A qualidade dos sistemas de sinalização viária é avaliada, tradicionalmente, com base nas características físicas de seus elementos, bem como na durabilidade e conservação dos materiais que os compõem. Em alguns casos, a verificação do atendimento aos critérios técnicos de projeto é também considerada. Depreende-se, daí, que a avaliação estrutural dos elementos de sinalização seja integralmente contemplada por meio dessas avaliações. Por outro lado, a eficácia da sinalização não é necessariamente garantida pela integridade física ou estrutural dos elementos. Por se tratar de um sistema de comunicação com o usuário, que transmite informações que influenciarão as ações dos motoristas na tarefa de guiar o veículo no trânsito, é necessário, também, avaliar o desempenho funcional dos elementos de sinalização. Em outras palavras, o funcionamento e a eficiência da sinalização são tão importantes quanto a situação de seu estado físico. Esta pesquisa descreve aspectos a serem considerados na avaliação de desempenho funcional dos sinais de trânsito com base na observação no campo e na abordagem dos fatores que afetam as medidas de desempenho, conduzindo, em rodovias federais brasileiras concedidas à iniciativa privada, dois experimentos ainda pouco conhecidos no país. O primeiro experimento avaliou o desempenho de um conjunto de placas de sinalização de regulamentação de velocidade máxima permitida, aplicadas em configurações diversas. As medidas de desempenho escolhidas foram a distância de detecção e a distância de legibilidade da sinalização, que foram medidas por meio de observadores em curso na rodovia, em condições reais de operação. O segundo experimento avaliou o desempenho de um conjunto de demarcações no pavimento de uma rodovia também em condições reais de operação. A medida de desempenho foi a retorrefletividade da sinalização horizontal sob tráfego real. A pesquisa inova ao utilizar o conceito de planejamento de experimentos, otimizando o modelo estatístico a ser estimado com menos execuções experimentais. / The quality of the traffic signs systems is traditionally assessed based on physical characteristics of their elements, as well as the durability and conservation of materials they are made of. In some cases, the verification of compliance with the technical criteria for design is also considered. Therefore, it appears that the structural assessment of sign elements is fully covered by these evaluations. Moreover, the effectiveness of traffic signs is not necessarily guaranteed by physical or structural health of the elements. Once the traffic signs comprise a system of communication with the users, which gives information that will influence the actions of the drivers on the task of guiding the vehicle in traffic flow, it is also necessary to evaluate the functional performance of the traffic signs. In other words, the operation and efficiency of traffic signs are as important as their physical condition. This research describes some aspects to take into account in the evaluation of performance of traffic signs based on observation in the field and in the approach of the factors affecting performance measures, carrying out in Brazilian federal highways under concession to the private sector two experiments still little known in this country. The first experiment evaluated the performance of a set of speed limit signs applied in different configurations. The chosen performance measures were the detection distance and the legibility distance of the signs, which were measured by subjects driving on open road under real operating conditions. The second experiment evaluated the performance of a set of pavement markings also on open road under real operating conditions. The performance measure was the retroreflectivity of the pavement markings under real traffic. The survey breaks new ground by using the concept of optimal design of experiments, optimizing the statistical model to be estimated with fewer experimental runs.

