Spanish Industry Research Articles

Sustainable management of the building stock: A Delphi study as a decision-support tool for improved inspections

Cities’ environmental footprint reduction is needed under the current climate situation. The appropriate management of the building stock is then an essential but complex endeavor, demanding prior accurate diagnosis for proper renovations. Assuming diagnoses can be optimized by improved inspection processes, a two-round Delphi consultation was conducted to identify both the demands of the Spanish industry to improve the management of buildings and the contextual challenges on inspections. This Delphi study has been used as a decision-support tool since the conclusions allowed the ROBIM project to adopt decisions for developing an innovative inspection technology. While the design of the questionnaire is based on relevant background knowledge on buildings management, the consultation process intends to overcome the shortcomings identified in previous studies. Fifty-two experts completed the surveys. Their extensive experience, together with the high degree of consensus attained among them (69.6% in the last round), validate the results. The results suggest that inspection processes should be rethought, with a particular focus on façades, in order to improve existing buildings management and reduce uncertainties when planning a renovation. This would improve the buildings’ performance, including their energy efficiency (one of the experts’ major concerns), while controlling intervention time and cost.

Valorization of agro-industrial wastes to produce volatile fatty acids: combined effect of substrate/inoculum ratio and initial alkalinity

ABSTRACT Agroindustry generates huge amounts of wastes leading to environmental problems in the zones where they are disposed. One of the strategies for the valorization of these wastes is the acidogenic fermentation used to produce volatile fatty acids. In this study, four agroindustrial wastes generated in different Spanish industries were selected for evaluating their acidogenic potential in batch assays. The selected wastes were potato solid waste, grape marc distilled, grape marc and brewery spent grain. Potato solid waste and grape marc presented the highest degree of acidification (69% and 54%, respectively) with the predominance of acetic, butyric and propionic acids in their VFA profiles. In the potato solid waste, the influence of two parameters, substrate/inoculum ratio and initial alkalinity added, on the degree of acidification and on the VFA profile was evaluated. The maximum VFA production (higher than 70% of the total COD added) was obtained at substrate/inoculum ratios of 1.5 and 2.8 g VS substrate g−1 VS inoculum and at the highest concentration of initial alkalinity (3 g L−1 as CaCO3). Additionally, it was demonstrated that an increase of initial alkalinity, at all S/I ratios, can shift the VFA profile obtained, decreasing the relative amount of butyric and propionic acids and increasing the amount of acetic acid.

Higher education massification and the changing graduate labour market in the Spanish retail banking industry: a case study

ABSTRACT The expansion of higher education in Spain has not been accompanied by a similar shift in labour market demand for graduate skills. This mismatch between education supply and labour market demand has accentuated policy concerns that without a parallel shift in the occupational structure, higher education massification is leading to an increased share of graduates occupying positions that traditionally did not require university qualifications. It is unclear, however, whether in occupying traditionally non-graduate jobs, graduate skills are underutilised, particularly given changing skill requirements in the knowledge economy. This research uses the case study approach to investigate changes in educational and skill requirements for entry-level jobs in Spanish retail banks. The case study provides a potentially valuable framework for exploring the causes for changes in job content at the sectoral level that are more difficult to explore using quantitative methods alone. This paper draws on 33 in-depth interviews with senior managers and young bank employees, conducted in 5 leading banks in Spain between January 2015 and March 2016. The study argues that even though automation has reduced the demand for routine clerical tasks in retail banks, interviews with university graduates and employers suggest graduate skills are underutilised in entry-level jobs.

Measuring the impact of digital capabilities on product-service innovation in Spanish industries

Digital capabilities play a relevant role in servitisation strategy for manufacturing companies. Using logistic regression models with a sample of more than 2000 Spanish manufacturing companies, this paper studies the relationship between digital capabilities and servitisation within Spanish industries. This research considers both manufacturing and connecting digital capabilities, along with, training and software skills. The findings can be used by companies and policy makers to boost servitisation. Advanced manufacturing technologies (AMT) are not found to have a positive or significant impact on servitising, except when combined with the use of digital capabilities for internet-based marketing. Significant space also exists for improvements in staff training in information and communication technologies (ICTs) because of their potential contribution to product-service innovation. Finally, the relationship between firm size and servitisation indicated by previous research is confirmed.

