Inclusive and frugal innovations are the key to managing workforce potential of the underdeveloped regions of South Asia (SA). Digital employment solutions (DES) can help to improve the targeted mobility of labour between developed and underdeveloped regions and countries. This research explores the relationship between frugal and inclusive innovations and DES. This review study analyses 16 articles to investigate this relationship. The study found direct and indirect relationships among frugal and inclusive innovations, DES and the employment situation in developed and underdeveloped regions and countries. Frugal innovations and DES may be an appropriate solution to tackle the employment problems in SA but cultural, social and economic barriers can affect the success of the overall process. Researchers and policymakers should, however, carefully evaluate the nature of target regions, the degree of cooperation and evaluation of various related barriers.

Transportation disruptions can be damaging to a supply chain because goods may not arrive on time and this jeopardises the service level to the customers. While supply chain disruptions have gained significant attention from scholars, little has been done to explore these disruptions in the context of transportation. The study described in this paper aims to address disruptions occurring in the transportation of goods from a plant to a distribution centre. We modelled this real case to obtain insights on the effectiveness of different strategies to mitigate transportation disruptions. We evaluated four mitigation strategies and compared the outcomes in terms of service level and total costs: (1) the risk acceptance strategy, (2) the redundant stock strategy, (3) the flexible route strategy, and (4) the redundant-flexibility strategy. The results suggest that the best strategy differs depending on the budget that managers are willing to deploy to improve the service level. The simulation experiments and the use of the Incremental Cost Effectiveness Ratio (ICER) would be instrumental in helping decision makers in selecting the best disruption mitigation strategies where the best option would likely be different under varying circumstances. 

I linje med dagens framväxt av ny teknik råder det hög konkurrens inom tillverkningsindustrin, vilket ställer högre krav på dagens industrier att utveckla nya strategier för att stå emot den hårda konkurrensen. Av den anledningen måste dagens industri bli mer effektiv och digitaliseras alltmer, vilket är kärnan i den nya industriella revolutionen som kallas "industri 4.0". 

Syftet med denna studie är att med hjälp av värdeflödesanalys, nya innovativa verktyg och principer inom lean production undersöka om tillverkningsprocessen kan bli mer effektiv. Studien genomfördes på ett tillverkningsföretag som producerar avfuktare och som har ambitioner att effektivisera sin tillverkningsprocess. 

Genom litteraturgenomgång, platsobservationer, intervjuer och dataanalys gjordes en jämförelse med teorin för att hitta lösningar på de problem som uppstod. Resultaten av denna studie visar att det är teoretiskt möjligt att effektivisera en tillverkningsprocess med hjälp av dessa metoder. Det kan påpekas att en viktig studie kommer att vara att testa dessa lösningar för att se vilka resultat som kan uppnås. 

Den ökande förekomsten av digital teknik inom tillverkningsindustrin avser att för-bättra och effektivisera traditionella leanprocesser. Den snabba automatiseringen av tillverkningsprocesserna medför utmaningar beroende på användarnas begränsade förståelse för mekanismerna bakom produktionsslöseriet. Det finns en växande oro för en potentiell uppkomst av digitalt slöseri som resultat av digital teknik i lean tillverkning. Avhandlingen syftar till att undersöka förekomsten av digitalt slöseri i digitaliserad lean tillverkning, och teknikens inverkan på slöseri och metoder.

Avhandlingen omfattar tre forskningsfrågor och består av fem vetenskapliga artiklar, baserade på fem separata studier. Den första studien undersöker huruvida insamlade och obearbetade data kan betraktas som en ny form av slöseri kallad muda, eller digitalt spill eller slöseri. Den andra studien syftar till att utvärdera Enterprise Resource Planning System, (ERP). Det vill säga, implementeringsförmågan på försörjningskedjenivå för att kunna förbättra den dolda leanpotentialen hos olika enheter. Slutligen fördjupar den tredje studien de upplevda effekterna av mjuka ledningsmetoder, de anställdas beteende, integrationen av digital teknik i tillverkningsanläggningar och deras koppling till uppkomsten av digitalt slöseri. Den fjärde studien fördjupar sig i det digitala slöseri som genereras av företag med automatiserade lean-metoder, medan den femte studien utforskar de faktorer som bidrar till digitalt slöseri inom den europeiska tillverkningssektorn.