Cette thèse retrace les lignes directrices du projet de modernisation des systèmes budgétaires en Algérie s’inscrivant dans la lignée des réformes institutionnelles qui tendent à élever la budgétisation axée sur la performance au rang d’une norme internationale de bonne gouvernance. Son objectif est de faire ressortir d’abord, les considérable pris dans la mise en œuvre d’une réforme lancée quinze années auparavant.S’inscrivant dans le courant de la rationalité limité, ce travail énonce et valide l'hypothèse descriptive suivante : le passage à un système budgétaire axé sur la performance n’est possible que si les éléments de base du système budgétaire antérieur aient été consolidés. Le caractère aujourd'hui universel de la notion de performance doit amener à en considérer certains éléments et à faire abstraction de certains autres suivant un équilibre dynamique propre à chaque contexte, indépendamment des problématiques essentielles qui sont communes et dont la thèse s’efforce d’identifier.Cette thèse fonde finalement l'hypothèse transversale suivante : le contexte algérien actuel marqué par le caractère essentiellement rentier des finances de l’Etat est antinomique du thème de la performance. Tout en établissant le constat que la progression de la réforme se fait au cours d’un processus discontinu, l’étude conclut que la récente dégradation des finances de l’Etat achèvera sans doute d’ériger, la budgétisation axée sur la performance, en impératif économique et politique. / This thesis traces the guidelines of the modernization of budgetary systems project in Algeria in line with the institutional reforms which tend to rise the performance-based budgeting to the rank of an international standard of good governance. The aim of the work is, first, to outline the progress as well as the setbacks of the Algerian budget reform project, to highlight, then, its intrinsic practical and legal contradictions and to provide, finally, understanding and explanation about the considerable delay in implementing a reform initiated fifteen years previously. Enrolling in the limited rationality approach, this work outlines and validates the following descriptive hypothesis: the transition to a performance-based budget system is possible only if the basic elements of the previous budgetary system have been consolidated. Today, the universality of the performance concept must bring to consider certain elements and to ignore others following a dynamic equilibrium specific to each context, regardless of the essential issues that are common to which the thesis strives to identify.This thesis finally founds the following transverse hypothesis: the current Algerian context marked by the character essentially annuitant of the State's finances is antithetical to the performance’s theme. While establishing the observation that the progress of the reform is done during a discontinuous process, the study concludes that the recent deterioration of the State's finances will probably complete to erect performance-based budgeting as an economic and a political imperative.

The rapid growth of high-rise high-density urban areas in coastal and near coastal, hurricane-prone cities has been observed globally and in the United States in recent decades. Favored by modern urban growth and planning policies, this trend is expected to accelerate in future. Recent climate change studies suggest a significant increase in the destructiveness of hurricanes in past 30 years by both increases in lifetime and intensity of hurricanes. Current prescriptive wind design approach does not provide transparent methods and criteria to reliably quantify the performance of buildings as well as the functional requirements necessary to accommodate large populations during extreme wind. Since this approach primarily intends to keep the structural system essentially elastic, the more efficient design may be achievable by allowing controlled inelasticity in structural components. All these facts put a great emphasis on using a reliable wind design and assessment approach evidently describing the performance of high-rise building to wind loads beyond the current design wind loads. This dissertation presents the development of a wind performance-based engineering approach and its practical implementation for three, 47-, 40- and 30-story steel moment frame high-rise buildings. In this study, the nonlinear dynamic responses of the buildings to different wind hazard levels were evaluated by developing 3D nonlinear finite element models and utilizing a wind incremental dynamic analysis (IDA) approach. The wind loading for the 47-story building was measured by conducting wind pressure testing on a scaled rigid model at the Wall of Wind (WOW) facility at Florida International University. For two other buildings wind loads were acquired using TPU Aerodynamic Database. Using the IDA results and adopting available wind performance criteria, a wind performance assessment approach was developed representing the estimated performance levels as a function of the basic wind speed. Three types of wind performance were evaluated: structural component performance; cladding performance to wind-induced shear deformation; and serviceability motion comfort performance. This evaluation indicated remarkable lateral capacity associated with allowing controlled structural nonlinearity, in contrast to considerations required to assure acceptable serviceability and non-structural (e.g. cladding) performances.

