This master thesis studies how much the cycle time, i.e. the time it takes for an industrial robot to perform a given task, can be reduced if an extra degree of freedom (DOF) is added to the robot system. The extra DOF consists of a linear track, which is supposed to be used in an optimal way. The problem has been studied using simulations in the robot simulation tool RobotStudio. To be able to run an optimization in Matlab, with the RobotStudio simulation cycle time as the object function, communication between Matlab and RobotStudio has been set up with an interface written in Visual Basic.

SammandragDenna studie tar upp problematiken vid införande av administrativa stödprojekt vid Uppsala universitet, främst hur motstånd till förändring kan motverkas. Problemet definieras genom frågan: Hur kan Uppsala universitet effektivisera implementeringen av administrativa stödprojekt? Syftet med denna studie är att lyfta fram kritiska framgångsfaktorer vid genomförandet av projekt. Färdigimplementerade administrativa stödprojekt studerades genom personliga intervjuer med projektansvariga och administratörer på institutioner. Upptäckterna analyserades med hjälp av en processorienterad teori baserad på Demingcykeln.

A growing number of companies realise that to achieve their environmental goals and satisfy stakeholder expectations, they need to look beyond their own facilities and to involve their suppliers in environmental initiatives. A life cycle approach means that the production system should be optimised as whole, across national boarders and individual organisations taking part all the way from extraction to disposal. This study is a Life Cycle Inventory of resources used when producing a piece of cotton garment and the method is based on the standardisation series of ISO 14040-43. The area of study, Tamil Nadu the most southern state of India, accounts for more than 90% of India?s knitwear exports to Western Europe.

By understanding which factors that affect individuals´ will to share knowledge with others within an organization, companies can successfully develop a knowledge-based culture by influencing individuals´ attitudes and behaviour concerning knowledge sharing. Several researchers claim that intrinsic motivational factors can consistently facilitate knowledge sharing between individuals within an organization. Other researchers also assert that extrinsic motivational factors, such as reward systems, might affect individuals? motivation to share knowledge. However, extrinsic motivational factors´ impact on knowledge sharing is a relatively unexplored field and more empirical studies are sought after.

AbstractThe purpose of this study is to find out how pupils give expression of a water cycle model and if the model causes any misunderstanding. Two problems constitute the starting point for this investigation. The first question is: how do the pupils explain the water cycle with the help of the jar model (can of glass). The other question is: can the children see any similarities between the can of glass and our earth. Qualitative semi structured interviews with seven pupils in the ages of 8-9 have been used to show the pupils? own thoughts and how they express them.

This study examines work relations on a real estate agency. My interest is to examine how real estate agents apprehend their work relations, and how a recession can affect these relations. Previous research shows that the occurrence of competition in groups decreases the motivation to cooperate. A different research illustrates that reward interdependence is important to performance, and that task interdependence drives observed cooperative behavior. The study contained six interviews with real estate agents working on commission.

The purpose of this essay is to examine the Swedish people?s level of knowledge about crowdfunding and their incentives and deterrents to crowdfunding investments. Early on crowdfunding was divided into two objectives: reward based and equity based crowdfunding. The division of objectives is logical due to the differencing conditions of the motivation for investors to invest. Supported by theories in crowdfunding incentives, commitment-trust, the prospect theory, and the diffusion of innovations, we aim to establish a comprehensive line of reasoning to support our model of motivation in the conclusive chapter.The results of this essay were achieved by a combined method.

Workers are more demanding than ever and stay a shorter amount of time within the same organization. For this reason we wanted to look further into how organizations work with motivation in order to create success in Knowledge Intensive Firms. The complexity of knowledge workers formed the base for our interest within the subject. The purpose of our thesis is to reflect upon what is written about the motivational effects of recruitment and reward strategies in Knowledge Intensive Firms. Further our essay is based on an abductive advocacy.

Följande studie avser att undersöka relationen mellan engagemang, belöning och välbefinnande på arbetsplatsen. Siegrist (1996) förklarar sambandet genom Effort-Reward Imbalance model (ERI), något som denna studie kombinerar med Dieners (1986) teori om subjektivt välbefinnande. 156 personer deltog i enkätstudien, där 97 var kvinnor. Enkäterna var utformade med påståenden där deltagarna fick skatta sina svar. Datan analyserades genom en multipel regressionsanalys, korrelationer och t-test.

