Industrial Size Research Articles

Circular Economy Adoption in Manufacturing Firms: Evidence From Germany

ABSTRACTThis paper analyses Circular Economy (CE) practices adopted by manufacturing firms and explores whether the decision to adopt these practices differs in relation to manufacturing sector, company size, or having Environmental Management Systems (EMS) in place. Empirical data from 1191 German manufacturing firms was used to show that the circular practices companies adopt most are framed mainly within Recovery Field of Action (FA), followed by Distribution and Use. Findings highlight differences between sectors and point to a correlation between company size or having an EMS and a higher level of CE adoption, emphasising the need to tailor CE strategies to specific industrial sectors and company size, and highlighting the role EMS plays in facilitating the adoption of CE.

SME representation in chambers of commerce bodies – a model perspective

Background: The research analyzes the formal representation of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the bodies of chambers of commerce in a model-based approach. Research purpose: Chambers of commerce are managed by their bodies (board, general assembly, etc.). Their composition is most often chosen by members in elections. It should reflect the structure of the associated enterprises – at least in terms of industry and size classes. The division of mandates affects the operational activity of the organization – including the content of positions developed in consultation processes and services provided to entrepreneurs. The aim of the study is to verify whether in the countries selected for analysis (representing different models of functioning of chambers of commerce) there are regulations securing the formal representation of SMEs in the bodies of chambers. And if they do exist, what form do they take? In addition to determining the actual situation, the advisability and possible way of regulating the SME parity in several model scenarios is analyzed. Methods: Using the deductive method and critical analysis, the study analyzes the statutes of chambers of commerce in selected countries and reviews sociological, economic and legal literature. Conclusions: The findings indicate that there are only a few examples of regulations protecting the representation of SMEs in chambers’ bodies. It was also found that the rules for representing different sized enterprises in the bodies and task groups of chambers of commerce are closely linked to the model of these organizations. In the Anglo-Saxon private law model, business owners primarily participate voluntarily in selected organizations. However, in countries with a single chamber per region, free choice of organization does not in fact exist. In the continental public law model, where membership is universal by operation of law, statutes focus primarily on mapping the structure of dominant industries in a region and usually omit other criteria. The sectoral model offers the greatest potential for balancing the representation of every size of industry and enterprise.

Forecasting Beta Using Ultra High Frequency Data

ABSTRACTThis paper examines if using ultra high frequency (UHF, e.g., tick‐by‐tick) data could improve the accuracy of beta forecasts compared with using only moderately high frequency (MHF, minute‐level) data. We propose a novel two‐step paired t‐test for performance evaluation. Our test exploits the cross‐sectional variations in the beta forecasts and avoids the issues associated with the traditional approach which requires choosing a proxy for the true beta. Our tests provide strong evidence that using UHF data generally yields more accurate beta forecasts than using MHF data. Furthermore, we show that the UHF estimator consistently belongs to the group of best risk‐hedging performers for portfolios constructed based on both industrial classifications and size and book‐to‐market ratios. However, we also find that using UHF data of a coarser scale (e.g., 5 or 15 s) leads to reduced benefits compared with using tick‐by‐tick data. Our conclusions hold when different UHF estimators and sample periods are used.

Is the Corporate Average Fuel Economy Scheme Effective at Improving Vehicle Fuel Efficiency in a Small-Scale Market? Evidence from Taiwan

This article discusses how the introduction of corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards in Taiwan, whose market and industry size are much smaller than those of Europe, the United States, Japan, and China, can effectively improve vehicle energy efficiency. It examines the changes in passenger car energy efficiency under Taiwan’s CAFE framework and evaluates CAFE compliance performance to summarize its impacts and challenges. Observations indicate that the strategically flexible CAFE scheme is indeed more effective than mandatory minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) in encouraging manufacturers to comply through various methods. This approach has ultimately increased the overall average fuel efficiency of Taiwan’s passenger cars by 23.5% since 2012, while maintaining the diversity of vehicle models in the market. However, there are challenges to implementing CAFE in a small market, such as difficulties in introducing and promoting high-efficiency models, limited activity in the CAFE credit market, and the current overly favorable policy design. The design of the CAFE mechanism is crucial not only for benchmarking with larger economies but also for taking into account local market conditions and industrial capabilities. Taiwan’s next phase of CAFE must incorporate multi-dimensional adjustments to achieve higher, potentially net-zero vehicle efficiency targets.

