Standardizing Customized Features of a Configurable Product

Työn päätavoitteena on arvioida hissien automaattiovien usein toistuvien asiakaskohtaisesti räätälöityjen tuoteominaisuuksien vakioimisen kannattavuutta KONEen Hyvinkään tehtaalla. Työssä arvioidaan myös massaräätälöinnin periaatteiden soveltuvuutta erikoisovien toimitusprosessiin sekä toimintoperusteisen kustannustiedon tarpeellisuutta tuoteominaisuuksia koskevien päätösten teossa. Asiakaskohtaisesti räätälöity ovituotanto jaettiin kategorioihin, joiden volyymeja ja tuotemuutosten tekoon käytettyjä suunnittelutuntimääriä analysoimalla selvitettiin, muodostaako jokin räätälöitävä tuoteominaisuus riittävän suuren kappalemääräisen kysynnän tai suunnittelutuntien kulutuskohteen, jotta ominaisuuden vakiointi olisi kannattavaa. Ovien kustannusrakenne-esimerkkien avulla selvitettiin myös suunnittelun osuus kokonaiskustannuksista. Analyysien perusteella todettiin asiakaskohtaisten muutosten olevan hajanaisia ja vain muutaman ominaisuuden osalta muodostuvan tarpeeksi suuri ja yhtenäinen kokonaisuus, joka olisi taloudellisesti kannattavaavakioida. Monimutkaisen tuoterakenteen vuoksi massaräätälöinnin opit eivät ole suoraan kopioitavissa hissien erikoisovien toimitusprosessiin, mutta sisältävät hyödyllisiä toimintamalleja prosessin kehittämiseen.

Using software metrics to increase efficiency in product creation

Opinnäytetyö etsii korrelaatiota ohjelmistomittauksella saavutettujen tulosten ja ohjelmasta löytyneiden virheiden väliltä. Työssä käytetään koeryhmänä jo olemassaolevia ohjelmistoja. Työ tutkii olisiko ohjelmistomittareita käyttämällä ollut mahdollista paikallistaa ohjelmistojen ongelmakohdat ja näin saada arvokasta tietoa ohjelmistokehitykseen. Mittausta voitaisiin käyttää resurssien parempaan kohdentamiseen koodikatselmuksissa, koodi-integraatiossa, systeemitestauksessa ja aikataulutuksessa. Mittaamisen avulla nämä tehtävät saisivat enemmän tietoa resurssien kohdistamiseen. Koeryhmänä käytetään erilaisia ohjelmistotuotteita. Yhteistä näille kaikille tuotteille on niiden peräkkäiset julkaisut. Uutta julkaisua tehtäessä, edellistä julkaisua käytetään pohjana, jonka päällekehitetään uutta lähdekoodia. Tämän takia ohjelmistomittauksessa pitää pystyä erottelemaan edellisen julkaisun lähdekoodi uudesta lähdekoodista. Työssä käytettävät ohjelmistomittarit ovat yleisiä ja ohjelmistotekniikassalaajasti käytettyjä mittaamaan erilaisia lähdekoodin ominaisuuksia, joiden arvellaan vaikuttavan virhealttiuteen. Tämän työn tarkoitus on tutkia näiden ohjelmistomittareiden käytettävyyttä koeryhmänä toimivissa ohjelmistoympäristöissä. Käytännön osuus työstä onnistui löytämään korrelaation joidenkinohjelmistomittareiden ja virheiden väliltä, samalla kuin toiset ohjelmistomittarit eivät antaneet vakuuttavia tuloksia. Ohjelmistomittareita käyttämällä näyttää olevan mahdollista tunnistaa virhealttiit kohdat ohjelmasta ja siten parantaa ohjelmistokehityksen tehokkuutta. Ohjelmistomittareiden käyttö tuotekehityksessäon perusteltavaa ja niiden avulla mahdollisesti pystyttäisiin vaikuttamaan ohjelmiston laatuun tulevissa julkaisuissa.

