Melhoria do processo produtivo da Schmitt+Sohn Elevadores - Porto

Este projeto teve como objetivo a utilização de ferramentas e conceitos Lean, para análise e implementação da Melhoria de Processos em ambiente fabril, com o intuito de melhorar o sistema produtivo em algumas secções da empresa SCHMITT+SOHN Elevadores. Pretende-se nesta primeira fase uma melhoria na comunicação entre os vários setores fabris, assim como uma melhoria no fluxo dos materiais. Pretende-se igualmente uma simplificação das ações dos operadores nos seus locais de trabalho. Foi para isso necessário, numa fase inicial, a recolha e análise dos diversos dados necessários ao trabalho proposto. Foram feitos diversos VSM’s e análises de fluxo em duas secções da empresa, com o intuito de estudar a situação atual e posteriormente proceder à implementação de um sistema Kanban. Foram também analisados problemas a nível de stocks e armazenamento de matéria-prima e materiais diversos tendo sido concretizadas diversas soluções. O trabalho que apresentamos foi fortemente condicionado por imperativos ditados pela empresa, tendo o nosso estudo e aplicações praticas um suporte de apenas 3 meses. No restante período estivemos condicionados pela empresa a trabalhos de conhecimento do funcionamento da mesma, formação em Kaizen e preparação para as implementações de VSM e Kanban. Nesta fase é ainda prematura a validação dos resultados obtidos nas secções, visto que o processo para a implementação do sistema Kanban ainda se encontra em fase de desenvolvimento.

A Técnica de Dança Clássica na Performance Contemporânea : desenvolvimento de competências técnicas e artísticas, nos alunos dos últimos anos da Academia de Dança Contemporânea de Setúbal, visando a sua entrada no meio artístico profissional

Relatório Final de Estágio apresentado à Escola Superior de Dança com vista à obtenção do grau de Mestre em Ensino de Dança.

Characterization of airborne particles generated from metal active gas welding process

This study is focused on the characterization of particles emitted in the metal active gas welding of carbon steel using mixture of Ar + CO2, and intends to analyze which are the main process parameters that influence the emission itself. It was found that the amount of emitted particles (measured by particle number and alveolar deposited surface area) are clearly dependent on the distance to the welding front and also on the main welding parameters, namely the current intensity and heat input in the welding process. The emission of airborne fine particles seems to increase with the current intensity as fume-formation rate does. When comparing the tested gas mixtures, higher emissions are observed for more oxidant mixtures, that is, mixtures with higher CO2 content, which result in higher arc stability. These mixtures originate higher concentrations of fine particles (as measured by number of particles by cm 3 of air) and higher values of alveolar deposited surface area of particles, thus resulting in a more severe worker's exposure.

Complex question answering on semi-structured repositories: a user centric process enhanced with context

A Teia Mundial (Web) foi prevista como uma rede de documentos de hipertexto interligados de forma a criar uma espaço de informação onde humanos e máquinas poderiam comunicar. No entanto, a informação contida na Web tradicional foi/é armazenada de forma não estruturada o que leva a que apenas os humanos a possam consumir convenientemente. Consequentemente, a procura de informações na Web sintáctica é uma tarefa principalmente executada pelos humanos e nesse sentido nem sempre é fácil de concretizar. Neste contexto, tornou-se essencial a evolução para uma Web mais estruturada e mais significativa onde é dado significado bem definido à informação de forma a permitir a cooperação entre humanos e máquinas. Esta Web é usualmente referida como Web Semântica. Além disso, a Web Semântica é totalmente alcançável apenas se os dados de diferentes fontes forem ligados criando assim um repositório de Dados Abertos Ligados (LOD). Com o aparecimento de uma nova Web de Dados (Abertos) Ligados (i.e. a Web Semântica), novas oportunidades e desafios surgiram. Pergunta Resposta (QA) sobre informação semântica é actualmente uma área de investigação activa que tenta tirar vantagens do uso das tecnologias ligadas à Web Semântica para melhorar a tarefa de responder a questões. O principal objectivo do projecto World Search passa por explorar a Web Semântica para criar mecanismos que suportem os utilizadores de domínios de aplicação específicos a responder a questões complexas com base em dados oriundos de diferentes repositórios. No entanto, a avaliação feita ao estado da arte permite concluir que as aplicações existentes não suportam os utilizadores na resposta a questões complexas. Nesse sentido, o trabalho desenvolvido neste documento foca-se em estudar/desenvolver metodologias/processos que permitam ajudar os utilizadores a encontrar respostas exactas/corretas para questões complexas que não podem ser respondidas fazendo uso dos sistemas tradicionais. Tal inclui: (i) Ultrapassar a dificuldade dos utilizadores visionarem o esquema subjacente aos repositórios de conhecimento; (ii) Fazer a ponte entre a linguagem natural expressa pelos utilizadores e a linguagem (formal) entendível pelos repositórios; (iii) Processar e retornar informações relevantes que respondem apropriadamente às questões dos utilizadores. Para esse efeito, são identificadas um conjunto de funcionalidades que são consideradas necessárias para suportar o utilizador na resposta a questões complexas. É também fornecida uma descrição formal dessas funcionalidades. A proposta é materializada num protótipo que implementa as funcionalidades previamente descritas. As experiências realizadas com o protótipo desenvolvido demonstram que os utilizadores efectivamente beneficiam das funcionalidades apresentadas: ▪ Pois estas permitem que os utilizadores naveguem eficientemente sobre os repositórios de informação; ▪ O fosso entre as conceptualizações dos diferentes intervenientes é minimizado; ▪ Os utilizadores conseguem responder a questões complexas que não conseguiam responder com os sistemas tradicionais. Em suma, este documento apresenta uma proposta que comprovadamente permite, de forma orientada pelo utilizador, responder a questões complexas em repositórios semiestruturados.

