The aim of this project is to optimise the sawing patterns used for sawing Scots pine at Säters Ångsåg AB. The thesis has a theoretical approach and does not claim to be fully applicable in a practical point of view. The input used in this project is last year?s sales volumes and prices of sawn products. The input of the timber is collected from the database ?VIOL?.

Orsa Besparingsskog has an aim to take nature considerations in relation to the harvested volume and area of the annual felling. Around 15 percent of the acreage and 10 percent of the volume should be set aside. It is important to keep close to those figures to avoid future negative effects on the long-term harvesting planning. The purpose of this study was to use laser scanning data to estimate those proportions. The result showed that the proportion of conservation considerations in the ten selected objects in the study was significantly higher than the target of 15 percent of the acreage and 10 percent of the volume. The result showed a setting aside of 19 percent of the acreage and 17 percent of the volume.

Testicular measurements and daily sperm output (DSO) are important factors affecting reproductive capacity of stallions. In the present study testicular measurements of 10 Swedish half-blood stallions were determined (height, length, width and volume). Ejaculates were collected from each stallion once daily for 10 days to evaluate some important seminal characteristics: gel-free ejaculate volume, sperm concentration, percent progressively motile spermatozoa and total number of spermatozoa (TSN). The gel-free ejaculate volume was measured with a graduated cylinder, the sperm concentration was counted in a Bürker chamber, the sperm motility was estimated in a phase-contrast microscope and TSN was determined by multiplying the gel-free seminal volume by the sperm concentration. Testicular measurements were as follows (left and right testis): height 7,5 cm and 7,8 cm, length 10,6 cm and 10,8 cm, width 6,5 cm and 6,6 cm, volume 278,2 cm3 and 293,8 cm3, scrotal width 12,3 cm and total testicular volume 572,0 cm3 .

This papers? objective is to examine the effects that labour market institutions (LMI) have on the unemployment in the short- and the medium run throughout the new Keynesian NAIRU theory, but also to make a comparison with the postkeynesian capital stocks? effect on the unemployment. Thus, it is this papers? main objective to study the economic effects that LMI, capital accumulation and varied macroeconomic shocks might have on unemployment. The paper uses econometric regression models as a methodological benchmark in order to estimate each independent variable?s level of significance and to approximate the effect each have on the dependent variable.

The general consensus is that the gap between the Swedish variable mortgage rate and the repo rate has increased over the last years. Although the Riksbank in recent times has cut its base rate, many banks have chosen either to leave the interest rate on variable mortgages unchanged, or they did reduce it but by less points than the reduction in the repo rate. The linear relationship between the repo rate and the variable mortgage rate has changed over the last decade and the mortgage margins these days are relatively high. This can somewhat be explained by the new rules introduced in the bank sector requiring banks to increase liquidity and equity. Since mortgage loans play an important role in banks? lending business it is of interest to gain knowledge in whether a repo rate reduction latterly has generated a limited affect on the banks lending rates..

Background: It is today common for companies to provide some sort of incentive for CEO's and senior management positions to motivate, retain and benefit employees within a company. This is in order to drive the goals of the CEO and management in the direction that is desired by the owner. Currently, the Swedish centre-right government has forbidden the use of such variable pay within state-owned companies. There are two different attitudes to variable pay, one that is in favour and one that rejects it. However most people agree on the fact that a well-functioning incentive scheme can be of great strategic importance for a company.Approach: has variable pay to CEO's had any effect on the company's profitability.Aim: the aim of the study is to compare companies who use variable pay to CEO's with companies that do not in relation to their profitability in terms of profit margins, yearly performance, returns on total capital and returns on equity.Method: the study uses a quantitative approach.

The aim of this study was to establish knowledge about the most suitable substrate for cultivating different kinds of anaerobic beer spoilage bacteria in the brewing industry. During the study, two other aspects were investigated; if the sample volume affects the results and which anaerobic beer spoilage bacteria are present in the micro flora at the brewery. The method used was standard cultivation with four different substrates; Universal Beer Agar, Nachweismedium Bierschädliche Bakterien, Raka Ray and VLB S7-S. During the identification of bacteria in the micro flora, a method using PCR was used. None of the substrates showed a significant advantage over the others.