Resource-based approach to new product development at the intersection of industries. Two case studies in telecommunications

Työn tavoitteena on selvittää mitkä ovat tärkeimmät aineettomat resurssit, joita tarvitaan teollisuuksien risteyskohdassa tapahtuvassa tuotekehityksessä. Teollisuuksien risteyskohdissa syntyvät tuotteet ovat usein radikaaleja, mikä tekee tuotteista mielenkiintoisia, paljon liiketoimintapotentiaalia tarjoavia. Tämä tutkimus lähestyy tuotekehitystä resurssipohjaisesta näkökulmasta. Myös tietämyspohjaista ja suhdepohjaista näkemystä hyödynnetään korostamaan keskittymistä aineettomiin resursseihin. Tutkimuksessa rakennetaan viitekehys, jossa tutkitaan eri resurssikategorioita. Valitut kategoriat ovat teknologiset, markkinointi-, johtamiseen ja hallinnointiin liittyvät ja suhdepohjaiset resurssit. Empiirisessä osassa tutkitaan kahta uutta tuotekonseptia, jotka ovat syntyneet teollisuuksien risteyskohdissa. Empiirisen osan tavoitteena on määritellä tutkimuksen kohteena olevia alustavia tuotekonsepteja tarkemmin ja selvittää millaisia resursseja näiden toteuttamiseen tarvitaan. Myös tarvittavien resurssien nykytila selvitetään ja pohditaan tulisiko puuttuvia resursseja kehittää yrityksen sisällä vai hankkia ne ulkopuolelta. Tutkimus toteutettiin asiantuntijahaastatteluin. Kahden tapaustutkimuksen perusteella näyttäisi siltä, että suhdepohjaiset resurssit ovat erittäin tärkeitä teollisuuksien risteyskohdissa tapahtuvassa tuotekehityksessä. Myös teknologiset resurssit ovat tärkeitä. Markkinointiresurssien tärkeys riippuu lopullisesta tuotekonseptista, kun taas johtamiseen ja kehittämiseen liittyvät resurssit ovat tärkeitänäiden konseptien luomisessa.

Lifecycle Information Management of a Mass Customized Product

Diplomityön tavoitteena on tutkia mitä uusia tiedonhallinnallisia ongelmia ilmenee, kun massaräätälöidyn tuotteen tuotetieto hallitaan läpi tuotteen elinkaaren, sekä miten nämä ongelmat voitaisiin ratkaista. Ongelmat ja haasteet kerätään kirjallisuuslähteistä ja massaräätälöintiprosessi yhdistetään PLM-vaiheisiin. Ratkaisua tutkitaan testaamalla kuinka standardit STEP ja PLCS sekä standardeja tukeva PLM järjestelmä voisivat tukea massaräätälöidyn tuotteen elinkaaren tiedonhallintaa. MC tuotteiden ongelmia ovat tuoterakenteen monimutkaisuus, jäljitettävyys ja muutosten hallinta läpi elinkaaren. STEP ja PLCS pystyvät kummatkin tahollaan tukemaan tiedonhallintaa. MC-tuotteen geneerinen tuoterakenne on kuitenkin manuaalisesti liittettävä elinkaaritiedon tukemiseen. PLM-järjestelmä pystyy tukemaan MC-tuotteiden elinkaarta, mutta koska toiminto ei ole järjestelmään sisäänrakennettuna, MC-tuotteiden tukemisen parantamisessa on edelleen haasteita.

A Feasibility Study of a Pelleting Plant as an Option for By Product Upgrading in Wood-Processing Industry

