Talangfabriken : Om organisation av kunskap och kreativitet i skivindustrin

The purpose of this dissertation is to describe, explain and understand how record companies identify and develop new music and new talent. The analysis is carried out on three levels: individual, organizational and sector level. In a record company, this task formally goes to A&R (Artist and Repertoire). This dissertation takes its point of departure in how the capacity for discovering new talent can be understood in terms of knowledge, creativity and competence and how this capacity is affected in the meeting between the record company and the industry. The theoretical framework of the dissertation spans two sociological fields: the sociology of organizations and the sociology of knowledge. While it takes its organizational starting point in the Knowledge Company Approach, it employs a practice-based approach to discuss knowledge. I argue that within the Knowledge company approach there are two contrasting ways to understand knowledge; a distinction is made between knowledge- and creativity-intensive enterprises. The results show that the record industry’s polarized structure can be seen as a result of the Knowledge Company’s typical problems. The A&R’s work is described as including two phases, one intuitive and one analytical. The intuitive assessment is direct, unconscious and without reflection. This ability has been described as "intuition" and "gut feeling". The analytical phase adds analysis and reflection based on knowledge. The results from the interviews with A&R’s reveal the limit of formal and explicit knowledge not only in the choice of music but also in the marketing strategies. The overarching picture is one in which record companies move in a space characterized by tension between dichotomous forces – art and commercialism, creativity and knowledge, culture and economy, chaos and order, but where opposite poles are not mutually exclusive but complementary.

Film som kommunikation : En studie av gymnasieungdomars filmarbete

The starting point for this work was a discussion between my supervisor and myself during my teaching training. The discussion concerned the appropriateness of allowing students make films with sexual content. Film gives young people the opportunity to express their feelings and broaden their views. If the film then disseminates to unknown people via in-ternet, which it most likely will do, maybe it is no longer so positive. The aim of this study is to shed light on various aspects of identity and ethics that are important to keep in mind when young people in school make films. These aspects are to avoid making young people vulnerable to abuse and improper influence. One aim is also to highlight the advantages of making films in school. The study is inspired by hermeneutic interpretive and based on qualitative interviews. The informants are four students at the age of 18-19 at two different schools in one municipality in Sweden.The results of the study show that it is important for the informants that the films are pro-duced in an aesthetically good way so that it appeals to the audience. Two of the infor-mants have a specific audience and make more conscious choices, so that the audience will understand what is said. The study shows that the more a filmmaker considers the audi-ence, the more consciously he or she uses film as communication. To get positive feedback is important, but it is mostly friends of the filmmakers that actually comment. To get nega-tive comments is regarded as a disadvantage when placing material on the internet. Howev-er, none of the informants in the study have received negative comments on what has been posted. The opinions about what the informants believe is inappropriate to post on inter-net or to make films about regards sexuality and violations. Earlier studies show that mate-rial can, because it is interesting to other people, become widespread. For this reason it is important for teachers to have conversations with students about their preferences and opinions on various issues. Adults need to interfere in the young people's world, while be-ing open to their opinions. Then the young people's value system will be built up and give them a safe tool that helps them to avoid improper influence.

Attraktiv expatriering : Före, under och efter

Syfte och utgångspunkt:    Att utifrån fyra organisationer undersöka faktorer som är viktiga för arbete med expatriering och att använda Mendenhall, Dunbar och Oddous modell som inspiration för att skapa en egen modell med faktorer värdefulla för en expatrieringsprocess.   Forskningsresan:                 Utifrån referensram samt ett empiriskt resultat av intervjuer identifieras fyra kategorier, betydelse av att ta med familjen, mentorskap och stöd, anpassning till kultur och karriärplanering. Det empiriska resultatet samt referensramen är sedan grunden till analys och slutsats.   Slutsats:                              I slutsatsen presenteras betydelsefulla faktorer för utgången av studiens syfte.   Dessa faktorer används sedan i den modell författarna skapat. Modellen visar hur behovet av de fyra kategorierna är beroende av den planerade utlandsstationeringens längd.   Metod:                                Författarna av studien utgår från en kvalitativ ansats med djupintervjuer som metod. Det empiriska resultatet baseras på det material som framkommit genom djupintervjuer med  respondenterna från de fyra organisationerna.

