Overview of Remaining Useful Life prediction techniques in Through-life Engineering Services

Through-life Engineering Services (TES) are essential in the manufacture and servicing of complex engineering products. TES improves support services by providing prognosis of run-to-failure and time-to-failure on-demand data for better decision making. The concept of Remaining Useful Life (RUL) is utilised to predict life-span of components (of a service system) with the purpose of minimising catastrophic failure events in both manufacturing and service sectors. The purpose of this paper is to identify failure mechanisms and emphasise the failure events prediction approaches that can effectively reduce uncertainties. It will demonstrate the classification of techniques used in RUL prediction for optimisation of products’ future use based on current products in-service with regards to predictability, availability and reliability. It presents a mapping of degradation mechanisms against techniques for knowledge acquisition with the objective of presenting to designers and manufacturers ways to improve the life-span of components

Integrating Environmental Issues Into Corporate Strategy: A Catalyst for Radical Organizational Innovation

This paper presents the results of a study conducted in manufacturing firms operating in the electrical and electronic sectors in Quebec. It investigates the extent to which environmental concerns are integrated into corporate strategy and the entire product development stages. Special attention is paid to the underlying decision process and the benefits derived from being green . Un étude conduite auprès des entreprises québécoises oeuvrant dans les secteur électrique et électronique permet d'évaluer le niveau d'intégration des préoccupations environnementales dans la stratégie corporative et dans les différentes phases du cycle de développement des produits. Les résultats de l'étude analysent les processus décisionnels sous-jacents ainsi que les bénéfices encourus par les entreprises qui ont privilégié une stratégie environnementale plus intense.Electrical indystry; Electronical industry; Environnemental concerns; Product development, Industrie électrique ; Industrie électronique ; Préoccupation environnementales ; Développement des produits

Entre le changement et l'indiscipline

In this article the author presents a view on federal-provincial relations which he sees as characterized by constant change and a lack of discipline both of which have recently resulted in a degradation of the system itself. Hence, there is a need to return to a reasonable level of predictability in federal-provincial relations which may be characterized by moderation. Roy points out that English Canada and Quebec are not mutually exclusive societies and there exists a variety of mechanisms which could contribute to common understanding. As publisher of the daily « Le Devoir », Roy points out that his paper was staunchly opposed to the Constitutional Law of 1982. Yet, due to the majority of Quebecers who rejected the sovereignty option as well as the recent ruling on a veto prerogative for Quebec, a new outlook must be adopted. Quebec must ask itself three questions. First, has it given sufficient consideration to the existence of its various partners ? Secondly, could Quebec be moving too fast towards its goals ? Thirdly, has Quebec capitalized on all the positive elements in its relationships ? The author concludes by affirming that regardless of other elements, Quebec and Canada have the obligation to negotiate with their neighbor

Technological Penetration and Cumulative Benefits in SMEs

The relative importance of the benefits derived from the adoption of computer-based administrative and production applications depends to a large extent on the level of technological penetration attained by a particular firm. This evolutionary perspective is investigated in an empirical study carried out in manufacturing firms operating in one specific sector of industrial activity. L'importance relative des bénéfices provenant de l'adoption des nouvelles technologies de l'information et de production sont fonction en grande partie du niveau de pénétration technologique atteint par la firme. Cette perspective évolutionniste est étudiée dans le cadre d'une recherche empirique menée auprès de petites et moyennes entreprises manufacturières innovatrices oeuvrant dans le secteur du métal.SME ; Adoption of new technologies, Adoption de nouvelles technologies ; PME

Development of an ontology for aerospace engine components degradation in service