Tämän kannattavuustutkimuksen lähtökohtana oli se, että Yhtyneet Sahat Oy:n Kaukaan sahalla ja Luumäen jatkojalostuslaitoksella haluttiin selvittää pellettitehtaan kannattavuus nykyisessä markkinatilanteessa. Tämä työon luonteeltaan teknis-taloudellinen selvitys eli ns. feasibility study. Pelletöintiprosessi on tekniikaltaan yksinkertainen eikä edellytä korkea teknologian laitteita. Toimiala on maailmanlaajuisesti varsin uusi. Suomessa pellettimarkkinat ovat vielä pienet ja kehittymättömät, mutta kasvua on viime vuosina tapahtunut. Valtaosa kotimaan tuotannosta menee vientiin. Investoinnin laskentaprosessissa saadut tuotannon alkuarvot sekä kustannusrakenteen määrittelyt ovat perustana varsinaisille kannattavuuslaskelmille. Laskelmista on selvitetty investointeihin liittyvät yleisimmät taloudelliset tunnusluvut ja herkimpiä muuttujia on tutkittu ja pohdittu herkkyysanalyysiä apuna käyttäen.

First enantioselective synthesis of isagarin, a natural product isolated from Pentas longiflora Oliv.

For the first time, an enantioselective synthesis of both 1R,4S-isagarin 1a and 1S,4R-isagarin 1b was achieved starting from 1,4-dimethoxy-2-vinylnaphtalene 2. The key steps involve a Sharpless asymmetric dihydroxylation and reaction with an acetonylating pyridinium ylid.

An experience beyond continuous assessment activities: virtual tour to the medieval medicinal plant garden of the Pedralbes monastery

[eng] The group of teaching innovation in the area of Botany (GIBAF), University of Barcelona (UB), is raised each year to design new accreditation activities under continuous evaluation framework. We present the experience carried out during the academic year 2008-09 in the course of Pharmaceutical Botany. The aim has been to involve students for a semester in the authorship of a tutored project immediately useful and of easy permanence, beyond its assessment proving usefulness. The Medicinal Plants Garden of the Monastery of Pedralbes has been used as a resource and a collaboration agreement has been signed between the UB faculty and the Institute of Culture of Barcelona. The students have developed the work using the Moodle platform CampusvirtualUB into five stages which included preparation of files by students that have been modified in some steps following the various feedbacks from teachers. At the beginning of the activity, students were provided with a complete schedule of activities, the schedule for its implementation, and a total of 18 forced-use library resources. Finally, through Google sites, a website has been implemented, allowing for a virtual tour of the garden, documenting by referenced literature 50 medicinal plants for their nomenclature, botanical description, distribution, uses historical, current and future) and toxicity. The result of the activity was presented at a public ceremony in the Monastery of Pedralbes and is available at: http://sites.google.com/site/jardimedievalpedralbes/ [spa] El grupo de innovación docente integrado por profesores del área de Botánica (GIBAF) de la Universidad de Barcelona (UB) se plantea cada curso el diseño de nuevas actividades acreditativas en el marco de la evaluación continuada. Se presenta la experiencia llevada a cabo durante el curso 2008-09 en la asignatura Botánica Farmacéutica. El objetivo ha sido implicar durante un semestre a los estudiantes en la autoría de un proyecto tutorizado de inmediata utilidad y clara perdurabilidad, más allá de su utilidad acreditativa. Como recurso se ha utilizado el Jardín de Plantas Medicinales del Monasterio de Pedralbes y se ha firmado un convenio de colaboración docente entre la UB y el Instituto de Cultura de Barcelona. Los estudiantes han realizado el trabajo utilizando la plataforma Moodle del Campus virtual de la UB en cinco etapas que han incluido la confección de unas fichas que se han ido modificando en función de las diversas retroacciones de los profesores. Al inicio de la actividad, se facilitó a los estudiantes el cronograma completo de la actividad, la pauta para su realización, así como un total de 18 recursos bibliográficos de uso obligado. Finalmente, a través de GoogleSites, se ha realizado una web que permite realizar un paseo virtual por el jardín, documentando de forma referenciada para las 50 plantas medicinales su nomenclatura, descripción botánica, distribución, usos (históricos, actuales y futuros) y toxicidad. El resultado de la actividad fue presentado en un acto público en el Monasterio de Pedralbes y puede consultarse en: http://sites.google.com/site/jardimedievalpedralbes/

