The Experts below are selected from a list of 3507 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Shinji Yane - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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nonparametric benchmarking of japanese water utilities institutional and environmental factors affecting efficiency
Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management, 2014Co-Authors: Rui Cunha Marques, Sanford V Berg, Shinji YaneAbstract:AbstractAlthough the Japanese water sector is economically and socially important, few empirical studies are available to help analysts and policy-makers understand the performance patterns in the industry. This study applies data envelopment analysis to 5,538 observations of 1,144 utilities that supplied drinking water between 2004 and 2007. With a comprehensive census of utilities, the present study controls for many factors affecting efficiency: region, prefecture, ownership/governance, water source, vertical integration (purchased or produced alone), water or integrated system, production, treatment, transport and distribution of water), peak factor, per capita consumption, Customer Density, water losses, monthly water charge, outsourcing, subsidies, gross prefecture product, and time. Thus, this study derives comprehensive conclusions regarding efficiency patterns in Japan. The analysis finds that the average level of inefficiency (weighted by volume) is 57% in the constant return to scale model, but...
Massimo Filippini - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Cost efficiency of Slovenian water distribution utilities: an application of stochastic frontier methods
Journal of Productivity Analysis, 2007Co-Authors: Massimo Filippini, Nevenka Hrovatin, Jelena ZorićAbstract:This study estimates cost inefficiency and economies of scale of Slovenian water distribution utilities over the 1997–2003 period by employing several different stochastic frontier methods. The results indicate that significant cost inefficiencies are present in the utilities. An introduction of incentive-based price regulation scheme might help resolve this problem. However, the inefficiency scores obtained from different cost frontier models are not found to be robust. The levels of inefficiency estimates as well as the rankings depend on the econometric specification of the model. The established lack of robustness can be at least partly explained by different ability of the models to separate unobserved heterogeneity from inefficiency. Newly proposed true fixed effects model (Greene, J Econom 126:269–303, 2005; J Prod Anal 23(1):7–32, 2005) appears to perform better than the conventional panel data models with respect to distinguishing between unobserved heterogeneity and inefficiency. On the other hand, different models produce fairly robust results with respect to estimates of economies of output Density, Customer Density and economies of scale. The optimal size of a company is found to closely corresponds to the sample median. Economies of scale are found in small-sized utilities, while large companies exhibit diseconomies of scale.
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the use of a variable cost function in the regulation of the italian water industry
Utilities Policy, 2001Co-Authors: Barbara Antonioli, Massimo FilippiniAbstract:Abstract The purpose of this study is to estimate a multivariate variable cost function in order to analyze the cost structure of a sample of Italian water distribution companies. The empirical results of this study could be used by the Italian Regulation Authority of this sector to improve the actual tariff regulation process. A variable cost function was estimated using panel data for a sample of 32 water distribution firms operating at the provincial level over the period 1991–1995. Results indicate the importance of explanatory variables such as price of labor, water loss and service area characteristics. Results also indicate the existence of economies of output and Customer Density and the presence of small diseconomies of scale.
Jayanath Ananda - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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evaluating the performance of urban water utilities robust nonparametric approach
Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management, 2014Co-Authors: Jayanath AnandaAbstract:AbstractThis paper empirically analyzes the efficiency of urban water utilities using state-of-the-art methodology combining data envelopment analysis (DEA) and a two-stage double bootstrap procedure. In the first stage, robust efficiency estimates are obtained with an improved DEA analysis. In the second stage, a truncated regression model and a double bootstrap procedure are used to estimate the effect of a set of environmental variables on unbiased DEA estimates. The findings suggest that the efficiency scores obtained after bias correction are significantly different to the original efficiency estimates. The results also show the existence of a significant relation between efficiency and several environmental variables including the proportion of water sourced from groundwater, Customer Density, and residential consumption.
Bettina Campedelli - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Economies of Scale, Scope, and Density in the Italian Water Sector: A Two-Stage Data Envelopment Analysis Approach
Water Resources Management, 2013Co-Authors: Andrea Guerrini, Giulia Romano, Bettina CampedelliAbstract:Public utilities could improve their efficiency by pursuing specific strategies, such as growth, diversification of investments, or serving mainly high densely areas. For example, in the water sector, economies of scope and scale both appear possible, but extant literature does not offer clear or consensual findings. To address this lack of clarity, this article investigates the potential for efficiency improvement in the diverse Italian water sector, which comprises utilities of various sizes, operating in areas with various population densities and organized as mono- or multi-utilities. Technical and financial data from 64 different utilities were collected and then analyzed with a two-stage data envelopment analysis approach to reveal the impacts of different operational and exogenous variables on efficiency, including firm size, the degree of investment diversification, and Customer Density. The results obtained confirm the existence of all three types of economies (scale, scope and Density), albeit with different impacts for each DEA score.
Kazuya Kawamura - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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sustainability si logistics cost and environmental impact analyses of urban delivery consolidation strategies
Networks and Spatial Economics, 2016Co-Authors: Qin Chen, Kazuya KawamuraAbstract:Abstract Among new, innovative city logistics strategies, urban delivery consolidation has received increasing academic and practical attention mostly in Europe and Japan. It is believed to bring cost savings and environmental benefits with the right setting. This paper demonstrates an alternative modeling framework to examine, from the strategic planning perspective, the effectiveness of urban delivery consolidation in terms of monetary logistics cost, energy consumption and PM2.5 emissions with respect to a number of operational (e.g., rent cost, Customer demand) and policy factors (e.g., commercial vehicle size restriction in city centers). The framework consists of two key modeling components: the Continuous Approximation (CA) method to model urban delivery (the so-called last-mile delivery) and the Motor Vehicle Emission Simulator (MOVES by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) to estimate the energy consumption and PM2.5 emissions associated with the logistics activities. It is found that the potential logistics and environmental benefits of UCC could come from either improving the utilization of the vehicle capacity through consolidation, or shifting the more expensive storage cost from Customers in the city center to the less expensive UCC rent cost—due to a less centralized location and/or government subsidy or other cost sharing mechanisms—outside of the city center. However, UCC could achieve those benefits compared to non- consolidation strategies only under certain conditions, for example when there is an economy of scale or high Customer Density (i.e., high shipping volume) in the service area. The paper discusses in detailed under what assumptions and conditions UCC could work. Study limitations and future work are also presented.