Measuring the impact of digital capabilities on product-service innovation in Spanish industries

Measuring the impact of digital capabilities on product-service innovation in Spanish industries

Omni-channel: The future of olive oil marketing in Spain

Spain is not only the world's leading olive-producer, but also the global largest export country of olive oil with a total $163 million in 2016. The global growth in olive oil consumption affords an opportunity for Spanish olive oil industry. Omni-channel seamlessly integrates all channels to maximise consumer's service, which can be a key driver for the establishment of new olive oil distribution pattern. Thus, we propose one omni-channel model for olive oil companies to explore the global olive oil market. The proposal omni-channel model is based on Spanish olive oil companies, which account for more than 95% local market share. It also analyses the current retailing channels of olive oil in Spain, and particularly emerging experience social media, mass communication, showroom, vending machines, crowd shipping, C&C, and backward processes. Olive oil firms can set up and improve their own distribution system based on the omni-channel model proposed in this paper.

Teresa Fernández-Valdés and female-produced TV series in Spain. Cable Girls/Las chicas del cable as case study

ABSTRACTThis article focuses on the producer Teresa Fernández-Valdés, co-founder of Bambú Producciones, and her contributions to female-created TV series in Spain. Considered as one of the most powerful women in world of television, her company has produced successful romantic melodramas set in historical periods such as Velvet or Gran hotel. We approach her career and TV series in order to clarify how industrial context affects the agency of women creators and the discourse on femininity offered by TV shows targeted at female audiences. In particular, we focus on Cable Girls/Las chicas del cable, a show produced in collaboration with Netflix that has been controversial because of its ambiguous treatment of feminism. Combining historiographic accounts of Spanish television, textual analysis of the narratives and characters of TV series, as well as feminist reflections on the media industry, we argue that female authorship is a collaborative practice which, although possible in the context of the Spanish TV industry, is often subordinated to the need for profit.

Delayed Adjustment: Economic crisis, political change and state intervention in the Spanish shipbuilding industry, about 1975–1990

This article seeks to explain the impact of the international shipping crisis of the 1970s on the Spanish shipbuilding industry (then the third biggest in Europe after Sweden and Germany) and the responses to the crisis given by the state and by shipyards. It contributes to the literature on the decline of merchant shipbuilding in Europe since the 1970s. Based on international production statistics, annual reports of companies and business associations, policy plans and documents and specialist journals, this paper employs an agency perspective and the theoretical framework of historical institutionalism to examine the interests and actions of the main actors involved – shipyards and ship owners, labour unions, the public entrepreneurial sector (INI) and the different governments – and the outcomes of those actions on public policies and on the development of this industry.

Protesta obrera y sindicalismo en la industria tabaquera española (1887-1939)

El presente artículo ofrece una visión de conjunto sobre la historia del sindicalismo en la industria del tabaco en España. Una industria que por sus peculiares características (su estrecha dependencia del Estado, la naturaleza monopolística del sector, el peso abrumador de la mano de obra femenina o las tradiciones laborales forjadas) dio pie a unas prácticas movilizadoras que la singularizaron. El análisis se remonta a las primeras formulaciones de la protesta en forma de motín, para extenderse después a la etapa de consolidación de un modelo sindical sui generis. Este modelo desembocó en una opción abiertamente revolucionaria durante la Guerra Civil de 1936, que se frustró tras la victoria de la coalición de fuerzas antirrepublicanas en 1939.

Urban water demand for industrial uses in Spain

ABSTRACTThis study estimates the demand for urban water in Spanish industry, with particular attention to differences between sectors. A panel dataset for the Spanish Autonomous Communities in the period 1993–2013, broken down into 11 sectors, was used. The results indicate that water pricing policy can be used effectively as a mechanism to encourage reduced water use (elasticity of −0.66), but there is a strong sectoral heterogeneity that recommends the additional use of other types of instruments. In general, sectors where water represents a larger proportion of total costs present greater elasticity.

