Study on ISO 9001 certification in Brazil: mapping the motivations, benefits, and difficulties

O objetivo deste trabalho é identificar as principais motivações, benefícios e dificuldades na certificação de Sistemas de Gestão da Qualidade ISO 9001 em empresas brasileiras. Adicionalmente investigaram-se as principais práticas de gestão da qualidade que dão suporte a este tipo de certificação e qual o seu relacionamento com outros tipos de sistemas, tais como a ISO 14001 (Gestão Ambiental) e a OHSAS 18001 (Gestão da Segurança e Saúde do Trabalho). A abordagem metodológica utilizada foi a pesquisa tipo survey, cuja amostra conteve 191 empresas. As principais motivações para implementação da ISO 9001 identificadas foram: possibilidade de melhoria na organização interna, maior eficiência produtiva e maior confiabilidade na marca. A resistência dos funcionários foi apontada como a maior dificuldade. Já os principais benefícios obtidos foram: melhoria da qualidade nos processos e maior conscientização dos empregados em relação à qualidade. Os resultados revelam que os programas e ferramentas da qualidade mais utilizados são: 5S, brainstorming e diagrama de Ishikawa; enquanto os menos utilizados são: o Servqual e o QFDThis work aims to identify the main motivations and difficulties faced by Brazilian companies to obtain ISO 9001 certification. The key quality management practices that provide support to this certification and the relationship with other types of systems, such as ISO 14001 (Environmental Management) and OHSAS 18001 (Occupational Health and Safety Management System), were also investigated. A survey research was conducted with 191 companies. The main motivations for implementing ISO 9001 are the following: internal organization improvement, production efficiency increase, and brand reliability improvement. Employee resistance was the greatest challenge found during the implementation process. On the other hand, the main benefits identified were: quality processes improvement and increased employee awareness of quality. The results reveal that the most common quality programs and tools used are: 5S, brainstorming, and Ishikawa diagram, while the least common are SERVQUAL and QF

ALLQU – COLLAR GPS

Nuestros collares geo localizadores “Allqu” se encuentran dirigidos a las personas de Lima Metropolitana del nivel socioeconómico A/B que cuenten con mascotas en casa y que se preocupen por la seguridad de los mismos. A través de los collares con GPS, promovemos la protección y el cuidado preservando la integridad y vida animal. Basado en los resultados de las entrevistas a profundidad, se logró detectar los principales problemas que poseen las personas que cuentan con una mascota en casa. Consecuente a ello, se identificó la creación de un producto que satisfaga todas las necesidades de nuestro público objetivo. Las distintas validaciones de hipótesis nos reafirmaron la continuación de la propuesta de negocio. Nuestros principales canales de venta físicos serán: local propio, veterinarias y petshops. Asimismo, tendremos presencia digital a través de los E-Commerce. La estrategia de Marketing será vital para lograr un posicionamiento de mercado importante en accesorios para mascotas. Los collares tecnológicos serán importados desde China y se almacenarán en nuestra tienda física ubicada en el distrito de Lince donde se realizará el empacado y funcionará también como centro de distribución para los diferentes puntos de venta. El negocio contará con 4 colaboradores capacitados para las funciones establecidas y el logro de objetivos trazados. En el análisis financiero desarrollado y proyectado, tenemos un Valor Presente Neto de S/118,563 y una Tasa Interna de Retorno de 57.66%, siendo indicadores importantes que demuestra la viabilidad y rentabilidad del negocio en el tiempo.Our geo locator collars "Allqu" are aimed at people in Metropolitan Lima of the socioeconomic level A/B who have pets at home and who are concerned about their safety. Through GPS collars, we promote protection and care while preserving the integrity and animal life. Based on the results of the in-depth interviews, it was possible to detect the main problems that people who have a pet experience. Consequently, the creation of a product that meets all the needs of our target audience was identified. The different hypothesis validations reaffirmed the continuation of the business proposal. Our main physical sales channels will be: our own shop, veterinarians and petshops. Likewise, we will have a digital presence through E-Commerce. The Marketing strategy will be vital to achieve an important market position in pet accessories. The technological collars will be imported from China and will be stored in our physical store located in the Lince district where the packaging will take place and will also function as a distribution center for the different points of sale. The business will have 4 workers trained for the established functions and the achievement of set objectives. In the financial analysis developed and projected, we have a Net Present Value of S / 118,563 and an Internal Rate of Return of 57.66%, being important indicators that demonstrate the viability and profitability of the business over time.Trabajo de investigació

Loss of ATF2 Function Leads to Cranial Motoneuron Degeneration during Embryonic Mouse Development

The AP-1 family transcription factor ATF2 is essential for development and tissue maintenance in mammals. In particular, ATF2 is highly expressed and activated in the brain and previous studies using mouse knockouts have confirmed its requirement in the cerebellum as well as in vestibular sense organs. Here we present the analysis of the requirement for ATF2 in CNS development in mouse embryos, specifically in the brainstem. We discovered that neuron-specific inactivation of ATF2 leads to significant loss of motoneurons of the hypoglossal, abducens and facial nuclei. While the generation of ATF2 mutant motoneurons appears normal during early development, they undergo caspase-dependent and independent cell death during later embryonic and foetal stages. The loss of these motoneurons correlates with increased levels of stress activated MAP kinases, JNK and p38, as well as aberrant accumulation of phosphorylated neurofilament proteins, NF-H and NF-M, known substrates for these kinases. This, together with other neuropathological phenotypes, including aberrant vacuolisation and lipid accumulation, indicates that deficiency in ATF2 leads to neurodegeneration of subsets of somatic and visceral motoneurons of the brainstem. It also confirms that ATF2 has a critical role in limiting the activities of stress kinases JNK and p38 which are potent inducers of cell death in the CNS

