Urban integrated meteorological observations: practice and experience in Shanghai, China

Observations of atmospheric conditions and processes in citiesare fundamental to understanding the interactions between the urban surface and weather/climate, improving the performance of urban weather, air quality and climate models, and providing key information for city end-users (e.g. decision-makers, stakeholders, public). In this paper, Shanghai's urban integrated meteorological observation network (SUIMON) and some examples of intended applications are introduced. Its characteristics include being: multi- purpose (e.g. forecast, research, service), multi-function (high impact weather, city climate, special end-users), multi-scale (e.g. macro/meso-, urban-, neighborhood, street canyon), multi-variable (e.g. thermal, dynamic, chemical, bio-meteorological, ecological), and multi- platform (e.g. radar, wind profiler, ground-based, satellite based, in-situ observation/ sampling). Underlying SUIMON is a data management system to facilitate exchange of data and information. The overall aim of the network is to improve coordination strategies and instruments; to identify data gaps based on science and user driven requirements; and to intelligently combine observations from a variety of platforms by using a data assimilation system that is tuned to produce the best estimate of the current state of the urban atmosphere.

An integrated study of urban microclimates in Chongqing, China: historical weather data, transverse measurement and numerical simulation

Chongqing is the largest central-government-controlled municipality in China, which is now under going a rapid urbanization. The question remains open: What are the consequences of such rapid urbanization in Chongqing in terms of urban microclimates? An integrated study comprising three different research approaches is adopted in the present paper. By analyzing the observed annual climate data, an average rising trend of 0.10◦C/decade was found for the annual mean temperature from 1951 to 2010 in Chongqing,indicating a higher degree of urban warming in Chongqing. In addition, two complementary types of field measurements were conducted: fixed weather stations and mobile transverse measurement. Numerical simulations using a house-developed program are able to predict the urban air temperature in Chongqing.The urban heat island intensity in Chongqing is stronger in summer compared to autumn and winter.The maximum urban heat island intensity occurs at around midnight, and can be as high as 2.5◦C. In the day time, an urban cool island exists. Local greenery has a great impact on the local thermal environment.Urban green spaces can reduce urban air temperature and therefore mitigate the urban heat island. The cooling effect of an urban river is limited in Chongqing, as both sides of the river are the most developed areas, but the relative humidity is much higher near the river compared with the places far from it.

Perspectives on the specification of Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) technology in construction projects

Innovative, low carbon technologies are already available for use in the construction of buildings, but the impact of their specification on construction projects is unclear. This exploratory research identifies issues which arise following the specification of BIPV in non-residential construction projects. Rather than treating the inclusion of a new technology as a technical problem, the research explores the issue from a socio-technical perspective to understand the accommodations which the project team makes and their effect on the building and the technology. The paper is part of a larger research project which uses a Social Construction of Technology Approach (SCOT) to explore the accommodations made to working practices and design when Building Integrated PhotoVoltaic (BIPV) technology is introduced. The approach explores how the requirements of the technology from different groups of actors (Relevant Social Groups or RSG's) give rise to problems and create solutions. As such it rejects the notion of a rational linear view of innovation diffusion; instead it suggests that the variety and composition of the Relevant Social Groups set the agenda for problem solving and solutions as the project progresses. The research explores the experiences of three people who have extensive histories of involvement with BIPV in construction, looks at how SCOT can inform our understanding of the issues involved and identifies themes and issues in the specification of BIPV on construction projects. A key finding concerns the alignment of inflection points at which interviewees have found themselves changing from one RSG to another as new problems and solutions are identified. The points at which they change RSG often occurred at points which mirror conventional construction categories (in terms of project specification, tender, design and construction).

High Royds: an integrated, analytical approach for mapping the unmarked burials of a pauper cemetery

Applying geophysical techniques to detect and map the physical extent of individual unmarked graves proves difficult in many cases. The success of individual geophysical techniques for detecting unmarked graves may be due to a poor understanding of the nature of the graves themselves, the context in which they lie in, and temporal changes to the burial state. Given the unpredictability of these variables, it is surprising that grave prospection is often undertaken using only a single method. This paper presents a multi-methodological survey strategy for detecting unmarked burials and utilises an analytical approach for visualising and evaluating survey results.

Achieving customer satisfaction through integrated products and services: an exploratory study

Complex products such as manufacturing equipment have always needed maintenance and repair services. Increasingly, leading manufacturers are integrating products and services to generate increased revenues and achieve customer satisfaction. Designing integrated products and services requires a different approach to new product development and a clear understanding of how customers perceive the value they obtain from actual usage of products and services—so-called value-in-use. However, there is a lack of research on integrated products and services and how they impact customer satisfaction. An exploratory study was undertaken to understand customers’ views on integrated products and services and the value-in-use derived from such offerings. As value-in-use and its impacts are complicated concepts, a technique from psychology—Repertory Grid Technique—was used to gather data in 33 interviews. The interviews allowed a deep understanding of customer views on integrated products and services to be obtained, and a systematic analysis identified the key attributes of value-in-use. In order to probe further, the data were then analyzed using Honey’s procedure, which identified the impact of the attributes of value-in-use on customer satisfaction. Two key attributes—relational dynamic and access—were found to have the most influence on customer satisfaction. This paper contributes to the innovation field by identifying customer needs for integrated products and services and how these impact customer satisfaction. These are key points and need to be fully considered by managers during new product and service development. Similarly, the paper identifies a number of important areas for further research.