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

Homeless - Essay Example These provisions may pertain to clothing, food, water and others. It is the place with a four corner framework made suitable for subsistence and constant dwelling. That’s why an individual can be considered homeless in the absence of these fundamental physical features. As a result, such person is moving from place to place. On the other side, being homeless can also mean that the person has a house but he or she does not have a company in times of exigencies and loneliness. In other words, the individual is just living alone. Moreover, it is commonly accepted that a home is not a home in the absence of a family residing therein. Therefore, having a family is recognizing the fact that humans need the company of others to live and reproduce. This is the basis of the difference between a residence and a home. A residence is more of the physical existence while a home is more of the social existence. Accordingly, there are two essential elements that can be inferred from the word homeless: the individual self and the absence of a home or a residence. Thus, a home has a dual purpose: physical and social

Columbian Cartels Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Columbian Cartels - Essay Example The cartels have also developed new threats within familiar threats, this has led to the difficulties in applying traditional security methods in addressing cartels, the cartels have developed new threats that the national security cannot identify and prevent. They have also advanced their ways of evading the local government. Cooperation has increased among the cartels due to the lessening of restrictions between international borders, this has made difficult for law enforcers, and also the increasing global network has greatly helped the cartels to make more profits which have led to stronger cartels. Cartels have used their economic power to corrupt law enforcers and judges and assassinate those who do not corporate, also an example in the Russian Mafia people believe that the cartels are more powerful than the government and therefore people will turn to crime leaders for protection because they feel that the government cannot provide protection or even stop organised crime. The increased cooperation between the cartel leaders and political leaders and law enforcers has also made it possible for this cartels to exist and grow, they also threaten those who do not cooperate through assassining those who do not cooperate therefore people

9-3b LOGISTIC CASE STUDY Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

9-3b LOGISTIC - Case Study Example roduction, it is on demand, 100’s of request changes for every day, low carbon foot shaped impression and waste finally it has no base request amounts (Qg.com, 2015). In a mechanical setting, it can possibly change packaging design, stock management, and has the ability to react quickly to evolving the design, brand administration, and regulatory requirements. In 2008, various business visionaries from different foundations met up with a perspective to exploring this potential. They set up Mediaware Digital LTD that gave business provision of reconfiguring their inventory network and displaying the capacity to upgrade effectiveness and responsiveness through new and dynamic creative methodologies. This model of mediaware determined the packaging as an affair, which came out to be on demand as a procedure that clients got to a virtual system for packaging via an exceptional interface (Qg.com, 2015). Digital technology has been known to eliminate the surplus stock and overruns, reduces waste, enhances budget, reduces headcount, spares space and eliminates pre-processes like plate generation. The following are improvements to the supply chain; make for ordering zero inventory levels and model, the original factors for safety, product incapability, make sales to make exact approach towards the developed products, the product mix, the programs that foster sustainability, reduction of the freight together with storage costs (Pods.com, 2015). Mediaware has collaborated with Xerox equipment manufacturing to produce Xerox Gallop digital packaging with digital packaging with customized workflows. Its framework could acknowledge orders through a scope of computerized interfaces, print in numerous dialects, rapidly switch dialects and deliver small batches with significant purchaser information. This decreases least request quantities. Using its modified work process, Mediaware integrated with supply chain to convey what was required when required, and exact amount

The Fall of Jerusalem 70 A.D Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Fall of Jerusalem 70 A.D - Research Paper Example Not only did the event affect the then socio-economic context but also had a significant impact on the religious situation of the period. The catastrophe took place as a consequence of the First Jewish-Roman War under the leadership of Titus and his subordinate Tiberius Julius Alexander (North, â€Å"Did Jesus Return In 70 A. D.?†). The disaster resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem causing innumerous deaths and the demolition of its popular First as well as Second Temples. The demolitions of both these temples are still mourned by Jews every year on Tisha B’Av (Young, â€Å"Oh Jerusalem, Thou that Killeth the Prophets†). The study intends to discuss the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. In connection to this, it will emphasize the reasons behind the destruction by examining the scenario of Jerusalem during the occurrence of the First Jewish-Roman War. ... In the 70 A.D., repeated conflicts were being witnessed within the Roman Empire based on ethnic rivalry or political power agreements. The fall can be further identified to be the aftermath of chronological occurrences of disagreements taking place between the Jewish people and the Romans that took place because of the reluctance of the former to follow the emperor’s rules, which later took the shape of religious disbelief and segregation amid the then biblical audiences. Charged by the continuous rebellion against the Roman rule, the Roman army was preparing for an attack on the Jewish city since 66 A.D. following the death of Herod Agrippa I. In due course, the 30,000 Roman troops were able to beat the city walls of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. under the leadership of Titus, which led to the death of numerous Jewish civilians, and thus the First Jewish-Roman war was instigated. This sudden attack resulted in massive destruction where the temples of the city were annihilated, fuellin g up the grievances of the Jewish people against the Romans (Bell, â€Å"The Destruction of Jerusalem: A Local Event or of Universal/Eternal Consequence?†). After 40 years, as predicted by Jesus Christ, the wonderful ‘Herod Temple’ was completely demolished by the Romans. Titus, the campaign leader, has also been accused in many religious writings of having collected the precious treasury of Jerusalem temple and taken it to Rome, where it is still believed to remain safe. When the temple was engulfed by fire, the Roman soldiers hammered its walls in search of treasure, which again disregarded the religious belief of the Jewish people, causing a spiritual crisis within the city. Different vessels as well as treasures were robbed and were taken to Rome.

