The futures of orthopedic implants through 3D printing technology for South Africa
- Authors: Davids, Craig Nolan
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Medical innovations -- Economic aspects -- South Africa , Three-dimensional printing Three-dimensional imaging Orthopedics
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/39381 , vital:35238
- Description: 3D printing is one of the most disruptive technologies that truly has the potential to change medicine and healthcare by making care affordable, accessible and personalized. It can bring a new era if printers become more sophisticated, printing biomaterials gets safely regulated and the public acquires a common sense about how 3D printing works. An understanding and appreciation of the possible futures of 3D printing technology will be of great value to various stakeholders within the country. This research will identify and describe current drivers that should be appreciated for the government, business communities, academic institutions, healthcare provider’s policy makers and the society at large to make intelligent decisions about the future of 3D printing in medical devices. This study is aimed at identifying the possible futures of 3D printing in orthopaedic devices in South Africa. Causal Layered Analysis (CLA) and the Six Pillars of Futures were identified as the preferred methodologies to be utilised to respond to the research objectives of this study. A detailed literature study was undertaken to evaluate the existing body of knowledge on the research topic. The literature study revealed that several factors needs to be addressed before 3D printing is completely integrated into everyday joint reconstruction surgery. Having already made a big impact in the medical sector, three-dimensional printing (3DP) technology continues to push the boundaries of cost efficiency, convenience, and customization. It has transformed some aspects of medical device production. To date, 3D printing has been employed predominantly by hobbyists, product designers and a few select industrial applications, but the performance of additive manufacturing equipment is quickly evolving, the choice of materials is increasing, and prices of both materials and printers are falling rapidly, all factors through which 3D printing is swiftly progressing to attain wider consumer acceptance and a greater number of manufacturing uses.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Davids, Craig Nolan
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Medical innovations -- Economic aspects -- South Africa , Three-dimensional printing Three-dimensional imaging Orthopedics
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/39381 , vital:35238
- Description: 3D printing is one of the most disruptive technologies that truly has the potential to change medicine and healthcare by making care affordable, accessible and personalized. It can bring a new era if printers become more sophisticated, printing biomaterials gets safely regulated and the public acquires a common sense about how 3D printing works. An understanding and appreciation of the possible futures of 3D printing technology will be of great value to various stakeholders within the country. This research will identify and describe current drivers that should be appreciated for the government, business communities, academic institutions, healthcare provider’s policy makers and the society at large to make intelligent decisions about the future of 3D printing in medical devices. This study is aimed at identifying the possible futures of 3D printing in orthopaedic devices in South Africa. Causal Layered Analysis (CLA) and the Six Pillars of Futures were identified as the preferred methodologies to be utilised to respond to the research objectives of this study. A detailed literature study was undertaken to evaluate the existing body of knowledge on the research topic. The literature study revealed that several factors needs to be addressed before 3D printing is completely integrated into everyday joint reconstruction surgery. Having already made a big impact in the medical sector, three-dimensional printing (3DP) technology continues to push the boundaries of cost efficiency, convenience, and customization. It has transformed some aspects of medical device production. To date, 3D printing has been employed predominantly by hobbyists, product designers and a few select industrial applications, but the performance of additive manufacturing equipment is quickly evolving, the choice of materials is increasing, and prices of both materials and printers are falling rapidly, all factors through which 3D printing is swiftly progressing to attain wider consumer acceptance and a greater number of manufacturing uses.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Foreign volunteers and their contribution towards development of South African children
- Authors: Strohmeier, Carina
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Volunteers -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth -- 21st century , Volunteer workers in social service -- South Africa Community projects -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Community empowerment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Community development -- South Africa Non-governmental organizations -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/35255 , vital:33687
