Browsing by Author "Bam, W. G."

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    Scoping phase comparison of development opportunities by making use of publicly available sustainability information
    (Elsevier, 2017) Du Plessis, J. A.; Bam, W. G.
    With sustainable business strategies and sustainability reporting now a norm, the public domain has in recent years been flooded with sustainable development information from a wide range of organizations. Although this information is generally retrospective in nature, an opportunity exists to make use of this information to compare the impact of different development opportunities prospectively, based on the performance of similar industries elsewhere. This paper therefore evaluates the potential of using publicly available sustainability information to enhance scoping phase decision-making by policymakers in order to prioritize projects that have the most potential for creating sustainable outcomes. The paper outlines a concept model for using sustainability information to compare development opportunities, followed by an analysis of five prominent international sustainability reporting frameworks at the hand of specific criteria to establish which framework would be most suitable to serve as basis for such a model.
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    A systematic review of the due diligence stage of mergers and acquisitions : towards a conceptual framework
    (Southern African Institute for Industrial Engineering, 2018-11-09) Bhagwan, V.; Grobbelaar, S. S.; Bam, W. G.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Organisations are under constant pressure to grow in the face of increased competition, changing conditions, and increasingly relaxed country and currency regulatory environments. In order to remain a player or an idustry leader, it’s imperative for companies to achieve real growth. Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are an external mechanism for organisations to achieve growth. There are different stages in the typical M&A transaction. The due diligence stage of a transaction is critical in evaluating whether to proceed with a deal. It provides essential information that is used in setting negotiating parameters, determining bid prices, and providing a basis for integration recommendations. The due diligence process, therefore, should be managed effectively to ensure a higher probability of success for the deal. A systematic literature review was undertaken to establish the key concepts behind due diligence. Due diligence is multidisciplinary in nature, thus a wide range of literature was reviewed to gain a holistic understanding of the process. Concepts identified during the review were then individually examined. Similar concepts were grouped together into a new concept. The outcome of this paper forms the basis of a conceptual framework that captures the key areas of due diligence, the due diligence process and principles.
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    Working towards an increase in manganese ferroalloy production in South Africa - a research agenda
    (Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, 2018) Steenkamp, J. D.; Bam, W. G.; Ringdalen, E.; Mushwana, M.; Hockaday, S. A. C.; Sithole, N. A.
    Although South Africa is endowed with one of the largest land-based deposits of manganese ore, in the order of 80% of the ore mined is exported for beneficiation elsewhere. The past 15 years has seen a decline in the production of manganese ferroalloys locally due to a steep rise in the price of electricity, among other factors. As local beneficiation of South Africa's resources is a national priority, a research agenda to increase manganese ferroalloy production in South Africa was developed. Inputs were obtained from various role-players in the value chain, including local smelter operations, research institutions both local and abroad, and companies providing support to the industry. Ninety-five research opportunities were identified and grouped into twenty-one research themes. The results are reported here in the context of a review of relevant Infacon papers and Mintek reports. As implementation of such a research agenda could be done through the development of a technology roadmap, the paper concludes with an example from Norway where a roadmap was developed to increase the use of natural gas in metal production.