The Treatment of Premarin Mares and Foals Essay Example for Free

The Treatment of Premarin Mares and Foals Essay You may begin by asking â€Å"what is Premarin? † This is a female hormone replacement drug taken by menopausal women (women that have reached the age where their menstrual period ends) to help alleviate symptoms of menopause such as hot flashes and vaginal dryness (Pfizer). It is a vaginal estrogen medication that can be substituted by a plant-based drug rather than this horrific drug. Now you may be thinking that this may actually be a good drug. Well, there is a dark side to this drug that the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) and popular drug company Pfizer, doesn’t want women to know about. One of those things is the fact that the name Premarin, actually stands for Pregnant Mares Urine. Women are really ingesting horse’s urine. The goal of these drug companies is to gather concentrated pregnant horse’s urine and put it into a pill, vaginal ring, or cream form to distribute to women, giving them hopes of feeling younger. I will explain in more detail about the drug and its effects, but am going to prove that the treatment of these horses while humans attempt to collect the horse’s concentrated urine is completely unacceptable and 100% animal abuse and neglect. We will start at the point of collecting the urine for this drug. There are farms called Pregnant Mare’s Urine (PMU) farms. If you were to visit one of these farms, you would find a barn full of pregnant mares (horses) that are locked in 38 foot stalls, forced to stand for 11 months (a horse’s natural gestation period) with a â€Å"urine collector† hooked to them. One mare provides approximately nine women with estrogen replacement for one year. These mares are turned out at birthing time to give birth and be rebred. Seeing as the mare must be pregnant to be of use to the farms, if the mare does not rebreed within a month and a half, the mare will be put to pasture along with all the foals that go to the â€Å"last chance corral† where they have the ability to be adopted or they will be sent to slaughter. Approximately 9 of 10 colts (male foals) and 8 of 10 fillies (female foals) are sent to slaughter every year (Springhill). Horses that are unfortunate enough to go to slaughter, are generally used for horse meat in Europe and Japanese areas where it is considered a delicacy. This may sound horrific enough, much like a puppy mill producing 60,000 foals per year; however the really disturbing part is yet to be shared. The urine collectors that are hooked up to the mares are rarely cleaned. Now instead of it just being horse’s urine, it’s dirty horse’s urine. And the horse’s urine has to be concentrated, which means these mares must be deprived of water and food, meaning their urine is deprived of any nutrient there may have been. These horses are skin and bones after only a short while, due to the lack of proper nutrition. The FDA approved Premarin and a few other names of the drug, because it does work. However, if you look at the list of 52 extreme side effects, such as vaginal bleeding, increase in blood clots, and increased chances in uterine and breast cancers, which may, in itself detour you from taking this drug (Pfizer). So, why would doctors prescribe this drug to over 9 million women? Most of them only know that they see results when they prescribe this drug and that it is approved through the FDA. The same as with the general public, they don’t get on simple websites and do their homework about what doctors are asking them to ingest. Some of the other names Premarin goes by are Estrace, Estring, Femring, and Vagifem. Some alternatives are Prempro or Provera, which are both plant based ways to harvest estrogen, which offers far fewer serious side effects and just as much of a success rate in being effective. As you can see, Premarin is a dangerous and disgusting drug, that is a cruel and neglectful way of an attempt to make women in their menopausal stage feel better. This is no excuse for humans to treat horses this way, producing 60,000 foals per year, without enough people to adopt them. If you hear of a woman talking about Premarin, or menopause in general, urge them to look into the drugs their doctors want them to take, and if it happens to be Premarin, tell them the truth about these drugs and do not just let them be blinded like the doctors and Pfizer want you to be.

Communication Within Unilever Plc

Communication Within Unilever Plc 1.1 Introduction and background of research This research is based on the topic How the channels of communication with employees might be improved in a multinational organization. Unilever PLC is a leading multinational in Fast Moving Consumer Goods sector and it operates over hundred of countries worldwide. Unilever maintains its leading edge by establishing superior standards, latest managerial systems and state of art technology. Most importantly the main focus of Unilever business is to run in profitable manner while complying with statutory and legal requirements in to the maximum extent, in each and every place it operates. Unilever is therefore highly concerns about implementation of latest and successful managerial systems in its production plants in very first time it is possible. Moreover Unilever contributes for developing these systems to match with company requirements and hence most of managerial systems that Unilever implemented are quite superior to others and can easily be differentiated from managerial systems of its competitors. Product Range of Unilever PLC is Home and personnel care, Margarines, fat spreads, Tea and supplementary food products. There are 400 brands and 14 categories of home, personal care and foods products, no other company touches so many peoples lives in so many different ways. Unilevers brand portfolio has made them leaders in every field in which they work. Knorr, Lipton, Dove Omo are some examples for trusted brands. In the Sri Lankan context Unilever could pass by all its competitors and to make its all brands to be the flag ships. At the moment Unilever Sri Lanka Limited owns twenty two global brands which are very much familiar to Sri Lankans as things touching their hearts. Lux, Sunsilk, Signal, Astra and Lifebuoy are some of those popular brands. Brand communication can be a powerful force for behavior change. They have the opportunity to promote healthy lifestyles among our millions of consumers. At the same time they have a duty to market their products responsibly and provide their consumers with clear and simple information about the products they make and how they can fit into a healthy and balanced diet. This depends on effective communication. As a multinational company that has been created a very good brand loyalty in consumers mind they will have to satisfy their customer requirements to the maximum level. In order to do this Unilever will have to adopt according to the changes in customer requirements. As the market grows rapidly new products from competitors are coming to the market frequently. For their survival they will have to produce new ranges of products and to do modifications for their existing products as customer requirements are changing rapidly. To do these kinds of Modifications Companys communication process and communication channels should be of high quality. Quick decisions will have to be made; for that employees will have to send their messages and information faster and get feedback very quickly. For this purpose the company uses many methods (channels). Since this is a global company their companies are scattered all over the world. Therefore there should be a strong communication network within each and every company. Unilever PLC uses strategies and guidelines to give directions for employees. As a result the employees would have a clear idea of what the company is expected from them; they would know what their duties and responsibilities are. Then they will be motivated as their duties are being simplified and specified. This will create efficient employees and would be resulted in productivity increase. Through strategies and guidelines more detailed information can be provided to employees. More and specific information gives subordinates a feeling of confidence and security; lack of information promotes insecurity and a feeling of not being trusted. By doing this they are able to get maximum out of employees. This organization gets ideas and views of employees about the policies and procedures being applied by the company. It would help the top management to identify their weaknesses and take necessary actions to revise their policies and procedures. Unilever has put a great effort to engage wit employees to find out whether they understand the companys vision and role that is being expected from them. The company gets ideas from employees to know what their perception on the changes the company has to do to achieve their ambitions. In 2009 Unilever began an employee engagement programme that will ensure employees are involved in Unilevers vision and plans for the future. Uniliver gather feedback from employees through regular employee engagement surveys. A Global People Survey (GPS) of all Unilever employees is conducted every two to three years. Unilevers