Barns strategier och ekonomisk utsatthet : knappa resurser som utgångspunkt för en förhandling av positionerna i familjen

Economic hardship and children’s strategies – scarce resources as a starting point for negotiating family positions The aim of this article is to discuss how children and adolescents experience everyday life in economic hardship and how a negotiation of the family positions can be linked to these experiences. The article takes its theoretical starting point in childhood sociology, and is based on an interview study involving 17 children between the ages of 6–18 in families living on or below the limit for receiving welfare benefits. The purpose of these interviews is to explore how these children experience economic hardship at home and among friends, focusing their own strategies and agency. I argue that the financial situation in these families do indeed challenge the way that the child position is traditionally understood, which also has implications for the children’s identity work. Including children as participants in research therefore becomes crucial in order to fully understand the ramifications of child poverty. 

Mångfald - Från ord till handling : En kvalitativ studie om HRs strategiska arbete med mångfald

Denna studie grundar sig i ett uppdrag från Trafikverket med avsikten att undersöka hur enmångfaldsstrategi kan få ökad effekt i organisationen. Utgångspunkten för denna studie är attdet tycks krävas mer forskning kring hur HR strategiskt kan arbeta med mångfaldsfrågor ochintegrera dem i organisationens alla delar. Syftet med denna studie är således att identifiera hurHR strategiskt kan arbeta med mångfaldsfrågor. Vidare är syftet att visa hur ett strategiskamångfaldsarbete kan bli mer effektivt.Teorier som belyser begreppet mångfald, effekterna av mångfald, strategi, Human ResourceManagement och Strategic Human Resource management kan ses ligga till grund för ettframgångsrikt HRM-arbete med mångfald. Ledarskap, kommunikation, kunskap och att se tillorganisationskulturen belyser teorin som viktiga komponenter för att ett strategiskt arbete skabli mer effektivt och ge effekt i organisationen.Studien bygger på en deduktiv ansats och en kvalitativ metod har genomförts utifrån treindividuella intervjuer och två fokusgrupper. De individuella intervjuernas syfte var att belysaorganisationens nutida arbete med mångfald, framtida perspektiv för hur ett strategisktmångfaldsarbete kan utformas och en målbild för vad arbetet ska resultera i. Den enafokusgruppen bestod av medarbetare från HR från olika regionkontor i landet och hade somsyfte att klargöra hur HR strategiskt kan arbeta med mångfald. Den andra fokusgruppen bestodav chefer från olika regionkontor i landet och hade som syfte att belysa chefers roll och vad deeftersöker i ett strategiskt mångfaldsarbete.Resultatet från intervjuerna har analyserats utifrån den teoretiska referensramen och i dennastudie har vi kommit fram till och identifierat flera betydelsefulla faktorer som för HR är viktigai utformandet av en mångfaldsstrategi. Det är viktigt att definiera begreppet mångfald, klargöraansvarsfrågan, visa på varför organisationen bör arbeta med månglad och kommuniceraeffekterna. Vidare är det viktigt att koppla mångfaldsstrategin till övriga HRM-aktiviteter ochorganisationens övriga strategier och mål för att det strategiska arbetet ska ge effekt. Kunskapom mångfald och att se arbetet som ett förändringsarbete där ledningen utgör en viktig roll harvisat sig vara väsentliga faktorer för att arbetet ska få värde i organisationen.

Photovoltaic System Design for a Contaminated Area in Falun – Comparison of South and East- West Layout

