Supply Consumer Research Articles

Структурно-функциональные модели обработки информации в вертикальных бизнес-процессах в системе управления сельскохозяйственными потребительскими снабженческо-сбытовыми кооперативами

The management system of agricultural consumer supply and marketing cooperatives is considered. This system is a structure containing three levels of hierarchy: the first level includes control elements; the second level contains agricultural business representatives of the middle level; the third level includes agricultural producers. The article shows that the business processes of the agricultural producer and in his interaction with customers are end-to-end. The paper describes the flows of informational and material nature from an agricultural consumer supply and marketing cooperative (an integrator farm) to a personal subsidiary plot and from a personal subsidiary plot to an agricultural consumer supply and marketing cooperative (an integrator farm). Four structural and functional models of an agricultural consumer supply and marketing cooperative are created: one which is organised on the basis of an integrator farm; one which has an associated member, that is a processing enterprise; one which includes credit or insurance agricultural consumer cooperatives; one which sells products through chain stores. The analysis of the information exchange mechanisms during the agricultural producers’ integration is carried out. Moving material and financial flows within the models are presented. It is shown that the created models are necessary for developing route maps of business processes for reporting information in business logics language.

Occupational Challenges of Intensive Care Nurses During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been spreading rapidly as a pandemic and posed numerous challenges to healthcare workers (HCWs), especially nurses. This study aimed to investigate the occupational challenges experienced by intensive care unit (ICU) nurses in caring for patients with COVID-19. This qualitative study was conducted using a conventional content analysis method in September and October 2020. The study environment was the ICU wards dedicated to the patients of COVID-19 in a large hospital in east of Iran. The participants were selected by purposeful sampling method, and data were collected using semi-structured interviews with 17 nurses working in the COVID-19 ICUs. Data analysis was done with MAXQDA 2020. The data analysis led to the extraction of 6 main categories and 17 sub-categories. The main challenges included "payment system", "human resource management", "consumable resource supply", "psychological and ethical distress", "personal or family problems", and "staff motivation and welfare issues". Considering the key and important role of nurses in the healthcare system, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is necessary to increase their motivation by applying a fair and non-discriminatory payment system and paying special attention to psychological issues. Also, managerial support and provision of required facilities and manpower have a significant impact on reducing their occupational challenges in caring for patients with COVID-19.

Semantic modeling in the construction of digital twins of energy objects and systems

The article deals with the problem of building Digital Twins and Smart Digital Twins for control and management in power systems. The energy system is understood as a set of energy resources of all types, methods for their production (extraction), transformation, distribution and use, as well as technical means and organizational complexes that ensure the supply of consumers with all types of energy. Integrated intelligent energy systems are analyzed as one of the important trends in the Russian energy sector, and the main directions of digitization of the energy sector are considered. The concept of "digital twins" in technical fields is considered as one of the main digitalization trends, an ontological approach to building digital twins and semantic models for building smart digital twins are proposed. It is proposed to use a fractal approach when performing ontological engineering, which makes it possible to formalize the concepts of the subject area and allows you to build different-scale ontologies using metalevels of ontologies. Formalized models of digital twins and smart digital twins are presented. The developed approaches are illustrated by the example of construction of digital twins of a solar power plant and smart digital twins of a fuel and energy complex. The approach described in the article makes it possible to integrate different levels of digital and smart digital twins into a single digital solution when modeling energy facilities and power systems.

Consumer Panic Buying Behavior and Supply Distribution Strategy in a Multiregional Network after a Sudden Disaster

Panic buying is now a frequent occurrence in many countries, leading to stockouts and supply chain disruptions. This paper highlights consumers’ panic buying behavior in different types of regions and the impact of different replenishment strategies after an emergency supply disruption. Panic buying behavior occurs when consumers try to mitigate the negative impact of a supply disruption. Therefore, this paper develops a consumer-based agency model to study the correlation between public opinion and panic buying and simulates the influence of consumers’ panic buying behavior under different situations in a complex network. The results show that the spread of panic feelings can lead to panic buying behavior among consumers, which then shocks the retailer market. The distribution of supplies according to the type of city and the number of people can have an impact on consumer panic buying behavior, and when the government adopts a restrictive strategy, implementing a quota policy or uniform rationing is very effective in reducing the number of consumers participating in panic buying.

