University Of Salford Research Articles

Implementing Virtual Organizations

Within the UK, information and communication technologies (ICTs) have been widely introduced. A recent survey, however, indicates that ICT integration into SMEs has had varied success. Statistics suggest that businesses lack the expertise to identify and integrate ICTs into their organization and processes. A US survey has concluded that 50% of implementations fail when the process they are to support is reengineered to accommodate the technology. Significantly, there is limited support for predicting the consequences that changes to an organization incur. The design and implementation of ICTs must consider those who will use the system, their organization and the process it is to support. To facilitate this, an approach has been developed at the University of Salford that illustrates an organization in terms of its communication relationships, resources, and business practices. A software application has been developed and tested which both collates the large amounts of data involved and represents relationships. This is supported by an expert system that informs the selection and implementation of ICTs. A case study has been conducted with regional SMEs, the results of which are presented.

Italy: the extreme right comes in from the cold

Journal Article Italy: the extreme right comes in from the cold Get access JL Newell JL Newell University of Salford, UK Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Parliamentary Affairs, Volume 53, Issue 3, July 2000, Pages 469–485, https://doi.org/10.1093/pa/53.3.469 Published: 01 July 2000

Experiences of using a public key infrastructure for the preparation of examination papers

A project that piloted the secure electronic preparation of examination papers ran during the first semester of the academic year 1998/99 at the University of Salford. The examination papers were transferred between the participants (lecturers, administrators and external examiners) using secure electronic mail. Security was provided by a managed public key infrastructure. Users were profiled and interviewed in order to determine the likely success of further roll out within the institution, as well as the user friendliness of the existing paper-based and proposed electronic systems. The project found that, while the technology worked for some participants, others had severe problems with installation of the software and failed to grasp key concepts. There appear to be formidable obstacles to extending the system to cover the whole university, including compatibility of equipment and the reliability of the network infrastructure.

Enhancing building product libraries to enable the dynamic definition of design element specifications

The AIC Research Group at the University of Salford has been involved in a government‐funded project that has resulted in the development of an integrated multi‐user distributed construction project database through the implementation of next‐generation Internet technology together with Product Data Technology ‐ WISPER. The objective of the project was to develop a working system capable of demonstrating the future direction of information integration with the project partners' businesses. This paper presents the development of the specification application that aims to demonstrate the potential for such technologies to enhance the specification process, enabling design elements to be specified directly from a building product database Web site.

Rethinking construction: the Generic Design and Construction Process Protocol

The complexity of construction projects and the fragmentation of the construction industry undertaking those projects has effectively resulted in linear, uncoordinated and highly variable project processes in the UK construction sector. Research undertaken at the University of Salford resulted in the development of an improved project process, the Process Protocol, which considers the whole lifecycle of a construction project whilst integrating its participants under a common framework. The Process Protocol identifies the various phases of a construction project with particular emphasis on what is described in the manufacturing industry as the ‘fuzzy front end’. The participants in the process are described in terms of the activities that need to be undertaken in order to achieve a successful project and process execution. In addition, the decision‐making mechanisms, from a client perspective, are illustrated and the foundations for a learning organization/industry are facilitated within a consistent Process Protocol.

Forecasting building element maintenance within an integrated construction environment

Previous work has adopted various structured analysis techniques to model an application, which aims to generate the building element maintenance forecast valuation from the building design and project estimate, as an integral part of an integrated construction environment. The Automation and Integration in Construction (AIC) Research Group at the University of Salford has developed an integrated construction environment for the construction industry in the UK—the Simultaneous Prototyping for An integrated Construction Environment (SPACE). SPACE aims to incorporate various construction applications enabling project information to be shared between these applications and allowing the user to run them simultaneously. The purpose of this paper is to present the development of the MAINtenance ForeCASTing in an Integrated Construction Environment (MAINCAST) application of SPACE. The implementation of the resulting Express-G (static data) and IDEFØ (process) models into SPACE and the development of the external remedy databases are described. Finally, through the aid of a case study project, the MAINCAST application prototype is presented.

