RESEARCH RESULTS

Main publications (updated to April 2021)

In this section, it is possible to consult the publications produced by the PEL members. The Archive is updated Periodically. For the sake of brevity, only the twenty most recent publications for each author are listed below.

0
Indexed publications
0
Citations
Article •  Open Access
Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Maselli, G.

Water Science and Technology: Water Supply, 2020, 20(6), pp. 2050–2068

The projects that concern water resources are characterized by the multiple risk rates – even extra-financial – that significantly affect their concrete feasibility. Although the risk assessment is decisive for expressing economic convenience judgements on these project initiatives, the decision-maker does not have precise references to determine whether the residual investment risk is acceptable. Thus, the purpose of the paper is to overcome the limit set by characterizing a model for the acceptability of project risk, also considering the plurality of environmental effects that the water projects generate on the community. The idea is to integrate the logic ‘As Low As Reasonably Practicable’ (ALARP) into the procedural schemes of Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA). In accordance with this principle, widely applied in high-risk sectors such as those of industrial engineering, a risk is ALARP when the costs to further reduce it are disproportionate to the obtainable benefits. The application of the model to an irrigation reconversion intervention in a Municipality in the Province of Salerno (Italy) shows that the ALARP logic defines a general way of thinking and can contribute to the definition of effective forecasting protocols. In this sense, the proposed methodology becomes a useful support for environmental decision-making. (The paper is to be attributed in equal parts to the three authors.)

Article  •  Open Access

 Dolores, L., Macchiaroli, M., De Mare, G.

Sustainability2020, 12(4), 1694

The paper addresses the theme of sponsorship as the main form of public-private partnership through which to finance restoration/recovery interventions for the historical- architectural heritage. The goal is the maximization of sponsorship profitability for companies. Specifically, an existing dynamic model through which it was possible to estimate the optimal annual amount to be invested in sponsorship to maximize the current value of expected profits has been analyzed, reworked and for the first time applied to an Italian company. It was therefore assumed that the company is intent on supporting a multi-year program of sponsorship investment. It is also assumed that the corporation is a single-product company, operating in monopolistic competition and characterized by a Cobb-Douglas production function with decreasing returns to scale. The work is in continuity with a previous publication focused on the application and validation of a static model. The final goal is to provide tools for applied analysis of the financial sustainability of the sponsorship that forms incentive for companies to implement its use, facilitating the recovery of the historical-architectural heritage. Public bodies can thus benefit from the greater contribution of resources from private financiers for a zero-cost and sustainable valorization of cultural heritage.

Book Chapter

Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Maselli, G.

 

Advances in Science, Technology and Innovation, 2020, pp. 1115

Projects aimed at reducing water and/or energy consumption present technical and economic complexity profiles that require the analysis of the many components of investment risk. Risk analysis is essential to express judgements on the economic convenience of projects in the water-energy sectors. It is important to study actions for the mitigation of investment risk, so as to report the residual risk within tolerability limits. The integration of the as low as reasonably practicable (ALARP) logic with the cost-benefit analysis allows to define a protocol for the acceptance of the residual investment risk. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.

Conference Paper  •  Open Access

Dolores, L.Macchiaroli, M.De Mare, G.

 

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies2020177 SISTpp. 155–165

The paper explores the theme of sponsorship for the restoration/recovery of the historical-architectural heritage. The goal is to propose a model that allows both the sponsee (often public institution) and the sponsor company (mainly private) to maximize the monetary return generated by the investment. The model is tested through the following case study: the sponsorship of the restoration works of the Don Tullio’s Fountain located in the Villa Comunale of Salerno (Italy). In the logic of the model, the funding requested by the sponsee is necessarily inclusive of the amount equal to the cost of the restoration work but should also consider the financial advantage deriving from the advertising return to the sponsor company. These targets are estimated through the direct audience critical variable connected with the number of visitors of the location of interest. For the sponsor, on the other hand, assuming a Cobb-Douglas production function, it’s possible to quantify under static conditions the optimal percentage of turnover to invest in sponsorship to maximize profits. Assuming, therefore, that several companies are interested in sponsoring the restoration of the monument, the application of the model makes it possible to determine which company would be most suitable to sign the sponsorship contract.

Book Chapter

Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Aurigemma, I.

 

Green Energy and Technology, 2020, pp. 447–462

The issue of energy efficiency in buildings is now of prime importance, both in terms of financial and environmental impacts. In this sense, the broad literature is expressed in agreement. The theme, which is certainly important for the entire construction sector, is analyzed here taking as a reference the off-site construction, sometimes little investigated in sector studies, both with regard to new buildings and with regard to existing prefabricated buildings. In the first case, in fact, new buildings must comply with the increasingly stringent energy standards that national and international regulations prescribe; in the second case, prefabricated constructions with low energy performance are widespread in many countries, for which efficiency measures are required. In both circumstances, however, the market is increasingly tempted to the problem, for reasons not only of housing comfort but also purely monetary, also attributable to the greater appreciation that a high energy performance has on the market. In this perspective, the paper first articulates the phases of an investigation protocol to be re-purposed in the definition of the interventions to be implemented for the energy efficiency of buildings. Subsequently, with specific reference to existing prefabricated buildings, it aims to select alternative processes capable of increasing the energy efficiency of vertical opaque structures. The preliminary technical selection of possible actions is followed by the necessary financial analysis. This, by comparing the investment and operating costs with the revenues generated by the savings on consumption, makes it possible to establish the best intervention option.

Book Chapter

Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Fiore, P., Macchiaroli, M.

 

Valori e Valutazioni, 2020, 2020(25), pp. 1–2

[No abstract available]

Article

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M., Siano, E.

 

Valori e Valutazioni, 2020, 2020(24), pp. 97–106

With the Constitutional Court ruling 181/11, the much-discussed tertium genus was substantially legitimized and consequently openly recognized by the Court of Cassation with a series of clear and recent ordinances. This so-called third nature of land is perhaps better classifiable as another type of unbuildable category, com- pared to that of the areas characterized essentially as agricultural. This is in compliance with the original interpretative dichotomy, still in force by a law based on art. 37 of the Presidential Decree (DPR) 327/2001, between build- able and unbuildable areas. The proclamation of the existence of unbuildable but not even agricultural areas, poses estimative problems in certain circumstances that are well-known to the operators of the sector. However, in the case of areas that cannot be built on but without an agricultural nature, the complex specie of those falling in areas destined for equipment (infrastructures and hyperstructures) is considered and that are subjected to an exclusively public implementation initiative. For these areas, the absence of a direct reference market puts a strain on the principle of compensation based on the market value that was the key with which the ECHR undermined the compression mechanisms of compensation contained in the national Standard and linked to Parameters (VAM and cadastral income) detached from real commercial dynamics. This work, recalling and clarifying the aforementioned principle elements, draws the attention of the experts to a model developed at the University of Salerno under the coordination of prof. Nicola Morano (first professor emeritus of Appraisal in Italy) and remained unknown to most, to then apply it to a real case study in which the evaluation of land destined to the realization of a municipal level road is required.

Conference Paper

Dolores, L.Macchiaroli, M.De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.Gómez, E.M.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012253 LNCSpp. 285–299

The paper explores the theme of sponsorship aimed at enhancing the historical-architectural heritage, analyzing the point of view of companies. Specifically, a static analysis model proposed in a previous paper, whose objective is to establish the optimal amount to invest in sponsorship to maximize business profit, is integrated with an innovative model that allows the company to assess the degree of financial efficiency of the investment, i.e. its productivity. The latter depends on a series of variables that characterize both the monument to be enhanced, the location in which it is located, and the sponsorship strategy adopted by the company. However, in the case of sponsorship of recovery/restoration work, the critical variable that most affects the efficiency of the investment is the number of visitors to the location where the monument is located (direct audience). This is because as the number of visitors increases, the level of exposure to the sponsorship message increases. Therefore, we assume two functional relationships, one linear and the other logarithmic, which correlate financial efficiency to the average number of visitors. In this way, the advantage of the company is twofold. On the one hand, it has the opportunity to maximize profits by investing the optimal amount of sponsorship. On the other hand, it can choose the level of productivity of the investment by deciding to finance the monument of a specific location according to its degree of exposure.

Conference Paper

Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L., Pellecchia, V., De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)2020, 12255 LNCSpp. 146–161

The value of water as a resource has now been recognized on a global scale, albeit with different levels of awareness due to its availability and accessibility. All western countries have regulated the management sector of this resource (Integrated Water System – SII), regarding both its distribution as well as the purification and collection of sewage waste. Italy has also moved towards privatizing its management, proposing a collaborative mechanism between the public regulatory Authority and the private operator. The investments for the maintenance and development of the asset are therefore supported by the private investors. The model proposed in this work is based on the use of AHP to encourage the conciliation of opposing interests and rationalize a rather complex regulatory phase. It facilitates the selection of technical investment alternatives for the improvement of the SII supply standards.

Conference Paper

Nesticò, A., Maselli, G., De Mare, G., Gómez, E.M., Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)2020, 12251 LNCSpp. 836–851

This paper aims to define an innovative method to estimate the investment risk thresholds, in order to provide the analyst with essential terms for the economic evaluation of the projects. The idea is to borrow from the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) principle the concepts of the acceptability threshold and tolerability threshold of risk. Following this principle, generally used to assess the risk of human life loss, a risk is ALARP: when the costs for its mitigation appear to be disproportionate to the achievable benefits; that is when it lies between the unacceptable and the broadly acceptable region. To estimate the thresholds of acceptability and tolerability, the theoretical reference is the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which enables to compare the investment risk not only to the return of the production sector in which the project under consideration falls, but also to the return of the market as a whole. The combined use of CAPM and statistical survey methods makes it possible to attribute the two risk thresholds to investments in a specific sector. In this paper, the focus is on risk assessment for building construction projects. For this production sector, the proposed analysis model is implemented with reference to official data concerning the Italian economy.

Conference Paper

Dolores, L., Macchiaroli, M., De Mare, G.

 

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, 2019, 101, pp. 484–492

This paper proposes a model of support for public administrations aimed at determining the rates for the exploitation of image rights by those companies that intend to sponsor rehabilitation or restoration projects in order to enhance the historical and architectural heritage present in Italy. This model has been applied to the city of Salerno (Italy). Indeed, it was assumed that the municipal administration is looking for sponsors intent on financing the restoration works of four city monuments. Through the model it was possible to determine the amount of funding, to be paid by the sponsors, including the amounts necessary for restoration works and advertising costs. The advertising fees for the city of Salerno have been determined starting from those established by Naples Municipal and applied to similar cases of cultural sponsorship. The parameter used for the comparison is the average monthly number of attendances that characterizes each location (direct audience). The costs of restoration work, for each monument of Salerno, have been determined through expeditious bills of quantities. Finally, the total cost of sponsorship is equal to the sum of the restoration works costs and advertising costs.

Article  •  Open Access

Nesticò, A., He, S., De Mare, G., Benintendi, R., Maselli, G.

 

Sustainability (Switzerland), 201810(12)4668

This paper aims to define an innovative method to estimate the investment risk thresholds, in order to provide the analyst with essential terms for the economic evaluation of the projects. The idea is to borrow from the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) principle the concepts of the acceptability threshold and tolerability threshold of risk. Following this principle, generally used to assess the risk of human life loss, a risk is ALARP: when the costs for its mitigation appear to be disproportionate to the achievable benefits; that is when it lies between the unacceptable and the broadly acceptable region. To estimate the thresholds of acceptability and tolerability, the theoretical reference is the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which enables to compare the investment risk not only to the return of the production sector in which the project under consideration falls, but also to the return of the market as a whole. The combined use of CAPM and statistical survey methods makes it possible to attribute the two risk thresholds to investments in a specific sector. In this paper, the focus is on risk assessment for building construction projects. For this production sector, the proposed analysis model is implemented with reference to official data concerning the Italian economy.

Article
Benintendi, R., De Mare, G., Nesticò, A.

Hydrocarbon Processing, 201897(7)pp. 77–82

[No abstract available]

Article

Nesticò, A.De Mare, G.

 

Environments – MDPI, 2018, 5(4), pp. 1–12, 50

A city plays a central role in the processes of economic, social, and environmental development, becoming the core of policy makers’ strategies. Thus, it is essential to optimize the use of monetary resources available by means of integrated decision-support approaches, able to pursue an increasingly “instrumented, interconnected and intelligent” cities prototype. In this perspective, the Smart City paradigm addresses the challenges of sustainable development through the implementation of new spatial planning schemes, which require the selection of projects on the basis of multi-criteria economic evaluation logics, namely financial and extra-financial criteria. The purpose of the work is to define an innovative model of economic analysis for the choice of investments in a Smart City, useful for both public operators and private investors. The evaluation protocol is written in the A Mathematical Programming Language (AMPL) through the optimization algorithms of Discrete Linear Programming (DLP). The effectiveness, adaptability, and operational simplicity of the investigative tool are tested on a case study. The model’s limitations and research perspectives are highlighted in the conclusions of the work.

Book Chapter

Caprino, R.M., De Mare, G., Nesticò, A.

