Jonathan Davis

Among the many sources of financial and operational risk in supply chains are the Incoterms^®, which are terms of trade used to decide who does what in a cargo movement, when risk passes from seller to buyer and who pays for which part of the movement. Wrong Incoterms^® create unexpected costs or risks, at best, and inoperable contracts at worst, with all the challenges implied. This paper analyzes risk in supply chain management (SCM) through the lens of the responsibilities and costs imposed by Incoterms^®. The authors also conducted a survey of 100 supply chain decision makers on supply chain contracts creation and Incoterms^® knowledge in the population. Failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) of Incoterms^® reveals many scenarios that pose financial, operational, and even legal risk to firms. Results suggest Incoterms^® rules are poorly understood by supply chain practitioners in general, are often chosen by personnel who are not aware of the implications of their choices, and are therefore frequently chosen incorrectly or non-strategically, thereby increasing cost and risk. This paper discusses the implications of the analysis and survey results on supply chain performance as well as mitigation strategies for practitioners in strategically using Incoterms^® to remove cost, risk, and delay from supply chain transactions.

Incoterms® define obligations, risks and costs that each of the seller and buyer must incur in the movement of the goods for a trade. New versions are issued when deemed necessary by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and are aimed at including new trade realities and fostering trade. A new version Incoterms® 2020 is now available to replace the previous version, namely Incoterms® 2010. The research using Construct Clarity theory shows there are issues with the Incoterms® 2020 both as to the holistic ability to cover all trade as well as in the individual Incoterms® themselves. These issues are analysed in detail and, based on this research, the authors synthesize these into the reasoned aspects the Incoterms® drafting committee missed to further improve the Incoterms® rules. The authors extend this research and present the improvements that could be achieved in a future issue of the Incoterms® rules.

Mikhail Gorbachev became General Secretary of the Communist Party in March 1985. He led a new generation of young, reform-minded leaders who had a different outlook to the one that had traditionally prevailed in the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Gorbachev saw the possibilities that were open to him and the Soviet Union, and he initiated a set of policies designed to save the USSR at a time of growing crisis. Gorbachev’s reform process was an attempt to add critical distance between the new leadership and the previous administrations. The reforms that Gorbachev wanted to introduce were not only about ideology and grand mission statements in global affairs, no matter how important and how necessary they were. He also hoped to do something that would improve the everyday lives of Soviet citizens as a new economic model, if successful, could bring material benefits. The reworking of socialism that changed domestic Soviet politics also extended into foreign policy.

The rise of social media technology has led to new customer relationship management tools that engage customers more easily and directly (social customer relationship management, SCRM). However, the usefulness of SCRM is contingent upon a successful adoption by an organization. Various technology adoption theoretical frameworks have been proposed for social media technologies generally, and for SCRM specifically. This paper extends the literature by exploring network externalities as a potential driver of SCRM adoption in organizations by surveying 363 supply chain professionals regarding their behaviors and uses of SCRM. The results suggest that network externalities have a substantial effect on adoption of SCRM in business organizations and that a perception of higher network externalities has a positive effect on adoption. This implies that organizations should select SCRM systems with better network externalities and also that they should educate their workforce about those strong network externalities leading up to the adoption.

Introduction The translation of discoveries to drugs, devices, and behavioral interventions requires well-prepared study teams. Execution of clinical trials remains suboptimal due to varied quality in design, execution, analysis, and reporting. A critical impediment is inconsistent, or even absent, competency-based training for clinical trial personnel. Methods In 2014, the National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS) funded the project, Enhancing Clinical Research Professionals’ Training and Qualifications (ECRPTQ), aimed at addressing this deficit. The goal was to ensure all personnel are competent to execute clinical trials. A phased structure was utilized. Results This paper focuses on training recommendations in Good Clinical Practice (GCP). Leveraging input from all Clinical and Translational Science Award hubs, the following was recommended to NCATS: all investigators and study coordinators executing a clinical trial should understand GCP principles and undergo training every 3 years, with the training method meeting the minimum criteria identified by the International Conference on Harmonisation GCP. Conclusions We anticipate that industry sponsors will acknowledge such training, eliminating redundant training requests. We proposed metrics to be tracked that required further study. A separate task force was composed to define recommendations for metrics to be reported to NCATS.

A model is developed using fuzzy probability to screen survey data across relevant criteria for selecting suppliers based on fuzzy expected values. The values are derived from qualitative variables and expert opinion of membership in these variables found in industry survey data. The application is made to a supply chain management decision of supplier selection based upon delivery performance which is further divided into attributes that comprise this criterion. The algorithm allows multiple criteria to be considered for each decision parameter. Large sets of survey data regarding six suppliers in the electronic parts industry are gathered from over 150 purchasers and are analyzed through spreadsheet modeling of the fuzzy algorithm. The resulting decision support system allows supply chain managers to improve supplier selection decisions by applying fuzzy measures of criteria and associated beliefs across the dataset. The proposed model and method are highly adaptable to existing survey datasets, including datasets that have incomplete data, and can be implemented in organizations with low decision support resources, such as small and medium sized organizations.

