Although Lean has received an increased amount of attention in the service context, research still has not established how successfully Lean manages to increase service productivity; since service productivity consists of both efficiency and quality. Research regarding productivity discusses the risk of a tradeoff between efficiency and quality in service production processes. Therefore, this thesis aims to explore if the tradeoff in a production setting with low variability in demand and low customer participation exists, after Lean has been implemented. With a qualitative approach, a case study has been conducted at Scandinavian Airlines Ground Handling to evaluate the effects of Lean in the baggage handling process. The result of the study shows that the tradeoff has not been overcome; efficiency has increased at the expense of quality.

In todays society IT in general and the Internet in particular are given elements in people´s everyday lives, and smartphones has come to be a big part of those elements. This study focuses on how the use of Smartphones in particular influences the individuals in their working environment, and how this use influence the efficiency and the well-being of said individuals.  To answer our research question regarding how said use comes to effect the efficiency and the well-being for proffesionals in their working environment we have used data from qualitative interviews who is enriched by a short initial diary study. This data has then been analyzed using the Affinity Diagrams Technique, leading to four central themes emerging from the data. The results show that smartphone use at work comes with both positive and negative effects; efficiency increased through the use of smartphones due to the great versatility that comes with the technology, while in terms of well-being issues of stress emerged.

This thesis examines the relationship between OECD-DAC and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) within an aid efficiency context. The ability for these two actors to cooperate is highly important and determines the outcome for a major part of the development aid in the new millennium. The development agenda for the new millennium emphasizes aid efficiency as a key to a more successful aid, and this requires increased cooperation between all actors. The analysis made is a discourse analysis. The discourse of aid efficiency is analyzed, both its preconditions and results.The analyze finds out that there is a gap between OECD-DAC and CSOs in terms of how to handle aid efficiency.

It is clear that media advertising is one of the crucial marketing tools for companies in order to promote their products and services. As we are moving towards more and more economic integration, both on a regional and global scale, the question about standardisation of media advertising has become increasingly important and is nowadays subject to discussion in most international companies. This thesis deals with the issue of standardisation in a region where the process of political, legal and especially economic integration is taking its course, but where cultural and linguistic diversity is still a remaining fact: Europe. The aim of this thesis was to investigate the potential gains from a standardised advertising approach but also to identify its limitations. Especially on a market place like Europe, with its diverse cultural and linguistic background, a fully standardised approach might be difficult to implement.

Poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are a group of environmental contaminants that have gained increasing attention due to their potential to bioaccumulate, environmental persistence and potential toxicity. PFASs have been found in surface water, sediment, air, soil, sludge and ice caps globally, as well as in wildlife and humans. Furthermore, PFASs have also been detected in drinking water, leading to raised concerns for human health, since drinking water is one of the most significant sources of PFASs for the general population. Conventional water treatment techniques have shown to be ineffective removing PFASs, highlighting the importance for further research to develop efficient removal techniques. The aim of this study was to investigate the removal efficiency of PFASs in water using two treatment techniques; granular activated carbon (GAC), type Filtrasorb 400®, and anion exchange (AE), type Purolite A-600. Additionally, the effect of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) on removal efficiency was studied.

Rising energy prices and higher energy demands have led to an increased focus on energy efficiency, in particular in the real estate business, where high potential for energy savings exists. Within the next few years, buildings that were constructed in the sixties and seventies will be in need of renovation. One of the challenges of these renovations will be to improve energy efficiency. A real estate company that is facing this challenge is Uppsalahem AB, based in the city of Uppsala, Sweden. This study focused on analyzing energy efficiency measures when renovating old buildings.

Feedback tools support electricity users within the Swedish residential sector to increase their knowledge of electricity and the electricity market as well as to become more aware of their electricity consumption, which in turn encourages a reduction and an increased flexibility of electricity use. The primary aim of this study is to identify and analyse how existing feedback tools can be improved, to ensure that they contribute efficiently to the achievement of the EU objectives congruent with a more sustainable energy system in 2030, emphasizing: greenhouse gas reduction, increased energy efficiency and an increased share of renewable energy. In order to reach the primary aim of this study, existing feedback tools have been identified and mapped and interviews with feedback tools providers have been conducted. The study is limited to three research areas: the practical functions of feedback tools, available technology and the use of feedback tools.The use of more efficient feedback tools will provide an increased success rate for energy management, which includes both behavioural changes and energy efficiency. According to the results from the interviews conducted for this study, an increased use and user frequency is important to utilise the energy management potential.

