Effects of various types of change in shift schedules: A controlled longitudinal study

Abstract

Data from a longitudinal study accompanying changes in shift rotas connected with a shortening of working time in the chemical industry are presented. Altogether 260 subjects forming five experimental groups participated in both the pretest and the posttest. The effects of the change in shift schedules were controlled by the inclusion of five groups in which 139 subjects participated in both tests. Five types of change in shift schedule were investigated. The purpose was to determine to what extent similar, but in some aspects differing, types of change in shift schedule varied from one another in their effects on those involved, and on which factors their attitudes towards the new shift systems depended with regard to various types of schedule change. The effects of a change in shift schedule were tested by means of the 4-group investigation design developed by Solomon (1949). The results confirm that differences in the effects of new shift systems depend on the type of change. Only in three experimental groups were improvements in health and social life observed. One experimental group showed significant signs of deterioration in subjective health. In the analyses of the factors influencing the attitude of the shiftworkers towards the new shift system, differences in the structure of the influencing factors between the experimental groups were observed. The causal analysis was used in order to test how important the factors found in each group were and which of them were dominant. It showed that the most influential factors dominated so much that the disturbances in the less influential ones lost their importance. In spite of the number of indicators analysed regarding their influence on attitude in this study, further important factors seem to exist that have not been analysed here.     

A Taguchi-based Kansei engineering study of mobile phones at product design stage

This article is aimed at applying Taguchi method in Kansei engineering and explores a way to integrate it into an industrial product design stage. Emotional customer needs are derived using Kansei image word pairs. The Taguchi-based approach is validated by a case study with mobile phones. Experimental work in implementing the proposed approach was able to suggest design attributes of a mobile phone that are essential to be considered at the product design stage to satisfy the customers’ expectations and hence to increase the company's sales.     

Action e-learning: An exploratory case study of action learning applied online

Abstract

Web-based instruction, also called e-learning, is currently one of the most talked-about education and training media. To prepare courses for online delivery and to maintain their effectiveness, the designer must have an understanding of e-learning instructional design principles. Action learning is a proven, effective management development process that has not been implemented to date as an e-learning instructional methodology. The purpose of this exploratory case study was to examine the impact of the action learning process on the effectiveness of management level web-based instruction (WBI). A leader-led, management-level course using face-to-face delivery was converted to web-based instruction where action learning was the delivery methodology. Kirkpatrick's Four Levels of Evaluation served as the evaluation tool to determine effectiveness of the intervention. It was found that, though challenging to facilitate, the action learning online method is effective and yields changes in participants' knowledge. However, contrary to expectations, online learning communities did not form.     

An in-depth case study on the role of industrial design in a business-to-business company

In this paper, we investigate how managers perceive the roles of industrial design, based on their experiences with designers in two product development projects in a business-to-business environment. The study demonstrates that designers can make contributions that surpass the design of physical products, and that influence the effective implementation of product development processes. Our findings extend the limited literature on the role of industrial design in industrial markets, and are of value for managers looking to strengthen their product development processes.     

Design of Stockless Production Systems

In make‐to‐stock production systems finished goods are produced in anticipation of demand. By contrast, in stockless production systems finished goods are not produced until demand is observed. In this study we investigate the problem of designing a multi‐item manufacturing system, where there is both demand‐ and production‐related uncertainty, so that stockless operation will be optimal for all items. For the problem of interest, we focus on gaining an understanding of the effect of two design variables: (i) manufacturing speed—measured by the average manufacturing rate or, equivalently, the average unit manufacturing time, and (ii) manufacturing consistency—measured by the variation in unit manufacturing times. We establish conditions on these two variables that decision makers can use to design stockless production systems. Managerial implications of the conditions are also discussed.     

展示艺术设计的典型环境手法

典型环境手法是从展示产品的原始应用环境中提取相关的造型语言，然后将这些造型语言应用于该产品的展示设计，从而形成富于个性的亲切动人的展示作品。典型环境展示作品依靠展示设计各要素如展示空间、展示造型、展示色彩等共同表达其造型语言来形成一个有机的展示整体。     

高层建筑设计中建筑师与结构师的协作

目前我国高层建筑设计过程中，在大部分时间内，建筑师和结构师之间都是独立进行的。 建筑师在决定建筑的结构型式上起着主导作用，从某种意义上说是决定性作用。因为结构师大部分都 是在建筑师提出建筑初步设计图纸后参与到设计中去，进而寻求结构上的解决方案。但是，随着建筑 设计的复杂化，无论单靠建筑师或结构师都不应该能决定建筑的型式，这需要建筑师和结构师之间进 行密切的合作。才能创作出真正优美、经济的建筑。     

混凝土结构设计原理五步教学法研究与实践

针对混凝土结构设计原理与前期课程相比所存在的诸多特点,结合教学实践,从教学思路、内容、方法和手段等多方面进行了细致深入的教学探讨,形成了以导、精、学、理、解为步骤的五步教学法,明显提升了教学效果。     

艺术设计教育应与现代科学技术相融合

通过对艺术设计教育发展趋势的探讨分析，以及现代科技对艺术设计教育的推动作用的调查研究，论述了艺术设计教育与现代科学技术的融合的重要意义，对推动艺术设计教育与现代科学技术的融合起到一定的促进作用。