The study is based on the context of project management; the discipline which employs skills and knowledge to achieve project goals through various project activities. The study concentrates on project management applications to deliver low cost houses (LCH) in the Metsimaholo Local Municipality (MLM). The main purpose of project management application is to enable project managers to track the progress of a project that they are working on. Institutions working on a very large project require project management applications to give periodic updates on the progress of the work that is being done on a project. By using a project management application, the process is made somewhat easier, in the sense that a project manager can just refer and check on the progress him/herself. Provision of adequate housing for the homeless and others who are inadequately housed in an attempt to reduce poverty and improve quality of people’s life has been a huge challenge to the South African government, particularly in the MLM over the years. Globally, legislators on the physical infrastructure of Parliament are pushing for the urgent construction of LCH by the government. The abovementioned challenge has resulted in an enormous housing backlog with poverty, unemployment, economic stagnation and negative behaviour. Financial constrains are seen to escalate costs and this makes the task even more enormous. The hypothesis for this study indicated that MLM does not possess sufficient institutional capacity to implement project management for the effective delivery of low cost housing. The hypothesis and research objectives of the study were validated by means of literature review and empirical surveys. Thirty-four (34) semi structured questionnaires were used to interview participants in the provision of LCH in MLM. The study is made up of five chapters. The study specifically focused on the application of project management to deliver LCH in the Metsimaholo Local Municipality (MLM). •This study contends that the application of project management in the public service sector to deliver goods and services has not been scientifically applied in a conscience and systematic manner. •In the MLM the national, provincial and the municipality efforts are challenged to provide houses for the homeless. •The increasing population in the MLM has resulted in an enormous housing backlog with poverty, unemployment, and economic stagnation. •The high demand for housing in the MLM brings about financial constrains and makes the task even more enormous. •It is realised through this study that the application of project management is lacking; whereby important pillars of project based outputs such as time, quality and cost are not necessarily the resultant finished products of the community tend to inherit. It is evident from the above that while the MLM has a mandate to provide service delivery it is limited by protocol to take full responsibility in the provision of low cost houses. The provision of LCH requires strengthened co-operative governance in the Free State Province, since the three spheres have important roles to play. In the face of the huge backlogs in housing and human settlement provision, the country urgently needs to develop the technical knowledge and skills necessary to fast track housing delivery. / M, Development and Management, Public Management and Administration, North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2012

The study is based on the context of project management; the discipline which employs skills and knowledge to achieve project goals through various project activities. The study concentrates on project management applications to deliver low cost houses (LCH) in the Metsimaholo Local Municipality (MLM). The main purpose of project management application is to enable project managers to track the progress of a project that they are working on. Institutions working on a very large project require project management applications to give periodic updates on the progress of the work that is being done on a project. By using a project management application, the process is made somewhat easier, in the sense that a project manager can just refer and check on the progress him/herself. Provision of adequate housing for the homeless and others who are inadequately housed in an attempt to reduce poverty and improve quality of people’s life has been a huge challenge to the South African government, particularly in the MLM over the years. Globally, legislators on the physical infrastructure of Parliament are pushing for the urgent construction of LCH by the government. The abovementioned challenge has resulted in an enormous housing backlog with poverty, unemployment, economic stagnation and negative behaviour. Financial constrains are seen to escalate costs and this makes the task even more enormous. The hypothesis for this study indicated that MLM does not possess sufficient institutional capacity to implement project management for the effective delivery of low cost housing. The hypothesis and research objectives of the study were validated by means of literature review and empirical surveys. Thirty-four (34) semi structured questionnaires were used to interview participants in the provision of LCH in MLM. The study is made up of five chapters. The study specifically focused on the application of project management to deliver LCH in the Metsimaholo Local Municipality (MLM). •This study contends that the application of project management in the public service sector to deliver goods and services has not been scientifically applied in a conscience and systematic manner. •In the MLM the national, provincial and the municipality efforts are challenged to provide houses for the homeless. •The increasing population in the MLM has resulted in an enormous housing backlog with poverty, unemployment, and economic stagnation. •The high demand for housing in the MLM brings about financial constrains and makes the task even more enormous. •It is realised through this study that the application of project management is lacking; whereby important pillars of project based outputs such as time, quality and cost are not necessarily the resultant finished products of the community tend to inherit. It is evident from the above that while the MLM has a mandate to provide service delivery it is limited by protocol to take full responsibility in the provision of low cost houses. The provision of LCH requires strengthened co-operative governance in the Free State Province, since the three spheres have important roles to play. In the face of the huge backlogs in housing and human settlement provision, the country urgently needs to develop the technical knowledge and skills necessary to fast track housing delivery. / M, Development and Management, Public Management and Administration, North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2012

