The methodological involvement of the emotional design and cognitive ergonomics as a tool in the development of children products

To demonstrate the relationship between design and emotional development for kids, this article offers an initial approach about the definition and historical aspects of emotion in product development, citing the main authors of this issue. Based the field research conducted with children from 2 to 6 years of age, was also describes the basic ideas of Piaget in the child psychology and pre-operational stage (age group studied) and the significance of children's toys from the perspective of Vigostsky. Using this theoretical framework and results of field research, we can infer some emotional design as advocated by the producers of positive affect on humans and its relationship with the child's development and choices of their toys.     

The use of participant-observation protocol in an industrial engineering research

Based on literature, this article aims to present the "participant-observation' research protocol, and its practical application in the industrial engineering field, more specifically within the area of design development, and in the case shown by this article, of interiors' design. The main target is to identify the concept of the method, i.e., from its characteristics to structure a general sense about the subject, so that the protocol can be used in different areas of knowledge, especially those ones which are committed with the scientific research involving the expertise from researchers, and subjective feelings and opinions of the users of an engineering product, and how this knowledge can be benefic for product design, contributing since the earliest stage of design.     

The inclusion of ergonomic tools in the informational, conceptual and preliminary phases of the product design methodology

The process of product development has received special attention as it is being recognized as a source of competitive gain. Through its systematic use companies reduce costs, increase quality and decrease development time. However, one can find products being launched on the market that cause dissatisfaction to its users, and in consequence if the customer feels harmed or injured he will no longer purchase a product from the same brand. This in regard only to the commercial aspect; usually the danger of an accident or injury is not even thought about. This paper is the basis of the dissertation master's degree and used a literature research to build the repertoire, analyzing the methodologies applied by product design engineers, designers and ergonomists. The analysis results demonstrate the inefficiency of the design methodologies ergonomic issues. The contribution of this work lies in the suggestion to include ergonomic tools in all phases of product development and the presentation of a table with the tools that points out its most suitable time of application and results.     

Toward a transdisciplinary approach of ergonomic design for sustainability

Starting from the results of a theoretical and methodological study on Ergonomic design for sustainability previously developed from the authors, this paper shows the early results of a study that tries to apply them to actual operational and conceptual apparatuses of Ergonomics. In particular, the research aims to verify the possibility for Ergonomics to initiate an update of its current theoretical and procedural tools, towards new design solutions of "sustainable well-being", trying to look for new declinations of its several fields of application. The paper identifies new paradigms and definitions for one of the central themes of ergonomic design, as well as one among the most established and investigated: the usability of products and services.     

Ergonomics and design for sustainability in healthcare: ambient assisted living and the social-environmental impact of patients lifestyle

This work presents considerations on Ergonomics and Design for Sustainability in the healthcare field based on research experiences of the Technology and Design for Healthcare (TeDH) research group of INDACO (Industrial design, communication, arts and fashion) department of Politecnico di Milano. In order to develop a multidisciplinary approach to design able to answer to specific user needs such as elderly in an environmental sustainable way (1) this paper shows the results we achieved concerning ergonomics and environmental impact in product development (2), the extension of this approach to interior and home design and the advantage of the application of Information Communication Technologies (ICT). ICT can help people with special needs to make their everyday life easier and more safe, at the same time, ICT can make social-environmental impact of everyday behavior evident and can be applied to manage sustainability. The specific theme is thus to integrate ergonomics and sustainability competences in the development of Ambient Assisted Living through a Product- Service System approach. The concept of product service system has the potential to improve product performances and services, establish new relations and networks with different actors in order to satisfy user needs and apply a systems approach considering environmental, social and economic factors in the users' environment.     