It has been well documented that genetic factors can influence predisposition to develop alcoholism. While the underlying genomic changes may be of several types, two of the most common and disease associated are copy number variations (CNVs) and sequence alterations of protein coding regions. The goal of this study was to identify CNVs and single-nucleotide polymorphisms that occur in gene coding regions that may play a role in influencing the risk of an individual developing alcoholism. Toward this end, two mouse strains were used that have been selectively bred based on their differential sensitivity to alcohol: the Inbred long sleep (ILS) and Inbred short sleep (ISS) mouse strains. Differences in initial response to alcohol have been linked to risk for alcoholism, and the ILS/ISS strains are used to investigate the genetics of initial sensitivity to alcohol. Array comparative genomic hybridization (arrayCGH) and exome sequencing were conducted to identify CNVs and gene coding sequence differences, respectively, between ILS and ISS mice. Mouse arrayCGH was performed using catalog Agilent 1 × 244 k mouse arrays. Subsequently, exome sequencing was carried out using an Illumina HiSeq 2000 instrument. ArrayCGH detected 74 CNVs that were strain-specific (38 ILS/36 ISS), including several ISS-specific deletions that contained genes implicated in brain function and neurotransmitter release. Among several interesting coding variations detected by exome sequencing was the gain of a premature stop codon in the alpha-amylase 2B (AMY2B) gene specifically in the ILS strain. In total, exome sequencing detected 2,597 and 1,768 strain-specific exonic gene variants in the ILS and ISS mice, respectively. This study represents the most comprehensive and detailed genomic comparison of ILS and ISS mouse strains to date. The two complementary genome-wide approaches identified strain-specific CNVs and gene coding sequence variations that should provide strong candidates to contribute to the alcohol-related phenotypic differences associated with these strains.

The Downed Platforms project deals with seven platforms containing 59 wells which were toppled during Hurricane Katrina in water depths ranging from 86 to 135 feet. Visibility at these depths is limited at best. A way to visualize the entire platform to aid in planning decommissioning activities was developed. This paper describes the various techniques used to image the platforms, including offshore field work, post processing, and analysis. The technologies and techniques described in this paper could be applied to imaging of complex subsea structures, seabed surveys and hazard assessment, and processing of complex multibeam datasets. This project employed new methods for acquiring sonar data which has conventionally been used for mapping the seafloor from a horizontal or near horizontal platform. The results in this paper will highlight the need to consider alternative methods of acquiring data and discuss the reality of deploying these methods in the field. Results from the project will be used to demonstrate the success of these methods. This project delivered the highest quality datasets possible which removed significant uncertainty and allowed detailed planning to proceed. The paper will showcase a new method for acquiring detailed three-dimensional datasets, the benefits of deploying different imaging devices and highlight the importance of using available technology to minimize uncertainty. Background The 2005 hurricane season was the most active on record and hurricanes Katrina and Rita inflicted major damage to Gulf of Mexico (GoM) production facilities on the outer continental shelf (OCS). Seven platforms were completely destroyed in the Grand Isle 41/43/47 field, or "downed??. All platforms located in the Grand Isle (GI) and West Delta (WD) lease areas are in water depths from 86 to 135 feet. The locations were GI 40B, GI 40F, GI 41A, GI 47C, GI 48D, WD 69C, and WD 69K (Figure 1), which are all within 20 to 35 miles west of the centerline track of Hurricane Katrina.

Bacterial infection of the tracheobronchial tree is a frequent, serious complication in patients receiving treatment with oxygen and mechanical ventilation, resulting in increased morbidity and mortality. Using human airway epithelial cell culture models, we examined the effect of hyperoxia on bacterial adherence and the expression of interleukin-8 (IL-8), an important mediator involved in the inflammatory process. A 24-h exposure to 95% O₂increased Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) adherence 57% in A549 cells ( P < 0.01) and 115% in 16HBE cells ( P < 0.01) but had little effect on Staphylococcus aureus (SA) adherence. Exposure to hyperoxia, followed by a 1-h incubation with SA, further enhanced PA adherence ( P < 0.01), suggesting that hyperoxia and SA colonization may enhance the susceptibility of lung epithelial cells to gram-negative infections. IL-8 expression was also increased in cells exposed to both hyperoxia and PA. Stable or transient overexpression of manganese superoxide dismutase reduced both basal and stimulated levels of PA adherence and IL-8 levels in response to exposure to either hyperoxia or PA. These data indicate that hyperoxia increases susceptibility to infection and that the pathways are mediated by reactive oxygen species. Therapeutic intervention strategies designed to prevent accumulation of intracellular reactive oxygen species may reduce opportunistic pulmonary infections.