The impact of big-boxes on local retail : What happens when IKEA comes to town?

The development of large discount retailers, or big-boxes as they are sometimes referred to, are often subject to heated debate and their entry on a market is greeted with either great enthusiasm or dread. For instance, the world’s largest retailer Wal-Mart (Forbes 2014) has a number of anti- and pro-groups dedicated to its being and the event of a Wal-Mart entry tends to be met with protests and campaigns (Decamme 2013) but also welcomed by, for instance, consumers (Davis & DeBonis 2013). Also in Sweden, the entry of a big box is a hot topic and before IKEA’s opening i Borlänge 2013, the first in Sweden in more than five years, great expectations were mixed with worry (Västerbottens-Kuriren 2011).The presence of large scale discount retailers is not, however, a novel phenomenon but a part of a long-term change in retailing that has taken place globally over the past couple of decades (Taylor & Smalling, 2005). As noted by Dawson (2006), the trend in Europe has over the past few decades gone towards an increasing concentration of large firms along with a decrease of smaller firms.This trend is also detectable in the Swedish retail industry. Over the past decade, the retailing industry in Sweden has increased by around 190 Billion SEK, and its share of GDP has risen from 2,7% to 2,9%, while the number of employees have increased from 200 000 to 250 000 (HUI 2013). This growth, however, has not been distributed evenly but rather it has been oriented mainly towards out-of-town retail clusters. Parallel to this development, the number of large retailers has risen at the expense of market shares of smaller independent firms (Rämme et al 2010). Thereby, the presence of large scale retailers is simply part of a changing retail landscape.The effects of this development, where large scale retailing agents relocate shopping to out-of-town shopping areas, have been heavily debated. On the one hand, the big-boxes are accused of displacing independent small retail businesses in the city-centers and the residential areas, resulting in, to some extent, reduced employment opportunities and less availability for the consumers - especially the elderly (Ljungberg et al 2006). In addition, as access to shopping now tends to require some sort of a motorized vehicle, environmental aspects to the discussion have emerged. Ultimately these types of concerns have resulted in calls for regulations against this development (Olsson 2010). On the other hand, the proponents of the new shopping landscape argue that this evolution implies productivity gains, the benefits of lower prices and an increased variety of products (Maican & Orth 2012). Moreover it is argued that it leads to, for instance, better services (such as longer opening hours) and a creative destruction transformation pressure on retailers, which brings about a renewal of city-centerIIretail and services, increasing their attractivity (Bergström 2010). The belief in benefits of a big box entry can be exemplified by the attractivity of IKEA, and the fact that municipalities are prepared to commit to expenses amounting up to hundreds of millions in order to attract the entry of this big-box. Borlänge municipality, for instance, agreed to expenses of about 350 million SEK in order to secure the entry of IKEA, which opened in 2013 (Blomgren 2009).Against this backdrop, the overall effects of large discount retailers become important: Are the economic benefits enough to warrant subsidies or are there, on the contrary, some very compelling grounds for regulations against these types of establishments? In other words; how is overall retail in a region where a store like IKEA enters affected? And how are local retail firms affected?In order to answer these questions, the purpose of this thesis is to study how entry of a big-box retailer affects the entry region. The object of this study is IKEA - one of the world’s largest retailers, with 345 stores, active in over 40 countries and with profits of about 3.3 billion (IKEA 2013; IKEA 2014). By studying the effects of IKEA-entry, both on an aggregated level and on firm level, this thesis intends to find indications of how large discount retail establishments in general can be expected to affect the economic development both in a region overall, but also on the local firm level, something which is of interest to both policymakers as well as the retailing industry in general.The first paper examines the effects of IKEA on retail revenues and employment in the municipalities that IKEA chose to enter between 2000 and 2011; Gothenburg, Haparanda, Kalmar and Karlstad. By means of a matching method we first identify non-entry municipalities that have a similar probability of IKEA entry as the true entry municipalities. Then, using these non-entry municipalities as a control group, the causal effects of IKEA entry can be estimated using a treatment-control approach. We also extend the analysis to examine the spatial impact of IKEA by estimating the effects on retail in neighboring municipalities. It is found that a new IKEA store increases revenues in durable goods trade with 20% in the entry municipality and the number of employees with 17%. Only small, and in most cases statistically insignificant, negative effects were found in neighboring municipalities.It appears that there is a positive net effect on durables retail sales and employment in the entry municipality. However, the analysis is based on data on an aggregated municipality level and thereby it remains unclear if and how the effects vary within the entry municipalities. In addition, the data used in the first study includes the sales and employment of IKEA itself, which could account for the majority of the increases in employment and retail. Thereby the potential spillover effects on incumbent retailers in the entry municipalities cannot be discerned in the first study.IIITo examine effects of IKEA entry on incumbent retail firms, the second paper in this thesis analyses how IKEA entry affects the revenues and employment of local retail firms in three municipalities; Haparanda, Kalmar and Karlstad, which experienced entry by IKEA between 2000 and 2010. In this second study, we exclude Gothenburg due to the fact that big-box entry appears to have weaker effects in metropolitan areas (as indicated by Artz & Stone 2006). By excluding Gothenburg we aim to reduce the geographical heterogeneity in our study. We obtain control municipalities that are as similar as possible to the three entry municipalities using the same method as in the previous study, but including a slightly different set of variables in the selection equation. Using similar retail firms in the control municipalities as our comparison group, we estimate the impact of IKEA entry on revenues and employment for retail firms located at varying distances from the IKEA entry site.The results generated in this study imply that entry by IKEA increases revenues in incumbent retail firms by, on average, 11% in the entry municipalities. In addition, we do not find any significant impact on retail revenues in the city centers of the entry municipalities. However, we do find that retail firms within 1 km of the IKEA experience increases in revenues of about 26%, which indicates large spillover effects in the area nearby the entry site. As expected, this impact decreases as we expand the buffer zone: firms located between 0-2 km experiences a 14% increase and firms in 2-5 km experiences an increase of 10%. We do not find any significant impacts on retail employment.