management population is also invited to participate in a refined version of the survey GPS-Pulse, which is conducted at six-monthly intervals in the years when GPS is not taking place. The GPS-Pulse conducted in September 200 highlighted that people are proud to work for Unilever and feel good about the culture and business. Results also showed increased confidence in leader ship and the direction that the company is taking. Feedback also has pointed to areas where the company needed to do better and these were actioned by the Unilever Executive and their senior leaders. Through these kinds of strategies employees will feel that theyre being valued and recognized by the company and they will be motivated to work hard to achieve objectives of the company. Being a multinational organization Unilever PLC uses telephones to communicate with their peers. They have the ability to exchange their ideas over the phone and to get the feedback of the other party. Exchanging messages over the phone would fasten the decision making process and it will affect their smooth operation positively. Letters, memos and e-mails are anther methods of communication used by Unilever PLC. Since these are written communication channels they will help employees to get clear idea by reading them. If there is a long list of directions to be given to employees these channels would be more effective as they are in writing. Since everything is in writing it will be easy for them to comply with these requirements. Research Objectives and Hypothesis The completion of this research intends to achieve the following objectives in relation to Unilever PLC. To identify the channels of communication used by the Organization To study how to improve the channels of communication with employees of the organization. To find possible strengths and weaknesses in communication channels currently being used by the company. To suggest methods to avoid current weaknesses in communication channels. Hypothesis Finding how the channels of communication with employees might be improved in a multinational organization is the objective of this research. Accordingly, hypothesis of the research is defined as below, H0: The channels of communication with employees in existence within the organization are adequate. H1: The channels of communication with employees in existence within the organization are not adequate. Research Scope For this research qualitative research techniques have to be used. Since this is a qualitative one it is difficult to set standard guidelines to identify whether the organizations current communication channels are suitable or not. This should be done compared to another organization. It would be difficult to select a suitable benchmark. When carrying out a research feedback should be taken from employees at different levels such as managers and lower level employees in a way that covers the entire organization. Since their ideas are different the results cannot be generalized. LITERATURE REVIEW Introduction to Literature Review The research literature review is based the theories and researches previously done by scholars. These should be applied in the research. Clearly defined research problem and research methods have to be included. Review of Relevant Theories and Literature A typical day for a manager includes doing desk work attending scheduled meetings , placing and receiving telephone calls, reading and answering correspondence , attending unscheduled meetings and tours. Most of these activities involves communication. In fact, managers usually spend more than half of their time communicating in some way. Communication always involves two or more persons , so other behavioral process such as motivation, leadership and group and team processes all come into play. Top executives must handle communication effectively if they are to be true leader. Communication is concerned with the making of meaning and the exchange of understanding. One model of communication considers it from the perspective of transmitting information from one person to another. Communication is very important for all kinds of business organization. According to researches carried out by many authors, communication and communication channels play a very important role in any business organization. Different people have carried out researches relating to communication and efficiency of communication channels. Few examples are as follows; A web article defines a communication channel as, Medium through which a message is transmitted to its intended audience, such as print media or broadcast (electronic) media. As per Quincy Wright, Communication channels can be understood simply as the modes or pathways through which two parties might communicate. As population grows and technology evolves accordingly, these channels of communication change as well. (A Study of War, 1967) According to a web article, In the basic communication process, a sender puts a message in words and transmits it to a receiver who interprets the message. The medium the sender chooses to transmit the message is called the communication channel. There are many communication channels being used by different organizations. Some of these are universally familiar methods where as some of them are specific to certain organizations. Listed below are few methods among them. Letters/ memos/ reports Although there is an increase in the usage of electronic communication, most people seem to receive their messages on paper. This may be because there is no e-mail link between the parties, because a hard copy is required to meet audit or legal requirements or because the recipient feels more comfortable to read from paper than from a screen. Manuals This is also a paper document and the main purpose of this is reference. Fax This method uses public telephones to deliver documents from one place to another. In this method original hard copy is not sent to the receiver. E-mail This is a very efficient method of communicating where whole documents can be sent through internet. This provides many cost advantages when compared to telephones and other paper based communication methods. Intranet This method is also same as the internet method, but this used to deliver documents, images and so on within an organization. In this method also information is much less expensive to distribute and maintain when compared to paper based communication methods. Meetings Two or more people get together and carryout discussions related to different areas to take decisions or to solve problems. This is a verbal communication method where the feedback will be received at the same time. Telephone This is a two way communication method. It is now possible to reach people practically anytime, anywhere over the phone. Video conferencing Under video conferencing system phone lines are used to transmit video and sound between two or more parties. Real time video conferences can be conducted when parties participated to the meeting are in remote locations. Communication is the process of transmitting information from one person to another. Effective communication is the process of sending a message in such a way that the message received is as close in meaning as possible to the message intended. Effective communication is based on the ideas of meaning and consistency of meaning. Meaning is the idea that the individual who initiates the communication exchange wishes to convey. Communication also relates directly to the basic management functions of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. Environmental scanning, integrating planning-time horizons, and decision making for example, all necessitate communication. Delegation, coordination, and organization change and development also entail communication. Communication is essential to establishing standards, monitoring performance and taking corrective actions as a part of control. Clearly, then, communication is a pervasive part of virtually all managerial activities. The Communication Process As figure shows, noise can disrupt the communication process at any step. Managers must therefore understand that a conversation in the next office, a fax machine out of paper and the receivers worries may all thwart the managers best attempts to communicate. Sender Firm that sends the message. Message What is being transmitted from sender to receiver. Encoding Message translated into appropriate meaning. This is the process through which the message is symbolized. Channel The medium through which the message is being sent. Decoding Process that translate the message and generating the meaning out of it. Receiver Firm that receives the message. Feedback Process by which the receiver sends his responds to the sender. Interpersonal communication focuses on communication among people at work. Two important forms of interpersonal communication, oral and written, both offer unique advantages and disadvantages. Thus the manager should weigh the pros and cons of each when choosing a medium for communication. Communication channels play a vital role in communication. Messages are conveyed through channels. Telephone, videoconferencing, face-to-face meetings are some examples for verbal communication, where as letters, memos, e-mails, reports are some examples for