Posebnosti metalurške industrije za implementaciju Lean principa

The ideal balance between innovating and effective financing is provided by the Lean principles. The basic principle of Lean is to eliminate the wastes and to increase the effi ciency of production processes. The objective of this article is to define the basic specifics of metallurgical production, to analyze the classical sources of wastes (Ohno’s seven wastes) from the point of view of the identified specifics and to propose the priorities for their elimination in metallurgical production.Idealnu ravnotežu između inovacije I djelotvornog financiranja osigurava se Lean principima. Osnovni princip Lean-a je kako smanjiti gubitke i kako povećati učinkovitost proizvodnih procesa. Cilj ovog članka je definirati osnovne specifičnosti metalurške proizvodnje kako bi analizirali klasične izvore gubitaka (Ohnovih sedam gubitaka) i to s točke gledišta identificiranih specifičnosti i predložiti prioritete za otklanjanje gubitaka u metalurškoj proizvodnji

Pengaruh Insentif Terhadap Produktivitas Kerja Karyawan PT. PLN (Persero) ULP. Telaga Gorontalo

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menguji pengaruh dari insentif karyawan (X) terhadap produktivitas kerja karyawan (Y). Metode yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini menggunakan metode deskriptif kuantitatif. Populasi dalam penelitian ini adalah seluruh karyawan PT. PLN (Persero) ULP Telaga Gorontalo. Teknik pengambilan sampel dalam penelitian ini menggunakan random sampling. Uji instrument yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini menggunakan uji validitas dan uji reliabilitas, kemudian data diproses menggunakan analisis regresi linear sederhana. Data dalam penelitian ini diperoleh dengan melakukan penyebaran kuesioner kepada karyawan PT. PLN (Persero) ULP Telaga Gorontalo sebanyak 58 orang. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukan bahwa Insentif berpengaruh signifikan secara simultan terhadap Produktivitas Kerja Karyawan PT. PLN (Persero) ULP Telaga Gorontalo. Koefisien determinasi atau angka R Square menunjukan besarnya pengaruh insentif terhadap produktivitas kerja karyawan sebesar 88,9% Dengan demikian dapat disimpulkan bahwa hipotesis penelitian ini dapat diterima dan teruji kebenarannya

Evaluation of benefits resulting from innovation of input raw materials dosing process in sintering

Production of blast furnace sinter is among the processes with the highest energy and material requirements. Fuel consumption is especially significant cost item here. The presence of grate sintered in charge, i.e. return sinter from 12 to 22 mm in size, can have fundamental impact on the technical and economic indicators of the sintering process. Grate sinter can be used as a foundation layer under the sintering mixture, to increase air permeability of charge and to improve the gas-dynamic conditions. The article analyzes the impact of grate sinter on the sintering process, based on an analysis of the acquired production indicators within the scope of the research in question

Life-Time Covariation of Major Cardiovascular Diseases: A 40-Year Longitudinal Study and Genetic Studies

BACKGROUND: It is known that certain cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are associated, like atrial fibrillation and stroke. However, for other CVDs, the links and temporal trends are less studied. In this longitudinal study, we have investigated temporal epidemiological and genetic associations between different CVDs. METHODS: The ULSAM (Uppsala Longitudinal Study of Adult Men; 2322 men aged 50 years) has been followed for 40 years regarding 4 major CVDs (incident myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation). For the genetic analyses, publicly available data were used. RESULTS: Using multistate modeling, significant relationships were seen between pairs of all of the 4 investigated CVDs. However, the risk of obtaining one additional CVD differed substantially both between different CVDs and between their temporal order. The relationship between heart failure and atrial fibrillation showed a high risk ratio (risk ratios, 24-26) regardless of the temporal order. A consistent association was seen also for myocardial infarction and atrial fibrillation but with a lower relative risk (risk ratios, 4-5). In contrast, the risk of receiving a diagnosis of heart failure following a myocardial infarction was almost twice as high as for the reverse temporal order (risk ratios, 16 versus 9). Genetic loci linked to traditional risk factors could partly explain the observed associations between the CVDs, but pathway analyses disclosed also other pathophysiological links. CONCLUSIONS: During 40 years, all of the 4 investigated CVDs were pairwise associated with each other regardless of the temporal order of occurrence, but the risk magnitude differed between different CVDs and their temporal order. Genetic analyses disclosed new pathophysiological links between CVDs