Discretization-independent node-based shape optimization with the Vertex Morphing method using design variable scaling

The Vertex Morphing method is a node-based shape parameterization that uses an explicit filtering approach to regularize the optimization problem and generate smooth shapes. It has been successfully applied to shape optimization problems of industrial size in recent years. This work investigates in detail how irregular discretizations, design surface boundaries, and complex geometries can influence the progress of a gradient-based optimization using the standard Vertex Morphing formulation. A sensitivity weighting approach based on the available shape morphing functions is presented, which eliminates all of the aforementioned influences. Subsequently, a design variable scaling strategy is developed that transforms the optimization problem into an alternative design space and allows the use of arbitrary, even highly irregular surface discretizations in combination with black-box optimization algorithms for shape optimization with the Vertex Morphing method. Illustrative academic examples and an application case of an additively manufactured part are presented to support the work.

The impact of data factor-driven industry on the green total factor productivity: evidence from the China

Data factors have become an essential factor of production in today’s digital era, and provided renewed energy for China’s green and high-quality development. This study analyses the impact of data factor-driven industries on green total factor productivity (GTFP) and the underlying mechanisms using panel data of 277 Chinese cities from 2008 to 2020. The results show that: First, the urban data factor-driven industry can enhance GTFP. Second, the data factor-driven industry can increase the input–output ratio and enhance GTFP by promoting AI technological innovation and AI technological entrepreneurship. Third, the heterogeneity analysis show that in regions with high levels of digital technological innovation, the market size of data factor-driven industries is larger and the effect of data factor-driven industries in enhancing GTFP is more significant. And in regions with low levels of savings, the data factor-driven industry has limited capital availability and is more efficient in using capital, which has a stronger effect on GTFP enhancement. This study provides valuable empirical evidence on the relationship between data factor-driven industries and urban GTFP, and important policy implications for fully leveraging the green economic effects of data factors, and promoting green and high-quality urban development.

Public vs Private Bodies: Who Should Run Advanced AI Evaluations and Audits? A Three-Step Logic Based on Case Studies of High-Risk Industries

Artificial Intelligence (AI) Safety Institutes and governments worldwide are deciding whether they evaluate and audit advanced AI themselves, support a private auditor ecosystem or do both. Auditing regimes have been established in a wide range of industry contexts to monitor and evaluate firms’ compliance with regulation. Auditing is a necessary governance tool to understand and manage the risks of a technology. This paper draws from nine such regimes to inform (i) who should audit which parts of advanced AI; and (ii) how much resources, competence and access public bodies may need to audit advanced AI effectively. First, the effective responsibility distribution between public and private auditors depends heavily on specific industry and audit conditions. On the basis of advanced AI’s risk profile, the sensitivity of information involved in the auditing process, and the high costs of verifying safety and benefit claims of AI Labs, we recommend that public bodies become directly involved in safety critical, especially gray- and white-box, AI model audits. Governance and security audits, which are well-established in other industry contexts, as well as black-box model audits, may be more efficiently provided by a private market of auditors under public oversight. Secondly, to effectively fulfill their role in advanced AI audits, public bodies need extensive access to models and facilities. Public bodies’ capacity should scale with the industry's risk level, size and market concentration, potentially requiring 100s of employees for auditing in large jurisdictions like the EU or US, like in nuclear safety and life sciences.

An explicit solution to harvesting behaviors in a predator–prey system

AbstractThis paper derives closed‐form solutions for a strategic, simultaneous harvesting in a predator–prey system. Using a parametric constraint, it establishes the existence and uniqueness of a linear feedback‐Nash equilibrium involving two specialized fleets and allows for continuous time results for a class of payoffs that have constant elasticity of the marginal utility. These results contribute to the scarce literature on analytically tractable predator–prey models with endogenous harvesting. A discussion based on industry size effects is provided to highlight the role played by biological versus strategic interactions in the multispecies context.Recommendations for Resource Managers This model presents a thorough examination of the economic inefficiencies inherent in the exploitation dynamics of two interdependent species, elucidating the complex interplay between ecological interactions and economic outcomes. The size of the fishing industries constitutes a significant variable that must be integrated into the formulation of pertinent policy recommendations. This constitutes an advancement towards a more time‐consistent approach to Ecosystem‐Based Fishery Management (EBFM).

