Improving CE with PDM

The concept of Concurrent Engineering (CE) centers around the management of information so that the right information will be at the right place at the right time and in the right format. Product Data Management (PDM) aims to support a CE way of working in product development processes. In specific situations, however, it is hard to estimate the contribution of a particular PDM package to CE. This paper presents a method to assess the contribution to CE of a PDM package in a specific situation. The method uses the concept of information quality to identify the gap with CE information quality requirements. The contribution of PDM to bridge this gap is estimated. Decisions on improvement actions are supported to improve readiness for PDM as well as to improve CE. The method has been tested in a real-life situation

Introduction to TIPS: a theory for creative design

A highly intriguing problem in combining artificial intelligence and engineering design is automation of the creative and innovative phases of the design process. This paper gives a brief introduction to the theory of inventive problem solving (TIPS) selected as a theoretical basis of the authors' research efforts in this field. The research is conducted in the Stevin Project of the Knowledge-Based System Group of the University of Twente (Enschede, The Netherlands) in cooperation with the Invention Machine Laboratory (Minsk, Belarus). This collaboration aims at developing a formal basis for the creation of an automated reasoning system to support creative engineering design

Does HRD effectiveness vary for organization- and HRD-related factors?

Based on contingency theory, this paper examines whether certain contextual conditions influence the effectiveness of HRD [human resource development] programs and activities. Stakeholders of two types of HRD programs who were also from companies in two economic sectors were asked to complete a questionnaire. No differences in perceived effectiveness was observed for the factors of size and structure of the company, economic sector, structure of the HRD function, and transfer conditions. Significant differences were found for the problem that serves as starting point for HRD—company HRD climate, position of the HRD department, and the form the HRD program takes

A multi-phase structural constitutive model for insights into soft tissue remodeling mechanisms

All tissues in the human body continuously grow, remodel, and adapt to changes in their physiological environment, in order to maintain homeostasis or to retain it in case of pathologies. The growth and remodeling (G&R) process results in changes in structure and composition. To elucidate how observed changes in tissue components are related to altered tissue level mechanical behavior, structural constitutive models are required with physiologically relevant model parameters. Specifically what is required is a finite deformation constitutive model describing the tissue mechanical behavior, in combination with the appropriate kinematics for the multiple tissue components, and experimental data of a relevant tissue application. An excellent example is the urinary bladder wall (UBW), which undergoes profound remodeling in response to different pathologies, such as spinal cord injury (SCI). The overall objective of this dissertation was to develop a morphologically-driven, multi-phase constitutive model that would allow for separate investigation of the contribution of individual tissue components to the tissue-level remodeling process. As a first step, a constitutive model was developed of UBW extracellular matrix (ECM). Removing the smooth muscle cells from UBW tissue via decellularization allowed for the separate mechanical and structural investigation of UBW ECM. It was shown that the presence of de novo produced elastin in the UBW ECM post-SCI induced, indirectly, a distinct mechanical behavior with higher compliance, allowing for a higher overall extensibility of the post-SCI UBW and increased bladder storage capacity. The ECM constitutive model was extended and modified to be able to apply it to a multi-component tissue with individual model components existing in different reference states. Parameters were determined from biaxial mechanical data of decellularized and intact UBW tissue using a step-wise fitting approach implemented in MATLAB. As an initial step towards a theoretical G&R framework, a parametric analysis was performed to investigate if observed mechanical changes in post-SCI UBW were due to changes in morphology or intrinsic constituent properties. The developed model has the potential to explain underlying remodeling mechanisms of individual constituents in muscular tissues in several pathologies (e.g. UBW post-SCI), and predict remodeling events in a tissue engineering setting of muscular tissues

Redesign of technical systems

The paper describes a systematic approach to support the redesign process. Redesign is the adaptation of a technical system in order to meet new specifications. The approach presented is based on techniques developed in model-based diagnosis research. The essence of the approach is to find the part of the system which causes the discrepancy between a formal specification of the system to be designed and the description of the existing technical system. Furthermore, new specifications are generated, describing the new behaviour for the `faulty¿ part. These specifications guide the actual design of this part. Both the specification and design description are based on YMIR, an ontology for structuring engineering design knowledge

Developments and challenges in the European pork sector

This paper aims to give insight into the structure of and variety in the European pork system and suggests topics for further research of the European pork sector. It provides an overview of the different types of pork chains, their quality systems. governance structures and supporting technology. The paper further describes the concentration and up-scaling found in all links of the chain in most of the countries investigated. Moreover, a development towards chain-wide quality management systems and new collaborative structures in the various chains can be recognised. However, there is also a trend towards development of pork chains that aim at high-quality production for regional and niche markets, in particular in Southern European countries. Although the paper tries to give a European picture, it focuses specifically on five countries: the Netherlands, Germany, Greece, Spain and Hungary. The paper concludes with major bottlenecks and opportunities for European pork chains, after which new research issues are raised

Duurzame inzetbaarheid van (oudere) medewerkers : een onderzoek naar de invloed van fysieke en mentale gezondheid

De noodzaak om langer door te werken en daarmee het belang van duurzame inzetbaarheid wordt steeds sterker. In dit artikel wordt verslag gedaan van een onderzoek naar factoren die de duurzame inzetbaarheid van (oudere) werknemers beïnvloeden. De resultaten wijzen op het belang van fysieke en mentale gezondheid voor de inzetbaarheid van alle werknemers. De invloed van fysieke gezondheid wordt echter vooral bepaald door de hinder die men van fysieke belasting ondervindt. Deze ervaren hinder blijkt belangrijker dan de feitelijke belasting. Ook een correcte naleving van het psychologisch contract, baanrotatie en self-efficay blijken belangrijke beïnvloedende factoren. Wat opvalt is, dat in het onderzoek alleen gedwongen baanrotatie er toe doet. Ouderen rapporteren overigens wel een geringere self-efficacy, een minder goede naleving van het psychologisch contract en een minder goede inzetbaarheid dan jongere werknemers, iets waar werkgevers en leidinggevenden door middel van onder meer baanrotatie en een goede begeleiding door leidinggevenden aan kunnen werken