Energy efficient and economic renovation of residential buildings with low-temperature heating and air heat recovery

With the building sector accounting for around 40% of the total energy consumption in the EU, energy efficiency in buildings is and continues to be an important issue. Great progress has been made in reducing the energy consumption in new buildings, but the large stock of existing buildings with poor energy performance is probably an even more crucial area of focus. This thesis deals with energy efficiency measures that can be suitable for renovation of existing houses, particularly low-temperature heating systems and ventilation systems with heat recovery. The energy performance, environmental impact and costs are evaluated for a range of system combinations, for small and large houses with various heating demands and for different climates in Europe. The results were derived through simulation with energy calculation tools. Low-temperature heating and air heat recovery were both found to be promising with regard to increasing energy efficiency in European houses. These solutions proved particularly effective in Northern Europe as low-temperature heating and air heat recovery have a greater impact in cold climates and on houses with high heating demands. The performance of heat pumps, both with outdoor air and exhaust air, was seen to improve with low-temperature heating. The choice between an exhaust air heat pump and a ventilation system with heat recovery is likely to depend on case specific conditions, but both choices are more cost-effective and have a lower environmental impact than systems without heat recovery. The advantage of the heat pump is that it can be used all year round, given that it produces DHW. Economic and environmental aspects of energy efficiency measures do not always harmonize. On the one hand, lower costs can sometimes mean larger environmental impact; on the other hand there can be divergence between different environmental aspects. This makes it difficult to define financial subsidies to promote energy efficiency measures.

Photochemical degradation of 2,4-D and atrazine in well-defined media

Atrazine and 2,4-D are common herbicides used for crop, lawn, and rangeland management. Photochemical degradation has been proposed as one safe and efficient remediation strategy for both 2,4-D and Atrazine. In the presence of iron(llI) and hydrogen peroxide these herbicides decay by both thermal and light induced oxidation. Past studies have focused primarily on sun light as an energy source. This work provides a mechanistic description of herbicide degradation incorporating intermediate degradation products produced in the dark and under well-defined light conditions.

Orçamento participativo: a experiência de Ribeirão Pires

Este estudo de caso tem o objetivo de analisar o procedimento do orçamento participativo na viabilização da nova política de desenvolvimento adotada pelo Município de Ribeirão Pires. Esta política baseia-se na sustentabilidade econômica, incorporando os aspectos sociais e resgatando a questão ambiental. A sua implementação nesse Município está muito vinculada à institucionalização do Orçamento Participativo, que possibilita uma maior participação dos cidadãos na definição das prioridades de investimento dos recursos disponíveis e, por essa razão, tem grande potencial para tornar-se um valioso instrumento para a concretização da política de desenvolvimento sustentável.