- Description: Governments of developing countries often struggle to deliver necessary services to their people. Therefore, international and local NGOs often get involved and establish projects that assist communities and vulnerable populations. As many local NGOs often lack capacity and financial resources, they require support from volunteers. The volunteers are often people from the Western world who are willing to come and work on projects. As they often serve in projects that deal with education or early childhood development, it is important to assess and analyse their contribution on the projects, and especially their contribution to the development and progress of the children they work with. This research assesses the skills and experiences of the volunteers and if and how they can contribute to the development of vulnerable children in South Africa. It is important to analyse the contributions of the volunteers to ensure that the children get what they need to reach their full developmental potential. To get a better understanding of what volunteers contribute to their projects, and especially the children they work with, the researcher conducted semi-structured interviews with people that work with volunteers, as well as with volunteers themselves, in and around Port Elizabeth. This research has found that the contribution of volunteers depends on the project they are serving, as well as on the skills and experience they have, and on the time, they are willing to contribute. Most of the projects studied did not depend on the support from the volunteers, but more on the money and awareness that they bring, which supports their daily work. The research also highlights the negative impact of the volunteers on the NGOs and projects they serve, which makes it important to create a better approach in how to deal with the increasing number of volunteers coming to South Africa from abroad. The research shows that what is needed is better screening of the volunteers by the NGOs, a proper preparation phase for the volunteers, and a better matching of the skills and experiences of the volunteers to what the NGOs and projects need to achieve their aims and objectives.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Strohmeier, Carina
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Volunteers -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth -- 21st century , Volunteer workers in social service -- South Africa Community projects -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Community empowerment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth Community development -- South Africa Non-governmental organizations -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/35255 , vital:33687
- Description: Governments of developing countries often struggle to deliver necessary services to their people. Therefore, international and local NGOs often get involved and establish projects that assist communities and vulnerable populations. As many local NGOs often lack capacity and financial resources, they require support from volunteers. The volunteers are often people from the Western world who are willing to come and work on projects. As they often serve in projects that deal with education or early childhood development, it is important to assess and analyse their contribution on the projects, and especially their contribution to the development and progress of the children they work with. This research assesses the skills and experiences of the volunteers and if and how they can contribute to the development of vulnerable children in South Africa. It is important to analyse the contributions of the volunteers to ensure that the children get what they need to reach their full developmental potential. To get a better understanding of what volunteers contribute to their projects, and especially the children they work with, the researcher conducted semi-structured interviews with people that work with volunteers, as well as with volunteers themselves, in and around Port Elizabeth. This research has found that the contribution of volunteers depends on the project they are serving, as well as on the skills and experience they have, and on the time, they are willing to contribute. Most of the projects studied did not depend on the support from the volunteers, but more on the money and awareness that they bring, which supports their daily work. The research also highlights the negative impact of the volunteers on the NGOs and projects they serve, which makes it important to create a better approach in how to deal with the increasing number of volunteers coming to South Africa from abroad. The research shows that what is needed is better screening of the volunteers by the NGOs, a proper preparation phase for the volunteers, and a better matching of the skills and experiences of the volunteers to what the NGOs and projects need to achieve their aims and objectives.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
An assessment of asset based community development as a paradigm to promote ownership to communities of Nkonkobe Local Municipality in the Eastern Cape
- Authors: Kapayi, Nceba Isaac
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Community development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Sustainable development -- Research -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Economic development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Local government -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MPA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/17788 , vital:28454
- Description: Local economic development has received a lot of attention as a mechanism of community empowerment and poverty alleviation globally. However, great concerns still exist due to the limited sustainability of some of the community-based projects. This study investigates the application of the Asset Based Community Development approach in the Nkonkobe Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province. The study examines the access and utilisation of assets and skills by members of the community. Adopting a qualitative research design, data was collected through questionnaire collected through questionnaire.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Kapayi, Nceba Isaac
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Community development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Sustainable development -- Research -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Economic development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Local government -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MPA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/17788 , vital:28454
