Traditional Industrial Practices Research Articles

Linking industrial culture and human agency in three (post)industrial towns: Collective and individual agency shaping development paths

The aim of this article is to better understand the relationship between industrial culture and human agency and how it influences development outcomes. The study is set in the geographical context of three small and old industrial towns, where traditional industrial practices are embedded in the material and institutional environment and people's behaviours that form a distinctive industrial culture. Conceptually, we use a relational perspective to investigate the dialectic between human agency and industrial culture: we examine how industrial culture can guide human agency–through motivation, legitimation, or specific behaviour; and how human agency reshapes industrial culture through its actions–destruction, modification, maintenance of cultural assets. The results show that a strong industrial culture implies a more reproductive type of agency and a pronounced collective behaviour of actors, aiming at a more incremental development that reflects the existing place-based culture. In the case where industrial culture is thinner, new development relied on individual agents completely altering development paths. Our research places particular emphasis on collective assets and collective agency in the context of smaller towns with strong industrial culture and their ability to influence the direction of future development. In addition, we emphasise the simultaneous role of (individual) change and (collective) reproductive/maintenance agency, which can lead to stable development without major disruptions to the institutional or cultural context. Our findings are important for understanding small industrial communities and how the collective aspects of industrial culture require that new development initiatives are aligned with industrial traditions and place-based culture.

Industry 5.0 or industry 4.0S? Introduction to industry 4.0 and a peek into the prospective industry 5.0 technologies

The Industrial Revolution can be termed as the transformation of traditional industrial practices into new techniques dominated by the technologies available at that time. The first three industrial revolutions were driven respectively by mechanization, electrification, and automation which had gradually transformed the agrarian economy into a manufacturing-based economy. It helped in enhancing the lifestyle of the factory workers and the healthcare system, which improved the overall quality of living. The industries that adapted to the change witnessed a tremendous increase in the production of goods, competitive advantage, and cross-border business opportunities. While we are currently living to see the fourth industrial revolution (also known as Industry 4.0) unfolding around us, the world is poised for the next big leap, the fifth industrial revolution or Industry 5.0. Hence, the first half of the paper outlines the enabling technologies of Industry 4.0 and conceptualizes how they would act as the foundation for the fifth industrial revolution. The socio-economic challenges of the technologies and the need for Industry 5.0 technologies are also discussed. The second half of the paper outlines the prospective technologies of Industry 5.0, their potential applications from the perspective of industry leaders and scholars and conceptualizes how they can overcome the challenges of Industry 4.0. The definition of “sustainability trilemma” a new term coined by the authors, and the reasoning for calling the next industrial revolution “Industry 4.0S” (another new term) rather than Industry 5.0 are also presented.

Zero-Waste Pattern Cutting (ZWPC) to tackle over sixty billion square metres of fabric wastage during mass production of apparel

This paper for the first time demonstrates the application of the concept of Zero-Waste Pattern Cutting (ZWPC) into mass production of apparel to tackle over 60 billion square metres of scarp fabrics being produced by the fashion industry annually. A strategic framework for implementing ZWPC for multiple sizes of clothing was first developed, then applied and tested on two styles of garments in multiple sizes. Digital pattern cutting and marker making techniques were used to design and cut pattern pieces of different sizes of garments for same style. Physical prototypes were made, and wearer trials were done to check the fit of clothing. It was found that over 98% of fabric utilisation was achieved for both styles, while in traditional industrial practice over 85% is considered impossible. This indicates that the strategic framework for implementing ZWPC in mass production of clothing is effective to result in a much cleaner production. This leads to the development of a ZWPC paradigm for the apparel industry and a novel apparel design process. This framework can be further improved by testing with many different styles of garments being manufactured by the fashion industry today. This will bring a huge practical implication to the apparel industry by offering a leaner and cleaner production strategy.