Background: It is today common for companies to provide some sort of incentive for CEO's and senior management positions to motivate, retain and benefit employees within a company. This is in order to drive the goals of the CEO and management in the direction that is desired by the owner. Currently, the Swedish centre-right government has forbidden the use of such variable pay within state-owned companies. There are two different attitudes to variable pay, one that is in favour and one that rejects it. However most people agree on the fact that a well-functioning incentive scheme can be of great strategic importance for a company.Approach: has variable pay to CEO's had any effect on the company's profitability.Aim: the aim of the study is to compare companies who use variable pay to CEO's with companies that do not in relation to their profitability in terms of profit margins, yearly performance, returns on total capital and returns on equity.Method: the study uses a quantitative approach.

The current state of knowledge indicates that there is more than one factor that initiates heartwood transition. This study supports its hypothesis on the theory that heartwood is formed by a fixed fraction of the annual growthring, 0,5 to 0,8 rings. To calculate heartwood volume modelings were carried out in four different pine stands with different spacings, 0,75, 1,25, 1,5 and three meters. The model indicates heartwood diameter (HWD) and is based on four explanatory variables, height (H), crown ratio (CR%), diameter breast height (DBH) and tree height (TH). The shifting plant spacing results in varying growth rate in the juvenile stage.

This final thesis is performed on commission of Hargs Bruk Ltd. Hargs Bruk manages one of Sweden?s largest privately owned forests. A main part of the managed forest is situated in Roslagen in eastern Uppland. Since 1934 felling calculations have been performed within the estate every tenth year.

In three areas in the province of Småland studies has been done to investigate how big damage the moose may do to P. abies. An inquiry examination and two different types of surveys were done to find out how big area, which volume and which financial consequences the moose debarking has had on the forest. When the volume was calculated the rot spreading was included. The area that was damaged was stipulated with the answers from the inquiry examination. 59 % of the asked forest owners answered the inquiry.

This thesis has focused on the possibility to use a satellite image method developed by Metria Mijöanalys to identify stands that are wrongly registered in Holmen Skogs database. The method is only intended for identifying stand with poor descriptions in Holmen?s database that needs to be updated and not for updating the stand information. The study area is located several km west of Hudiksvall on the borderline between Gävleborgs- och Västernorrlands län. The area is covered by a SPOT image from 2005. By which Metria Miljöanalys has made estimates of forest parameters for all stands in the area, and compared them with corresponding estimates according to the stand database.

Today, the management concept of lean has stretched far from its origins in the Japanese automobile industry. When reaching the Swedish restaurant industry, the conditions for a successful implementation of lean change as a result of the high employee turnover and the significant amount of part-time employees characteristic for the industry. Combined with a high-end service profile, these workforce characteristics seem inconsistent with some of the basic principles of lean. By conducting a case study, this thesis aims to investigate the effects of a variable workforce on the enablers for a successful implementation of lean in a high-end service industry. Using a theoretical framework consisting of enablers for an implementation of lean in services, the study finds that the variable workforce inhibits an implementation of lean by complicating the effects of traditional training, as well as the possibility of understanding the lean concept at all levels of the organization.

Södra Skog chose in 2011 to convert the saw mill in Traryd to a gradually refined sawmill of hardwood. In 2009, they had also acquired the hardwood sawmill in Djursdala. This was strategically important for Södra's business since the demand for hardwood products has increased. The standing volume of deciduous trees in Sweden is today approximately 524 million m3sk and it has increased rapidly in recent years. However, the deciduous forests are to a large extent located in areas that are set aside for nature conservation and is thus not available to the industry.The goal of this work is to create a simple and reliable method for mapping of deciduous wood volumes in areas where Södra Skog is operating (Götaland excluding Gotland).The material that is used is raster databases with estimated forest attributes (kNN-Sweden), data from National Forest Inventory (NFI) and forest management plans.

Background and problem: Whether or not the pay to executives is fair is widely debated. During the last years especially the variable pay has been in the spotlight. But at what levels are the compensations really at? Media?s focus is mainly on the absolute highest compensations which may result in a skew view on pay-for-performance incentives.Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to establish the levels of compensation to executives in a wide range of randomly selected companies listed on the Stockholm stock exchange during the years 2001 to 2005. Furthermore, the impact of a set of firm specific variables on compensation levels will be analyzed with basis in several hypothesis.Delimitations: The variable pay considered in this thesis will only be variable cash bonuses.