New Product Development (NPD) Success Factors: A Review of the Literature

This paper reviews the literature on managerially actionable new product development success factors and summarises the field in a classic managerial framework. Because of the varying quality, breadth and scope of the field, the review only contains post-1980 studies of tangible product development that are of a rigorous scientific standard. Success is interpreted as a commercial success. The field has gained insight into a broad set of factors that vary in scope, abstraction and context. Main areas that contribute to NPD success are top management support exhibited through resource allocation and communicating the strategic importance of NPD in the organisation. The right projects need to be selected for investment at the beginning of the process and should be aligned to the organisation's internal competencies and the external environment. The NPD process should use cross-functional teams and a competent project champions. Marketing research competency is crucial, as an understanding of the market, customers and competitors is repeatedly highlighted. Product launch competency was also consistently shown to be important. In terms of controlling the NPD process, strict project gates are required to maintain control.

Natural aphrodisiacs: studies of commercially-available herbal recipes, and phytochemical investigation of "Erythroxylum vacciniifolium" Mart. (Erythroxylaceae) from Brazil

De tout temps, hommes et femmes ont cherché par tous les moyens à développer, préserver ou recouvrer leurs propres capacités sexuelles mais également à stimuler le désir du partenaire. L?utilisation d?aphrodisiaques naturels a été l?un des recours les plus répandus. De nos jours, la commercialisation de nouvelles "love drugs" de synthèse, e.g. Viagra®, Cialis®, Levitra®, a remis au goût du jour les aphrodisiaques classiques et à relancer la recherche sur des molécules nouvelles. La pratique croissante de l?automédication, le matraquage publicitaire sur les aphrodisiaques naturels, la prolifération sur le marché de compléments alimentaires non contrôlés et l?absence de véritable législation accroissent les risques qui pèsent sur la santé publique. Dans le but d?évaluer les risques potentiels sur le consommateur de produits aphrodisiaques commercialisés, le développement et la validation d?une méthode rapide d?analyse qualitative et quantitative de la yohimbine dans ces préparations du marché sont exposés dans la première partie de ce travail. La yohimbine est un antagoniste ?2-adrénocepteur du système nerveux central et périphérique, elle est employée depuis plus d?un siècle dans le traitement des dysfonctionnements érectiles. Cette méthode analytique utilise la chromatographie liquide couplée à l?ultraviolet et à la spectrométrie de masse (LC-UV-MS) et au total, vingt préparations aphrodisiaques ont été étudiées. La dose journalière de yohimbine mesurée s?est révélée très variable selon les produits puisqu?elle varie de 1.32 à 23.16 mg. La seconde partie de ce travail concerne l?étude phytochimique et pharmacologique d?Erythroxylum vacciniifolium Mart. (Erythroxylaceae), une plante, appelée localement catuaba, utilisée dans la médecine traditionnelle brésilienne comme tonique et aphrodisiaque. Dans un premier temps, l?extrait alcaloïdique a été analysé par chromatographie liquide haute performance (HPLC) couplée soit à un détecteur UV à barrette d?iode (LC-UV-DAD), soit à un spectromètre de masse (LC-MS), ou soit à un spectromètre de résonance magnétique nucléaire (LC-RMN). L?interprétation de ces données spectrales enregistrées en ligne a permis d?obtenir des informations structurales et d?identifier