Cash farming in building and construction: a stochastic analysis

Cash flow management is a significant issue in the management of a building or construction firm. This paper steps back from the well researched area of poor cash management and its relationship with failure, to focus on the funds which are generated through operations, and the positive benefits which can follow in a well managed organization. A stochastic model is developed which illustrates how an average of 16% of turnover can be available for reinvestment. This is sufficient to allow investment in non-liquid assets, provided that this is managed carefully and precautions are taken against a severe reduction in turnover. This level of funds is sufficient to encourage firms to enter the industry with the motivation of generating funds, rather than a desire to build. This has implications for large clients and for government when dealing with the industry.     

Review and classification of reliability measures for multistate and continuum models

In this paper we examine a variety of customer-centered reliability measures, generalized to multistate and continuum contexts. A classification scheme is proposed for these measures, and a new measure based on customer-usage patterns is defined. In each case, reliability measures are defined such that they are equally valid for binary, multistate, continuum, and mixed systems. Techniques which facilitate the use of continuum models are discussed, and time-dynamic, infinite-time, and partial-information modeling considerations are also addressed.     

THE CONTACT HYPOTHESIS IN URBAN CHINA: THE PERSPECTIVE OF MINORITY‐STATUS MIGRANT WORKERS

ABSTRACT: This study is the first to test Allport's (1954) contact hypothesis from the perspective of a minority group in China. Employing a sample of off‐farm migrant workers in urban China, results indicate a positive effect on self‐reported attitudes of intergroup friendship contact between migrant and local workers; and positive effects on self‐reported behavioral interaction between migrants and urban locals of both intergroup friendship and intergroup nonfriendship contact.     

CELL WALL COMPOSITIONS AND ENZYMES OF POTATOES, JICAMAS AND CHINESE WATER CHESTNUTS

Cell wall compositions and the levels of ten enzymes of potatoes, jicamas and Chinese water chestnuts were determined to explain the differences in thermal softening of these vegetables. Cell walls were prepared from the tissues by sieving of ethanolic homogenates to remove most of the starch and analyzed for neutral sugars and uronic acids. Jicamas and water chestnuts contain less galactose but more arabinose and glucuronic acid and much more xylose than potatoes. Water chestnuts contain less galacturonic acid than jicamas and potatoes and this was confirmed by extraction of pectin under various conditions. The results suggest that resistance to thermal softening may be related to cell wall polysaccharides rich in arabinose, glucuronic acid and xylose rather than to pectic polysaccharides. The major differences in enzyme compositions are much higher β-amylase and exopolygalacturonase in jicamas and water chestnuts than in potatoes. Water chestnut exopolygalacturonase is unusually heat-stable, but the relationship of this enzyme or of β-amylase to thermal softening is not clear.     

High Performance Liquid Chromatographic Separation and Spectral Characterization of the Pigments in Turmeric and Annatto

High performance liquid chromatographic separations for the determination of the pigments in the food colorants, annatto and turmeric, were developed. Chromatographic analysis time for the isocratic system was 10 min and 22 min for the gradient system. The isocratic separation employed a 25 cm × 4.6 mm i.d. Zorbax ODS column with a 58/42 (v/v) mixture of water/tetrahydrofuran, THF, at 1 mL/min. A gradient water/THF system using the same components was also developed to improve the resolution between the curcuminoids. Sample preparation consists of dilution and filtration of the extracts. The three major pigments in turmeric, identified from visible and fluorescence stop flow spectra, were curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin. Absorbance, excitation and emission maxima for the three curcuminoids plus the carotenoids, bixin and norbixin, were determined.