Quantifying and addressing uncertainties in empirical vibration attenuation relationship for underground blast by re-sampling

For efficient and timely execution of deep excavations, tunnelling or mining activities in rock, controlled blasting often becomes essential. For design of the controlled blasting operation, scaled distance regression analysis of trial blast data, namely, distance, charge weight, and peak particle velocity (PPV), is the regular industrial practice. Due to limited number of input data from trial blasts, and further due to variability of underlying media, multiple uncertainties creep into expressions thus developed. To account for these uncertainties in design of safe controlled blasting, therefore, 95 percent confidence expression obtained from trail blast data is generally preferred in industry. However, this approach lacks statistical quantification or treatment of the parameter uncertainty and there is no methodology suggested in literature, codes or standards to address this aspect. The present article proposes to estimate the parameter uncertainties in the empirical vibration attenuation relationship for underground blast using re-sampling approach. With blast data from literature, multiple samples are randomly selected and empirical parameters are evaluated for each set by least square principle. It is found that both empirical parameters in power form of expression (popular in industry) follow Normal distribution. Using the 95 percentile value for each parameter, the safe charges are calculated and thereafter are compared to the traditional industrial practice of employment of 95 percent confidence expression from trail blast data. Re-sampling approach yielded conservative charge weight for lower limiting values (PPV ≤ 15 mm/s) and efficient charge weights for higher limiting values (PPV ≥ 50 mm/s) of PPV.

Architecting user-centric internet of things for smart agriculture

Recent advancement in the technology has paved the way for the optimization of traditional industrial practices. Agriculture sector continues to serve as the backbone of the global economy. Moreover, it is required to cater the ever increasing demand for the food products arising due to rapid growth of global population. This urges for the modernization of traditional agricultural methodologies. Internet of Things (IoT) has the potential to become the key enabler for realizing the vision of Smart Agriculture. This paper proposes a user-centric IoT architecture for addressing the various issues faced in the agricultural domain. The proposed system allows the farmers to monitor their agricultural fields in real time and receive recommendations for producing good quality crops. The proposed architecture also optimizes the food supply chain in a manner that allows the farmers to maximize their overall profit on the sold goods. The applicability of the proposed architecture is evaluated using multiple uses cases encompassing the different aspects of the agriculture process. The paper also proposes a novel framework for smartphones that would facilitate the software engineers to develop applications required for implementing various functionality of the proposed system.

Investigating the effects of reduced technological constraints on cycle time through simulation modelling for automated steel wall framing

Off-site construction constitutes a paradigm shift in construction promoting improved sustainability. At present, North Americaäó»s building construction sector is still dominated by conventional stick-built construction, which is prone to excessive material waste, longer cycle times, high labour costs, and lower quality. In contrast, inspired by the manufacturing industry, off-site construction is an approach in which building components are prefabricated in factories and transported to the construction site for on-site assembly. As the concept of off-site prefabrication gains momentum within the domain of construction, some home builders are bringing the traditional industry practice into a factory setting, thus resulting in stick-building- under-a-roof. This paper describes the development of simulation models for the automated light gauge steel framing process using discrete-event simulation mimicking real-time machine production capacity and cycle time. At present, the literature on the development of such models for automated construction machinery is lacking; in this context, this paper aims to showcase the advantages of simulation as a decision-making support tool. Construction of such models provides a useful tool for understanding bottlenecks in machine operations that can be addressed to meet local demands. Since the steel framing process primarily consists of manual assembly and fastening of cold-formed steel (CFS) frames, these models showcase the potential to increase the level of automation through the addition of various mechanical and control modifications to an existing prototype steel framing machine. The results show that cycle time reductions of 13 percent or greater are possible by applying the proposed modifications.

