1,514 research outputs found
The synthesis of monodisperse alkanes with long chains
Get PDFThis thesis discusses reasons for the interest in monodisperse long chain alkanes and describes attempts, past and present, to synthesise such molecules. Chapter 1 discusses why the synthesis of such molecules are important and the objectives of this project. Chapter 2 reviews the methods previous groups have devised to prepare pure samples of long chain alkanes. In particular, work carried out by Whiting et al. at Bristol, whose scheme formed the basis of the early work in Durham. Chapter 3 describes the work in Durham and improvements which were made to Whiting's method, allowing the synthesis of longer chain lengths and greater quantities of materials to be achieved. Chapter 4 provides a summary of the practical work carried out by the author. Chapter 5 gives experimental details of the work described in Chapter 4
Towards the Theatre: Opasnyi Povorot (Dangerous Corner). The 1939 Production by G.M. Kozintsev at the Leningrad Comedy Theater
Get PDFThe subject of this research is the first production in a series of theatrical works by G.M. Kozintsev (1905–1973) of the late 1930s — early 1950s, which are fundamentally important both in his creative biography and in the history of Soviet theatre of that era. The author suggests that the entry of the famous film director into theatre was caused by the desire to find a way out of a creative impasse.
The director’s appeal to the play of the modern English novelist and playwright J.B. Priestley and its controversial interpretation were driven by the dramatic atmosphere of the late 1930s. The eccentric grotesque of the play and its pamphlet character, which was insisted on by the director, are considered as a parody of tragedy by the author of the research. This reveals a fundamental connection between the production under consideration and the subsequent successful experiments of G.M. Kozintsev in the field of theatrical Shakespeareana. The article draws attention to the fundamental connection between the style of the production and the general style of the Leningrad State Comedy Theatre developed by its director — the outstanding theatre director and set designer, G.M. Kozintsev and E.L. Schwartz’s friend and associate, N.P. Akimov. The research is based on the performance reviews, testimonies of the participants of the performance, contemporaries close to the director (especially the playwright and screenwriter E.L. Schwartz and the long-term G.M. Kozintsev’s co-author L.Z. Trauberg), as well as the surviving radio version of the play
The implementation of CAD/CAM systems in the metalworking industries
Get PDFThis thesis reports on a case survey of 15 UK metalworking companies and their experience of
implementing an integrating technology - CAD/CAM. The thesis places this process of
implementation in the organisational context of these companies by examining the ways in which
the engineering/manufacturing interface is coordinated. This interface is important, because it is
also critical to the effective implementation of such techniques as total quality management and
simultaneous engineering.
In order to develop an incisive analysis of these companies, a contingency approach to
organisational analysis is developed around the idea of flows of information and materials and
their interaction with the structure of the organisation in a process of structuration. This analysis
is placed in the strategic context of the organisations' relationships to their environment through
the notion of a production strategy. Models of the process of implementation are then reviewed,
and a recursive model of implementation as organisational changing is developed which
emphasises the processes of organisational learning.
The management of the engineering design process has been little examined, in comparison to the
management of manufacturing, and research and development. This thesis develops an analysis
of the management of the entire production process from the conception of the product right
through to its delivery to the customer in these 15 firms. It then goes on to examine the recent
organisational changes in the engineering and manufacturing functions before examining the
implementation process in detail. Finally, the basis of organisational integration from both a
technological and organisational perspective is analysed, which provides the basis for some more
general propositions on the development of production management over the next decade
Stevin Outlet Sluices: Wave impact under a beam
Get PDFThe Dutch department of Public Works had a problem regarding wave impacts on a beam in the Stevin outlet sluices, located in the Afsluitdijk. Wave impacts on this beam could also cause a peak pressure on the barrier gate, just behind the beam. The numerical program ComFLOW and physical scale experiments were used to predict the wave impacts for different hydraulic conditions (i.e. wave height, wave period and water level). The research questions were: 1. How is the wave load on the northern gates depending on the presence of the military beam? 2. How large is a wave impact load on the bottom of the military beam in the Stevin outlet sluices? 3. How well can the numerical model ComFLOW and physical modelling be used to determine the wave impact on the bottom of the military beam in the Stevin outlet sluices? 2D scaled experiments were performed making use of a model with the (simplified) geometry of the Stevin outlet sluices and regular waves. It was found that the largest wave impacts occurred for water levels equal to the bottom plane of the beam or slightly under it. This happened for the shortest waves in the test domain. The largest pressure measured on the beam was approximately 50 kPa or 35H, with H representing the incident wave height in front of the model. It was also found that the spread in the peak pressures for one single experiment was large. The results of the measured impulse per peak showed far less spread. The effect of wave impacts under the beam was also found on the vertical wall under the beam. The actual pressures however were less and they were decreasing with increasing depth. Besides physical wave impact testing, a few experiments were performed with the beam removed from the model. This resulted in wave simply running up the vertical wall of the model. They did not cause a wave impact. The measurements of both type of experiments, with and without a beam, were compared. This revealed that the total wave impulse on the gate was not affected by the presence of the beam. However the distribution of the pressure within a single wave period was significantly different. In case of a beam, a large impact peak was observed, whereas the other wave only showed a small hump caused by the deflected flow against the vertical wall. When the calculated and measured wave impact results were compared it became clear that ComFLOW underestimated the peak pressures by a factor 2 to 20 for the pressures on the impact plane. The same was done for the peak impulse. This showed that the impulse of the peak on the impact plane were underestimated by a factor 2 at most. These results confirmed that the used grid was too coarse for the program to model the physics correctly. The main conclusions to the research questions were: 1. The presence of the military beam causes a different distribution of the force on the gate within a wave period. The total amount of impulse is more or less the same as for the situation without a beam. With the military beam, a wave impact results in a peak force on the gate. Without the beam, there will be no peak force. 