- Description: Local economic development has received a lot of attention as a mechanism of community empowerment and poverty alleviation globally. However, great concerns still exist due to the limited sustainability of some of the community-based projects. This study investigates the application of the Asset Based Community Development approach in the Nkonkobe Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province. The study examines the access and utilisation of assets and skills by members of the community. Adopting a qualitative research design, data was collected through questionnaire collected through questionnaire.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
Investigating the perceptions of the relationship between vocational education and the labour market: a case study of FET college students
- Authors: Sibiya, Anthony Tolika
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Vocational education -- South Africa Training needs -- South Africa -- Students , School-to-work transition -- South Africa Labor market -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/20406 , vital:29280
- Description: The study sought to investigate the perceptions of TVET students regarding vocational education and its relation to the labour market. It hoped to illuminate connections or disconnections between vocational education and employment. The research emanated from the prevailing view that TVET education by its very nature is work-oriented and therefore those who enroll in TVET colleges are able to find employment. Furthermore, that conceptually the TVET curriculum was and continues to be regarded as skills-based for labour market demands thereby enhancing national competiveness and economic growth. Qualitative questionnaires, which are open-ended in nature, were used to gather facts about students’ beliefs and experiences regarding certain engineering programmes and services offered at TVET colleges. Non-probability sampling was used to select one hundred and thirteen (113) participants who voluntarily completed qualitative questionnaires, which were structured to elicit the required information, and the results reveal divergent views shared by students. There are those who feel very strongly that a TVET qualification, in engineering in particular, leads to employment due to its demand and the fact that the institution generally assists students through the placement unit makes it even easier to find employment. Other students firmly believed that whatever qualifications one attained, the world of work cannot accommodate them, as they do not have work experience. They felt this was unfair because they are unable to find employment without being properly monitored and trained by the very same industry that hopes to employ them in the near future. They argue that the only problem pertaining to unemployment is job scarcity, rather than skills scarcity. The research is framed within the human capital theory. Research findings reveal the fact that there is no link between vocational education and the labour market and as a result employment is not easy. There are personal skills required but they are not available in our educational curriculum, which focuses on educational aspirations. The research further posits five distinct but necessary interventions that students are suggesting in order to increase their lack of experience in the job market.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Sibiya, Anthony Tolika
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Vocational education -- South Africa Training needs -- South Africa -- Students , School-to-work transition -- South Africa Labor market -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/20406 , vital:29280
- Description: The study sought to investigate the perceptions of TVET students regarding vocational education and its relation to the labour market. It hoped to illuminate connections or disconnections between vocational education and employment. The research emanated from the prevailing view that TVET education by its very nature is work-oriented and therefore those who enroll in TVET colleges are able to find employment. Furthermore, that conceptually the TVET curriculum was and continues to be regarded as skills-based for labour market demands thereby enhancing national competiveness and economic growth. Qualitative questionnaires, which are open-ended in nature, were used to gather facts about students’ beliefs and experiences regarding certain engineering programmes and services offered at TVET colleges. Non-probability sampling was used to select one hundred and thirteen (113) participants who voluntarily completed qualitative questionnaires, which were structured to elicit the required information, and the results reveal divergent views shared by students. There are those who feel very strongly that a TVET qualification, in engineering in particular, leads to employment due to its demand and the fact that the institution generally assists students through the placement unit makes it even easier to find employment. Other students firmly believed that whatever qualifications one attained, the world of work cannot accommodate them, as they do not have work experience. They felt this was unfair because they are unable to find employment without being properly monitored and trained by the very same industry that hopes to employ them in the near future. They argue that the only problem pertaining to unemployment is job scarcity, rather than skills scarcity. The research is framed within the human capital theory. Research findings reveal the fact that there is no link between vocational education and the labour market and as a result employment is not easy. There are personal skills required but they are not available in our educational curriculum, which focuses on educational aspirations. The research further posits five distinct but necessary interventions that students are suggesting in order to increase their lack of experience in the job market.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
Defect in the South African construction industry
- Authors: Le Roux, Martyn
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: Construction industry -- South Africa , Buildings -- Defects -- South Africa , Quality assurance -- Standards -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:9711 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1020320