Cinema of Crisis and the Documentary Impulse: The UPF Masters in Creative Documentary

In this article, I analyse the relationship between contemporary Spanish documentary and the two crises that have deeply affected the country’s film industry in the last years: the financial crisis and the crisis of legitimacy of Spanish cinema amongst spectators and critical discourse. Specifically, I look at how the Masters in Creative Documentary of the UPF (Universidad Pompeu Fabra) has fostered an alternative documentary culture aimed at reconciling cinema’s role as a critical observer of neoliberal development in Spain. I focus on the university institution itself as a state-funded space of resistance to the ‘unthinking’ dynamics of the Spanish commercial film industry, especially in terms of its relation to actuality. To examine such issues in detail, I look at a paradigmatic case study from the UPF context: the film La plaga (Neus Ballús, 2013), which depicts the struggles of people in the periphery of Barcelona as globalised capitalism remaps and redefines their lives. Although humble and modest, the ‘UPF model’ is perhaps the seed for a future Spanish cinema that can speak both to the public’s reality and against the neoliberal conquest of every realm of society.

Before a hotel room booking, do perceptions vary by gender? The case of Spain

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is implemented unevenly in the Spanish tourism industry. The hotel infrastructure of the country is not an exception. This study analyses the environmental, social and economic dimensions of initiatives with respect to the hotel offer which consumers living in Spain appreciate and value more based on their gender. Empirical analysis is approached using a model of structural equations in which the intensity and sign of differences between men and women can be seen. The main results show that aspects related to the environment are the most important for both genders. The dimensions in which differences are defined are the economic, more valued by men; and social, more valued by women. The document provides relevant information, filling a knowledge gap in this field.

La prensa histórica como fuente documental generadora de credibilidad en la ficción: el caso de "El tiempo entre costuras"

Este trabajo analiza la presencia de los medios de comunicación (prensa impresa, radio y cine) en El tiempo entre costuras, novela de María Dueñas llevada posteriormente a la televisión por Atresmedia. La investigación demuestra que el recurso consistente en la presencia de los medios en el relato es una de las claves del éxito de este fenómeno de masas. Las referencias constantes a los medios sirven para generar credibilidad y realismo en la historia. A través de una metodología ‘ad hoc’ y tras el análisis de fuentes primarias y secundarias, disecciona la presencia de la prensa en la narración de los acontecimientos recogidos. En los resultados de la investigación, se cataloga la prensa por su origen geográfico, tipología o área de especialización informativa, con el fin de identificar y exponer las razones de este éxito mediático internacional de la industria cultural española cuando la economía española atravesaba una época de crisis.

Industrias lácteas en España: Central Lechera Asturiana

Industrias lácteas en España: Central Lechera Asturiana. En este trabajo analizamos la evolución y situación actual de la mayor industria láctea española encuadrándola dentro de un análisis del sector en Asturias y España. Se revisan aspectos organizativos, evolución económica, expansión territorial, diversificación productiva, etc.
 
 [fr] Industrie laitière espagnole: Central Lechera Asturiana. Dans ce travail, nous analysons l'évolution et situation actuelle de la plus grande industrie laitière espagnole, dans le cadre d'une étude sur le secteur dans Asturias et en Espagne. Les points analysés sont les aspects organisationnels, l'évolution économique, l'expansion territoriale, la diversification de la production, etc.

‘Moving up in the league’ with a little help from the state: The Spanish shipbuilding industry during the developmental Francoist regime

The aim of this article is to explain the factors that underpinned the expansion of the Spanish shipbuilding industry during the Francoist regime, when it grew to rank fourth in the league of shipbuilding nations in the 1970s. After a brief description of the evolution of its output and markets, the article focuses on three aspects of shipbuilding: technology and costs; industrial structure and ship specialisation; and, above all, the strong government support that made this industry one of the symbols of the international success of the Franco’s new developmental policies.