The moderating role of corporate governance mechanism on the relationship between product market competition and earnings management: evidence from Bangladesh

ABSTRACT This article evaluates the moderating effects of corporate governance mechanisms on the relationship between earnings management and product market competition. Market concentration, as measured by the HHI has shown significantly negative association with accrual and real earnings management. In contrast, product market power, as measured by the industry size, demonstrates a significant positive association. The result further illustrates that the cost of industry entry significantly impacts accrual earnings management. The corporate governance mechanism (CGI) significantly decreases earnings manipulation. Moreover, the corporate governance mechanism (CGI) considerably moderates the association between market concentration, industry entry cost, and earnings management. Compared to high and low-competitive industries, the impact of market competition on earnings management in moderately competitive industries is more significant. After establishing the Bangladesh Competition Commission, product market competition has shown more impact on earnings management. This research is the initial attempt to examine the moderating effect of corporate governance mechanisms on the relationship between product market competition and earnings management from the perspective of Bangladesh.

Impact of state-level labour law reforms in India: an empirical analysis

The impact of Indian state labour law reforms on employment, output, new industrial units, investment and size of industrial units is examined from 2000–01 to 2017–18. States with inflexible labour laws had lower growth of large industrial units and regular employment. Contract worker hiring spiked in firms with 301–500 workers in both flexible and inflexible states. Capital growth was higher than growth of workers in all state categories. Rajasthan, the first state to carry out additional reforms in 2014, had good performance. Regressions carried out to control for factors that impact employment other than labour laws indicate that: (i) reforms had a positive impact on employment; (ii) good infrastructure, reduction in industrial disputes, low crime and better education resulted in significant employment generation. Difference-in-differences estimates show that post-reform, employment, fixed capital, and output were higher for flexible labour law states, when compared to inflexible labour law states.

The cost of electricity interruption for manufacturing firms in Ethiopia: valuing outage by applying stated preference approach

ABSTRACT In sub-Saharan African countries, firms are suffering from frequent, long-lasting and random power outage, which makes planning and production activities difficult. Thus, understanding a firm’s cost associated with unreliable power supply is crucial for policymakers and potential investors in the energy sector. To this end, we estimated the economic cost of power interruption to manufacturing firms in selected cities of Oromia Regional State in Ethiopia using a mixed logit model. We collected data from a sample of 600 manufacturing firms. The result shows that a firm’s average cost of power interruption is equivalent to ETB 51,777 (~US$976) per month, which corresponds to a nine-fold of their current monthly electricity bill. In addition, the interruption costs amount to 2.22% of a firm’s gross monthly revenue. Moreover, we observed a considerable variation in our results, which be partly attributed to company size and type of industry where a company belongs to.

Compressor Surge Identification in Innovative Heat-Pump Systems Equipped by Vaned Diffuser Centrifugal Compressor

Abstract In the present energy scenario, heat-pumps play an important role to improve energy efficiency in reversible cooling systems. In case of industrial size plants, centrifugal compressors are preferred with respect to other solutions; nonetheless, they work in variable operation and therefore they must withstand off-design conditions. Carrier provided the University of Genoa with a small size chiller rig equipped with an innovative high speed centrifugal compressor driven by a variable speed motor to study unstable operation of refrigerant closed loop systems. To this aim, vibro-acoustic signature analysis of such closed loop rig is performed mainly focusing on compressor mechanical response. This experimental characterization is firstly conducted in system stable operation. Afterwards, surge transients are obtained by acting on plant feeding lines valves; meanwhile, experimental signals are acquired at relevant plant locations to investigate system response just before instability onset. Indeed, system dynamics is affected by interposed volumes, and therefore the effect of heat exchangers in system response may be relevant. Therefore, system dynamics is analysed both in sub-synchronous frequency range and in high frequency region to assess how its vibro-acoustic response varies when moving from stable conditions towards surge. By doing so, suitable surge precursors can be defined by relying only on vibro-acoustic signals both in low and high frequency ranges to perform early surge detection in such chiller systems. The proposed approach main advantage is to exploit non-intrusive probes, which allow to define diagnostic indicators without interacting directly with the working fluid.

