Search results

Given the great upheaval in the international situation and the increasing operating risk in international business, research on corporate diplomacy is thriving. However, it still lacks clear conceptualization and operationalization. Based on social capital theory, our study conceptualizes corporate diplomacy as a three-dimensional construct and quantifies its distinct and combined impacts on multinational enterprises’ (MNE) subsidiary performance.

This research analyzes 134 responses collected from a questionnaire survey among key informants in Chinese MNEs using the regression method.

This research finds that corporate diplomacy is positively correlated with MNEs’ subsidiary performance. Specifically, compatriot-oriented diplomacy is the most effective, followed sequentially by host-partner-oriented and host-regulator-oriented diplomacy. In addition, compatriot-oriented diplomacy substitutes for host-partner-oriented diplomacy but complements host-regulator-oriented diplomacy in enhancing subsidiary performance.

Our research enriches the conceptualization and operationalization of corporate diplomacy and provides a nuanced view of its distinct and combined effects on MNEs’ subsidiary performance.

A free-piston engine (FPE) is an unconventional engine that abandons the crank system. This paper aims to focus on a numerical simulation for the lubricating characteristics of piston rings in a single-piston hydraulic free-piston engine (HFPE).

A time-based numerical simulation program was built using Matlab to define the piston motion of the new engine. And a lubrication mode of piston rings was built which is based on the gas flow equation, hydrodynamic lubrication equation and the asperity contact equation. The piston motion and the lubrication model are coupled, and then the finite difference method is used to obtain the piston rings lubrication performances of the FPE. Meanwhile, the lubrication characteristics of the new engine were compared with those of a corresponding conventional crankshaft-driven engine.

The study results indicate that compared with the traditional engine, the expansion stroke of the HFPE is longer, and the compression stroke is shorter. Lubrication oil film of the new engine is thicker than the traditional engine during the initial stage of compression stroke and the final stage of the power stroke. The average friction force and power of the hydraulic free piston engine are slightly lower than those of the traditional engine, but the peak friction power of the FPE is significantly greater than that of the traditional engine. With an increase in load, the friction loss power and friction loss efficiency decrease, and with a decrease in equivalence ratio, the friction power loss reduces, but the friction loss efficiency decreases first and then increases.

In this paper, only qualitative analysis was performed on the tribological difference between conventional crankshaft engine and HFPE, instead of a quantitative one.

This paper contributes to the tribological design method of HFPE.

No social implications are available now, as the HFPE is under the development phase. However, the authors are positive that their work will be commercialized in the near future.

The main originality of the paper can be introduced as follows: the lubrication and friction characteristics of the new engine (HFPE) were investigated and revealed, which have not been studied before; the effect of the HFPE’s special piston motion on the tribological characteristics was considered in the lubrication simulation. The results show that compared with the traditional crankshaft engine, the new engine shows a different lubrication performance because of its free piston motion.

Drawing attention to the significant number of unsuccessful (abandoned) cross-border merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions in recent years, the purpose of this paper is to analyze three litigated cross-border inbound acquisitions that associated with an emerging economy – India, such as Vodafone-Hutchison and Bharti Airtel-MTN deals in the telecommunications industry, and Vedanta-Cairn India deal in the oil and gas exploration industry. The study intends to explore how do institutional and political environments in the host country affect the completion likelihood of cross-border acquisition negotiations.

Nested within the interdisciplinary framework, the study adopts a legitimate method in qualitative research, that is, case study method, and performs a unit of analysis and cross-case analysis of sample cases.

The critical analysis suggests that government officials’ erratic nature and ruling political party intervention have detrimental effects on the success of Indian-hosted cross-border deals with higher bid value, listed target firm, cash payment, and stronger government control in the target industry. The findings emerge from the cross-case analysis of sample cases contribute to the Lucas paradox – why does not capital flow from rich to poor countries and interdisciplinary M&A literature on the completion likelihood of international takeovers.

The findings have several implications for multinational managers who typically involve in cross-border negotiations. The causes and consequences of sample cases would help develop economy firms who intend to invest in emerging economies. The study also offers some implications of M&A for telecommunications and extractive industries.

Although a huge amount of extant research investigates why M&A fail to create value to the shareholders during the public announcement and post-merger stages, there is a significant dearth of research on the causes and consequences of delayed or abandoned national and international deals. The paper fills this knowledge gap by discussing an in-depth cross-case analysis of Indian-hosted cross-border acquisitions.

This paper presents a robust numerical model for dealing with temporary instabilities which occur in the numerical analysis of steel structures under fire conditions. The model adopts the combined static-dynamic solution procedure to model ‘snap-through’ behaviour of industrial steel portal frame in fire. This new method allows solution procedure automatically switch between static and dynamic approaches, with the objective mainly for overcoming a transitory stage of instability in structural modelling. The current model is computationally very efficient compared to conducting full dynamic analysis of the structures for the whole duration of fire. The method could easily be applied for modelling composite and reinforced concrete buildings under fire conditions. The snap-through instability of the pitched portal frame has been modelled successfully by the new procedure. The method could provide a very useful modelling tool for the perform-based fire safety design of industrial buildings, as a much more realistic alternative to the highly simplified design methods which are currently in use.

