M. Phil. / Presently, ESKOM is rated as the fifth largest utility in the world that generates and distributes electricity power to their consumers at the lowest price per kilowatt-hour (kW.h). As a utility, ESKOM is the largest supplier of electrical energy in South Africa and is currently generating and distributing on demand to approximately 3000 consumers. This represents 92% of the South African market. ESKOM was selected as the utility supplying electrical energy for the purpose of this study. ESKOM's objective is to provide the means and systems by which the consumer can be satisfied with electricity at the most cost-effective manner. In order to integrate the consumers into these objectives, ESKOM took a decision in 1994 to change the supply tariff from active power (kW) to apparent power (kVA) for a number of reasons: To establish a structure whereby the utility and the consumer can control the utilisation of electrical power supply to the consumer. To utilise demand and control through power factor correction and implementation of load management systems. To identify some cost implications of electrical power factor correction and load management. Consumers with kW maximum demand tariff options had little or no financial incentives to improve their low power factor (PF) by reducing their reactive current supply. Switching to (kVA) maximum demand will involve steps to be taken to ensure that the reactive component is kept to a minimum with maximum power factor. ESKOM has structured various tariff rates and charges with unique features that would accommodate the consumers in their demand side management and load cost requirements, which, when applied, will result in an efficient and cost effective load profile. These tariffs are designed to guide consumers automatically into an efficient way of using electrical power, as it is designed to recover both the capital investment and the operating cost within two to three years after installation of power factor correction equipment. ESKOM's concept of Time-of-use (TOU) periods for peak, standard and off-peak times during week, Saturday and Sunday periods is discussed as load management. Interruptible loads can be scheduled or shed to suit lower tariff rates and to avoid maximum demand charge. The concept of load management will change the operation pattern of the consumer's electricity demand whereby the consumer will have immediate technical and financial benefits. In the last chapter of this dissertation, a hypothetical case study addresses and concludes on some of the technical and cost implications of electrical power factor correction and load management as a successful and profitable solution to optimize electrical power supply to the consumer. By implementing the above, ESKOM ensures that the consumer utilizes the electrical power supply to its optimum level at the lowest cost per kilowatthour (kW.h) generated.

Magister Legum - LLM / This research examines the effectiveness of these dispute resolution mechanisms in environmental disputes and what improvements should be made in order to make those mechanisms suitable for these types of disputes. / South Africa

The goal of this thesis is to present a meta-analysis of studies that are focused on the relation between the international trade flow and the trade costs. The effect of trade costshasbecomeoneofthekeyelementstoresolvethesixmajor puzzles in the bilateral trade flow. I examine 1,090 estimates of the trade cost effect reported in 58 studies, codify 51 aspects of study design that may influencetheestimates.Iuse meta-regression analysis to investigate why trade costs effects vary. The results suggest that different methods and mainly data characteristics systematically affect the estimated trade costs effects. I find evidence for publication selection bias by using the appropriate tests. The authors of primary studies tend to report preferentially large estimates of the elasticity of trade with respect to trade costs. The evidence for publication selection bias is stronger for studies reported in peer-reviewed journals thanfor unpublished studies.

This diploma thesis is focused on cost analysis of cataract treatment.The aim of the diploma thesis is to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of cataract surgery and treatment in terms of the costs and benefits of treatment in two possible ways from the perspective of the patient and the health care facility.

Air quality legislation in South Africa is entering a transformation phase, shifting the concept of atmospheric emission control towards pollution prevention and emission minimisation through a more integrated approach. This transformation, along with public pressure and increased foreign trade, is providing industries with incentives to consider their effect on the environment and to take action where required. To assist South African industries in determining what air pollution control technologies are best suited to power plants, gasification and refining processes in South Africa; an assessment of air pollution control technologies used in other countries was carried out. This assessment concluded that the best available technologies for power plants to control air emissions are electrostatic precipitators, low-NOx burners, selective catalytic reduction systems and wet flue gas desulphurisation (limestone) systems. For gasification processes it was found that the main air pollution contributor is the gas handling and treatment process. Releases from this process are controlled through dust collection, wet scrubbing, conversion of sulphide compounds, sulphur recovery and the incineration of final vent gases before release to the atmosphere. For refining processes the catalytic cracking unit is normally the largest single air emission source and controlling emissions from this unit avoids controlling multiple minor sources. Emissions from this unit are controlled via wet scrubbing, selective catalytic reduction systems and carbon monoxide boilers. An assessment of the financial effects associated with air pollution control at power plants was conducted by completing a cost analysis. This analysis demonstrated that by increasing capital expenditure on control technologies by R 1,7 billion, the external costs associated with producing electricity can be reduced by almost R 3,4 billion. Formulation of external cost factors for South African conditions, and the development of a software database for the information obtained from the different countries, will promote future technology selections. / Dissertation (MASTER OF ENGINEERING(Environmental Engineering))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Chemical Engineering / unrestricted

