Decomposition of Manufacturing Processes: A Review

Manufacturing is a global activity that started during the industrial revolution in the late 19th century to cater for the large-scale production of products. Since then, manufacturing has changed tremendously through the innovations of technology, processes, materials, communication and transportation. The major challenge facing manufacturing is to produce more products using less material, less energy and less involvement of labour. To face these challenges, manufacturing companies must have a strategy and competitive priority in order for them to compete in a dynamic market. A review of the literature on the decomposition of manufacturing processes outlines three main processes, namely: high volume, medium volume and low volume. The decomposition shows that each sub process has its own characteristics and depends on the nature of the firm’s business. Two extreme processes are continuous line production (fast extreme) and project shop (slow extreme). Other processes are in between these two extremes of the manufacturing spectrum. Process flow patterns become less complex with cellular, line and continuous flow compared with jobbing and project. The review also indicates that when the product is high variety and low volume, project or functional production is applied

Development of a high pressure compressed natural gas mixer for a 1.5 litre CNG-diesel dual engine

[Abstract]: The Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis software was used to study the flow behaviour of compressed natural gas (CNG) and air in a CNG-air mixer to be introduced through the air inlet of a CNG-Diesel dual fuel stationary engine. The results of the simulation show that the Venturi mixer with more holes gives superior engine performance compared to the 4-hole Venturi mixer. Further analysis is done on the different holes mixer to investigate the effect of engine speed on the mass flow rate of CNG and the equivalence ratio Lambda. The second part of the paper represents a comparison results between the performances of a single cylinder research Compression Ignition CI engine fuelled with CNG-diesel system and conventional CI engine fuelled by conventional diesel. The engine was equipped with the simulated Venturi mixer, the result showed significant reduction in the exhaust gas emission compared to the conventional diesel engine. The average power output generated by dual fuel engine was slightly higher than that diesel one at different engine speeds

V Techno-economic comparison between direct seeding and transplanting method in rice cultivation: a case study / Mohamad Hanif Nur Hidayat M. Zuki

The investigation was conducted to evaluate technical aspect of machine performance and economic feasibility between direct seeding and transplanting method in rice cultivation. This study used two type of paddy cultivation machine which is Kubota rice transplanter used for transplanting method and knapsack mounted motorized blower used for direct seeding method to operate this study in Paya Keladi, Seberang Perai, Pulau Pinang paddy field during June until November 2016. Both planting method had three unit plots of sized 100 m x 100 m each with two treatments and three replications. The operational performance from the result showed the field efficiency of the direct seeding method and transplanting method were 70.00 % and 63.58 %, respectively. Percent missing seedlings in transplanting method were 5.56 % while the direct seeding method was observed no missing seedlings. The planting efficiency of direct seeding method and transplanting method were 94.44 % and 100 %, respectively. Rice cultivated with transplanting method resulted in higher average yield of 11.20 tons/ha than direct seeding method resulted average yield of 9.10 tons/ha. The total production costs were RM 3770 per ha and RM 4420 per ha for direct seeding and transplanting methods, respectively. The net return for direct seeding method and transplanting method were RM 5785 and RM 7340, respectively. The benefit cost ratio (BCR) was 2.66 and 2.53 for transplanting method and direct seeding method, respectively. For economic planting of rice, the Kubota rice transplanter should have above 10 ha/yr of area coverage. The result showed that the transplanting method is more economic over the direct seeding method

Interannual variability of tropical cyclone activity in the southern South China Sea

A study of tropical storm activity in the southern South China Sea region was carried out for the period of 1960 to 2006 using data obtained from the UNISYS website archive, which was provided to them from the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JWTC) best track data. This study was motivated by two particularly costly storms that impacted Malaysia during the 1996-2001 period. This study demonstrated that November and December were the most active months for tropical cyclone activity in this region. A majority of these storms attained tropical storm intensity. Also, a majority of the tropical cyclones originated within the study area near Malaysia as opposed to moving into the area. The long-term trend showed that there has been a slight increase in tropical cyclone activity in the region, but the trend was not statistically significant. A study of the interannual variability revealed that there was more (less) tropical cyclone activity in the region during La Nin˜a (El Nin˜o) years. Longer-term variability, such as that related to the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, was not found in the analysis here. Using spectral methods confirms that there was significant El Nin˜o-related variability in climatological quantities such as monthly sea surface temperatures or pressures. Finally, the background climatological state was examined in order to determine whether or not the atmosphere in the region was more conducive to tropical cyclone formation or maintenance during active years. It was found that the most active years were associated with warmer SSTs in the study region, relatively weak 200-850 hPa wind shear, a warm-core structure, more water vapor, and more cyclonic low-level relative vorticity, and these were all La Nin˜a-type years. Nonactive years were associated with weaker wind shear, less water vapor, and a more anticyclonic (vorticity) background, regardless of whether the SSTs were warmer or cooler, and most of these were El Nin˜o-type years

