Skill competency development strategies by a contractor

Construction skills are one of the vital aspects of construction work which is growing in importance due to skill gaps and skill shortages during different economic cycles. The aim of this study was to investigate competence development strategies by a traditional construction company within its own pool of skill resources and among its supply chain members. The study was carried out via literature review, empirical studies involving a focus study, analysis of documentary evidence supported by unstructured interviews and a report of skill development/supply chain conference. The study demonstrates how long-term skill development can be achieved through: (a) strategic capacity planning which allows high retention, continuous training, and balanced construction demand and contractor’s supply capacity over the long term; (b) updating and upgrading the knowledge base of the supply chain through conferences and training schemes; (c) strategic investment in the workforce through training, vocational and higher degrees; and (d) acquaintance with different sources of finance. This study will assist small traditional firms in building competencies in skill development and improvement. It will assist an international audience who may face similar issue with their construction firm

Sensitivity on Earth Core and Mantle densities using Atmospheric Neutrinos

Neutrino radiography may provide an alternative tool to study the very deep structures of the Earth. Though these measurements are unable to resolve the fine density layer features, nevertheless the information which can be obtained are independent and complementary to the more conventional seismic studies. The aim of this paper is to assess how well the core and mantle averaged densities can be reconstructed through atmospheric neutrino radiography. We find that about a 2% sensitivity for the mantle and 5% for the core could be achieved for a ten year data taking at an underwater km^3 Neutrino Telescope. This result does not take into account systematics related to the details of the experimental apparatus.Comment: 11 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in JCA

Inclusive growth in English cities: mainstreamed or sidelined?

<p>The concept of inclusive growth is increasingly presented as offering prospects for more equitable social outcomes. However, inclusive growth is subject to a variety of interpretations and lacks definitional clarity. In England, via devolution, cities are taking on new powers for policy domains that can influence inclusive growth outcomes. This opens up opportunities for innovation to address central issues of low pay and poverty. This paper examines the extent to which inclusive growth concerns form a central or peripheral aspect in this new devolution through the content analysis of devolution agreements. It concludes that inclusive growth concerns appear to be largely sidelined.</p

Labour supply and skills demands in fashion retailing

If, as Adam Smith once famously suggested, Britain was a nation of shopkeepers then it is now a nation of shopworkers. Retail is now a significant part of the UK economy, accounting for £256 billion in sales and one-third of all consumer spending (Skillsmart, 2007). It is the largest private sector employer in the UK, employing 3m workers, or 1 in 10 of the working population. For future job creation in the UK economy retail is also similarly prominent and the sector is expected to create a further 250,000 jobs to 2014 (Skillsmart, 2007). The centrality of retail to economic success and job creation is apparent in other advanced economies. For example, within the US, retail sales is the occupation with the largest projected job growth in the period 2004-2014 (Gatta et al., 2009) and in Australia retail accounts for 1 in 6 workers (Buchanan et al., 2003). Within the UK these workers are employed in approximately 290,000 businesses, encompassing large and small organizations and also a number of sub-sectors. This variance suggests that retail should not be regarded as homogenous in its labour demands. Hart et al. (2007) note how skill requirements and the types of workers employed may differ across the sector. This chapter further opens up this point, providing an analysis of the labour supply and skills demands for the sub-sectors of clothing, footwear and leather goods, which are described by Skillsmart (2007: 48) as being 'significant categories in UK retailing'

A study of the impacts of variable factors on built environment graduates’ prospects

This paper investigates the impacts of variable factors, such as practical experience and factors related to study style, on employment outcomes and patterns of built environment graduates in Australia. This paper also compares the employment prospects of different built environment sub-disciplines, including Architecture, Construction, Real Estate and Urban Planning and Regional Studies. Practical experience and the possibility of work with final year employers after graduation were found to have a statistically significant impact on the employment outcomes for graduates of built environment and all of its sub-disciplines. However, degree level and type of university attended were not found to have a statistically significant impact. Attendance type and employment mode in the final year of study had a statistically significant impact on the employment patterns for graduates of built environment and all of its sub-disciplines. The graduates who studied part-time and worked full-time in their final year of study were more likely to secure full-time jobs after graduation. The findings of this paper can be used by built environment graduates to identify the variable factors which they can change in order to enhance their employment prospects

Towards an Economy of Higher Education

This paper draws a distinction between ways thinking and acting, and hence of policy and practice in higher education, in terms of different kinds of economy: economies of exchange and economies of excess. Crucial features of economies of exchange are outlined and their presence in prevailing conceptions of teaching and learning is illustrated. These are contrasted with other possible forms of practice, which in turn bring to light the nature of an economy of excess. In more philosophical terms, and to expand on the picture, economies of excess are elaborated with reference, first, to the understanding of alterity in the work of Emmanuel Levinas and, second, to the idea of Dionysian intensity that is to be found in Nietzsche. In the light of critical comment on some current directions in policy and practice, the implications of these ways of thinking for the administrator, the teacher and the student in higher education are explored

Ultrahigh energy neutrinos in the Mediterranean: Detecting ντ and νμ with a km3 telescope

We perform a study of the ultra high energy neutrino detection performances of a km3 Neutrino Telescope sitting at the three proposed sites for ANTARES, NEMO and NESTOR in the Mediterranean sea. We focus on the effect of the underwater surface profile on the total amount of yearly expected tau and mu crossing the fiducial volume in the limit of full detection efficiency and energy resolution. We also emphasize the possible enhancement of matter effect by a suitable choice of the geometry of the Telescope

Principles of the IBM punched card method; Use of the IBM accounting method by the public accountant; Educational meeting (New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants)

In the IBM Accounting Machine Method all the transaction information is transcribed into cards by punching holes in predetermined positions. For example, in sales accounting work, sections of the card are reserved for punched holes that show the invoice reference number, transaction date, sales district and salesman credited for the sale, the customer, the product sold, the quantity shipped and the financial amount of the transaction. (Abstract for Davison paper) The purpose of the following remarks is to compare IBM punched card accounting with other methods and to examine how and why IBM accounting procedures may provide the internal or independent auditors with an additional tool for carrying out certain phases of the examination. (Abstract for the Sparks paper