Green and Efficient Process for Extracting Chromium from Vanadium Slag by an Innovative Three-Phase Roasting Reaction

The traditional industrial practice for extracting vanadium from vanadium slag involves a Na2CO3–Na2SO4–NaCl-added pellet roasting at 800 °C followed by water leaching. About 5% of chromium and 85% of vanadium can be extracted in this case. The disposal of this leaching residue containing high contents of chromium and vanadium is still an unsolved problem and has seriously impeded the sustainable production of vanadium in China. A complete extraction of chromium and vanadium from vanadium slag might be a solution. To extract efficiently chromium from vanadium slag, some NaOH-added pellets were used to replace traditional pellets here. It was found that the volume of a NaOH-added pellet increased by 144% and many cavities were formed spontaneously throughout the pellet during roasting and a three-phase reaction of solid (slag)-liquid (NaOH)-gas (O2) occurred in the porous pellet. The Cr extraction was thus increased by 43% when a NaOH-added pellet sample was used to replace the corresponding powder sample....

Cleaner and effective process for extracting vanadium from vanadium slag by using an innovative three-phase roasting reaction

The traditional industrial practice for extracting vanadium from vanadium slag involves a Na2CO3-Na2SO4-NaCl-added pellet roasting at 800 °C followed by a water leaching. Some chlorine and hydrogen chloride are emitted by this process. About 80% of vanadium and 5% of chromium can be extracted in this case. The disposal of this leaching residue containing high contents of chromium and vanadium is still an unsolved environmental problem so far. A complete extraction of vanadium and chromium from vanadium slag might be an ultimate solution. In order to efficiently extract vanadium from vanadium slag, an innovative NaOH-added pellet was applied in this work to replace traditional Na2CO3-Na2SO4-NaCl-added pellet. It was found that the volume of NaOH-added pellet increased by 144% and many cavities were formed spontaneously throughout the pellet during the roasting at 700 °C. A solid phase (dry slag minerals), a liquid phase (molten liquid drops of NaOH with low viscosity) and a gas phase (O2) were involved in a three-phase reaction occurred inside the pellet. The spontaneously formed cavities created good kinetic conditions for the three-phase reaction. The V extraction was thus increased from traditional 80% at 800 °C to current 99% at 700 °C. The V extraction was increased by 39% when a NaOH-added pellet sample was used instead of a NaOH-added powder sample. The roles of porous pellet and liquid NaOH drops were explored. The V extraction dramatically increased with increasing temperature in the temperature range of 400 °C to 600 °C and reached a maximum at 700 °C. The V extraction dramatically increased with time within the first 15 min at 700 °C. The optimal roasting temperature, time and R(Na/Cr) value for the V extraction were 700 °C, 15 min and 7.67, respectively. The V extraction was 99.2% under the optimal conditions. The cooling rate of the roasted pellet had no significant effect on V extraction. The vanadium from the vanadium slag was mainly contained in a vanadium-containing spinel phase (Mn, Fe)(V, Cr, Ti)2O4. The oxidation of V3+ probably went through the following process: (Mn, Fe)(V, Cr, Ti)2O4 →(Cr0.15V0.85)2O3→NaVO2→Na3VO4. This process avoided the emission of toxic gas.

High Performance Cutting (HPC) in the New Era of Digital Manufacturing – A Roadmap

We are rapidly moving into the new era of digitisation, into an era of the Massive Internet of Things - towards the Gigabit Society and towards 5G Technology. The implications are truly far reaching. Rapid transformation through the implementation of INDUSTRY 4.0 is becoming visible in industries all over the world. Disruption to the more traditional industrial practices and processes is inevitable. High Performance Cutting is no exception. Developments in the Internet of Things (IoT) opens up new and extremely powerful capabilities to help us gain a significantly deeper understanding of the fundamentals of cutting processes and offers entirely new connectivity possibilities at all interfaces, some old and some new, “between the Chip Root and the Cloud”. This supports us in our attempts since the foundation of CIRP in 1951 to remove technological roadblocks and can lead on a new journey towards new and unprecedented scientific/technological developments as well as new business models for companies involved in the various elements of the supply chain for cutting processes (DIN 8580). “Performance” will take on a new and unanticipated meaning over what was originally meant when we established this CIRP-HPC Conference back in the early 2000's. In this paper a critical review of a previous roadmap is undertaken for cutting processes presented in a CIRP Keynote Paper in 2003 by Byrne, Dornfeld and Denkena [1] and new thoughts and ideas are presented on a vision for a 2020 skeleton Roadmap for High Performance Cutting in the new age of Digitisation.

