Strategic Staffing Handbook Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Strategic Staffing Handbook - Essay Example Rather, expanding the traditional approach, it principally turns the existing staff members from being reactive to a proactive nature. It actually complies with the just-in-time supply chain management with regard to the operational process that mainly involves the management of the talent supply in order to ensure right people in appropriate position at right time (Bechet, 2008). Strategic Staffing handbook is theoretically regarded as a medium that provides the employees with detail information of the organization as well as the employment terms. Strategic Staffing handbook usually entails polices, rules and the procedures being operated within the organization. It also entails the details of the employment contract. It frames an important Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) tool within any organization providing the entire internal scenario of the organizations’ operations and its prevailing policies and procedures. Hence, it is vital for the staff to go through the staffing handbook with great care as the staffing handbook not only gives details about the assigned roles along with the responsibilities of the employees, but also intends to discuss about the company’s human resource quality. It provides an insight on the job analysis segment and the approaches to the process of the job analysis consequently. Apart from this, the handboo k also provided an overview about the employment details. Strategic staffing for our company reflects about the process, which has been into application in order to identify the implications of the selected staff members. The application of the strategic staffing principally addresses the impacts of staffing on our company’s business strategies along with the advanced plan. Apart from this, our company also implements the notions of strategic staffing in order to gain ideas about the prevailing issues that reflect about the gap or surplus with regard to

Fauvism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Fauvism - Essay Example In Gauguin’s painting, pure and flat red was used to present the message in full intensity so as to point out the seriousness of the subject matter. Red can also be related to anger or passion (Art Factory, n.d.; Elements of Art). Famous fauvism painters include Henri Matisse, Andre Derain and Raoul Dufy. Henri Matisse (1869-1954) painted The Roofs of Collioure (1905, oil on canvas) and The Open Window, Collioure (1905 oil on canvas). Andre Derain painted the Portrait of Henri Matisse (1906 oil on canvas) and The Turning Road at LEstaque (1906 oil on canvas). On a personal notion, I agree with the view of the artists of fauvism. Colours can depict feeling. It can also affect the feeling of the beholder of the artwork. For example, in a painting about war, red and black is commonly the most prominent. The present era though also commonly practice the notion that colours can bring the emotional element of the painting, thus, depicting the effect of fauvism. It can also be considered impressionist in nature since prioritizing colour can mean that the painting does not follow the realistic colours of the subject e.g. Andre Derain’s Portrait of Henri Matisse (1905). In conclusion, fauvism has great effects in the present view of visual arts regarding colours. It also contributed to the freedom of using colours outside the confines of realism or how subjects may have appeared in

Benefits of a Liberal Arts Degree Essay Example for Free

Benefits of a Liberal Arts Degree Essay The student who decides to pursue a liberal arts education in University often faces a discouraging reaction from family and friends. Everyone seems to know a B. A. in Philosophy who is flipping burgers at Wendy’s, or an M. A. in English who is clerking at Wal-Mart. Students who choose liberal arts hear the same remarks over and over: â€Å"What good is a degree in Medieval History, or Chinese literature, or Classics? Study something practical and get a real job! † In fact, however, no degree provides an automatic job ticket, since the market for employment is constantly in flux. The liberal arts offer education, not training, and thus prepare students for a wide range of possibilities in both work and life. By developing their minds through a liberal arts education, students benefit themselves, their eventual careers, and the culture at large . For anyone interested in personal and intellectual growth, the liberal arts offer immeasurable benefits. Studies in such fields as English and Philosophy introduce a student to the great writers and thinkers whose ideas have shaped our culture. By working through the dialogues of Plato, students see logic in action; by studying the plays of Shakespeare, the poetry of Wordsworth, or the novels of Dickens, they realize the power of language. Without knowledge of the great writers and thinkers of the past, people operate in a vacuum, unable to see beyond their immediate world. How can they gauge the validity of ideas if they know nothing except the present moment? In a media-driven culture of instant celebrity, students need to experience truths that have endured over hundreds and even thousands of years. These truths expand their thinking beyond their immediate limitations, and they discover new insights into their own minds. The benefits of a liberal arts education, however, go beyond personal growth into longer-term career skills. Every liberal arts course from Art History to Women’s Studies requires proficiency in reading and writing. Graduates with Arts degrees find their communication skills in demand by employers seeking people who can read, write, and speak well. As Francis Bacon observed nearly 400 years ago, â€Å"Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man, and writing an exact man†(106). No courses develop these skills more fully than do those in the liberal arts. In addition, the liberal arts foster analytical thought: the ability to break an argument into its parts and assess its validity. Clear analysis is fundamental to the practical worlds of trade  and commerce. Finally, the liberal arts encourage originality, as students learn to think in creative ways. The student who gives an inventive presentation or develops a fresh perception will enhance the workplace with that creativity. It’s no surprise that law schools actively seek liberal arts graduates for its programs, or that jobs in the civil service, human resources, and upper management are typically staffed by people with Arts degrees. The only surprise is that anyone still scoffs at the notion that a general B. A. is a useful degree. As significant as its impact may be on personal and career growth, the real value of a liberal arts education is found in its benefits to the culture as a whole. The liberal arts retain and transmit the history of civilization itself. Without a commitment to preserving that history, our culture runs the risk of forgetting or distorting its past. Liberal arts students serve as guardians of intellectual thought for the next generation. Writers, journalists, film-makers, and politicians – the people shaping the thoughts and actions of the future – are drawn from the ranks of liberal arts majors. For example, the creator of the Harry Potter series, J. K. Rowling, has an undergraduate degree in Classics, and Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff earned degrees in History. Moreover, the liberal arts tend to be interdisciplinary in nature. Knowledge in one area illuminates another, so that instead of creating a society of narrow specialists, liberal arts studies actually encourage a culture of educated, open-minded people. Such individuals have both the capacity and the training to address practical problems in society. Leading reformers of the 20th century, including Nelson Mandela (â€Å"Nelson†) and Martin Luther King, Jr. (â€Å"Martin†), profited from their liberal arts studies. A degree in the liberal arts is not a dead-end route that culminates in a lifetime of serving fries or stocking shelves. Rather, it is a doorway that opens to paths heading in every direction. Students who expand their minds through liberal arts benefit themselves, their future career choices, and the wider culture.