This study investigates the settlement period, including payment delays and failed deliveries that occur during the processing of U.S. equity transactions, and its effects on observed stock prices. Payment and delivery occur three to six calendar days after the trade date in the standard three business day settlement cycle, referred to as T+3. First, the buyer benefits from a payment delay, during which time he can earn interest on the cash needed to settle the trade. Since the seller has no analogous opportunity, I anticipated that the cost of the payment delay would be reflected in equity prices at a rate equivalent to the risk-free rate over the settlement period in ordinary circumstances and at a higher rate during financial market crises if sellers believe they may not be paid on time. Using CRSP daily market index returns from 1995 through 2009, I measured the cost of this delay to be approximately three to five times the risk-free rate, proxied by the effective Fed funds rate. These results suggest that buyers are forced to compensate sellers at rates greater than I expected during normal conditions. Second, the risk of failed delivery may also affect security prices if market participants expect that sellers will not deliver securities on time. A failed delivery effectively becomes a forward transaction. I predicted that buyers compensate sellers at the risk-free rate over the extended settlement period. This compensation would be in addition to the normal payment delay and directly related to the probability of failed delivery; thus, I added SEC Regulation SHO daily failed deliveries data, available from 2004 through 2009, to the model with payment delays. By constructing a proxy for the change in probability of failure from aggregated fails and market volume, I found that buyers compensate sellers over the lengthened settlement period due to failed deliveries at a rate of approximately 11 basis points daily for an increase in the likelihood of failure of one percentage point.

The distinctive architecture of the stratum corneum with its unique nature of an interstitial lipoidal environment plays the major role in regulating the barrier function of the skin. The major problem with the transdermal delivery of 5-fluorouracil or idoxuridine is the permeation of sufficient amounts to the deeper layers of the skin and into the systemic circulation. In an attempt to enhance the transdermal permeability of 5-fluorouracil and idoxuridine, the aim of this study was to evaluate two lamellar gel phase systems (Physiogel dermaquadrille® and Physiogel NT®) and Emzaloids® as transdermal delivery vehicles for the two actives. Lamellar gel phase systems (LGPS) and Emzaloids® are both novel drug delivery systems. The epidermis of female abdominal skin was used in vertically mounted Franz diffusion cell experiments. An average amount of 250 mg of the 1% m/m LGPS was applied to cover the entire diffusion area of 1,075 cm2 of the skin, which contained 2,5 mg of the active. Samples of the actives in Emzaloids® were prepared and applied in the same way. The control solutions of the actives in water were prepared so that 1 ml of the applied solution contained the same amount of drug that was applied to the experimental cells. The entire receptor phase of the cells was removed at 2,4,6, 8, 10, 12 and 24 hours and was replaced with fresh 37°C receptor phase. The amount of active in the receptor phase was determined by HPLC analysis. Graphs of the cumulative amount of the active that permeated the skin over the 24 hour period were drawn and the slope of the graphs represented the flux in µg/ml/h. The average flux values of six experimental cells and six control cells were compared. Entrapment of the actives in the Emzaloid® vesicles was confirmed with the use of confocal laser scanning microscopy. Results for the LGPS indicate an enhancement ratio in the order of 4,2 for 5-fluorouracil and 1,7 for idoxuridine when compared to the control cells. There were no viscosity changes in the LGPS samples containing 1% m/m of the active when compared with the blank LGPS samples, suggesting that no change in the internal structure of the LGPS occurred after the addition of the actives to it. There were also no significant changes in the pH of the samples. Entrapment of the actives in the Emzaloid® vesicles occurred readily. The Emzaloid® vehicle showed a lower rate of release for idoxuridine than the LGPS did during the VanKel dissolution experiments. This suggests that higher flux values would be obtained with the LGPS for idoxuridine than with the Emzaloid® formulation, since more drug was available for permeation through the skin. This was, however, not the case. The Emzaloid® formulation showed much higher flux values, showing that even with a smaller amount of active available to permeate the skin higher flux values were obtained. Enhancement ratios of 20,33 and 3,50 were achieved with the Emzaloid® formulation for 5-fluorouracil and idoxuridine respectively. The internal LGPS structure which mimics the skins lipid components remained unchanged after the addition of the actives. Greater success might be achieved with the LGPS for different model drugs, since the drugs' physicochemical properties play an important part in its permeation through the skin. The Emzaloid® formulation, which is closely related to liposomes and transfersomes, showed great potential for commercially marketable formulations for the drugs tested but further research on the formulation has to be done. / Thesis (M.Sc. (Pharmaceutics))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.

