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The aim of this research is to examine the relationship between green supply chain management and sustainability performance in a manufacturing context.

A survey approach was adopted to collect data from 163 manufacturing organizations to test the research hypotheses. A structural equation modeling (SEM) using the technique of path analysis with bootstrapping is used to test the hypothesized relationships.

The research findings provide supporting evidence for the importance of implementing green supply chain management (GSCM) as a holistic system that includes internal and external green practices. Besides, the findings highlight the direct effect of GSCM on environmental, social and operational performance. Finally, the findings provide supporting evidence that GSCM could only be translated into better economic returns through the improvement of environmental and operational performance.

The nature of the surveyed sample and the use of a single informant might limit the ability to generalize the research findings outside the research context.

The research findings help managers understand that GSCM must be implemented as a holistic system and that the real benefits of its implementation extend beyond the mere environmental benefits to include operational, social as well as economic benefits.

The paper’s contribution to knowledge is twofold. First, the study identifies how GSCM is conceptualized and how its effect is translated into improved economic performance. Second, the research explains the contradicting findings in previous studies regarding the relationship between GSCM and economic performance.

The purpose of this paper is to promote and analytically verify an advanced assessment design to evaluate service quality (SQ) especially in postgraduate higher education.

This research adopts a quantitative approach through a survey method. A structured questionnaire was designed as a means for collecting data. Data were collected from 182 postgraduate students in an Egyptian higher education university. Data were examined by exploratory factor analysis to pinpoint the main irregularities explained by the extracted factors. Then, confirmatory factor analysis was carried out to filter the ratios and empirically test the assessment efficiency of the developed model.

The final model consists of 33 items loaded into eight dimensions for measuring performance-based SQ of the postgraduate higher education. The results are satisfactory in terms of unidimensionality, trustworthiness, and validity tests.

Although the empirical results are significant, a comparative study can identify relative strengths and weaknesses of this model.

For improving postgraduate higher education institutions’ quality, this paper highlights some dimensions and attributes that should be considered.

The literature proposes that there is an opportunity to handle SQ from the point of view of postgraduate students covering different contexts to further build a more comprehensive structure specifically for postgraduate higher education SQ. This paper deals with this research gap with analytical confirmation within the context of postgraduate programs in an Egyptian university.

This paper aims to empirically investigate how structural barriers affect the relationship between total quality management (TQM) practices implementation and organizational performance in service industries.

This research hypothesized the moderation effect of structural barriers on the relationship between TQM practices implementation and organizational performance. A questionnaire was adopted to collect data form 153 Egyptian service companies. Moderated regression analysis was used to test the study hypothesis.

The empirical analysis suggests that structural barriers partially moderate the relationship between TQM practices implementation and organizational performance. The analysis reveals that the effect of Quality Improvement, Process Improvement, External and Internal Relations and Employee Development – being as TQM dimensions – on performance is moderated by structural barriers. While the results provided insufficient evidence on the moderating effect of structural barriers on the relationship between both Performance Management – being as a TQM dimension – and performance.

This research presents a new perspective for researches to understand the TQM–Performance relationship in the light of the contingency theory. However, the adopted sampling technique and the small sample size might limit the generalizability of the research findings.

This study provides useful insights for service organizations about the necessity of developing suitable structural platform for supporting their TQM efforts to boost their performance which, in turn, improves their competitiveness.

This research proposed and empirically validated how structural barriers play a significant role as moderators to the relationship between TQM implementation and organizational performance within service organizations context.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the contingent effect of supply chain strategies on supply chain integration (SCI)-performance relationship in manufacturing organizations.

This research hypothesized the moderation effect of agile, responsive, risk-hedging and efficient strategies on the relationship between SCI and operational performance (OP). Survey data were collected from a sample of 112 Egyptian manufacturing firms and analyzed using moderated regression analyses to test the study hypotheses.