This study aims to investigate how federations manage to balance the economies of scale through collaboration and autonomy. This is done through a case study on Länsförsäkringar. The lack of modern research on federations makes the federative structure an interesting field of study. Previous research has shown a general perception that an increased pressure on efficiency and economies of scale creates a stronger common unit that eventually creates an imbalance in the federation. It is therefore interesting to look at the balance, which exists between the member units and the common unit of a federation.

In today?s fast growing and closely connected society, a reliable and energy efficient transportation system is more than ever desirable. Nowadays the significant part of the transportation sector?s energy demand is supplied by fossil fuels.Improving energy efficiency in combustion engines will result in reduction of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. A modern internal combustion engine has an efficiency of 30-45 %, where the most energy loss occurs as result of heat losses in the exhaust and cooling systems.

Increased competition in the IT industry has sparked a need for developing faster innovation processes with more predictable output. One of the biggest issues when it comes to achieving a faster flow through the innovation process lies in managing its high degree of variation. Proposing a solution to this problem, Lean Software Development (LSD), was developed to provide a framework for how IT companies should organize its software development process to achieve increased speed and quality. This study examines to which extent LSD, as a set of values, principles, methods and tools, can be used to improve flow efficiency in the innovation process. A case study of a multinational IT company was made by conducting ten semi-structured interviews with current employees.

Swedish healthcare is in continuous need of cost savings and efficiency improvements in order to meet the increased demand for care. The theories of lean, developed from the industry, are applied more frequently on healthcare systems to increase effectiveness and reduce waiting times in patient processes. However, some processes seem to be more successful in their lean implementation than others. In this thesis, factors influencing flow efficiency in lean healthcare are examined. Through interviews with the top executive board at Capio St Göran's hospital, data is collected in order to analyze reasons for success.

Through the growing use and availability of information technology the dependency of Internet is today increasing. Internet makes ways for a more mobile business communication that cost less. One of the latest applications of Internet technology are intranet and extranet. I have asked myself the question how intranet and extranet can affect companies efficiency and competitive advantage. In order to answer this question I performed a case study at Ericsson and ABB.

Forest fertilization had its peak in the late 60´s, when almost 200 000 ha was fertilized annually. The silviculture of today has high demands for timber production at the same time as the demand for nature conservation increases. It means that it?s necessary to produce more volume in smaller areas in the future. The use of DGPS equipment has in modern forestry in Sweden become more and more common.

AbstractThe development of the construction industry is slower compared to other industries. This implies that there must be improvements in this field. One step to increased effectiveness in construction projects is making the construction process more efficient, therefore resulting in a positive result for both the actual construction project and for the overall branch. The purpose of this study is to identify areas for improvement within the municipal housing company Gavlegårdarna completed construction project, who will then contribute to increased efficiency in their upcoming projects. The work has been performed with the help of two case studies examine construction projects "Fullriggaren" and "The three nursing homes." Opinions about what could have improved the efficiency of these construction projects further have been collected with the help of an interview study among some of the project participants involved in both projects.There have been many studies addressing the topic of how the construction process can be streamlined and similar studies that have been previously conducted.

The aim of this study is to investigate how multiple tree handling harvesters perform compared to earlier developed standards. The study shows that multiple tree handling harvesters are more efficient in thinnings stands with mean stock volumes less than 0,12 m3fub per stock. The increased efficiency is different for different mean stem classes. In stands with a mean stem volume of 0,04 m3fub per stock, the increase can be as high as 40 percent while it is about 10 percent in stands with a mean stem volume of 0,12 m3fub. Comparisons have been done between stands that are felled with partly limbed stands and stands without partly limbed assortments. The difference in performance is clear and shows that the partly limbed assortments strengthen the multiple tree handling harvesters positive effects in low dimension thinnings.