The distinctive architecture of the stratum corneum with its unique nature of an interstitial lipoidal environment plays the major role in regulating the barrier function of the skin. The major problem with the transdermal delivery of 5-fluorouracil or idoxuridine is the permeation of sufficient amounts to the deeper layers of the skin and into the systemic circulation. In an attempt to enhance the transdermal permeability of 5-fluorouracil and idoxuridine, the aim of this study was to evaluate two lamellar gel phase systems (Physiogel dermaquadrille® and Physiogel NT®) and Emzaloids® as transdermal delivery vehicles for the two actives. Lamellar gel phase systems (LGPS) and Emzaloids® are both novel drug delivery systems. The epidermis of female abdominal skin was used in vertically mounted Franz diffusion cell experiments. An average amount of 250 mg of the 1% m/m LGPS was applied to cover the entire diffusion area of 1,075 cm2 of the skin, which contained 2,5 mg of the active. Samples of the actives in Emzaloids® were prepared and applied in the same way. The control solutions of the actives in water were prepared so that 1 ml of the applied solution contained the same amount of drug that was applied to the experimental cells. The entire receptor phase of the cells was removed at 2,4,6, 8, 10, 12 and 24 hours and was replaced with fresh 37°C receptor phase. The amount of active in the receptor phase was determined by HPLC analysis. Graphs of the cumulative amount of the active that permeated the skin over the 24 hour period were drawn and the slope of the graphs represented the flux in µg/ml/h. The average flux values of six experimental cells and six control cells were compared. Entrapment of the actives in the Emzaloid® vesicles was confirmed with the use of confocal laser scanning microscopy. Results for the LGPS indicate an enhancement ratio in the order of 4,2 for 5-fluorouracil and 1,7 for idoxuridine when compared to the control cells. There were no viscosity changes in the LGPS samples containing 1% m/m of the active when compared with the blank LGPS samples, suggesting that no change in the internal structure of the LGPS occurred after the addition of the actives to it. There were also no significant changes in the pH of the samples. Entrapment of the actives in the Emzaloid® vesicles occurred readily. The Emzaloid® vehicle showed a lower rate of release for idoxuridine than the LGPS did during the VanKel dissolution experiments. This suggests that higher flux values would be obtained with the LGPS for idoxuridine than with the Emzaloid® formulation, since more drug was available for permeation through the skin. This was, however, not the case. The Emzaloid® formulation showed much higher flux values, showing that even with a smaller amount of active available to permeate the skin higher flux values were obtained. Enhancement ratios of 20,33 and 3,50 were achieved with the Emzaloid® formulation for 5-fluorouracil and idoxuridine respectively. The internal LGPS structure which mimics the skins lipid components remained unchanged after the addition of the actives. Greater success might be achieved with the LGPS for different model drugs, since the drugs' physicochemical properties play an important part in its permeation through the skin. The Emzaloid® formulation, which is closely related to liposomes and transfersomes, showed great potential for commercially marketable formulations for the drugs tested but further research on the formulation has to be done. / Thesis (M.Sc. (Pharmaceutics))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.

