estimation of the conceptual costs in construction projects can be regarded as an important issue in feasibility studies. this estimation has a major impact on the success of construction projects. indeed, this estimation supports the required information that can be employed in cost management and budgeting of these projects. the purpose of this paper is to introduce an intelligent model to im...

The introduction of Private Finance Initiative in the United Kingdom has prompted the need for quality whole life cost information. This in turn has led to a search for new innovative methods for producing whole life cost information. The research reported in this paper is a part of an overall approach being developed for whole life costing of building services. A particular problem identified ...

Neural networks were used to estimate the cost of jet engine components, specifically shafts and cases. The neural network process was compared with results produced by the current conventional cost estimation software and linear regression methods. Due to the complex nature of the parts and the limited amount of information available, data expansion techniques such as doubling-data and data-cr...

This study examines the corporate investment behavior during China’s reform era. We apply the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) estimation to the investment Euler equation models that characterize the Chinese firms’ investment decisions. Based on the estimated structural parameters, we derive the effective discount rate (“implied” cost of capital) perceived by the firm managers to decide inve...

Human Capital, Economic Growth, and Regional Inequality in China We study the dispersion in rates of provincial economicand TFP growth in China. Our results show that regional growth patterns can be understood as a function of several interrelated factors, which include investment in physical capital, human capital, and infrastructure capital; the infusion of new technology and its regional spr...

Many recent studies exploring conditional factor demand or factor substitution issues use firm level panel data. A considerable number of establishment panels contains no direct information on the capital input, necessary for production or cost function estimation. Incorrect measurement of capital leads to biased estimates and casts doubt on any inference on output elasticities or input substit...

The expected cost of capital is a crucial component for most of the topics in corporate finance. Unfortunately in the presence of risky debt, it is systematically overestimated. This bias is increasing in leverage and the volatility of cash flows. We show the existence of the bias and assess its size. We finally propose a novel methodology to obtain a direct unbiased estimation of the expected ...

When energy prices increased suddenly and unexpectedly in 1973-74 and 1979-80, a portion of the long-lived capital stock in U.S. manufacturing was rendered economically less valuable. In this paper we develop an analytical framework, consistent with the theory of cost and production, that provides an appealing structural interpretation of this capital revaluation phenomenon. In the spirit of a ...