Resultaten avslöjar förekomsten av en ny typ av avfall, känd som digitalt avfall eller spill, som kan härröra antingen från själva produkten eller från produktionsprocessen. Resultaten visar att användningen av ERP-teknik har en betydande möjlighet att identifiera en dold lean potential i tre kategorier: olåst, dold lean potential i ett icke-uppkopplat affärssystem, olåst, dold lean potential i ett anslutet ERP-system och dold lean potential i ett delat ERP-system. Studien pekar vidare på att olika aspekter såsom ledarskapet i högsta ledningen, engagemanget från mellanchefer, medarbetarutbildning, fokus på företagens sociala ansvar, innovation, kunskapsdelning, balans mellan arbete och familj, psykologiskt kapital, arbetstillfredsställelse och karriärengagemang, som faller under mjukt lean ledarskapspraxis, påverkas positivt av den digitala transformationsprocessen. Omvänt tycks mjuk lean ledarskapspraxis, såsom utbildning av anställda, kreativitet, individuell prestation, ansträngning, personalomsättning och proaktivitet, påverkas negativt av digital transformation. Förutom detta tyder de slutliga resultaten på förekomsten av digitalt slöseri i leverantörsrelaterad lean praxis - särskilt automatiserad Just-In-Timeleverans - inom produkt- och tjänsteorienterade tekniker, såväl som i internt relaterad lean praxis, särskilt automatiserad installation inom processorienterade teknologier. Det finns också bevis på digitalt slöseri i kundrelaterad lean praxis, speciellt den som omfattar digitalt engagerade kunder, med produkt-, tjänste- och processorienterade tekniker.

Den forskning som presenteras i denna avhandling tillför viktig kunskap om leanslöseri genom sitt engagemang i en teoretisk diskussion om fysiskt och digitalt slöseri i samband med tekniska framsteg. Avhandlingen bidrar till diskursen kring automatisering av lean-metoder inom produkt-, process- och systemdomäner, samtidigt som inflytandet av digital transformation på lean managementpraxis behandlas. Dessutom undersöks rollen och konsekvenserna av ERP-system i lean produktion. Rent praktiskt validerar avhandlingen förekomsten av en ny typ av slöseri, som påverkar kostnadshanteringen för nytillverkade produkter.  Avhandlingen främjar också transparens för digitalt samarbete och ökade investeringar i teknik och specialiserad personal för att erbjuda analytiska tjänster i samband med tillverkning.

Lean manufacturing has experienced massive changes under the influence of Industry 4.0, with the automation of lean practices becoming common among manufacturing companies in many countries and different industries. Automating lean practices promises a number of opportunities for growth and competitiveness. One of the key advantages of lean automation has been acknowledged to be the significant reduction of waste. Meanwhile, there is also discussion of a new form of waste: digital waste. However, do companies consider digital waste a part of production waste? It is also unclear if automation of lean practices is a trigger for digital waste with a negative impact on value creation. This paper aims to investigate companies with automated lean practices and the particular case of digital waste in automated processes. The research is based on case studies of manufacturing based in Sweden.

Lean manufacturing has experienced massive changes under the influence of Industry 4.0 as the automation of lean practices has become common among manufacturing companies in many countries and across different industries. Automating lean practices promises several opportunities for growth and competitiveness. One of the acknowledged key advantages of lean automation has been the significant reduction of waste. Meanwhile, there is also discussion of a new form of waste: digital waste. However, do companies consider digital waste a part of production waste? It is also unclear if the automation of lean practices is a trigger for digital waste with a negative impact on value creation. This paper aims to investigate companies with automated lean practices and the digital waste generated by these practices. The research is based on three case studies of manufacturing companies based in Sweden. The originality of the study identifies and highlights the significance of various forms of digital waste, which is of academic and practical relevance. The study indicates that there is digital waste in supplier-related lean practice—automated JIT delivery—specifically in product-oriented and service-oriented technologies. There is digital waste in internally related lean practice—automated set-up—specifically in process-oriented technologies. Finally, there is digital waste in customer-related lean practice—digitally involved customers—in product-, service-, and process-oriented technologies.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the perceived effects between soft management practices, employee behaviours and the implementation of digital technologies in manufacturing plants, as well as how these relate to the emergence of digital waste.