”När pengarna rullar in är man motiverad” är en kandidatuppsats i Sociologi skriven av Olivia Pettersson och My Andersson. Syftet med studien är att undersöka ett prestationsbaserat belöningssystem och dess effekter på arbetsmotivation samt upplevd arbetskvalité, detta genom att göra en fallstudie på ett bemanningsföretag i Stockholm. Undersökningen är kvalitativ och genomfördes med hjälp av tematiskt öppna intervjuer tillsammans med fem anställda hos det företag vi valt att här kalla LevereraMera. Tidigare forskning av Eriksson et al. (2002) samt av Schou (1991) visar att lönen är av betydelse för arbetsmotivationen, men att andra faktorer är av större betydelse samt att ingen faktor kan fungera isolerad från andra. Ingen av dessa studier väljer att inkludera fenomenet arbetskvalité samt är av kvantitativ karaktär, vilka är två motiv till denna studie.   Den insamlade empirin analyseras med hjälp av studiens teoretiska ramverk, Herzbergs tvåfaktorteori och Skinners förstärkningsteori. Resultaten visar att det prestationsbaserade belöningssystemet som råder hos LevereraMera har en viss positiv effekt på medarbetarnas arbetsmotivation, men att den inte verkar isolerad från andra, också avgörande, faktorer. Det går inte att urskilja att belöningssystemet har en direkt negativ påverkan på medarbetarnas upplevda arbetskvalité. Något som dock framgår av studien är att upplevelsen av rättvisa samt viljan att samarbeta påverkas negativt av det rådande belöningssystemet, vilket kan leda till en indirekt negativ påverkan på företagets generella arbetskvalité. / "När pengarna rullar in är man motiverad" is a bachelorthesis in Sociology written by Olivia Pettersson and My Andersson. The purpose of the study is to investigate a performance-based reward system and its effects on motivation and perceived job quality, this by doing a case study of a staffing and recruitment company in Stockholm. The study is qualitative and was carried out with the help of thematically open interviews with five employees of a company we have chosen to call LevereraMera. Previous research by Eriksson et al. (2002) and by Schou (1991) show that the salary is of importance for work motivation, but that other factors are more important and that no factor can work in isolation from others. None of these studies choose to include the phenomenon of labor quality and they are of a quantitative nature, which are two motives for this study.   The collected empirical data was analyzed using the theoretical framework, Herzberg’s two-factor theory and Skinner’s reinforcement theory. The results show that the performance-based reward system used at LevereraMera has some positive effect on employee motivation, but it does not function isolated from other, also decisive, factors. It is not possible to discern that the reward system has a direct negative impact on employees' perceived job quality, what is however clear from the study is that the perception of fairness and willingness to cooperate is adversely affected by the current reward system, which can lead to an indirect negative impact on the company's general labor quality.

Book Summary: Performance-based assessments have become a critical component of every teacher education program. Such assessments allow teacher candidates to demonstrate their content and pedagogical knowledge, skills, and dispositions in an authentic setting.Evaluating Teacher Education Programs through Performance-Based Assessments analyzes and discusses the theory and concepts behind teacher education program evaluation using assessment tools such as lesson plans, classroom artifacts, student work examples, and video recordings of lessons. Emphasizing critical real-world examples and empirically-based studies, this research-based publication is an ideal reference source for university administrators, teacher educators, K-12 leaders, and graduate students in the field of education.

SpaceX as aerospace manufacturer and space transport service technology company work along to make reusable rockets, their long term plan is to make spaceflight affordable routine. Elon Musk, as CEO, is involved in every step of decision making as he has mentioned in interviews. The rocket's engine has undergone a number of improvements, and to increase its efficiency and power, a number of parts has been reduced. The redesigning process involves several decisions, such as in-house or out-source production. This research provides a practical framework for contractors, suppliers, and manufacturers to build a more reliable, affordable, and low cost supply chain. As a result, the objective of my dissertation is to explore how managers can extend the useful life of their assets and reduce their total cost of ownership. The main research focus for this dissertation is lifecycle affordability (LCA) for capital intensive products when post production costs are significantly higher than production costs. Lifecycle cost is often not considered by firms in a product, service or asset when making acquisition decisions. Firm's acquisition are mainly based on the initial cost of the product. Decision making without considering the entire lifecycle cost of a product impacts the firm's profitability, revenue, pricing strategies, and competitiveness. Evaluating the trade-offs between all the costs involved in the product lifecycle can help firms to have an estimation of costs before making any acquisition decisions. To address these challenges, lifecycle affordability (LCA) considerations can enable firms to focus their decisions on their long-term investment process rather than trying to save on initial cost of purchasing a product. This dissertation presents the following research question: how has lifecycle affordability been represented in supply chain research to date? And what are constructs of lifecycle affordability? To address this research question, the dissertation is comprised of three separate essays. The first essay conducts literature review method to provide a framework for lifecycle affordability that reduces the total lifecycle cost while maintaining the reliability and efficiency of the capital equipment, and identify existing research gaps and future LCA research ideas. The second essay is constructed on a survey-based method and investigations how homeowners' lack of understanding lifecycle cost, and long-term affordability affects their dissatisfaction with the home purchase. A regression model is developed to study the factors that explain Homebuyers' lack of understanding cost, and affordability considerations. The third essay developed an agent-based model (ABM) to study small medium businesses (SMB) when the business organization and the community is hit by a disaster. The objective of the study is to investigate the resiliency and lifecycle affordability management of the community and the small medium businesses.