The Waldschmidt constant for squarefree monomial ideals

Given a squarefree monomial ideal $I \subseteq R =k[x_1,\ldots,x_n]$, we show that $\widehat\alpha(I)$, the Waldschmidt constant of $I$, can be expressed as the optimal solution to a linear program constructed from the primary decomposition of $I$. By applying results from fractional graph theory, we can then express $\widehat\alpha(I)$ in terms of the fractional chromatic number of a hypergraph also constructed from the primary decomposition of $I$. Moreover, expressing $\widehat\alpha(I)$ as the solution to a linear program enables us to prove a Chudnovsky-like lower bound on $\widehat\alpha(I)$, thus verifying a conjecture of Cooper-Embree-H\`a-Hoefel for monomial ideals in the squarefree case. As an application, we compute the Waldschmidt constant and the resurgence for some families of squarefree monomial ideals. For example, we determine both constants for unions of general linear subspaces of $\mathbb{P}^n$ with few components compared to $n$, and we find the Waldschmidt constant for the Stanley-Reisner ideal of a uniform matroid.Comment: 26 pages. This project was started at the Mathematisches Forschungsinstitut Oberwolfach (MFO) as part of the mini-workshop "Ideals of Linear Subspaces, Their Symbolic Powers and Waring Problems" held in February 2015. Comments are welcome. Revised version corrects some typos, updates the references, and clarifies some hypotheses. To appear in the Journal of Algebraic Combinatoric

Plasma interferon-alpha is associated with double-positivity for autoantibodies but is not a predictor of remission in early rheumatoid arthritis-a spin-off study of the NORD-STAR randomized clinical trial

BACKGROUND: The type I interferon (IFN) gene signature is present in a subgroup of patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Protein levels of IFNα have not been measured in RA and it is unknown whether they associate with clinical characteristics or treatment effect. METHODS: Patients with early untreated RA (n = 347) were randomized to methotrexate combined with prednisone, certolizumab-pegol, abatacept, or tocilizumab. Plasma IFNα protein levels were determined by single molecular array (Simoa) before and 24 weeks after treatment initiation and were related to demographic and clinical factors including clinical disease activity index, disease activity score in 28 joints, swollen and tender joint counts, and patient global assessment. RESULTS: IFNα protein positivity was found in 26% of the patients, and of these, 92% were double-positive for rheumatoid factor (RF) and anti-citrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA). IFNα protein levels were reduced 24 weeks after treatment initiation, and the absolute change was similar irrespective of treatment. IFNα protein positivity was associated neither with disease activity nor with achievement of CDAI remission 24 weeks after randomization. CONCLUSION: IFNα protein positivity is present in a subgroup of patients with early RA and associates with double-positivity for autoantibodies but not with disease activity. Pre-treatment IFNα positivity did not predict remission in any of the treatment arms, suggesting that the IFNα system is distinct from the pathways of TNF, IL-6, and T-cell activation in early RA. A spin-off study of the NORD-STAR randomized clinical trial, NCT01491815 (ClinicalTrials), registered 12/08/2011, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01491815

Land Use Change to Reduce Freshwater Nitrogen and Phosphorus will Be Effective Even with Projected Climate Change

Recent studies have demonstrated that projected climate change will likely enhance nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) loss from farms and farmland, with the potential to worsen freshwater eutrophication. Here, we investigate the relative importance of the climate and land use drivers of nutrient loss in nine study catchments in Europe and a neighboring country (Turkey), ranging in area from 50 to 12,000 km2. The aim was to quantify whether planned large-scale, land use change aimed at N and P loss reduction would be effective given projected climate change. To this end, catchment-scale biophysical models were applied within a common framework to quantify the integrated effects of projected changes in climate, land use (including wastewater inputs), N deposition, and water use on river and lake water quantity and quality for the mid-21st century. The proposed land use changes were derived from catchment stakeholder workshops, and the assessment quantified changes in mean annual N and P concentrations and loads. At most of the sites, the projected effects of climate change alone on nutrient concentrations and loads were small, whilst land use changes had a larger effect and were of sufficient magnitude that, overall, a move to more environmentally focused farming achieved a reduction in N and P concentrations and loads despite projected climate change. However, at Beyşehir lake in Turkey, increased temperatures and lower precipitation reduced water flows considerably, making climate change, rather than more intensive nutrient usage, the greatest threat to the freshwater ecosystem. Individual site responses did however vary and were dependent on the balance of diffuse and point source inputs. Simulated lake chlorophyll-a changes were not generally proportional to changes in nutrient loading. Further work is required to accurately simulate the flow and water quality extremes and determine how reductions in freshwater N and P translate into an aquatic ecosystem response