In this thesis the solar part of a large grid-connected photovoltaic system design has been done. The main purpose was to size and optimize the system and to present figures helping to evaluate the prospective project rationality, which can potentially be constructed on a contaminated area in Falun. The methodology consisted in PV market study and component selection, site analysis and defining suitable area for solar installation; and system configuration optimization based on PVsyst simulations and Levelized Cost of Energy calculations. The procedure was mainly divided on two parts, preliminary and detailed sizing. In the first part the objective was complex, which included the investigation of the most profitable component combination and system optimization due to tilt and row distance. It was done by simulating systems with different components and orientations, which were sized for the same 100kW inverter in order to make a fair comparison. For each simulated result a simplified LCOE calculation procedure was applied. The main results of this part show that with the price of 0.43 €/Wp thin-film modules were the most cost effective solution for the case with a great advantage over crystalline type in terms of financial attractiveness. From the results of the preliminary study it was possible to select the optimal system configuration, which was used in the detailed sizing as a starting point. In this part the PVsyst simulations were run, which included full scale system design considering near shadings created by factory buildings. Additionally, more complex procedure of LCOE calculation has been used here considered insurances, maintenance, time value of money and possible cost reduction due to the system size. Two system options were proposed in final results; both cover the same area of 66000 m2. The first one represents an ordinary South faced design with 1.1 MW nominal power, which was optimized for the highest performance. According to PVsyst simulations, this system should produce 1108 MWh/year with the initial investment of 835,000 € and 0.056 €/kWh LCOE. The second option has an alternative East-West orientation, which allows to cover 80% of occupied ground and consequently have 6.6 MW PV nominal power. The system produces 5388 MWh/year costs about 4500,000 € and delivers electricity with the same price of 0.056 €/kWh. Even though the EW solution has 20% lower specific energy production, it benefits mainly from lower relative costs for inverters, mounting and annual maintenance expenses. After analyzing the performance results, among the two alternatives none of the systems showed a clear superiority so there was no optimal system proposed. Both, South and East-West solutions have own advantages and disadvantages in terms of energy production profile, configuration, installation and maintenance. Furthermore, the uncertainty due to cost figures assumptions restricted the results veracity.

Mellan etnologi och modern sociologi : K. Rob. V. Wikman som medlare i Finland och Sverige

Between ethnology and sociology: K. Rob. V. Wikman as a mediator in Finland and Sweden K. Rob. V. Wikman, professor in sociology at the Åbo Akademi University in Turku, Finland, played a central role both within Finnish and Swedish sociology in the 1940s and 1950s. He was a student of Westermarck and thus his own research represented an ethnosociological tradition, which at that time was challenged by modern, American-influenced sociological ideas. The aim of this article is to discuss the adaptation of “modern sociology” and the drawing of boundaries in Nordic sociology after the Second World War by focusing on Wikman’s work in Finnish as well as Swedish sociology, especially the assessor assignments he was given, and by giving emphasis to some of those that served as border poles or border markers in this process. The comparative starting point gives us reason to discuss some nationally characterized similarities and differences that can be observed in the establishment process of modern sociology in Finland and Sweden.

Att bli, att vara och att ha varit - om ingångar i och utgångar ur Jehovas vittnen i Sverige