The Ranque-Hilsch Vortex Tube

The Ranque-Hilsch Vortex Tube David Newson Abstract The Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube is a simple mechanical device often used for refrigeration in industrial manufacturing as it requires only a supply of compressed gas. Despite having no moving parts the vortex tube is able to separate the compressed gas into two separate streams – one hot and one cold with temperatures observed in the range of -5 to 55. Different explanations for the processes taking place within the device haven been proposed but there is currently no single accepted theory. A fundamental understanding of the vortex tube and the equipment has been reached and the groundwork has been laid for further experimental investigation and numerical computational fluid dynamic modelling. Introduction The Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube, often referred to simply as a vortex tube, is a mechanical device involving no moving parts that can be used to separate a stream of high pressure compressed gas into two lower pressure streams of varying temperatures. The cold stream is able to reach temperatures as low as -30 ºC whilst the hot stream can reach temperatures of up to 110  ºC [1]. First invented by French physicist G. Ranque in 1933 [2] the vortex tube was unpopular at the time due to its low efficiency and the idea was discarded until 1946, when German engineer R. Hilsch took it upon himself to improve the design [3]. With increased efficiency the vortex tube became an effective and popular spot cooling device for laboratory equipment, cutting tools such as lathes and mills, and other industrial processes. Since then there has been numerous attempts to find ways to further increase its efficiency and fully understand the processes leading to the temperature separation. The processes taking place within the vortex tube are simple to observe, but more difficult to accurately explain and model. It begins with compressed gas entering the vortex tube tangentially through a swirl generator creating an initial vortex inside the tube with rotational speeds of up to 1,000,000 RPM. The vortex moves along the length of the tube until it reaches an adjustable valve allowing a fraction of the gas to escape. The remaining gas is forced back down the centre of the tube, creating a secondary vortex. This secondary vortex has a reduced diameter and is contained within the initial vortex and travels in the opposite direction back along the length of the tube. When the secondary vortex reaches the other end of the tube all remaining gas is expelled through an opening. While this is taking place, energy is transferred from the inner vortex to the outer vortex, causing the temperature of the outer vortex to increase, and the temperature of the inner vortex to decrease. As the gas from the outer, hotter vortex and the gas from the cooler, inner vortex are expelled at opposite ends of the tube the two streams of varied temperature can be directed as required and the ratio of the temperatures controlled by changing the amount of gas allowed to be expelled at the adjustable valve. Figure 1. Initial and secondary vortexes within a vortex tube [4] There are currently different explanations for the temperature separation within the vortex tube with no theory being conclusively proved. It is currently thought that the energy transferred between the vortexes is through friction of the two vortexes rotating against one another but it is unknown whether the gas within the tube experiences â€Å"solid body rotation†, where the angular velocities of the of both the inner and the outer vortexes are the same or if the two vortexes are rotating at different angular velocities. Further investigation into the speed of rotations of the vortexes within a Ranque-Hilsch Vortex Tube will provide greater understanding of the energy transfer. Equipment The experimental set up consisted of a Ranque-Hilsch Vortex Tube, two flow gauges that could be placed at positions A,B or C, two thermo couples, a gate valve and a pressure gauge positioned as shown on figure 2 below. Figure 2. Schematic of experimental setup The vortex tube was supplied by compressed air with a mains pressure of 6.6 bar with the gate valve used to control the pressures and flow rates into the vortex tube. The flow gauges used were rota meters with a range of 30-300 litres per minute. Rota meters are made of a tapered tube with a â€Å"float† inside that is lifted up by the drag force created by the flow of the liquid around it and pulled down by gravity. A higher flow rate increases flow speed and drag causing the float to be lifted higher up the tube, however, as the float is lifted higher up the tube the tube widens due to the taper and the drag force decreases until the float reaches its new equilibrium. The equilibrium can be found using the equation . (1) Where is the mass of the float, is acceleration due to gravity, is the density of the fluid, is the velocity of the object relative to the fluid, is the reference area and is the drag coefficient. With the float in equilibrium the flow rate can be read off scale at a specified point on the float. Due to the simple nature of rota meters they are affected by changes in pressure and temperature and the displayed numbers are only valid at atmospheric pressure and standard atmospheric pressure. Correcting for the effects of pressure (2) Pressures above atmospheric pressure allows greater capacity for a flow meter and the above equation is used to determine the actual flow rate at varying pressures. Correcting for the effects of temperature (3) Temperatures above standard atmospheric temperature decreases maximum flow rate and the above equation is used to determine the actual flow rate at varying temperatures. The flow gauges have an unknown impedance which has to be calculated in order to make sure placing them in the system doesn’t affect the measured pressures nor the fraction of gas expelled through the hot end valve. If it does affect the system knowing the impedance allows corrections to be calculated. The impedance is calculated by measuring the rate of flow through a single flow gauge as a function of pressure. Figure 3. Experimental set up to calculate flow gauge impedance The vortex tube itself has no moving parts and consists of very few pieces. Compressed gas is fed in through the air inlet and as it passes through the generator creates a vortex inside the spin chamber, the vortex propagates along the length of the tube with air exiting out both the hot end valve and the cold end cap. Figure 3. Schematic of Meech Vortex tube [5] The only interchangeable part of the vortex tube is the generator. The generators determine the volume of gas flow through the vortex tube and the fraction of the incoming air that exits in the cold stream – the cold fraction. The cold fraction may also be altered by adjusting the hot end valve. The total flow can be calculated using (4) Where PSIG is pounds per square inch gage. The cooling and heating power in BTUH (British Thermal Unit per Hour) can be found by using the following: For Cooling: (5) For Heating: (6) Where 1 = 0.293W, = cold fraction, = cold airflow, = hot airflow, = inlet pressure, = cold stream temperature, = hot stream temperature Results The impedance of the flow gauges were calculated by plotting flow against pressure and calculating the gradient. Figure 4. Calibration of flow gauges The gradient calculated from figure 4 is which equals The gradient was then used to calculate impedance using (7) This gives a value for the impedance of the flow gauges of acoustic ohms. Figure 5. Temperature of streams as function of pressure Figure 5 shows the relationship between the temperatures of the stream and the inlet pressure. The two trend lines intersect at 0 pressure at 23 which is the temperature of the compressed air before it entered the vortex tube. The gradient of the hot stream trend line is 8.3 and the gradient of the cold stream trend line is -7.8 0.05. This shows the temperature of the hot flow is increasing faster than the cold