A Novel Flexible Method for Optimal Operation Modeling of Multi-Carrier Energy Systems

This research suggests a new flexible method for the optimal operation of multi-carrier energy systems based on optimization techniques for different weather conditions and seasons. The results apply to different modes (a hot summer day, a cold winter day and a normal day). A new cost function from the operator’s point of view is suggested considering the constraints on consumable gas supply and electrical energy in the cold and hot seasons respectively. Furthermore, a novel algorithm is suggested that gives the economical values of energy carriers, final cost, and the percentage of the direct electrical energy supply and outside the hub. In this method, load data, related prices, constraints, and penalties are applied to the suggested model, and afterward hub optimization assists in finding the optimal operation and costs. MATLAB software is used to check the results and the simulation outputs confirming the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Forecasting Electricity Demand by Neural Networks and Definition of Inputs by Multi-Criteria Analysis

The planning of efficient policies based on forecasting electricity demand is essential to guarantee the continuity of energy supply for consumers. Some techniques for forecasting electricity demand have used specific procedures to define input variables, which can be particular to each case study. However, the definition of independent and casual variables is still an issue to be explored. There is a lack of models that could help the selection of independent variables, based on correlate criteria and level of importance integrated with artificial networks, which could directly impact the forecasting quality. This work presents a model that integrates a multi-criteria approach which provides the selection of relevant independent variables and artificial neural networks to forecast the electricity demand in countries. It provides to consider the particularities of each application. To demonstrate the applicability of the model a time series of electricity consumption from a southern region of Brazil was used. The dependent inputs used by the neural networks were selected using a traditional method called Wrapper. As a result of this application, with the multi-criteria ELECTRE I method was possible to recognize temperature and average evaporation as explanatory variables. When the variables selected by the multi-criteria approach were included in the predictive models, were observed more consistent results together with artificial neural networks, better than the traditional linear models. The Radial Basis Function Networks and Extreme Learning Machines stood out as potential techniques to be used integrated with a multi-criteria method to better perform the forecasting.

SAgric-IoT: An IoT-Based Platform and Deep Learning for Greenhouse Monitoring

The Internet of Things (IoT) and convolutional neural networks (CNN) integration is a growing topic of interest for researchers as a technology that will contribute to transforming agriculture. IoT will enable farmers to decide and act based on data collected from sensor nodes regarding field conditions and not purely based on experience, thus minimizing the wastage of supplies (seeds, water, pesticide, and fumigants). On the other hand, CNN complements monitoring systems with tasks such as the early detection of crop diseases or predicting the number of consumable resources and supplies (water, fertilizers) needed to increase productivity. This paper proposes SAgric-IoT, a technology platform based on IoT and CNN for precision agriculture, to monitor environmental and physical variables and provide early disease detection while automatically controlling the irrigation and fertilization in greenhouses. The results show SAgric-IoT is a reliable IoT platform with a low packet loss level that considerably reduces energy consumption and has a disease identification detection accuracy and classification process of over 90%.

Financial analysis of minimally invasive sacrocolpopexy compared with native tissue vaginal repair with concomitant hysterectomy.