written communication. Channel should be selected based on the nature of the message or the information that is being transmitted or exchanged. Different channels have their respective strengths and weaknesses. For example, it would be ineffective to give a long list of directions verbally. There are a variety of forms of organizational communication. Vertical communication between superiors and subordinates may flow upwards or downwards. Horizontal communication involves peers and colleagues at the same level in the organization. Organizations also use information systems to manage communication. Electronic communication is likely to have a profound effect on managerial and organizational communicational in the years to come. A great deal of informal communication also occurs in organizations. Communication networks are recurring patterns of communication among members of a group. The grapevine is the informal communication network among people in an organization. Management by wandering around is also a popular informal method of communication. Nonverbal communication includes facial expressions, body movements, physical contact, gestures and inflection and tone. Managing the communication process necessitates recognizing the barriers to effective communication and understanding how to overcome them. Barriers can be identified at both the individual and organizational levels. Likewise, both individual and organizational skills can be developed to overcome these barriers. Barriers to effective Communication, Individual barriers Conflicting or inconsistent cues Credibility about the subject Reluctance to communicate Poor listening skills Predispositions about the subject Organizational Barriers Semantics Status or power differences Different perceptions Noise Overload Overcoming barriers to communication Individual skills Develop good listening skill Encourage two way communication Be aware of language and meaning Maintain creditability Be sensitive to receivers perspective Be sensitive to senders perspective Organizational skills Follow up Regulate information flows Understand the richness of media (R.W.Griffin, 1997) CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY Research Methods Servey reserch methods to collectting data as investigate the employees and organization need. Research Approach There are few steps to be followed. They are as follows; Problem Identification /Hypothesis Identify the existing channels and channels to be introduced. Research Design and planning This is a Prepare Queries, Prepare the project plan, Prepare the research team work plan, Prepare the Physical resource and conduct with the service providers in communication channel providers wise. Data collection and Data Review and analysis theory After having identified the variables to be studied and operationally defined them a researcher is expected to adopt a suitable method of data collection to measure the variables and their relationships. Following are the methodologies that are used to this research, Questionnaire survey Interviews Observation Case study In the case of a questionnaire based survey or interviews, the unit of analysis is the individual as the individuals included in a sample are expected to provide information by responding to the survey questionnaire or the questions posed to them at the interview. In the observation method there is no single unit of analysis as the researcher is expected to observe real life situations , a process , an event or a series of event over a period of time. The unit of analysis in the case study method could cover a community, an organization, a group or a selected individuals . For instance, one can study the performance of one or more organizations and arrive at meaningful conclusions about the practice of the management. Similarly can study in depth the leadership style of several CEOs and arrive at meaningful conclusions about organizational leaderships. The Questionnaire Survey In this research questionnaire based survey ahs become one of the most widely used techniques of data collection for reasons such as economy , ability to reach a larger sample of the population, saving of time , feasibility to collect data within a predetermined framework and feasibility to process the data using a coding system that could be easily used on computers. Although the questionnaire method has its inherent limitations this method has been adopted to study qualitative aspects such as attitudes and values as well as quantitative aspects of behaviour. The forms of questions included in a questionnaire depends on the kind of information required . Although the forms of the questions may differ in a variety of ways,questions are presented in two basic types; Open ended Structured Open ended questions There are several advantages of open ended questions if the researcher is interested in probing deep into a particular issue such as motivation, job satisfaction, etc. There are some limitations inherent in open ended questions. These include, Difficulty in recording lengthy answers, particularly when the respondents interest is aroused by the researcher through probing, difficulty in asking more than two questions as the answer may take both time as well as space in the questionnaire , and relatively high degree of reliance on the researchers own judgment as to what he thinks is the meaning of the answers given to open ended questions. Despite these limitations open ended questions are used by researcher when the questionnaire based interview method is adopted because an experienced researcher can always exploit the advantages associated with open ended questions. Structured questions This presents the respondent with fixed response alternatives. That is question is worded in such a manner as to induce the respondent to answer by making a choice between two or more alternatives. Advantage-easy to administer in the field because they are pre-coded. Interviews Is a method of collecting data by speaking to someone who is often not known to the researcher previously. Thus it would involve a considerable amount of interpersonal skills on the part of the researcher to establish a relationship with the person being interviewed and elicit the required information within a limited period of time. There are two basic types of interviews, Structured and unstructured. Observation Method Is a technique adopted highly in qualitative research to study natural behaviour. Thus observation involves making judgments about the occurrence of behaviour , its frequency, its duration or its latency. These measures are the basic data used to describe the naturally occurring behaviour or to assess the effects of such behaviour. Therefore the collection of the data through observation has to be done carefully in order to ensure accuracy ,reliability and objectively. There are two broad methods of observing behaviour: participant and non participant. Case study Method This involves studding individual cases in their natural environment over a period of time. One who uses a case study method may adopt different methods of data collection and analysis. These methods may be either qualitative or quantitative or a combination of both. Research Strategy Selecting the most suitable channels to the company. For this purpose number of channels should be investigated. Sampling Techniques Select a sample size based on the company size that covers all areas and all levels of employees. Data Collection Tools High quality data should be collected.. Data Analysis Methods Methods such as pie charts, tables, decision trees, scatter diagrams and so on can be used to analyze data. Presentation of Data Data should be presented using a report and a multimedia presentation. Research Limitations This research is focusing only on the communication channels. Communication process and their reliability is being ignored. Ethical implications of this research If the employees provide wrong information the whole research is misleading. Research Schedule Depending on the nature and activities of the research a time schedule should to be prepared. Conclusions This research is based on the topic How the channels of communication with employees might be improved in a multinational organization. Existing channels and new channels to be introduced should be addressed. For this purpose research topic should be defined and background to the research has to be explained. Theories relevant to the research should be applied under literature review. Finally ethical issues that can be raised during the research should be addressed and the decision is taken based on employees perceptions. The study covers a wide area on the communication channels and based on the evaluation of how to improve the communication of the employees, new communication channels to be introduced must be taken into consideration, the necessary channels that should be improved according to improve the methods of communication in the organization. Under this research based on the multi national company we can learn and can get more knowledge as managers, how to manage effective communication in a multi national company, can feel the employees communication and how to control the whole communication process in a successful and effective manner in the organization.