flow is decreasing suggesting a cold fraction of above 0.5. Figure 6. Flow rates as a function of pressure Figure 6 displays the flow rates at each of the 3 positions A,B and C from figure 2. The flow rate of the cold stream is higher than the flow rate of the hot stream confirming that the cold fraction is above 0.5 as proposed from the findings in figure 5. This figure demonstrates the corrections to the flow rate using equation (2) as before the equation is applied the measured flow rate in (green) is significantly lower than the measured flow rate out (cyan). After the correction is applied the measured flow in (magenta) is equal to the measured flow out. This is based on the assumption that the pressure at the flow gauge in position A is 6.6 bar – the pressure of the mains gas supply. Figure 7. Energy flow rates as a function of pressure Figure 7 shows the rates of flow of internal energy of the gas at points A,B and C calculated by combining the following equations (7) (8) Into (9) Where is pressure, is volume, is number of moles, is the molar gas constant, is temperature and is internal energy. From this figure it seems that no energy is lost from the system and it is simply transferred between the two flows of the gas. This is expected based on the previous result as internal energy is proportional to volume and the volumes of gas flowing in and out of the tube were constant. Discussion After much investigation the temperature and energy separation and rate of flow appear linear as a function of inlet pressure. This was not always the case as for a long period of time the volume of gas measured being expelled by the vortex tube was vastly larger than that being measured entering the tube and the rate of flows were not linear. However, after studying the equipment it was found that this was due to the flow gauges being effected by temperature and pressure. Once the raw data was corrected by taking into account for these varying conditions the data matched up to initial predictions and with far fewer anomalies. The temperature difference of the two streams was observed and; with a cold fraction greater than 0.5 the cold stream was measured to have a higher rate of flow but there was a greater temperature difference in the hot stream from the initial temperature of the gas. The current data suggests that the gas as a whole does not gain or lose any internal energy and that energy is only transferred between the gas from the cold stream to the hot stream, however, this is under the assumption that the pressure at the flow gauge in position A was constantly at 6.6 bar. If this is not the case a slight difference in pressure could reveal changes in the internal energy of the gas which could help explain the processes happening within the tube. Conclusion The equipment has been calibrated and raw data is able to be corrected to provide correct results. Temperature separation has been measured in the range of -5 to 55 with the rate of change of temperature corresponding to the cold fraction of the generator. The internal energy of the gas has been observed to remain constant; transferring only between the cold and the hot stream but there is scope to further investigate this. A basic understanding of the vortex tube has been reached and the groundwork has been laid for further investigation. With further sampling it is hoped the energy separation will be understood in greater detail and that the theory that the gas undergoes solid body rotation will be proved or disproved. Future work Future work will include experimental investigation continuing looking into the transfer of energy within the vortex tube including more detailed analysis of rate of energy flow examining whether the gas loses, gains or conserves internal energy. Different generators of varying efficiencies and cold fractions will be investigated and documented and an attempt to build a probe to determine whether the angular velocities within the vortex tube vary or are constant will take place. Aside from the experimental work computational fluid dynamics will be used to numerically explore the inner workings of the vortex tube by creating a two dimensional computational model of a vortex tube using COMSOL software using the k-ÃŽ µ model to simulate the temperature separation phenomenon. Figure x shows the temperatures of the hot and cold streams achieved by three different generators as a function of flow. The results show that the generators that produce the lowest temperatures have a lower flow rate, this is expected as there is a similar amount of energy separation for each of the generators and you can choose to have a smaller quantity of very cold gas or a larger quantity that is not as cold, or a compromise as desired. This is important as it makes the vortex tube more adaptable for industries using it for spot cooling and the temperature and flow rate can be adjusted as required. References [1] Meech air technology brochure. 2013. http://www.meech.com/resources/362/MAT.pdf [2] G. J. Ranque, â€Å"Experiments on Expansion in a Vortex with Simultaneous Exhaust of Hot and Cold Air,† Le Journal De Physique et le Radium (Paris), Vol. 4, 1933. [3] R. Hilsch, â€Å"The Use of the Expansion of Gases in a Centrifugal Field as Cooling Process,† Review of Scientific Instrument, Vol. 18, 1947. http://scitation.aip.org/docserver/fulltext/aip/journal/rsi/18/2/1.1740893.pdf?expires=1386863841id=idaccname=freeContentchecksum=2218A70412ADD7B3EFBAAC108BCC9ABE [4] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vortex_tube [5] Meech Static Eliminators Ltd www.meech.com

Death Penalty - Justified Essay -- Argumentative Persuasive Papers

Death Penalty - Justified There are many problems facing our criminal justice system today. Some of the more important ones are overcrowded jails, the increasing murder rate, and keeping tax payers content. In light of these problems, I think the death penalty is our best and most reasonable solution because it is a highly effective deterrent to murder. And, tax payers would be pleased to know that their hard-earned tax dollars are not being wasted on supporting incorrigible criminals who are menaces to society. In addition, they would not be forced to fund the development of new penitentiaries in order to make room for the growing number of inmates in our already overcrowded jails. Moreover, the death penalty would serve to curb the growth of future crimes and consequently the number of inmates would also be reduced. Thus, overcrowding in federal and state penitentiaries would be eliminated. In this essay, I will discuss these ideas and prove why capital punishment is the best viable solutio n to the problems plaguing our criminal justice system. Capital punishment could solve our problem with the increasing murder rate because it serves a highly effective deterrent. â€Å"The death penalty deters murder by putting the fear of death into would be killers. A person is less likely to do something, if he or she thinks that harm will come to him† (Studyworld 1). This fear of death is the key to reducing the murder rate. Frank G. Carrington informs us that Louis Joseph Turck..., an ex-convict with a felony record dating from 1941, was arrested May 20, 1961 for robbery. He had used guns in prior robberies in other states but only pretended to be carrying a gun in the robbery here [Cal... ...ng tax payers, and the other problems facing out criminal justice system. As we have seen, it can serve as a deterrent and reduce the murder rate. In addition, the death penalty would fee up space in overcrowded state and federal prisons. Moreover, it satisfies tax payers because it requires less tax money and can eliminate the need for additional prisons. Hence, capital punishment should be instituted everywhere. Works Consulted â€Å"Benefits of Capital Punishment.† Studyworld. 20 Nov. 2002 . Carrington, Frank G. Neither Cruel nor Unusual. New York: Arlington House Publishers, 1978. Jacobs, Nancy R, Alison Landers, and Mark A. Siegel, eds. Capital Punishment - Cruel and Unusual?. 1979-1996. 7th ed. Texas: Information Plus, 1996.