Approved for public release, distribution unlimited / Approved for public release; distribution unlimited. / Healthcare costs throughout the United States are on the rise, drawing increased scrutiny from government officials and Congress. The cost of pharmacy operations and pharmaceuticals is growing at a rate that is alarmingly higher than that of the total cost of military healthcare itself. Recent congressional legislation has essentially given the Department of Defense the ultimatum to cut costs for beneficiaries wherever possible, or risk having benefits arbitrarily cut by Congress. In the face of this possibility, cutting costs through better business practices must be explored, particularly within the area of pharmacy operations. This project explores the potential cost savings that can be realized by implementing Lean Six Sigma (LSS) methodology in the pharmacy operations of the DoD Medical Treatment Facilities (MTF). This research proves that implementing Lean Six Sigma methodology will improve military pharmacy operations, often at little cost, while realizing significant savings and increased customer satisfaction.

The objective of this study is to investigate the role of transaction costs in determining market participation of smallholder farmers. It is expected that the identification of these transaction cost factors could assist in the formulation of policy interventions and/or institutional innovations to alleviate constraints on market participation and improve the ability of these small-scale farmers to become part of the commercial agricultural economy. Transaction costs differ between households due to asymmetries in access to assets, market information, extension services and remunerative markets. The study particularly investigated the factors contributing to different levels of transaction costs amongst households. The main hypothesis of the study is that small-scale farmers facing lower transaction costs will participate more in agricultural markets. Transaction costs reflect the character of the market, but are mainly embedded in the characteristics of individual households and their economic environment. In order to test the hypothesis, selectivity models identifying and testing significant factors related to market participation are applied to a survey of 157 farming households in the Northern Province. These households take part in the markets for horticulture, livestock, maize and other field crops. The selectivity models used involve two-step estimation similar to the Heckman's two-stage procedure. The study reveals that access to assets and market information in combination with particular household characteristics are important determinants of market participation. Among the assets of a household, a reasonably sized area of arable land tends to encourage participation in all markets, apart from the market for other field crops market. Ownership of livestock tends to stimulate livestock selling and also the level of maize sales. Ownership of arable land and livestock contribute to the economies of scale of production, which leads to lower transaction costs per unit output sold. Non-farm earnings only alleviate variable transaction costs in horticultural markets, but not in other field crops markets. Pensions discourage participation in high value commodities markets since they are viewed as alternative cash income. Indicators enhancing the role of information access include proximity to markets and contacts with the extension service. Proximity to markets reduces variable transaction costs in horticultural markets and fixed transaction costs in livestock markets. The study shows that every kilometre closer in proximity to markets, the horticultural sales increase by R152. Proximity and contact with extension services discourage participation in other field crops markets. Good road conditions reduce transaction costs for livestock and other field crops. The study also shows that in spite of bad road conditions some horticulture farmers still manage to market most of their products. A larger sized household tends to increase the transaction costs in marketing all commodities except for the other field crops. Female farmers tend to participate more in livestock markets as they own small livestock and poultry that are easy to sell, and keep livestock for livelihood purposes rather than for social status. On the other hand, female farmers appear to be constrained in their participation in horticultural markets, ostensibly due to problems of access to irrigation resources and cultural and legal perceptions. Older farmers with enough social capital are willing to sell, but in horticulture and maize they tend to sell lower quantities. The study raises issues which, when attended to, might reduce the transaction costs, particularly by enhancing access to information and providing endowments to farming households. Some constraints require direct policy measures, such as policies dealing with land reform, extension services, education and legal reforms, and then there are those that require indirect intervention and private sector involvement such as road networks and market availability. / Dissertation (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2002. / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / Unrestricted