QCD and strongly coupled gauge theories : challenges and perspectives

We highlight the progress, current status, and open challenges of QCD-driven physics, in theory and in experiment. We discuss how the strong interaction is intimately connected to a broad sweep of physical problems, in settings ranging from astrophysics and cosmology to strongly coupled, complex systems in particle and condensed-matter physics, as well as to searches for physics beyond the Standard Model. We also discuss how success in describing the strong interaction impacts other fields, and, in turn, how such subjects can impact studies of the strong interaction. In the course of the work we offer a perspective on the many research streams which flow into and out of QCD, as well as a vision for future developments.Peer reviewe

The Materials Research Platform: Defining the Requirements from User Stories

A recent meeting focused on accelerated materials design and discovery examined user requirements for a general, collaborative, integrative, and on-demand materials research platform

Um estudo sobre a certificação ISO 9001 no Brasil: mapeamento de motivações, benefícios e dificuldades

O objetivo deste trabalho é identificar as principais motivações, benefícios e dificuldades na certificação de Sistemas de Gestão da Qualidade ISO 9001 em empresas brasileiras. Adicionalmente investigaram-se as principais práticas de gestão da qualidade que dão suporte a este tipo de certificação e qual o seu relacionamento com outros tipos de sistemas, tais como a ISO 14001 (Gestão Ambiental) e a OHSAS 18001 (Gestão da Segurança e Saúde do Trabalho). A abordagem metodológica utilizada foi a pesquisa tipo survey, cuja amostra conteve 191 empresas. As principais motivações para implementação da ISO 9001 identificadas foram: possibilidade de melhoria na organização interna, maior eficiência produtiva e maior confiabilidade na marca. A resistência dos funcionários foi apontada como a maior dificuldade. Já os principais benefícios obtidos foram: melhoria da qualidade nos processos e maior conscientização dos empregados em relação à qualidade. Os resultados revelam que os programas e ferramentas da qualidade mais utilizados são: 5S, brainstorming e diagrama de Ishikawa; enquanto os menos utilizados são: o Servqual e o QFD

Um estudo sobre a certificação ISO 9001 no Brasil: mapeamento de motivações, benefícios e dificuldades

This work aims to identify the main motivations and difficulties faced by Brazilian companies to obtain ISO 9001 certification. The key quality management practices that provide support to this certification and the relationship with other types of systems, such as ISO 14001 (Environmental Management) and OHSAS 18001 (Occupational Health and Safety Management System), were also investigated. A survey research was conducted with 191 companies. The main motivations for implementing ISO 9001 are the following: internal organization improvement, production efficiency increase, and brand reliability improvement. Employee resistance was the greatest challenge found during the implementation process. On the other hand, the main benefits identified were: quality processes improvement and increased employee awareness of quality. The results reveal that the most common quality programs and tools used are: 5S, brainstorming, and Ishikawa diagram, while the least common are SERVQUAL and QFD.O objetivo deste trabalho é identificar as principais motivações, benefícios e dificuldades na certificação de Sistemas de Gestão da Qualidade ISO 9001 em empresas brasileiras. Adicionalmente investigaram-se as principais práticas de gestão da qualidade que dão suporte a este tipo de certificação e qual o seu relacionamento com outros tipos de sistemas, tais como a ISO 14001 (Gestão Ambiental) e a OHSAS 18001 (Gestão da Segurança e Saúde do Trabalho). A abordagem metodológica utilizada foi a pesquisa tipo survey, cuja amostra conteve 191 empresas. As principais motivações para implementação da ISO 9001 identificadas foram: possibilidade de melhoria na organização interna, maior eficiência produtiva e maior confiabilidade na marca. A resistência dos funcionários foi apontada como a maior dificuldade. Já os principais benefícios obtidos foram: melhoria da qualidade nos processos e maior conscientização dos empregados em relação à qualidade. Os resultados revelam que os programas e ferramentas da qualidade mais utilizados são: 5S, brainstorming e diagrama de Ishikawa; enquanto os menos utilizados são: o Servqual e o QFD

Filamin-A regulates actin-dependent clustering of HIV receptors

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 infection requires envelope (Env) glycoprotein gp120-induced clustering of CD4 and coreceptors (CCR5 or CXCR4) on the cell surface; this enables Env gp41 activation and formation of a complex that mediates fusion between Env-containing and target-cell membranes. Kinetic studies show that viral receptors are actively transported to the Env-receptor interface in a process that depends on plasma membrane composition and the actin cytoskeleton. The mechanisms by which HIV-1 induces F-actin rearrangement in the target cell remain largely unknown. Here, we show that CD4 and the coreceptors interact with the actin-binding protein filamin-A, whose binding to HIV-1 receptors regulates their clustering on the cell surface. We found that gp120 binding to cell receptors induces transient cofilin-phosphorylation inactivation through a RhoA-ROCK-dependent mechanism. Blockade of filamin-A interaction with CD4 and/or coreceptors inhibits gp120-induced RhoA activation and cofilin inactivation. Our results thus identify filamin-A as an adaptor protein that links HIV-1 receptors to the actin cytoskeleton remodelling machinery, which may facilitate virus infectio