Cycle time has a direct influence on number of returnable crates needed and therefore a crucial parameter for cost structure and pricing of the user fec in the pool system.For providing the growing market, number of crates has to increase as well as the utilization of existing crates. To accomplish this aim, cycle time for the whole supply chain has to be fully unravelled and understand.The purpose is to map cycle time and stock movements, to see how, where and when crates are being used in the supply chain. The goal is to make a method of cycle time calculation, together with suggestions of improving the pool system and decrease cycle time.The study has been a combination of qualitative and quantitative research and comprises the three biggest wholesalers in Sweden; ICA, Coop and Axfood. Furthermore have 65 grocery shops, connected to the wholesalers, been investigated and mapped.The study has come to a conclusion that cycle time for an average returnable crate is 19 days. The full-size and half-size crates have a bit longer cycle time, 21-22 days, while Dual Height-crates and shallow haif-size crates have 17-18 days.

Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att studera om förändringar i arbetet med rörelsekapital hade ett samband med lönsamheten i företag. Som mått på rörelsekapital används Cash Conversion Cycle och som mått på lönsamhet används ROA.Teoretiskt perspektiv: Den teoretiska referensramen består av teorier om Working Capital Management, Cash Conversion Cycle, Lean, Supply Chain Management och Supply Chain Finance.Metod: I denna uppsats används en kvantitativ metod där sekundärdata samlas in från årsredovisningar för 2005 och 2013. Denna data ligger till grund för fyra korrelationsanalyser. Den beroende variabeln i korrelationsanalyserna är ROA och defyra oberoende variablerna är Cash Conversion Cycle, dagar i lager, dagar som kundfordring och dagar som leverantörsskuld. Urvalet i denna studie består av svenska aktiebolag inom branschen tillverkning och industri med fler än 50 anställda.Empiri: Empirin består av fyra tabeller som presenterar de beräkningar som gjorts.Slutsats: Sambandet mellan förändring i Cash Conversion Cycle och förändring i ROA blev väldigt svagt positivt men inte signifikant.

The bicycle is an individual means of transport. Many people prefer to cycle over short distances and in congested areas rather than take travel by car or public transport. This is a study of the use of bicycle as an option for commuting to work. It is a comparison between three cities: Stockholm, Copenhagen and London. The comparison is focused on solutions that benefit commuter cyclist and performed by studying cycle policies and other related documents.

Tumour development occurs to a large extent because of dysregulation of the cell cycle. Of particular importance are defects occurring in the G1 phase. The reason why G1 is critical is because of the influence of several signals (external signals as well as cyclins and cdks) on this stage. The G1 phase can be divided into two parts, G1pm and G1ps. Each part has its ?own? restriction point which needs to be passed in order to progress to S phase.

Den hårdnande konkurrensen på dagens marknader, har medfört att företagen insett betydelsen av personalens beteende och dess avgörande inverkan på verksamhetens effektivitet. För att företag ska kunna hävda sig i den hårda rivaliteten om marknadens kunder krävs en medveten samordning av resurser och handlingar mot bestämda mål. Ett styrmedel som kan användas för att skapa samstämmighet mellan ett företags mål och de anställdas handlingar är belöningssystem. Belöningssystemets uppgift är främst att motivera personalen att utföra sina arbetsuppgifter effektivt men även behålla nyckelpersoner kvar i företaget. Att utforma ett effektivt belöningssystem kan av företagsledningar betraktas som en komplicerad och tidskrävande uppgift.

It generally takes 10 to 12 years for a new drug to hit the market. The pharmaceutical industry invests huge sums in these early stages of research and development. In spite of the rapidly rising research and development expenditures fewer and fewer blockbuster drugs are being developed. Longer lead times and aggressive generic post-patent competition have narrowed the timeframe for the pharmaceutical companies to profit on their investments.In the face of these threats the pharmaceutical industry has developed a battery of strategies to prolong market exclusivity and to maximize return on investment. These emerging strategies are commonly known as Life cycle management (LCM), which actually is more of a concept than a method.