Minimally invasive sacrocolpopexy (MISCP) is increasingly used for uterovaginal prolapse, but comparative cost data of MISCP versus native tissue vaginal repair (NTR) are lacking. The objective was to determine the cost difference, from a hospital perspective, between MISCP and NTR performed with hysterectomy for uterovaginal prolapse. This was a retrospective cohort study at a tertiary care center of women who underwent NTR or MISCP with concomitant hysterectomy in 2021. Hospital charges, direct and indirect costs, and operating margin (revenue minus costs) were obtained from Strata Jazz and compared using SPSS. A total of 82 women were included, 33 MISCP (25 robotic, 8 laparoscopic) versus 49 NTR. Demographic and surgical data were similar, except that MISCP had younger age (50.5 vs 61.1 years, p<0.01). Same-day discharge and estimated blood loss were similar, but operative time was longer for MISCP (204 vs 161 min, p<0.01). MISCP total costs were higher (US$17,422 vs US$13,001, p<0.01). MISCP had higher direct costs (US$12,354 vs US$9,305, p<0.01) and indirect costs (US$5,068 vs US$3,696, p<0.01). Consumable supply costs were higher with MISCP (US$4,429 vs US$2,089, p<0.01), but the cost of operating room time and staff was similar (US$7,926 vs US$7,216, p=0.07). Controlling for same-day discharge, anti-incontinence procedures and smoking, total costs were higher for MISCP (adjusted beta = US$4,262, p<0.01). Mean charges (US$102,060 vs US$97,185, p=0.379), revenue (US$22,214 vs US$22,491, p=0.929), and operating margin (US$8,719 vs US$3,966, p=0.134) were not statistically different. Minimally invasive sacrocolpopexy had higher costs than NTR; however, charges, reimbursement, and operating margins were not statistically significantly different between the groups.

Organization of an investment project in the field of electricity supply in the Murmansk region

Energy system is a general energy system, united by energy systems, a set of energy resources of all types, methods of their production, conversion, distribution and use, as well as technical means and organizational complexes to ensure the supply of consumers with all types of energy. Creation of energy systems is important and has a number of technical and economic benefits: it allows to increase rates of development of power industry and to carry out this development in the most economical way for modern conditions; it increases reliability of power supply to consumers; provides increase of economical efficiency of production and distribution of electric power on the whole on power supply system due to the most rational distribution of load between electric power stations at the best use of power resources.

Prospects for the application of a small wind power device with a vertical axis in the Jizzakh region

In recent years, renewable energy sources, especially wind energy, have been widely used around the world. Big projects are being implemented in Uzbekistan for the development of wind energy in the next decade. Large wind power plants are being built in different regions of the country such as Navoi, Bukhara, and Karakalpakstan. In these wind power plants, horizontal type wind energy devices are mainly used for the production of electricity. Horizontal-axis wind energy devices are used not only in the production of large capacities, but also in providing local consumers with small capacities. However, the share of electricity generation or supply of local consumers with the help of small vertical axis wind energy devices is much smaller. In this article, analyzing the potential of wind energy in Jizzakh region, the prospects of using small vertical wind energy devices are theoretically researched.

Gasification as a way to combat air pollution in Krasnoyarsk

The main hydrocarbon fuel for the energy supply of the city of Krasnoyarsk is coal, local brown coal from Borodino. The energy supply of autonomous consumers of the city, and these are mainly private households on the left bank of the Yenisei, is carried out at the expense of their own boilers running on coal, wood and other solid fuels. This creates an acute problem of air pollution in the city, which affects the life and health of people. Natural gas is used only in liquefied form and in small quantities. One of the ways to reduce emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere is gasification of the housing stock, which has become extremely relevant after the adoption of the Gasification Roadmap. Various options for household energy supply and gasification are considered and evaluated. The most profitable option for gasification is the construction of a branch from the main export gas pipeline Power of Siberia-2. However, it will be implemented no earlier than in 5-10 years, so other options for autonomous energy supply with lower emissions are offered. In addition, it is proposed to take into account the following effects when making a decision on the energy supply of households: the cost of using different types of fuel, inter-fuel competition, the interests of energy companies, the region, the population, greenhouse gas emissions, convenience, comfort and health of the population, the goals of the state for a comfortable environment.