Summary To become, to be and to have been: about the  Jehovah’s Witnesses The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, in the following text referred to as the Jehovah’s Witnesses or “the organisation”, is a worldwide Christian organisation with about 6.7 million members. The organisation has many times, without any success so far, proclaimed Armageddon when they expect Jehovah to return to Earth. They interpret the Bible in their own, often very literal way, and require their members to live according to these interpretations. Among the consequences of this, members are forbidden to vote, to do military service or to receive blood transfusions. Apart from attending the three weekly meetings, members are expected to be active in missionary work, known as “publishing”. If a member fails to do a certain number of hours’ publishing, he or she risks being deprived of active membership status Sweden in general is considered to be a society where the population is not very religious. The formerly state-governed Lutheran church has lost its influence and the vast majority of ordinary Swedes do not visit church on other occasions than weddings, funerals or christenings. Expressing one’s own religious values has become somewhat of a private matter where publicity is seldom appreciated, which is contrary to the practice of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. This is one of the reasons why the Jehovah’s Witnesses are commonly perceived by average Swedes as a “suspicious” religious organisation. The aim and methods of the study This dissertation seeks to describe and investigate the entering and leaving of a highly structured and hierarchical religious community, exemplified in this case by the Jehovah’s Witnesses. What are the thoughts and aspirations of someone who is considering becoming a Jehovah’s Witness? What are the priorities and what experiences seem important when a person is going through such a process? And when this person has finally reached his or her goal of becoming a member, is it the same motivation that makes him or her stay in the organisation for longer periods of time, possibly for the rest of their lives, or does it change during the process of entering, or does this motivation change its character during the transition from entering to being a regular member? Why do some of the members change their attitude to the Jehovah’s Witnesses from rejoicing to bitterness? And how does this process of exit manifest itself? In what way is it different from the process of entry? The respondents in this study were chosen from both active members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses in Sweden and those who have left the organisation for personal reasons. Repeated interviews with ten active members of the organisation have been conducted in the course of the study and compared to equal numbers of former members. The interviews have been semi-structured to deal with questions of how a person has come into contact with the organisation; how they retrospectively experienced the process of entry; the reasons for becoming a member. Questions have also been asked about life in the organisation. The group of “exiters” have also been asked about the experience of leaving, why they wanted to leave, and how this process was started and carried out. In addition to this I have analysed a four-year diary describing the time inside and the process of leaving the organisation. This has given me an extra psychological insight into the inner experience of someone who has gone through the whole process. The analysis has been done by categorising the content of the transcribed interviews. An attempt to outline a model of an entry and exit process has been made, based on ideas and interpretations presented in the interviews. The analysis of the diary has involved thorough reading, resulting in a division of it into four different parts, where each part has been given a certain key-word, signifying the author’s emotional state when writing it. A great deal of the information about the Jehovah’s Witnesses has been collected through discussion boards on the Internet, informal talks with members and ex-members, interviews with representatives of the organisations during visits to its different offices (Bethels), such as St. Petersburg, Russia, and Brooklyn, New York, USA. The context Each organisation evolves in its own context with its own norms, roles and stories that would not survive outside it. With this as a starting point, there is a chapter dedicated to the description of the organisation’s history, structure and activities. It has been stated that the organisation’s treatment of its critical members and the strategies for recruiting new members have evolved over the years of its history. At the beginning there was an openness allowing members to be critical. As the structure of the organisation has become more rigid and formalised, the treatment of internal critics has become much less tolerated and exclusion has become a frequent option. As a rule many new members have been attracted to the organisation when (1) the day of Armageddon has been pronounced to be approaching; (2) the members of the organisation have been persecuted or threatened with persecution; and (3) the organisation has discovered a “new market”. The processes for entering and exiting How the entering processes manifest themselves depends on whether the person has been brought up in the organisation or not. A person converting as an adult has to pass six phases before being considered a Jehovah’s Witness by the organisation. These are:  Contact with the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Studying the bible with members of the organisation, Questioning, Accepting, Being active as publisher (spreading the belief), Being baptised.  For a person brought up in the organisation, the process to full membership is much shorter:   Upbringing in the organisation, Taking a stand on the belief, Being baptised. The exit process contains of seven phases:   Different levels of doubts, Testing of doubts, Turning points, Different kinds of decisions, Different steps in executing the decisions, Floating, a period of emotional and cognitive consideration of membership and its experiences, Realtive neutrality.   The process in and the process out are both slow and are accompanied with anguish and doubts. When a person is going through the process in or out of the organisation he or she experiences criticism. This is when people around the adept question the decision to continue in the process. The result of the criticism depends on where in the process the person is. If he or she is at the beginning of the process, the criticism will probably make the person insecure and the process will slow down or stop. If the criticism is pronounced in a later phase, the process will probably speed up. The norms of the organisation affect the behaviour of the members. There are techniques for inclusion that both bind members to the organisation and shield them off from the surrounding society. Examples of techniques for inclusion are the “work situation” and “closed doors”. The work situation signifies that members who do as the organisation recommends – doing simple work – often end up in the same branch of industry as many other Jehovah’s Witnesses. This often means that the person has other witnesses as workmates. If the person is unemployed or moves to another town it is easy to find a new job through connections in the organisation. Doubts and exclusions can lead to problems since they entail a risk of losing one’s job. This can also result in problems getting a new job. Jehovah’s Witnesses are not supposed to talk to excluded members, which of course mean difficulties working together. “Closed doors” means that members who do as the organisation recommends – not pursuing higher education, not engaging in civil society, working with a manual or in other way simple job, putting much time into the organisation – will, after a long life in the organisation, have problems starting a new life outside the Jehovah’s Witnesses. The language used in the organisation shows the community among the members, thus the language is one of the most important symbols. A special way of thinking is created through the language. It binds members to the organisation and sometimes it can work as a way to get back into the normative world of the organisation. Randall Collins’s (1990, 2004) thoughts about “emotional energy” have enabled an understanding of the solidarity and unity in the organisation. This also gives an understanding of the way the members treat doubting and critical members. The members who want to exit have to open up the binding/screening off. A possible way to do that is through language, to become aware of the effect the language might have. Another way is to search for emotional energy in another situation. During the exit process, shame might be of some importance. When members become aware of the shame they feel, because they perceive they are “acting a belief”, the exit process might accelerate.