Immunohistochemical evaluation of lesions in the gastrointestinal tract of buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) calves orally exposed to Pasteurella multocida B:2

The gastrointestinal lesions and bacterial distribution of buffalo calves were evaluated histologically using immunoperoxidase, following oral exposure to wild-type Pasteurella multocida B:2 at 109cfu/mL in   phosphate buffered saline. The lesions were basically of mild to severe mucohaemorrhagic abomasitis and  enteritis.The lesions were confirmed to be associated with the inoculated P. multocida B:2, using the   immunoperoxidase technique. P. multocida B:2 antigen was detected not only in the bacterial clusters in  the gastric pits, intestinal epithelia and capillaries, Brünner’s glands and Crypt of Lieberkühn but was also  seen interacting with infiltrating neutrophils and macrophages intracellularly and on the surface of  erythrocyte in congested vessels and haemorrhages. We observed higher localization and distribution of the  immunoperoxidase reaction with increased severity of lesions along the gastrointestinal tract. This suggest intensity increases with increased amount of P. multocida B:2 or antigen in the tissue, which  possibly leads to increase tissue damage.Keywords: Buffalo calves, Gastrointestinal lesions, Immunoperoxidase, Oral infection, Pasteurella  multocida B:

Multi-Objective Optimisation of CNC Milling Process for Al 6061 using Modified NSGA-II

Computer numerical controlled (CNC) growth has revolutionised the manufacturing sectors by changing the way people work. In milling process, it has contributed to the higher productivity and better quality of the products. Although a lot of researches have been done on how to improve the process, the process improvement does not stop there because of evolving materials, methods and technologies. This paper presents a multi-objective optimisation of CNC milling process in order to achieve desired surface roughness and minimise machining time for Al 6061. A full factorial experiment has been conducted to model surface roughness by controlling three variables; spindle speed, feed rate and depth of cut. Multi-objective optimisation has been performed using modified Elitist Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm (NSGA-II) with two levels crossover. The optimisation result concluded that the modified NSGA-II was able to converge to Pareto-optimal, but having difficulties to spread solutions in wider range

Effects of varying levels of n-6:n-3 fatty acid ratio on plasma fatty acid composition and prostanoid synthesis in pregnant rats

This study investigated the effects of varying dietary levels of n-6:n-3 fatty acid ratio on plasma fatty acid composition and prostanoid synthesis in pregnant rats. Four groups consisting of seven rats pergroup of non pregnant rats were fed diets with either a very low n-6:n-3 ratio of 50% soybean oil (SBO): 50% cod liver oil (CLO) 1:1 group , a low ratio of 84% SBO: 16% CLO 6:1 group, a high ratio of 96% SBO: 4% CLO 30:1 group and control group was given only rat chow diet. Blood samples were taken at day 15 post mating and the plasma was analyzed for fatty acid profile, specifically the n-6:n-3 fatty acid ratio and prostaglandins F2α and E2. The n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in plasma of group 1:1 were significantly (P < 0.05) higher than the other groups, while the n-6:n-3 fatty acid ratio was significantly lower. The total n-6 PUFA was significantly higher (P < 0.05) in group 30:1 as compared to the control and 1:1 groups. The total PGF2α and PGE2 were significantly higher (P < 0.05) in group 30:1 rats fed a diet high in n-6 or n-6:n-3 fatty acids. The diet higher in n-6 fatty acids appear to increase arachidonic acid( AA) and prostaglandins synthesis in plasma of rats. PGE2 productions in plasma were significantly lower in rats fed diets with a lower dietary ratio of n-6:n-3 fatty acids than in those fed diets with a higher dietary ratio. Regression analysis revealed a significant positivecorrelation between PGF2α and PGE2 and the ratio of n-6:n-3, and significant positive correlation between different ratio n-6:n-3 on fatty acid plasma compstion and PGF2α and PGE2 concentration on plasma. These results demonstrated that the dietary ratio of n-6:n-3 modulates PGF2α and PGE2 production. The n-6:n-3 fatty acid ratio significantly affected plasma fatty acids profile and prostaglandin synthesis in pregnant rat.Keywords: n-6:n-3 fatty acid ratio, plasma fatty acids, prostanoid synthesis, pregnant ra

