• International conference on construction engineering and project management
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• 2005.10a
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• pp.1028-1035
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• 2005

Traditional Industries were planning the major role for Taiwan's economy. However, we need to face the competition from developing countries. Moving manufacturing department to other low salary countries, such as China, can only temporarily release some limited pressure. The final and complete solutions are to equip on R&D, refine techniques, improve management capabilities, upgrade business, and reform physique. Currently there are some ERP systems on the market; however, they are designed for common purpose and difficult to introduce into industry. The expensive price is another factor to make them be popular. In this research we will Object Oriented, Visual Modeling, ER Model and Windows Environment to develop an Integrated Management System for Sports Requisites Industries (IMSSRI). We will integrate all information from all departments such as development, business, material administration, manufacture, shipping, and financial. When development people construct the all modules, components, cutting molds, materials and accessories, IMSSRI will calculate all needed materials and cost for each product. This cost will be used for quotation to report to our customers. When customers confirm the order, system will transfer all necessary materials into Material Administration System. IMSSRI can generate manufacturing forms and material raw lists for manufacture department. All related information such as stocking, returning goods, material requesting, and material returning can be integrated so we can control all details of the whole enterprise. Through the help of this system, we hope we can save man-power, reduce human mistakes, raise management capabilities for tradition manufacturing industries and create another possibility of eternal operating for Taiwan's Industries.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.220-227
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• 2024

Background: Though the artificial neural network (ANN) technique has been used to predict noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL), the established prediction models have primarily relied on cross-sectional datasets, and hence, they may not comprehensively capture the chronic nature of NIHL as a disease linked to long-term noise exposure among workers. Methods: A comprehensive dataset was utilized, encompassing eight-year longitudinal personal hearing threshold levels (HTLs) as well as information on seven personal variables and two environmental variables to establish NIHL predicting models through the ANN technique. Three subdatasets were extracted from the afirementioned comprehensive dataset to assess the advantages of the present study in NIHL predictions. Results: The dataset was gathered from 170 workers employed in a steel-making industry, with a median cumulative noise exposure and HTL of 88.40 dBA-year and 19.58 dB, respectively. Utilizing the longitudinal dataset demonstrated superior prediction capabilities compared to cross-sectional datasets. Incorporating the more comprehensive dataset led to improved NIHL predictions, particularly when considering variables such as noise pattern and use of personal protective equipment. Despite fluctuations observed in the measured HTLs, the ANN predicting models consistently revealed a discernible trend. Conclusions: A consistent correlation was observed between the measured HTLs and the results obtained from the predicting models. However, it is essential to exercise caution when utilizing the model-predicted NIHLs for individual workers due to inherent personal fluctuations in HTLs. Nonetheless, these ANN models can serve as a valuable reference for the industry in effectively managing its hearing conservation program.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.28 no.7
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• pp.1222-1230
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• 2022

The rotor blade is an important component of a tidal stream turbine and is affected by a large thrust force and load due to the high density of seawater. Therefore, the performance must be secured through the geometrical and structural design of the blade and the blade structural safety to which the composite material is applied. In this study, a 1 MW class large turbine blade was designed using the blade element momentum (BEM) theory. GFRP is a fiber-reinforced plastic used for turbine blade materials. A sandwich structure was applied with CFRP to lay-up the blade cross-section. In addition, to evaluate structural safety according to flow variations, static load analysis within the linear elasticity range was performed using the fluid-structure interactive (FSI) method. Structural safety was evaluated by analyzing tip deflection, strain, and failure index of the blade due to bending moment. As a result, Model-B was able to reduce blade tip deflection and weight. In addition, safety could be secured by indicating that the failure index, inverse reserve factor (IRF), was 1 or less in all load ranges excluding 3.0*Vr of Model-A. In the future, structural safety will be evaluated by applying various failure theories and redesigning the laminated pattern as well as the change of blade material.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.7 no.12
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• pp.131-138
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• 2020