A Study On The Petronas Towers Construction Essay

A Study On The Petronas Towers Construction Essay Supertall buildings are a relatively recent addition to the history of the cities around the world. Technology of the nineteenth century made their development possible. Steel, concrete and masonry materials have existed for a long time in the history of civilization but not in such a configuration. Masonry is the oldest material. Concrete in its present form is the youngest of these three basic structural materials of construction. Concrete, unlike any other structural building material, allows the architects and engineers to choose not only its mode of production, but its material properties as well. Although steel will continue to be the structural material of choice for many tall buildings for its strength and ductility, we may expect to see more and more concrete and composite high-rise structures shaping the skylines of major cities of the world in the forthcoming years. As a result, the field of concrete tall building construction is rapidly changing and its limits are constantly being tested and stretched. The introduction of composite construction to tall tubular buildings has paved the way for supertall composite buildings like the PETRONAS Towers. 1. INTRODUCTION Much of the technological change in concrete construction was in the first half of the 20th century. Advances in formwork, mixing of concrete, techniques for pumping, and types of admixtures to improve quality have all contributed to the ease of working with concrete in high-rise construction. There were main four periods in the development of skyscraper which began around 1808 and ended in 1960s where structures were usually vertical and dominant. During 1970s the international modernism in construction started to rise and this introduced a renewed interest in silhouettes and symbolic potential. The most efficient construction coordination plan for a tall building is one that allows formwork to be reused multiple times. Traditionally, formwork was made of wood but as technology has advanced, the forms have become a combination of wood, steel, aluminum, fiberglass and plastic, to name only a few materials. Each set may be self-supporting with trusses attached to the exterior or may need additional shoring to support it in appropriate locations. New additions to the family of forms include flying-forms, slip forms, and jump forms. The PETRONAS towers are a good example of this latest period. The techniques improved continually till now when pumping of concrete is considered even for small jobs. In recent years, concrete pumping has reached new heights. The builders for the Jin Mao Building in Shanghai, China, boast of pumping high strength concrete as high as 1200 ft (366 m). For such great heights, a high-pressure unit is needed. Great thought must be given to the properties of concrete and how it will react when pressure is applied in a pipe. All these factors demanded innovations in concrete technology. 2. THE SKYSCRAPERS Already a well-argued case between Architects and Engineers is to build a environment with minimal impact on natural environment and to integrate the built environment with ecological systems of the locality. This proposition of the skyscraper as an ecologically- responsive building might well appear to be a conundrum for some.Afterall; Skyscraper is the citys most intensive building-type of enormous size. The council on tall Buildings and Urban habitat in USA defines the skyscraper as a tall building whose built form that by virtue of its height requires its own special engineering systems. Figure 3. PETRONAS PETRONAS was incorporated on 17 August 1974 as the national oil company of Malaysia, vested with the entire ownership and control of the petroleum resources in the country. It has since grown from merely being the manager and regulator of Malaysias upstream sector into a fully integrated oil and gas corporation, ranked among the FORTUNE Global 500 ®Ã‚  largest corporations in the world. The national oil company along with investors and federal government of Malaysia decided to construct the PETRONAS Towers which will be a major headquarter for the company along with other offices mentioned above. PETRONAS in the best possible way tried to balance and integrate economic, environmental and social considerations into their business decisions. These considerations include, among others, strong HSE management and performance, continuous development has made a holistic contribution to the society. Below is the graph that shows the financial outlook of the company Figure 4. HISTORY Designed by Argentine architects Cà ©sar Pelli and Djay Cerico under the consultancy of Julius Gold, the PETRONAS Towers were completed in 1998 after a seven year build and became the tallest buildings in the world on the date of completion. They were built on the site of Kuala Lumpurs race Because of the depth of the bedrock; the buildings were built on the worlds deepest foundations. The 120-meter foundations were built within 12 months by Bachy Soletanche and required massive amounts of concrete. Its engineering designs on structural framework were contributed by Haitian engineer Domo Obiasse and collegues Aris Battista and Princess D Battista. PETRONAS took the challenge to develop the PETRONAS Twin Towers in 1991. The project is an integral part of the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC), a carefully planned development to provide the capital city with an efficient and modern centre for urban activity, trade and commerce encircling a vast, open green lung. It brought together the worlds leading practitioners of engineering, building technology and construction. Construction planning began in January 1992. By March 1993, the excavators were hard at work digging down to 30 meters below the surface of the site. The extent of excavation required over 500 truck-loads of earth to be moved every night. The next stage was the single largest and longest concrete pour in Malaysian history: 13,200 cubic meters of concrete was continuously poured through a period of 54 hours for each tower. This record-breaking slab, together with 104 piles forms the foundation for each of the towers. From this floor rose a 21-metre high retaining wall, with a perimeter length of over 1 kilometer. This concrete shell and the basement area it enclosed required two years of up to 40 workers on site all day and night. The final product is the basement car park offering a total of 5,400 parking bays on five levels beneath the podium wrapping the towers. As an added consideration, two different contractors were chosen for each tower to allow cross-monitoring of construction values and techniques with one coming to the aid of the other should problems arise. The construction of the superstructure commenced in April 1994, after rigorous tests and simulations of wind and structural loads on the design. 