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This research has studied bank risk management in relation to efficient bank regulation in the form of optimal bank financial reorganization. Efficient banking regulation can be achieved only if it includes closure policies which prevent moral hazard behaviour; in turn, they should enhance bank regulators' accountability. Yet, Basel II gives more discretion to domestic banking authorities and focuses more on the implementation of best practices of risk management. This creates a gap between the needs of efficient banking regulation and the objectives of Basel II, on the one hand, and Indonesian bank regulation on the other. To fill the gaps, the Fries, Mella-Barral, Peraudin (FMP) model, under a robust regulatory regime concept, is used to provide a framework for banking regulation. Optimal bank reorganization aims at achieving efficient bank regulation, where bank regulators are assumed to act as social planners. In this thesis, optimal bank reorganization is analysed within the concept of a "robust regulatory regime". Optimal bank reorganization comprises closure rules and bailout policies arising endogenously through the interaction of two factors, namely regulators' attempts to minimize discounted, expected bankruptcy costs, and equity-holders' incentives to recapitalise banks. The shareholders will be allowed to continue to control the bank if the bank is well capitalized. The cash flow approach to optimal bank financial reorganization is adopted. The subsidy policies for financially ailing banks consider the implementation of socially-optimal closure rules at minimum financial cost to regulators and which reduce moral hazard. The FMP model implies that optimal bank reorganization requires a deposit insurance scheme. The FMP model involves capital and risk management as crucial factors. This research includes an empirical study of the implementation of the FMP model in Indonesia using the American call option approach. Maximum likelihood estimates in VAR and GARCH are applied to monthly data on the market return and equity and deposit values for relatively-large Indonesian banks, including regional banks and foreign banks. The results indicate that the authorities can establish an optimal closure rule for each bank, levy fair deposit insurance premiums that can be adjusted to take account of quantitative and qualitative factors, estimate optimal subsidies at different deposit insurance premiums, and identify the banks' imminence to bankruptcy. (Continues...).

Valve stem seal leakage is a major source of fugitive emissions, and controlling these emissions can result in added expense in leak detection and repair programs. Elastomeric O-rings can be used as valve stem seals, and O-ring manufacturers recommend lubrication of elastomeric seals to prevent damage and to assure proper sealing. In this research, a metallic coating was applied as a lubricant using a vacuum vapor deposition process to the surface of elastomeric valve stem seals. Valve stem leak measurements were taken to determine if the coated O-rings, alone or with the recommended lubrication, reduced valve stem seal leakage. This research determined that the metallic coating did not reduce valve stem leakage.

MSc. (Geography) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

This is a historical study of the political process connected to closures and reorganizations of schools in the rural municipalities Stenbrohult, Göteryd and Virestad in Sweden during the years 1954-1970.The main source material used in the study are protocols from meetings with the city councils and the local education committees. Articles from the newspaper Smålänningen are used as a complement to the protocols. The study shows that all three of the municipalities went through big changes when it comes to education and schools during the period. The number of schools were reduced from 20 in 1954 to 7 in 1970. The main reasons that the schools were reorganized was that old school buildings were in bad condition, the number of students in rural areas were diminishing and small schools with only a few students were too expensive. Urbanization and centralization seem to have been important factors that contributed to the closing of many schools.

Closure of community hospitals directly impacts the health of rural populations and indirectly affects economic growth and access to medical services. The purpose of this doctoral project was to assess the causes and impacts of hospital closures on rural communities. The practice-focused question addressed the implications of hospital closures on individuals and families in rural communities. A systematic review of the literature, based on conflict theory, addressed populations that lack health care facility resources. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guided the selection of 8 journal articles for review. The inclusion criteria for articles encompassed the impact of closure of health care facilities on the rural community and if the information about the causes of closure of health care facilities provided recommendations about hospital closure. The John Hopkins Nursing Evidence-Based Practice Rating Scale framework was used to determine the level and quality of evidence of the journal articles selected for review. Findings indicated that hospital closure has a negative effect on rural residents' health due to prolonged travel time for patients to access care, deterioration of health when access is not possible and increased expenses for services from remote locations. Loss of jobs due to hospital closure results in loss of income and decreased access to affordable care for community members. Findings from this project may be used to promote social change for regional and national stakeholders as the project raises awareness of the need to be diligent in preserving and enhancing health services in rural areas.