The Rime Of The Ancient Marine :: essays research papers

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner The Mariner is not in the hands of a merciful God because his agony always returns. He asks for forgiveness of his agony but still after he tells his tale the agony returns at random times. A merciful God would grant permanent mercy. For all, the Mariner has been through death and hardship of his crew because of the killing of the albatross. The thought of his crime is enough agony but the Mariner's agony returns until he has to relive the tragedy of the killing of his crew by telling his tale to another person. The fact that the agony always returns is particularly horrible about the Mariner's punishment because no matter how hard he tries or how much he prays his sin is carried along within him. The pain of his sin goes away right after he tells his tale but it returns shortly afterwards. The Mariner says that, after telling the Hermit his story, 'Since then, at an uncertain hour that agony returns.'; Since the first time the Mariner confessed his crime to the Hermit at an inconsistent hour God reminds the Mariner of the sin he has committed by piercing his heart with agonizing pain. He tells the Wedding Guest that, until he tells his story, 'The heart within me burns.'; This is God's way of expressing his anger to the Mariner for the curse he put on his crew when he killed the Albatross. God makes sure that the Mariner has and will fell agony, that the agony will always return, and that the agony will return at an unsure hour each day which causes the Mariner to relive his tale and to liv e in agony for the rest of his life. The Mariner is granted relief from his agony by telling his tale which releases his agony for a short while. The Mariner is telling the Wedding Guest why he must continue to tell his tale, 'Which forced me to begin my tale; And then it left me free.'; God has granted him the power to tell his tale which sets him free for a short while. Maybe God is merciful for letting him tell his tale but his agony always returns. He can't enjoy his little time of freedom because he is uncertain when the pain will return again. The Mariner travels, looking for the right person to tell his tale to, the face which relieves his agony and lets him feel free.

Environmental Laws of Bangladesh

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www. emeraldinsight. com/0959-6119. htm IJCHM 18,4 Hotels’ environmental management systems (ISO 14001): creative ? nancing strategy Wilco W. Chan and Kenny Ho School of Hotel and Tourism Management, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong Abstract Purpose – Environmental concerns have been increasing in the travel industry. However, most hotels are unwilling to develop an international environmental management system (EMS) probably due to a lack of resources and knowledge.In order to encourage more organizations to take part in the EMS, three cases adopting international EMS are investigated to ascertain the ways to support the formation of EMS. Based on their experience, hoteliers are encouraged to team up with green members to apply for research funding for the investigation and implementation of EMS. Also, â€Å"energy performance contracting† methods to ? nance environmenta l improvement projects in hotels were also discussed.Design/methodology/approach – A single case study approach was adopted to illustrate the differences in the resources mobilization for setting EMS in these three hotels. A search of documentary evidence and interviews with hotel staff was the main instrument for data collection. Findings – The Shangri-la Hotel used its own resources to set up its EMS and strategically used its developed template for other hotels in the group to follow. The other two hotels, Nikko and Grandstanford, adopted a creative and â€Å"non-balance sheet† approach to mobilize resources for the formation of EMS.Both hotels have recourse to external resources including a university’s engineering department, hotel management school, green bodies, government funds and trade associations to develop and implement the EMS. The study further identi? ed energy performance contracting as another promising ? nancing tool for the implementat ion of the energy-related part of the EMS. Research limitations/implications – The representative and general nature of the ? ndings are limited to large hotels in metropolitan areas, as the three case hotels are located in the metropolis of Hong Kong.Practical implications – The ? ndings provide informative details on how to secure external resources to set up internationally recognized environmental management systems and the safe way for hotel operators to trial use energy-saving facilities. Originality/value – This study provides indications and details on some creative ? nancing techniques for setting up EMS in hotels. These ? nancial strategies are the ? rst of their kind in print and can serve as a useful reference for hotels to develop international EMS. Keywords Environmental management, Hotels, Financing Paper type Case study 302International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management Vol. 18 No. 4, 2006 pp. 302-316 q Emerald Group Publishing Limit ed 0959-6119 DOI 10. 1108/09596110610665311 Introduction Many efforts on environmental protection work in hotels in the 1990s were a continuation of some long-standing environmental concerns such as energy Support for the author from Mr Tamiyasu Okawa and Mr Jean-Marie Leclercq, the present general manager and ex-general manager of The Hotel Nikko Hongkong is gratefully acknowledged. The author would also like to thank The Hong Kong Hotel Association for the help in providing valuable information. onservation, sewage discharge, air and noise pollution that occurred over the past few decades (Stipanuk, 1996). Coupled with this development have been the growing concerns for a â€Å"green† hotel in the eyes of customers. A study indicated that 75 percent of interviewed customers claimed that they were environmentally-minded consumers and would choose hotels which showed concern for the environment (Feiertag, 1994). Also, Cook et al. (1992) pointed out that business in the travel industry was required to adapt to new environmental realities and to implement environmental policies and strategies.In 1995, a comprehensive environmental action checklist and action development guide for small and medium-sized hotels was jointly published by international hotel and environmental associations (International Hotel and Restaurant Association, 1995). This publication provided hotels with more detailed information to launch environmental management systems (EMS). Under these circumstances, EMS, as across the world, has recently become more recognized in the hotel industry. Almost all hotels have implemented their in-house EMS with varying degrees of intensity.Kirk’s survey found that the most signi? cant bene? t of environmental management was the improvement in public image and better relationships with the local community (Kirk, 1995). However, many hoteliers with written environmental policies saw the greatest bene? t in ? nancial management performance. Thu s, to implement the EMS, the ? rst step is to have a clear environmental