- Description: Lack of quality in the South African construction industry is causing various problems for different stakeholders. The causes of this lack in quality are due to various different attributes. Corruption has become one of the leading causes with regards to lack of quality. Quality assurance can mitigate or eliminate defects through the implementation of a quality management system. Defects manifest primarily through cracking, dampness, detachment, and water leaks. Defects are categorized as structural, subsidence, acoustic and thermal. In terms of time, defects are either patent or latent, and can be discovered through observation, inspection and various tests. The causes of defects are ultimately due to error or omission, either during design or during the construction phases. Defects may also result due to procurement related factors, such as appointment of incompetent contractors. The result of defects is customer dissatisfaction, rework and disputes. Non-conformance to requirements results in rework and this in turn contributes to time and cost overruns. The aim of this research was to investigate the greatest cause that leads to defects in houses; the most common type of defect; and why projects fail in term of project management terms (due to defects). Results of quantitative research amongst professionals within the construction industry in the Western and Eastern Cape of South Africa as well as literature that has been reviewed form the basis of this study. Architectural practices, consulting engineering practices, and general building contractors were selected on a random sample basis, and surveyed using an online questionnaire. The study revealed that inadequate artisan skills is the biggest cause leading to defects in houses, and that cracks are the most frequent type of defect occurring. Projects fail in project management terms because of defects as the construction time of the projects are increased. The study revealed that construction related causes of defects dominate over design related causes. This study should be of value to both construction industry professionals as well as their clients.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
- Authors: Le Roux, Martyn
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: Construction industry -- South Africa , Buildings -- Defects -- South Africa , Quality assurance -- Standards -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:9711 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1020320
- Description: Lack of quality in the South African construction industry is causing various problems for different stakeholders. The causes of this lack in quality are due to various different attributes. Corruption has become one of the leading causes with regards to lack of quality. Quality assurance can mitigate or eliminate defects through the implementation of a quality management system. Defects manifest primarily through cracking, dampness, detachment, and water leaks. Defects are categorized as structural, subsidence, acoustic and thermal. In terms of time, defects are either patent or latent, and can be discovered through observation, inspection and various tests. The causes of defects are ultimately due to error or omission, either during design or during the construction phases. Defects may also result due to procurement related factors, such as appointment of incompetent contractors. The result of defects is customer dissatisfaction, rework and disputes. Non-conformance to requirements results in rework and this in turn contributes to time and cost overruns. The aim of this research was to investigate the greatest cause that leads to defects in houses; the most common type of defect; and why projects fail in term of project management terms (due to defects). Results of quantitative research amongst professionals within the construction industry in the Western and Eastern Cape of South Africa as well as literature that has been reviewed form the basis of this study. Architectural practices, consulting engineering practices, and general building contractors were selected on a random sample basis, and surveyed using an online questionnaire. The study revealed that inadequate artisan skills is the biggest cause leading to defects in houses, and that cracks are the most frequent type of defect occurring. Projects fail in project management terms because of defects as the construction time of the projects are increased. The study revealed that construction related causes of defects dominate over design related causes. This study should be of value to both construction industry professionals as well as their clients.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
Vapour phase dehydrogenation of cyclohexane on microstructured reactors
- Authors: Mpuhlu, Batsho
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: Dehydrogenation , Cyclohexane
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , DTech (Chemistry)
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/8661 , vital:26418
- Description: The work that is described in this thesis forms part of the research and development projects at InnoVenton: NMMU Institute of Chemical Technology in collaboration with Sasol Technologies. The broader view of the project was testing on the so-called “Small Production Platforms” (SPP’s). In particular the main aim of this study was to investigate the effect of micro-structuring on the heterogeneous catalysed, vapour-phase oxidative dehydrogenation of cyclohexane in the presence of air. Ground work studies were done to provide a proper comparison of the micro-structured reactor with a traditional fixed-bed reactor. These included evaluation of a proper vanadium pyrophosphate catalyst for the reaction, testing of reaction parameters for the oxidative dehydrogenation reaction on a fixed-bed reactor and lastly comparing the performance of the micro-structured reactor to that of the fixed-bed reactor Various vanadium pyrophosphate catalysts that were tested for activity included: bulk (VO)2P2O7, bulk (VO)2P2O7 promoted with Fe, (VO)2P2O7 supported on -Al2O3 and Fe promoted (VO)2P2O7 supported on -Al2O3. These catalysts showed significant differences in