Design/methodology/approach: This paper uses case-based research. Data was collected in two large manufacturing companies based in Norway and Sweden through semi-structured interviews with two management representatives and four shop-floor employees. The data was used to evaluate 29 variables describing lean- and total quality management (TQM)-associated employee behaviours and soft management practices, in light of digital transformation.

Findings: The results suggest that several variables were positively influenced by the digital transformation process. These were top management leadership, middle management involvement, employee education, corporate social responsibility focus, innovation, knowledge sharing, work-family balance, psychological capital, job satisfaction and career commitment. Training employees, creativity, discretionary effort, turnover intention and proactivity appear to be negatively influenced by digital transformation The findings also indicate that several soft management practices and employee behaviours were not only influenced by manufacturing digitalization but also themselves influenced the process. The potential for digital waste creation was also detected in several variables, including reward and recognition and training employees.

Practical implications: Managers, practitioners and academics may learn about the importance of certain managerial practices and employees’ behavioural needs during the digital transformation process. The findings may help in prioritizing TQM and soft lean management practices and certain employee behaviours during the digital transformation and in creating awareness of digital waste.

Originality/value: This study builds on several existing studies discussing the impact of digital transformation on soft management practices and employee behaviours. It provides insights from a lean and TQM angle and offers a means of prioritizing certain practices and behaviours during a digital transformation. This study also highlights the significance of digital waste. 

This paper explores the hidden lean potential exposed by manufacturers’ usage of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. The potential can be classified into three types: unlocked lean potential in a connected ERP system, unlocked lean potential in an un-connected ERP system, and the lean potential for further unlocking in companies that do not use ERP systems when collaborating with suppliers/customers. Empirical data is obtained from two cases of manufacturing companies in Sweden and one ERP system company. The findings indicate that hidden lean potential can be unlocked through digital collaboration within the supply chain.

Collaboration in a supply chain plays an important role for manufacturing companies that are simultaneously implementing lean and running enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. This research aims to discover whether the usage of ERP at a supply chain level can boost internal hidden lean potential. Empirical data were obtained from three manufacturing cases in Sweden. The results show that ERP technology usage has a significant impact on discovering hidden lean potential of three types: unlocked hidden lean potential in an unconnected ERP system, unlocked hidden lean potential in a connected ERP system, and unlocked hidden lean potential in a shared ERP system. The findings indicate manufacturers should devote more effort to ensuring active usage of ERP systems internally as well as externally with their customers and suppliers. The transparency and collaboration provided by an ERP system will help these companies become leaner.

Lean management is an approach where value is created through the reduction of waste. Eight forms of waste were identified by the Toyota Company as worth considering while managing an efficient production process: overproduction, waiting, transport, over processing, inventory, movement, defects, and unused creativity. Modern manufacturing plants are being transformed by Industry 4.0, the fourth industrial revolution, which promotes a wide variety of technological solutions to increase innovativeness and competitive advantages. Technological solutions are created on the basis of data that must be analyzed to enable manufacturers to be more strategic in the decision-making process and generate new profit channels through data analytics. A conceptual framework was developed to investigate if the inefficient usage of data has a negative impact on manufacturing performance through the decision-making process. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in two leading manufacturing companies in Sweden that are following lean principles. A new form of waste, digital waste, was defined. This paper suggests considering digital waste as a new type of muda (waste), which is its theoretical contribution. From a practical perspective, the results of the paper encourage practitioners to pay extra attention to data analytics, work on the reduction of digital waste and establish new revenue channels based on data analysis. Download full PDF  Get metrics  Rate article

This paper is based on European Manufacturing Survey collected in 2019 for five countries -Sweden, Spain, Croatia, Austria, and Slovenia. The study reveals that majority of companieshave technologies that allow them automatically to collect data. Companies are also using thedata for different purposes, and often more than one purposes. We also found that many ofcommonly used digital technologies are also associated with automatically collected data.Although the literature suggests that ignorance of data collection may lead to defects, we findno connection to actual waste in this study.