policy, objectives, targets and good planning. To further enhance effectiveness, hoteliers should always monitor and review the system after the implementation.However, due to resource limitations, many hotels’ environmental efforts pause after they have taken some environmental actions such as implementation of water saving campaign, installation of energy-ef? cient lighting, reuse of waste paper and other initiatives. Recent ISO 14000 series provides an effective guideline on the content of EMS, auditing, environmental performance evaluation and so on, as shown in the appendix. Among them, ISO 14001 documents all essential elements in the EMS as shown in Table I. Most importantly, a successful EMS requires a lot of resources, including manpower, cost and time for planning (Sayre, 1996).The costs arising from the implementation of ISO 14001 include those associated with initial set-up, maintenance and i mprovement (Chin et al. , 1998). The cost of initial set-up refers to all costs associated with the provision of hardware and software facilities, plus tools for establishing the system in compliance with the ISO 14000 EMS standards. Speci? cally this category of cost involves the purchase of monitoring and measuring equipment, documentation processing and storage equipment/accessories, hiring specialist environmental assistance, initial staff training, computer software as well as staff recruitment.Added to the cost pool is the ? nancing of maintenance and improvements. This category of expenditure refers to the costs of maintaining and continually improving the EMS in the company so that optimum environmental performance can be achieved with the changing environmental conditions and requirements. It also includes the costs associated with ongoing staff training, environment equipment replacement and upgrading, periodic environmental auditing and third-party certi? cation and so fo rth. Environmental management systems 303 IJCHM 18,4 1. 2. 2. 1 2. 2 2. 3 2. 4 3. 3. 1 3. 2 3. 3. 4 3. 5 3. 6 3. 7 4. 4. 1 4. 2 4. 3 4. 4 5. Environmental policy Planning Environmental aspects Legal and other requirements Objectives and targets Environmental management program(s) Implementation and operation Structure and responsibility Training, awareness and competence Communication Environmental management system documentation Document control Operational control Emergency preparedness and response Checking and corrective action Monitoring and measurement Non-conformance and corrective and preventive action Records Environmental management system audit Management review 04 Table I. ISO 14001 environmental management system elementsSource: Fredericks and McCallum (1998) In addition, EMS certi? cation costs at least HK$100,000 (about US$13,000) should also be budgeted (Anon, 1996). The cost is paid to the certifying body, which would examine whether the hotel has ful? lled all the necessary conditions of international EMS standard ISO 14001. However, most organizations lack the knowledge, experience and expertise required to develop an EMS and many are unable or unwilling to commit the required staff and ? ancial resources to undertake this development (Chapman, 1997). Earlier studies also found that lodging customers in the US are not willing to pay extra to support environmental policies (Watkins, 1994; Jaffe, 1993). However, some hotels launched pilot schemes to encourage guests to contribute to local environmental schemes (Green, 1995). Though new international EMS standard ISO 14001 certi? cates in Hong Kong have recently been obtained by several hotels, the progress on industry-wide adoption is still slow. The phenomenon is not just con? ned to Hong Kong.Pryce (2001) highlighted, according to a Pricewaterhouse Coopers’ report, that only 40 percent of large hotel groups surveyed in Europe had a formal EMS and only one was externally veri? ed. Pryc e (2001) further quoted the results of a survey of small and medium-sized hotels in three UK countries and pointed out that none of these hotels had implemented a formal EMS. Thus, it is valuable to understand how environmental pioneers in the hotel sector, Shangri-la, Nikko and Grandstanford set up their EMS under resource constraints. Especially after the Asian ? ancial crisis, 9/11 event and SARS, the resources available to the hotel sector appear to be less than before. Therefore, the principal objective of the study is to identify and analyze the ways that these hotels mobilize resources to establish EMS up to ISO 14001, especially any creative and non-conventional ? nancing (that is neither debt or equity issues, nor borrowing or requesting funds from the hotel owners). Methodology The approach adopted in the study is close to action research, using case studies that aim to explore the rich background of the cases.As the purpose of this study is to explore the variations in en vironmental management systems and its associated ? nancing measures, the study adopted a non-traditional case selection criterion. Decisions are based on which case studies provide the most fruitful data for the research question (Doyle, 2003) or provide the most â€Å"opportunity to learn† (Stake, 2000). In addition, the investigating topic is new and falls into the â€Å"timing in the early stages of the ? eld†, studies of individual cases are particularly suitable (Eisenstadt, 1991).These single cases have been used to offer vivid, powerful and penetrative descriptions of events, relationships, and ways of working that are not captured by existing theories (Cunningham, 1997; Crane, 1998; Dyer and Wilkins, 1991). To analyze these cases strategically, a descriptive framework consisting of search of documentary evidence and interviews with hotel staff of the hotels studied was developed to organize case studies. The documentation encompasses hotel EMS manual, universi ty’s published reports, fund application documents, periodicals, and hotel reports.The total number of interviewees is 14 including one owner representative, two general managers, one resident manager, three chief engineers, four green managers or quality assurance managers and three departmental head’s assistants. Shangri-la case The island Shangri-la hotel is a ? ve-star hotel located at the top of a large shopping complex near Central Hong Kong, and with 565 rooms and seven catering outlets. In September 1996, it started the process of developing an EMS and soon became the ? rst hotel in Asia to obtain ISO 14001 certi? ation. Its prompt development of EMS up to international standards is based on its existing â€Å"best practice† in each department. The EMS brings signi? cant bene? ts – reputation and competitive edge – to the hotel and these bene? ts have always outweighed the cost (Tsai et al. , 2003). In general, the funding sources of most l arge business are mainly derived from equity and debt issues. For Shangri-la’s environment management system, it most likely came from internal resources of the group (Tan, 2004).A further investigation of the group’s annual reports indicate that, apart from funds originating from regular income, the group issued convertible bonds with the total principal amount of US$258 million with interest at the rate of 2. 