 

Green Energy and Technology, 2018, pp. 379–390

In the present context of continuing economic and financial crisis and increased social disadvantage, particularly marked in the Mezzogiorno of Italy, the experience of the Antonio Genovesi Prize was born. It’s a prototypical experiment of collaboration among the university, local government, business and local banks for economic, social, cultural and environmental development in the provinces of Salerno, Avellino and Napoli and overall for the implementation of useful synergies for the establishment of stronger growth prospects. This initiative has initiated to develop the economic feasibility profile for over 70 projects in five years, since 2011, for an investment budget of more than 500 million euros (De Mare et al. in La valutazione finanziaria di progetti per il rilancio del territorio. Applicazioni a casi reali. Franco Angeli, Milano, 2012). This report aims to represent and to highlight the effects of the actions undertaken through related activities at the regional level (Bottero et al. in Proc Soc Behav Sci 223:923–928, 2016). As a function of the increasing relevance of extra-monetary repercussions for investment decision makers, this paper estimates such social and environmental effects attributable to examined projects. This is in accordance with recent EU guidelines (see, the Social Impact Agenda for Italy). This association was founded in 2016 to collect the experience of the Social Impact Investment Taskforce (SIIT), launched in 2013 during the UK Presidency of the G8, to bring social-impact investments to the forefront of national agendas. This is about those initiatives strongly desired by Pope Francis in his Encyclical Laudato Si’ (2015) and able to give an answer to often unsatisfied needs for health, disabilities, new and more sustainable ways of living, social exclusion, promotion of cultural heritage (Nesticò et al. in Sustainability 7(11):14661–14676, 2015), cooperative management of goods and sharing economy platforms. In the manner shown and with the aim of collecting information in particular on occupational and environmental effects, the use of cross-sectoral matrices enable the prediction of the impacts on regional economy arising from concrete realization of interventions planned in the construction industry.

Conference Paper

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Benintendi, R., Maselli, G.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics), 201810964 LNCSpp. 75–86

Risk assessment is essential to express judgments of economic convenience on investment initiatives. This certainly applies to civil engineering projects, where the risk components are not only economic, but also environmental, social and cultural. Thus, the aim of the paper is to delineate a risk analysis model in the economic evaluation of investments through the development of algorithms where the Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) logic is integrated with the ALARP principle. The latter provides operative tools ensuring that risk is tolerable if it is “As Low As Reasonably Practicable”. The study shows that the ALARP logic, widely applied in sectors such as nuclear, energy and oil & gas, but less implemented in civil engineering, can instead become an important investigative tool if used jointly with the CBA precisely in the evaluation economic of civil projects, contributing to the characterization of efficient forecast protocols. In the first paragraph of the paper, the steps necessary to manage the risk connected to a project initiative are described and the ALARP logic is analysed. The second paragraph presents the risk analysis approaches traditionally used in the economic evaluation of projects. In the third section the logical scheme of an innovative protocol for the management of project risk is defined, by integrating the ALARP principles in the procedural scheme of the CBA. In conclusion, prospects for future research are outlined.

Article  •  Open Access

Dolores, L., Macchiaroli, M., De Mare, G.

 

Sustainability (Switzerland)20179(10)1750

This paper deals with private sponsorship as a tool for the redevelopment of Italy’s vast wealth of historical-architectural public heritage sites. Italian law provides for the stipulation of sponsorship agreements by and between public sector agencies or entities (which need financial resources to restore or re-qualify property) and private sector investors (which guarantee the capital sought by the public sector in exchange for significant returns on their investments) raising various economic issues, particularly in connection with the profitability thresholds for private sector investors in return for the public sector’s use of their financial resources. In this paper, the authors focus on how private sector investors determine how much of their businesses turnover constitutes the optimal percentage level of overall income that may be invested in sponsorships to maximize business profitability. For this purpose, a model based on past works on the subject (Bucci et al., 2003) has been chosen by the authors. Such model gives a solution for verifying a sponsorship’s profitability. This model is static and is applicable to single-product companies that invest in sponsorships, under the theories of monopolistic competition and of Cobb-Douglas production function. Our objectives are to present this model, explaining in detail the mathematical steps, simplifying the model where possible in order to reduce the levels of complexity in its application, and finally to apply it to real case scenarios of cultural sponsorships.

Article

Benintendi, R., De Mare, G.

 

Hydrocarbon Processing, 20172017(9)pp. 75–82

[No abstract available]

Article

De Mare, G.Nesticò, A.Macchiaroli, M.

 

Valori e Valutazioni, 2017, (18), pp. 17–23

The determination of the compensation for the public ablation of quarries, which represents an historic example of terzium genus within the expropriation matter, has always been a sui generis topic in the jurisprudential doctrine and an interesting argument for Appraisal. The latter, in fact, must provide logical and technical instruments for the monetary conversion of the principles developed and expressed by the judge. This study starts from the results of a previous research carried out in 2009 and updates its conclusions projecting them in an illustrative case study.

Conference Paper

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A.Macchiaroli, M.Dolores, L.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics), 2017, 10409 LNCS, pp. 430–440

In Italy, the institutional analysis of the real estate market values is carried out by the Inland Revenue (government agency), through the Observatory of the Real Estate Market (OMI). In the last ten years, the average values (for types of real estates: houses, warehouses, garages, etc.) reported by the OMI are much closer to the market prices really recorded through the housing market sale contracts. Therefore, the reform of taxes on the real estate, recently strongly required by the European Commission, intends to take as reference the OMI values to increase the level of equalization in the taxation. This measure wants to correlate taxes to the real market value of the property and not to the land register value, which is completely distant from the real prices: this is true both for historical reasons (the latest update of land register values dates to several years ago) and for the evolution that the market has suffered especially in the big cities because of metropolitan and transport infrastructure development. This paper intends to verify the reliability of the OMI values compared to actual market prices and, at the same time, intends to control the possibility to equalize the fiscal mechanism considering the same tax revenue, as the Government claims to be able to do. The intent is to avoid the sacrifice of the less affluent segments of the population benefiting the lobbies of high-quality property owners using these modern mechanisms of the tax system. In this model, has been implemented an informative dataset in GIS mode. The use of GIS instrument makes it easier to verify the differential between government data and market prices. 

Article
Cristiano, S.Ghisellini, P.D’Ambrosio, G., Xue, J., Nesticò, A., Gonella, F.Ulgiati, S.

Journal of Cleaner Production, 2021, 293, 125856

This study deals with the perspective of circular economy (CE) transition in the Construction and Demolition Waste Management (C&DWM) system of the Metropolitan City of Naples (Italy). It assesses the current building materials stored in the existing buildings and C&DW generation, composition and management, by means of public databases, i-Tree Canopy software and SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats). The final goal is to provide useful feedbacks to the city Administration and stakeholders to increase and improve the management of existing C&DW flows. The statistical database and the use of i-Tree Canopy for geographical assessment point out a large amount of building materials stocked in the existing buildings and potentially available, while results of the SWOT analysis, combined with TOWS matrix, show that the transition to CE in the C&DW management systems in the Metropolitan City of Naples still is at an early stage due to several weaknesses. The latter regard the lack of demand for recycled products, the lack of data in the end-of-life stage of recycling, and the presence of a high fraction of mixed C&DW reflecting the low adoption of reduction measures on C&D sites. Solutions are proposed with the purpose of better realigning the C&DWM system according to the CE principles as well as to increased sustainability.

Conference Paper
Nesticò, A.Elia, C.

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, 2021, 178 SIST, pp. 705–715

The evaluation of alternative scenarios of urban and territorial transformation is complex decision problem, the resolution of which requires the simultaneous consideration of issues not only technical, but also social, cultural and environmental, based on a pluralistic and systemic vision of the problem. The Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) techniques offer an effective help in this direction, which provide a rational methodology of choice capable of taking into account multiple objectives to be pursued. The aim of the paper is to define a multi-criteria evaluation model useful for selecting the best compromise combination of projects that must make up an integrated urban regeneration program. The novelty of the research consists in combining the Analytical Network Process (ANP) with the Zero-One Goal Programming (ZOGP), where the ANP allows to express the interdependence relations between the criteria, as well as between criteria and projects, while the ZOGP allows to consider requirements and constraints of the reference system. The actual application of the model may have repercussions on the processes of allocating public resources, thus constituting an economic policy tool.

Conference Paper
Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, 2021, 178 SIST, pp. 440–450

The discounting of costs and benefits is a critical operation when projects, plans and programmes with long-term extra-financial effects need to be assessed. Therefore, the aim of the paper is first to show the potential deriving from the use of specific procedures to discount the environmental impact of the investment, then to define a probabilistic model for the estimate of the “ecological” Declining Discount Rate and “economic” Declining Discount Rate. The implementation of the model to the data of the Italian economy returns an ecological discount rate lower than the economic one. This means giving more weight to environmental externalities rather than strictly financial repercussions. This has a clear impact on the decision-making process for projects with intergenerational environmental implications.

Book Chapter
Maselli, G., Nesticò, A.

Green Energy and Technology, 2021, pp. 43–56

For investments in the civil sector, the paper proposes a risk assessment model that introduces risk acceptability and tolerability thresholds according to the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) logic. The idea is to use the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) because it is able to associate return limit values, and therefore risk, to the project. The joint use of the CAPM and statistical survey tools leads to the estimation of investment risk thresholds on objective data, depending on both the production sector and the reference territory. An application to the building construction sector in Campania Region (Italy) verifies the effectiveness of the model.

Conference Paper
D’Andria, E.Fiore, P.Nesticò, A.

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, 2021, 178 SIST, pp. 652–662

Small towns are a widespread heritage that needs to be protected and valorized because it preserves identity and community values. The de-marginalisation and depopulation phenomena of which they are affected call for rapid actions with effective and organic strategies. Hence the purpose of the work, aimed at characterizing a multi-criteria analysis tool useful to express judgements on economic convenience of small towns valorization projects. Thus, in the light of the sustainable development principles, analysis criteria and sub-criteria are first defined. Evaluation indices are then selected and proposed with regard to the historical-architectural criteria. Research perspectives are in the study conclusions.

Conference Paper
Nesticò, A.Bencardino, M.Di Fraia, V.

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, 2021, 178 SIST, pp. 716–726

The making of land values is conditioned not only by the specific soil production capacities, but also by socio-demographic and economic parameters of the territory. The research aims to highlight the logical-dimensional relationships existing between the land values of a cultivated quality widely spread over a large area and the variables population density and average taxable income, representative of the socio-demographic and income conditions of the population. The elaborations are carried out through spatial correlation analysis, which also makes use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). An application is developed with regard to the average land values of irrigated arable land in the Campania region (Italy). (*) The contribution to this paper is the result of the joint work of the three authors, to which the paper has to be attributed in equal parts.

Conference Paper
Nesticò, A.Sica, F.Endreny, T.

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, 2021, 178 SIST, pp. 802–810

The market value of urban property depends not only on its specific characteristics, but also on reference macro-economic variables such as socio-demographic, productive, infrastructural, and environmental quality and associated ecosystem services. The links between urban property real estate values and ecosystem services, particularly those generated by urban forests, are not yet sufficiently investigated and hence are the focus of this research. The study site is the City of Syracuse, New York, USA, with well characterized urban forest ecosystem services and property values. The study correlated real estate values and parameters of economic condition (per-capita income), ecosystem services (carbon sequestration), and urban forestry system (tree canopy area). The median home value correlation with both per capita income had an R = 0.8748 and with carbon sequestration it had an R = 0.7757. The data was obtained in the online i-Tree Landscape tool. Geographic information systems analysis was used to create maps that support analysis of the correlation levels between the involved variables. 2 2

Article
Nesticò, A.Elia, C.Naddeo, V.

Land Use Policy, 2020, 99, 104831

The urban land use policy must pursue sustainable development goals. These objectives are not only economic but also social, cultural, and environmental. Therefore, the definition of investment programs for the city must take place by selecting the projects on the basis of multiple evaluation criteria. The aim of the work is to define a multi-criteria evaluation model capable of selecting the combination of the best combination of the projects that must make up an integrated urban regeneration program. The novelty of the research consists in combining the algorithms of the Analytical Network Process (ANP) with those of the Zero-One Goal Programming (ZOGP), where the ANP makes it possible to clarify the interdependence relations between the criteria, as well as between criteria and projects, while the ZOGP allows considering requirements and constraints of the reference system. The effectiveness of the analysis tool is verified in a case study. The results of the research show that the model is able to direct the decision-maker towards urban regeneration programs that, effectively, reach the maximization of the final benefits, both in financial and socio-environmental terms. The algorithms also reveal considerable flexibility of the instrument, so much that it can be easily applied also for the characterization of urban programs aimed at different territorial contexts. The effects that the application of the model may have on land use and on the processes of allocating public resources highlight the important implications of Economic Policy.

Article •  Open Access
Gerundo, R.Nesticò, A.Marra, A.Carotenuto, M.

Sustainability (Switzerland), 2020, 12(19), pp. 1–19, 8024

The term peripheralization indicates a process that can generate social, physical, and environmental degradation in urban areas. In the light of the new urban geography and the socio-economic trends taking place globally, there is a risk that the typical decay of a peripheral condition may affect city in their entirety, regardless of spatial proximity to its centre. Then, regeneration interventions should be targeted primarily at areas with a significant peripheralization risk, understood as a combination of potential degradation factors. Consequently, the decision-makers’ choice of the best design alternative should be informed by the knowledge of pre-existing vulnerability levels, and oriented towards the solution that maximizes their reduction. This is possible when the planning of interventions in the most vulnerable areas, through Urban Regeneration Programs, is able to take into account the results of the project alternatives economic evaluation. Such an approach constitutes the main novelty of the study. So, the aim of the work is to provide a decision support model for the evaluation of urban regeneration interventions effectiveness in areas of high peripheralization risk. To this end, the contribution defines a set of mitigation indicators and the assessment of the most effective design alternative through analytic hierarchy process (AHP). The proposed model was applied to an area of Marcianise Municipality, in Campania Region (Italy).

