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Evaluates the mechanical properties of 60 different shirting materials: fabric extensibility, formability, shear rigidity, bending rigidity, relaxation shrinkage, and hygral expansion by the adoption of the fabric assurance by simple testing (FAST) system. Investigates manufacturing processes comprising spreading, cutting, sewing, handling, pressing and packaging and correlates the measured properties of the shirting fabric with their actual performance during making up. Claims this overall evaluation of respective fabric performance enables manufacturers to identify the range of mechanical properties ideal for high‐quality shirt production. Adds that specific manufacturing instructions can be prepared, based on the results of fabric property evaluation, for fabrics which tend to present difficulties in production. Points out that these can considerably expedite the manufacture of garments, avoiding the alternative – expensive “trial and error” – solution to problems.

Reports a survey of fabric handle preferences for a range of 50 men’s shirting materials. A total of 199 judges were divided into two panels according to their experience in the textile and clothing industry. Low levels of agreement were found which signify the errors inherent in subjective assessment of fabric handle. The analysis was extended to include fabric assurance by simple testing (FAST) data on the mechanical properties of these fabrics in order to establish whether there was any relationship existing between the judges’ preferences and the fabric mechanical parameters. Highlights shear rigidity, formability and bending rigidity as the most influential properties for the determination of fabric total hand value (THV). Moreover, establishes a validated THV equation to predict fabric handle assessment by using objective data. Demonstrates that the mean of the assessment and a substantial amount of individual subjective handle assessment can be explained by the model.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the influence of assembly type on the hand property of the polyester-knitted materials containing different amounts of elastane fibre.

The hand property of control textile materials specimens as well as assembled ones applying both adhesive bonding and sewing was evaluated analysing the typical pulling curves as well as the individual hand parameters, which were determined using the device KTU-Griff-Tester. The complex hand criterion Q was calculated for the complete assessment of both textiles and their assemblies’ hand by one numeral value.

It was shown that the fabric structure and assembly type have a significant influence on the knitted materials hand property. The complex hand criterion Q varied from 0.068 to 0.186, depending on the material structure, and it was decreased up to 42.6 per cent due to textile assemblies.

The determined research results are significant not only for clothing science but also leads to the improvement in clothing quality in fashion industry suggesting more ergonomic and original constructional decisions for clothes’ design, selection of most suitable assembly type and its place in overall garment area, which is very important for the development process of the slim fitted sportswear featuring with a very complicated construction, usually worn under intensive body movements causing rubbing effect to the skin.

Knitted fabrics should not only be elastic but also have perfect hand, thus making them to feel comfortable. But hand property of assembled textiles had not been investigated previously. Novelty and originality of this research was the objective and simple evaluation of the hand property for both knitted materials and their assemblies taking into account the overall skin sensorial comfort of a garment.

The ability to sift through the ever‐increasing amounts of information made available online to find quality and accurate data is becoming more important every day. Using credibility, accuracy, reasonableness, support, and uniqueness as criteria for Web site evaluation, the authors analyse five Web sites in an effort to determine the value and quality of the information. This article discusses the evaluation of Web sites dedicated to Chinese archaeology, and also points to six main characters of online resources for the subject area. In addition, questions are raised concerning the extent to which online Chinese archaeological resources can advance general awareness of the field and contribute to a growing body of knowledge. The authors hope this article sheds light on some of the challenges that need to be overcome when attempting to present this information to the global community.

Emergency situations call for effective means of providing quality education. Higher education institutions are therefore required to use effective and efficient online approaches for teaching and learning which necessitate students, academic practitioners and institutions to engage and interact with each other successfully. The purpose of this chapter is to discuss the importance of interaction and engagement in the use of blended learning online tools during emergency situations. The theoretical lens that informs the chapter is social constructivism which argues that learning is a social endeavour. The literature findings show that the effective engagement of students contributes to the overall quality of students’ produced experiences as well as pass rates. Furthermore, the importance of student–lecturer engagement and student–content engagement cannot be taken for granted. The right balance of synchronous and asynchronous online learning tools contributes to fruitful interaction and engagement. Online engagement seems to have many benefits as compared to conventional based engagement such as the ability of students to contribute to their teaching and learning. Despite these advantages, challenges associated with online learning such as balancing life commitments, confidence, students’ approach to learning, high investment costs in resources, motivation, competences of lecturers and students, interest of lecturers and students and efficacy of lecturers and students cannot be ignored. The authors therefore recommend that effective and efficient online learning requires the correct blend of online learning tools accompanied by the correct engagement strategies.

Pandemic process has led re-questioning home environments within adaptations of new activities inside due to the restriction of outdoor usage. This paper aims to reveal spatial transformations carried out through the time spent at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A qualitative study is carried out based on Garfinkel’s (1961) ethnomethodology method (documentary method of interpretation). Analysis focused on the first month of pandemic in which urgent adaptations and solutions produced at home, and the situation in last two weeks of pandemic is analyzed within a control group and comparisons were made. Perec’s (1974) statement of “a user's manual” is used as a checklist of time-space-activity observations proposed on “mondayness, tuesdayness, wednesdayness, thursdayness, fridayness, saturdayness and sundayness.” Instead of daily period, activities performed on a weekly scale were recorded and time-dependent shifts of functions were revealed.