In an attempt to have medicines available in patient-ready packs (PRPs) prior to the dispensing process, the provincial medicine depots in South Africa have, for many years, been repackaging bulk medicines into PRPs. Notwithstanding the fact that bulk medicine packages may have been the only packages available from the manufacturers to service the Primary Health Care (PHC) sector, the main aim of this process was to ensure that medicines were available in PRPs for dispensing to patients, thus, minimising the time spent on each prescription by the pharmacist, pharmacist’s assistant or Nurse. Currently, some medicines are being procured in PRPs from the manufacturers, whereas others are still procured in bulk packs which must be repackaged into PRPs. After a thorough literature search, it was established that, up until this point in time, no studies have been performed to compare costs of repackaged medicines from bulk packs with costs of medicines procured from manufacturers in PRPs. There was very scanty literature comparing the use of medicines procured either in PRPs or bulk packs. However, literature on cost comparison between repackaging and purchasing of commercially available manufacturer-prepared PRPs was not identified.

The South African automotive industry has been identified as an important influence on the economy of South Africa. In particular, it plays a role in job creation in a country with high unemployment rates. However, being linked to a global industry, its competitive position and future relevance have come into question on numerous occasions. After a period of isolation and protection, the local industry had to enter global competition. The competitive playing field had suddenly widened from companies competing locally amongst each other for local market share, to competing globally for international sales. In addition it was found that competition was not only limited to opposing brands but also existed within the subsidiaries of the same brand. The reason for this was the existence of overcapacity in the manufacturing facilities internationally. Coupled with this, most of the dominant vehicle manufacturers were creating more capacity in developing markets to support demand as well as to benefit from cheaper resources. There are of course many influencing factors on the competitive position of such an important industry. The value chain has been identified as a tool to analyse and compare the activities within rival businesses or industry role players. Two primary activities within the value chain are inbound logistics and outbound logistics. The objective of the research was to investigate the influence of inbound and outbound logistics on the competitiveness of the South African automotive industry. A literature review created the conceptual framework for the research. It was necessary to discuss the automotive industry in a global sense to understand the history and trends of the development within the industry. It was also necessary to understand the South African automotive industry within this context to identify its place and relevance in global terms. It was found that, although important to the local economy, the local industry was not a dominant force to be reckoned with and was in fact being over taken by many of its competitors. Part of this investigation was spent on the development of the local industry in a protected environment and what it meant for the growth of local content and exports. This was also important as the component manufacturers based in South Africa need critical mass to create an efficient platform to be globally competitive. It was found that historic development programmes did not do much to improve this aspect but there is optimism about the latest programme which promotes an increase in production volumes. The state of logistics in South Africa was critically analysed to understand the influence it has on the automotive industry. It was found that although the logistics infrastructure within South Africa is the best in Africa, it is behind the standards of its competitors. This is influencing the automotive industry as a result of inadequate rail infrastructure. The reason for this was that most of the freight which was being transported by road would be more efficiently transported by rail. The cost of logistics was also found to be high in South Africa and skills were also a concern to improve the current situation. A research questionnaire was created from the findings of the literature review. The questionnaire formed the primary research tool for this study. The sample was identified as respondents from vehicle assemblers and component manufacturers who would have sufficient knowledge of this topic. It was found that inbound and outbound logistics costs formed a relatively large component of total costs. The high levels of imported parts being used as well as export levels added to the logistics costs. This also caused uneconomical inventory levels as stock needed to be kept for longer periods before being replenished. The respondents were also aware of the fact that rail would improve the situation if the infrastructure was sufficient. The respondents seemed to be of the opinion that the skills of the employees responsible for logistics were not a major influencing factor and that logistics service providers were in addition, not creating an overwhelming cost improvement. The incentive programmes were also not seen to be doing much to address the influence of logistics on the automotive industry.

The focus of this research was to establish how black primary school principals in some Port Elizabeth schools manage the problems of poverty, vandalism and non-payment of school fees. The aim of this research was to improve these burning issues at my own school, but also to assist other schools which are encountering similar problems with regard to these three issues. Qualitative research methods were used. Data was collected by studying relevant literature and conducting semi-structured interviews and participant observation. Composite case studies of the schools were compiled. Content analysis was used to analyse the data and recommendations for improvement were made. The results of the research indicate that since 1994, when democracy and equal human rights were declared, primary schools have actually been experiencing escalating problems in terms of poverty, vandalism and school fee payment. As the school system is closely intertwined with the socio-economic and political dimensions of society, these challenges can only be effectively addressed if all stakeholders in education collectively take up ownership of these problems and commit themselves to finding unique and effective solutions in the Port Elizabeth urban and rural areas.