Article •  Open Access
Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Maselli, G.

Water Science and Technology: Water Supply, 2020, 20(6), pp. 2050–2068

The projects that concern water resources are characterized by the multiple risk rates – even extra-financial – that significantly affect their concrete feasibility. Although the risk assessment is decisive for expressing economic convenience judgements on these project initiatives, the decision-maker does not have precise references to determine whether the residual investment risk is acceptable. Thus, the purpose of the paper is to overcome the limit set by characterizing a model for the acceptability of project risk, also considering the plurality of environmental effects that the water projects generate on the community. The idea is to integrate the logic ‘As Low As Reasonably Practicable’ (ALARP) into the procedural schemes of Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA). In accordance with this principle, widely applied in high-risk sectors such as those of industrial engineering, a risk is ALARP when the costs to further reduce it are disproportionate to the obtainable benefits. The application of the model to an irrigation reconversion intervention in a Municipality in the Province of Salerno (Italy) shows that the ALARP logic defines a general way of thinking and can contribute to the definition of effective forecasting protocols. In this sense, the proposed methodology becomes a useful support for environmental decision-making. (The paper is to be attributed in equal parts to the three authors.)

Article •  Open Access
Nesticò, A.Marca, M.L.

Sustainability (Switzerland), 2020, 12(16), 6304

It is well known that production activities are often the cause of ecosystem disservices. Such disservices can have serious effects on urban real estate values. But how much is the contraction that the market values of housing suffer due to the polluting emissions produced by a medium-sized foundry? And how large is the urban area within which buildings are depreciated? With this research we intend to give an answer. To this aim, with specific regard to urban apartments free from contractual constraints, the use of multiple regression analysis makes it possible to obtain a function that explains the real estate value through multiple variables, one of which is representative of the ecosystem disservice. The study reveals that the urban area that suffers from the negative effects of polluting industrial activities on property prices can be extensive. On the other hand, the contractions of real estate values can even reach 43%. These results, for the first time expressed in quantitative terms, must direct towards urban planning interventions, and more generally of economic policy, aimed at minimizing the environmental impacts of production activities. This is not only for the essential obligations to protect environment and human health, but also in relation to the direct economic implications of the decrease in the value of real estate.

Article •  Open Access
Nesticò, A., Fiore, P., D’Andria, E.

Sustainability (Switzerland), 2020, 12(16), 6359

In response to the abandonment and depopulation of small towns in inland areas, it is necessary to provide analysis and technical-economic evaluation tools with the aim of selecting effective recovery and valorization strategies. In the light of what criteria and indicators should this selection be carried out? The principles of sustainability guide us to a new definition of social, economic, environmental, and historical-architectural criteria. The intention is to outline a new way of classifying the judgment criteria, exclusively referring to the peculiarities of small towns. In turn, the criteria are specifically defined in sixteen sub-criteria, again able to represent the salient features of small municipalities: Local traditions, genius loci, urbanization levels, but also prevailing economy, environmental (flora and fauna, water, soil, air, etc.), and historical-architectural components (relations between the small town and the immediate context, formal relationship between building and urban core, etc.). This is followed by the drafting of a novel dataset of evaluation indicators, capable of expressing the project actions’ capacity to pursue the objectives expressed by the criteria. These are datasets that give back 24 indicators for the social sub-criteria, 42 for the economic sub-criteria, 34 for the environmental ones, and 38 for the historical-architectural ones. The goal-criteria-subcriteria-indicators structure outlined in this paper opens up research perspectives on the characterization of a hierarchical model of multi-criteria analysis.

Article
Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

Journal of Economic Studies, 2020, 47(3), pp. 527–545

Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to characterize an evaluation protocol of the social discount rate (SDR). This is based on the social rate of time preference (SRTP) principles, according to which the investment selection process must tend to maximize the utility of the community. Design/methodology/approach: The theoretical reference of the evaluation protocol is represented by the Ramsey formula. It is widely used in many countries with advanced economics for the SRTP estimation, through the maximization of the Social Welfare Function (SWF). Findings: The protocol structure and the protocol applications to the Italian and US economies explain how the SDR value is influenced by the socio-economic structure of the single nation. Research limitations/implications: The strong variability of the results of the SDR according to the theoretical approach of reference and the operating path that follows can lead to judgments decidedly divergent on the acceptability of the public project, hence, the important policy implications for the entire allocation process of public resources. Practical implications: The applications allow to highlight the important operational problems that must be resolved with regard to the choice of the time intervals of the evaluations, as well as logical-operational tools to be used to express estimates of parameters. Social implications: They are relevant in relation to the effects of a more equitable allocation of the resources. Originality/value: The protocol for the SDR estimation is based both on solid disciplinary principles and on objective data of non-complex availability and representative of the economic and socio-demographic context of the country in which the decision-making process is implemented.

Article
Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

Journal of Cleaner Production, 2020, 248, 119217

The sustainable tourism development is often a key element for the enhancement of island states. The fragility and the environmental, social and economic vulnerability that characterize these territories make the need to integrate the multiple aspects of sustainability into the decision-making processes concerning the definition of plans and programs of investment in the tourism sector increasingly urgent. Thus, the aim of the work is to build a dataset of sustainability indicators classified and weighed according to the subsequent characterization of a multi-criteria evaluation model. This dataset is obtained by defining an analysis procedure aimed at: selecting scientifically valid indicators, readily available by the analysts and easy to interpret by stakeholders; weighing the indicators themselves based on criteria shared in the literature; taking into account the uniqueness of the territorial reference system. The evaluation protocol proposed is substantiated in the subsequent steps of selection, classification, weighting and ranking of sustainability indicators for the analysis of tourism projects on the island. Innovative elements essentially concern weighting operation. In fact, the weight of each indicator is a function of several evaluation criteria and is estimated by using both statistical analysis methods and analytic hierarchy processes. The output of the study, consisting of the dataset of sustainability indicators, is a prerequisite for the subsequent characterization of a multi-criteria evaluation model able to select investment projects that balance the environmental, economic and social specificities of the island. This can determine greater effectiveness in the allocation processes of both public and private resources.

Book Chapter
Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

Advances in Science, Technology and Innovation, 2020, pp. 17–20

In the cost-benefit analysis (CBA), the declining discount rate (DDR) certainly allows to assign the right weight for the long-term effects of investment projects. The DDR gives the opportunity to properly evaluate projects for sustainable development in the water and energy sectors. The estimation model of the DDR based on probabilistic logic solves the problem of the excessive contraction of the project cash flows that occur in temporal instants that are distant from the evaluation one.

Article •  Open Access
Maselli, G., Nesticò, A.

Valori e Valutazioni, 2020, 2020(24), pp. 181–194

In the Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) the traditional discount procedures determine a significant contraction of the financial terms that are furthest over time. This contraction is not acceptable in the economic evaluation of public projects with inter-generational effects, since it causes little appreciation of the net benefits for the future generations. The use of time-Declining Discount Rate (DDR) represents a possible solution to the problem. Following a critical analysis of the main methodologies that the theory describes, the study proposes an innovative model for the estimation of DDR. The model, based on principles widely recognized in literature, uses probabilistic laws and returns a simple-use forecasting algorithm, as uses economic and demographic data easy to find. The implementation for the Italian economy makes it possible to validate the model and makes it clear how significantly the results of the CBA can vary if a declining discount rate instead of a time-invariant rate is chosen. The important political repercussions on the entire allocation process of public resources demonstrate the effectiveness of hyperbolic discount procedures, suggesting to distinguish between constant discount rates for the evaluation of projects with intra-generational effects and time-declining discount rates for interventions with inter-generational implications.

Article
Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management, 2020, 8(1), pp. 93–110

The decision-making processes regarding projects with long-term environmental implications are strongly influenced by the estimate of the Social Discount Rate (SDR). An economic parameter that makes it possible to compare financially the Cash Flows (CFs) that occur at different time points, in the discounting the SDR reduces excessively the costs and benefits more distant over time. If this problem is particularly marked in the Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) conducted with time-invariant discount rates, it can be overcome by adopting time-declining discount rates. Thus, starting from the examination of the potentialities connected with the application of hyperbolic discounting in the CBAs, the aim of the work is to characterize an innovative probabilistic model for estimating the Declining Discount Rate (DDR), able to overcome the limits of the theoretical approaches recognized in the literature. The model is implemented on the data of the Italian economy and the DDRs estimated in this way are used in the economic feasibility study of an irrigation reconversion intervention. The processing proves that the adoption of time-declining discount rate allows attributing greater “weight” to the positive long-term externalities that characterize the interventions that promote sustainable development. This with decisive repercussions on the priority order of the initiatives to be financed and therefore on the entire allocation process of resources to be used to projects with intergenerational environmental implications. (*) The contribution to this paper is the result of the joint work of the two authors, to which the paper has to be attributed in equal parts.

Book Chapter

Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Maselli, G.

 

Advances in Science, Technology and Innovation, 2020, pp. 1115

Projects aimed at reducing water and/or energy consumption present technical and economic complexity profiles that require the analysis of the many components of investment risk. Risk analysis is essential to express judgements on the economic convenience of projects in the water-energy sectors. It is important to study actions for the mitigation of investment risk, so as to report the residual risk within tolerability limits. The integration of the as low as reasonably practicable (ALARP) logic with the cost-benefit analysis allows to define a protocol for the acceptance of the residual investment risk. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.

Article

Nesticò, A.Macchiaroli, M.Maselli, G.

 

Valori e Valutazioni20202020(25)pp. 91–98

The Italian territory is characterized by a network of small municipalities with a weak economy, yet connoted by strong natural and landscape values. These are urban centres with often unique characters that deserve to be preserved from the dramatic consequences of the widespread phenomenon of depopulation. Countering these trends requires the planning of economically sustainable intervention strategies. With this research, we intend propose an innovative model of economic evaluation able to support the decision maker in the risk analysis related to the projects for the enhancement of small towns. The idea is to introduce in the traditional evaluation processes thresholds of acceptability and tolerability of risk so as defined by the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) logic. Widely consolidated for the evaluation of the safety risk, this principle can also find application in the analysis of the investments in question, where it is necessary to operate a triangular balance between risks, mitigation costs and prosecutable benefits. The case study demonstrates the effectiveness of the model. In particular, the advantages for the public operator, which can consciously express a judgment on risk of the initiatives to be financed, are relevant.

Article

Nesticò, A.D’Andria, E.Fiore, P.

 

Valori e Valutazioni20202020(25)pp. 3–10

The valorization of small towns is an increasingly current topic because of the significant value for the sustainable development of the territories. Places of departure, small towns represent the melting pot of common feeling, regional and national identities, tangible and intangible heritages. But if it is now imperative to intervene also in order to stop the migratory phenomenon that affects them, it is useful to implement logical schemes and analysis procedures aimed at a rigorous selection of investment options. Thus, the paper proposes an innovative model for the economic evaluation of projects aimed at the valorization of small municipalities. In particular, the study investigates criteria, sub-criteria and indicators to be implemented according to the Analytical Hierarchy Process approach.

Article
Benintendi, R.

Hydrocarbon Processing, 2020, 99(10)

This article discusses an innovative and effective technique for H S toxic risk mitigation. The technique involves the combination of the Taylor-Ergun model (damper banks) and the Fthenakis model for fluid curtains.

Article

Benintendi, R.

Process Safety and Environmental Protection, 2019, 132, pp. 22–34

Risk management of hydrogen sulphide is a challenging task in refinery operations. Despite the availability of very accurate modelling techniques and the compliance with internationally shared risk limits in hydrogen sulphide release prevention, post-release mitigation of hydrogen sulphide often remains a critical scenario. Fluid curtains are a well-known technology, which has successfully been adopted to mitigate mainly releases of hydrogen fluoride and ammonia. For these substances, high absorption effectiveness in pure water has enabled the technology to be included among the most advantageous methodologies in toxic hazard mitigation. Unfortunately, hydrogen sulphide is not absorbable in pure water, so that the application of fluid curtains would entail specific conceptual, design and operational aspects, in order for this technology to meet the same level of effectiveness attained for other toxic gases, especially when hydrogen sulphide concentrations are significant. This specific application has been dealt with to a very limited extent in the literature and no applications are reported at industrial level. Based on the elaboration of chemiabsorption absorption experimental data provided by van Krevelen et al. (1948), and by Astarita and Gioia (1964), this paper analyses and specializes the application of Fthenakis’ model to hydrogen sulphide absorption in carbonate solutions, investigating and implementimg in full detail the available experimental data of chemisorption and the related fluid-dynamic aspects. A case study shows the high effectiveness of the technique, provided that chemistry and fluid dynamic aspects are fully identified and addressed in the design.

Article  •  Open Access

Nesticò, A.He, S.De Mare, G.Benintendi, R.Maselli, G.