Implementation of Video Monitoring In Aluminium Industry

The aim was to evaluate results and experiences from development of new technology, a training program and implementation of strategies for the use of a video exposure monitoring method, PIMEX. Starting point of this study is an increased incidence of asthma among workers in the aluminium industry. Exposure peaks of fumes are supposed to play an important role. PIMEX makes it possible to link used work practice, use of control technology, and so forth to peaks. Nine companies participated in the project, which was divided into three parts, development of PIMEX technology, production of training material, and training in use of equipment and related strategies. The use of the video exposure monitoring method PIMEX offers prerequisites supporting workers participation in safety activities. The experiences from the project reveal the importance of good timing of primary training, technology development, technical support, and follow up training. In spite of a delay of delivery of the new technology, representatives from the participating companies declared that the experiences showed that PIMEX gave an important contribution for effective control of hazards in the companies. Eight out of nine smelters used the PIMEX method as a part of a strategy for control of workers exposure to fumes in potrooms. Possibilities to conduct effective control measures were identified. This article describes experiences from implementation of a, for this branch, new method supporting workers participation for workplace improvements.

Designens betydelse vid val av boxvin : En studie om konsumenters preferenser av designfaktorer på bag-in-box-vin.

På den svenska marknaden står bag-in-box-vin för över 50 procent av allt vin som säljs och Sverige är det land där bag-in-boxen fått starkast fäste i världen (Fremin, 2012). Det gör att bag-in-box-förpackningen är en stor och betydelsefull produkt för vintillverkare och att ha kunskap om säljande design är viktigt för grafiska formgivare samt övriga involverade företag. Den föreliggande studiens syfte var att undersöka vilka designfaktorer på bagin- box-förpackningar som påverkar konsumenternas val av vin i Sverige. Studien innefattade en visuell kartläggning som ämnade ge en överblick av utbudet på ett Systembolag. Detta genomfördes för att skapa en grund till den webbaserade enkätundersökningen som genomfördes under våren 2015. Resultaten visade att majoriteten av respondenterna valde vin baserat på förpackningens utseende och ansåg att de påverkades främst av färg, typsnitt, illustrationer och varumärken. Resultaten visade också att ju högre vinkunskap konsumenterna hade desto mindre påverkade designen deras val. Kvinnor och män hade generellt olika åsikter angående hur stor påverkan de olika designfaktorerna hade vid valet av bag-in-box-vin. Denna studie är endast ett avstamp till ett ämne som innefattar många påverkande faktorer. Det betyder att mer forskning krävs inom ämnet innan helt sanningsenliga resultat kan fastställas.

Opting out of oppositionality : toward an informed and engaged "third wave" feminism

I begin by citing a definition of "third wave" from the glossary in Turbo Chicks: Talking Young Feminisms at length because it communicates several key issues that I develop in this project. The definition introduces a tension within "third wave" feminism of building and differentiating itself from second wave feminism, the newness of the term "third wave," its association with "young" women, complexity of contemporary feminisms, and attention to multiple identities and oppressions. Uncovering explanations of "third wave" feminism that go beyond, like this one, generational associations, is not an easy task. Authors consistently group new feminist voices together by age under the label "third wave" feminists without questioning the accuracy of the designation. Most explorations of "third wave" feminism overlook the complexities and distinctions that abound among "young" feminists ; not all young feminists espouse similar ideas, tactics, and actions; and for various reasons, not all young feminists identify with a "third wave" of feminism. Less than a year after I began to learn about feminism I discovered Barbara Findlen's Listen Up: Voices From the Next Feminist Generation. Although the collection nor its contributors declare association with "third wave" feminism, consequent reviews and citations in articles identify it, along with Rebecca Walker's To Be Real: Telling the Truth and Changing the Voice of Feminism, as a major text of "third wave" feminism. Re-reading Listen Up since beginning to research "third wave" feminism, I now understand its fundamental influence on my research questions as a starting point for assessing persistent exclusion in contemporary feminism, rather than as a revolutionary text (as it is claimed to be in many reviews). Findlen begins the introduction with the bold claim, "My feminism wasn't shaped by antiwar or civil rights activism ..." (xi). Framing the collection with a disavowal of the influence women of color's organizational efforts negates, for me, the project's proclaimed commitment to multivocality. Though several contributions examine persistent exclusion within contemporary feminist movement, the larger project seems to rely on these essays to reflect this commitment, suggesting that Listen Up does not go beyond the "add and stir" approach to "diversity." Interestingly, this statement does not appear in the new edition of Listen Up published in 2001. And the content has changed with this new edition, including several more Latina contributors and other "corrective" additions.