Många företag strävar efter att utforma sina ankomstkontroller på ett effektivt sätt, då en ankomstkontroll har visat sig vara mer betydelsefullt för företag. Detta eftersom att produktionsflödet blir mer effektivare och företag minimerar riskerna att få stopp i produktionen. Med hjälp av en ankomstkontroll kan företagets material och produkter kontrolleras samt hanteras på ett effektivt sätt. Konsekvenser med att inte införa en ankomstkontroll kan leda till defekta produkter, stopp i produktionen, stress och eventuella kostnader. Trots detta existerar det många företag som idag väljer att inte ha någon ankomstkontroll. Detta kan främst bero på de höga kostnaderna som uppstår när en ankomstkontroll implementeras på ett företag. Det kan även bero på att företaget är för litet, vilket leder till att en ankomstkontroll inte får plats eftersom det krävs en del utrymme.

Syftet med detta projekt är att med stöd av kurslitteraturer, vetenskapliga artiklar samt företagsbesök undersöka hur en effektiv ankomstkontroll på industriföretag kan utformas. Vidare ämnar projektet till att genom förbättringsförslag hjälpa Munters AB att effektivisera och utforma en ankomstkontroll.

Projektet är en kvalitativ fallstudie som har utförts på Munters AB i Tobo. Datainsamlingen till detta projekt utfördes genom semistrukturerade intervjuer, observationer och företagsbesök.

Vid intervjuerna var kvalitetschefen och Lean koordinatorn gemensamma om företagets brister. Studier av produktionsavdelningen visade att samtliga arbetare ansåg att en ankomstkontroll bör implementeras på företaget, dels för att underlätta flödet men också för att lösa de befintliga problem som uppstår dagligen. Slutsatsen av detta arbete visar att Munters AB är i nöd av en ankomstkontroll på företaget. För att kunna implementera ankomstkontrollen på ett effektivt sätt är det avsevärt att företaget använder sig av olika metoder, verktyg och system. Detta kan medföra till att produktionen kan planeras i förtid.

Una de las primeras tareas para abordar cualquier trabajo académico es revisar las publicaciones llevadas a cabo sobre el tema. En este artículo se presenta una metodología que permite analizar las tendencias científicas en una disciplina a través de un análisis bibliométrico. En concreto, se examina su utilidad para estudiar los trabajos en el campo de la Geografía Económica; para ello se ha elegido como base de datos para su análisis la Web of Science (WoS). Con un conjunto de 4,307 publicaciones se analizan varios indicadores bibliométricos como la evolución de la producción científica, los agentes involucrados (países y organizaciones) y temas abordados, con el objetivo de ver la trayectoria del volumen de trabajos y las especializaciones temáticas de la Geografía Económica desde 1920 a la actualidad.

This research evaluates the critical capabilities and improvement areas for competitive manufacturing in a developed-country environment. A multiple-case-study approach is applied, consisting of three manufacturing firms located in Sweden. The case study combines both quantitative and qualitative evaluations of the critical capabilities found in the extant literature. The research reveals fifteen critical capabilities and sixteen improvement areas for competitive manufacturing in a developed-country environment. The results show that the firms develop capabilities in a cumulative manner, starting with cost and quality, continuing with time and flexibility, and finally trying to improve innovation and sustainability. To develop competitive manufacturing operations in developed counties, it is therefore vital to improve capabilities related to time, flexibility, innovation, or sustainability. Irrespective of the targeted capabilities, they must contribute to cost-efficient operations and high quality must always be maintained. The efforts to develop capabilities related to innovation and sustainability may be expensive in the short term, however they can provide better cumulative results and competitiveness in the long term. 

Tidens största utmaning idag är klimatförändringen och dess negativa effekter. En grund till många fall av att politisk instabilitet, hälsorisker och ojämlikheter i mänskliga rättigheter är ohållbara konsumtions- och produktionsmönster som leder till miljöförstöring och sociala orättvisor. Tillväxtverket (2020) utförde en undersökning som har påvisat att närmare hälften av de svenska näringsliv arbetar med ett hållbart arbete. Men å andra sidan är det viktigt att iaktta att arbetet mot hållbar utveckling har utvidgat sig och blivit allt mer komplicerad att uppfylla de senaste decennierna. 