Strategic coupling,cross-scalar tension and local upgrading in the globalizing automotive industry in Guangzhou,China

This paper examines how latecomer firms manage to achieve industrial upgrading through strategic coupling with global lead firms in automotive production networks. Drawing upon the example of the Guangzhou Automotive Corporation in southern China, this paper theorizes ‘cross-scalar tension’ as a key factor to explain why the four cases of strategic coupling between lead firms, the same domestic firm and state ended in different results, from decoupling to a sustainable coupling with local upgrading. This paper contributes to the pertinent literature by demonstrating that cross-scalar tension is inherent to the nature of global production networks, and unreconciled tension concerning different corporate strategies on technological transfer, localization and product development could lead to decoupling. Importantly, good coordination and matching on corporate strategies between lead and domestic firms could relieve cross-scalar tensions, thus fostering local industrial upgrading and sustainable strategic coupling.     

上海工业节能减排结构研究

对上海33个工业行业能源消耗、二氧化碳排放结构变化因素的研究发现:1.上海工业能耗和碳排放主要集中在石油加工、炼焦及核燃料加工业、化学原料及化学制品制造业和黑色金属冶炼及压延加工业。2.化学原料及化学制品制造业是上海工业能耗、碳排放的重点行业,从变化因素分析,能源消耗、碳排放强度的增长是能耗上升、碳排放增加的最主要因素。黑色金属冶炼及压延加工业对节能减排的贡献度最显著,从变化因素分析,能源消耗、碳排放强度的变化是推进节能减排的主要因素。3.化学原料及化学制品制造业和黑色金属冶炼及压延加工业可以通过内部产品结构的调整和升级赢得持续发展的空间,但是石油加工、炼焦及核燃料加工业的发展需要对企业结构的区域布局。     

Broadening the scope: Gender and international economic development

The central claim of this essay is that gender is a key term for understanding economic development insofar as it reveals fundamental aspects in the organization of production and labor. Following a cursory review of influential approaches to development and their relationship to the parallel theorization of gender, I compare two recent modalities of industrial restructuring: the expansion of export-processing plants (maquiladoras) along the U.S.-Mexico border and the survival strategies of electronics firms in Southern California. My theoretical focus is on the specification of gender as a process that allows for the maintenance of a substratum of labor, predominantly female, outside of market exchanges. That labor is recurrently tapped by employers seeking competitive edges in domestic and international markets. The same mechanism enables the replication of patterns of unequal exchange through the articulation of two interdependent models of production — one domestic and one market oriented — by which capitalist accumulation is fulfilled.     

上海电子信息产品制造业转型升级的思路——目标、方向、关键点、路径与发展模式

上海电子信息产品制造业在上海六大重点工业行业中占重要地位,但产业表现出“大而不强”的特征;产业的自主创新能力亟待提升。在后危机时代上海商务成本逐渐高企,土地等资源条件紧张的产业发展环境下,电子信息产品制造业的转型升级显得尤为迫切。本文通过分析该产业发展现状和面临的问题,提出上海电子信息产品制造业转型升级的思路、升级的方向、升级的路径、发展模式和关键点,并提出保障上海电子信息产品制造业更快更好转型升级的对策建议：提升政府的服务水平,营造优越的产业发展生态环境;聚焦产业“高新高效高端”特征,打造优势产业链;加强创新服务,强化以知识与智力资本动态比较优势为禀赋的竞争优势。     

Does Actor Perspective Matter? A Case Study of Designing Intervention for Small‐Scale Palm Oil Production Enterprises in Kwaebibirem District of Ghana

Despite the fact that the government of Ghana imports the bulk of its industrial palm oil needs, it still fails to give assistance to about 80 percent of small‐scale producers to enhance development in the industry. To design interventions that will be sustainable for and beneficial to these producers, it is important to understand their perspectives first, so as not to “fix development” for them. This case study in the Kwaebibirem District of Ghana uses an actor‐oriented approach to understand the dynamics in the palm oil enterprise (kramer). Improvements in the kramer evidently evolve from the actors’ own agency. Any intervention for development should therefore first understand the dynamics of the kramer as a social field, and take this perspective as a bottom‐up starting point. This article is divided into six sections; the first section is an introduction, while the second describes our methodology. We next outline our conceptual approach, followed by an analysis of experiences of actors and their interactions. We then describe the resource flows and their interrelationships, including the power relations at play in the kramer networks. Finally, we conclude by drawing lessons on the relevance of an actor perspective in designing a learning intervention for processors, scientists, and extensionists.     