 

Sustainability (Switzerland), 201810(12)4668

The process of allocating financial resources is extremely complex-both because the selection of investments depends on multiple, and interrelated, variables, and constraints that limit the eligibility domain of the solutions, and because the feasibility of projects is influenced by risk factors. In this sense, it is essential to develop economic evaluations on a probabilistic basis. Nevertheless, for the civil engineering sector, the literature emphasizes the centrality of risk management, in order to establish interventions for risk mitigation. On the other hand, few methodologies are available to systematically compare ante and post mitigation design risk, along with the verification of the economic convenience of these actions. The aim of the paper is to demonstrate how these limits can be at least partially overcome by integrating, in the traditional Cost-Benefit Analysis schemes, the As Low as Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) logic. According to it, the risk is tolerable only if it is impossible to reduce it further or if the costs to mitigate it are disproportionate to the benefits obtainable. The research outlines the phases of an innovative protocol for managing investment risks. On the basis of a case study dealing with a project for the recovery and transformation of an ancient medieval village into a widespread-hotel, the novelty of the model consists of the characterization of acceptability and tolerability thresholds of the investment risk, as well as its ability to guarantee the triangular balance between risks, costs and benefits deriving from mitigation options.

Article
Benintendi, R., De Mare, G., Nesticò, A.

Hydrocarbon Processing, 201897(7)pp. 77–82

[No abstract available]

Conference Paper

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Benintendi, R., Maselli, G.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics), 201810964 LNCSpp. 75–86

Risk assessment is essential to express judgments of economic convenience on investment initiatives. This certainly applies to civil engineering projects, where the risk components are not only economic, but also environmental, social and cultural. Thus, the aim of the paper is to delineate a risk analysis model in the economic evaluation of investments through the development of algorithms where the Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) logic is integrated with the ALARP principle. The latter provides operative tools ensuring that risk is tolerable if it is “As Low As Reasonably Practicable”. The study shows that the ALARP logic, widely applied in sectors such as nuclear, energy and oil & gas, but less implemented in civil engineering, can instead become an important investigative tool if used jointly with the CBA precisely in the evaluation economic of civil projects, contributing to the characterization of efficient forecast protocols. In the first paragraph of the paper, the steps necessary to manage the risk connected to a project initiative are described and the ALARP logic is analysed. The second paragraph presents the risk analysis approaches traditionally used in the economic evaluation of projects. In the third section the logical scheme of an innovative protocol for the management of project risk is defined, by integrating the ALARP principles in the procedural scheme of the CBA. In conclusion, prospects for future research are outlined.

Article

Benintendi, R., De Mare, G.

 

Hydrocarbon Processing, 20172017(9)pp. 75–82

[No abstract available]

Article

Benintendi, R.

 

Process Safety and Environmental Protection2016101pp. 108–116

This article deals with role and importance of adsorption in the activated sludge substrate degradation. This process is typically described according to the Monod–Michaelis–Menten (M–MM) kinetics, which is based on the assumption that the substrate has been pre-adsorbed on flocs in order for the biochemical reaction to take place. However, the simple and generalised use of M–MM equation in wastewater treatment modelling could be misleading in describing some specific scenarios, where substrate in the liquid phase is not in equilibrium with substrate inside the flocs and, in general, when adsorption and kinetic rates are not comparable. This can occur in numerous process configurations, during plant start-up, when substrate peaks or significant fluctuations are met, in batch processes. An experimental test has been carried out with the aim to investigate the characteristics of the adsorption mechanism and its relationship with the stored mass degradation. Direct application of M–MM kinetics failed in fitting the experimental data. External transport and Glueckauf and Coates particle-phase diffusion relations have been adopted to study substrate transfer to active sites. Andrews and Busby model has then been applied and an excellent accordance with the experimental data has been found. As a final aim of the work, transition from adsorption-to-kinetics has been modelled, which has shown to be very effective for a full understanding of phenomena.

Article

Benintendi, R.

 

Education for Chemical Engineers201615pp. 23–32

Process safety has undergone a tremendous growth over the last decades, both in terms of required competencies and in terms of market demand. Although its cultural background mainly consists of the traditional subjects of chemical and process engineering, a multifaceted range of expertise has made it autonomous and different from the general chemical engineering frame: the interdisciplinary degree is much wider, the relevant regulations and standards have become so stringent and specific to become a key driver for the scientific and technical development of the discipline, its current growth trend is probably incomparable to others, role and functions of process safety engineers have acquired more significances and implications in the industrial scenario. This article considers the learning lessons of a long tutoring and teaching activity that the author has carried out in process safety between university and industry in Europe and in Asia. The findings have been analysed and converted into specific indicators and trend data, with the aim to contribute to reduce the significant gap which still exists in a branch of chemical engineering that is expected to increase its complexity and importance in the near future.

Article

Benintendi, R.

 

Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries201640pp. 537–545

Release of liquids from vessels and pipelines is a very important scenario in consequence assessment. When the operating pressure is significant, its evolution and the corresponding discharge rate are affected by the elastic behaviour of the liquid. Bulk modulus is the key-driver of the related fluid-dynamics and is expected to govern the elastic-to-atmospheric pressure transition. Despite the well known physical background, the availability of release models relevant to the elastic phase is rather poor, compared to those relevant to vapours, gases and atmospheric liquids. On the other hand, if the operating pressure is high, release times and dynamics are expected to be strongly affected by the elastic behaviour and prediction of release time and flow rate is fundamental. This article carries outs a general analysis of the elastic behaviour of liquids, including water and hydrocarbons. Lumped (vessel-type) and distributed (pipeline) parameters systems have been modelled with the aim to characterize the pressure evolution during the elastic phase and to evaluate the significance of the associated duration. The findings have shown that, depending on pressure and geometric features, the importance of the elastic phase is high and that the availability of reliable and relatively simple models could be beneficial in consequence assessment. The approach is strictly valid for non-boiling liquid, but accounting for vaporisation of flashing or boiling liquids such as LPG and LNG would not imply significant complications.

Article

Benintendi, R.Rega, S.

 

Chemical Engineering Research and Design, 2014, 92(12), pp. 2055–2071

Rapid phase transition (RPT) is a phenomenon which frequently occurs after an LNG release on water. Its effects are potentially hazardous mainly because of the very fast rate of high energy release, in addition to fire and explosion. A significant case history and various experimental campaigns provide evidence which has allowed assessing different aspects of this event. This paper aims at offering a unified thermodynamic analysis of RPT. The thermodynamic and the kinetic limits of liquid superheat have been fully reviewed and specifically applied to LNG, within the homogeneous nucleation theory for multi-component liquids. Thermal and thermo-mechanical interface properties, such as interface temperature, evaporation rate, surface properties and liquid fragmentation have also been investigated. The importance of LNG composition has been analysed with respect to the experimental data. Finally, on the basis of the well known Shepherd and Sturtevart test, bubble growth rate has been modelled according to Mikic, Rohsenow and Griffith (MRG) equation and a new rigorous method has been set up to predict RPT overpressure, in line with Lighthill’s acoustic theory, which removes the existing uncertainty and some subjectivities of the available models and possibly increases the thermo-fluid dynamic understanding of the phenomenon.

Article

Benintendi, R.

 

Process Safety and Environmental Protection201492(1)pp. 47–59

Release of liquid and supercritical carbon dioxide is a fundamental research topic in CCS. Traditional approach is largely based on HEM and, in general, assumes equilibrium from the outlet to the Mach disc. Experimental results have shown that this approach is not always effective in describing the expansion phenomenon; therefore a significant lack of knowledge exists about CO properties at the under-expanded jet zone boundary, which is a main focus in process safety. Here, solid formation, vapour quality, sonic velocity and final temperature are generally calculated according to equilibrium saturation condition, and this is generally incorrect. This article deals with non-equilibrium thermodynamics of liquid and supercritical CO expansion, illustrating relaxation dynamics through the HRM models, and discussing the very specific singularities of CO phase transitions, vapour to liquid and liquid to solid, that result away from the equilibrium condition, due to the rapid phase changes and to the specific properties of CO multi phase thermodynamics, including nucleation and particle growth. Statistical rate theory has been applied with the aim at identifying the phase transition energy barrier, resulting in a significant entropy increase. A case study based on HEM conservation equations integrated with the statistical rate approach has been presented, which covers the gap of the equilibrium hypothesis. The objective of the article is to provide a more accurate method to predict the properties of carbon dioxide following an expansion. © 2013 The Institution of Chemical Engineers. 

Article

Benintendi, R.Round, S.

Hydrocarbon Processing2014(NOVEMBER 2014)

The safe warehousing of hazardous chemicals is a design challenge in chemical and petrochemical projects. The wide range of properties and regulatory constraints requires a full understanding of all of the predictable implications over the various engineering disciplines engaged in the design, as well as a high degree of integration of the competencies.

Conference Paper

Benintendi, R.Round, S.

Institution of Chemical Engineers Symposium Series, 2014, (159)

Foster Wheeler has been involved in the design of chemical warehouse buildings. This paper describes the main challenges associated in developing a safe design, which requires the identification and understanding of all of the hazardous and harmful properties of the substances likely to enter and be stored in the warehouse, compliance with the applicable regulations and standards, and the implementation of multi-disciplinary competencies in order to manage impacts on the environment and on human health. This paper describes the most significant aspects of the design relative to the packaging and warehousing of chemicals with a broad range of potential hazards, including high toxicity, flammability, combustibility, water and side reactivity, and incompatibility. An integrated design team has identified and developed mitigation strategies for the risks associated with the handling and storage of these chemicals, complying with project standards and design specifications. The article also highlights how hazardous materials warehousing differs from traditional outdoor storage and process plant, and considers the critical design issues.

Conference Paper

Benintendi, R.Guio, A.D.R.Marsh, S.Wheeler, F.

Institution of Chemical Engineers Symposium Series2014(159)

Safety distance determination is a key design issue in the process industry. This is usually carried out early in the project lifecycle and often represents a “point of no return” in design development. This may have a dramatic impact on a project, either because some serious safety issues may emerge later or because a poor selection of safety distance can prevent optimum utilisation of available space. Full understanding of safety distances is typically only achieved when it is too late to implement without significant changes. For the layout of plant, prescriptive distances between equipment items are generally used, according to a tabular matrix including standard spacing distances. These values have been based on empirical or statistical data and as such are not risk-based. Foster Wheeler has implemented a risk-based methodology for the determination of safety distances in the process industry, which encompasses all major hazard scenarios including jet fires, flash fires, explosions, boiling liquid expanding vapour explosion (BLEVE), and toxic releases. This methodology incorporates the fundamental criteria of the parts count procedure to identify the most critical risks, along with representative streams and substances, with the aim of providing a simple but effective tool to be used early in the project lifecycle, identifying and taking into account the process parameters and the associated uncertainty. Modelling has been calibrated using DNV PHAST 6.6 to verify the validity of the results obtained. Some specific case studies are included in this article.

Article

Benintendi, R.

Hydrocarbon Processing, 2012, 91(4)

[No abstract available]

Article

Benintendi, R.

Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, 2011, 24(2), pp. 123–130

A previous article dealt with turbulent jet flow modelling with the aim at developing a method for estimating the size of explosive clouds following a high Reynolds number release, within hazardous area classification scheme. The results have demonstrated that the standard EN 60079-10 (2009) largely overestimates the real size of clouds resulting from a piping or a vessel leak. On the other hand, laminar jets are possible also at moderately high Reynolds numbers; furthermore, a reduced momentum, typical of laminar jets, is often assumed in QRA studies, as a conservative assumption, due to the expected lower air entrainment and to the corresponding larger size of the flammable cloud volume. These considerations have suggested the suitability to extend the previous analysis also to laminar regime, taking into account the effect of density and viscosity differences between air and flammable gas. 

Review

Benintendi, R.

Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, 2010, 23(3), pp. 373–378

Hazardous area classification, as per EN 60079-10, is based on the explosive gas volume of the clouds in which the average gas concentration is related to the Low Explosion Limit (LEL). The higher Reynolds number, the less this approach is valid, because of the development of a concentration gradient due to the momentum driven flow. The resulting areas and volumes may be overestimated by two or three orders of magnitude, which is often critical in equipment design and selection. This paper proposes and technically justifies an overview of turbulent jet flow modelling, with the aim at developing a more realistic calculation method of the hazardous areas, within the ATEX approach. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Conference Paper
Maselli, G., Macchiaroli, M.

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, 2021178 SISTpp. 686–695

Assessing the riskiness of the investments is one of the key steps in the decision-making process. However, the lack in the legislative landscape of criteria for the acceptability of investment risk makes it difficult to express judgments of economic convenience based on shared criteria and objective data. In an attempt to overcome this regulatory gap, the aim of the paper is twofold: 1. to define minimum levels of acceptance of investment risk; 2. to outline an approach for the estimation of these threshold values. With reference to the first objective, acceptability and tolerability thresholds of risk are borrowed from the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) logic. In accordance with this principle, which is widely used in safety risk, a risk is defined as ALARP if it falls within the above thresholds or if the costs for its mitigation appear disproportionate to the benefits that can be achieved. With regard to the second objective, the theoretical reference is the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) which defines how to assess the minimum expected return on an investment project with a given risk profile. Thus, the combined use of the CAPM and statistical survey tools makes it possible to estimate specific risk limit values as a function both of investment sector and with respect to the territorial context in which the project is located. Finally, the described approach is validated through an application to the civil enterprise sector in Campania Region (Italy).

Article  •  Open Access

 Dolores, L., Macchiaroli, M., De Mare, G.

