on the relationship between lean practices and environmental performance

Lean production has emerged in the past decades as one of the most popular topics in business and manufacturing literature and it is the most extended production paradigm currently applied in industry. Lean production is characterized by five principles (value, map the value stream, flow, pull and continuous improvement) and by the importance of reducing waste (muda). Alongside the Lean philosophy, the so-called green strategy has also gained importance in competition between firms. Many companies are trying to develop products that reduce environmental impacts throughout their life cycle. The aim is to reduce resource consumption, to replace hazardous substances, to increase recyclability, to enhance energy efficiency and to bring down CO2 emissions. Lean and Green production paradigms are both focused on waste reduction and several authors have studied the relationship between Lean and Green practices and the synergic effects of joining these two management approaches. This research carries out a literature review in order to investigate if firms which have applied Lean principles and methods have improved their environmental measures. In particular, the work seeks to highlight which green indicators are more positively affected by Lean practices adoption. The results are synthesized in a final chart which illustrates the main green indicators cited in the literature and shows how these indicators have changed after a Lean transformation program. The research is to be understood as a work in progress and is part of a larger study that the authors are conducting on this topic

Fractura avulsión del troquin humeral : a propósito de un caso

La fractura-avulsión aislada del troquín humeral sin luxación escápulo-humeral, es una entidad rara, descrita muy pocas veces en la literatura internacional. Su mecanismo de producción es similar al de otras lesiones por avulsión: contracción violenta de un músculo sobre una relativamente pequeña apófisis de inserción; en este caso, el músculo subescapular a nivel del troquín. La combinación de abducción más rotación externa del húmero con una contractura súbita y violenta del músculo subescapular, podría provocar un arrancamiento del troquín con mayor o menor grado de desplazamiento. Aunque el tratamiento ortopédico mediante simple inmovilización puede indicarse en algunos casos, la reparación quirúrgica precoz, con osteosíntesis del fragmento óseo, o resección del fragmento óseo, permite obtener un excelente resultado. En este caso, el tratamiento se realizó mediante fijación con un único tornillo maleolar.Isolated avulsion fracture of the lesser tuberosity of the humerus, in absence of dislocation, is a extremely rare entity, with very few references in the international literature. This injury is produced by a similar mechanism to other avulsion injuries; violent muscular contraction upon small insertion apophysis; in this case, the subescapularis muscle on the lesser tuberosity of the humerus. This abdution and external rotation of the humerus combined with sudden and violent contracture of the subescapularis muscle can produce avulsion of the lesser tuberosity with more o less displacement. Although, some cases can be treated conservatively, surgical treatment by internal fixation or bone fragment excision provides excellent results. This case was treated by fixation with a single malleolar screw

Effect of the feed presentation form on the intake pattern, productive traits and rumen pH of beef cattle fed high concentrate diets

Nutritional disorders like ruminal acidosis are common in Spanish beef production system, in which animals are fed diets with a high content in starch. This experiment studied the effect of feed presentation form (concentrate and straw offered separately, CD, or mixed in form of briquettes, BR) on the pattern of intake, growth and rumen pH of beef cattle fed high concentrate diets. The experiment was performed with 40 Holstein male calves, 32 of them for determining feed intake pattern and productive rates, and the remaining 8, which were previously provided with a ruminal cannula, to monitor rumen pH in two 21-day consecutive periods following a change-over design. Animals fed BR reduced feed intake rate during the first hour after feeding (18.6 vs. 24.0% of daily intake p<0.001), but this diet promoted a lower rumen pH at all sampling times compared with CD (daily average of 5.98 vs. 6.33; p<0.001) and tended to promote a lower total feed intake (7.08 vs. 9.77 kg DM d–1; p<0.001) and daily weight gain (1.43 vs. 1.76 kg d–1; p=0.056). Offering the concentrate and the straw mixed in form of briquettes is not useful to prevent ruminal acidosis and improve growth, probably due to both a reduced particle size of straw and avoided self-regulation of straw intake along the day. Additional key words: fee