5. PETRONAS TOWERS The PETRONAS towers are part of a massive real estate development on a 100 acre site in Kuala Lumpur which eventually after completion now has office buildings, a retail centre, hotels, residential buildings and substantial public parks, gardens and lakes. The twin PETRONAS towers are linked by a sky bridge at mid height. It consists of 216,901 square meter of total floor space, 88 levels rising to a height of 450m above street level. This was the first project in Malaysia where high strength concrete was specified. To achieve completion of the structural frame in approximately 28 months every floor needed to be constructed in approximately 4.3 days putting great pressure on the contractor to achieve rapid, delay free construction. The main structural system for the super structure and foundation were selected after a rigorous study and evaluation by the design and project management team. The structural approach in the tower frame combines the most favorable aspects of concrete and steel construction. Figure 6. PRECONSTRUCTION CONSULTANCY Due to the nature of the project, being the first super tall structure of its kind in Malaysia and very limited experience with the use of high strength concrete, the contractors were required to demonstrate that the requirements of the project could be successfully achieved prior to actual construction of structural elements. The contractor Samsung-Kukdong-Jasatera joint ventures were to do it. The major engineering and structural design teams were a collection of eminent international companies and consultants including such notables as Cà ©sar Pelli Associates, Hazama Corporation, Adamson Associates Architects, Solà ©tanche Bachy, RSP Architects Planners Engineers, Samsung Engineering Construction, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Syarikat Jasatera Sdn Bhd., and several dozen other major international firms. Legions of support engineers and designers in an array of specific disciplines contributed over the course of the years. 7. SITE AND DESIGN The site for PETRONAS Towers is the Golden Triangle. Around it radiates the city of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysias capital. The jewel of this 100-acre site are the towers. Working within mixed-used development plan by U.S firm of Klages, Carter, Vail and Partners. The design drawings show a complex of buildings growing from an intimate relationship with the site, generating from its core. The concert halls provide an important gathering space. Figure Map showing the Kuala Lumpur City Centre PETRONAS Towers I II Concert Hall Suria KLCC Retail Complex Office Tower (Menara Maxis, Menara Esso) Mandarin Oriental Hotel Future Buildings 8. FLOOR PLAN PETRONAS towers floor plan when viewed appears as two overlapping squares to create an eight pointed star which is further refined with half-circles between star points. The spirit of geometry is Islamic which dominant Malaysian culture is. Other eastern forms are woven into towers form. The towers are placed on a central axis. Figure 9. DESIGN METHODOLOGY The design for the PETRONAS Towers was not a written document or a set of drawings for the contractors to follow when building the structure.   It was instead an evolving process that took place over the course of many years.   This enormous amount of communication and the design considerations that were discussed produced a final result that differs considerably from the plan that won the first Kuala Lumpur City Center design competition held in 1991. The number of designers, engineers, and building contractor management personnel that took part in the design process is about the same as the number of workers that actually built the towers. About 7,000 construction workers took place in the actual building of the towers, as there was a great concern for the congestion that would occur in the busy Kuala Lumpur city center.   7,000 design workers talking constantly among themselves for five or six years designed the building.   It was certainly an impressive conversation.   Although much of this talk took place directly between individuals, this project probably would not have been possible before the development of the Internet or sophisticated project and communication management software.    Every phase of the process, from the drawings and engineering research down to the daily work orders was accomplished with cutting edge software that was in many cases as technologically innovative as other parts of the project. The high quality of the PETRONAS Towers is the result of the quality of the design team.   Although Cà ©sar Pelli was the titular designer and he served as the lead visionary, the design contributors included Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir, businessman T. Ananda Krishnan, senior managers of the PETRONAS company, the Kuala Lumpur City Center planning manager Arlida Ariff, and many high ranking national and local politicians.. The design process itself was as much a marvel as are the physical towers visible today.   When construction began the design did not call for the tallest buildings in the world and the entire foundation was moved after excavations had already begun. The parking garage was located up inside the towers in Cà ©sar Pellis first drawings and the powerful Skybridge was absent from the original 1990 Klages Carter Vail Partners plans for the Kuala Lumpur City Center development that first called for two towers.   These and many more features of the project changed as the design for the project evolved continuously over the life of the project and the final result is a testament to the efficiency of the whole multi-year design process. 10. CONSTRUCTION One of the first challenges that were faced during the towers constructions was anchoring the towers to the ground. The bedrock beneath the site was very irregular and thornton-tomasetti,the structural engineers suggested to relocate the towers about 200 ft to be able to bear on soil. The towers were framed with concrete walls and columns. In Malaysia the contractors were comfortable working with steel and concrete, concrete and steel actually helps in reducing the wind sways and minimize vibrations. Construction of towers was fast paced, because it was a decision to have two contractors one for each tower that created a competitive environment and work commenced at a faster phase. One of the most dramatic feats was placement of the two story sky bridge, which was built on the ground and hoisted to its location joining the 41st floor and 42nd floors. The construction of the PETRONAS Towers was a model of cooperation and efficiency and in some respects even more spectacular than the final result. Figure Figure After a year of planning, the construction phase began in March 1993 with the excavation work for the foundation. The originally selected location was moved 60 meters due to the configuration of the bedrock exposed during the excavations. The excavation for the foundation went 30 meters below the soil surface, with work proceeding only after sunset and more than five hundred dump trucks full of soil being removed from the site each night. For each of the two towers, more than one hundred foundation piles were poured next. Once the forms were in place, the slabs for the foundation of the two towers were poured in two continuous pours lasting about two and a half days each and using over 13,000 cubic feet of concrete for each of the two slabs. On top of these slabs a perimeter wall over a kilometer in total length and 21 meters tall was created to form the shell that would become the five-level