Making Fuel While the Sun Shines

This article explores uses of solar energy as a substitute to fossil fuels. Solar energy is usually considered in terms of making electricity; however, it also has the potential to supplant fossil fuels in the production of liquid fuels, and in driving endothermic industrial processes. Solar thermochemical processes are feasible, and a solar power concentration process that harnesses sunlight’s infrared energy is the best suited technology for making solar fuels a reality. Another area in which solar commodity production may have advantages over traditional industrial practice is in the separation of pure metal and oxygen from metal oxides found naturally in many ore deposits. Solar fuels can provide a stable and strategically important energy resource; some may consider them to be the ideal solution for sustainable energy independence. Solar thermochemistry could potentially have the biggest impact in the production of hydrogen-derived fuels which would be capable of replacing those derived from fossil fuels.

Critical reflections on the Chemical Leasing concept

Chemical Leasing has been developed as a collaborative business model to complement the two main approaches (policy initiatives and scientific/technological) used to foster green chemistry and sustainable chemistry. Chemical Leasing is based on using chemicals more efficiently, reducing waste, and closing the feedback loop more effectively. This is done by shifting the focus away from profit generation, through increased sales, towards a value-added approach by providing a service. Most of the available Chemical Leasing studies have been empirical and descriptive, and generally identify only short-term benefits from process change. This paper provides critical reflections on the Chemical Leasing model based on types of chemicals, green and sustainable chemistry, business models, collaboration, and the chemical leasing cases available. Chemical Leasing offers a more efficient business model alternative to traditional industry practice, bringing economic and environmental benefits to both suppliers and users; however, its use is restricted to some specific types of chemicals (such as solvents and catalysts). The paper proposes a clearer and more precise definition of chemical leasing and argues that chemical leasing needs to be part of a holistic approach, so that the economic, environmental, social, and time dimensions of sustainability are fully addressed.

A METHODOLOGY FOR ECONOMIC OPTIMIZATION OF PROCESS PARAMETERS IN CENTERLESS GRINDING

Centerless grinding is an abrasive machining process commonly used in the aerospace and automotive industries for shaping axisymmetric components that require a high dimensional accuracy and a smooth surface finish. For this high volume manufacturing operation, process parameters have historically been selected conservatively using machining data handbooks or on a trial-and-error basis according to operator experience without explicit consideration of how the selected settings affect the productivity or cost of the operation. To improve operation efficiency, a science-based approach for selecting the optimum process parameters must be developed to replace traditional industrial practices. In this article, a methodology combining several analytical and experimental techniques is presented for optimizing the key process parameters in plunge centerless grinding of Inconel 718 and Ti-6Al-4V superalloy fasteners in two phases: (i) modeling of process constraints using experimental design and statistical regression, and (ii) determination of optimum grinding conditions in the feasible operating region using a simulation algorithm based on classical machining economics theory. The results show that the implementation of optimum material removal rates can lead to an appreciable reduction in the cost of the operation while satisfying the constraints imposed on the machine tool and the workpiece quality.