875 percent per annum. This implies that ? nancing for environmental works should not just be limited to equity ? nancing, reserve and income fund. Funds available from debt ? nancing can also be considered as an alternative. The successful ISO 14001 certi? cation in Hong Kong’s Island Shangri-la hotel provides a model for the groups’ other hotels to set up environmental management systems and its certi? ation. An environmental management manual was also developed to address the immediate and long-term environmental impact of hotel Environmental ma nagement systems 305 IJCHM 18,4 306 operations. In addition, an environmental consultant was hired to inspect hotels to ensure not merely that the EMS is being maintained but that continual environmental improvement is achieved by setting new environmental goals (Shangri-la Hotels Group, 2005). Therefore, Shangri-la’s certi? cation in Hong Kong can be regard as a pilot practice and reusable resource for further development of EMS in the group’s other hotels that do not have a proper EMS.Nikko’s case Hotel Nikko Hongkong (Nikko) is a member of Nikko Hotels International, with headquarter in Tokyo, Japan. The hotel continues the tradition of Japanese hospitality, which is renowned throughout the world. Opened in April 1988, Hotel Nikko Hongkong is a ? ve-star deluxe hotel in Hong Kong, with 462 rooms. The hotel is located at Tsim Sha Tsui East overlooking Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong. Environmental protection has always been at the heart of the philosophy of Nikk o. Even as early as 1992, the hotel was pushing for environmental improvements by implementing energy and water conservation practices throughout the hotel.As soon as the green practices on water and energy were on track, the hotel started looking for ways to minimize waste production (Hotel Nikko Hongkong, 1999). Over the past years, the management and staff of Nikko have continued through different stages of improvement on the environment. Nikko is the leader in implementing EMS in the Hong Kong hotel industry. The environmental management system (based on the ISO 14001 standard) of Nikko was set up in April 1999 (Hotel Nikko Hongkong, 1999). However, before Nikko’s completion of EMS implementation, Nikko did face many dif? culties and had spent tremendous efforts on environmental protection.Among these, resources and ? nancial support are the main concerns in launching an EMS campaign. Operating budgets may not allow hoteliers the extravagance of calling in expert consulta nts to set up the environmental system. While operating budgets were tight, Nikko from 1992 sought help from community bodies such as academic institutions and government departments (Department of Building Services Engineering and Hotel Nikko Hongkong, 1996). Partnership with community bodies Over the past years, Nikko developed a cohesive partnership with outside bodies in implementing its EMS.The collaborating partners of Nikko are categorized as four types. These include educational establishments, green bodies, government’s departments as well as the industry council. Collaboration with community bodies is one way to reduce costs of research and enables hotels to acquire funds for ongoing environmental work. Figure 1 shows the relationship between Nikko and its partners, plus the contribution of these partners in supporting Nikko’s environmental endeavors. Nikko has gained support and recognition from partners such as the Hong Kong Hotel Association (HKHA), govern ment’sIndustry Department (ID), Friends of the Earth and other environmentally-friendly enterprises. With the help of those partners, Nikko has successfully solved resource-oriented problems in launching the hotel’s environmental activities and eventually obtained the ISO 14001 certi? cate. Environmental management systems 307 Figure 1. Relationship in partnership of Hotel Nikko Hongkong Educational establishments The major educational partner of Nikko is the Department of Building Services Engineering of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.Table II shows various projects or publications conducted by the educational department in improving many aspects of Nikko’s EMS. As can be seen from Table II, most of the student-assisted research focused on evaluating the performance of environmental improvement that required a signi? cant resource. The ex-GM said that collaboration with universities was a program of mutual bene? ts. On the side of universities, students m ight have on-site working opportunity provided by Nikko whilst professors might use Nikko as a test case. For Nikko, the hotelier might save a huge amount of research costs, as most of the research work is unpaid.Besides, the University’s School of Hotel and Tourism Management and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology’s (HKUST) Institute for Environmental Studies also lend their effort in supporting the hotel’s environmental pursuits. The former assisted in the compilation of the energy and water conservation guide and the IJCHM 18,4 Student research project 1998-2000 308 Publications 1996 and 1998 Table II. Joint projects collaborated by Nikko and the Department of Building Services Engineering of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University 1. Indoor air quality study 2.Review of building labeling scheme – checking compliance with energy ef? ciency codes 3. Parameter setting for boiler and chiller data log – calibration of equipment 4. Air ? ow balance and distribution in hotel food and beverage outlets 5. Indoor air quality survey 6. Opportunities for energy ef? cient lighting retro? t 7. Study of power factor and distribution losses 1. Keeping Hong Kong’s Hotel Industry Competitive into the Twenty-? rst Century – Environmental Management Systems for Hotels. With overall objective helping the Hong Kong hotel industry to be more competitive and pro? able and, at the same time, reduce adverse environmental impacts 2. A Guide to Energy and Water Conservation in Hotels. Aimed to contribute to reduce energy and water consumption in all hotels, contributing to their pro? tability whilst helping to protect the environment for future generations. Based on a number of energy and water conservation projects carried out in hotel buildings in Hong Kong, but particularly the extensive range of projects at Hotel Nikko Hongkong Source: Hotel Nikko Hongkong (1999) latter was involved in bidding for a HK$1 million fund (arou nd US$130,000) for developing an EMS template for hotels.As such, the hotel’s environmental performance and operating ef? ciency would increase. This partnership creates a win-win situation. Environmental-supporting parties Nikko has set up a cohesive partnership with parties endorsing environment conservation. Friends of the Earth Association supports Nikko’s efforts in saving energy and improving environmental performance. The parties provided Nikko with the latest environmental information related to the hotel industry and shared their professional ideas or recommendations with Nikko. In this way, Nikko saved costs in information collection and expert consultancy.Furthermore, the environmental-supporting groups usually give recognition to environmental-friendly businesses, including Nikko, with outstanding performance. The award is not merely a simple recognition of effort in environment conservation, but