Sustainability2020, 12(4), 1694

The paper addresses the theme of sponsorship as the main form of public-private partnership through which to finance restoration/recovery interventions for the historical- architectural heritage. The goal is the maximization of sponsorship profitability for companies. Specifically, an existing dynamic model through which it was possible to estimate the optimal annual amount to be invested in sponsorship to maximize the current value of expected profits has been analyzed, reworked and for the first time applied to an Italian company. It was therefore assumed that the company is intent on supporting a multi-year program of sponsorship investment. It is also assumed that the corporation is a single-product company, operating in monopolistic competition and characterized by a Cobb-Douglas production function with decreasing returns to scale. The work is in continuity with a previous publication focused on the application and validation of a static model. The final goal is to provide tools for applied analysis of the financial sustainability of the sponsorship that forms incentive for companies to implement its use, facilitating the recovery of the historical-architectural heritage. Public bodies can thus benefit from the greater contribution of resources from private financiers for a zero-cost and sustainable valorization of cultural heritage.

Article

Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M, Maselli, G.

 

Valori e Valutazioni, 20202020(25)pp. 91–98

The Italian territory is characterized by a network of small municipalities with a weak economy, yet connoted by strong natural and landscape values. These are urban centres with often unique characters that deserve to be preserved from the dramatic consequences of the widespread phenomenon of depopulation. Countering these trends requires the planning of economically sustainable intervention strategies. With this research, we intend propose an innovative model of economic evaluation able to support the decision maker in the risk analysis related to the projects for the enhancement of small towns. The idea is to introduce in the traditional evaluation processes thresholds of acceptability and tolerability of risk so as defined by the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) logic. Widely consolidated for the evaluation of the safety risk, this principle can also find application in the analysis of the investments in question, where it is necessary to operate a triangular balance between risks, mitigation costs and prosecutable benefits. The case study demonstrates the effectiveness of the model. In particular, the advantages for the public operator, which can consciously express a judgment on risk of the initiatives to be financed, are relevant.

Conference Paper  • Open Access
Dolores, L.Macchiaroli, M.de Mare, G.

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies2020177 SISTpp. 155–165

The paper explores the theme of sponsorship for the restoration/recovery of the historical-architectural heritage. The goal is to propose a model that allows both the sponsee (often public institution) and the sponsor company (mainly private) to maximize the monetary return generated by the investment. The model is tested through the following case study: the sponsorship of the restoration works of the Don Tullio’s Fountain located in the Villa Comunale of Salerno (Italy). In the logic of the model, the funding requested by the sponsee is necessarily inclusive of the amount equal to the cost of the restoration work but should also consider the financial advantage deriving from the advertising return to the sponsor company. These targets are estimated through the direct audience critical variable connected with the number of visitors of the location of interest. For the sponsor, on the other hand, assuming a Cobb-Douglas production function, it’s possible to quantify under static conditions the optimal percentage of turnover to invest in sponsorship to maximize profits. Assuming, therefore, that several companies are interested in sponsoring the restoration of the monument, the application of the model makes it possible to determine which company would be most suitable to sign the sponsorship contract.

Editorial

Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Fiore, P., Macchiaroli, M.

 

Valori e Valutazioni, 2020, 20202020(25)pp. 1–2

[No abstract available]

Article

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M., Siano, E.

 

Valori e Valutazioni, 20202020(24)pp. 97–106

With the Constitutional Court ruling 181/11, the much-discussed tertium genus was substantially legitimized and consequently openly recognized by the Court of Cassation with a series of clear and recent ordinances. This so-called third nature of land is perhaps better classifiable as another type of unbuildable category, com- pared to that of the areas characterized essentially as agricultural. This is in compliance with the original interpretative dichotomy, still in force by a law based on art. 37 of the Presidential Decree (DPR) 327/2001, between build- able and unbuildable areas. The proclamation of the existence of unbuildable but not even agricultural areas, poses estimative problems in certain circumstances that are well-known to the operators of the sector. However, in the case of areas that cannot be built on but without an agricultural nature, the complex specie of those falling in areas destined for equipment (infrastructures and hyperstructures) is considered and that are subjected to an exclusively public implementation initiative. For these areas, the absence of a direct reference market puts a strain on the principle of compensation based on the market value that was the key with which the ECHR undermined the compression mechanisms of compensation contained in the national Standard and linked to Parameters (VAM and cadastral income) detached from real commercial dynamics. This work, recalling and clarifying the aforementioned principle elements, draws the attention of the experts to a model developed at the University of Salerno under the coordination of prof. Nicola Morano (first professor emeritus of Appraisal in Italy) and remained unknown to most, to then apply it to a real case study in which the evaluation of land destined to the realization of a municipal level road is required.

Conference Paper

Dolores, L.Macchiaroli, M.de Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Maselli, G., Gómez, E.M.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012253 LNCSpp. 285–299

The paper explores the theme of sponsorship for the restoration/recovery of the historical-architectural heritage. The goal is to propose a model that allows both the sponsee (often public institution) and the sponsor company (mainly private) to maximize the monetary return generated by the investment. The model is tested through the following case study: the sponsorship of the restoration works of the Don Tullio’s Fountain located in the Villa Comunale of Salerno (Italy). In the logic of the model, the funding requested by the sponsee is necessarily inclusive of the amount equal to the cost of the restoration work but should also consider the financial advantage deriving from the advertising return to the sponsor company. These targets are estimated through the direct audience critical variable connected with the number of visitors of the location of interest. For the sponsor, on the other hand, assuming a Cobb-Douglas production function, it’s possible to quantify under static conditions the optimal percentage of turnover to invest in sponsorship to maximize profits. Assuming, therefore, that several companies are interested in sponsoring the restoration of the monument, the application of the model makes it possible to determine which company would be most suitable to sign the sponsorship contract.The paper explores the theme of sponsorship aimed at enhancing the historical-architectural heritage, analyzing the point of view of companies. Specifically, a static analysis model proposed in a previous paper, whose objective is to establish the optimal amount to invest in sponsorship to maximize business profit, is integrated with an innovative model that allows the company to assess the degree of financial efficiency of the investment, i.e. its productivity. The latter depends on a series of variables that characterize both the monument to be enhanced, the location in which it is located, and the sponsorship strategy adopted by the company. However, in the case of sponsorship of recovery/restoration work, the critical variable that most affects the efficiency of the investment is the number of visitors to the location where the monument is located (direct audience). This is because as the number of visitors increases, the level of exposure to the sponsorship message increases. Therefore, we assume two functional relationships, one linear and the other logarithmic, which correlate financial efficiency to the average number of visitors. In this way, the advantage of the company is twofold. On the one hand, it has the opportunity to maximize profits by investing the optimal amount of sponsorship. On the other hand, it can choose the level of productivity of the investment by deciding to finance the monument of a specific location according to its degree of exposure.

Conference Paper

Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L., Pellecchia, V., De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012255 LNCSpp. 146–161

The value of water as a resource has now been recognized on a global scale, albeit with different levels of awareness due to its availability and accessibility. All western countries have regulated the management sector of this resource (Integrated Water System – SII), regarding both its distribution as well as the purification and collection of sewage waste. Italy has also moved towards privatizing its management, proposing a collaborative mechanism between the public regulatory Authority and the private operator. The investments for the maintenance and development of the asset are therefore supported by the private investors. The model proposed in this work is based on the use of AHP to encourage the conciliation of opposing interests and rationalize a rather complex regulatory phase. It facilitates the selection of technical investment alternatives for the improvement of the SII supply standards.

Conference Paper

Maselli, G., Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Gómez, E.M., Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012251 LNCSpp. 836–851

This paper aims to define an innovative method to estimate the investment risk thresholds, in order to provide the analyst with essential terms for the economic evaluation of the projects. The idea is to borrow from the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) principle the concepts of the acceptability threshold and tolerability threshold of risk. Following this principle, generally used to assess the risk of human life loss, a risk is ALARP: when the costs for its mitigation appear to be disproportionate to the achievable benefits; that is when it lies between the unacceptable and the broadly acceptable region. To estimate the thresholds of acceptability and tolerability, the theoretical reference is the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which enables to compare the investment risk not only to the return of the production sector in which the project under consideration falls, but also to the return of the market as a whole. The combined use of CAPM and statistical survey methods makes it possible to attribute the two risk thresholds to investments in a specific sector. In this paper, the focus is on risk assessment for building construction projects. For this production sector, the proposed analysis model is implemented with reference to official data concerning the Italian economy.

Conference Paper

Macchiaroli, M., Pellecchia, V., D’Alpaos, C.

 

WSEAS Transactions on Environment and Development, 201915pp. 463–477

This paper aims to define an innovative method to estimate the investment risk thresholds, in order to provide the analyst with essential terms for the economic evaluation of the projects. The idea is to borrow from the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) principle the concepts of the acceptability threshold and tolerability threshold of risk. Following this principle, generally used to assess the risk of human life loss, a risk is ALARP: when the costs for its mitigation appear to be disproportionate to the achievable benefits; that is when it lies between the unacceptable and the broadly acceptable region. To estimate the thresholds of acceptability and tolerability, the theoretical reference is the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which enables to compare the investment risk not only to the return of the production sector in which the project under consideration falls, but also to the return of the market as a whole. The combined use of CAPM and statistical survey methods makes it possible to attribute the two risk thresholds to investments in a specific sector. In this paper, the focus is on risk assessment for building construction projects. For this production sector, the proposed analysis model is implemented with reference to official data concerning the Italian economy.

Conference Paper

Dolores, L., Macchiaroli, M., De Mare, G.

 

Smart Innovation Systems and Technologies201912251 LNCSpp. 484–492

This paper proposes a model of support for public administrations aimed at determining the rates for the exploitation of image rights by those companies that intend to sponsor rehabilitation or restoration projects in order to enhance the historical and architectural heritage present in Italy. This model has been applied to the city of Salerno (Italy). Indeed, it was assumed that the municipal administration is looking for sponsors intent on financing the restoration works of four city monuments. Through the model it was possible to determine the amount of funding, to be paid by the sponsors, including the amounts necessary for restoration works and advertising costs. The advertising fees for the city of Salerno have been determined starting from those established by Naples Municipal and applied to similar cases of cultural sponsorship. The parameter used for the comparison is the average monthly number of attendances that characterizes each location (direct audience). The costs of restoration work, for each monument of Salerno, have been determined through expeditious bills of quantities. Finally, the total cost of sponsorship is equal to the sum of the restoration works costs and advertising costs.

Article  •  Open Access

 Dolores, L., Macchiaroli, M., De Mare, G.

Sustainability2017, 9(4), 1750

This paper deals with private sponsorship as a tool for the redevelopment of Italy’s vast wealth of historical-architectural public heritage sites. Italian law provides for the stipulation of sponsorship agreements by and between public sector agencies or entities (which need financial resources to restore or re-qualify property) and private sector investors (which guarantee the capital sought by the public sector in exchange for significant returns on their investments) raising various economic issues, particularly in connection with the profitability thresholds for private sector investors in return for the public sector’s use of their financial resources. In this paper, the authors focus on how private sector investors determine how much of their businesses turnover constitutes the optimal percentage level of overall income that may be invested in sponsorships to maximize business profitability. For this purpose, a model based on past works on the subject (Bucci et al., 2003) has been chosen by the authors. Such model gives a solution for verifying a sponsorship’s profitability. This model is static and is applicable to single-product companies that invest in sponsorships, under the theories of monopolistic competition and of Cobb-Douglas production function. Our objectives are to present this model, explaining in detail the mathematical steps, simplifying the model where possible in order to reduce the levels of complexity in its application, and finally to apply it to real case scenarios of cultural sponsorships.

Article

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M.

Valori e Valutazioni, 2017(18)pp. 17–23

The determination of the compensation for the public ablation of quarries, which represents an historic example of terzium genus within the expropriation matter, has always been a sui generis topic in the jurisprudential doctrine and an interesting argument for Appraisal. The latter, in fact, must provide logical and technical instruments for the monetary conversion of the principles developed and expressed by the judge. This study starts from the results of a previous research carried out in 2009 and updates its conclusions projecting them in an illustrative case study.

Conference Paper

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L. 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics), 2017, 10409 LNCS, pp. 430-440

In Italy, the institutional analysis of the real estate market values is carried out by the Inland Revenue (government agency), through the Observatory of the Real Estate Market (OMI). In the last ten years, the average values (for types of real estates: houses, warehouses, garages, etc.) reported by the OMI are much closer to the market prices really recorded through the housing market sale contracts. Therefore, the reform of taxes on the real estate, recently strongly required by the European Commission, intends to take as reference the OMI values to increase the level of equalization in the taxation. This measure wants to correlate taxes to the real market value of the property and not to the land register value, which is completely distant from the real prices: this is true both for historical reasons (the latest update of land register values dates to several years ago) and for the evolution that the market has suffered especially in the big cities because of metropolitan and transport infrastructure development. This paper intends to verify the reliability of the OMI values compared to actual market prices and, at the same time, intends to control the possibility to equalize the fiscal mechanism considering the same tax revenue, as the Government claims to be able to do. The intent is to avoid the sacrifice of the less affluent segments of the population benefiting the lobbies of high-quality property owners using these modern mechanisms of the tax system. In this model, has been implemented an informative dataset in GIS mode. The use of GIS instrument makes it easier to verify the differential between government data and market prices.

Conference Paper

Fiore, P., Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M. 