Pour rester compétitives dans l'industrie aéronautique, les entreprises développent des stratégies diverses pour gagner un avantage concurrentiel comme l'augmentation du Coût Total de Possession (TCO) avec l'acquisition aéronautique complexe et des programmes de support. Les clients concentrent leurs besoins sur la disponibilité opérationnelle de tels systèmes et ne sont plus enclins à payer un prix supplémentaire pour un tel service, par conséquent le fournisseur est amené à minimiser le TCO tout en conservant un haut niveau de performance de flotte. Dans de tels accords, une partie du risque de performance opérationnelle est transférée vers le fournisseur sous forme de pénalité financière, engendrant ainsi un risque financier sur la rentabilité du contrat. Cette recherche aborde le problème du point de vue du fournisseur en considérant différentes options stratégiques pour la commercialisation de l'offre de services aéronautiques basés sur la performance, garantissant la disponibilité de la flotte. La méthodologie considère un système complexe, représentatif des systèmes aéronautiques actuels et les mécanismes de support rattachés, avec de multiples objectifs contradictoires à atteindre en tant que fournisseur. La méthodologie proposée couvre les catégories suivantes : disponibilité, fiabilité, maintenabilité et supportabilité. Elle considère le système complexe comme un tout incluant l'ensemble des interactions dans ce système et les relations entre la performance de disponibilité et le coût. D'autres facteurs de contribution additionnels sont aussi considérés dans ce mécanisme de support, comme les types d'incertitude de la performance du système, des données, des risques financiers et des coûts. Un modèle de pénalité pour l'utilisation avec les Services Basés sur la Performance (PBS) des offres dans l'industrie aéronautique est aussi fourni. Une méthodologie d'analyse de pénalité est proposée au travers de deux études de cas présentées dans cette thèse, offrant un avantage compétitif au fournisseur, de par la capacité de prévoir la distribution de probabilité de performance du système, et de quantifier le risque financier pour le modèle de pénalité en question. La méthodologie d'analyse démontre aussi que la capacité d'effectuer une analyse de risque sur des pénalités contractuelles est tout aussi importante pour le fournisseur que la capacité de prévoir la performance globale du système. Les conclusions montrent qu'il est tout à fait possible d'avoir une grande exposition de risque financier si un scénario de pénalité inadapté est choisi, même si la performance de disponibilité de la flotte prévue est au-dessus du taux ciblé ou contracté. / To remain competitive within the aeronautic industry, companies are developing various strategies to gain a competitive edge as the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) increases with complex aeronautical acquisition and support programs. Customers are focusing their needs on the operational availability of such systems and are no longer willing to pay a premium for such a service, consequently the supplier is challenged to minimize the TCO whilst retaining a high level of fleet performance. In such accords, some of the operational performance risk is transferred back to the supplier and are usually in the form of financial penalties, which consequently creates a financial risk on the profitability of the contract for the supplier. This research addresses the problem from the point of the supplier when considering different strategic options for the sale and offer of performance-based aeronautic services that guarantee fleet availability. The methodology considers the complex system, as is typical with current aeronautic systems, relating support mechanisms, and the multiple yet contradictory objectives to achieve as a supplier. The methodology proposed covers the categories of Availability, Reliability, Maintainability and Supportability; it considers the complex system as a whole including the interactions within this system and the relationships between availability performance and cost. Additional other contributing factors are also considered within this support mechanism, such as the types of uncertainty on system performance, data, financial risks and costs. The introduction of a penalty model for use with Performance-Based Service (PBS) offers within the aeronautic industry is also provided. A methodology for penalty analysis is proposed through the two case studies presented in this thesis, giving the supplier a competitive advantage through the ability to predict the probability distribution of system performance and to quantify the financial risk for the penalty model in question. The analysis 5 methodology also demonstrates that the ability to perform risk analysis on contractual penalties is just as important to the supplier as the ability to predict overall system performance, as the findings present that it is quite possible to have a large financial risk exposure if the wrong penalty scenario is chosen even if the predicted Fleet Availability performance is above the targeted or contracted rate.