Aplicación clínica de la toxina botulínica tipo A en humanos. Genética, estructura y mecanismos de acción de la toxina botulínica

Las toxinas botulínicas son un conjunto de neurotoxinas producidas por bacterias del géneroClostridium que provocan el botulismo. Sin embargo, en las últimas décadas se han usado paratratar numerosas patologías y trastornos por su potencia y los efectos que tiene en elorganismo. Se clasifican en 8 serotipos, donde el que predomina por su importancia en el usomédico es la de tipo A (BoNT/A). Su mecanismo de acción mejor caracterizado es la escisión deproteínas SNARE (como SNAP-25), lo que imposibilita la liberación de neurotransmisores a lahendidura sináptica, provocando parálisis flácida por interrumpir la señalización decontracción muscular. Sin embargo, otros efectos han sido descritos en lo relativo a estemecanismo de bloqueo de neurotransmisión. Igualmente, se ha investigado la relación entre latoxina y la menor expresión de algunos receptores que son vehiculizados a la membrana envesículas que utilizan proteínas similares a las que movilizan las vesículas deneurotransmisores y siendo, por tanto, diana de la toxina botulínica. De esta forma, más alláde su conocido uso en medicina estética para reducir las arrugas de expresión, pacientes concondiciones clínicas muy diversas, tales como depresión, migraña, piel grasa o blefaroespasmo,han visto mejorar sus síntomas en los últimos años gracias a la investigación clínica de estatoxina. Tanto es el interés que despierta que incluso se han propuesto numerosasmodificaciones genéticas para mejorar algunas de sus interesantes propiedades, quedandoabierto un gran campo de estudio para seguir mejorando la vida de los pacientes en el futuropróximo.<br /

Evaluating the impact of lean practices on environmental performance: evidences from five manufacturing companies

Previous evidence suggests that both lean and green production paradigms are focused on waste reduction and that lean practices help organizations to enhance sustainability objectives, and particularly environmental performance. However, the impact of lean practices on the environment is still unclear. This study therefore aims to analyse the relationship between lean and environmental performance in manufacturing with a strong empirical focus. This research was conducted in two main stages: first, an extensive review of the relevant literature was carried out, followed by a multiple case study analysis conducted in five manufacturing companies. Onsite data were collected from the firms during a five years’ time span of research and developing semi-structured interviews. Furthermore, a cross-case analysis was carried out to map the results. Findings indicate that the environmental performance of the companies analysed is generally enhanced in the long-term after the implementation of lean. Moreover, the results from the multiple case study suggest that the environmental performance of the firms under analysis is mainly improved by using JIT and TQM practices in a lean transformation context. The research findings provide further results remarking the possible negative impact of practices such as Kanban deliveries, 5S and TPM on various environmental performance indicators.N/

A systematic literature review regarding the influence of lean manufacturing on firms’ financial performance

The lean philosophy has demonstrated its effectiveness to improve firms’ operational performance. However, the impact of lean practices on financial performance is still unclear due to the poor understanding of the link between operational and financial measures and the conflictive results obtained by previous research. The purpose of this paper is to conduct a systematic literature review to understand whether lean companies have improved their financial performance. Moreover, this article aims to uncover research gaps in the literature and examine which time spans of research have been considered to analyse both the degree of lean implementation and the measurement of financial outcomes. A systematic literature review has been conducted to identify peer-reviewed articles that analyse the effect of the lean production paradigm on the financial performance measures of manufacturing companies. Then, the identified articles were processed using a combination of descriptive and content analyses methods to draw new conclusions, uncover gaps and find novel paths for research. Various authors indicate that lean initiatives lead to an enhancement of financial performance measures. JIT and TQM lean practice bundles are suggested as the best enablers of financial performance in terms of sales and profit. In contrast, according to some scholars, lean does not necessarily improve companies’ financial results if it is not properly implemented. Despite several studies have focused on analysing the effects of lean on performance, only a small part of the literature has addressed the study of the effects of lean practices on financial performance metrics. The originality of this study lies in the investigation of the connections between lean practices and financial performance measures found in the literature. The outcome is the identification of various possible positive impacts of some lean practices on financial metrics.N/