Valori e Valutazioni, 2016(16)pp. 45–55

Improving the energy efficiency of important buildings is a complex operation that requires skill and care due to the inherent specificity of the preservation actions and increase of the contextual performances. It is difficult to propose an intervention-type or a code of practice as for ordinary buildings, because every monumental artefact has a peculiar typological-dimensional conformation as well as different formal and technological details. It is therefore always necessary to carry out an specific assessment that should be developed on a case by case basis, but within a framework of shared orientations, which the scientific community continually refines, due to technological innovations and new usable materials. Essentially, if each project is specifically related to the values of the asset, criteria and logical-operative means are established so as to retrace the achievement of the objectives aimed at upgrading the energy efficiency, while respecting the characteristics of the building. In this paper, starting with a review of the current problems on the subject of the energy improvement of historic buildings, the main normative references are discussed, as well as the most recent European guidelines and orientations. These orientations and guidelines are methodologically consistent with the study protocol that is proposed and from which emerges the centrality of both the compositional and technical solutions that are planned for the property, and the results from the economic-financial evaluation. The case study of the Convento dello Spirito Santo in Pellezzano (SA), developed in relation to the selection of interventions that are technically compatible with the historical and architectural value of the building, highlights how on-site tests are essential so as to create a database that may be useful for improving the general intervention principles as part of a continuous feedback process and source of any subsequent corrections. This is followed by using new technologies with the ability to satisfactorily increase the energy performance of the building but without compromising its monumental integrity.

Article  •  Open Access

Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M.,Pipolo,O. 

Sustainability, 20157(11)pp. 14661–14676

Until now, the policies on sustainability relating to regeneration interventions on historic buildings have dealt with the casing of the buildings in order to regulate and control the flow of air, light and energy from outside to inside and vice versa. However, recent technological developments in home comfort and energy savings highlight the efficiency of the plants and the proper management of the building-plant system, while respecting the criteria of integrated conservation and the multiple constraints that characterize historic buildings. This study proposes a methodological process that identifies the optimal steps from a technical and economical point of view, by providing a combination of traditional architectural conservation interventions with innovative technology systems. The calculation algorithms are developed with a specific software based on UNI TS 11300 regulations, which allows for the thermodynamic modelling of the structure. The preparation of the feasibility plan allows testing the cost-effectiveness of the work proposed, considering the environmental benefits resulting from the reduced CO2 emissions. The impact of the financial results of the evaluation is also analyzed. This protocol provides industry operators a useful instrument for selecting the least expensive initiatives among those compatible with the multiple constraints that affect the design choices.

Conference Paper

Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M.,Pipolo,O. 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics), 2015, 9157, pp. 61–76

The recovery and enhancement of historic buildings require interventions aimed also at the energetic requalification. Indeed, on one side there is a growing attention to the reuse of these buildings not only for conservative purposes, but even for economic and environmental aims; by forcing to include in the project even the energy efficiency improvement. On the other side, the current legislation on environmental sustainability in construction gives clear guidelines in energetic improvement object regarding the entire real estate assets, including historic buildings. The paper aims to define a technical-economic model for the selection of technologically advanced interventions useful to improve the buildings energy performance of historical and architectural interest. This can happens by respecting the needs and regulations on the protection of the valued property. The software implementation for the energy characterization of the historic building and the use of cost-benefit analysis, allow to drawing up an analysis protocol to support investment decisions. The issues research about the low thermal and acoustic insulation of the building envelopment and inefficient plants leads to outline intervention strategies and corresponding technical solutions, listed in detail in the article. The research appears important on the theoretic side because rationalizes the various phases necessary for the selection of the energetic requalification interventions, for which the cash flows analysis is essential to ensure the financial sustainability of the initiative. It’s also true in operative terms since it provides an easy instrumentation to professionals and operators in this sector to lead towards technologically efficient interventions, profitable in management phase and respectful of the historical and architectural values of the built heritage.

Article  •  Open Access

 Dolores, L., Macchiaroli, M., De Mare, G.

Sustainability2020, 12(4), 1694

The paper addresses the theme of sponsorship as the main form of public-private partnership through which to finance restoration/recovery interventions for the historical- architectural heritage. The goal is the maximization of sponsorship profitability for companies. Specifically, an existing dynamic model through which it was possible to estimate the optimal annual amount to be invested in sponsorship to maximize the current value of expected profits has been analyzed, reworked and for the first time applied to an Italian company. It was therefore assumed that the company is intent on supporting a multi-year program of sponsorship investment. It is also assumed that the corporation is a single-product company, operating in monopolistic competition and characterized by a Cobb-Douglas production function with decreasing returns to scale. The work is in continuity with a previous publication focused on the application and validation of a static model. The final goal is to provide tools for applied analysis of the financial sustainability of the sponsorship that forms incentive for companies to implement its use, facilitating the recovery of the historical-architectural heritage. Public bodies can thus benefit from the greater contribution of resources from private financiers for a zero-cost and sustainable valorization of cultural heritage.

Conference Paper  • Open Access
Dolores, L.Macchiaroli, M.de Mare, G.

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies2020177 SISTpp. 155–165

The paper explores the theme of sponsorship for the restoration/recovery of the historical-architectural heritage. The goal is to propose a model that allows both the sponsee (often public institution) and the sponsor company (mainly private) to maximize the monetary return generated by the investment. The model is tested through the following case study: the sponsorship of the restoration works of the Don Tullio’s Fountain located in the Villa Comunale of Salerno (Italy). In the logic of the model, the funding requested by the sponsee is necessarily inclusive of the amount equal to the cost of the restoration work but should also consider the financial advantage deriving from the advertising return to the sponsor company. These targets are estimated through the direct audience critical variable connected with the number of visitors of the location of interest. For the sponsor, on the other hand, assuming a Cobb-Douglas production function, it’s possible to quantify under static conditions the optimal percentage of turnover to invest in sponsorship to maximize profits. Assuming, therefore, that several companies are interested in sponsoring the restoration of the monument, the application of the model makes it possible to determine which company would be most suitable to sign the sponsorship contract.

Conference Paper

Dolores, L.Macchiaroli, M.de Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Maselli, G., Gómez, E.M.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012253 LNCSpp. 285–299

The paper explores the theme of sponsorship for the restoration/recovery of the historical-architectural heritage. The goal is to propose a model that allows both the sponsee (often public institution) and the sponsor company (mainly private) to maximize the monetary return generated by the investment. The model is tested through the following case study: the sponsorship of the restoration works of the Don Tullio’s Fountain located in the Villa Comunale of Salerno (Italy). In the logic of the model, the funding requested by the sponsee is necessarily inclusive of the amount equal to the cost of the restoration work but should also consider the financial advantage deriving from the advertising return to the sponsor company. These targets are estimated through the direct audience critical variable connected with the number of visitors of the location of interest. For the sponsor, on the other hand, assuming a Cobb-Douglas production function, it’s possible to quantify under static conditions the optimal percentage of turnover to invest in sponsorship to maximize profits. Assuming, therefore, that several companies are interested in sponsoring the restoration of the monument, the application of the model makes it possible to determine which company would be most suitable to sign the sponsorship contract.The paper explores the theme of sponsorship aimed at enhancing the historical-architectural heritage, analyzing the point of view of companies. Specifically, a static analysis model proposed in a previous paper, whose objective is to establish the optimal amount to invest in sponsorship to maximize business profit, is integrated with an innovative model that allows the company to assess the degree of financial efficiency of the investment, i.e. its productivity. The latter depends on a series of variables that characterize both the monument to be enhanced, the location in which it is located, and the sponsorship strategy adopted by the company. However, in the case of sponsorship of recovery/restoration work, the critical variable that most affects the efficiency of the investment is the number of visitors to the location where the monument is located (direct audience). This is because as the number of visitors increases, the level of exposure to the sponsorship message increases. Therefore, we assume two functional relationships, one linear and the other logarithmic, which correlate financial efficiency to the average number of visitors. In this way, the advantage of the company is twofold. On the one hand, it has the opportunity to maximize profits by investing the optimal amount of sponsorship. On the other hand, it can choose the level of productivity of the investment by deciding to finance the monument of a specific location according to its degree of exposure.

Conference Paper

Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L., Pellecchia, V., De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012255 LNCSpp. 146–161

The value of water as a resource has now been recognized on a global scale, albeit with different levels of awareness due to its availability and accessibility. All western countries have regulated the management sector of this resource (Integrated Water System – SII), regarding both its distribution as well as the purification and collection of sewage waste. Italy has also moved towards privatizing its management, proposing a collaborative mechanism between the public regulatory Authority and the private operator. The investments for the maintenance and development of the asset are therefore supported by the private investors. The model proposed in this work is based on the use of AHP to encourage the conciliation of opposing interests and rationalize a rather complex regulatory phase. It facilitates the selection of technical investment alternatives for the improvement of the SII supply standards.

Conference Paper

Maselli, G., Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Gómez, E.M., Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012251 LNCSpp. 836–851

This paper aims to define an innovative method to estimate the investment risk thresholds, in order to provide the analyst with essential terms for the economic evaluation of the projects. The idea is to borrow from the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) principle the concepts of the acceptability threshold and tolerability threshold of risk. Following this principle, generally used to assess the risk of human life loss, a risk is ALARP: when the costs for its mitigation appear to be disproportionate to the achievable benefits; that is when it lies between the unacceptable and the broadly acceptable region. To estimate the thresholds of acceptability and tolerability, the theoretical reference is the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which enables to compare the investment risk not only to the return of the production sector in which the project under consideration falls, but also to the return of the market as a whole. The combined use of CAPM and statistical survey methods makes it possible to attribute the two risk thresholds to investments in a specific sector. In this paper, the focus is on risk assessment for building construction projects. For this production sector, the proposed analysis model is implemented with reference to official data concerning the Italian economy.

Conference Paper

Dolores, L., Macchiaroli, M., De Mare, G.

 

Smart Innovation Systems and Technologies201912251 LNCSpp. 484–492

This paper proposes a model of support for public administrations aimed at determining the rates for the exploitation of image rights by those companies that intend to sponsor rehabilitation or restoration projects in order to enhance the historical and architectural heritage present in Italy. This model has been applied to the city of Salerno (Italy). Indeed, it was assumed that the municipal administration is looking for sponsors intent on financing the restoration works of four city monuments. Through the model it was possible to determine the amount of funding, to be paid by the sponsors, including the amounts necessary for restoration works and advertising costs. The advertising fees for the city of Salerno have been determined starting from those established by Naples Municipal and applied to similar cases of cultural sponsorship. The parameter used for the comparison is the average monthly number of attendances that characterizes each location (direct audience). The costs of restoration work, for each monument of Salerno, have been determined through expeditious bills of quantities. Finally, the total cost of sponsorship is equal to the sum of the restoration works costs and advertising costs.

Article  •  Open Access

 Dolores, L., Macchiaroli, M., De Mare, G.

Sustainability2017, 9(4), 1750

This paper deals with private sponsorship as a tool for the redevelopment of Italy’s vast wealth of historical-architectural public heritage sites. Italian law provides for the stipulation of sponsorship agreements by and between public sector agencies or entities (which need financial resources to restore or re-qualify property) and private sector investors (which guarantee the capital sought by the public sector in exchange for significant returns on their investments) raising various economic issues, particularly in connection with the profitability thresholds for private sector investors in return for the public sector’s use of their financial resources. In this paper, the authors focus on how private sector investors determine how much of their businesses turnover constitutes the optimal percentage level of overall income that may be invested in sponsorships to maximize business profitability. For this purpose, a model based on past works on the subject (Bucci et al., 2003) has been chosen by the authors. Such model gives a solution for verifying a sponsorship’s profitability. This model is static and is applicable to single-product companies that invest in sponsorships, under the theories of monopolistic competition and of Cobb-Douglas production function. Our objectives are to present this model, explaining in detail the mathematical steps, simplifying the model where possible in order to reduce the levels of complexity in its application, and finally to apply it to real case scenarios of cultural sponsorships.

Conference Paper

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L. 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics), 2017, 10409 LNCS, pp. 430-440

In Italy, the institutional analysis of the real estate market values is carried out by the Inland Revenue (government agency), through the Observatory of the Real Estate Market (OMI). In the last ten years, the average values (for types of real estates: houses, warehouses, garages, etc.) reported by the OMI are much closer to the market prices really recorded through the housing market sale contracts. Therefore, the reform of taxes on the real estate, recently strongly required by the European Commission, intends to take as reference the OMI values to increase the level of equalization in the taxation. This measure wants to correlate taxes to the real market value of the property and not to the land register value, which is completely distant from the real prices: this is true both for historical reasons (the latest update of land register values dates to several years ago) and for the evolution that the market has suffered especially in the big cities because of metropolitan and transport infrastructure development. This paper intends to verify the reliability of the OMI values compared to actual market prices and, at the same time, intends to control the possibility to equalize the fiscal mechanism considering the same tax revenue, as the Government claims to be able to do. The intent is to avoid the sacrifice of the less affluent segments of the population benefiting the lobbies of high-quality property owners using these modern mechanisms of the tax system. In this model, has been implemented an informative dataset in GIS mode. The use of GIS instrument makes it easier to verify the differential between government data and market prices.