ЭЛЕКТРОСНАБЖЕНИЕ МАЛОМОЩНЫХ ПОТРЕБИТЕЛЕЙ, УСТАНОВЛЕННЫХ НА НЕФТЕПРОВОДАХ В УДАЛЕННЫХ РАЙОНАХ КРАЙНЕГО СЕВЕРА

Relevance The power outage in remote and inaccessible areas of the Far North can have serious consequences, including technological and ecological disasters, fires, explosions, water pollution, impact on human health, and economic losses. To ensure power supply in harsh climate areas, various autonomous power sources are being considered, including a hydrokinetic turbine installed inside the pipeline, which converts the kinetic energy of the flow into electricity using an electromechanical generator. Object of study The research focuses on the efficient power supply of oil and gas pipeline consumers in remote and inaccessible areas of the Far North. A small-scale hydraulic power station is installed on the bypass line of the oil pipeline. Aim of research The main aim of the study is to assess the feasibility of using a hydrokinetic turbine inside the pipeline for efficient power supply to linear consumers of oil and gas pipelines in remote areas. Research methods During the research, an analysis of the field of existing small-scale power plants was carried out to determine the most promising and efficient approaches to electricity generation. Additionally, a theoretical solution in the form of a hydrokinetic turbine for electricity generation was proposed. Results The results and significance of the research propose the hydrokinetic turbine installed inside the pipeline as an autonomous power source for efficient power supply to consumers. A hybrid power station model is suggested, combining the hydrokinetic turbine with other energy sources to ensure uninterrupted power supply in remote areas. The obtained results have practical significance for the energy provision of oil and gas pipelines in remote and inaccessible areas of the Far North. A new approach to power supply is proposed, which, upon implementation of the developed equipment, can ensure uninterrupted operation of the energy module of the technological equipment installed on the pipelines and help prevent technological disasters and economic losses.

Design of mobile electricity based on solar and garland micro hydro power plant for power supply in Namangan region mountain areas

In the article, the experiences of developed countries in introducing mobile solar and garland micro- hydroelectric power plants in the mountain regions cannot be directly applied to the conditions of Uzbekistan. Kosonsoy district, located in the east of Uzbekistan, belongs to the mountainous regions. Mobile solar and garland micro-hydroelectric power plant is an acceptable option for the electricity supply of small power consumers of the district. Preliminary data, drawings of my device, and an electrical connection scheme were developed for calculating and selecting a micro-hydroelectric power plant. According to the results of the preliminary experiments, the relationship between the speed of water flow m/s and the value of the power transmitted from one piece of paper to the shaft in the parts of streams, streams, and rivers flowing through the mountain regions of Kosonsoy district with a minimum slope was determined. A physical model of a mobile solar and garland micro-hydroelectric power station was created for mountain regions. When soft cables are used, a drop in the water level does not cause a change in power. It is safe and convenient to arrange the hydrofoils in a garland to take full advantage of the cross-section of the water flow, and it is cost-effective to use a single generator for many working fodders.

Study on the combined use of solar and water energy in power supply systems

This article discusses the development of a system for the combined use of solar and water energy based on a systematic approach to power supply. An improved physical model has been developed based on a model for predicting the production of electricity, taking into account the power and time of solar radiation, the amount and speed of water flow. At the same time, the share of electricity in the use of solar and water energy was determined simultaneously, depending on the conditions for the uninterrupted supply of consumers with the daily necessary electricity. The assessment of indicators of the combined use of solar and water energy and the definition of energy efficiency were developed by the authors on the basis of an increase in the share of electricity obtained from renewable energy sources in the electricity supply, which is explained by the coincidence of theoretical and experimental results.

