Flexible Manufacturing Systems: background examples and models

In this paper, we discuss recent innovations in manufacturing technology and their implications on the design and control of manufacturing systems. Recognizing the need to respond properly to rapidly changing market demands, we discuss several types of flexibility that can be incorporated in our production organisation to achieve this goal. We show how the concept of a Flexible Manufacturing System (FMS) naturally arises as an attempt to combine the advantages of traditional Job Shops and dedicated production lines.The main body of the paper is devoted to a classification of FMS problem areas and a review of models developed to understand and solve these problems. For each problem area, a number of important contributions in the literature is indicated. The reader, interested in the applications of Operations Research models but not familiar with the technical background of FMS’s, will find the descriptions of some essential FMS elements useful. Some final remarks and directions for future research conclude the paper.<br/

Group support systems features and their contribution to technology strategy decision-making: A review and analysis

Collective decision-making processes require careful design considerations in organizations. On one hand, the inclusion of a greater number of actors contribute to a wider knowledge base, on the other, it can become a diffuse process and be distorted from the principles initially established. This paper observes a specific collective decision making process in organizations—technology strategy formulation—and, through a critical review of the literature, analyzes how the advances in features of group support systems support improvements in different stages of this process. This paper also discusses the implications of GSS appropriation in group dynamics.This research was supported by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (SFRH/ BD/ 33727/ 2009), within the framework of the MIT Portugal Program.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Determination of Cellular Lipids Bound to Human CD1d Molecules

CD1 molecules are glycoproteins that present lipid antigens at the cell surface for immunological recognition by specialized populations of T lymphocytes. Prior experimental data suggest a wide variety of lipid species can bind to CD1 molecules, but little is known about the characteristics of cellular ligands that are selected for presentation. Here we have molecularly characterized lipids bound to the human CD1d isoform. Ligands were eluted from secreted CD1d molecules and separated by normal phase HPLC, then characterized by mass spectroscopy. A total of 177 lipid species were molecularly identified, comprising glycerophospholipids and sphingolipids. The glycerophospholipids included common diacylglycerol species, reduced forms known as plasmalogens, lyso-phospholipids (monoacyl species), and cardiolipins (tetraacyl species). The sphingolipids included sphingomyelins and glycosylated forms, such as the ganglioside GM3. These results demonstrate that human CD1d molecules bind a surprising diversity of lipid structures within the secretory pathway, including compounds that have been reported to play roles in cancer, autoimmune diseases, lipid signaling, and cell death

Intercellular communication in spheroids

This chapter has shown that the response of spheroid cells to gap junctional communication may lead to certain metabolic and cell physiological changes. It has also become apparent that the functions of the gap junctions are very complex. They may, for example, be related to the fundamental effects of cAMP and/or Ca 2+. These lines of evidence should be pursued further. However, further insight into these functions may also be gained from a study of the structure and function of the gap-junctional proteins, as well as from a genetic approach (e.g., Willecke et al. 1982, 1983). In this context, the spheroids are of particular importance as test systems, since they perfectly simulate the three dimensional arrangement of cells encountered in a tissue. Indeed, the results presented in the sections "Biophysical and Biochemical Effects Associated with Intercellular Communications" and "Intercellular Communication and Radiosensitivity" have revealed clear cut differences between cells growing as spheroids or as monolayers in response to communication dependent processes, which indicate that the response of the monolayers could be somewhat trivial. The advantage of multicellular spheroid systems with three-dimensional growth over monolayer cultures is unquestionable. Cells growing in three-dimensional multicell spheroids may re-establish their regulatory activities and, therefore, match the in vivo conditions more closely. Multicell spheroids allow in vitro investigations on differentiating systems and on interactions between normal and malignant cells, thus substituting costly in vivo experiments

Is It Ethical to Use Ethics as Strategy?

ABSTRACT. Increasingly research in the field of business and society suggests that ethics and corporate social responsibility can be profitable. Yet this work raises a troubling question: Is it ethical to use ethics and social responsibility in a strategic way? Is it possible to be ethical or socially responsible for the wrong reason? In this article, we define a strategy concept in order to situate the different approaches to the strategic use of ethics and social responsibility found in the current literature. We then analyze the ethics of such approaches using both utilitarianism and deontology and end by defining limits to the strategic use of ethics