In accordance with huge demand for capital to meet the expansion of steel production, there are more and more steel companies who have officially listed their stocks in HOSE and HNX. One of the key issues in successful initial public offerings and seasonal offerings for these companies is how to make stocks of steel companies become more attractive in the eyes of investors. The purpose of this research is to analyze the determinants of share prices of listed steel companies in Vietnam. This study utilized macro-economic variables, ratios and indicators representing characteristics of steel industry collected from Quarter 1/2006 to Quarter 4/2019 in association with the panel data and the feasible generalized least square (FGLS) model to evaluate the degree of these factors on the share prices. The results of the research show that ROE, Cons_rate, and CO2_rate are three main factors affecting the share prices of listed steel companies. Among which, ROE and Cons_rate have a positive effect, while CO2_rate has a negative effect on the share prices of listed steel companies. It also confirms the relationship between the environmental factor, construction industry factor and the stock prices. This lays foundations for recommendations for the future policies towards environmental protection and sustainable development.

• International Journal of Quality Innovation
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.93-112
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• 2008

This study explores the influence of Taiwan's high-tech manufacturers' innovative strategy and innovation motivation concerning the implementation of innovative activities, as well as the influence of innovative activities implementation on business performance. The two intermediate variables, industry group and enterprise scale are also considered. Through a review of the relevant literature, a theoretical model of the influence relationship is developed, while an empirical analysis is simultaneously conducted on Taiwan's high-tech manufacturers. The research result shows that the internal driving force of innovative activities has a significant impact on the level of implementing technological innovative activities and cultural innovative activities. The external driving force of innovative activities has a significant impact on the level of implementing market innovative activities and management innovative activities. Companies adopting self-developed technology and purchased as well as self-developed technology strategies, perform better than those adopting purchased new technology or those with neither purchased nor self-developed technology strategies, at implementing technological innovative activities and cultural innovative activities. The level of implementing innovative activities has a significant influence on business performance (cost reduction and product/service differentiation). For the intermediate variables of "industry group" and "enterprise scale", it is proven in this study that they have no significant influence on the level of innovative activity implementation or business performance.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.299-308
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• 2020

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Heavy alcohol consumption causes the development of alcoholic liver disease (ALD), a neglected but important public health problem. Many studies have pointed out that probiotics could improve gut health, which is also considered to be a cause of ALD. Therefore, this study screened the probiotics, Lactobacillus casei GKC1 (GKC1), L. fermentum GKF3 (GKF3), Bifidobacterium lactis GKK2 (GKK2), L. rhamnosus GKLC1 (GKLC1), L. paracasei GKS6 (GKS6), and L. plantarum GKM3 (GKM3), for their potential benefits in alleviating ALD for applications to disease prevention. SUBJECTS/METHODS: C57BL/6N mice were divided into 8 groups (n = 6 in each): normal control, positive control (alcohol-diet fed), and treatments of feeding probiotics GKC1, GKF3, GKK2, GKLC1, GKS6, and GKM3 under an oral dose 0.82 g/kg B.W. per day by oral gavage. The experiment was conducted for 8 weeks, and the concentrations of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase, triglyceride (TG), and total cholesterol (TC) in mice were measured. The glutathione (GSH), catalase (CAT), and histology were analyzed after sacrifice. RESULTS: The results showed a decrease in the serum ALT, liver TG, and liver TC levels in the GKS6, GKM3, and GKLC1 groups compared to the positive control. In addition, the decreasing GSH and CAT levels were inhibited in the GKS6 and GKM3 groups. The histopathological results showed that all probiotics could reduce the accumulation of liver fat. Furthermore, there was a significant difference in GKLC1 with lower stomach damage compared to the alcohol-fed mice without any addition of probiotics. CONCLUSIONS: GKLC1, GKS6, and GKM3 can be used as supplements for alleviating the development of ALD.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.51 no.5
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• pp.227-233
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• 2018