Mechanical and microstructural features of wire-and-arc additively manufactured carbon steel thick plates

Metal additive manufacturing (AM), in particular wire-and-arc additive manufacturing (WAAM), has become over the last few years the breakthrough technology to reduce the environmental impact and increase the efficiency of steel structures. Although intense research effort has been paid toward the mechanical characterization of WAAM-produced thin walls, little attention has been devoted to the investigation of multi-layered thick parts. These latter would indeed expand the application of WAAM for large-scale constructions requiring thicker cross-sections to withstand high loading conditions. The present work provides a comprehensive experimental investigation of mild steel WAAM thick plates from the fabrication to the mechanical and microstructural characterization. First, the fabrication process is presented in full details. From that, microstructural and mechanical characterization is described and discussed, showing a homogeneous microstructure with little influence on the mechanical response along the wall plate thickness, also considering different specimen orientations with respect to the printing directions. The results confirm good mechanical properties of the printed outcomes, in line with those of structural mild steels manufactured with conventional technologies. Little influence on the response along the thickness is reported, thus proving the required quality of WAAM thick parts for applications in the construction sector

Prediction of large for gestational age by ultrasound at 35 weeks and impact of ultrasound-delivery interval: Comparison of 6 standards

Objective: The aim of the study was to assess the predictive ability of the ultrasound estimated percentile weight (EPW) at 35 weeks to predict large for gestational age (LGA) at term delivery according to 6 growth standards, including population, population-customized, and international references. The secondary objectives were to determine its predictive ability to detect adverse perinatal outcomes (APOs) and whether the ultrasound-delivery interval influences the detection rate of LGA newborns. Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of 9, 585 singleton pregnancies. Maternal clinical characteristics, fetal ultrasound data obtained at 35 weeks, and pregnancy and perinatal outcomes were used to calculate EPWs to predict LGAs at delivery according to the customized and the non-customized (NC) Miguel Servet University Hospital (MSUH), the customized Figueras, the NC Fetal Medicine Foundation (FMF), the NC INTERGROWTH-21st, and the NC World Health Organization (WHO) standards. Results: For a 10% false-positive rate, detection rates for total LGAs at delivery ranged from 31.2% with the WHO (area under the curve [AUC] 0.77; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.76-0.79) to 56.5% with the FMF standard (AUC 0.85; 95% CI, 0.84-0.86). Detection rates and values of AUCs to predict LGAs by ultrasound-delivery interval (range 1-6 weeks) show higher detection rates as the interval decreases. APO detection rates ranged from 2.5% with the WHO to 12.6% with the Figueras standard. Conclusion: The predictive ability of ultrasound estimated fetal weight at 35 weeks to detect LGA infants is significantly greater for FMF and MSUH NC standards. In contrast, the APO detection rate is significantly greater for customized standards. The shorter ultrasound-delivery interval relates to better prediction rates

Quantum-well states in ultrathin Ag(111) films deposited onto H-passivated Si(111)-(1x1) surfaces

Ag(111) films were deposited at room temperature onto H-passivated Si(111)-(1x1) substrates, and subsequently annealed at 300 C. An abrupt non-reactive Ag/Si interface is formed, and very uniform non-strained Ag(111) films of 6-12 monolayers have been grown. Angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy has been used to study the valence band electronic properties of these films. Well-defined Ag sp quantum-well states (QWS) have been observed at discrete energies between 0.5-2eV below the Fermi level, and their dispersions have been measured along the GammaK, GammaMM'and GammaL symmetry directions. QWS show a parabolic bidimensional dispersion, with in-plane effective mass of 0.38-0.50mo, along the GammaK and GammaMM' directions, whereas no dispersion has been found along the GammaL direction, indicating the low-dimensional electronic character of these states. The binding energy dependence of the QWS as a function of Ag film thickness has been analyzed in the framework of the phase accumulation model. According to this model, a reflectivity of 70% has been estimated for the Ag-sp states at the Ag/H/Si(111)-(1x1) interface.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.