Gestão transdisciplinar das ações de transformação: um olhar sobre a implantação das UPAS 24 horas no Estado do Rio de Janeiro

This research emerged from the contemporary need of a public management focused on results, in which the State must reach the effectiveness of public policies implemented, put these into practice through transformation actions. However, these actions should not be seen in isolation, cause, when implemented in a certain environment, interact with actions of various actors, generating social dynamics that will be fundamentals to achieving the expected results. The transdisciplinarity approach may enable an object be seen in its essence, considering all environmental aspects around it as well as various social dynamics that might emerge, in order to facilitate the State reach the effectiveness of their actions, providing the transformation wanted to society. For this reason, are presented in this study the basis of a management model with focus on transdisciplinarity, considering the various challenges, searched the literature on the management of public policies. To verify the adequacy of the basis of the proposed model, was done a case study of the government project called "Implantação das UPAS 24 horas" in Rio de Janeiro. In applying the basis of the model in that project, we find that the transdisciplinarity management can maximize the effectiveness of State intervention.

Integração vertical versus horizontal: oportunidades nas cadeias de suprimentos de garrafas PET das indústrias de refrigerantes e águas minerais do Estado do Rio de Janeiro

O objetivo do estudo aqui proposto é municiar os dirigentes e acionistas do segmento industrial de refrigerantes e águas minerais do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, com conhecimentos que possam lhes oferecer novas oportunidades de negócios e auxiliá-los na decisão pela integração horizontal ou vertical na cadeia de suprimentos de embalagens PET e de outros materiais plásticos na área produtiva de suas fábricas. Para tanto, foi realizada uma pesquisa com coleta de dados por meio de bibliografia e questionário aplicado a 28 empresas. O estudo contribui para o aumento da competitividade do segmento, apresentando resultados baseados em aspectos tecnológicos, econômicos, estratégicos, sociais e de meio ambiente. As conclusões mostram que há oportunidades para melhorias na cadeia industrial de embalagens PET e de outros materiais plásticos no segmento de refrigerantes e águas minerais no Estado do Rio de Janeiro, dentro do conceito de desenvolvimento sustentável.

Sistemas de produção de carvão vegetal existentes no Brasil: uma análise de viabilidade econômica

O carvão vegetal tem um papel de destaque entre as biomassas consumidas no Brasil. Seu uso em larga escala na indústria siderúrgica para a produção de ferro gusa fez do país um dos maiores produtores e consumidores mundiais de carvão vegetal. A matéria-prima abundante, bem como a falta de preocupação com fatores ambientais e sociais, permitiu no passado que se atentasse apenas ao fator econômico; e a tecnologia de produção deste combustível/insumo se desenvolveu muito pouco ao longo de quase toda a sua história no Brasil até os anos mais recentes. Nas duas últimas décadas, quando se intensificou a preocupação social e ambiental e esses fatores ganharam relevância na análise da viabilidade de projetos tanto a serem implantados, quanto já existentes, a produção de carvão vegetal passou a ser identificada como extremamente rudimentar e impactante ao meio ambiente e sociedade onde se localiza. Neste trabalho buscou-se analisar a viabilidade econômica de quatro sistemas de produção de carvão existentes no Brasil. O sistema mais rudimentar, comumente chamado de “rabo quente”, um sistema ainda de alvenaria, com um pouco mais desenvolvimento tecnológico conhecido como forno retangular, e dois sistemas que utilizam fornos metálicos para buscar menor tempo do processo de carbonização (devido ao mais rápido resfriamento do sistema) e que têm, ambos, uma preocupação ambiental maior e buscam emitir menos poluentes e oferecer uma condição de trabalho mais adequada, refletindo também positivamente sob o aspecto sócio-ambiental. Percebe-se que em termos de implantação, obviamente, os sistemas que envolvem um pouco mais de tecnologia são bem mais dispendiosos em investimento inicial, porém, há resultados animadores do ponto de vista de retorno do investimento e possibilidades de agregação de valor que tendem a atrair o investimento especialmente dos grandes grupos siderúrgicos consumidores, que têm se preocupado cada vez mais em investir tanto na produção de matéria-prima, com grandes áreas de reflorestamento, quanto na produção sustentável do carvão vegetal.