DEVELOPMENT OF A MECHANISM FOR ORGANIZATIONAL AND INNOVATIVE SUPPORT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF CRITICAL TECHNOLOGIES IN THE FIELD OF DEFENCE CAPABILITY AND SECURITY ON THE BASIS OF ENERGY CLUSTERING OF THE NATIONAL ECONOMY

Purpose. The aim of the article is to study the state and substantiate the proposals for the development of a mechanism for organizational and innovative support for the development of critical technologies in the field of defence capability and national security on the basis of energy clustering of the national economy. Methodology of research. The methodological basis of the research is the dialectical method of scientific knowledge. In the research process, general scientific and special methods were used, in particular analysis and synthesis, dialectical – to determine the initial conditions and content of critical technologies; analytical – when processing literary and Internet sources; causal – to determine the dynamics of the development of the energy sector of Ukraine; abstract and logical – for outlining the main directions of functioning of critical technologies in the field of energy security, clustering of the national economy, forming conclusions and proposals. Findings. Current and prospective critical technologies in the energy sector, which will be able to ensure the growth of the efficiency of the energy sector and national security of Ukraine, are summarized. Ways to reduce Ukraine's dependence on science-intensive technologies of foreign countries through the activation of its own fundamental, comprehensive research to create the latest resource- and energy-saving technologies are considered. The need for complex use of organizational-management, financial and economic mechanisms for stimulating innovative activity of enterprises for the development of critical technologies is substantiated. Originality. An assumption is made regarding the need to substantiate the choice of directions for achieving and maintaining a deficit-free supply of consumers with the necessary energy resources for the long term (taking into account the creation of conditions for providing consumers with the necessary types of energy in the necessary volumes during emergency situations of military, man-made and natural origin) at the expense of the development and implementation of critical technologies in the energy sector based on innovative forms of cluster formations and the organization of modern institutional structures of interaction. Practical value. The substantiated research results can be used to develop cluster formations for the development of critical technologies in the field of energy security as an important component of Ukraine's national security. Key words: energy, energy security, critical technologies, innovations, energy strategy of Ukraine, cluster.

Потенциал и перспективы использования возобновляемых источников энергии Мурманской области

Unconventional renewable energy sources of the Murmansk region are considered. Their potential and practical use possibilities are assessed. The prospects of involving the wind energy resources of the region in the economic turnover are highlighted. The main elements of the wind energy cadastre of the Kola Peninsula are presented, the technical resources of wind are estimated. The prospects of using wind power plants in the electricity and heat supply of small autonomous consumers, as well as the large scale use of wind farms as part of the Kola electric power system are considered.

HYDROGEN ACCUMULATOR IN AUTONOMOUS ENERGY DEVICES

The purpose of the research. One of the main difficulties into solving the issues of energy supply for autonomous consumers with heat and electricity in agricultural production is the inconsistency of supply schedules and energy consumption. The uneven nature of the operating modes of wind and solar power plants requires the creation of an energy storage system. In this connection, the task of creating autonomous power plants that use hydrogen and thermal energy storage systems arises. Results. A fundamentally new type of porous gas-reinforced materials − gazars, which are the basis of hydrogen batteries − have been investigated. They have unique properties that are very valuable for structural materials: strength and lightness, as well as a number of special properties. Consider the existing methods of hydrogen storage − in the form of hydrides, in liquid and compressed states, which have significant disadvantages for their use in energy devices. Thus, hydride batteries have a number of attractive aspects: comparative safety, soft storage mode and hydrogen yield. However, they have a low capacity and require expensive metals: La, Ni, Ti and rare earth metals, the reserves of which in the earth's crust are limited. The structure and properties of gas-reinforced metals, which have a monolithic matrix and a cellular structure of the porous space, have been investigated to determine the functional capabilities and prospective areas of their use. The dependence of the porosity on the relative size of the pores for various options for their placement in the sample was established. It is shown that in order to accelerate the processes of saturation and discharge of battery gases and to increase their capacity, battery cells with closed unidirectional cylindrical pores should be used. Hydrogen saturation is conducted when one of the ends of the battery is heated and the rest of the surface is cooled with a temperature difference of 573…773 K. Conclusions. Research in laboratory conditions showed that batteries based on porous metals, having a monolithic matrix and a cellular structure of the porous space, have advantages compared to the well-known ones: hydride, balloon, cryogenic. This is a relatively high hydrogen capacity; relative cheapness; possibility of multiple use; the possibility of using batteries as elements of power structures, as well as the use of unpurified technical hydrogen.