Conference Paper

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L. 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)201710408 LNCSpp. 89–105

In order to estimate the cost of construction it is necessary to identify all the elements having expense and to provide the corresponding economic values accordingly to the level of detail of the project. Given the high number of variables characterizing the engineering project, it is required to have simplified schemes able to facilitate the study and management of the project. In particular, a civil work needs to have a concise representation through a suitable classification system, which allows to identify sets of homogeneous elements such that the complexity of the analysis is reduced. The classification systems commonly treated in literature are indeed based on the assumption that the building process can be broken down into simple elements able to give an efficient representation of the whole project. In the present paper, we first analyze the main classification systems of civil works, highlighting features, advantages and problems. Then, starting from the classification system proposed in Italy by the UNI 8290 regulation, which has been implemented and extended to multiple levels of detail, it is defined a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) with the aim to be the reference for the description, the economic analysis and the management of the project already in the preliminary design stage and, later, also in its final planning stages and execution. Operationally, the decomposition of the project, aimed at identifying the processes needed to ensure the production of the work site, is the first step of the procedure, which is then followed by the quantification and the subsequent allocation of unit prices resulting from price lists. In these additional steps, we resort to semi-analytical estimation procedures, which allow us to draw up the Metric Computation (MC) and the Estimate Metric Computation (EMC) also in the preliminary design phase. The use of a simplified base model for the decomposition of the project at the stage of preliminary analysis, can improve the accuracy of cost estimates, otherwise based on rough and often significantly approximate evaluations which follow from baseless estimates when compared to the macro-processing items. Increasing the accuracy of the cost estimates is of primarily interest as it can ensure higher margins of investments in the technical and economic feasibility of the project on the territory, which may cover the infrastructures, the urban planning, the implementation of new technologies for the environment and the rational use of the land. In this way, it is possible to reduce the risk associated to the project initiative, also allowing a unique decomposition scheme of the project. Such scheme, adopted since the preliminary study, can be then integrated through the following phases of the final and executive project.

Conference Paper

Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies2021, 178 SIST, PP. 440-450

The discounting of costs and benefits is a critical operation when projects, plans and programmes with long-term extra-financial effects need to be assessed. Therefore, the aim of the paper is first to show the potential deriving from the use of specific procedures to discount the environmental impact of the investment, then to define a probabilistic model for the estimate of the “ecological” Declining Discount Rate and “economic” Declining Discount Rate. The implementation of the model to the data of the Italian economy returns an ecological discount rate lower than the economic one. This means giving more weight to environmental externalities rather than strictly financial repercussions. This has a clear impact on the decision-making process for projects with intergenerational environmental implications.

Conference Paper
Maselli, G., Macchiaroli, M.

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, 2021178 SISTpp. 686–695

Assessing the riskiness of the investments is one of the key steps in the decision-making process. However, the lack in the legislative landscape of criteria for the acceptability of investment risk makes it difficult to express judgments of economic convenience based on shared criteria and objective data. In an attempt to overcome this regulatory gap, the aim of the paper is twofold: 1. to define minimum levels of acceptance of investment risk; 2. to outline an approach for the estimation of these threshold values. With reference to the first objective, acceptability and tolerability thresholds of risk are borrowed from the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) logic. In accordance with this principle, which is widely used in safety risk, a risk is defined as ALARP if it falls within the above thresholds or if the costs for its mitigation appear disproportionate to the benefits that can be achieved. With regard to the second objective, the theoretical reference is the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) which defines how to assess the minimum expected return on an investment project with a given risk profile. Thus, the combined use of the CAPM and statistical survey tools makes it possible to estimate specific risk limit values as a function both of investment sector and with respect to the territorial context in which the project is located. Finally, the described approach is validated through an application to the civil enterprise sector in Campania Region (Italy).

Book Chapter

Maselli, G., Nesticò, A. 

Green Energy and Technology, 2021pp. 43–56

For investments in the civil sector, the paper proposes a risk assessment model that introduces risk acceptability and tolerability thresholds according to the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) logic. The idea is to use the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) because it is able to associate return limit values, and therefore risk, to the project. The joint use of the CAPM and statistical survey tools leads to the estimation of investment risk thresholds on objective data, depending on both the production sector and the reference territory. An application to the building construction sector in Campania Region (Italy) verifies the effectiveness of the model.

Article  •  Open Access

Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012255 LNCSpp. 146–161

The value of water as a resource has now been recognized on a global scale, albeit with different levels of awareness due to its availability and accessibility. All western countries have regulated the management sector of this resource (Integrated Water System – SII), regarding both its distribution as well as the purification and collection of sewage waste. Italy has also moved towards privatizing its management, proposing a collaborative mechanism between the public regulatory Authority and the private operator. The investments for the maintenance and development of the asset are therefore supported by the private investors. The model proposed in this work is based on the use of AHP to encourage the conciliation of opposing interests and rationalize a rather complex regulatory phase. It facilitates the selection of technical investment alternatives for the improvement of the SII supply standards.

Article

Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

 

Journal of Economic Studies, 202047(3)pp. 527–545

Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to characterize an evaluation protocol of the social discount rate (SDR). This is based on the social rate of time preference (SRTP) principles, according to which the investment selection process must tend to maximize the utility of the community. Design/methodology/approach: The theoretical reference of the evaluation protocol is represented by the Ramsey formula. It is widely used in many countries with advanced economics for the SRTP estimation, through the maximization of the Social Welfare Function (SWF). Findings: The protocol structure and the protocol applications to the Italian and US economies explain how the SDR value is influenced by the socio-economic structure of the single nation. Research limitations/implications: The strong variability of the results of the SDR according to the theoretical approach of reference and the operating path that follows can lead to judgments decidedly divergent on the acceptability of the public project, hence, the important policy implications for the entire allocation process of public resources. Practical implications: The applications allow to highlight the important operational problems that must be resolved with regard to the choice of the time intervals of the evaluations, as well as logical-operational tools to be used to express estimates of parameters. Social implications: They are relevant in relation to the effects of a more equitable allocation of the resources. Originality/value: The protocol for the SDR estimation is based both on solid disciplinary principles and on objective data of non-complex availability and representative of the economic and socio-demographic context of the country in which the decision-making process is implemented.

Article

Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

Journal of Cleaner Production, 2020248119217

The sustainable tourism development is often a key element for the enhancement of island states. The fragility and the environmental, social and economic vulnerability that characterize these territories make the need to integrate the multiple aspects of sustainability into the decision-making processes concerning the definition of plans and programs of investment in the tourism sector increasingly urgent. Thus, the aim of the work is to build a dataset of sustainability indicators classified and weighed according to the subsequent characterization of a multi-criteria evaluation model. This dataset is obtained by defining an analysis procedure aimed at: selecting scientifically valid indicators, readily available by the analysts and easy to interpret by stakeholders; weighing the indicators themselves based on criteria shared in the literature; taking into account the uniqueness of the territorial reference system. The evaluation protocol proposed is substantiated in the subsequent steps of selection, classification, weighting and ranking of sustainability indicators for the analysis of tourism projects on the island. Innovative elements essentially concern weighting operation. In fact, the weight of each indicator is a function of several evaluation criteria and is estimated by using both statistical analysis methods and analytic hierarchy processes. The output of the study, consisting of the dataset of sustainability indicators, is a prerequisite for the subsequent characterization of a multi-criteria evaluation model able to select investment projects that balance the environmental, economic and social specificities of the island. This can determine greater effectiveness in the allocation processes of both public and private resources.

Conference Paper

Nesticò, A., Maselli, G. 

Advances in Science, Technology and Innovation, 2020pp. 17–20

In the cost-benefit analysis (CBA), the declining discount rate (DDR) certainly allows to assign the right weight for the long-term effects of investment projects. The DDR gives the opportunity to properly evaluate projects for sustainable development in the water and energy sectors. The estimation model of the DDR based on probabilistic logic solves the problem of the excessive contraction of the project cash flows that occur in temporal instants that are distant from the evaluation one.

Article

Nesticò, A., Maselli, G. 

Valori e Valutazioni, 20202020(24)pp. 181–194

In the Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) the traditional discount procedures determine a significant contraction of the financial terms that are furthest over time. This contraction is not acceptable in the economic evaluation of public projects with inter-generational effects, since it causes little appreciation of the net benefits for the future generations. The use of time-Declining Discount Rate (DDR) represents a possible solution to the problem. Following a critical analysis of the main methodologies that the theory describes, the study proposes an innovative model for the estimation of DDR. The model, based on principles widely recognized in literature, uses probabilistic laws and returns a simple-use forecasting algorithm, as uses economic and demographic data easy to find. The implementation for the Italian economy makes it possible to validate the model and makes it clear how significantly the results of the CBA can vary if a declining discount rate instead of a time-invariant rate is chosen. The important political repercussions on the entire allocation process of public resources demonstrate the effectiveness of hyperbolic discount procedures, suggesting to distinguish between constant discount rates for the evaluation of projects with intra-generational effects and time-declining discount rates for interventions with inter-generational implications.

Article

Nesticò, A., Maselli, G. 

Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management, 20208(1)pp. 93–110

The decision-making processes regarding projects with long-term environmental implications are strongly influenced by the estimate of the Social Discount Rate (SDR). An economic parameter that makes it possible to compare financially the Cash Flows (CFs) that occur at different time points, in the discounting the SDR reduces excessively the costs and benefits more distant over time. If this problem is particularly marked in the Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) conducted with time-invariant discount rates, it can be overcome by adopting time-declining discount rates. Thus, starting from the examination of the potentialities connected with the application of hyperbolic discounting in the CBAs, the aim of the work is to characterize an innovative probabilistic model for estimating the Declining Discount Rate (DDR), able to overcome the limits of the theoretical approaches recognized in the literature. The model is implemented on the data of the Italian economy and the DDRs estimated in this way are used in the economic feasibility study of an irrigation reconversion intervention. The processing proves that the adoption of time-declining discount rate allows attributing greater “weight” to the positive long-term externalities that characterize the interventions that promote sustainable development. This with decisive repercussions on the priority order of the initiatives to be financed and therefore on the entire allocation process of resources to be used to projects with intergenerational environmental implications. (*) The contribution to this paper is the result of the joint work of the two authors, to which the paper has to be attributed in equal parts.

Book Chapter

Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Maselli, G. 

Advances in Science, Technology and Innovation, 2020pp. 11–15

Projects aimed at reducing water and/or energy consumption present technical and economic complexity profiles that require the analysis of the many components of investment risk. Risk analysis is essential to express judgements on the economic convenience of projects in the water-energy sectors. It is important to study actions for the mitigation of investment risk, so as to report the residual risk within tolerability limits. The integration of the as low as reasonably practicable (ALARP) logic with the cost-benefit analysis allows to define a protocol for the acceptance of the residual investment risk.

Article

Nesticò, A., Macchiaroli, M, Maselli, G.

 

Valori e Valutazioni, 20202020(25)pp. 91–98

The Italian territory is characterized by a network of small municipalities with a weak economy, yet connoted by strong natural and landscape values. These are urban centres with often unique characters that deserve to be preserved from the dramatic consequences of the widespread phenomenon of depopulation. Countering these trends requires the planning of economically sustainable intervention strategies. With this research, we intend propose an innovative model of economic evaluation able to support the decision maker in the risk analysis related to the projects for the enhancement of small towns. The idea is to introduce in the traditional evaluation processes thresholds of acceptability and tolerability of risk so as defined by the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) logic. Widely consolidated for the evaluation of the safety risk, this principle can also find application in the analysis of the investments in question, where it is necessary to operate a triangular balance between risks, mitigation costs and prosecutable benefits. The case study demonstrates the effectiveness of the model. In particular, the advantages for the public operator, which can consciously express a judgment on risk of the initiatives to be financed, are relevant.

Article  •  Open Access

Ribera, F., Nesticò, A. Cucco, P., Maselli, G.

 

Journal of Cultural Heritage, 202041pp. 166–177

The cultural heritage conservation is essential to preserve the memory of monuments, places and territories and to ensure their transmission to the future. This can be pursued through continuous and careful maintenance, which, however, is lost when a place loses its function and becomes prey of neglect and decay. It is easy to understand how fundamental is to assign compatible intended use to safeguard the historical goods. From this perspective, the research proposes an innovative and economic evaluation model in order to identify the Highest and the Best Use (HBU) for the historical buildings that would take into account both their social, cultural and economic identity and the preservation of their integrity and original image. The choice of HBU requires a rational study approach that can employ the Multicriteria Decisional Methods (MCDM). These Methods could allow us to consider not only the financial performance of the restoration and enhancement intervention, but also the wide variety of the effects that it will generate on the territory, by involving the community in the new functions, the employment opportunities and the project’s aptitude to encourage the cultural growth, by respecting the historical and architectural values. According to this framework, the research outlines an economic evaluation protocol that implements the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), a hierarchical multicriteria technique consisting in breaking down the complex decision issues into fundamental constituent elements based on multiple criteria and sub-criteria. The protocol consists in a sequence of logical and operational steps that starts from the preliminary selection of possible functional destinations among those technically feasible, urbanistically permissible, economically viable and historical-architecturally compatible; the next definition of evaluation criteria and sub-criteria; the assignment of the weights to the criteria and the scores to the use options; then the implementation of hierarchical analysis algorithms, which return the final ranking of alternatives and thus outline the Highest and the Best Use for the building. Novelty elements concern the rationalization of the phases, the selection of the criteria evaluation according to the international references for the disciplines of the conservation of cultural heritage and the economic evaluation of projects, and finally the formalization of calculation schemes. The model is validated on a real case study: the monumental Palazzo Genovese in Salerno (Italy). Here the goal of researching HBU meets the need to remove the historic building from the current state of abandonment or underuse and to give it back to the citizens, by ensuring the use and the constant care and maintenance. The application demonstrates the practical usefulness of the protocol in decision-making processes for the re-use of architecture in order to maximize the economic benefits and, at the same time, to safeguard its historical and architectural values.