2. The largest measured wave impact pressure is 35H. 3. Both ComFLOW and physical modelling can be used to predict wave impacts for the geometry of Stevin outlet sluices. Much care should be taken when modelling and much attention should go to the input parameters of the program.Hydraulic StructuresHydraulic EngineeringCivil Engineering and Geoscience
Institutional reform in British construction:Partnering and private finance
No full textThe British construction industry is presently going through a period of rapid change. A combination of government-led reform initiatives, changes in government procurement strategies, and increasing exposure to international competition is focusing minds and shifting positions. This paper provides an analysis of the institutional aspects of these changes, identifying the root of the problems that the reforms are tackling, and indicating what the prospects of success might be. The paper starts with a historical overview of the evolution of what is here called the professional system, which has dominated the British industry for 150 years. This provides the context for the exploration of the two principal forces for change in the industry - the reform of contractual relations, especially the diffusion of partnering, and the shift of government procurement towards concession contracting in the shape of the Private Finance Initiative. In conclusion, the prospects for success are discussed, noting that the British construction industry is relatively successful in international markets, but that it shares many traditional problems of other sectors of British industry - the predominance of personal capitalism has meant a failure to develop organizational capabilities - the most notable symptom being the continuing reliance on self-organizing gangs of workers for actual production
Corrigendum to “Owner challenges on major projects: The case of UK government” [Int. J. Proj. Manag. 38 (2020) 177–187]
No full textInstitutional reform in British construction:Partnering and private finance
No full textThe British construction industry is presently going through a period of rapid change. A combination of government-led reform initiatives, changes in government procurement strategies, and increasing exposure to international competition is focusing minds and shifting positions. This paper provides an analysis of the institutional aspects of these changes, identifying the root of the problems that the reforms are tackling, and indicating what the prospects of success might be. The paper starts with a historical overview of the evolution of what is here called the professional system, which has dominated the British industry for 150 years. This provides the context for the exploration of the two principal forces for change in the industry - the reform of contractual relations, especially the diffusion of partnering, and the shift of government procurement towards concession contracting in the shape of the Private Finance Initiative. In conclusion, the prospects for success are discussed, noting that the British construction industry is relatively successful in international markets, but that it shares many traditional problems of other sectors of British industry - the predominance of personal capitalism has meant a failure to develop organizational capabilities - the most notable symptom being the continuing reliance on self-organizing gangs of workers for actual production
Models of manufacturing and the construction process:The genesis of re-engineering construction
No full textFor at least the last 80 years, construction firms have been exhorted to improve their processes by modelling themselves on 'manufacturing', and the current concern for re-engineering construction is the latest manifestation of this tradition. Yet, it is rarely clearly specified which model of manufacturing should be adopted. The aim of this paper is to clarify the issues by placing the wide range of initiatives encompassed within the CIB's definition of re-engineering construction in an historical and comparative context. It reviews the history of the development of the dominant model of manufacturing - largely based on the auto industry - culminating in lean production. It then identifies an equally well-established 'alternative' model of manufacturing associated with the production of complex systems. It is suggested that attempts to re-engineer the construction process have tended to focus on the dominant model - borrowing concepts from mass production during the 1950s and 1960s, and lean production during the 1990s. The mass production model was never very relevant for construction and it is suggested that the lean production model is unlikely to be of broad relevance to the construction industry beyond housing. More appropriate are models of manufacturing derived from the complex systems industries, particularly concepts associated with project management, and the role of systems integrators
Innovativeness in British and French construction:The evidence from Transmanche-Link
No full textThis paper addresses the 'innovativeness' (the extent to which the design of the organization facilitates or inhibits innovation) of French and British project organizations. Following a review of the literature on organization design and innovativeness, data from a comparative organizational assessment of the British and French approaches to managing the Channel Tunnel construction project by Transmanche-Link are presented. These show that the British approach could well have less capacity for innovation than the French. The available evidence on the relative levels of innovation on the two sides of the Channel Tunnel are reviewed, showing that the predicted effects are found
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