Desdobramento da função qualidade no setor de lazer : o caso do Petrópole Tênis Clube

Esta Dissertação apresenta, discute e analisa a utilização do método de planejamento da qualidade denominado QFD - Quality Function Deployment aplicado ao segmento de prestação de serviços constituído por clubes sociais e esportivos. O QFD trabalha com um conjunto de matrizes e tem como ponto de partida uma pesquisa de mercado com os clientes alvo da empresa. A seqüência das matrizes propicia a garantia de que as informações serão transportadas por todas as etapas de desenvolvimento do planejamento da qualidade. As matrizes do QFD são elaboradas com o auxílio de uma equipe multidisciplinar, permitindo, portanto, o trabalho em equipe e o intercâmbio de conhecimentos. O objetivo da aplicação do QFD é a produção, ao final, de um Plano de Melhorias.O Plano de Melhorias é composto por um conjunto de matrizes adaptadas ao setor em estudo (clubes sociais e esportivos). Isso representa uma contribuição original à literatura do desdobramento da qualidade. O trabalho é composto por uma revisão bibliográfica, envolvendo a qualidade em serviços, o QFD, trabalho em equipe e compartilhamento do conhecimento, apresentando-se posteriormente o estudo de caso no Petrópole Tênis Clube. A metodologia proposta visa a contribuir para a fidelização dos sócios do Clube em enfoque, já que o mesmo demonstra um cenário onde seus sócios vêm se afastando gradativamente implicando, com isso, dificuldades de oferecer aos mesmos um ambiente com manutenção permanente,novos atrativos e capacitação da equipe que serve à entidade.

Bem comum, razoabilidade prática e direito : a fundamentação do conceito de bem comum na obra de John M. Finnis

Esta dissertação expõe a fundamentação do conceito de bem comum no pensamento de JOHN MITCHELL FINNIS. Este jusfilósofo tem como ponto de partida para sua reflexão uma reinterpretação da ética tomista. Dela interessa o tratamento dado à separação das quatro ordens de conhecimento, particularmente a separação entre ordem natural e prática. A ordem prática de conhecimento tem suas próprias diretrizes. Logo, assim como na ordem natural de conhecimento a primeira diretriz é o princípio da não contradição, na ordem prática o primeiro princípio é o bem é para ser feito e buscado e o mal evitado. Estes postulados não são imperativos e nem indicativos, mas diretivos; e, no caso da ordem prática, uma diretiva para ação. A implicação epistemológica está em que a fundamentação imediata do agir humano não reside na natureza humana, mas na percepção prática de bens a serem realizados e dos males a serem evitados. Há um número determinado de bens humanos básicos, que são as razões primeiras para o agir humano. Eles são objetivos, incomensuráveis, auto-evidentes e pré-morais. O rol que FINNIS propõe é vida, conhecimento, matrimônio, excelência na realização, sociabilidade/amizade, razoabilidade prática e ‘religião’. O conteúdo da moral resulta destes bens humanos e tem como princípio supremo toda a escolha deve favorecer e respeitar o bem humano integral. Além de sintetizar a correção para o agir individual, a moral também fundamenta e demanda um agir social correto, que está expresso no conceito de bem comum. FINNIS define bem comum nos seguintes termos: um conjunto de condições que tornam aptos os membros de uma comunidade a alcançar por si mesmos objetivos razoáveis, ou realizar razoavelmente por si mesmos o(s) valor(es) pelos quais eles têm razão em colaborar uns com os outros (positiva e/ou negativamente) em uma comunidade. O conteúdo específico do bem comum da comunidade política é constituído pela justiça. O direito é o objeto da justiça e, assim, meio pelo qual o Estado a realiza e, por conseqüência, o bem comum.

