Permanent-Magnet Motors and Generators for Aircraft

Electric motors and generators that use permarotating machinery, but aspects of control and power conditioning are also considered. The discussion is structured around three basic areas: rotating machine design considerations presents various configuration and material options, generator applications provides insight into utilization areas and shows actual hardware and test results, and motor applications provides the same type of information for drive systems

Is China Systematically Buying Up Key Technologies? Chinese M & A transactions in Germany in the context of “Made in China 2025”. Bertelsmann Stiftung GED Study 2018

“Made in China 2025” (MIC 2025) is the Chinese central government’s main industrial policy strategy aimed at turning China into the global leader of the fourth industrial revolution. Chinese M & A transactions abroad explicitly belong to the instruments for implementing MIC 2025. Germany is an attractive location for Chinese M & A transactions and offers tailor-made know-how for MIC 2025 due to its large number of “hidden champions”, i. e. technological world market leaders in highly specialized niches. 64 percent or 112 of the 175 analyzed Chinese M & A transactions with a share of at least ten percent in German companies between 2014 and 2017 percent can be assigned to one of the ten key sectors in which China aims to assume global technology leadership with the help of MIC 2025. On the one hand, there is a clear focus on the MIC 2025 sectors of “energy-saving and new-energy vehicles”, “electrical equipment” and “high-end numerical control machinery and robotics” – i. e. sectors in which Germany can in part demonstrate significant competitive technological advantages. Even before the introduction of MIC 2025 in 2015, however, these sectors were already a focus of interest for Chinese investors in Germany. On the other hand, key sectors that played little or no role for Chinese M & A transactions in Germany have also become increasingly important since the introduction of MIC 2025. This is particularly evident in the MIC 2025 sector of “biomedicine and high-performance medical devices”. The majority of the 112 Chinese M & A transactions (just under 60 percent) that are relevant for MIC 2025 are distributed across only three German states: Baden-Württemberg (26), North Rhine-Westphalia (22) and Bavaria (18) – the very regions in which the majority of the German “hidden champions” are located. State-owned investors make up 18 percent of the Chinese M & A transactions examined, and are therefore a minority. However, taking into account only the M & A transactions that can be assigned to the MIC 2025 sectors, their share rises to around 22 percent – a possible indication of state stakeholders’ greater interest in acquiring know-how abroad for the implementation of MIC 2025. However, the formal type of ownership of Chinese companies does not show the full picture of potential state influence due to the complex interplay between the state and companies in China. Therefore, the great challenge for Germany consists in the forms of state influence that are not or only insufficiently reflected in the majority ownership type of Chinese investors

Experimental campaign tests on ultra micro gas turbines, fuel supply comparison and optimization

The increasing demand for miniaturized radio-controlled vehicles inspired the following research. The uses of these unmanned miniaturized/micro vehicles range from aero-modeling to drones for urban control and military applications too. The common characteristic of these vehicles is the need for a light and compact propulsion system. The radio-controlled (RC) turbines for modeling are ideally suited for this purpose, guaranteeing the necessary thrust with compactness and lightness. This device is a miniaturized turbojet, and it is generally composed of three basic elements: compressor, combustion chamber and turbine. The main goal of the paper is to evaluate the turbojet performance for considering the possibility of its use as a range extender in a hybrid vehicle. Considering the total volume constraints, it will be important to evaluate the specific fuel consumption. Also from the environmental point of view, the possibility of feeding the device with gas has been considered and, consequently, the needed device modifications performed. The test bench has been realized and assembled at the University Department Laboratory. Several different experimental configurations are reproduced and reported here, to obtain performance maps. The experiments results have been compared to previous tests results, as well as numerical simulations. Therefore, it has been possible to make a comparison between the two different fuels. The results show that this device can be used as a range extender for a hybrid vehicle. Moreover, the various tests have shown that, acting on the control unit, it is possible to feed the device with gas (mixture of propane and butane), obtaining a further benefit from the economic point of view. Surely, an in-depth study of the turbine management logic would produce a further advantage in terms of fuel consumption

Does downsizing improve organizational performance? An analysis of Spanish manufacturing firms

The objective of this study is to examine the effect of downsizing on corporate performance, considering a sample of manufacturing firms drawn from the Spanish Survey of Business Strategies during the 1993- 2005 period. No significant differences in post-downsizing performance arise between companies which downsize and those that do not. Likewise, we find that substantial workforce reductions through collective dismissals do not either lead to improved performance levels. Downsizing, therefore, may not be a way for managers to increase performance, particularly in a context like the Spanish one, where the labour market is characterized by a high protection of employees’ rights and substantial contract termination costs