The concentration of radioactive 226Ra, 232Th and 4~ in building and ceramic materials of Bangladesh was investigated by y-spectrometry with two HPGe detectors. Radium equivalent activities, representative level index values, criterion formula, emanation coefficients and 222Rn mass exhalation rates were estimated for the radiation hazard of the natural radioactivity in the materials. The activity concentrations of the natural radionuclides, radium equivalent activities, emanation coefficients and 222Rn mass exhalation rates are compared with the corresponding values for building and ceramic materials of different countries. The radium equivalent activities in the samples varied between 30.9 (mosaic stone) and 328.0 Bq.kg 1 (gypsum). The emanation coefficient of the materials ranged from 7.83 (cement) to 33.0% (soil) and the 222Rn mass exhalation rate ranged from 2.31 (stone chips) to 118.0 p.Bq.kg a.s 1 (gypsum).

No abstract

No abstract

This study reports on a case study of TQM adoption in searching for answers of why and how organizations adopt such approaches to gain competitive advantages within a Bangladeshi beverage company. It focuses organizational approaches to adopt TQM as a strategic option and the subsequent changes in organizational set-up. Moreover, using the resource-based theory, this study explores what TQM components help achieving competitive advantage. Findings reveal that due to the change in customer requirements in respect to tastes and quality; and increased price pressure led the case organization to adopt TQM. The result shows that the case organization has brought a series of changes in adopting TQM including appointing a consultant; encouraging a culture of continuous learning; developing a mechanism of communicating information; involving top management along with the employees in the improvement process; and emphasizing the use of teams. Following the resource-based view, findings show that the adoption of TQM helped the case organization in identifying its capabilities that facilitated the achievement of competitive advantage. The findings may help other organizations to learn lesson from the case organization through the identification of tacit resources that are generated by a TQM initiative.