A implantação da metodologia TPM num equipamento piloto na Adria Alimentos do Brasil Ltda.

A melhoria nos sistemas de manutenção é cada dia mais importante para o aprimoramento das atividades de uma empresa, tanto na área de produção como em outros setores. Pode-se afirmar, então, que uma boa sistemática de manutenção colabora para que a empresa cumpra suas funções em relação à confiabilidade, flexibilidade, rapidez, qualidade, mantendo custos competitivos. O presente trabalho analisa, de acordo com um prisma teórico e prático, um esforço de implantação da Manutenção Produtiva Total (TPM-“Total Productive Maintenance”). Ele tem como principal objetivo descrever e discutir a implantação da TPM em uma empresa fabricante de massas e biscoitos. Em um primeiro momento, a implantação aconteceu em uma linha piloto. O ponto de partida foi a apresentação da TPM com seus passos para implantação e pilares que sustentam esta ferramenta. Na seqüência, descreve-se como aconteceu a implantação desta sistemática na linha piloto da empresa, discutindo as dificuldades, vantagens e desvantagens percebidas. As conclusões do trabalho apontam para resultados percebidos na linha piloto, onde a implantação ocorreu, possibilitando a percepção de melhorias para a empresa e para seus colaboradores. Foram observadas melhorias tanto no que concerne à manutenção dos equipamentos quanto ao envolvimento das pessoas em todo o processo.

Dinâmica tecnológica no agronegócio brasileiro : uma análise de alguns indicadores de capacitação tecnológica de empresas privadas de sementes

A indústria de sementes vem ao longo do tempo tornando-se um fator de grande importância para o desempenho da agricultura. Nos últimos anos, a importância do setor pode ser percebida pela nova dinâmica da indústria de sementes, a partir das mudanças cada vez mais constantes e profundas tanto no plano econômico, como no tecnológico. A emergência da biotecnologia agrícola está muito imbricada com as fusões e aquisições recentes, envolvendo a indústria de sementes, mas também o setor agroquímico, o novo aliado estratégico das empresas de sementes. A importância do mercado brasileiro de sementes é evidente. O Brasil detém a sexta posição no mercado para o consumo de sementes –estimado em US$ 1.200 milhões, o que se traduz em 4% do mercado mundial, que movimenta aproximadamente US$ 30 bilhões ao ano. Esta importância justifica este trabalho, que faz uma análise exploratória da capacitação tecnológica das empresas privadas de sementes no Brasil, sob a luz da teoria neoschumpeteriana. Metodologicamente os dados foram coletados junto às principais empresas privadas (de capital nacional e estrangeiro) produtoras de sementes básicas. As informações foram obtidas através de entrevistas com os diretores de P&D, referentes ao período de 1999-2002. Dentre os principais resultados obtidos pode se destacar o uso da biotecnologia no desenvolvimento de sementes geneticamente modificadas, ou seja, a produção de sementes transgênicas, a busca constante de técnicas de aperfeiçoamento do melhoramento genético de plantas, o desenvolvimento de sementes cada vez mais resistentes a pragas e doenças, e as crescentes parcerias na condução das atividades tecnológicas. Foi possível também concluir que tecnologicamente os dois tipos de empresas são similares em termos de capacitação de recursos humanos (qualificação e número de pesquisadores). A aquisição e a disponibilidade de recursos financeiros é a diferença mais relevante entre os dois tipos de empresas. Também se concluiu que a extensão e o potencial agrícola torna o Brasil um país atrativo tanto para o desenvolvimento de novas técnicas utilizadas no desenvolvimento de novas sementes, quanto na instalação de empresas multinacionais como ponto de partida para a atuação das mesmas em todo o mercado latino-americano.