A produção orgânica de citros no Vale do Rio Caí/RS

Há uma preocupação crescente sobre a necessidade de produção e consumo de alimentos mais saudáveis, sem uso de agrotóxicos nem fertilizantes químicos. Neste contexto se insere a prática da agricultura orgânica que, contudo, apresenta resultados ainda pouco avaliados. Assim, pretendeu-se, nesta pesquisa diagnosticar a produção orgânica na região citrícola do Vale do Rio Caí, no Rio Grande do Sul. Inicialmente foram selecionadas propriedades de oito agricultores, todas já convertidas ao sistema orgânico de produção há pelo menos cinco anos. Para tanto foram aplicadas entrevistas semi-estruturadas junto às unidades familiares, visando diagnosticar os aspectos sociais, econômicos e técnicoambientais. Os agricultores orgânicos mostram-se satisfeitos com o sistema orgânico de produção, que de maneira geral proporciona boas produtividades com custos de produção menores do que no sistema convencional de cultivo. Os agricultores que se dedicam ao sistema orgânico de produção revelam bom conhecimento sobre o meio ambiente, plantas, solos e processos agroecológicos, aspectos políticos, econômicos e sociais, adquiridos através da participação em cursos, palestras, congressos, dias de campo, treinamentos, e através das reuniões e assembléias da Cooperativa ECOCITRUS. A constante troca de experiências entre os agricultores orgânicos tem contribuído na melhoria da qualificação técnica dos produtores, além de melhor conscientizá-los nos aspectos políticos, econômicos e sociais. A participação dos produtores na ECOCITRUS tem proporcionado melhor organização dos mesmos, contribuindo na viabilização da produção orgânica, inclusive com vantagens econômicocomerciais, pela obtenção de insumos orgânicos, venda da produção e estímulo ao beneficiamento da produção, visando agregar renda à propriedade.

Etnografia visual das mangabeiras nas matas do tabuleiro costeiro.

This work is an ethnographic research with collectors women of Mangaba in the village of Ponta Negra in Natal - RN. This Women also known as Mangabeira's women reproduce a practice learned with their ancestors, collecting this fruit in the coastal tablelands forests and latter commercializing it in the local markets. This research uses the methodology of oral history and visual anthropology with presentation of collected images on board. It is intended to emphasize the botanical and environmental aspects of the Mangabeira plant, its ecosystem, territorial, economic and historical aspects of it, also the knowledge of this extractive practice of our immaterial culture.

Análise bioclimática e investigação do conforto térmico em ambientes externos: uma experiência no bairro de Petrópolis em Natal/RN

This study was intended to investigate how the urban form has been influencing the changes in the climate of the city and make a correlation between the climate and the thermal sensation of the users of open spaces. The research was developed in the district of Petrópolis in Natal/ RN whose occupation has been almost consolidated. Among other reasons, this district was selected because it was planned considering the environmental aspects of comfort. The methodologies used are based on KATZSCHNER (1997) and OLIVEIRA (1988) studies, which suggest the drawing and analysis of maps of the area under study, including topography, height of the buildings, land use, green areas, and types of soil pavement, as well as measurement of the environmental variables: air temperature, relative humidity, direction and wind speed for a comparative study. As part of this, study local users of the district were interviewed about their thermal sensations in open spaces. For the statistical analysis, data was collected at 10 distinct points characterized by BUSTOS ROMERO (2002), being 8 within the district and 2 at different places (outside the district), at climatologic stations, in 3 periods (August/2000, January/2002 and June/2002), for 4 consecutive days for each measurement (from Sunday to Wednesday) at the time of lower and higher temperatures in the city, 6:00 am and 1:00 pm, respectively. At the same time interviews were carried out with users of the open spaces in the area, totaling 171 valid formularies. The urban form showed a rather leveled topography, great diversity of land use and height of the buildings, with the existence of an area mostly occupied with high buildings, very little green area and soil practically impermeable. The statistical analysis showed high temperature and humidity levels. The wind direction is predominantly Southeast with extremely variable speeds. When the data from this district is compared with the data from other areas in the city and its outskirt, it was observed that this district is hotter and less ventilated than the others; besides, most users said that they felt uncomfortable in the local environmental conditions. The results of the analysis generated a zoning for the district with recommendations for soil occupation. The profile of the user was defined regarding the thermal comfort, as well as some discussion about the comfort parameters, including the proposal of limiting areas of temperature and humidity for the thermal comfort in the open spaces