The results provide supporting evidence that the four strategies moderate the relationship between internal integration (II) and OP. The results also indicated that agile strategy moderates the relationship between customer and supplier integration and OP. Besides, the results indicated that responsive strategy moderates the effect of customer integration (CI) on OP. Finally, the results did not provide sufficient evidence regarding the moderating effect of risk-hedging strategy on supplier integration (SI)-performance relationship.

The nature of the surveyed sample and the use of a single informant might limit the ability to generalize the research findings outside the research context.

The research results provide managers of manufacturing organizations with the roadmap to maximize the benefits from their integrative efforts through emphasizing the appropriate supply chain strategy (SCS) with respect to the market demand/supply conditions.

This paper contributes to knowledge by empirically validating the contingent effect of SCS on the relationship between SCI and OP.

This paper aims to empirically investigate the triadic relationship between internal integration, internal flexibility and external flexibility.

This research hypothesized the mediation effect of internal flexibility on the relationship between internal integration and external flexibility. Survey data were collected and analyzed using simple and mediation regression analysis to test the study hypotheses.

The research finding reveals that machine, labor and material handling flexibilities; being as internal flexibility dimensions mediate the relationship between internal integration and volume and mix flexibilities; being as external flexibility dimensions. The results provided insufficient evidence on the mediating effect of routing flexibility on the relationship between internal integration and both volume and mix flexibilities.

This research presents a new perspective for research studies to understand the factors that affect manufacturing flexibility. However, the nature of the surveyed sample and using of a single informant might limit the generalizability of the research findings.

This study provides useful insights for firms wishing to enhance their competitiveness through improving their flexibility. The companies should be aware of the importance of developing a suitable platform for coordinating inter-departmental activities to enhance its internal competencies, which, in turn, improve its customer-facing capabilities and boosts its competitiveness.

This paper contributes to knowledge by proposing and empirically testing the mediating effect of internal flexibility on the relationship between internal integration and external flexibility.

This paper aims to investigate the impact of the implementation of the critical audit matters (CAMs) disclosure requirement and the subsequent relationship between CAM disclosures and audit report lag, as well as audit fees in the USA.

This study used difference-in-differences analyses to investigate the impact that the implementation of the requirement for auditors to report CAMs on their audit report has on the audit process. It also used levels regression models to examine the relationship that CAM disclosures have with audit report lag and audit fees.

This study found that the implementation of the CAM disclosure requirement in the USA reduced audit report lag while not significantly affecting audit fees. This suggests that the CAM disclosure requirement may increase the cooperation between auditors and managers and improve the efficiency of the audit process.

This study’s results are informative for assessing the economic impact of requiring CAM disclosures, which should be of importance to regulators, auditors and accounting researchers.

This study used different approaches to investigate two aspects of the CAM disclosure requirement – the effect of the implementation of the disclosure requirement and the subsequent effects related to CAM reporting outcomes. Unlike many previous studies investigating CAM disclosures, which relied on experiments and questionnaires, this study used actual CAM disclosure data in the USA to investigate the impact on audit report lag and audit fees.

This paper aims to study the role of organobentonite (OB) as a filler to improve the mechanical strength of styrene butadiene rubber (SBR). Organoclay was first prepared by modifying bentonite with different concentrations of N-cetyl-N, N, N-triethyl ammonium bromide. A series of SBR composites reinforced with OB were prepared using master-batch method.

The curing characteristics, mechanical properties, thermal behavior, dielectric properties and morphology of SBR/OB composites were investigated.

The elastic modulus and tensile strength of composites were increased by inclusion of OB, while the elongation at break was decreased, due to the increase in the degree of cross-linking density. Thermal gravimetric analysis revealed an improvement in the thermal stability of the composite containing 0.5 cation exchange capacity (CEC) OB, while the scanning electron micrographs confirmed more homogenous distribution of 0.5CEC OB in the rubber matrix. Also, SBR/0.5CEC OB showed low relative permittivity and electrical insulating properties.

Bentonite has been recognized as a potentially useful filler in polymer matrix composites because of their high swelling capacity and plate morphology.

OB improves the cured rubber by increasing the tensile strength and the stiffness of the vulcanizate.

Using cheap clay in rubber industry lead to production of low cost products with high efficiency.