Early variability in the conceptualisation of "sustainable development and human factors"

The sub-discipline of "sustainable development and human factors" is relatively new, first being used in 2006 with a Technical Committee of the IEA being established only in 2009 and a similar special interest group on "green ergonomics" at the Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors being established in 2010. In general though, the definitions and practice of "sustainable development" is highly contentious and ambiguous across a range of disciplines. This paper examines the diversity of definitions and approaches to sustainable development and human factors in the early papers in this sub-discipline. An examination of 45 chapters and papers (from 2008 to 2011) reveals a surprising consistency in the definitions used for sustainable development but also a large proportion of the papers where no definitions are given at all. The majority of papers were, however, biased towards an economic capital and social capital emphasis, which is to be expected of work traditionally in the ergonomics paradigm. Further, most papers were theoretical in nature demonstrating a great opportunity for empirical work. The variability in definitions is discussed in relation to the future challenges facing the growth of this emergent sub-discipline and opportunities for further theoretical and empirical work.     

高职CAD类课程教改与产品设计创新

随着我国成为位于全球前列的工业产品制造业市场,通过产品设计创新来提升产品的显性价值变得至关重要。PRO/E软件为CAD软件的主流软件之一,为培养满足企业所需的工业设计人才,文中以PRO/E课程教学为例,首先提出对传统教学必须进行改革,而改革就要对课程的教学目标、教学对象、教材、教学内容设计等进行分析;其次结合产品设计创新案例介绍了如何使创新教育走入课堂。     

THE ARTICULATION OF PROJECT WORK: AN ORGANIZATIONAL PROCESS

This article offers a theoretical framework or model for understanding how work within projects is articulated. A distinction is drawn between articulation of work and a more inclusive organizational process , termed the "articulation process." The theoretical model includes several related concepts that pertain to numerous interlocking and sequential elements of the total work. These include work processes, types of work, and interactional processes. The model avoids assuming a tightly integrated organization of work; rather, it represents an extension of the negotiated order approach to organizations. A discussion of variations in projects revolves around two important dimensions of projects. The article closes with a discussion of extreme disruptions in project work flow, as well as some general considerations about the importance of focusing on articulation in organizations.     

A study of material composition disclosure practices in green footwear products

This work is based on the study of pioneering sustainable product development initiatives, and the analysis was guided by the cradle-to-cradle concept, which sees the waste of a given process as raw material for another, just like it happens in nature. Several studies on human factors have focused on factory conditions and workers dealing with product assembly. This research, however, relates more to consumer behavior, product use and end-of-life. The purchase of more environmentally- friendly products, in particular, is heavily influenced by the information made available by the companies. In this scenario, this article discusses three early but notable efforts on green product development, focusing on the disclosure practices adopted by the companies regarding the composition of their products. Research and data collection has focused on the footwear industry, whose products satisfy a basic human need and are ubiquitous worldwide. The use of hazardous materials and chemicals in shoe manufacturing, particularly the use of chromium - a highly toxic element - in addition to toxic solvents and adhesives and non-recyclable synthetic materials can pose serious risks to human health and the environment, even though the consumer usually is not aware of all the relevant characteristics of this kind of product.     

Sustainable development and the analysis of rural systems

The theme of sustainable development is proposed as an integrating framework for focusing theoretical and applied research in rural systems. It also serves as a base for public policy involving economic development and environ- mental maintenance. This paper presents a history of the theme of environmentally sustainable development and provides evidence of its continued theoretical and practical significance. The analysis of sustainability of rural systems is illustrated for agri-food systems from the perspectives of stewardship, food sufficiency and community. There is a need for development of analytical tools capable of considering these three components simultaneously.     