underground car park. The contract to construct the two towers was given to two different contracting companies and their friendly competition resulted in both remarkable speed and valuable cooperation as each team shared with the other information gained during the building process. Tower One, which houses the PETRONAS headquarters, was built by a group led by the Japanese Hazama Corporation along with J.A Jones Construction of Charlotte North Carolina, and the Mitsubishi Corporation, MMC Engineering, and Ho Hop Construction of Japan. Tower Two was constructed by the SKJ Consortium, composed of Samsung Engineering Construction and Kuku Dong Engineering Construction from Korea, Dragages and Bachy-Soletanche from Singapore and Syarikat Jasatera and First Nationwide Engineering Sdn Bhd from Malaysia. Work on the tower structures started in April 1994 was completed by June 1996, with the first tenants moving into the buildings in 1998. The Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohammad presided over the opening ceremonies for the towers on Aug. 31, 1999, which coincided with the celebration of Malaysias Hari Kebangsaan holiday that marks the unification of the country and the establishment of the Malaya Federation in 1957. Although many foreign firms participated in the construction process, a great deal of the work was done by local Malaysian companies. It is estimated that sixty percent of the materials used in the construction were obtained locally. All of the concrete and construction timber was Malaysian in origin as were many of the interior finishing materials including marble, ceramic tiles, and drywall materials. Many of the more complex features such as escalators, electrical fixtures and components and furniture were also supplied by Malaysian firms. 11. DETAILED STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS The functional structures of the PETRONAS Towers were designed by the structural engineers Thornton-Tomasetti, with headquarters in New York, and Ranill-Berskutu of Malaysia. The core structure of each of the towers is composed of a ring of sixteen cylindrical columns of high strength reinforced concrete. The columns vary in size from 2.4 meters in diameter at the lower areas to 1.2 meters in diameter at the top, and are placed at the outside corners and additional arcs of the eight pointed star shape that gives the buildings their classic Islamic shape. In a staging of six increments, the columns slope slightly inward as they rise, resulting in the tapered form of the final buildings. The columns are linked with a series of concrete core walls and ring beams and the architect Cà ©sar Pelli has described these movement-resistant and damper-free structures as a pair of soft tubes. There are actually two concentric pressurized cores in the structures, and the two cores unite at the 38 th floor of each tower. A significant choice of building materials was made early in the project, and it was decided to use reinforced concrete instead of the structural steel that is more common in other skyscrapers. This choice was made not only because local Malaysian contractors were more experienced building with concrete than with steel, but also because the cost of importing all the steel would have been prohibitive, whereas the concrete could be obtained locally. The final towers weigh more than twice what they would have had steel been used, but it was additionally felt that the use of concrete would more effectively dampen sway in windy conditions and reduce vibrations within the towers. The structural plan liberates additional floor space inside the towers by locating the mechanical services for the towers in two bustles that are 43 story tall buildings located immediately adjacent to the towers. After completion, the exteriors of the two concrete soft tubes were clad in stainless steel and glass with a design that originated in the classic geometric patterns of ancient Islamic art. The foundations for the structures are huge concrete cores and are considered the deepest building foundations in the world. The two 73-meter tall pinnacle structures of the towers were, like the towers, constructed by two different contractors. One of the pinnacles was fabricated in Japan and the other in Korea. Built of structural steel and then disassembled and shipped to Kuala Lumpur, the pinnacles were reassembled and mounted atop the towers in yet another delicate operation that required several months of practice before the final installation. The two pinnacles are clad in brushed stainless steel. Each tower used 11,000 tons of reinforcement steel, 2,825,120 cubic feet of high-strength concrete, almost 7,500 tons of structural steel beams and 830,000 square feet of glass windows. Figure 12. SKYBRIDGE The towers feature a  skybridge  between the two towers on 41st and 42nd floors, which is the highest 2-story bridge in the world.  It is not directly bolted to the main structure, but is instead designed to slide in and out of the towers to prevent it from breaking during high winds.  The bridge is 170  m (558  ft) above the ground and 58  m (190  ft) long, weighing 750 tons.  The same floor is also known as the podium, since visitors desiring to go to higher levels have to change elevators here. Figure 13. THE LIFT SYSTEM The main bank Otis Lifts is located in the centre of each tower. All main lifts are double decker with the lower deck of the lift taking passengers to odd numbered floors and upper deck to even numbered floors. From the ground floor, there are three groups of lifts. The short haul group of 6 lifts takes passengers to floors between level 2/3 and level 16/17. The mid haul groups of 6 lifts take passengers to floors between level 18/19 and level 37/38. There is also a set of shuttle lifts that take passengers directly to levels 41/42. To get to levels above 41/42, passengers must take the shuttle lifts, and then change to lifts to the upper floors. These connecting lifts are directly above the lifts that serve levels 2 to 38. The pattern now repeats with the upper levels, one set serving levels 43/44 to 57/58 and one set serving levels 59/60 to levels 73/74. Apart from this main bank of lifts, there are a series of lifts to take people between the groups. Unlike the main lifts, these are not the double-decker type. Two lifts are provided to take people from levels 37/38 to levels 41/42 (levels 39 and 40 are not accessible as office space). This spares someone in the lower half of the building from having to go back to the ground floor to go to the upper half of the building. The lifts contain a number of safety features. It is possible to evacuate  people from a lift stuck between floors by manually driving one of the adjacent lifts next to it and opening a panel in the wall..  