Commerce companies have experienced a rise in the number of parcels that need to be delivered each day. The goal of this study is to provide a decision-making procedure to assist carriers in taking a more significant role in selecting cost and risk-efficient truck-drone intermodal delivery routing plan. The congestion-based model is developed to select the method of parcel delivery utilizing a truck and a drone for optimizing cost and time. A study also has been conducted to compare drone-only and truck-only delivery routing plan. The proposed A* Heuristic algorithm and the OSRM application generate the travel path for drone and a truck along with the time of travel. Case studies have been conducted by varying the weight provided to cost and risk variable, studies indicate that there is a significant change in drone delivery travel time and cost with increase of cost weightage.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-22T22:10:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Helido Guedes Montenegro Filho.pdf: 2333644 bytes, checksum: 3a009dbcac0a54d285c882e1a0f92df4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-06-02 / O presente trabalho é um estudo de caso no qual foi analisado um processo adotado por uma empresa no Polo Industrial de Manaus. O novo processo foi adotado em decorrência de circunstâncias especiais ocorridas junto aos fornecedores que possuem empresas no município de Manaus, e que ora realizam entregas de matérias-primas para a empresa. Foi implantado um processo que elimina a necessidade de comunicação baseado em dados manuais com os fornecedores, promovendo sincronia com a execução das linhas de manufatura, denominado de entrega direta à linha de produção (EDLP). Esta ferramenta habilitou o fornecedor entregar apenas certa quantidade de estoque necessário as ordens de produção, no momento correto da execução na linha de manufatura, evitando assim estoques desnecessários no armazém da empresa. Os fornecedores recebem os pedidos em ciclos de quatro horas, procedendo assim com suas entregas, na certeza que serão prontamente recebidos, sendo suas peças endereçadas diretamente às linhas de manufatura, para conclusão e adequação aos requisitos dos clientes finais da empresa. O método utilizado para estudar a aplicação do conceito do processo de entrega direta à linha de manufatura foi o Estudo de Caso, pois possibilitou a observação de uma realidade através de um método científico, havendo a necessidade de observar aspectos que validam o processo investigativo como, por exemplo, a confecção de um protocolo de pesquisa. Foi necessário elaborar um referencial teórico da literatura disponível sobre assuntos tais como; a Manufatura Enxuta e o uso de JIT e Kanban, a Produção Sincronizada e o uso do MRP e MRP II e no Suprimento Automático o uso de CRP e VMI. Ainda foi necessário elaborar uma pesquisa bibliográfica em assuntos como a utilização de ferramentas de tecnologia de informação (TI) na cadeia de suprimento, processos colaborativos de suprimento entre os quais se destaca o DSD (Direct Store Delivery). Os dados primários foram coletados através de aplicação de questionários individuais sobre o processo junto ao envolvidos de forma habilitar a comparação entre a teoria analisada e os fatos observados pelo público alvo da investigação. Os dados secundários foram levantados através dos procedimentos e instruções de trabalho referentes ao processo de entrega direta à linha de produção, provendo embasamento documental à pesquisa. Foram ainda analisados fluxos e mapas de processo sempre que disponíveis para consulta, tanto na empresa como nos fornecedores que atuam como parceiros. Portanto, baseado nos indícios levantados observou-se a validade das proposições retiradas da teoria. Após a análise do processo de entrega direta à linha de produção, compreende-se que este processo pode colaborar com a redução dos estoques de processo nas empresas através da promoção de um processo alinhado entre a forma como será executado o plano de produção, e a forma como os fornecedores são acionados e devem responder este chamado. Estes aspectos aliados a tecnologia da informação e um processo controlado de execução sincronizada favorecem o processo de entrega direta à linha de produção, levando a empresa a concluir que não há necessidade de manutenção de estoques intermediários desnecessários ao processo de produção realizado nas linhas de produção da empresa.

No description available.

No description available.

我國公債期貨市場發展至今，市場流動性未能有效提振，本文將針對此問題嘗試從市場結構、實務狀況、相關學理等各方面，探討諸多可能的影響因素，並加以分析研究，找出問題的癥結以提供解決之道。此外，本文亦從問券調查的結果中，歸納出市場參予者對現行公債期貨的看法，希冀能作為台灣期貨交易所未來商品規劃之參考。 / Since the Taiwan government bond futures trade, the market is lack of liquidity during the year. For the problem, this paper considers the layers of market structure, trading convention and relative theories, try to analysis the causes of less liquidity and resolve the liquidity problem. On the other hand, by making the survey this paper sums up the opinions from the participants of the bond futures market. This paper, which could help the Taiwan Futures Exchange in designing other interest rate derivatives, will wish to give some useful reference.