Development of plant condition measurement - The Jimah Model

The Jimah Model is an information management model. The model has been designed to facilitate analysis of machine condition by integrating diagnostic data with quantitative and qualitative information. The model treats data as a single strand of information - metaphorically a 'genome' of data. The 'Genome' is structured to be representative of plant function and identifies the condition of selected components (or genes) in each machine. To date in industry, computer aided work processes used with traditional industrial practices, have been unable to consistently deliver a standard of information suitable for holistic evaluation of machine condition and change. Significantly the reengineered site strategies necessary for implementation of this "data genome concept" have resulted in enhanced knowledge and management of plant condition. In large plant with high initial equipment cost and subsequent high maintenance costs, accurate measurement of major component condition becomes central to whole of life management and replacement decisions. A case study following implementation of the model at a major power station site in Malaysia (Jimah) shows that modeling of plant condition and wear (in real time) can be made a practical reality.

Impact of mirid (Creontiades spp.) (Hemiptera: Miridae) pest management on Helicoverpa spp. (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) outbreaks: the case for conserving natural enemies

Creontiades spp. (Hemiptera: Miridae) are sucking pests that attack buds, flowers and young pods in mungbeans, Vigna radiata (L.), causing these structures subsequently to abort. If left uncontrolled, mirids can cause 25-50% yield loss. Traditional industry practice has involved prophylactic applications of dimethoate to control mirids at budding and again a week later. The present trial was initiated to highlight the dangers of such a practice, in particular the risk of a subsequent Helicoverpa spp. lepidopteran pest outbreak. A single application of dimethoate halved the population of important natural enemies of Helicoverpa spp., and caused an above-threshold outbreak of Helicoverpa spp. within 11 days. This shows that even a moderate (e.g. 50%) reduction in natural enemies may be sufficient to increase Helicoverpa spp. populations in mungbeans. As a result, prophylactic sprays should not be used for the control of mirids in mungbeans, and dimethoate should be applied only when mirids are above the economic threshold. Indoxacarb was also tested to establish its effect on Helicoverpa spp., mirids and natural enemies. Indoxacarb showed potential for Helicoverpa spp. control and suppression of mirids and had little impact on natural enemies.

Technology‐Enabled Innovation, Industry Transformation and the Emergence of Ambient Organizations

Technology‐enabled business innovation may present the potential to structurally transform traditional industry practice, but uncertainty remains as to where and how such transformations might be accomplished. To maintain enterprise competitiveness and agility during these times of structural change, a frequent suggestion for strategic management is to seek loosely coupled partnerships or alliances with best practice providers for non‐core functions. Original research into the nature of alliances in the financial services industry reveals the presence of tightly coupled, technology‐enabled ventures that deliver core services electronically across organizational and industry boundaries. These alliances represent an emerging specialized organizational form, the virtual or ambient organization. Theoretical and practitioner literature provide little reference to ambient organizations, by any name, and confuse the terms: alliances, strategic partnerships and virtual organizations. Tightly coupled, technology‐enabled ambient organizations that can cross industry boundaries provide a previously unrecognized linkage between organizational form and industry transformation. Analysis of four instances of ambient organization in and across three industries produces a model of their characteristics and features. Theoretical and empirical implications are examined.

Effects of initial geometric imperfections on the non-linear response of the Space Shuttle superlightweight liquid-oxygen tank

The results of an analytical study of the elastic buckling and non-linear behavior of the liquid-oxygen tank for the new Space Shuttle superlightweight external fuel tank are presented. Selected results that illustrate three distinctly different types of non-linear response phenomena for thin-walled shells which are subjected to combined mechanical and thermal loads are presented. These response phenomena consist of a bifurcation-type buckling response, a short-wavelength non-linear bending response, and a non-linear collapse or “snap-through” response associated with a limit point. The effects of initial geometric imperfections on the response characteristics are emphasized. The results illustrate that the buckling and non-linear response of a geometrically imperfect shell structure subjected to complex loading conditions may not be adequately characterized by an elastic linear bifurcation buckling analysis, and that the traditional industry practice of applying a buckling-load knock-down factor can result in an ultra-conservative design. Results are also presented that show that a fluid-filled shell can be highly sensitive to initial geometric imperfections, and that the use a buckling-load knock-down factor is needed for this case.