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The use of clay brickwork masonry as a cladding on framed building structures is reviewed and the problems with the modern form of construction for brickwork cladding highlighted. The potential for developing simpler, improved forms of cladding, in which free vertical movement of the brickwork is restrained, is discussed. Preliminary results are presented of an ongoing programme of research to investigate the performance of clay brickwork under conditions of vertical restraint, involving the construction and monitoring of full‐scale brickwork test panels on a multi‐storey concrete frame.

The purpose of this paper is to take a serious look at the relationship between joint consultation systems at the workplace and employee satisfaction, while at the same time accounting for the (possible) interactions with similar union and management-led high commitment strategies.

Using new, rich data on a representative sample of British workers, the authors identify workplace institutions that are positively associated with employee perceptions of work and relations with management, what in combination the authors call a measure of the “good workplace.” In particular, the authors focus on non-union employee representation at the workplace, in the form of joint consultative committees (JCCs), and the potential moderating effects of union representation and high-involvement human resource (HIHR) practices.

The authors’ findings suggest a re-evaluation of the role that JCCs play in the subjective well-being of workers even after controlling for unions and progressive HR policies. There is no evidence in the authors’ estimates of negative interaction effects (i.e. that unions or HIHR negatively influence the functioning of JCCs with respect to employee satisfaction) or substitution (i.e. that unions or HIHR are substitutes for JCCs when it comes to improving self-reported worker well-being). If anything, there is a significant and positive three-way moderating effect when JCCs are interacted with union representation and high-involvement management.

This is the first time – to the authors’ knowledge – that comprehensive measures of subjective employee well-being are being estimated with respect to the presence of a JCC at the workplace, while controlling for workplace institutions (e.g. union representation and human resource policies) that are themselves designed to involve and communicate with workers.

The purpose of this paper is to report the result of a numerical investigation of film cooling performance on a flat plate for finding optimum blowing ratios.

Steady-state simulations have been performed, and the flow has been considered incompressible. Calculations have been performed with 3D finite-volume method and the k-e turbulence model.

The adiabatic film cooling effectiveness and the effects of density ratio (DR), blowing ratio (M) and main stream turbulence intensity (Tu), coolant penetration, hole incline and diameter are studied. The temperature and film cooling effectiveness contours, centerline and laterally film cooling effectiveness are presented for these cases. Results show that the cases with smaller Tu have better effectiveness. In the console, using the air coolant and in cylindrical hole cases, using CO₂ coolant fluid has higher effectiveness. The results indicated that there is an optimum blowing ratio in the cylindrical hole cases to optimize the performance of new gas turbines.

Investigation of optimum blowing ratio for the convex surfaces and turbine blades is a prospective topic for future studies.

The motivation of this study comes from several industrial applications such as film cooling of gas turbine components. This research gives the best blowing ratio for receiving maximum cooling effectiveness with minimum coolant velocity.

This study optimizes the blowing ratio for film cooling on a flat plate.

The purpose of this paper is to explore empirically manager and employee views on employees’ skills utilisation in organisations in Scotland.

Questionnaires to managers and employees, plus three case studies comprising manager interviews and employee focus groups.

Highly significant differences are found between manager and employee views on: the match of employee skills to their current jobs; the extent of utilisation of employees’ skills; and opportunities for promotion. The main difference in views is on the match of employee skills to their current jobs, with employees opining more than managers that employees’ skills exceed the requirements of their job. Also, for managers and employees alike, the meaning of skills utilisation is obscure despite the language of skills being widely used in organisations.

The scale of the empirical research is possibly limited. There is potential for manager and employee bias. A case study of a private sector organisation is not included.

It is apparent that there is potential to increase employees’ skills utilisation in organisations in Scotland. Managers are challenged with better utilising the skills within their workforces by using these skills to drive improvements in work processes and practices.

Previous commentary and research on skills utilisation mainly centres on policy and employer standpoints. This paper focuses on manager and employee viewpoints on employees’ skills utilisation.

An extensive mid‐term review in 2005 of the Innovative Manufacturing Programme, followed by sporadic individual reviews in 2006, provided the opportunity to draw inferences from the overall performance of 12 research centres in the UK and to review the impact of block funding. Previous studies of research centres (in this case with a multidisciplinary character) are rare – none for operations management were found – and to that purpose of the paper proposes (new) metrics in addition to the peer review.

The rich data provided during the mid‐term review provided input for the analysis.

In general the analysis indicates that the centres gravitate towards consultancy, stimulated by criteria set by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. Consequently, setting the industrial agenda to improve the competitive position of the UK manufacturing industry rarely occurs. Furthermore, centres with a stronger research strategy and with motivated research staff did outperform others in attracting additional funding. A focus on specific sectors correlates with a negative impact on research output. Despite an increased responsiveness to industry and the concentration of motivated research staff, stronger management cultures at the centres and more collaborative efforts between the centres would benefit performance.

Even though the metrics proved an important tool, the combination of quantitative analysis and peer review made it possible to arrive at these conclusions, possibly setting the scene for the new REF in 2015. The lessons learned from the review and the analysis might be beneficial for research centres in operations management.

Since this type of study – the in‐depth evaluation of the performance of research centres – has never been conducted before, it paves the way to a better understanding of research management in a national context. Implications of the study might exceed that of the domain of research into manufacturing technology and manufacturing management.