A motivação nas aulas de Dança Clássica: a música como estímulo promotor de motivação em alunas do 4º ano do Curso de Dança da Academia de Música de Vilar do Paraíso

Relatório Final de Estágio apresentado à Escola Superior de Dança, com vista à obtenção do grau de Mestre em Ensino de Dança.

Square-wave voltametric method for determination of molinate concentration in a biological process using a hanging mercury drop electrode

A square-wave voltammetric (SWV) method using a hanging mercury drop electrode (HMDE) has been developed for determination of the herbicide molinate in a biodegradation process. The method is based on controlled adsorptive accumulation of molinate for 10 s at a potential of -0.8 V versus AgCl/Ag. An anodic peak, due to oxidation of the adsorbed pesticide, was observed in the cyclic voltammogram at ca. -0.320 V versus AgCl/Ag; a very small cathodic peak was also detected. The SWV calibration plot was established to be linear in the range 5.0x10-6 to 9.0x10-6 mol L-1; this corresponded to a detection limit of 3.5x10-8 mol L-1. This electroanalytical method was used to monitor the decrease of molinate concentration in river waters along a biodegradation process using a bacterial mixed culture. The results achieved with this voltammetric method were compared with those obtained by use of a chromatographic method (HPLC–UV) and no significant statistical differences were observed.

The invisible factors that can make the difference. Language management and knowledge transfer in multinational sites

The knowledge-based society we live in has stressed the importance of human capital and brought talent to the top of most wanted skills, especially to companies who want to succeed in turbulent environments worldwide. In fact, streams, sequences of decisions and resource commitments characterize the day-to-day of multinational companies (MNCs). Such decision-making activities encompass major strategic moves like internationalization and new market entries or diversification and acquisitions. In most companies, these strategic decisions are extensively discussed and debated and are generally framed, formulated, and articulated in specialized language often developed by the best minds in the company. Yet the language used in such deliberations, in detailing and enacting the implementation strategy is usually taken for granted and receives little if any explicit attention (Brannen & Doz, 2012) an can still be a “forgotten factor” (Marschan et al. 1997). Literature on language management and international business refers to lack of awareness of business managers of the impact that language can have not only in communication effectiveness but especially in knowledge transfer and knowledge management in business environments. In the context of MNCs, management is, for many different reasons, more complex and demanding than that of a national company, mainly because of diversity factors inherent to internationalization, namely geographical and cultural spaces, i.e, varied mindsets. Moreover, the way of functioning, and managing language, of the MNC depends on its vision, its values and its internationalization model, i.e on in the way the MNE adapts to and controls the new markets, which can vary essentially from a more ethnocentric to a more pluricentric focus. Regardless of the internationalization model followed by the MNC, communication between different business units is essential to achieve unity in diversity and business sustainability. For the business flow and prosperity, inter-subsidiary, intra-company and company-client (customers, suppliers, governments, municipalities, etc..) communication must work in various directions and levels of the organization. If not well managed, this diversity can be a barrier to global coordination and create turbulent environments, even if a good technological support is available (Feely et al., 2002: 4). According to Marchan-Piekkari (1999) the tongue can be both (i) a barrier, (ii) a facilitator and (iii) a source of power. Moreover, the lack of preparation for the barriers of linguistic diversity can lead to various costs, including negotiations’ failure and failure on internationalization.. On the other hand, communication and language fluency is not just a message transfer procedure, but above all a knowledge transfer process, which requires extra-linguistic skills (persuasion, assertiveness …) in order to promote credibility of both parties. For this reason, MNCs need a common code to communicate and trade information inside and outside the company, which will require one or more strategies, in order to overcome possible barriers and organization distortions.