The effects of Momordica charantia on the liver in streptozotocin-induced diabetes in neonatal rats

The aim of this study is to determine the effects of Momordica charantia (MC) fruit aqueous extract on the liver histopathological changes in neonatal rats streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes mellitus type II. Diabetes mellitus was induced in one day old neonatal Sprague-Dawley rats with STZ (85 mg/kg) and monitored for 12 weeks thereafter. The diabetic rats were separated into three groups as follows: the diabetic control group (nSTZ), the MC treated diabetic group (nSTZ/M), and the glibenclamide treated diabetic group (nSTZ/G). At the end of the treatment, blood glucose, serum insulin, alanine amino transferases (ALT) and aspartate amino transferases (AST) level was measured. Malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration was measured in the plasma and liver. The liver samples were processed for light microscopy examination. The results showed a reduction of blood glucose, ALT and AST, and increment of insulin level in the nSTZ/M and nSTZ/G rats. Administration of MC reduced the MDA concentration in plasma and liver of the nSTZ/M rats. Glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity was improved in the nSTZ/M and nSTZ/G groups. The degenerative changes in liver were alleviated in the nSTZ/M and nSTZ/G groups. These results suggested that MC fruit aqueous extract may have a significant role in alleviating liver damage in the nSTZ-diabetic rats.Key words: Diabetes, Momordica charantia, liver, neonatal rat

Morphological and histochemical observations of the red jungle fowl tongue Gallus gallus

Morphological and histochemical study of the tongue of ten adult red jungle fowl (RJF), Gallus gallus were carried out at macroscopic and microscopic levels. The tongue was triangular with a wide dorsal and ventrolateral surface with median groove at the rostral part. Between the body and the roots appears a transverse row of the lingual conical papillae which was directed backwards. Behind the laryngeal cleft, there was a single row of pharyngeal papillae. The lingual mucosa showed parakeratinization, while there was a clearly recognizable keratinized band on the ventrolateral surface and the conical papillae. The cell cytoplasm of the medial group (MG) of the anterior lingual glands and the posterior glands contained large amounts of mucin compared with the lateral group (LG). The mucin of the lingual glands contained vicinal diol groups. Moreover, the sulphate containing glycoconjugates indicated in the MG and the posterior glands with a strong acid mucin reaction. Meanwhile, the LG of the anterior lingual glands exhibited carboxylated mucin with weak acid mucin reaction. In conclusion, the differences in the arrangement of the lingual and pharyngeal papillae in the RJF than that in other birds particularly domestic chicken may reflects the changes which occurred for the latter during domestication. The contents of mucins in the medial and lateral groups of the anterior lingual gland were varied, however, no differences histochemistry between the medial group and the posterior lingual gland were observed.Key words: Lingual salivary glands, mucin reaction, red jungle, tongue

RULA: Postural Loading Assessment Tools for Malaysia Mining Industry

The ergonomics and environment factors have been the core issue for the mining industry for many years, and its profiles are rising. To ensure an ergonomics work environment, it is possible to require specific attention especially in this industries sector. It is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the essential issue in Malaysia due to lack of ergonomics knowledge and low awareness among the engineers in the mining sector. The focus of this study is to evaluate and validate the physical risk factor associated with work-related musculoskeletal disorder (WMSDs) by using Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) among mining industry workers. All the physical risk factors involved the main body regions such as upper arm, lower arm, wrist, trunk, neck and leg that has been identified associated with WMSDs. There were 18 subjects selected to involve in this study. Those subjects were chosen according to their job task. To increase the reliability of the result, each subject was evaluated thrice in the trials. From the analysis, the average of final score of the RULA is 7 indicates high risk and calls for engineering/or work method changes to reduce or eliminate muscular disorder risk. The results of the analysis were used to improve the process of work, design of workstation and also improving the work posture to enhance the comfort level of operators. This study is crucial among the mining industry that is a lack of the information and research about the ergonomics issues in the industry. The overall finding indicated that the whole process of selected work task will contribute to musculoskeletal disorder either for a short or long time exposure