Compared to other areas in China, Chaoshan region in Guangdong province has a more developed clan system set within a rural landscape. This paper aims to explore the relationship between the social structure (family–clan) and spatial form (housing settlement) of clan-organized rural China to understand the spatial form represented by “family and clan.”

By examining Dongli village and Huayao village, this paper outlines the typical path of spatial representation: dwelling of individual’s core family → mansion of the big family → settlement of a single clan → co-settlement of several clans. Moreover, it identifies three critical elements of the spatial representation: prototype (the spatial representation of the etiquette system); order (a hierarchical space set by the patriarchal system); and boundary (constructed on both physical and mental facts).

All elements indicate that descendants of migrants from the North maintain their self-identity and discipline clan members by planning the ideal space.

The findings contribute to the ongoing discussions regarding how local cultural and historical experiences can influence renewed designs of traditional settlement areas (Aksulu and Eryildiz, 2003) and how digital means can facilitate updating designs of traditional buildings (Han et al., 2017). Such planning and design should involve greater public participation, considering the impact on residents’ daily lives (Pandya, 2005).

This paper contributes to the understanding of the relationship between cultural values and the spatial form of residential settlements in Chinese history.

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically disrupted everyday life, leading to a cascade of negative emotional responses such as death anxiety. Against this backdrop, the purpose of this paper is to focus on the buffering effect of brand attachment on death anxiety by exploring the roles of brand concepts and brand positioning on psychological compensation for security.

This multi-method paper features four studies and shows how brands can offer emotional support under high-risk circumstances.

Study 1 includes two surveys which offer preliminary evidence that death anxiety can enhance consumers’ brand attachment. Study 2 reveals a causal effect wherein consumers experiencing death anxiety are more likely to attach to brands with a self-transcendence (vs self-enhancement) concept. Study 3 examines the mediating role of need for security in the relationship between death anxiety and attachment to brands with a self-transcendence concept. Further, Study 4 indicates the moderating role of brand positioning: self-transcendence brands adopting local (vs global) positioning strategies are more likely to satisfy consumers’ need for security, thereby leading to strong brand attachment.

The findings of this paper contribute to the brand attachment literature and to the global branding literature regarding consumers’ emotional responses in the context of COVID-19. This paper innovatively frames brand concepts and brand positioning and provides actionable guidelines to help brands satisfy consumers’ needs amid a worldwide crisis.

Given that several publicly announced international merger and acquisition deals have been abandoned in recent years, the purpose of this paper is to present a synthesis of influential articles that examine organizational characteristics of cross-border acquisition transactions. The synthesis is framed through general traits and resources, learning and prior acquisition experience, and top-level management and governance attributes. Specifically, the paper conceptualizes key organizational attributes influencing the propensity of cross-border negotiations, and the most common characteristics and post-deal effects by illustrating several case examples from around the world.

Owing to fairness and integrity principles of the literature survey studies, the paper adopts an exploratory review design to present a synthesis of several influential articles published in strategy, international business and corporate finance journals. Since case method and storytelling are the best qualitative approaches to conceptualizing extant theoretical contributions, a number of case examples—successful, delayed and abandoned—from around the world have been discussed by leveraging the case information from archival sources.

Drawing on resource-based view, organizational learning, upper echelons and agency theory perspectives, the paper underscores three observations. First, organizational characteristics such as firm age, firm size, ownership structure, slack resources, marketing resources, technological intensity, export intensity and business group affiliation have different impacts on the propensity of publicly announced cross-border deals. Second, firm’s prior acquisition experience and firm’s acquisition experience in the target country have positive or moderating effects on the success of a cross-border merger. Third, top-level management characteristics such as CEO foreign nationality and CEO international career experience, and governance characteristics such as board size, the number of independent directors and directors with overseas experience, have mixed effects on the incidence of cross-border acquisitions.

The paper puts forth several recommendations for top-level managers participating in cross-border acquisition negotiations, such as learning from peers in the same industry, learning from predecessors in the target country and learning from failure negotiations in the same industry and other industries.

Nested within the organizational, international business strategy and corporate finance literature, the paper presents a synthesis of influential publications that study organizational characteristics affecting the propensity of cross-border acquisitions. The cases discussed in this paper are unique examples from around the world.

The screw extruder is applied in cement-three-dimensional (3D) printing. The cement paste flow in 3D printing is the typical Herschel–Bulkley fluid. To understand the flow in the channel, the improved lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) is proposed.

For Herschel–Bulkley flow, an improved LBM is presented to avoid the poor stability and accuracy. The non-Newtonian effect is regard as a special forcing term. The Poiseuille flow is taken to discuss the detailed process of the method. With the method, the analytical solution and numerical solution are obtained and compared. Then, the effect of the initial yield stress on the numerical solution is both explored by the shear-thickening fluid and the shear-thinning fluid. Moreover, the variations of the relative errors under different lattice nodes and different power-law indexes are analyzed. Finally, the method is applied into the simulation of the flow in the extruder of cement-3D printing.

The results show that the improved method is effective for Herschel–Bulkley fluids, which can simulate the flow in the extruder stably and accurately.

The simulation can contribute to understand the cement paste flow in the screw extruder, which helps to optimize the structure of the extruder in the following periods.

The improve method provide a new way to analyze the flow in the extruder of cement-3D printing. Also, in the past research, LBM for Herschel–Bulkley fluid is ignored, whereas the study can provide the reference for the numerical simulation.