Conference Paper

Dolores, L.Macchiaroli, M.de Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Maselli, G., Gómez, E.M.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012253 LNCSpp. 285–299

The paper explores the theme of sponsorship for the restoration/recovery of the historical-architectural heritage. The goal is to propose a model that allows both the sponsee (often public institution) and the sponsor company (mainly private) to maximize the monetary return generated by the investment. The model is tested through the following case study: the sponsorship of the restoration works of the Don Tullio’s Fountain located in the Villa Comunale of Salerno (Italy). In the logic of the model, the funding requested by the sponsee is necessarily inclusive of the amount equal to the cost of the restoration work but should also consider the financial advantage deriving from the advertising return to the sponsor company. These targets are estimated through the direct audience critical variable connected with the number of visitors of the location of interest. For the sponsor, on the other hand, assuming a Cobb-Douglas production function, it’s possible to quantify under static conditions the optimal percentage of turnover to invest in sponsorship to maximize profits. Assuming, therefore, that several companies are interested in sponsoring the restoration of the monument, the application of the model makes it possible to determine which company would be most suitable to sign the sponsorship contract.The paper explores the theme of sponsorship aimed at enhancing the historical-architectural heritage, analyzing the point of view of companies. Specifically, a static analysis model proposed in a previous paper, whose objective is to establish the optimal amount to invest in sponsorship to maximize business profit, is integrated with an innovative model that allows the company to assess the degree of financial efficiency of the investment, i.e. its productivity. The latter depends on a series of variables that characterize both the monument to be enhanced, the location in which it is located, and the sponsorship strategy adopted by the company. However, in the case of sponsorship of recovery/restoration work, the critical variable that most affects the efficiency of the investment is the number of visitors to the location where the monument is located (direct audience). This is because as the number of visitors increases, the level of exposure to the sponsorship message increases. Therefore, we assume two functional relationships, one linear and the other logarithmic, which correlate financial efficiency to the average number of visitors. In this way, the advantage of the company is twofold. On the one hand, it has the opportunity to maximize profits by investing the optimal amount of sponsorship. On the other hand, it can choose the level of productivity of the investment by deciding to finance the monument of a specific location according to its degree of exposure.
Conference Paper

Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L., Pellecchia, V., De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012255 LNCSpp. 146–161

The value of water as a resource has now been recognized on a global scale, albeit with different levels of awareness due to its availability and accessibility. All western countries have regulated the management sector of this resource (Integrated Water System – SII), regarding both its distribution as well as the purification and collection of sewage waste. Italy has also moved towards privatizing its management, proposing a collaborative mechanism between the public regulatory Authority and the private operator. The investments for the maintenance and development of the asset are therefore supported by the private investors. The model proposed in this work is based on the use of AHP to encourage the conciliation of opposing interests and rationalize a rather complex regulatory phase. It facilitates the selection of technical investment alternatives for the improvement of the SII supply standards.

Conference Paper

Maselli, G., Nesticò, A., De Mare, G., Gómez, E.M., Macchiaroli, M., Dolores, L.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)202012251 LNCSpp. 836–851

This paper aims to define an innovative method to estimate the investment risk thresholds, in order to provide the analyst with essential terms for the economic evaluation of the projects. The idea is to borrow from the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) principle the concepts of the acceptability threshold and tolerability threshold of risk. Following this principle, generally used to assess the risk of human life loss, a risk is ALARP: when the costs for its mitigation appear to be disproportionate to the achievable benefits; that is when it lies between the unacceptable and the broadly acceptable region. To estimate the thresholds of acceptability and tolerability, the theoretical reference is the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which enables to compare the investment risk not only to the return of the production sector in which the project under consideration falls, but also to the return of the market as a whole. The combined use of CAPM and statistical survey methods makes it possible to attribute the two risk thresholds to investments in a specific sector. In this paper, the focus is on risk assessment for building construction projects. For this production sector, the proposed analysis model is implemented with reference to official data concerning the Italian economy.

Conference Paper

Nesticò, A., Maselli, G.

 

Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, 2019101pp. 260–268

The Social Discount Rate (SDR) is among the most critical parameters of the Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA), because it strongly conditions the results. In the case of economic evaluations, that is when the analyses are conducted from the point of view of the community, the SDR allows to make financially comparable the costs and the benefits that the investment generates over time. Thus, it influences both the “weighting” of the cash flows temporal distribution and the measure of inter-generational equity associated with the project. Extremely important issues for those interventions that display their effects on a very long time horizon. In these circumstances, the traditional discount procedures show limits because they end up excessively reducing the financial terms that occur over a certain period. A possible solution to this problem is the use of hyperbolic discount procedures through declining discount rate (DDR). In the present paper we intend to first outline in essential terms the theoretical framework of the approaches proposed in the literature for the estimation of the DDR. It is about the Consumption-Based Approach to DDRs and the Expected Net Present Value (ENPV). In the second part of the study a critical examination of the same approaches is proposed, in order to highlight their limitations and prominent theoretical aspects. These elements are useful to outline research perspectives for the characterization of an innovative model for estimating the declining discount rate, which can reduce at the same time the theoretical problems and the operational difficulties of the estimation methods currently used.

Article  •  Open Access

Nesticò, A., He, S., De Mare, G., Benintendi, R., Maselli, G.

 

Sustainability (Switzerland), 201810(12)4668

This paper aims to define an innovative method to estimate the investment risk thresholds, in order to provide the analyst with essential terms for the economic evaluation of the projects. The idea is to borrow from the As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP) principle the concepts of the acceptability threshold and tolerability threshold of risk. Following this principle, generally used to assess the risk of human life loss, a risk is ALARP: when the costs for its mitigation appear to be disproportionate to the achievable benefits; that is when it lies between the unacceptable and the broadly acceptable region. To estimate the thresholds of acceptability and tolerability, the theoretical reference is the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which enables to compare the investment risk not only to the return of the production sector in which the project under consideration falls, but also to the return of the market as a whole. The combined use of CAPM and statistical survey methods makes it possible to attribute the two risk thresholds to investments in a specific sector. In this paper, the focus is on risk assessment for building construction projects. For this production sector, the proposed analysis model is implemented with reference to official data concerning the Italian economy.

Conference Paper

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Benintendi, R., Maselli, G.

 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics), 201810964 LNCSpp. 75–86

Risk assessment is essential to express judgments of economic convenience on investment initiatives. This certainly applies to civil engineering projects, where the risk components are not only economic, but also environmental, social and cultural. Thus, the aim of the paper is to delineate a risk analysis model in the economic evaluation of investments through the development of algorithms where the Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) logic is integrated with the ALARP principle. The latter provides operative tools ensuring that risk is tolerable if it is “As Low As Reasonably Practicable”. The study shows that the ALARP logic, widely applied in sectors such as nuclear, energy and oil & gas, but less implemented in civil engineering, can instead become an important investigative tool if used jointly with the CBA precisely in the evaluation economic of civil projects, contributing to the characterization of efficient forecast protocols. In the first paragraph of the paper, the steps necessary to manage the risk connected to a project initiative are described and the ALARP logic is analysed. The second paragraph presents the risk analysis approaches traditionally used in the economic evaluation of projects. In the third section the logical scheme of an innovative protocol for the management of project risk is defined, by integrating the ALARP principles in the procedural scheme of the CBA. In conclusion, prospects for future research are outlined.

Book Chapter

Genovino, C., Caprino, R.M.

Esperienze d’impresa, 2018, 2, pp. 69-105

Il contributo rappresenta un approfondimento del Rapporto MACREF Strategie di integrazione tra produzioni agroalimentari e turismo ed in particolar modo il ruolo della banca nei processi d’innovazione dei modelli di business per le PMI. Si è cercato di offrire un’analisi critica della letteratura sul tema della scelta relativa alla struttura finanziaria efficiente delle imprese, con particolare riguardo alla realtà delle piccole e medie imprese italiane, ed in particolar modo del settore agroalimentare, attraverso una visione della letteratura empirica sull’argomento. Le PMI si caratterizzano tradizionalmente per l’uso quasi esclusivo di capitale di debito nella copertura del fabbisogno finanziario e presentano di conseguenza una struttura finanziaria quanto mai semplificata, nella maggior parte dei casi composta dal debito bancario da una parte e dal capitale dei soci fondatori dall’altra. In questo momento di crisi e di particolare frammentazione del tessuto societario italiano, in particolar modo quello del comparto agroalimentare, un ruolo determinante è stato rivestito dagli istituti bancari anche come gestori di garanzie e contributi pubblici. La scarsa patrimonializzazione delle nostre aziende, spesso a carattere e proprietà familiare, è stata negli anni supplita con un forte ricorso al credito bancario, dal quale le imprese sono diventate dipendenti a scapito di un corretto equilibrio finanziario. L’intero sistema si trova difronte ad una rieducazione finanziaria, dunque sia le imprese che le banche, quest’ultime spinte dall’innovazione tecnologica e dalla ricerca di redditività, si accingono al superamento della loro tradizionale veste istituzionale legata alla erogazione di credito. Gli istituti di credito possono e stanno quindi trasformando in opportunità tale situazione rivedendo i propri modelli distributivi e di business per diversificare le proprie fonti di reddito concentrandosi sull’offerta di nuovi servizi ad alto valore aggiunto alle imprese, sostenendo lo sviluppo e la crescita economica del nostro paese. Oggi il ruolo trainante della ripresa è infatti rappresentato da quelle imprese che sono innovative, che sanno coniugare la produttività e la tecnologia, che si aggregano tra loro o che si internazionalizzano: è proprio a queste impr- se che il sistema bancario deve guardare offrendo loro un supporto non solo in termini finanziari ma in termini di esperienza, conoscenze, competenza e consulenza.

Book Chapter

Caprino, R.M., De Mare, G., Nesticò, A.

Green Energy and Technology, 2018, Pages 379-390

In the present context of continuing economic and financial crisis and increased social disadvantage, particularly marked in the Mezzogiorno of Italy, the experience of the Antonio Genovesi Prize was born. It’s a prototypical experiment of collaboration among the university, local government, business and local banks for economic, social, cultural and environmental development in the provinces of Salerno, Avellino and Napoli and overall for the implementation of useful synergies for the establishment of stronger growth prospects. This initiative has initiated to develop the economic feasibility profile for over 70 projects in five years, since 2011, for an investment budget of more than 500 million euros (De Mare et al. in La valutazione finanziaria di progetti per il rilancio del territorio. Applicazioni a casi reali. Franco Angeli, Milano, 2012). This report aims to represent and to highlight the effects of the actions undertaken through related activities at the regional level (Bottero et al. in Proc Soc Behav Sci 223:923–928, 2016). As a function of the increasing relevance of extra-monetary repercussions for investment decision makers, this paper estimates such social and environmental effects attributable to examined projects. This is in accordance with recent EU guidelines (see, the Social Impact Agenda for Italy). This association was founded in 2016 to collect the experience of the Social Impact Investment Taskforce (SIIT), launched in 2013 during the UK Presidency of the G8, to bring social-impact investments to the forefront of national agendas. This is about those initiatives strongly desired by Pope Francis in his Encyclical Laudato Si’ (2015) and able to give an answer to often unsatisfied needs for health, disabilities, new and more sustainable ways of living, social exclusion, promotion of cultural heritage (Nesticò et al. in Sustainability 7(11):14661–14676, 2015), cooperative management of goods and sharing economy platforms. In the manner shown and with the aim of collecting information in particular on occupational and environmental effects, the use of cross-sectoral matrices enable the prediction of the impacts on regional economy arising from concrete realization of interventions planned in the construction industry.

Book

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Caprino, R.M. (editors)

Volume III, Exeo, Padua, 2015. ISBN: 9788869071188.

Book

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Caprino, R.M. (editors)

Volume II, Exeo, Padua, 2013. ISBN: 9788897916567.

Book

De Mare, G., Nesticò, A., Caprino, R.M. (editors)

Volume I, Franco Angeli, Milan, pp. 1-413, 2012. ISBN: 9788820404468.

Conference Paper

Garofalo, M.R., Supino, M.R., Caprino, R.M.

6th ILM Conference Paper, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=318281

In the current political-institutional debate in Europe, starting from ’90, about local development incentives and promotion of innovative enterprises, our focus is on welfare reform based on decentralization, as power devolution to local agencies and communities. This new approach on welfare policies is relevant for local development and social inclusion, increasing opportunity-set of employment and promoting local partnership. We interpret local welfare restructuring design in Italy (L.328/2000). The aim of the paper is twofold:

1. following New Institutional Economics, we interpret this legislation as an institutional framework, i.e. a policy device that enforces local development, by reducing transaction costs and creating positive externalities;

2. through direct interviews in an area of Mezzogiorno, we investigate on if and how local agents perceived opportunities of this Reform: the Piano di Zona represents an innovative institutional solution.

Our provisional conclusion is that the case-study could be a “best practise” for policy makers in this field.

Papers awarded

Scroll to Top

CONTACT US

Send us an email to ask us for information or make an appointment

PEL LOGO

our adress:

University of Salerno (Italy) 

Via Giovanni Paolo II, 132 – 84084 – Fisciano (SA)