This study arose out of an experience with an amalgamation of two high schools in the ACT in the early 1990s. The amalgamation process took two and a half years from the time the decision was made to close one of the schools until the new school was consolidated on one site. The change processes impacted on many areas of teachers' work and this, combined with the emotional aspects of being in a school which was closing, flagged teacher morale as an issue requiring attention. The study involved seeking responses to a questionnaire and interviewing teachers involved in the amalgamation. The interview data was then grouped by issue and the responses from teachers analysed and compared with related research literature. Research indicated that leadership style and effectiveness impacts most heavily on the morale of teachers undergoing major change such as school closure/amalgamation. This was substantiated by this study. The decision, by the principal, to close both schools and create a new school, retaining aspects of the culture of the original schools was clearly favoured over the alternative suggestion, by the ACT Government, of the swift closure method and the absorption of students into an existing school. The outward signs of a new school; name; logo; uniform; the involvement of the community, the degree of shared decision-making, the refurbishment of the buildings, the new curriculum and associated policies and the management of resources were found to contribute positively to teacher morale. A lack of consultation prior to announcing the closure decision, a failure to acknowledge the need of some teachers to grieve for the loss of their school and a lack of activities to mark the final days of the schools involved have been identified as having the greatest negative effect on teacher morale in this study. Maintenance and effective use of the buildings vacated by a closing school has also been raised as an issue affecting the morale of the teachers from that school. This study has implications for future school closures or amalgamations from the points of view of maintaining of the morale of teachers, and also that of students

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Thesis (M.A.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2005. / Bibliography: leaves 148-162.

In a nuclear power plant, one of the most important systems for both safety and performance is the reactor cooling system. The cooling system is generally driven by one or more very large centrifugal pumps. Most reactor coolant pumps utilize a multi-stage mechanical face seal system for fluid containment. As a result, these seal systems are critical to safe, continued operation of a nuclear reactor. Without adequate sealing, loss of coolant volume can occur, and a reactor may be forced to shut down, costing the operating utility significantly until it can be brought online again. The main advantage of mechanical face seals is their self-adjusting properties. These seals are tuned so that they automatically adjust to varying fluid conditions to provide adequate leakage control. Because of the enormous pressures, complicated water chemistry, and possible large temperature transients, the mechanical seals inside a reactor coolant pump must be some of the most robust seals available. In addition, their long service life and continuous operation demand durability and the capability to adjust to a wide range of conditions. However, over time, wear, chemical deposition, or changing operating conditions can alter the face gap, which is the critical geometry between the sealing faces of a seal. An altered face gap can lead to undesirable conditions of too much or not enough leakage, which must be maintained within a certain range to provide lubrication and cooling to the seal faces without resulting in uncontrolled coolant volume loss. Nuclear power plants operate within strict leakage ranges, and long-term effects causing undesirable leakage can eventually necessitate a reactor shutdown if the seal cannot self-adjust to control the leakage. This document will examine possible causes of undesirable leakage rates in a commonly-used reactor coolant pump assembly. These causes will be examined to determine the conditions which promote them, the physical explanation for their effect on the operation of a mechanical seal, and possible methods of mitigation of both the cause and its effect. These findings are based on previous publications by utilities and technical and incident reports from reactor stations which detail actual incidents of abnormal seal performance and their root causes as determined by the utilities. Next, a method of increasing the ability of a mechanical seal to adapt to a wider range of conditions will be proposed. This method involves modifying an existing seal face to include a method of active control. This active control focuses on deliberately deforming one face of the mechanical sealing face pair. This deformation alters the face gap in order to make the fluid conditions inside the face gap more preferable, generating more or less leakage as desired. Two methods of actuation, hydraulic pressure and piezoelectric deformation, will be proposed. Finally, a model of the actively controlled seal faces will be introduced. This model includes a method of numerically solving the Reynolds equation to determine the fluid mechanics that drive the lubrication problem in the seal face and coupling the solution with a deformation analysis in a finite element model of a seal face. The model solves iteratively until a converged solution of a sealed pressure distribution, a resulting face deformation, and a calculated leakage rate is reached. The model includes a study of the effects of induced deformation in the seal via both hydraulic and piezoelectric actuation and the ability of this deformation to control the leakage rate.