This report provides a comparison between the products cellular concrete, foam concrete and LECA concrete. The questions to be answered during the work is how the cellular concrete stands up in cost terms to the existing competitors on the market, how the concrete products differ in design work, and in which situations the concrete varieties are preferred to use.Cellular concrete is a variant of ordinary concrete, with the difference that the ballast is exchanged from stone materials to expanded polystyrene beads (EPS). This substitution gives a product with higher insulation values but lower weight than ordinary concrete.The work was carried out by designing a survey which was sent to two hundred randomly chosen companies across Sweden, to see the building industry?s opinion of the product cellular concrete. The survey showed that cellular concrete was equals its competitors in terms of price, while the product was said to be more flexible, quicker and easier to cast.Then some of the companies, who participated in the survey, were interviewed to see more carefully, how the price, the workmanship and the time for casting and dehydration differed between the products.

Bakgrund: Det har visat sig att det i många fall kan vara svårt att jämföra kalkylinformation mellan likartade enheter trots att dessa använder sig av samma kalkyleringsmetoder, särskilt om enheterna i fråga är geografiskt placerade i regioner med olika kalkyleringstraditioner. Det är därför av intresse att undersöka hur kalkylinformationen kan skilja sig åt i dessa fall. Syfte: Syftet är att analysera försäljningsomkostnader med hänseende på deras urval och värdering i kalkyler. Genomförande: Vi har genomfört en casestudie med intervjuer med tre enhetschefer i den svenska divisionen samt med tre engelska chefer för motsvarande enheter i den brittiska divisionen inom en och samma globala koncern. Resultat: Vi finner i vår studie att kalkyltraditioner spelar en stor roll för vad kalkylinformationen visar, men att det även förekommer stora skillnader mellan enheter som har samma kalkyltradition.

This study investigates the succession process in family businesses and aims to enhance the understanding of the process as a whole, as well as how family businesses strategically plan for succession. The research is based on a case study of a family corporate group undergoing a transition from the fourth to the fifth generation. A qualitative research approach was employed, involving interviews with individuals from both the fourth and fifth generations, as well as external stakeholders who have influenced the process. The results show that the planning and implementation of succession are complex and that there is a certain lack of existing theory. Empirical evidence indicates that contracts and documentation are crucial for advancing the process. Inclusion of external parties is also important, not only for their expertise but also to provide an objective perspective.

The topic of our thesis is Packaging Design as a Brand Building Tool and we are presenting the Scandinavian perspective. We found the topic interesting because, from a theoretical point of view, we identified a scarcity in research focusing on packaging design as a brand management tool, and from a practical point of view, we found out that businesses use packaging design at different levels in their communication efforts. Thus we wanted to provide both academia and business world with a clear picture to what extent and how businesses use packaging design in their brand-building process. Therefore the aim of our thesis is to provide practitioners and academicians alike with a better understanding of how packaging design can be used to create strong brands in the FMCG sector in the Scandinavian market. To reach the stated aim first we provided a solid theoretical background of packaging, its elements and its role in the marketing mix.

Extended Producer Responsibility (ERP) is a form of product take-back regulation that requires the producers to manage their products at the end of life. By internalising the products? entire life cycle costs into the market price the ultimate objective of such regulations is to reduce the environmental burden from the products. This Master´s thesis seeks to examine if the total life cycle cost of a product actually is borne by the producer, and if not, predict who will then take this cost. This is done by analysing the market for take-back activities in three different categories of products; electrical and electronic equipment, cars and wind power stations.

This thesis has been done in collaboration with Peab Stockholm Building 3, which is a region within the Peab Sverige AB. The report is based on a survey and studies of Peab business management systems and production literature. For general information gathering has literature from well-known sources collected in libraries and through the Internet. It shows through the work that Peab has routines for experience feedback in the construction process, but that these procedures work in a small scale and the practical work experience feedback does not work at all. This is also something the construction industry in general also perceived as problematic. The questions in the report are of a wide scale and concerns construction errors cost, how the employees perceive that the company takes advantage of the skills and the mental stress in production line. The goal is to find how Peab Stockholm Building 3 will work on the experience feedback to allow for better productivity. In conclusion, the report author tries to demonstrate what can lead to increased productivity and improved work experience..

This thesis work is made by Torbjörn Johansson on Karlstad University for Uddeholms AB. The assignment in this thesis work was to investigate tough cutting in three different tool steels: Vanadis 4 Extra, Vancron 40 and Sverker 21. The research was to compare the wear of the tool after cutting in each one of the tool steel alloys. The research was also made to see if the tool cutting in Vancron 40 has a better wear than the tool cutting in Vanadis 4 Extra and also compare the results with Sverker 21. All three of these alloys are a part of Uddeholms AB:s range of products, and is used in applications like forming tools and knife tools. Vancron 40 is a powder steel with a very good combination of mechanical properties like ductility, adhesive strength and hardness.