Despite rapid growth in organizational use of Twitter, there is little theoretical or empirical research examining how different organisations use Twitter. This paper aims to analyse and compare use of Twitter in 12 accounts held by six organisations in the USA and Australia, drawing on existing models of interactive communications.

The paper is based on analysis of a random sample of tweets sent by each account.

The results demonstrate different ways in which the interactive capabilities of Twitter can be used to communicate with customers. However by also demonstrating lack of consistency in Twitter practice within most organisations, the results reinforce the need for strategic consistency in developing Twitter practice.

The results are based on the Twitter practice of 12 organisational accounts in the USA and Australia from December 2009 to May 2010. As with any evolving medium, practices at the different organisations may have changed since that time.

The paper is the first to compare Twitter use within and across organisations and geographic markets. It demonstrates a variety of potential Twitter practices, and discusses the advantages and disadvantages of different strategies, and thus provides a framework for analysis of Twitter practice, and strategic direction for organisations developing their use of Twitter. The paper identifies challenges in the use of Twitter as both a one‐to‐many, and also a one‐to‐one, communication medium, and suggests strategies for coping with this dual use of Twitter.

Entrepreneurial orientation (EO) has emerged as a core concept in the field of entrepreneurship. Yet, there continue to be questions about the nature of EO and how best to conceptualize and measure it. This chapter makes the case that EO has grown beyond its roots as a firm-level unidimensional strategy construct and that a new multidimensional version of EO is needed to capture the diverse manifestations and venues for entrepreneurial activity that are now evident around the world – global entrepreneurial orientation (GEO). Building on the five-dimension multidimensional view of EO set forth when Lumpkin and Dess (1996) extended the work of Miller (1983) and Covin and Slevin (1989, 1991), the chapter offers an updated definition of EO and a fresh interpretation of why EO matters theoretically. Despite earnest efforts to reconcile the different approaches to EO, in order to move the study of EO and the theoretical conversation about it forward, we maintain that as a group of scholars and a field, we need to acknowledge that two different versions of EO have emerged. Given that, we consider original approaches to measuring EO, evaluate formative measurement models, consider multiple levels of analysis, call for renewed attention to EO configurations, and discuss whether there is a theory of EO.

A collection of essays by a social economist seeking to balance economics as a science of means with the values deemed necessary to man′s finding the good life and society enduring as a civilized instrumentality. Looks for authority to great men of the past and to today′s moral philosopher: man is an ethical animal. The 13 essays are: 1. Evolutionary Economics: The End of It All? which challenges the view that Darwinism destroyed belief in a universe of purpose and design; 2. Schmoller′s Political Economy: Its Psychic, Moral and Legal Foundations, which centres on the belief that time‐honoured ethical values prevail in an economy formed by ties of common sentiment, ideas, customs and laws; 3. Adam Smith by Gustav von Schmoller – Schmoller rejects Smith′s natural law and sees him as simply spreading the message of Calvinism; 4. Pierre‐Joseph Proudhon, Socialist – Karl Marx, Communist: A Comparison; 5. Marxism and the Instauration of Man, which raises the question for Marx: is the flowering of the new man in Communist society the ultimate end to the dialectical movement of history?; 6. Ethical Progress and Economic Growth in Western Civilization; 7. Ethical Principles in American Society: An Appraisal; 8. The Ugent Need for a Consensus on Moral Values, which focuses on the real dangers inherent in there being no consensus on moral values; 9. Human Resources and the Good Society – man is not to be treated as an economic resource; man′s moral and material wellbeing is the goal; 10. The Social Economist on the Modern Dilemma: Ethical Dwarfs and Nuclear Giants, which argues that it is imperative to distinguish good from evil and to act accordingly: existentialism, situation ethics and evolutionary ethics savour of nihilism; 11. Ethical Principles: The Economist′s Quandary, which is the difficulty of balancing the claims of disinterested science and of the urge to better the human condition; 12. The Role of Government in the Advancement of Cultural Values, which discusses censorship and the funding of art against the background of the US Helms Amendment; 13. Man at the Crossroads draws earlier themes together; the author makes the case for rejecting determinism and the “operant conditioning” of the Skinner school in favour of the moral progress of autonomous man through adherence to traditional ethical values.

Addresses the standardization of the measurements and the labels for concepts commonly used in the study of work organizations. As a reference handbook and research tool, seeks to improve measurement in the study of work organizations and to facilitate the teaching of introductory courses in this subject. Focuses solely on work organizations, that is, social systems in which members work for money. Defines measurement and distinguishes four levels: nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio. Selects specific measures on the basis of quality, diversity, simplicity and availability and evaluates each measure for its validity and reliability. Employs a set of 38 concepts ‐ ranging from “absenteeism” to “turnover” as the handbook’s frame of reference. Concludes by reviewing organizational measurement over the past 30 years and recommending future measurement reseach.

Investigates the differences in protocols between arbitral tribunals and courts, with particular emphasis on US, Greek and English law. Gives examples of each country and its way of using the law in specific circumstances, and shows the variations therein. Sums up that arbitration is much the better way to gok as it avoids delays and expenses, plus the vexation/frustration of normal litigation. Concludes that the US and Greek constitutions and common law tradition in England appear to allow involved parties to choose their own judge, who can thus be an arbitrator. Discusses e‐commerce and speculates on this for the future.