Delhi's network for surveillance of antimicrobial resistance: The journey, challenges and output from first year

PurposeAntimicrobial resistance [AMR] has emerged as a global and national priority and establishing an effective surveillance system for antimicrobial resistance is an essential prerequisite for generating evidence for informed policymaking at both national and state levels. MethodsTwenty-four laboratories were enrolled after assessment in the WHO-IAMM Network for Surveillance of Antimicrobial Resistance in Delhi [WINSAR-D]. The NARS- NET standard operating procedures were adopted along with its priority pathogen lists and antibiotic panels. The members were trained to use WHONET software and monthly data files were collected, collated, and analyzed. ResultsMultiple logistic issues such as procurement, erratic supply of consumables, non-availability of standard guidelines, lack of automated systems, high workload and low manpower were reported by the majority of member laboratories. Microbiological challenges such as differentiation between colonization and pathogen in absence of patient details, lack of confirmation of resistance, identification of isolates and lack of dedicated computer and genuine windows software for data were common to most laboratories. The total number of isolates of priority pathogens in 2020 was 31,463. Of these, 50.1% isolates were from urine 20.6% were from blood and 28.3% were from pus aspirate and other sterile body fluids. High levels of resistance were observed for all antibiotics. ConclusionThere are many challenges in generating quality AMR data in lower-middle-income countries. There is a need for resource allocation and capacity building at all levels to ensure the collection of quality assured data.

REVIEW: MEDICAL CONSUMABLE LOGISTIC MANAGEMENT PROCESS IN HOSPITALS

Medical consumable supply management is done in a continuous cycle, or a logistics cycle, in accordance with the goals of logistics management. The planning, budgeting, purchasing, storing, distributing, withdrawing, destroying, and controlling of the requirements come first. Logistics management strongly emphasize inventory and material movement from the point of origin to consumption to satisfy the demands of consumers and users. In other words, the logistics system aims to provide the most excellent service while minimizing costs. Inventory is a vital component of every organization such as hospital. This study aims to understand the management procedure in the hospital installation's logistics unit. The study used a narrative review methodology. The publications compiled for this study were found using the keywords "Logistics Management," "Hospital Logistics Management," "Medical Consumables," and "Logistics Management" in Scopus, Science Direct, ProQuest, SpringerLink, Google Scholar, and Emerald Insight. Consumable healthcare supplies the amount of the materials used was 11 articles. The findings demonstrate the significance of each element to the operation of logistics management. The study's findings indicate that the logistics management process for managing medical consumables has an impact and can serve as a model for the distribution management system for managing medical supplies based on supply chain management evaluations.

Risks in the European Transmission System and a Novel Restoration Strategy for a Power System after a Major Blackout

Many citizens of European countries may soon experience a long and extensive blackout. The lack of predictability in the output of renewable energy sources, aggravating the problem of consistently matching supply with demand on electric grids, along with cyber-attacks or even worse unpredictable incidents in the electric grid are some factors that may mean a blackout is much more likely than in previous years. This paper covers the possibility of an extensive blackout in a country of the interconnected European electricity transmission system or, even worse, a blackout in a wide area of the European continent. The topic of this paper becomes even more important and timely given the energy crisis due to the war in Ukraine, which has made the possibility of a blackout in the winter of 2022–2023 high. First, the major European blackouts that occurred in the past 20 years are presented, examining their causes. On 8 January 2021, the European electricity grid was divided into two separate sections, with different frequencies; some additional scenarios are considered which, if they had happened, could have led to blackouts in some European countries or, even worse, a wide area of Europe. This work also examines how to avoid such an eventuality, as well as how European TSOs should react in case a blackout occurs. Focused on the fast and reliable supply of consumers after a blackout, a novel restoration strategy based on the A* Algorithm is presented. Its efficiency is validated in the IEEE-39 and IEEE-68 bus systems.