TOF, however it was not conclusive from the results whether these differences may be traced to increased activity for dehydrogenation for different catalysts since all reactions were run under conditions of oxygen deficiency. It is, however, clear that Fe promotion significantly increase activity, irrespective of the relative degrees of oxidative dehydrogenation and normal dehydrogenation. The Fe promoted catalyst was further tested for long term stability in-view of using it as the catalyst in the micro-structured reactor. These studies showed the catalyst to have a high degree of stability with minimal structural changes under the reaction conditions used. Various response surface models describing the variation in each of the cyclohexane conversion, cyclohexene selectivity, and benzene selectivity, respectively when changing reaction condition, were derived by means of multiple regression. To obtain some idea of the degree and nature of the normal dehydrogenation reaction, the amount of deficit oxygen was estimated from the measured results for cyclohexane conversion and cyclohexene and benzene selectivities. These estimated values were also modelled as described above. The regression models were used to interpret specific trends in the responses for the oxidative dehydrogenation of cyclohexane and account for the oxygen deficit in the system. The performance of a fixed bed tubular reactor (FBR) and micro-structured sandwich reactor (MSSR) were compared over an Fe promoted vanadium pyrophosphate. Reactor performance was evaluated by varying specific reaction conditions (temperature and space velocity). Subsequently the turn-over frequencies, conversion and selectivities from the two reactors were compared. The conversion achieved in the micro-structured reactor was observed to be significantly higher than that achieved in the fixed-bed reactor at all reaction parameters. This is despite the fact that the total amount of catalyst in the micro-structured reactor is approximately 5 times less than that used in the fixed bed reactor. In addition, the contact time (1/MHSV) in the micro-structured reactor is also significantly shorter than in the fixed-bed reactor.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
- Authors: Mpuhlu, Batsho
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: Dehydrogenation , Cyclohexane
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , DTech (Chemistry)
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/8661 , vital:26418
- Description: The work that is described in this thesis forms part of the research and development projects at InnoVenton: NMMU Institute of Chemical Technology in collaboration with Sasol Technologies. The broader view of the project was testing on the so-called “Small Production Platforms” (SPP’s). In particular the main aim of this study was to investigate the effect of micro-structuring on the heterogeneous catalysed, vapour-phase oxidative dehydrogenation of cyclohexane in the presence of air. Ground work studies were done to provide a proper comparison of the micro-structured reactor with a traditional fixed-bed reactor. These included evaluation of a proper vanadium pyrophosphate catalyst for the reaction, testing of reaction parameters for the oxidative dehydrogenation reaction on a fixed-bed reactor and lastly comparing the performance of the micro-structured reactor to that of the fixed-bed reactor Various vanadium pyrophosphate catalysts that were tested for activity included: bulk (VO)2P2O7, bulk (VO)2P2O7 promoted with Fe, (VO)2P2O7 supported on -Al2O3 and Fe promoted (VO)2P2O7 supported on -Al2O3. These catalysts showed significant differences in TOF, however it was not conclusive from the results whether these differences may be traced to increased activity for dehydrogenation for different catalysts since all reactions were run under conditions of oxygen deficiency. It is, however, clear that Fe promotion significantly increase activity, irrespective of the relative degrees of oxidative dehydrogenation and normal dehydrogenation. The Fe promoted catalyst was further tested for long term stability in-view of using it as the catalyst in the micro-structured reactor. These studies showed the catalyst to have a high degree of stability with minimal structural changes under the reaction conditions used. Various response surface models describing the variation in each of the cyclohexane conversion, cyclohexene selectivity, and benzene selectivity, respectively when changing reaction condition, were derived by means of multiple regression. To obtain some idea of the degree and nature of the normal dehydrogenation reaction, the amount of deficit oxygen was estimated from the measured results for cyclohexane conversion and cyclohexene and benzene selectivities. These estimated values were also modelled as described above. The regression models were used to interpret specific trends in the responses for the oxidative dehydrogenation of cyclohexane and account for the oxygen deficit in the system. The performance of a fixed bed tubular reactor (FBR) and micro-structured sandwich reactor (MSSR) were compared over an Fe promoted vanadium pyrophosphate. Reactor performance was evaluated by varying specific reaction conditions (temperature and space velocity). Subsequently the turn-over frequencies, conversion and selectivities from the two reactors were compared. The conversion achieved in the micro-structured reactor was observed to be significantly higher than that achieved in the fixed-bed reactor at all reaction parameters. This is despite the fact that the total amount of catalyst in the micro-structured reactor is approximately 5 times less than that used in the fixed bed reactor. In addition, the contact time (1/MHSV) in the micro-structured reactor is also significantly shorter than in the fixed-bed reactor.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
Implementing capital budgeting for the multinational corporation
- Authors: Wang, Xin
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: International business enterprises -- Accounting
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MTech