Design and technology in the development of potters' lathes for modeling with terracota: the case of Cabo de Santo Agostinho

This article reports the experience of the design team of the Laboratory The Imaginary in the process of developing an electric potter's lathe which respects the biomechanics of the body, helps to development the task, maintains the archetype of traditional equipment, and improves the mechanical efficiency of the power transmission system. The design method used was based on the axes of research, analysis, development and monitoring, and focused on the product and with partners: the artisans and engineering and production teams. The main results point to ergonomic improvements in the biomechanical and dimensional aspects, and a decrease in the risk of accidents and occupational diseases. The experience of this case also highlights the gains arising from the relationship between design, engineering and users (artisans) in developing products with a design that can be easily replicated for other communities of potters in the state. This and other actions are part of the outlook of the Laboratory the Imaginary which in partnership with local authorities, wishes to see the craft activities continue and to give value to the culture of the city.     

A conceptual tool: Making social workers' assumptions explicit

This paper emphasizes the importance for social work practitioners of making their assumptions about human nature explicit and of taking responsibility for the clinical consequences of using these assumptions. More specifically, it proposes a conceptual tool to help practitioners examine both the assumptions that guide their deliberations and the practical implications of these assumptions. This conceptual tool is based on nine fundamental assumptions about the human condition pertaining to matters such as freedom-determination, subjectivity-objectivity, proactivity-reactivity, and so forth. Each assumption is presented on a continuum along which practitioners can locate themselves. By deliberately placing themselves on each of the nine continua, the practitioners are encouraged to articulate their clinical concepts. This articulation enables them to maintain a critical dialogue with themselves about the ideas they use to understand and help their clients and makes the underlying concepts, and the decisions that stem from them, more amenable to the practitioner's conscious evaluation and control. The framework can also be used to compare the assumptions of practitioners to different theoretical approaches and can thereby help practitioners to better understand their own theoretical predilections. Finally, I propose that this framework be employed as an educational aid for the professional development of students and practitioners in social work education.     

Ergonomics, design universal and fashion

People who lie beyond the "standard" model of users often come up against barriers when using fashion products, especially clothing, the design of which ought to give special attention to comfort, security and well-being. The principles of universal design seek to extend the design process for products manufactured in bulk so as to include people who, because of their personal characteristics or physical conditions, are at an extreme end of some dimension of performance, whether this is to do with sight, hearing, reach or manipulation. Ergonomics, a discipline anchored on scientific data, regards human beings as the central focus of its operations and, consequently, offers various forms of support to applying universal design in product development. In this context, this paper sets out a reflection on applying the seven principles of universal design to fashion products and clothing with a view to targeting such principles as recommendations that will guide the early stages of developing these products, and establish strategies for market expansion, thereby increasing the volume of production and reducing prices.     

The Not-So-Flat World: Exploring the Meaning of Buying at the Intersection of the Global and the Local at a Starbucks in Singapore

Abstract

This essay pulls together two threads of literature on globalization and buying to explore how consumers constantly re-signify the global and national origins of products and deploy these global products to create local, even family and dinner table conversations about identity and self. Based on interviews, surveys, and ethnographic research, I look at the drinking of Starbucks coffee in Singapore by ex-pats and middle-class citizens, but especially by young Malays. What does it mean for these teens from the most economically and socially marginal community in this multicultural country to publicly consume oversized American products? What are they saying about themselves and their relationship to their tradition-bound community? What can we learn about globalization and how it works and how it is represented on the ground in local conversations by charting the consumption of this American product by a somewhat outsider community in this transnational place? I focus on this group of buyers, again, to explore in detail the very localized meanings of this very resonant and globalized product.