Prática de ensino supervisionado no 1.º e 2.º ciclo do ensino básico: calculo mental: um estudo sobre as estratégias utilizadas por alunos do 1.º e do 2.º ciclo do ensino básico

Relatório de Estágio apresentado à Escola Superior de Educação de Lisboa para obtenção de grau de mestre em Ensino do 1.º e do 2.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico

Agar extraction from integrated multitrophic aquacultured Gracilaria vermiculophylla: Evaluation of a microwave-assisted process using response surface methodology

Microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) of agar from Gracilaria vermiculophylla, produced in an integrated multitrophic aquaculture (IMTA) system, from Ria de Aveiro (northwestern Portugal), was tested and optimized using response surface methodology. The influence of the MAE operational parameters (extraction time, temperature, solvent volume and stirring speed) on the physical and chemical properties of agar (yield, gel strength, gelling and melting temperatures, as well as, sulphate and 3,6-anhydro-Lgalactose contents) was evaluated in a 2^4 orthogonal composite design. The quality of the extracted agar compared favorably with the attained using traditional extraction (2 h at 85ºC) while reducing drastically extraction time, solvent consumption and waste disposal requirements. Agar MAE optimum results were: an yield of 14.4 ± 0.4%, a gel strength of 1331 ± 51 g/cm2, 40.7 ± 0.2 _C gelling temperature, 93.1 ± 0.5ºC melting temperature, 1.73 ± 0.13% sulfate content and 39.4 ± 0.3% 3,6-anhydro-L-galactose content. Furthermore, this study suggests the feasibility of the exploitation of G. vermiculophylla grew in IMTA systems for agar production.

Economic, environmental and mixed objective functions in non-linear process optimization using simulated annealing and tabu search

Screening of topologies developed by hierarchical heuristic procedures can be carried out by comparing their optimal performance. In this work we will be exploiting mono-objective process optimization using two algorithms, simulated annealing and tabu search, and four different objective functions: two of the net present value type, one of them including environmental costs and two of the global potential impact type. The hydrodealkylation of toluene to produce benzene was used as case study, considering five topologies with different complexities mainly obtained by including or not liquid recycling and heat integration. The performance of the algorithms together with the objective functions was observed, analyzed and discussed from various perspectives: average deviation of results for each algorithm, capacity for producing high purity product, screening of topologies, objective functions robustness in screening of topologies, trade-offs between economic and environmental type objective functions and variability of optimum solutions.

Simulation and life cycle assessment of process design alternatives for biodiesel production from waste vegetable oils

This study uses the process simulator ASPEN Plus and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to compare three process design alternatives for biodiesel production from waste vegetable oils that are: the conventional alkali-catalyzed process including a free fatty acids (FFAs) pre-treatment, the acid-catalyzed process, and the supercritical methanol process using propane as co-solvent. Results show that the supercritical methanol process using propane as co-solvent is the most environmentally favorable alternative. Its smaller steam consumption in comparison with the other process design alternatives leads to a lower contribution to the potential environmental impacts (PEI’s). The acid-catalyzed process generally shows the highest PEI’s, in particular due to the high energy requirements associated with methanol recovery operations.

