisms of customer loyalty in the healthcare context. The studies interpret healthcare phenomena from the service aspect of fulfilling patients’ unique needs and providing a good hospital service experience. Moreover, the authors offer an insightful approach to explaining the service quality–patient loyalty linkage in the healthcare industry. Important theoretical and managerial contributions and suggestions for future research are discussed.

This study examined Taiwan's fiscal policy responses for sustainable post-COVID-19 recovery. The costs and benefits, aligned with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), of fiscal policy responses were identified and valued. Although it may be too early to conclude whether the benefits outweigh the costs, the performance and outcome of fiscal measures were evaluated.

The study relied on secondary data, including governmental official data, legislative reviews, audit reports and public opinion polls to understand objective and subjective benefits and costs in economic, social and environmental dimensions. However, while the costs were measured in monetary terms, some of the benefits (i.e. satisfaction) could not be monetized; therefore, this study focused on identifying and valuing benefits from fiscal measures but set aside the issues of monetizing and discounting.

With respect to the costs, a special budget of NT$840 billion was approved, of which 66.83% was allocated for economic development, 33.12% for social welfare and 0.05% for environmental protection. In terms of the benefits, the economic growth rate was forecasted to be 5.88% in 2021 and 3.69% in 2022, while the average economic growth rate was 2.77% during the period from 2012 to 2019. Social equity was emphasized as various and customized bailout packages were provided to impacted individuals and industries. Moreover, most citizens were confident in the government's efforts to combat the pandemic and stimulate recovery in Taiwan.

This paper comprehensively details Taiwan's experience of fiscal policy responses for sustainable post-COVID-19 recovery. The cost-benefit approach was conceptually adopted. Bearing the value of “build back better” and “rebuild better,” the benefits of fiscal measures are promising, although there are indebted costs of the special budget.

Many emerging economy firms are under foreign owners' pressure to embrace the challenges of addressing corporate social responsibility (CSR) and consider adopting sustainability initiatives. However, it is not clear how foreign ownership plays a role to enable or inhibit these emerging economy firms from translating sustainability initiatives into improved financial performance. Utilizing neo-institutional theory, the authors argue that emerging economy firms that voluntarily report sustainability gain legitimacy in the eyes of shareholders and improve stock market performance. However, emerging economy firms may not have the resources to reconcile the internal stakeholders' various legitimacy requirements to promote sustainability practices, resulting in a negative association with accounting performance. Foreign ownership attenuates the relationship between sustainability reporting and firm performance due to the different legitimacy requirements in foreign markets.

To test the study’s hypotheses, the authors collected and analyzed a large sample of publicly listed firms between 2010 and 2016 in Taiwan where the types of foreign ownership include foreign trust funds, foreign financial institutions and other foreign legal entities. Regression analyses were conducted to investigate whether the firms that report their sustainable practices have better financial performance, including stock market performance and accounting performance. Additionally, a three-step procedure was employed to address the endogeneity issue with a binary explanatory variable.

The positive stock market reaction to the emerging economy firms' voluntary sustainability reporting supports legitimacy gained among investors. By contrast, sustainability reporting has a negative association with accounting performance due to the difficulty of reconciling different legitimacy requirements among various stakeholders in emerging economies. Further, foreign ownership, particularly the trust fund, exhibits a negative moderating effect on the relationship between sustainability reporting in aligning corporate practices with sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the company's stock market performance.

By examining the less tested contingent role played by foreign ownership in the emerging economy firms' sustainability reporting, the authors provide insights into the influence exerted by different types of foreign ownership on firms' financial performances beyond previous studies that focus on family ownership, state ownership, or managerial ownership in emerging economies. The findings shed light on corporate sustainability strategy and foreign direct investment policies for an emerging economy.

The purpose of this paper is to improve our understanding of how firms can maintain longitudinal satisfaction. Previous research on longitudinal satisfaction demonstrates that the product attributes weight on satisfaction shifts over time. However, the existing literature lacks an understanding of the intervening mechanism. Inspired by the hedonic adaptation theory, this research first argues that the shift depends on the attribute’s variability. Then, it posits that hedonic adaptation might play a mediation role in connecting the attribute’s weight and longitudinal satisfaction. Finally, the research incorporates consumer intentional activities into the antecedents of longitudinal satisfaction.

The authors test a series of hypotheses across two studies. Using the Slope-shift Parameter Theory and Structural Equation Modeling, data collected from smartphone owners in four MBA classes (Study 1) and eight business venues in China (Study 2) are analyzed to confirm the research model.

The findings suggest that hedonic adaptation occurs during the ownership process. It is revealed that both the attribute’s variability and consumption behavior play important roles in sustaining long-term satisfaction, confirming the mediating effects of hedonic adaptation on the relationship above.

The hedonic adaptation theory is applied to study the mediating role of product attribute variability and consumption behavior in sustaining customer satisfaction over time. Three contributions are offered: First, hedonic adaptation occurs during the ownership process; second, the attribute’s variability and consumption behavior both play important roles in sustaining longitudinal satisfaction; third, the mediating effects of hedonic adaptation are confirmed for the relationship between attribute’s variability and sustaining satisfaction and consumption behavior and sustaining satisfaction.

This paper aims to use the institutional and information-processing perspectives to explore their association with between internationalization and the Penrose effect phenomenon for business groups (BGs).

The authors use ordinary least squares regression models to test arguments about data pertaining to 101 Taiwanese BGs’ foreign direct investments.

The results indicate that greater levels of depth and scope in the process of internationalization during one period may negatively affect rates of growth in the following period. The results further demonstrate that institutional distance moderates the relationship.

Using the perspective of information-processing demands, the authors provide alternate explanations regarding the relationship between the process of internationalization (depth, scope and rhythm) and the Penrose effect.

Owners and managers should focus on both the depth and the scope of internationalization. BGs are likely to incur high dynamic adjustment costs, which then limit the rate of BGs’ growth. Managers should balance international market uncertainty with current managerial resources when determining how deeply and broadly to expand internationally and where to enter. In addition, as recent major panel studies suggest, management capabilities and practices can improve significantly, which has a positive effect on firm growth and performance. This does require the careful development and acquisition of the managerial resources needed for internationalization.

The purpose of this paper is to present the state-of-the-art E-commerce logistics in supply chain management by investigating worldwide implementations and corresponding models together with supporting techniques via furniture industry.

Typical E-commerce logistics companies from North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific are comprehensively investigated so as to get the lessons and insights from these practices.

Future technologies like Internet of Things, Big Data Analytics, and Cloud Computing would be possibly adopted to enhance the E-commerce logistics in terms of system level, operational level, and decision-making level that may be real time and intelligent in the next decade.

This paper takes the furniture industry for example to illustrate the E-commerce logistics and supply chain management (LSCM). Other industries like electronic appliance industry are not considered.

Opportunities and future perspectives are summarized from practical implementations so that interested parties like E-commerce and logistics companies are able to get some guidance when they are contemplating the business.

E-commerce is booming with the development of new business models and will be continuously boosted in the near future. With large number of enterprises carrying out E-commerce, logistics has been largely influenced.

Insights and lessons from this paper are significant for academia and practitioners for considering E-commerce LSCM.