Human resource management practices and organizational performance. The mediator role of immaterial satisfaction in Italian Social Cooperatives

The paper deals with the mediating role of immaterial satisfaction between substantive human resources (HR) features and organizational performance. We address this relationship in the Italian social service sector using a survey dataset that includes 4134 workers and 320 not-for-profit social cooperatives. The obtained results show that human resource management (HRM) practices influence immaterial satisfaction and, satisfaction positively impacts on firm performance. However, the impact of the different HRM practices is not the same. In this sense, worker involvement and workload pressure have a positive impact on firm performance; but task autonomy or collaborative teamwork do not have impact on organizational performance

A human growth perspective on sustainable HRM practices, worker well-being and organizational performance

Care services pose new challenges and opportunities for the implementation of sustainable HRM practices related to worker involvement and well-being because of their relational nature. The article is framed in terms of the job demands and resources model and discusses the impact of sustainable HRM (SHRM) practices on organizational performance in terms of service quality and organizational innovation in social and care services. A possible mediating role of immaterial satisfaction between SHRM and performance is also considered. We use national survey data including 4134 workers in 310 matched nonprofit social enterprises in Italy. The results show that HRM practices linked to task autonomy, teamwork, and involvement positively influence immaterial satisfaction, while at the same time immaterial satisfaction and HRM features related to involvement and workload support performance. The mediating role of immaterial satisfaction is not confirmed, but its effect adds positively to involvement in improving performance. This work contributes to the literature on organizational performance and HRM sustainability, which are particularly important in the face of ongoing social change and organizational innovation in social and relational service delivery.This research was funded by the CaRiPLo Foundation and by the Italian Ministry for Scientific Research (MIUR)

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

Interlaminar toughness of fusion bonded thermoplastic composites

Thermoplastic composites are of increasing interest to the aerospace industry. The melt-processability of the thermoplastic matrix allows for fast manufacturing and assembling techniques, such as thermoforming and fusion bonding, which are also highly suitable for process automation. Fusion bonding involves heating of the interface between the parts to be bonded, application of pressure and finally cooling of the bonded parts. Even though successful commercial application of fusion bonding can already be found in the aerospace industry, a wider use requires additional developments in order to improve the predictability, reliability and robustness of fusion bonded joints. This first of all requires a better understanding of that what is perceived as ‘the load bearing capacity’, as measured by mechanical testing of fusion bonded joints. Two mechanisms that are essential for the generation of the load bearing capacity of fusion bonded joints are (i) intimate contact development, followed by (ii) the interdiffusion of polymer chains across the interface. Although these two mechanisms are a prerequisite for the development of a bond, they are not the only mechanisms that determine the performance of a fusion bonded joint. The physical state of the bond line and the structural morphology of the interface also plays an important role. The objective of this work is to identify, to analyse and, when possible, to quantify the relation between the physical state and the structural morphology induced by the fusion bonding process, and the resulting mechanical performance of the joints. For this purpose, the most relevant variations in physical state and structural morphology, as induced by the fusion bonding process, were identified. These factors were then isolated experimentally, and their effects on the interlaminar fracture toughness of the joints were studied

Induction heating of UD C/PEKK cross-ply laminates

Induction welding is an attractive fusion bonding technology for carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastic composites. The process relies on an alternating magnetic field to induce eddy currents in the composite adherents. The generation of eddy currents is difficult in unidirectionally (UD) reinforced plies, due to their low transverse electrical conductivity. Heating of UD ply-based composites therefore requires contact between plies having a different fiber orientation. Currently, process window definition for UD ply-based composites involves trial-and-error procedures, while moreover, the process is sensitive to small variations in material properties. Improved control of the process requires a proper understanding of the physical mechanisms governing heat generation, while process simulation capabilities are needed for process window development and optimization. This paper studies the influence of lay-up on the induction heating or UD ply-based composites. Two lay-ups were considered, namely a dispersed lay-up of [0/90]3s and a grouped lay-up of [03/903]s. A simulation model was implemented to model the heating process. The required electrical conductivities were obtained experimentally. Validation experiments showed that the model was able to predict the induction heating of the laminate with the dispersed lay-up rather well, while it underpredicted the heating rate of the laminate with the grouped lay-up

Simulating the induction heating of cross-ply C/PEKK laminates–sensitivity and effect of material variability

A simulation model for the induction heating of UD tape-based thermoplastic composites is presented in this work. The model is based on the electrical ply properties which were determined experimentally for two commercially available carbon reinforced tape materials. Moreover, the interrelation between the measured electrical conductivities and the fiber distribution in the tape and laminates is discussed based on microscopic structure evaluation. The model was validated experimentally for the induction heating of cross-ply laminates. Subsequently, the effect of the experimental variability in the measured conductivities on the heating behavior was investigated using the simulation model. It was found that the material variability can have a significant effect on the heating behavior

Effect of cooling rate on the interlaminar fracture toughness of unidirectional Carbon/PPS laminates

The effect of cooling rate on the interlaminar fracture toughness of Carbon reinforced PPS laminates was investigated experimentally. A typical stamp forming process was utilised in a novel manner to achieve high average cooling rates, of up to 3500 °C/min, while ensuring a good consolidation quality. Differential scanning calorimetry measurements were used to characterise the degree of crystallinity of the samples, while the interlaminar fracture toughness of the laminates was characterised under mode I using the Double Cantilever Beam test. Finally, micrographic analysis of the fracture surfaces was carried out to correlate the degree of crystallinity to the failure modes. A strong correlation between fracture toughness and degree of crystallinity was found. The samples with a low degree of crystallinity showed a high interlaminar fracture toughness and large plastic deformation of the matrix during fracture

Effects of release media on the fusion bonding of carbon/PEEK laminates

Carbon fibre reinforced thermoplastic composite laminates have been press-consolidated using various release media. The potential contamination of the laminate's surface by the release media and its effect on the performance of the joint after fusion bonding was studied. Before bonding, the physical and chemical state of the bonding surfaces were analysed by measurement the surface energy and roughness. The laminate surfaces chemical composition was investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Subsequently, the laminates were fusion bonded through an autoclave cycle. The mechanical performance of the joints was characterized by mode-I fracture toughness and short beam strength tests. The surface of some of the composite laminates were found to contain high concentration of the release medium residues after consolidation. This contamination showed a significant effect on the mechanical performance of fusion bonded joints. It was demonstrated that the performance of the joint can be regained by employing a simple cleaning method

Influence of surface preparation on fusion bonding of thermoplastic composites

Carbon fibre-reinforced thermoplastic composites laminates (CFRP) meant for fusion bonding have been moulded using different release media. The potential contamination of the laminate surface by the release media and its effect on the mechanical performance of fusion bonded joints was studied. The physical and chemical state of the bonding surface were analysed with surface energy and roughness measurements. The chemical composition of the laminate surfaces has been investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The laminates were then fusion bonded through co-consolidation. The mechanical performance of the bonds was studied by a mode I fracture toughness measurement using the double cantilever beam (DCB) test. The results show significant effect of contaminations on mechanical performance of the joints