Implementação de cursos em regime de e-learning em ambiente hospitalar. A MEDUCA como suporte

A sociedade moderna encontra-se numa evolução progressiva e constante no que respeita às novas tecnologias. Independentemente da área de conhecimento, é de senso comum, que cada vez mais é necessária formação sólida, sendo fundamental a preparação e a consolidação das futuras gerações na utilização das novas tecnologias. As plataformas de e-learning são hoje em dia uma realidade mais que afirmada, e com aplicação em todos os sectores de actividade. A área da saúde não foge à regra, verificando-se que os seus profissionais evidenciam falta de disponibilidade para participação nas formações presenciais, fundamentais para o seu processo de formação contínua (LLL – Long Liffe Learning). Estes profissionais necessitam de estar continuamente actualizados, de forma a melhor poderem contribuir para o desempenho das suas funções, como o aconselhamento dos utentes, acompanhamento de doentes crónicos, uso correcto dos medicamentos, entre outros. O presente trabalho pretende implementar em ambiente hospitalar o modelo de formação à distância em regime de e-learning ou b-learning, identificando potenciais vantagens e constrangimentos inerentes ao processo. Para o efeito, será utilizada a plataforma MEDUCA criada pelo GILT-ISEP e baseada em Moodle, como uma plataforma destinada á formação para profissionais da área da Saúde. Esta dissertação apresenta uma investigação sobre a implementação da dita plataforma em ambiente hospitalar. Esta dissertação apresenta todo o estudo/trabalho desenvolvido para a implementação da plataforma MEDUCA nalgumas entidades contactadas da área da saúde. Espera-se que esta ferramenta ofereça uma alternativa interactiva de educação e aprendizagem, visando melhorar constantemente o nível formativo de cada profissional de saúde.

How new online communication tools and the availability of content influence the audiences and the creative process

We live in a changing world. At an impressive speed, every day new technological resources appear. We increasingly use the Internet to obtain and share information, and new online communication tools are emerging. Each of them encompasses new potential and creates new audiences. In recent years, we witnessed the emergence of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other media platforms. They have provided us with an even greater interactivity between sender and receiver, as well as generated a new sense of community. At the same time we also see the availability of content like it never happened before. We are increasingly sharing texts, videos, photos, etc. This poster intends to explore the potential of using these new online communication tools in the cultural sphere to create new audiences, to develop of a new kind of community, to provide information as well as different ways of building organizations’ memory. The transience of performing arts is accompanied by the need to counter that transience by means of documentation. This desire to ‘save’ events reaches its expression with the information archive of the different production moments as well as the opportunity to record the event and present it through, for instance, digital platforms. In this poster we intend to answer the following questions: which online communication tools are being used to engage audiences in the cultural sphere (specifically between theater companies in Lisbon)? Is there a new relationship with the public? Are online communication tools creating a new kind of community? What changes are these tools introducing in the creative process? In what way the availability of content and its archive contribute to the organization memory? Among several references, we will approach the two-way communication model that James E. Grunig & Todd T. Hunt (1984) already presented and the concept of mass self-communication of Manuel Castells (2010). Castells also tells us that we have moved from traditional media to a system of communication networks. For Scott Kirsner (2010), we have entered an era of digital creativity, where artists have the tools to do what they imagined and the public no longer wants to just consume cultural goods, but instead to have a voice and participate. The creativity process is now depending on the public choice as they wander through the screen. It is the receiver who owns an object which can be exchanged. Virtual reality has encouraged the receiver to abandon its position of passive observer and to become a participant agent, which implies a challenge to organizations: inventing new forms of interfaces. Therefore, we intend to find new and effective online tools that can be used by cultural organizations; the best way to manage them; to show how organizations can create a community with the public and how the availability of online content and its archive can contribute to the organizations’ memory.

Molinate quantification in environmental water by a glutathione-S-transferase based biosensor

A glutathione-S-transferase (GST)based biosensor was developed to quantify the thiocarbamate herbicide molinate in environmental water.The biosensor construction was based on GST immobilization onto a glassy carbon electrode via aminosilane–glutaraldehyde covalent attachment. The principle supporting the use of this biosensor consists of the GST inhibition process promoted by molinate. Differential pulse voltammetry was used to obtain a calibration curve for molinate concentration, ranging from 0.19 to 7.9 mgL -1 and presenting a detection limit of 0.064 mgL- 1. The developed biosensor is stable,and reusable during 15 days.The GST-based biosensor was successfully applied to quantify molinate in rice paddy field floodwater samples. The results achieved with the developed biosensor were in accordance with those obtained by high performance liquid chromatography. The proposed device is suitable for screening environmental water analysis and, since no sample preparation is required, it can be used in situ and in real-time measurements.