also adds to their reputation and can become a strong stimulu s to push environmental conscious visitors choosing Nikko. Government departments In 1997, Nikko received the Energy Ef? cient Building Award 1997 from the Planning, Environment and Lands Bureau. In 1998, Nikko further joined with other partners and successfully obtained HK$1 million from the Industry Support Fund of the IndustryDepartment for a project entitled â€Å"Keeping Hong Kong’s hotel industry competitive into the twenty-? rst century – environmental management systems for hotels†. The project aimed to develop an EMS template for the local hotel sector. Apart from awards and funds, cohesive linkage with governments and bureaus also enable Nikko to have up-to-date environment-related legislation data more easily, and express its ideas more directly to government of? cials. Industry councils Hotel Nikko plays an active role in sharing experiences and participating in projects proposed by the local hotel association, the Hong Kong Hotel Association (HKHA). In return, Nikko receives relevant environmental information from other member hotels of the association. The association also assisted Nikko by assigning its Environmental Committee to take up an advisory role in the above-mentioned EMS template development. In addition, the association also helped in translating the Guide to Energy and Water Conservation in Hotels developed by Nikko into Chinese by introducing Zhengzhou Holiday Inn and Zhengzhou Crowne Plaza to aid the translation. Nikko’s endeavor and effort was further recognized by international industry councils.In 1995, the International Hotels and Restaurants Association granted Nikko the award â€Å"Corporate Green Hotelier of the Year 1995†. The award further identi? es Nikko as a successful leader in the global green hotel movement. Inter-continental Grand Stanford Grand Stanford is a waterfront ? ve-star hotel located in Tsim Sha Tsui East. It has 579 rooms and four food and beverage outlets. The hotel was managed by Holiday Inn in the 1980s and by the owner’s management company in the 1990s.The resources available to the development of ISO 14001 EMS in Inter-continental Grand Stanford mainly include Nikko’s experience, the government funded scheme of hotel environmental system, and university’s assistance (Chan, 2005). Thanks to Nikko generous sharing of ISO 14001 certi? cation experience and the data required for setting up an EMS, Grand Stanford’s senior management embarked on the development of EMS under ISO 14001 version in the early 2000s. Besides Nikko’s experience, Grand Stanford also bene? ts substantially from the government funded scheme bout the environmental assessment of the hotel buildings. The scheme includes the development of a number of environmental assessment manuals for different phases of hotels – project, new building and existing building. In addition, Grand Stanford also acted like Nikko in the past by co-operating wi th nearby university to conduct a number of measurements for environmental performance indicators. Apart from these external resources, Grand Stanford also progressively employed internal funds to install energy-saving facilities including heat pumps for the hot water system and solar-control ? m for windows.Implications Based on the investigation of these three cases, the study summarized the similarities and differences in their approaches. As shown in Table III, all these hotels have strong partnerships with green bodies and have been involved in sharing experience with trade association, other hotels and government. Two hotels were also found to have strong collaboration with a university’s engineering department and hotel school. The Environmental management systems 309 IJCHM 18,4 Collaborate with university’s: 1.Engineering department 2. Hotel school Nikko ? ? ? ? ? Shangri-la Grand Stanford ? ? 310 Partnership with environmental supporting parties Written suppor t to apply: 1. Government fund 2. Private fund Free EMS template Sharing experience from: 1. Trade association 2. Other hotels 3. Of? cial department Internal reserve or debt issue ? ? ? ? Table III. Similarities and differences in approaches ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? former provides technical expertise and the latter provide operational knowledge in the environmental projects in hotels.In terms of monetary investment, one hotel placed a large amount on formation of EMS while the other purchased a number of energy saving facilities. In fact, the project funds secured by Nikko represent a small part of the funds available in the community. Further research indicated that there are other sources of funds available for quality environmental projects, as shown in Table IV. However if one wants to successfully secure the funds, a good and meaningful proposal for application of funds is required.This implies an experienced proposal writer and a team of related experts is a pre-requisite. Agai n, this type of caliber is not easily available in hotels. Thus, collaboration with educational institutes in writing up the proposal may enhance the likelihood of success. Energy performance contracting Besides applications for public or private funding for hotel’s environmental work, energy performance contracting can be considered as another alternative to ? nance environmental improvement.Performance contracting is a unique arrangement where contractors usually assume responsibility for purchasing and installing the equipment, as well as maintenance throughout the contract. Only when the installed equipment actually reduces expenses does the contractor get paid. This allows the hotel owners to make necessary improvements while investing very little money up front. Meanwhile, it is also a risk-sharing relationship between the host and the contractor that is sometimes called as the Energy Service Company (ESCO) (Woodruff and Turner, 1998).ESCO is a company that provides bot h the technical expertise to reduce energy costs and the ? nance for energy ef? ciency investments. In the UK, performance contracting is called contract energy management (The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers, 1991). In fact, the name is relatively new, but some of the companies in the industry have been in business for over 20 years. Name of environmental fund USa Richard King Mellon Foundation John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation The Pew Charitable Trusts The Ford Foundation W. K. Kellogg Foundation The Andrew W.Mellon Foundation Environment Wales The Environmental Action Fund The Environmental Know How Fund The Environmental Protection Research Program Environmental Conservation Fund and Woo Wheelock Green Fund Innovation and Technology Fund: Innovation and Technology Support Program Innovation and Technology Fund: University-Industry Collaboration Program Innovation and Technology Fund: General Support Fund Sustainable Development Fund Competitive E armarked Research Grant (CERG) University Internal Fund Departmental Research Fund in University National Natural Science Foundation (NSFC)Environmental management systems 311 Europeb Hong Kongc Source: a Stein (1993); b Forrester and Casson (1998); c www. itf. gov. hk/Default. asp Table IV. Fund available for quality environmental