Estudo da viabilidade do processo de reciclagem do material descartado do sistema Zirkonzanh® de produção de próteses dentárias

At present, the material of choice for performing aesthetic dental prosthetic work is in the ceramic. Among them, the ceramic base of stabilized zirconia with 3% yttria (3Y - TZP) stand out for having excellent physical and mechanical properties. During the machining of blocks of zirconia in the laboratory to prepare the various types of prostheses, much of the material is given off in the form of powder, which is subsequently discarded. The waste of this material results in financial loss, reflecting higher final cost treatment for patients, as well as damage to the environment, thanks to the processes involved in the manufacture and disposal of the ceramic. This research, pioneered the recycling of zirconium oxide powder obtained during milling of dental crowns and bridges, we highlight the social and environmental aspects and aims to establish a protocol for the reuse of waste (powder of zirconia Zirkonzahn® system) discarded to obtain a new block of compacted zirconia to maintain the same mechanical and microstructural properties of commercial high-cost imported material. To compare with the commercial material, samples were uniaxially (20 MPa) and isostatically (100 MPa), and its mechanical and microstructural characterization was performed through tests of density, porosity, dilatometry, X-ray diffraction (XRD), hardness, fracture toughness, resistance to fracture electron microscopy (SEM) and analysis of grain size. The results observed in the samples were isostatically pressed similiares those obtained with samples from the commercial material demonstrating the viability of the process

Análise de Sustentabilidade em Projetos de Instalações de Produção de Petróleo

A proposal for a global analysis of sustainability in projects related in oil facilities is presented. By considering economic, environmental and social aspects in the early stages of design, the suggested method is more comprehensive and can be used to complement the analysis commonly applied in the petroleum industry, such as: Study of Technical and Economic Feasibility; Environmental Impact Assessment and Risk Analysis. Several authors, associations, certification bodies and oil companies suggest different approaches to study sustainability in some specific activities (or industries). In this study, a checklist of significant sustainability aspects for the oil industry (surface facilities) was assembled. In addition, a matrix was developed to assess the sustainability items relevant to these projects. In this work, the checklist interacts with the matrix to perform a "Preliminary Analysis of Sustainability of the Enterprise" (APSE). This method allows the identification of aspects that contribute significantly to global sustainability. From this analysis, which includes economic, social and environmental aspects, is built a report that is used to analyze qualitatively and quantitatively the impact of the sustainability aspects of the project. In this analysis are identified items that strongly influence the economic, social or environmental aspects and evaluated alternatives that can increase the overall sustainability of the project. Finally, the alternatives that can be used to indicate the most sustainable option are identified. This method was applied in a project (design) of a small offshore platform. This case study shows how the APSE can contribute to the identification of sustainability initiatives for the enterprise. The results showed that relevant aspects can contribute decisively to global sustainability. Finally, it was observed that the proposed method can contribute to increased rates of sustainability, even after application of analysis commonly used in these projects

Análise jurídico-constitucional do fomento aos campos maduros de produção de petróleo no Brasil

The oil activities in Brazil had been started in an intensive way in the end of the 30 s and in the beginning of the 40 s. Many of the brazilians fields discovered in the past are nowadays in decline. They are called ―mature fields‖. These fields, because of the decline situation that characterizes them, are not interesting for the majors. The majors want the big fields and big productions. On the other hand, they could be interesting for the small and medium enterprises. The mature oil fields are instruments of development, they have oil and the oil production is an activity connected with many social and economics benefits: jobs, taxes, royalties, etc. The Brazilian State, in this context, needs to realize actions to promote the activities in the mature oil fields, especially with the work of the small and mediums enterprises. Many of the onshore brazilian mature fields are located at the Northeast, a region matched by many social and economic problems. The activities in the mature fields of the Northeast Region could solve some of its problems. The present research analyses the mature oil fields and its situations in Brazil, making criticisms and suggestions. The methodology adopted is theoretical and descriptive, with literature review, case law and legislation (Constituição Federal de 1988, ―Law of the Oil‖). This research examines the following points: mature fields rounds and its documents, name and definition of the mature fields, definition of small and medium enterprises, environmental aspects, concentration of certain activities of the sector and the royalties

Soil uses in the sugarcane fallow period to improve chemical and physical properties of two latosols (oxisols)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)