partiellement près de 24 alcaloïdes appartenant à la classe des tropanes et potentiellement originaux. Par des méthodes classiques de chromatographie liquide sur l?extrait alcaloïdique de la plante, dix sept tropanes nouveaux ont ensuite été isolés dont les catuabines et leurs dérivés, et les vaccinines. Tous ces composés sont des tropane-diols ou triols estérifiés par au moins un groupe acide 1-méthyl-1H-pyrrole-2-carboxylique. Un de ces composés a été identifié comme un tropane N-oxyde. Toutes les structures ont été déterminées par spectrométrie de masse haute résolution et spectroscopie RMN multi-dimensionnelle. Parmi les nombreux tests biologiques réalisés sur ces tropanes, seuls les tests de cytotoxicité se sont révélés faiblement positifs pour certains de ces composés.<br/><br/>Throughout the ages, men and women have incessantly pursued every means to increase, preserve or recapture their sexual capacity, or to stimulate the sexual desire of selected individuals. One of the most recurrent methods has been the use of natural aphrodisiacs. Nowadays, the commercialization of new synthetic "love drugs", e.g. Viagra®, Cialis® and Levitra®, has fascinated the public interest and has led to a reassessment of classical aphrodisiacs and to the search for new ones. The practice of self-medication by an increasing number of patients, the incessant aggressive advertising of these herbal aphrodisiacs, the invasion of the medicinal market with uncontrolled dietary supplements and the absence of real directives amplifies the potential health hazards to the community. In order to evaluate the possible risks of commercialized aphrodisiac products on consumer health, the development and validation of a rapid qualitative and quantitative method for the analysis of yohimbine in these products, is reported in the first part of the present work. Yohimbine, a pharmacologically well-characterized ?2-adrenoceptor antagonist with activity in the central and peripheral nervous system, has been used for over a century in the treatment of erectile dysfunction. The analytical method is based on liquid chromatography coupled with ultraviolet and mass spectrometry (LC-UV-MS) and in total, 20 commercially-available aphrodisiac preparations were analyzed. The amount of yohimbine measured and expressed as the maximal dose per day suggested on product labels ranged from 1.32 to 23.16 mg. The second part of this work involved the phytochemical and pharmacological investigation of Erythroxylum vacciniifolium Mart. (Erythroxylaceae), a plant used in Brazilian traditional medicine as an aphrodisiac and tonic, and locally known as catuaba. With the aim of obtaining preliminary structure information on-line, the alkaloid extract was analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled to diode array UV detection (LC-UVDAD), to mass spectrometry (LC-MS) and to nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (LCNMR). Interpretation of on-line spectroscopic data led to structure elucidation and partial identification of 24 potentially original alkaloids bearing the same tropane skeleton. Seventeen new tropane alkaloids were then isolated from the alkaloid extract of the plant, including catuabines D to I, their derivatives and vaccinines A and B. All compounds were elucidated as tropane-diol or -triol alkaloids esterified by at least one 1-methyl-1H-pyrrole-2-carboxylic acid. One of the isolated compounds was identified as a tropane alkaloid N-oxide. Their structures were determined by high resolution mass spectrometry and multi-dimensional NMR spectroscopy. Among the numerous bioassays undertaken, only the cytotoxicity tests exhibited a weak positive activity of certain compounds.