The Sociology of Health Inequalities

Introduction. Beyond the Black Report: Mel Bartley (International Center for Health and Society), David Blane (Imperial School of Science Technology and Medicine), and George Davey Smith (Bristol University Medical School). Part I: Understanding the social dynamics of health inequalities:. 1. Mortality, the social environment, crime and violence: Richard G. Wilkinson (University of Sussex), Ichiro Kawachi (Harvard School of Public Health) and Bruce Kennedy (Harvard School of Public Health). 2. The psycho--social perspective on social inequalities in health: Jon Ivar Elstad (Norwegian Social Research). 3. Theorizing inequalities in health: the place of lay knowledge: Jennie Popay (University of Salford), Gareth Williams (University of Salford), Carol Thomas (University of Lancaster). 4. Is there a place for geography in the analysis of health inequality?: Sarah Curtis and Ian Rees Jones (Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London). Part II: Social and spatial inequalities in health:. 5. Gender and disadvantage in health: mena s health for a change: Elaine Cameron (University of Wolverhampton). 6. Changing the map: health in Britain 1951 -- 1991: Mary Shaw, Danny Dorling and Nic Brimblecombe (University of Bristol). 7. Genetic, cultural or socio--economic vulnerability? Explaining ethnic inequalities in health: James Nazroo (Policy Studies Institute, London). 8. Mortgage debt, insecure home ownership and health: an exploratory analysis: Sarah Nettleton and Roger Burrows (University of York). 9. A lifecourse perspective on socio--economic inequalities in health: H. Dike van de Mheen, Karien Stronks and Johann P. Mackenback (University of Rotterdam). Notes on Contributors. Index.

On the performance of a conceptual model of convection during preparations for the world weather research project nowcasting intercomparison during the olympic games in Sydney, Australia

The WMO World Weather Research Project Nowcasting Intercomparison due to take place in September 2000 during the Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia seeks to compare the performance of a number of nowcasting systems from different groups world-wide. The University of Salford, in collaboration with the UK Met. Office is participating by running the GANDOLF and Nimrod nowcasting systems. During the preparations for this intercomparison work to install and test the systems in Sydney has been carried out. In this paper we outline work undertaken by the Salford team to analyse the performance of the GANDOLF system with particular reference to the conceptual model of convection included therein. The basis of the system is the analysis of radar data in conjunction with numerical model data. Several case studies are discussed based upon the data from the radar located at Kurnell, south of the city of Sydney.

Molecular sciences user group meets

The first of this year's biannual Molecular Sciences ISIS User Group meetings was held at The Cosener's House, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, UK on April 13, 2000. This meeting provides a much-valued opportunity for the ISIS user community to forward suggestions and voice concerns regarding the direction of molecular science at ISIS. In addition, it permits ISIS staff members to present recent developments and address future plans for the suite of molecular scienceoriented spectrometers available at the facility. The meeting was attended by 30 participants from 12 different institutions and was chaired by Keith Ross (University of Salford, UK).

Salford University hosts workshop on materials modeling

“Neutron Scattering and Materials Modeling” was held from April 19–20, 2000 at Salford University. The program consisted of six invited lectures and fourteen contributed talks. There were also some ten posters. The introductory lecture by Richard Catlow (The Royal Institution London) surveyed the current advances in the use of computational modeling in predicting the structure of complex materials, in particular oxides and microporous systems. Paul Lindan (Daresbury Laboratory) discussed the simulation of water interactions with oxide surfaces, using First Principles Molecular Dynamics and Car-Parinello Methods for the cases of stepped MgO and TiO, surfaces. Steve Bennington (ISIS) discussed the extension of Reitveld refinement methods from diffraction to inelastic scattering and applied the ideas to the case of SiO2. Phil Mitchell (Chemistry Department, Reading) presented ab initio calculations and inelastic measurements on the interaction of dihydrogen with cobalt aluminophosphate catalyst. Ian Morrison (Centre for Materials Research, Salford) then presented ab initio (generalized gradient approximation to the density functional theory) calculations on ice structures, which could be used to predict the incoherent scattering from different phases of ice. Good agreement with the experimental results was obtained. In the next talk, Emanuel Totolici (Salford) presented a comparison between the ab initio calculations of the scattering function for the excitation of the higher excited states of protons in palladium and the experimental results. It is now believed that much of the inelastic scattering is to a Franck-Condon level involving a lattice that relaxes to accommodate the excited state. In the next talk, Alan Soper (ISIS) presented his fascinating results on the relative orientation of water molecules in water as afunction of pressure. The process involved the adjustment of the intermolecular potential so as to reproduce the observed diffraction pattern, using a modification of the Reverse Monte Car10 technique. In the following paper (Lavrentiev et al., Chemistry Dept., Bristol), modeling was extended to finite temperature where appropriate partition functions or equivalent have to be included in the calculations. Barbara Gabrys (Open University, Milton Keynes) described the work of her group in the matching of model structure factors to observations in polymer blends.