This paper presents the development of an ontology for component service degradation. In this paper, degradation mechanisms in gas turbine metallic components are used for a case study to explain how a taxonomy within an ontology can be validated. The validation method used in this paper uses an iterative process and sanity checks. Data extracted from on-demand textual information are filtered and grouped into classes of degradation mechanisms. Various concepts are systematically and hierarchically arranged for use in the service maintenance ontology. The allocation of the mechanisms to the AS-IS ontology presents a robust data collection hub. Data integrity is guaranteed when the TO-BE ontology is introduced to analyse processes relative to various failure events. The initial evaluation reveals improvement in the performance of the TO-BE domain ontology based on iterations and updates with recognised mechanisms. The information extracted and collected is required to improve service k nowledge and performance feedback which are important for service engineers. Existing research areas such as natural language processing, knowledge management, and information extraction were also examined

The adoption and use of Through-life Engineering Services within UK Manufacturing Organisations

Manufacturing organisations seek ever more innovative approaches in order to maintain and improve their competitive position within the global market. One such initiative that is gaining significance is ‘through-life engineering services’. These seek to adopt ‘whole life’ service support through the greater understanding of component and system performance driven by knowledge gained from maintenance, repair and overhaul activities. This research presents the findings of exploratory research based on a survey of UK manufacturers who provide through-life engineering services. The survey findings illustrate significant issues to be addressed within the field before the concept becomes widely accepted. These include a more proactive approach to maintenance activities based on real-time responses; standardisation of data content, structure, collection, storage and retrieval protocols in support of maintenance; the development of clear definitions, ontologies and a taxonomy of through-life engineering services in support of the service delivery system; lack of understanding of component and system performance due to the presence of ‘No Fault Found’ events that skew maintenance metrics and the increased use of radio-frequency identification technology in support of maintenance data acquisition

Solar Sails : Technology and demonstration status

Solar Sail propulsion has been validated in space (IKAROS, 2012) and soon several more solar-sail propelled spacecraft will be flown. Using sunlight for spacecraft propulsion is not a new idea. First proposed by Frederick Tsander and Konstantin Tsiolkovsky in the 1920's, NASA's Echo 1 balloon, launched in 1960, was the first spacecraft for which the effects of solar photon pressure were measured. Solar sails reflect sunlight to achieve thrust, thus eliminating the need for costly and often very-heavy fuel. Such "propellantless" propulsion will enable whole new classes of space science and exploration missions previously not considered possible due to the propulsive-intense maneouvers and operations required

Symmetries, Cluster Synchronization, and Isolated Desynchronization in Complex Networks

Synchronization is of central importance in power distribution, telecommunication, neuronal, and biological networks. Many networks are observed to produce patterns of synchronized clusters, but it has been difficult to predict these clusters or understand the conditions under which they form, except for in the simplest of networks. In this article, we shed light on the intimate connection between network symmetry and cluster synchronization. We introduce general techniques that use network symmetries to reveal the patterns of synchronized clusters and determine the conditions under which they persist. The connection between symmetry and cluster synchronization is experimentally explored using an electro-optic network. We experimentally observe and theoretically predict a surprising phenomenon in which some clusters lose synchrony while leaving others synchronized. The results could guide the design of new power grid systems or lead to new understanding of the dynamical behavior of networks ranging from neural to social

Variations de la forme des versants le long d’un cours d’eau miniature

Le long du cours d'eau principal d'un bassin-versant miniature, la forme des versants est en partie contrôlée par l'exposition et la distance de l'embouchure. Les versants exposés au SE sont plus raides, plus courts et comportent moins de segments rectilignes que ceux exposés au NW. Par contre, l'angle des versants n'augmente ni ne diminue de la tête du cours d'eau vers l'embouchure. Les versants convexes à l'amont deviennent brusquement concaves à l'aval. Ce changement morphométrique s'effectue à l'endroit où le cours d'eau cesse de s'inciser activement.Along the main channel of a miniature drainage network, slope form is partly explained by aspect and distance from the outlet. Slopes exposed to the SE are steeper, shorter and less complex than those exposed to the NW. Slope angle, however, is unrelated with distance to the outlet while the percentage of convexity of the slopes decreases downstream. This change in slope convexity is very abrupt and it takes place where active stream downcutting ceases