Title Becoming involved in the planning process - from the construction workers perspective.University/Institution Halmstad UniversityKeywordsEmpowerment through participation, construction workers involvement in decision making in the planning process, knowledge management and communication in the planning process, partnering, human resource managementAimThe aim of this bachelor thesis is to provide knowledge and examine how construction workers perceive involvement in the planning process of partnering projects, what they can contribute and what they get out of the planning process.Methodology The study was conducted with a qualitative approach in the form of semi-structured interviews.          The interview studie consist of 10 interviews with construction workers who are specially educated in participating in the planning process at the company ByggDialog AB.ConclusionAll respondents are positive to be involved in the planning process. The main advantages they can see is that they are able to influence technical solutions and methods that will be used later on in the production. Therefore it is important to consider when construction workers should be involved in the planning process so that they get the chance to influence in this decisions.When it comes to the decision making the construction workers should be involved in the decisions that are related to their tasks in the production such as technical solutions, choice of methods and materials. Their main duties and working hours should be in the production.Involvement in planning does not automatically mean that the construction workers are involved in the decision making, it is up to them how much they participate.

The purpose of this thesis is to try to understand, with the help of existing theories and empirical findings, the parameters which are of importance in the development of the pricing capability. We have used a qualitative and abductive methodology approach. The empirical findings have been collected via semi-structured interviews which we have conducted via personal and telephone interviews. Seeing pricing as a capability within the company our theoretical framework mainly consists of the resource-based view and an article explaining and given proof how pricing can be seen as a capability. We also describe the most used pricing strategy today within business-to-business companies, the cost plus strategy.

The students participating in my development work will work with a process book for handicraft studies. In the beginning of their studies, the students need practical knowledge about the development of the profession itself, but they also need to be challenged and learn how to solve problems on their own which will help them gain a deeper knowledge of the subject.    I focus on open questions to create a process with the students. This process is created when working with Solution-Focused-Education. Through ?assessment for learning? we can help the students to improve their self-assessment and understanding of the learning process.

The master thesis, conducted at Metrima AB, concerns the development of a non-intrusivedistribution meter as a basis for individual tap water billing in apartments.The project is conducted in response to the market interest in individual tap water billing inapartments as an answer to environmental concerns regarding water consumption. Due to thehigh installation cost of traditional water meters, a new method of determining waterconsumption, without having to cut water pipes, is proposed.The proposed method distributes the total water consumption for an apartment complex toindividual apartments according to distribution meters, measuring water run-time, in eachapartment. The water run-time is estimated by measuring the water pipe?s outward vibrationsand temperature changes.A test environment was established and a prototype built, using a tilt- and vibration sensor forvibration sensing and a precision temperature sensor to measure temperature changes. As bothsensors work well in the test environment, further testing was done in 3 apartments for aduration of 5 days.

At the beginning of the nineties, a new form of organisation, the process organisation, was about to be born. The features of the process organisation were a flexible organisational that works in a world where the pace of development is increasing all the time. Today there are many organisations that have mapped their processes, but in order to truly become a process organisation, the processes among other things have to be in harmony with e.g. organisational culture. Which effects the organisational culture has on the process organisation is yet unexplored, but however quite crucial.

This study evaluates the retention of nitrogen and phosphorus in four newly constructed wetlands in the municipality of Falkenberg, Sweden. The four wetlands have been selected because they have been specifically constructed with the aim to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus in farming areas. The process of selecting the specific wetlands has been done in collaboration with the county administration in Halland. Through field studies in collaboration with the landowners where the wetlands are sited, the areas that provide the wetlands with water were determined. The size of these drainage areas were determined in a GIS computer program. The type of land use within the drainage areas was also determined.

The high level of competition and the rapidly growing technology development has created new challenges for today's businesses where they are forced to deliver more customized products at a lower price and a shorter time period. This places high demands on the companies' ability to design and develop better products in a more efficient way. In addition to developing products, the design process focuses on securing long-term success for the company by developing nourishing skills. However, to achieve an effective design process the companies must improve their ability to plan as well as use their knowledge base in a more efficient manner. Toyota's product development system is a critical component for companies to address challenges that they?re facing and offers a great potential to create significant competitive advantages.

This report is a thesis for collegeengineering program in structuralengineering at Uppsala University andwas commissioned by the Swedishcontractor Svevia. The study aims toprovide an overview of the mostbeneficial bridge material from bothenvironmental and economic point ofview.The life-cycle analysis covers onlycarbon dioxide emissions, since it isthe most spoken of in today?s climateagenda. Furthermore, this study aims tohighlight which parts, of the systemboundary, that contributes to greatercarbon emissions for the wood- and theconcrete bridge.The life-cycle cost analysis wascalculated with a lifespan of 40 yearsand covers the basic cost of investment,operating and maintenance, anddecommissioning costs.The analyzed constructions in this studyare existing projects that are almostcompleted. Both bridges were designed tohandle loads up to 60 tons.