Distributed Object Environment: Using International Standards for Data Exchange in the Construction Industry

As a contribution to the international efforts toward the development of an integrated technology (IT) for managing project information, a major research project has been undertaken at the University of Salford. Based on advances in international standards in data models, i.e., the Industry Foundation Classes (IFCs), and communication protocols, i.e., the Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA), this project has successfully developed and implemented a three‐tier computer architecture environment to integrated design and construction applications. The IFC data model has been implemented as the single project database in an open and distributed computer environment whereby the World Wide Web has been used as the delivery medium. This article explains the background of this project, outlines other international efforts in this field, introduces the concept of the three‐tier computer architecture, and discusses the proposed structure for the integrated environment along with its implementation issues.

The Sociology of Medical Science and Technology

1. Assessing the Social Impact of Genetic Biotechnologies: Evan Willis (La Trobe University Australia). 2. The Abortion Pill RU486: A Case of Organizational and Technological Change: Sharon Tabberer (Anglia Polytechnic University). 3. a Strange Bedfellowsa in the Laboratory of the NHS? An Institutional and Methodological Analysis of the new Science of Health Technology Assessment in the United Kingdom: Alex Faulkner (University of Bristol). 4. The Rhetoric of Prediction and Chance in the Research to Clone a Disease Gene: Paul Atkinson, Claire Bachelor and Evelyn Parsons (University of Wales, Cardiff). 5. Knowledge of the Body: Lay and Biomedical Understanding of Musculoskeletal Disorders: Helen Busby, Gareth Williams and Anne Rogers (University of Salford). 6. The Science and Politics of Medicines Regulation: John Abraham (University of Sussex). 7. Medical Pedigrees and the Visual Production of Family Disease in Canadian and Japanese Genetic Counseling Practices: Yoshio Nukaga and Alberto Cambrosio (McGill University, Canada). 8. Vital Comparisons: The Social Construction of Measurement in Health: Mel Bartley (University College, London) and David Blane (Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School, London).

Factors affecting successful implementation of total productive maintenance

Modern manufacturing requires that to be successful organisations must be supported by both effective and efficient maintenance. One approach to improving the performance of maintenance activities is to implement and develop a total productive maintenance (TPM) strategy. However, it is well documented that a number of organisations are failing to successfully implement such strategies. This paper outlines research carried out by the Aeronautical, Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering Department at Salford University aimed at discovering the factors affecting the successful implementation of TPM. This research has led to the development of a generic model indicating factors affecting the successful implementation of TPM. The validity of the generic model has been tested in a UK manufacturing small‐ to medium‐size enterprise (SME) and the case study research findings further triangulated through a review of documented case study evidence. This research has also led to the development of recommendations to improve the TPM development and implementation program of the case study organisation. Further development of the research has resulted in a step‐wise program or generic roadmap for UK SMEs which is proposed as a tool for the implementation or rejuvenation of an organisation’s TPM program.

Portable Computers & Interactive Multimedia: A New Paradigm for Interpreting Museum Collections

This paper describes a GEMISIS doctoral research project nearing completion at the University of Salford, U.K. and offers some preliminary findings. The aim of the project was to design an interactive multimedia application for a portable computer in a museum setting, to assess the application as an aid to interpretation and to examine its impact on the visitor's understanding and enjoyment of the museum experience. It will discuss the introduction of portable computers into museum galleries, briefly describe the design and development process of the interactive multimedia application, review the methodology employed and provide a summary of preliminary findings.

Information modelling and integration in the construction industry: a novel approach

In order to improve efficiency and enhance the integration of information within the construction industry, it is necessary to establish an appropriate information structure using state of the art technologies. This paper reports on the modelling and integration of construction information within the context of integrated databases as a means of improving integration. The work is being undertaken by the OSCON (Open Systems for Construction) project at Salford University. The project aims to structure and model this information, providing a framework of information into which the modelling of different domains within the construction industry fits. The central idea in the establishment of the model is the ability to allow information to be viewed from different perspectives and different levels of abstraction depending on the requirements of the user. This leads to the necessity of integrating the models in order to permit the sharing of information. This paper also presents a model of transferring advanced technologies based on OSCON to the construction sector through lessons learnt from the research being undertaken.

GENERATING PROJECT ESTIMATES AND MONTHLY INTERIM VALUATION CERTIFICATES WITHIN AN INTEGRATED CONSTRUCTION ENVIRONMENT

The AIC (Automation and Integration in Construction) Research Group at the University of Salford has developed a PC based integrated environment prototype -SPACE (Simultaneous Prototyping for An integrated Construction Environment). SPACE aims to incorporate various construction applications enabling project information to be shared between these applications and the user to run them simultaneously, i.e., concurrent engineering. The purpose of this paper is to present the EVALUATOR (Project Estimate and Intereim VALUation (Monthly) GenerATiOn in an IntegRated Environment) application of SPACE. EVALUATOR's main objectives are two fold; (i) to produce the project estimate in the form of an elemental Bill of Quantities (BQ), and (ii) to generate monthly interim valuation certificates from the construction plan. Previous work has adopted various structured analysis techniques to model this application as an integral part of the other applications in SPACE. The implementation of the resulting Express-G (static data) and IDEF0 (process) models into SPACE, leading to the development of EVALUATOR's estimating and monthly interim valuation modules are described.