The clay represents a convenient source because of their environmental compatibility. The low cost and easy availability make the modified clay used as fillers in rubber matrices, and the resultant composites can be applied in variety industrial of applications such as automobile industries, shoe outsoles, packaging materials and construction engineering.

This study aims to investigate the influences of polyester fabric layers on the mechanical properties of SBR and devulcanized waste rubber composite materials, as well as the effect of gamma irradiation dose.

The devulcanized waste rubbers (DWR) were carried out by different methods. First, chemically, by two different reclaiming agents such as tetramethylthiuram disulfide (TMTD) and 2-mercapto benzothiazole disulfide (MBTS). Secondary by a physical method like microwave (MW). The devulcanized rubbers were mixed with virgin styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) in different ratios, as follows: SBR-DWR (TMTD) 50 / 50, SBR-DWR (MBTS) 80 / 20 and SBR-DWR (MW) 80 / 20. A series of sandwich polyester tire cord fabrics were used as reinforcement for making SBR and devulcanized waste rubber composite materials and molded on a hot press into rubber sheet films, then subjected to gamma radiation at different doses ranging from 100 up to 200 kGy.

The experimental results indicate that increasing the layer number improves the mechanical properties of composites. The tensile strength, tearing, hardness and elastic modulus of the rubber composites increased with the rise of the fiber layers and by increasing the irradiation dose up to 200 kGy. The reclaiming agent TMTD gave the best results for mechanical properties, followed by MW and then MBTS.

This phenomenon can be detailed based on the fact that when the fiber-reinforced composites are subjected to loading, the fibers act as load carriers, depending on the population and orientation of the fibers. Also, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) reveals that adhesion was caused by tire cord fabrics and rubber blend matrix.

The purpose of this study was to examine the quality performance of the Egyptian manufacturing industry based on Flynn's quality management practices framework.

A literature-based questionnaire was developed to collect the research data. The sample studied included 193 professionals from different manufacturing firms in Egypt. The research model utilized seven first-order constructs to measure infrastructure and core quality practices and the model was analyzed by structural equation modeling.

The results of the study showed that infrastructure practices had a positive effect on core quality practices, which in turn, significantly influenced quality performance. The findings confirmed that Egyptian manufacturing firms have a good foundation of quality management practices enabling them to improve quality performance.

This study provides a foundation for Egyptian manufacturing firms to develop a practical plan for implementing total quality management (TQM). In addition, the results of this study will help managers and policy makers develop a thorough understanding of the current status of TQM initiatives, enablers and barriers in Egypt.

The study represents one of the few attempts to examine quality practices and quality performance in the manufacturing sector in Egypt. To the best of the author's knowledge, this is the first study to examine these parameters in this context in Egypt.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the efficiency of organobentonite (OB) as reinforcing filler in acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber (NBR). The composites were prepared using different loadings of OB and studying in details their properties. A series of OB was modified using surfactant N-cetyl-N, N, N-trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) with concentrations 0.5, 1 and 2 cation exchange capacity (CEC) of bentonite.

The different bentonites were characterized using different analytical and spectro-photometric techniques, such as infra red, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis and scanning electron microscopy, while rubber vulcanizate rheological, morphological, swelling and thermal properties were examined using different standard instrumental testing and methods.

The study revealed that the modification of bentonite using CTAB showed significant enhancement on NBR properties, and the optimum filler loading was 12 phr for both 0.5CEC OB and 2CEC OB. These modified bentonites improved reinforcing properties to NBR vulcanizates. Also, results showed that composites exhibited remarkable improvements in tensile strength, elongation at break and hardness in the presence of modified bentonite and also an increase in thermal stability.

Na-B cannot be applied in rubber matrix without modification because it is incompatible with it.

The modified bentonite is considered as efficient reinforcing filler which can replace other fillers because it has lower surface energy and improved intercalating behaviour in rubber matrix.

These papered bentonites are cheap with relatively high purity, which make rubber/clay composites emerge as new class of material and can be used in different fields other than rubber.