Phytochemical investigation of plants used in African traditional medicine: "Dioscorea sylvatica" (Dioscoreaceae), "Urginea altissima" (Liliaceae), "Jamesbrittenia fodina" and "Jamesbrittenia elegantissima" (Scrophulariaceae)

Les plantes médicinales représentent la seule source de médicaments pour près de 90 % de la population de certains pays d?Afrique. Le savoir-faire des guérisseurs traditionnels, d?une valeur inestimable, représente un point de départ pour l?investigation pharmacologique et phytochimique de ces médicaments naturels. Dans le cadre de ce travail, nous nous sommes dans un premier temps intéressés à valider l?utilisation en médecine traditionnelle de deux plantes, Diuscorea sylvatica (Dioscoreaceae) et Urginea altissima (Liliaceae), qui produisent, lorsqu?elles sont frottées sur la peau, une inflammation et des démangeaisons. Ces réactions cutanées ont pu être expliquées, au moins en partie, par la présence d?aiguilles acérées d?oxalate de calcium dans les organes souterrains. Ces microtraumatismes répétés de l?épiderme risquent de provoquer, lors d?une utilisation prolongée, des lésions granulomateuses. L?histamine n?a pas été détectée, mais d?autres substances pourraient être impliquées dans le processus inflammatoire. La seconde partie de ce travail a consisté en la détection, l?isolement et la caractérisation de nouveaux composés naturels présentant un intérêt thérapeutique potentiel. 70 extraits provenant de 28 plantes supérieures du Zimbabwe ont été soumis à un criblage chimique et biologique. Les extraits méthanoliques des parties aériennes de Jamesbrittenia fodina et J. elegantissima (Scrophulariaceae) ont été sélectionnés sur la base de leurs nombreuses activités. Le fractionnement guidé par l?activité de J. fudina a permis l?isolement des saponines A et B, responsables des activités antifongique, antibactérienne et molluscicide de l?extrait. De plus, les deux saponines ont montré une activité équivalente en tant qu?inhibiteurs de l?acétylcholinestérase, propriété encore non décrite pour cette classe de composés. Une analyse LC/uv/MS de l?extrait a permis d?attribuer l?activité antiradicalaire au verbascoside, un dérivé du phenylpropane; cette analyse a de plus montré la présence d?une série de dérivés de l?acide cinnamique, dont l?isolement a été entrepris. Deux problèmes d?instabilité sont apparus, empêchant l?isolement des composés par des méthodes chromatographiques de pointe, en dépit de très bonnes conditions de séparations. Des analyses LC/?H-NMR combinées à des analyses RMN classiques des mélanges ont permis d?attribuer ces instabilités d?une part à une isomérisation cis/trans induite par la lumière, et d?autre part à une transacylation du groupe cinnamoyl sur une unité de sucre. Ceci a permis l?identification de 12 esters cinnamiques d?iridoïdes, dont 8 nouveaux produits naturels. Ces dérivés présentent un intérêt thérapeutique, car des composés similaires ont montré des propriétés anti-inflammatoires significatives dans différents modèles in vivo. Deux flavanones ont aussi été isolées de l?extrait. Cette classe de composés n?a jamais été rapportée chez un membre des Scrophulariaceae. Une analyse LC/UV/MS comparative des extraits polaires des deux espèces, J. fodina et J. elegantissima, a été effectuée pour détecter la présence éventuelle de compos.és communs. Les saponines A et B et le verbascoside ont été identifiés dans l?extrait de J. elegantissima. Trois flavonoïdes ont de plus été isolés de ce dernier par CPC et HPLC semi-préparative.<br/><br/>In certain African countries, medicinal plants represent the unique source of to 90% of the population. The knowledge of traditional healers represents a basis for the pharmacological and phytochemical investigation of these natural medicines. This work first focused on the validation of use of two plants frequently employed in traditional medicine, Dioscorea sylvatica (Dioscoreaceae) and Urginea altissimu (Liliaceae), which produce mild inflammation and itching when rubbed on the skin. These cutaneous reactions were shown to be due, at least in part, to the presence of sharp needles of calcium oxalate, implying the risk of granulomatous lesions following a long term use. Histamine was not detected, but other compounds could be involved in the inflammatory process. The second part of this work consisted of the detection, isolation and characterisation of new natural compounds of potential therapeutic interest from African plants. Seventy extracts obtained from 28 higher plants of Zimbabwe were submitted to a chemical and biological screening. The methanol extracts of the whole plants of Jamesbrittenia fodina and J. elegantissima (Scrophulariaceae) were selected for their various activities. An activity-guided fractionation of J. fodina led to the isolation of the saponins A and B, responsible for the antifungal, antibacterial and molluscicidal properties. Both saponins were equally active as inhibitors of acetylcholinesterase, a property that has, to our knowledge, never been described for this class of compounds. A LC/UV/MS analysis of the extract allowed the identification of verbascoside as the product with radical scavenging activity, and indicated the presence of a series of potentially interesting cinnamic acid derivatives. Two types of instability problems occurred in the course of their isolation, as some compounds could not be separated despite very good chromatographic conditions. LC/'H-NMR analyses combined with in-mixture NMR analyses enabled the attribution of the cause of the instability in one case to a cidtrans light-induced isomerisation, and in the other case to a transacylation of the cinnamoyl moiety on a sugar residue. These problems of instability have not been the object of previous studies. 12 cinnamic iridoid esters could be characterised, 8 of these being new natural compounds. Several similar substances have displayed significant anti-inflammatory properties in different in vivo models, suggesting a therapeutic interest for these new derivatives. Two flavanones were isolated from the same extract. This class of compound has not been previously reported from species of the Scrophulariaceae family. A comparative LCAJVNS study of the polar extracts of the two species J. elegantissima and J. fodina was performed in order to detect possible common compounds. Saponins A and B and verbascoside were thus identified in .J. elegantissima. Moreover, three supplementary flavonoids were isolated from J. elegantissima..