When the Swedish electricity market was re-regulated in 1996 the trading with electricity was exposed to competition and the net service henceforth should be comprised by a monopoly comprised by a regulation. The regulation was based on a review of the costs of the network companies. No attention were paid to if the network was efficient. The following years many of the networks were sold from the municipalities to power companies, to increasing merger prices. The increasing prices in the mergers were followed by increasing prices to the subscribers of the network services. The regulator tried to stop the fast increasing prices, but didn’t succeed. The regulation paradigm couldn’t face the new realities and had to be revised. In 1998 the author of this thesis was commissioned by the Swedish Regulator to propose a new regulation model for the Swedish grid companies. Existing models were reviewed but none of them fulfilled the requirements from the regulator; to be self-regulating and give incentives to improved efficiency and distribution reliability. Therefore a new approach was launched. The new approach was to change perspective from a company focus to a consumer focus – a performance-based regulation. The solution was to base the regulation of the creation of a standard asset, a Reference Network. From this a new model – the Network Performance Assessment Model (NPAM) – was defined. The Reference Network is defined by four definitions, concerning the elements and topology of a Reference Network, the Subscriber Requirements and the Objective Prerequisites. These definitions grants the transparency of the model. The model is sharp and is run into operation in 2004. The final test of the model indicated that the Swedish network companies are overcharging their subscribers with approximately 20%. This thesis is an explanation of the model and the definitions, and a review of the thoughts and research which formed the model. Moreover there is a discussion of some topics reported by others in articles about the model. Finally in the conclusion there are topics of simplicity and transparency. / QC 20101208

Background: Performance based financing was introduced to Kilifi county actors in Kenya in 2015. Kilifi was identified by the Kenyan national government as one of the 20 arid and semi-arid counties (out of 47 counties) mandated to start the implementation of the scheme and potentially inform the development of a nation-wide PBF policy. This study investigates how political and bureaucratic actors at the local level in Kilifi county have subsequently influenced the extent to which PBF has been politically prioritised at the sub-national level. Methods: The study employed a single-case study design. The Shiffman and Smith (2007) political priority setting framework with adaptations proposed by Walt and Gilson (2014) was used. Data was collected through document review (n=19) and in-depth interviews (n=8). Framework analysis was used to analyse data and generate findings. Results: Throughout the study period (2015-2018), national policy elites gave sustained attention to PBF as a priority issue for implementation, this sustained attention was however not present at the sub national level in Kilifi county and funding for PBF was not prioritised post donor funding. Key factors that contributed to this in Kilifi county included: redistribution of power from national actors to sub-national actors following devolution, this affected the national Ministry of Health's ability to lead and be an effective guiding organisation; misalignment between the globally advocated idea of ‘pay for performance' and the local pre-existing centralised and rigid approaches to public financial management; and actors at the sub national level who contested the PBF intervention design features and its framing as ‘additional funding'. As a consequence, the implementation of PBF in Kilifi was for a short time only using donor resources and did not last beyond donor timelines and funding. Conclusion: This research shows that for health reforms to gain political priority in highly devolved contexts, there is need to recognise the formal and informal institutions existing at the devolved level of governance and for adequate early involvement and leadership from sub-national bureaucratic and political actors, in health and beyond the health sector. In addition, advocacy for the health reforms should embody frames that align with the political context to increase the chances of gaining political traction. Finally, the political context including political and bureaucratic power at different levels of government are crucial features that will also influence the acceptability of reform and ultimately political prioritisation.

This case study describes an academic library search committee's decision-making, practice, and assessment of using performance-based interviews as part of a national search for lecturer-level positions with a primary focus of reference and research services and minimal expectations of teaching information literacy in the classroom. The search committee determined performance-based interviews were successful in establishing candidates’ depth of skill in simulated reference transactions. The authors recommend incorporating an element of unscripted job simulation to employment interviews in libraries of all types.