A longitudinal study of noise exposure and its effects on the hearing of olive oil mill workers

In occupational health and safety, noise is one of the biggest worldwide risk factors and it is a particularly big problem in industry. Olive oil mills play an important role in Spanish industry since they account for 45% of the world's olive oil production. Although noise is a serious occupational hazard in this industrial sector, scientific literature does not seem to contain any research study on the subject. The aim of this paper is to analyse noise exposure levels and their effects on the hearing of olive oil mill workers. For this purpose, a retrospective longitudinal observational study was conducted over the course of a decade, using a sample of 115 olive oil mill workers and analysing their exposure to noise and hearing levels. Among the main results it must be highlighted that, during the period under study, there was a notable rise in the noise levels to which these workers are exposed, although the results of the Early Loss Index (ELI), which measures hearing loss in each ear separately only at a frequency of 4000 Hz and adjusted for presbycusis by age and sex, for olive oil mill factory managers with the highest noise exposure, underwent an improvement in contrast with reception yard workers, whose ELI index did not.

Variables of Twitter’s brand activity that influence audience spreading behavior of branded content

This paper investigates spreading behavior of branded content, within an online brand community. A total of 41.392 pieces of content were gathered to analyze the activity of 45 Twitter brands, in the Spanish food industry, during one-year period. The study uses an Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) to reveal the structure of that spreading behavior, addressing two key constructs: propagation and sharing. In addition, multiple regression analysis is conducted to identity the influence of the independent variables controlled by the company, which predict that spreading action on the proposed structural model. Findings indicate the significant effect of variables such as: mentions made by the brand, posting time or volume of tweets, in predicting audience spreading behavior. Controversially, results suggest that brand use of the retweet function generates a negative influence on audience response. The research also innovates exploring the impact of sentiment expressions used by the brand on audience spreading behavior. Keywords: Spanish economy; social media; Twitter; brand audience; online community.

Fuzzy Techniques for Decision Making

This book contains the successful invited submissions [1–21] to a Special Issue of Symmetry on the subject area of “Fuzzy Techniques for Decision Making”.[...]

Outlining adequate protocols for Lidia bull epididymal storage and sperm cryopreservation: use of glycerol, dimethylformamide and N-acetylcysteine

The Lidia bovine breed is an important hallmark of the Spanish cattle industry. Bulls are selected based upon aggressiveness and epididymal sperm cryopreservation is the way to obtain and store their genetics. There are not specifically designed protocols yet to perform Lidia bull sperm cryopreservation. The present study aimed to determine if a tris-fructose-citrate-egg yolk (20% v/v; TFY) extender supplemented with 7% glycerol (TFY1) or 3.5% glycerol plus 3.5% dimethylformamide (DMF; TFY2) are suitable media for cryopreservation of epididymal Lidia bull sperm. Moreover, the effect of N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a potent antioxidant, was evaluated. The epididymis were stored at 4°C for 24, 48, 72 or 96 h, and both freezing media were tested as such or supplemented with 1 or 2.5 mM of NAC. Our data demonstrated that post-thaw viability was well maintained (TFY1: 50.8% ± 1.9 at 24 h and 52.4% ± 0.8 at 96 h and TFY2: 52.6% ± 1.6 at 24 h and 56.1% ± 1.8 at 96 h; mean % ± SEM; p>0.05) as also were total and progressive sperm motility, high mitochondrial membrane potential, ROS production, DNA status and acrosomal intactness of Lidia bull sperm up to 96 h of epididymal storage, all extender variations being similar (p>0.05). In conclusion, the use of TFY medium supplemented either with 7% glycerol alone or the combination of 3.5% glycerol and 3.5% DMF were equally safe choices for epididymal Lidia bull sperm cryopreservation, and NAC addition did not significantly improve sperm post-thaw quality.

Explotación forestal e industria resinera en España: 1900-1936

En las décadas que precedieron a la Guerra Civil, la industria resinera española tuvo un intenso desarrollo productivo. Su presencia se extendió en un amplio espacio geográfico, cuyo núcleo fundamental se encontraba en la meseta norte castellana. La calidad y amplitud de las masas de coniferas existentes en numerosas provincias del interior de España, permitieron el desarrollo de una industria transformadora en zonas eminentemente rurales y configuraron un espacio forestal sometido a una intensa explotación y adaptado a los requerimientos de la industria.