Product Platform Development from the Product Lines' Perspective: Case of Switching Platform

In the era of fast product development and customized product requirements, the concept of product platform has proven its power in practice. The product platform approach has enabledcompanies to increase the speed of product introductions while simultaneously benefit from efficiency and effectiveness in the development and production activities. The product platforms are technological bases, which can be used to develop several derivative products, and hence, the differentiation can be pushed closer to the product introduction. The product platform development has some specific features, which differ somewhat from the product development of single products. The time horizon is longer, since the product platform¿slife cycle is longer than individual product's. The long time-horizon also proposes higher market risks and the use of new technologies increases the technological risks involved. The end-customer interface might be far away, but there is not a lack of needs aimed at the product platforms ¿ in fact, the product platform development is very much balancing between the varying needs set to it by thederivative products. This dissertation concentrated on product platform development from the internal product lines' perspective of a singlecase. Altogether six product platform development factors were identified: 'Strategic and business fit of product platform', 'Project communication and deliverables', 'Cooperation with product platform development', 'Innovativeness of product platform architecture and features', 'Reliability and quality of product platform', and 'Promised schedules and final product platform meeting the needs'. From the six factors, three were found to influence quite strongly the overall satisfaction, namely 'Strategic and business fit of product platform', 'Reliability and quality of product platform', and 'Promised schedules and final product platform meeting the needs'. Hence, these three factors might be the ones a new product platform development unit should concentrate first in order to satisfy their closest customers, the product lines. The 'Project communication and deliverables' and 'Innovativeness of product platform architecture and features' were weaker contributors to the overall satisfaction. Overall, the factors explained quite well the satisfaction of the product lines with product platform development. Along the research, several interesting aspects about the very basic nature of the product platform development were found. The long time horizon of the product platform development caused challenges in the area of strategic fIT - a conflict between the short-term requirements and long term needs. The fact that a product platform was used as basis of several derivative products resulted into varying needs, and hence the match with the needs and the strategies. The opinions, that the releases of the larger product lines were given higher priorities, give an interesting contribution to the strategy theory of powerand politics. The varying needs of the product lines, the strengths of them as well as large number of concurrent releases set requirements to prioritization. Hence, the research showed the complicated nature of the product platform development in the case unIT - the very basic nature of the product platform development might be its strength (gaining efficiency and effectiveness in product development and product launches) but also the biggest challenge (developing products to meet several needs). As a single case study, the results of this research are not directly generalizable to all the product platform development activities. Instead, the research serves best as a starting point for additional research as well as gives some insights about the factors and challengesof one product development unit.

Towards desired crystalline product properties: In-situ monitoring of batch crystallization