Findings introduced new discussion topics to examine dwelling spaces in “new normal.” Comparisons indicate that hypothesis of gathering all activities in room in terms of “life fits into room” concept is directed through rapid spatial behaviors in daily life as primary adaptation.

Although pandemic process continues after study, analysis of first four weeks are accepted as the period of rapid change and compared by last two weeks of pandemic.

Pandemic indicators proposed in study brings along that there is little information on the subject in literature. Socio-spatial findings address the examinations of spatial transformations into pandemic adaptation.

The recent COVID-19 pandemic underscores the need for educational innovation and digitalization during crises where many educational institutions were forced to shift to online and remote learning. This chapter is a discursive review of problems and solutions and key trends that have emerged because of crises. One of the key benefits of educational innovation and digitalization during crises is the ability to continue providing education and learning opportunities to students even when traditional face-to-face learning is not possible. Educational institutions need to invest in building resilient online learning ecosystems to ensure that education can continue uninterrupted even in the face of unforeseen disruptions. This ecosystem should include robust technological infrastructure, a diverse range of digital resources and tools, and training and support for educators. Ultimately, a resilient online learning ecosystem is not just a response to crises but a proactive investment in the future of education.

This study aims to investigate the relationships between two dimensions of communication satisfaction – personal feedback and supervisory communication – on outcomes such as altruistic organizational citizenship behavior and civic virtue. Another aim is to examine the mediating role of organizational justice (OJ) between these two dimensions of communication satisfaction and altruistic organizational citizenship behavior and civic virtue.

This study is based on a survey conducted in major organizations in Macau SAR, China. Data from 294 respondents who successfully completed the questionnaire is used for the analysis.

The results reveal that supervisory communication is significantly and positively associated with altruistic organizational citizenship behavior. Both personal feedback and supervisory communication are significantly and positively associated with civic virtue. OJ is a mediator between personal feedback and civic virtue. OJ also mediates the relationship between satisfaction with supervisory communication and civic virtue. It is intriguing that OJ is not a mediator in the relationship between satisfaction with communication and altruistic organizational citizenship behavior.

A single city cross-sectional study presents some restrictions on the generalizability of the findings. More studies are needed to understand communication satisfaction – organizational citizenship behavior processes to establish if the findings hold with other samples in other cultures.

The empirical evidence in this study shows that satisfaction with communication is critical for promoting discretionary behaviors. The mediating roles of OJ between personal feedback and civic virtue and between supervisory communication and civic virtue, clearly indicate that even though a manager may try hard to motivate employees’ participation in discretionary behaviors, whether employees participate in extra-role behaviors depends on their perception of justice.

This is the first study to examine how altruistic organizational citizenship behavior and civic virtues are influenced by satisfaction with communication. Moreover, the mediating role of OJ has never been tested previously. The findings contribute to the HR literature and provide deeper insights on how to promote citizenship behavior.

With the continuous improvement of public–private partnership (PPP) projects, the participants' value creation goals are not only limited to achieving the basic performance objectives but also to realising value added. However, the effect of traditional contract management on realising the value creation objectives of PPP projects is limited. According to the view of multifunctional contract, joint-contract functions that integrate contract control and flexibility are likely to be effective in enhancing the value creation of PPP projects. This study aims to explore the effects of joint-contract functions on PPP project value creation and relevant influencing mechanism by investigating the mediating effect of in-role behaviour and extra-role behaviour.

After collecting 258 valid questionnaires from PPP professionals in China, this study used structural equation modelling to validate the hypotheses.

Contract control and flexibility can improve PPP project value creation. Specifically, contract control improves the achievement of the basic contract objectives of PPP projects, whereas contract flexibility enhances the achievement of the value-added of PPP projects. Moreover, only in-role behaviour mediates the effect of contract control on value creation. In addition, the mediating effect of extra-role behaviour on the impact of contract flexibility on value creation is stronger than that of in-role behaviour. The mediating effect of in- and extra-role behaviour is mainly reflected in the realisation of basic and value-added performance, respectively.

The findings of this study can help realise value creation in three ways. Firstly, new perspectives for PPP project value creation should be proposed by combining the improvement of contract objectives and the realisation of the participants' implicit demands. Secondly, the effects of different contract functions on value creation should be analysed instead of a single dimension of contractual governance. Thirdly, the mediating effects of different types of cooperation behaviour that may influence the relationship between contractual governance and value creation should be evaluated.

This study verifies the impacts of different contract functions on PPP project value creation. In addition, cooperative behaviour is embedded as a mediating variable, and the mediated transmission path from contract function to cooperative behaviour and further to PPP project value creation is systematically analysed.