Objectives: Chronic diseases, including back pain, result in significant patient morbidity and societal burden. Overall improvement in physical fitness is recommended for prevention and treatment. Walking is a convenient modality for achieving initial gains. Our objective was to determine whether neighbourhood walkability, acting as a surrogate measure of physical fitness, was associated with the presence of chronic disease. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of prospectively collected data from a prior randomized cohort study of 227 patients referred for tertiary assessment of chronic back pain in Ottawa, ON, Canada. The Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) was calculated from patient-completed questionnaires and medical record review. Using patients' postal codes, neighbourhood walkability was determined using the Walk Score, which awards points based on the distance to the closest amenities, yielding a score from 0 to 100 (0-50: car-dependent; 50-100: walkable). Results: Based on the Walk Score, 134 patients lived in car-dependent neighborhoods and 93 lived in walkable neighborhoods. A multivariate logistic regression model, adjusted for age, gender, rural postal code, body mass index, smoking, median household income, percent employment, pain, and disability, demonstrated an adjusted odds ratio of 2.75 (95% confidence interval, 1.16 to 6.53) times higher prevalence for having a chronic disease for patients living in a car-dependent neighborhood. There was also a significant dose-related association (p=0.01; Mantel-Haenszel chi-square=6.4) between living in car-dependent neighbourhoods and more severe CCI scores. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that advocating for improved neighbourhood planning to permit greater walkability may help offset the burden of chronic disease.

• Composites Research
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.13-21
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• 2001

Substituting composite structures for conventional metallic structures has many advantages because of higher specific stiffness and specific strength of composite materials. In this work, one-piece driveshafts composed of carbon/epoxy and glass/epoxy composites were designed and manufactured for a rear wheel drive automobile satisfying three design specifications, such as static torque transmission capability, torsional buckling and the fundamental natural bending frequency. Single lap adhesive joint was used to join the composite shaft and the aluminum yoke. The torque transmission capability of the adhesively bonded composite shaft was calculated with respect to bonding length and yoke thickness by finite element analysis and compared with the experimental result. Torque transmission capability was based on the Tsai-Wu failure index fur composite shaft and the failure model which incorporated the nonlinear mechanical behavior of aluminum yoke and epoxy adhesive. From the experiments and the finite element analyses, it was found that the static torque transmission capability of the composite driveshaft was highest at the critical yoke thickness, and saturated beyond the critical length. Also, it was found that the one-piece composite driveshaft had 40% weight saving effect compared with a conventional two-piece steel driveshaft.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.7 no.10
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• pp.241-254
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• 2020

International payment is an essential part of the economy, which is beneficial to both commercial banks and trading enterprises. Moreover, service quality, which has been a key point of discussion for decades, relates to customer satisfaction. This study aims to investigate the factors influencing international payment service quality at the Join Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) from 2015 through 2019. This research deploys both quantitative and qualitative methods to discuss the effects of these components. Statistical data was examined through different tests, including reliability analysis, correlation, and regression analysis by SPSS 16.0. The authors obtain and analyze 157 valid responses from customer surveys, then by applying an integration SERVPERF and PSQM model, identify five main components: Reliability, Tangibles, Assurance, Convenience, and Responsiveness, which explain how the customer perceives the service quality of international payment activities at BIDV. The results show that these five factors have a positive relationship with service quality, in which, Reliability has the most significant impacts on service quality level. Besides, the findings not only contribute to the literature but also give some practical implications for BIDV to improve its international payment service quality and help them to obtain customer satisfaction in the fast-changing environment.

• International Journal of Quality Innovation
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.60-89
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• 2006

In the Knowledge-based Economic Era, all of the enterprises are facing global competitive pressure. The activities of knowledge accessing, codifying, and application will obviously become the main inner function on enterprise operation. Knowledge will be the primary competitive advantage; therefore, he who wants to hold the competitive advantage should do the knowledge management (KM) very well. In this study, we construct the research dimensions and variances by the successful factors of KM, which had been practiced very well by big enterprises inside and outside our country, and which was recommended by the related scholars. In order to approach the differences between big enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) towards implementing KM, this study takes the way of questionnaire investigation to do empirical analysis and to construct the model of KM by path analysis. The study found out when implementing KM, SMEs should highlight 'leadership,' 'library-architecture,' and 'corporate culture' these three aspects, while 'information technology' and 'performance evaluation' these two aspects show no remarkable influence. It shows that he who wants to construct KM might not too overweight on information technology to build the KM system. Therefore, we suggest when implementing KM, enterprises should reinforce the corporate culture by sharing, organized KM process, learning environment for all employees, and highly authorization by top managers in order to reach the expectant success of KM. The result of this study offers practical thinking directions to reach the expectant success for the policy makers in SMEs, who are accessing to or evaluating to implement KM.