Scale diseconomies and capacity in fund management: variation across equity markets

PurposeWe model the relation between excess returns, fund size and industry size for active equity funds.Design/methodology/approachWe study and contrast four markets – global equities, emerging markets, Australia core and Australia small caps – and use the results to investigate the extent to which funds deviate from estimated capacity.FindingsWe uncover a significantly negative relation between returns and both fund size and industry size across all markets. The estimated percentage of funds operating above versus below capacity varies both across markets and over time, as does the role played by fund size versus industry size. We find a greater prevalence of funds operating significantly below than above capacity, in contrast to findings for US equity mutual funds. Significant deviations from estimated capacity persist for a median of between two and six quarters.Originality/valueOur main contribution is to show that the dynamics governing deviations from capacity for active equity funds vary across markets.

Data profile: the Korean Workers' Compensation-National Health Insurance Service (KoWorC-NHIS) cohort.

The Korean Workers' Compensation-National Health Insurance Service (KoWorC-NHIS) cohort was established to investigate the longitudinal health outcomes of Korean workers who have been compensated for occupational injuries or diseases. This cohort study, which utilized data spanning from 2004 to 2015, merged workers' compensation insurance claim data with the National Health Insurance Database (NHID), encompassing 858,793 participants. The data included socio-demographic factors such as age, sex, income, address, insurance type, and disability grade. It also covered the types of occupational accidents, International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision codes for diseases or accidents, work tenure, industry, occupation code, and company size. Additional details such as the occupational hire date, date of claim, date of recognition, and affected body parts were recorded. The cohort predominantly consisted of male workers (80.0%), with the majority experiencing their first occupational accident in their 40s (27.6%) or 50s (25.3%). Notably, 93.1% of the cases were classified as occupational injuries. By integrating this data with that from the NHID, updates on health utilization, employment status, and income changes were made annually. The follow-up period for this study is set to conclude in 2045.

Relationship between Urban Industrial Land Use Size and Sulfur Dioxide Emissions: Evidence from 294 Cities in China

Relationship between Urban Industrial Land Use Size and Sulfur Dioxide Emissions: Evidence from 294 Cities in China

Study on the Influence of Industrial Coke Oven Size on the Quality of Metallurgical Coke

The large-scale coke oven is a developing trend in coking technology, and the influence of the industrial coke oven size on the quality of metallurgical coke needs to be revealed. Under the same raw coals and blending ratios, metallurgical cokes were obtained from top-loading coke ovens with carbonization chamber heights of 6 and 7 m, respectively. The macroscopic quality and microstructure of the refined metallurgical cokes were comprehensively tested. The results showed that the conventional cold and thermal strength indexes of Coke-7m were better than those of Coke-6m. The comprehensive thermal strength at multiple temperatures further showed that the thermal strength advantage of Coke-7m was mainly manifested at low temperatures (1050 and 1100 °C) or a high temperature (1300 °C), where the solution-loss reaction mode of coke tended to be the “uniform reaction model” or “unreacted core model”. At medium temperatures, the solution-loss reaction mode tended to be the “gradient reaction model”, which had a greater destructive effect on the thermal strength of coke. At this time, the thermal strengths of the two cokes were close. Microstructure characterization revealed that industrial coke oven size mainly affected the carbon structure of coke but had little effect on pore structure. The advantage of Coke-7m regarding carbon structure is an important reason for its superior macroscopic quality compared to Coke-6m.