The objective of industrial crystallization is to obtain a crystalline product which has the desired crystal size distribution, mean crystal size, crystal shape, purity, polymorphic and pseudopolymorphic form. Effective control of the product quality requires an understanding of the thermodynamics of the crystallizing system and the effects of operation parameters on the crystalline product properties. Therefore, obtaining reliable in-line information about crystal properties and supersaturation, which is the driving force of crystallization, would be very advantageous. Advanced techniques, such asRaman spectroscopy, attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR FTIR) spectroscopy, and in-line imaging techniques, offer great potential for obtaining reliable information during crystallization, and thus giving a better understanding of the fundamental mechanisms (nucleation and crystal growth) involved. In the present work, the relative stability of anhydrate and dihydrate carbamazepine in mixed solvents containing water and ethanol were investigated. The kinetics of the solvent mediated phase transformation of the anhydrate to hydrate in the mixed solvents was studied using an in-line Raman immersion probe. The effects of the operation parameters in terms of solvent composition, temperature and the use of certain additives on the phase transformation kineticswere explored. Comparison of the off-line measured solute concentration and the solid-phase composition measured by in-line Raman spectroscopy allowedthe identification of the fundamental processes during the phase transformation. The effects of thermodynamic and kinetic factors on the anhydrate/hydrate phase of carbamazepine crystals during cooling crystallization were also investigated. The effect of certain additives on the batch cooling crystallization of potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP) wasinvestigated. The crystal growth rate of a certain crystal face was determined from images taken with an in-line video microscope. An in-line image processing method was developed to characterize the size and shape of thecrystals. An ATR FTIR and a laser reflection particle size analyzer were used to study the effects of cooling modes and seeding parameters onthe final crystal size distribution of an organic compound C15. Based on the obtained results, an operation condition was proposed which gives improved product property in terms of increased mean crystal size and narrowersize distribution.

Sujetos responsables por los daños derivados del uso de un producto peligroso. Comentario a la STS, 1a, 21.11.2008 (MP:José Antonio Seijas Quintana), RJ 2009\144

La STS, 1a, 21.11.2008, objeto de este comentario, plantea a un tiempo la responsabilidad del consumidor, vendedor, fabricante y Administración pública por los daños materiales causados por la explosión de un producto altamente inflamable que había sido vendido a un particular para la desinfección de su vivienda.

Quantification of the relation between surface morphodynamics and subsurface sedimentological product in sandy braided rivers

This study uses digital elevation models and ground-penetrating radar to quantify the relation between the surface morphodynamics and subsurface sedimentology in the sandy braided South Saskatchewan River, Canada. A unique aspect of the methodology is that both digital elevation model and ground-penetrating radar data were collected from the same locations in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007, thus enabling the surface morphodynamics to be tied explicitly to the associated evolving depositional product. The occurrence of a large flood in 2005 also allowed the influence of discharge to be assessed with respect to the processproduct relationship. The data demonstrate that the morphology of the study reach evolved even during modest discharges, but more extensive erosion was caused by the large flood. In addition, the study reach was dominated by compound bars before the flood, but switched to being dominated by unit bars during and after the flood. The extent to which the subsurface deposits (the product') were modified by the surface morphodynamics (the process') was quantified using the changes in radar-facies recorded in sequential ground-penetrating radar surveys. These surveys reveal that during the large flood there was an increase in the proportion of facies associated with bar margin accretion and larger dunes. In subsequent years, these facies became truncated and replaced with facies associated with smaller dune sets. This analysis shows that unit bars generally become truncated more laterally than vertically and, thus, they lose the high-angle bar margin deposits and smaller scale bar-top deposits. In general, the only fragments that remain of the unit bars are dune sets, thus making identification of the original unit barform problematic. This novel data set has implications for what may ultimately become preserved in the rock record.

Translation as a Process and Translation as a Product in Teaching Translation

L'ensenyament de la traducció s'ha utilitzat tradicionalment en algunes titulacions de filologia com a eina d'aprenentatge d'habilitats de la llengua. Aquesta circumstància, però, no ha d'estar renyida amb la producció d'una traducció acceptable. En aquest article es pretén analitzar si pot aconseguir-se aquest objectiu mitjançant la incorporació d'informació extratextual en l'enunciat de l'exercici de traducció. Els resultats obtinguts amb un grup d'estudiants de filologia mostren que en les seves decisions lingüístiques va tenir un pes important el tipus d'informació extratextual adjunta als textes originals anglesos. Si bé caldria fer un esforç investigador més sistemàtic per poder afirmar-ho categòricament, aquest estudi intenta esbossar la qüestió tan discutida de fins on l'aprenentatge d'una llengua s'ha de realitzar junt amb l'aprenentatge de la traducció. Aquest estudi, també, planteja la necessitat d'incorporar informació extratextual en l'aprenentatge de la traducció, independentment de la titulació que en aquests estudis s'insereixen.