project According to Hansen and Weisman (1998), performance contracting is now poised on the threshold of even greater opportunities to work with government, utilities, institutions and commercial establishments. In the mid-late 1990s, performance contracting received more attention in the US.For example, the US federal government has used performance contracting to upgrade facilities, even when budgets were being dramatically cut. In essence, they â€Å"sold† some of their future energy savings to an ESCO (Woodruff and Turner, 1998). In the case of Canada, trade associations urged government to fund the set up of ESCO, as there was little prospect for setting up private sector ? rms in the short-term (Association of Energy Engineers, 1998). In Hong Kong, a research report also found that most interviewees considered that performance contracting for energy conservation may be suitable in the future (Chan, 1999).The key elements of applying performance contracting suggested by the interviewees were â€Å"management commitment, government support, technical and human factors†. Conclusions Environmental management systems are well-recognized in the hotel industry across the world. Unfortunately, many hoteliers are unable or unwilling to implement the system due to resources constraints. However, two cases studied reveal that resources for the formation of internationally recognized EMS 14001 can be drawn outside the balance sheet (that is equity and liabilities).In the mid-1990s, two professors’ suggestions that sound environmental management can reduce costs also occurred to IJCHM 18,4 312 Kirk (1995) who subseque ntly advised the hotel business to start with easy-to-achieve and low cost environmental projects. Moderate and high investment projects can be scheduled later when hoteliers had con? dence in and established bene? ts from earlier environmental actions (Iwanowski and Rushmore, 1994; Kirk, 1995). This approach is particularly suitable to hotels with tight resources or when the hotel sector experiences a business downturn.Nevertheless, hoteliers may learn from successful cases, particularly Nikko, and collaborate with various â€Å"green† partners – universities, government, trade associations and green bodies – to work on more complex environmental matters. Speci? cally, hotels can team up with these green members to apply for research funding for the investigation and implementation of EMS. This practice, in turn, accelerates the speed of environmental actions. Apart from EMS with ISO certi? cation, Green Globe 21 also offers a certi? cation to travel-related or ganizations that wished to demonstrate their commitment to environmental improvement.The Green Globe program provides travel and tourism companies with a framework for achieving year on year improvement in environmental performance (Rodgers, 2002). The framework contains ? ve sections, including environmental policy, regulatory framework, environmental performance; EMS as well as requirements for stakeholder consultation and communication. Other-related certi? ed programs may include Australia’s International Ecotourism Standard, Americas’ Sustainable Tourism Certi? cation Network and Europe’s Voluntary Initiatives for Sustainability in Tourism (Hammond, 2004).Similarly, obtaining these certi? cations also requires a signi? cant amount of resources and effort. The ? nancial tools – mainly collaboration between hotel and external parties including universities, governments, trade associations and green bodies – ascertained in these case studies can thus be applied when any organization plans to pursue these programs. Other than green certi? cation granted by ISO and Green Globe, the voluntary environment assessment scheme for hotels (Hong Kong Hotels Association, 2000) also receives a considerable amount of technical resources and research expertise.The scheme sets a scoring scheme in two areas. One is to consider actions by the hotels in endeavoring to reduce environmental impacts through more effective management and maintenance practice. The other is to assess the building facilities performance by referring to indoor environmental performance criteria, local codes of good practice and benchmarked energy and water consumption. As such, hotel’s collaboration with university staff in conducting research and applying for research funds as manifested in the studied cases may provide valuable and enormous assistance to attain a good scoring result.The lesson learnt from these cases reveal that trade association’s p articipation in environmental work cannot be neglected. The association in these cases not merely promoted the green activities by presenting environmental awards and organizing seminars but for instance also coordinated with enthusiastic hotels by arranging transport to ship all discarded bottles for recycling. Most importantly, the association also assisted in writing endorsement letters to apply for funds for creating a template for hotels to develop EMS according to ISO requirements.Thus, the association indeed provides a catalyst function to advance the function of EMS in the industry. Embedded in these supportive activities are enormous time and resources. On the other hand, the government also played an important role in the industry’s green environment, not just by creating environmental funds to assist the business. In fact, the government of? cials have always shared their experience on environmental work with the practitioners. In order to keep updating their envir onmental technology knowledge, the of? ials regularly liaise with manufacturers, professors and their colleagues in the environmental protection department as well as the engineering department. Without their endeavor in environmental improvement, the pace of environmental movement would de? nitely slow down. In the late 1990s, a survey conducted by the United Nations and the International Hotel Association identi? ed a lack of training resource as the major concern when introducing environmental matters in hotel management curricula.The French Ministry of Spatial Planning and Environment together with some hotels have sponsored the production of teaching tools for environmental issues in hospitality curricula (United Nations Environmental Program, 2001). The Hong Kong and French government’s funding in these two cases further indicate the importance of government support in pursuit of sustainable tourism by the industry. In fact, besides funding, the government of? cials hav e always shared their experience on environmental work with practitioners and listen to environmental problems encountered by practitioners. This two-way communication also implies a signi? ant amount of time devoted by both parties. Thus, government’s active participation may hasten the pace of environmental change. Other than the above-mentioned stakeholders in the hotel industry’s pursuit of sustainable tourism development, green groups are also another major contributor. They often complement the university’s environmental research, and green groups have also conducted some environmental research which may, to a certain extent, be applicable to the hotel environment. For instance, Friends of the Earth has investigated disappearing timber in tropical rain forests in relation to buildings.