- Identifier: vital:8939 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1304 , International business enterprises -- Accounting
- Description: There are many reasons to believe that budgeting lies at the heart of business management. Gray et al (2001:324) states that ―budgetary planning and control is the most visible use of accounting information in the management control process. By setting standards of performance and providing feedback by means of variance reports, the accountant supplies much of the fundamental information required for overall planning and control. However, Gray et al (2001:324) point out that capital budgeting decision is limited by the intricacies of the international business environment, which is characterized by economic, social, political, and cultural diversity. Therefore, decisions of capital investments and budgetary controls are more problematic (Gray et al., 2001:14). One of the defining characteristics of the globalization of the world economy in the past two decades has been the spread of multinational corporations' activities across countries, and, as a result, significant increases in global foreign direct investment (FDI) outflow in the 1990s (from R233 billion in 1990 to R1, 379 billion in 2000). For example, the total stock of Chinese direct investment abroad nearly tripled over the 1990s (from $2.2 trillion in 1990 to $6.3 trillion in 2000) as Chinese multinational corporations generated an increasingly large share of world GDP (6.8 percent in 1994 and 8.6 percent in 2000). Multinational corporations have become an important conduit in the global allocation of investment funds. However, the business environment in international markets has been considered volatile; there is no reliable and accurate method to aid 2 multinational corporations about decisions about the international environment. Thus, multinational corporations have encountered risk and challenge. Given the development and challenge of the international environment, this study have been considered to plan over a longer time horizon, develop formal mechanisms to set aside funds for preserving existing facilities, increase automation of the process, and link capital planning decisions to statewide performance goals and strategic plans. This research draws upon existing theoretical determinants of capital budgeting and empirically tests the hypotheses across a sample of multinational corporations in China. Although the sample is from China, the results have important implications for multinational corporations based in other countries. This paper is composed of four parts. The first part briefly gives both a theoretical and practical overview of multinational capital budgeting analysis. The second part discusses the data collection techniques and the questionnaire design used in this study. The third part provides some important findings of this research. The last section offers some conclusions from this study.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
- Authors: Wang, Xin
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: International business enterprises -- Accounting
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MTech
- Identifier: vital:8939 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1304 , International business enterprises -- Accounting
- Description: There are many reasons to believe that budgeting lies at the heart of business management. Gray et al (2001:324) states that ―budgetary planning and control is the most visible use of accounting information in the management control process. By setting standards of performance and providing feedback by means of variance reports, the accountant supplies much of the fundamental information required for overall planning and control. However, Gray et al (2001:324) point out that capital budgeting decision is limited by the intricacies of the international business environment, which is characterized by economic, social, political, and cultural diversity. Therefore, decisions of capital investments and budgetary controls are more problematic (Gray et al., 2001:14). One of the defining characteristics of the globalization of the world economy in the past two decades has been the spread of multinational corporations' activities across countries, and, as a result, significant increases in global foreign direct investment (FDI) outflow in the 1990s (from R233 billion in 1990 to R1, 379 billion in 2000). For example, the total stock of Chinese direct investment abroad nearly tripled over the 1990s (from $2.2 trillion in 1990 to $6.3 trillion in 2000) as Chinese multinational corporations generated an increasingly large share of world GDP (6.8 percent in 1994 and 8.6 percent in 2000). Multinational corporations have become an important conduit in the global allocation of investment funds. However, the business environment in international markets has been considered volatile; there is no reliable and accurate method to aid 2 multinational corporations about decisions about the international environment. Thus, multinational corporations have encountered risk and challenge. Given the development and challenge of the international environment, this study have been considered to plan over a longer time horizon, develop formal mechanisms to set aside funds for preserving existing facilities, increase automation of the process, and link capital planning decisions to statewide performance goals and strategic plans. This research draws upon existing theoretical determinants of capital budgeting and empirically tests the hypotheses across a sample of multinational corporations in China. Although the sample is from China, the results have important implications for multinational corporations based in other countries. This paper is composed of four parts. The first part briefly gives both a theoretical and practical overview of multinational capital budgeting analysis. The second part discusses the data collection techniques and the questionnaire design used in this study. The third part provides some important findings of this research. The last section offers some conclusions from this study.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
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