VI European Meeting on Fire Retardancy of Polymeric Materials

The VI European meeting on Fire Retardancy of Polymeric Materials was held in Lille (Cite Scientific) at Ecoile Nationale Superieure de Chimie de Lille (ENSCL) France on September 22–24, 1997. The previous V Conference was in Salford University (Manchester, England) in September 1995. Prof. Rene Delobel (ENSCL) was chairman of Organizing Committee and Drs. S. Bourbigot and M. Le Bras from ENSCL were members of General secretariat. The international scientific committee included Prof. G. Camino (University of Torino, Italy), Dr. J.-M. Catala (Institut C. Sadron, Strasbourg, France), Dr. Dewitt (Solvay, Brussels, Belgium), Mr. F. Gensous (Elf Atochem, Lacq-France), Dr. M.-L. Hardy (Albermarle, Baton Rouge, USA), Prof. A.-R. Horrocks (Bolton Institute of Higher Education, UK), Prof. M. Lewin (Polytechnic University, NYC, USA), Prof. E. Marechal (Groupment Francais des Polymeres, France), Prof. R. Mulhaupt (University of Freiburg, Germany), Dr. D. Price (University of Salford, UK), Prof. J. Wang, Beining Institute of Technology, China, Prof. G. E. Zaikov (Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia).

VI European Meeting on Fire Retardancy of Polymeric Materials

The VI European Meeting on Fire Retardancy of Polymeric Materials was held in Lille (Cite Scientific) at the Ecole Nationale Superieure de Chimie de Lille (ENSCL), France on September 22-24, 1997. The previous conference was in Salford University (Manchester, England) in September 1995. Prof. Rene Delobel (ENSCL) was chairman of the Organizing Committee and Drs. S. Bourbigot and M. Le Bras from ENSCL were members of the General Secretariat. The international scientific committee included Prof. G. Camino (University of Torino, Italy), Dr. J.-M. Catala (Institut C. Sadron, Strasbourg, France), Dr. Dewitt (Solvay, Brussels, Belgium), Mr. F. Gensous (Elf Atochem, Lacq, France), Dr. M.-L. Hardy (Albermarle, Baton Rouge, LA, USA), Prof. A.-R. Horrocks (Bolton Institute of Higher Education, UK), Prof. M. Lewin (Polytechnic University, New York, USA), Prof. E. Marechal (Groupment Francais des Polymeres, France), Prof. R. Mulhaupt (University of Freiburg, Germany), Dr. D. Price (University of Salford, UK), Prof. J. Wang (Beijing Institute of Technology, China), and Prof. G. E. Zaikov (Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia).

Shifting the boundaries of interpretation: old environments, new visions

Based on themes rather than collections, heritage centres provide a new and different approach to exhibiting the past, placing it, in Patricia Sterry’s words, ‘on display, but not out of reach’. Neither museum nor theme park, they challenge a number of sacrosanct notions attached to the very word ‘heritage’. The author is a senior lecturer in design history at the University of Salford, United Kingdom, and course leader of a post‐graduate Master’s degree in heritage studies: interpretation, presentation and design.

Design and operational considerations of a non-contact robotic handling system for non-rigid materials

The application of automation for handling non-rigid products is limited due to the lack of suitable end effectors. The majority of end effectors used for handling electromechanical parts in industry are not easily applicable, because non-rigid products (particularly food products) have a somewhat unpredictable and unstable behaviour which arises from their individual physical properties. End effectors based on multiple fingers are difficult to control in real time when dealing with non-rigid materials, whose behaviour under dynamic and gravitational forces needs to be accommodated. This paper introduces a new material handling system for use in industry. This system consists of a novel non-contact end effector, which has been developed and applied at the University of Salford. The end effector operates on the principle of generating a high-speed fluid flow between the nozzle(s) and product surface, thereby creating a vacuum which levitates the product. Guidelines will be provided for the design of a non-contact end effector that is suitable for the handling of a specific material in a practical handling application. A design and development procedure and the concept of a non-contact end effector handling system will be explained. Conclusions drawn from the experimental results will be discussed.