Energy structure optimization of shandong province by 2035 under double carbon goal

Abstract In this paper, based on the existing population size, economic development level, industrial structure, current status of energy production and consumption, and current status of electricity production and consumption in Shandong Province, the LEAP-Shandong model was constructed by using the Long-range Energy Alternatives Planning (LEAP) model as a research tool, which is used to forecast the population size, GDP, energy consumption, and electricity structure of different industries in Shandong Province up to 2035 under three scenarios: policy development scenario, energy efficiency improvement scenario, and enhanced low-carbon scenario. The result shows that the population of Shandong province is expected to peak at 10, 426, 000 by 2033, and then slowly decline; in the enhanced low-carbon scenario, with an appropriate slowdown in economic development, further optimization of industrial structure and enhancement of energy efficiency can effectively reduce the energy consumption of the terminal energy-using sector in Shandong province. Based on the results, the main recommendations for Shandong’s energy development are as follows: to build a low-carbon industrial system in Shandong in light of new development opportunities; to build a new energy development system in light of Shandong’s energy characteristics; and to promote the low-carbon transformation of Shandong’s energy in light of the new model of the energy industry.

PENGARUH KOMITE AUDIT, KEPEMILIKAN MANAJERIAL, UKURAN PERUSAHAAN, DAN LEVERAGE TERHADAP INTEGRITAS LAPORAN KEUANGAN DENGAN KULITAS AUDIT SEBAGAI VARIABLE MODERASI (STUDI EMPIRIS PADA PERUSAHAAN NON-CYCLICALS DAN CYCLICALS DI BEI PERIODE 2018-2022)

The purpose of this research is to test and share empirical facts regarding the influence of audit committees on theintegrity of financial statements, industrial aspects of management ownership, leverage and audit quality. The purposeof this research is to determine the influence of audit committees, management ownership, industry size and financialreporting integrity with audit quality as a moderating variable The expected results of this research can be summarizedas follows: audit committees have a significant positive influence on the integrity of financial reports; corporateresponsibility has a significant positive effect on the integrity of financial reports, industrial aspects do not have amaterial impact on the completeness of financial reports. Leverage has no significant effect on the integrity of financialreports; Audit quality does not moderate the influence of the audit committee on the integrity of financial reports; Auditquality moderates the influence of corporate responsibility on the integrity of financial reports, audit quality does notmoderate the influence of industry aspects of the completeness of financial reports, audit quality does not moderate theinfluence of leverage on the completeness of financial reports.

AHP기법을 이용한 건설기업별 안전수준평가에 관한 연구

Disaster in the construction industry is a major social and economic problem in Korea due to its unique risk, high incidence rate, various causes and complex factors. In order to reduce the risk of accidents in the construction industry, various preventive activities of each individual company are needed, and disaster evaluation should be conducted by various methods. In this study, a disaster score evaluation model could be proposed to evaluate and compare the safety level of each individual construction company. At this time, eight factors were selected: the size of the construction industry, the amount of construction work, the type of construction industry accidents, the age of construction industry injuries, the timing og accidents in the construction industry, the length of service for construction workers, the area of accidents, and the degree of accidents for construction workers, and industrial accident statistics for four years from 2029 to 2022 were used. In addition, in order to obtain the weights of eight factors, a survey of 39 safety experts and a model for calculating the accident score of each construction company using the AHP technique could be proposed. As a result of calculating the accident scores of two construction companies with similar accident rates using this model, it was found that the safety level of the two companies was different. This model was used to calculate the accident score of the two construction companies with similar accident rates, and it was found that there was a difference in the safety level of the two companies, because even in the same disaster, the disaster score of the companies with large-disasters is high. Therefore, by applying the model proposed in this study, it is believed that it will be of great help in accurately knowing the safety level of individual construction companies and developing safety activities suitable for the company.

Experimental Validation of Stationary and Transient Models of a Methanol Demonstration Plant

AbstractThe system integration of cross‐industrial networks in the Carbon2Chem® project relies on numerical simulations. Hence, this study validates the methanol synthesis loop models vs. the measurements from a demonstration plant, focusing on the thermodynamic, kinetic, and dynamic aspects. The plant can produce up to 500 L per week of methanol from real blast furnace gases of the thyssenkrupp steel plant in Duisburg. Despite its small size, it comprises a recycle gas loop and an original reactor tube of 6 m in length. After validation, the simulation models are used to analyze the dynamic operation limits of the plant, and they are transferred to the model of an industrial size to analyze the operation of cross‐industrial networks with volatile boundary conditions.