During an evacuation of the buildings, only the shuttle lift is allowed to be used, as there are only doors at levels G/1 and levels 41/42; therefore should there be a fire in the lower half of the building, this enclosed shaft would remain unaffected. Firefighter lifts are also provided in case of emergency 14. MATERIALS USED The composite structure of the Towers employs both the flexibility of steel and the rigidity of high-strength concrete. Each component material was used to best effect in constructing the 452 m-high buildings. About 80,000 cubic meters of high strength concrete with 37,000 tons of steel were used to form the frames of both Towers. Of particular importance was maintaining the verticality of the structures throughout the full height as they were being built. The reasons for this, besides reinforcing the aesthetic design, were to ensure structural load integrity and the safe passage of the high-speed double-decker elevators. The determination of verticality was monitored by international specialist surveyors who, with the aid of global positioning systems, checked alignments every day and every night. The same surveyor used the same instrument at the same time in every 24 hours, thereby minimizing any element of differences in judgment. Construction works were done primarily at night and finishing works were done primarily during the day (to minimize the cost of artificial lighting). As a result, the entire management and construction team redefined the Malaysian industry standard of fast-track. The PETRONAS Twin Towers were finally encased in steel and glass and could be viewed as complete in June 1996. The construction process also drew extensively from the local industry, with the finished towers having over 60 percent local material content. Malaysian made items included raw materials such as concrete and timber; finishing materials such as marble, ceramic tiles and glass; pre-fabricated materials including dry-walls, doors, suspended ceilings, and metal decking; equipment ranging from escalators to light fittings and sanitary ware; also furniture of all types from work-stations to custom-designed suites. Much of these materials were used in the process of internal finishing, which was then the focus of work teams until the end of 1996.The PETRONAS Towers complex is the tallest building on Kuala Lumpurs horizon, symbolizing Malaysias determination to be a for ward looking and technologically developed country. 15. RECORD BREAKING Since they were constructed in 1997 the towers have held the world record as the highest twin building on land. Until 2004, when they were eclipsed by Taipei 101 in Taiwan, they were the worlds highest building. In spite of being built by different companies the towers are exactly the same height standing at 452m.The Towers are built from super-high strength reinforced concrete, which is reputed to reduce the sway that tall buildings are prone to. However this made the building twice as heavy as a traditional reinforced steel building, necessitating extra deep foundations 120m. 16. COMPARISION WITH OTHER TOWERS Several other buildings are technically taller than the PETRONAS Towers.   The Sears Tower has 110 floors, but is only 442 meters tall.   The Shanghai World Financial Center has 101 floors, and is 492 meters tall.   The Taipei 101 Tower has 101 floors and is 509 meters tall.   As of 2009 several other buildings are proposed or under construction that will be taller.   The proposed Lotte World II in South Korea would be 512 meters tall with 107 floors.   The Burj Dubai is under construction and is planned to be an astounding 818 meters tall with 162 floors. The PETRONAS Twin Towers were the tallest buildings in the world until Taipei 101 was completed in 2004, as measured to the top of their structural components .Spires are considered integral parts of the architectural design of buildings, to which changes would substantially change the appearance and design of the building, whereas antennas may be added or removed without such consequences. The PETRONAS Twin Towers, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia were the worlds tallest buildings from 1998 to 2004, when their height was surpassed by Taipei 101. The towers remain the tallest twin buildings in the world. Figure Building Location Year Stories Height Chief Architect M. Ft. Burj Khalifa  (Burj Dubai, or Dubai Tower), Dubai, UAE 2010 162 828 2,717 Skidmore, Owings Merrill Lotte World II Busan S. Korea (proposed) 2013? 110 510.55 m 1,680 Stephan Huh, Parker Design International Taipei 101 Tower Taipei, Taiwan 2004 101 509 1,670 C.Y. Lee Partner Shanghai World Financial Center, China 2008 101 492 1,614 Kohn Pedersen Fox International Commerce Centre (ICC),  Hong Kong, China  (under construction) 2010 118 484 1,587.9 Kohn Pedersen Fox Xujiahui Tower, Shanghai, China (proposed) 2010 92 460 1,509 John Portman Associates PETRONAS twin towers 1998 88 452 1,483 Cesar Pelli 17. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS The research and knowledge in concrete gained in the first half of the twentieth century benefit technologies today. This paper has provided a broad overview of different historic developments for concrete high-rise buildings. To summarize, the first users of concrete date before 1200 BC and include societies like the Phoenicians, Minoans, and Egyptians, to name only a few. The late 1700s and early 1800s found a renewed discovery of and interest in reinforced concrete as a building structure. Americans and Europeans used it in large warehouses, factory buildings, apartment buildings and homes. New delivery systems, changes in formwork, high-strength concrete and other admixtures were invented which improved concretes strength and workability. Structural systems which go beyond the traditional post-and-beam construction of the Ingalls Building and the introduction of high-strength concrete mixes have together allowed reinforced concrete skyscrapers to grow to heights of the PETRONAS Towers and the Jin Mao Building never dreamed of in Elzners and Ransomes day. Little more than a century ago, reinforced concrete was invented. In that short period of time, reinforced concrete has gone from being a very limited material to one of the most versatile building materials available today. The first reinforced concrete buildings were heavy and massive. Valuable floor space was taken up by the massive concrete structural systems. Today, due to our increased knowledge and improved technology, reinforced concrete buildings can be tall, graceful and elegant. Due, in part, to the use of shear walls, innovative structural systems and ultimate strength design, very little usable floor space is occupied by the structure. HSC and lightweight structural concrete allow us to use smaller member sizes and less steel reinforcement. Because of the rapid developments of concrete construction and technology, with every passing year the use of concrete for tall buildings is becoming a constant reality. The mold ability of concrete is a major factor in creating exciting building forms with elegant aesthetic expression. Compared to steel, concrete tall buildings have larger masses and damping ratios that help in minimizing motion perception. A heavier concrete structure also provides better stability against overturning caused by lateral loads. New structural systems including the composite ones that are popular now have allowed concrete high-rises to reach new heights during the last four decades. Although steel will continue to be the structural material of choice for many tall buildings for its strength and ductility, we may expect to see more and more concrete and composite high-rise structures shaping the skylines of major cities of the world in the forthcoming years.