Syftet med denna studie har varit att undersöka hur de mindre företagen värdesätter FN:s globala hållbarhetsmål 12.4 i två olika branscher, samt hur de aktivt arbetar med att förbättra det. Syftet har uppfyllts genom att författarna genomfört intervjuer med två mindre fallföretag, det ena är Gästrike Ekogas och det andra är St:Eriks. Författarna har därmed genomfört en litteraturstudie i områden som anses relevanta.

Studien identifierade två nyckelfaktorer, den första nyckelfaktorer är att Gästrike Ekogas inte arbetar utifrån den globala målen och har därför inte värderingar. För att förbättra arbetet inom hållbarhet har det även påvisats att verksamheten saknar resurser. Den andra nyckelfaktorer som författarna identifierat, är att St:Eriks vision är att de ska vara det självklara valet för hållbar samhällsbyggnad, vilket visar att de har en seriös värdering för hållbarhet. De tar också miljön som ett nyckelområde och har arbetar hårt med det. Eftersom företaget överväger utsläpp av kemiska ämnen och dess konsekvenser arbetar St:Eriks också ständigt för att minska dessa utsläpp med hjälp av sina interna resurser och tredje part. Det har även påvisats för att verksamheten i fråga skall ha en kapabilitet att kombinera ny teknik, förändringar till praxis, med nya affärsmodeller. För att verksamheter lyckligtvis skall anta och implementera en hållbar konsumtion och produktion handlar det i princip om att kräva förändring i organisationens vision och utbildningar. Med tanke på att St:Eriks produkter har en lång livslängd så var det väldigt viktigt för dem att förhålla sig till FN:s 12e globala mål då den innefattar produktion och konsumtion. 

Carbon footprint (CF) research has received increasing attention in recent years, as evidenced by a rise in publications and citations, reflecting a growing concern for the environmental impact of human activities. However, the alignment of this scientific literature with the three dimensions of sustainability performance provided by the TBL paradigm (people, planet, and profit) has received limited attention. This study addresses this research gap by undertaking a large-scale bibliometric analysis of 9032 Web of Science (WoS) publications from 1992 to 2020. At the macro (journals) and micro (papers) levels, a methodology approach to classify research publications according to TBL dimensions was designed. The results indicate that the output and impact of CF research are balanced with respect to the environmental (planet) and economic (prosperity/profit) dimensions, while the social impact is balanced with respect to the people+profit dimensions. Other than that, “Affordable and Clean Energy” (3761 publications) and “Climate Action” (3091 publications) are the most frequently represented (and interconnected) objectives. The results obtained contribute to a greater understanding of the contribution of CF research to the attainment of the SDGs.

Med e-handelns snabba expansion har även returerna ökat, returvolymen inom e-handel kan vara så hög som 50% (Dissanayake och Singh, 2007). Returer kostar inte bara pengar utan påverkar även miljön i form av bl.a. ökade transporter. De vanligaste returorsakerna inom modebranschen är storlek och passform vilket kan härledas till bristande produktinformation som t.ex. undermåliga storleksguider. Tidigare forskning om produktinformation har oftast berört vikten av produktinformation vid konsumentköp samt vilka egenskaper i produktinformationen som är viktiga. (Chiu et al, 2014; Manvai och Venkataram, 2005; Markopoulos, Arin och Ungar, 2016) Syftet med denna fallstudie är att undersöka hur produktinformationen påverkar antalet produktreturer hos e-handelsföretag i modebranschen. Studiens frågeställningar berör hur fallföretagen arbetar med produktinformation och om det har påverkat returvolymen samt fallföretagens hållbarhetsarbete. Studien är baserad på en kvalitativ metod och med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer med tre fallföretag besvaras studiens syfte och frågeställningar. Fallföretagen i denna studie arbetar med försäljning inom modebranschen, två av dessa är stora företag och har både fysiska butiker och e-handel. Det tredje fallföretaget är ett mindre företag som enbart har e-handel. Studien visar att fallföretagen får samma gynnsamma effekt av arbetet med produktinformation även om drivkraften bakom arbetet är olika. Studien visar även att produktinformationen kan ses som en kanal för att effektivt förmedla hållbarhetsarbete till kunderna. Studien bidrar med bredare kunskap om produktinformation samt att studien kan ligga till grund för vidare forskning om produktinformationens inverkan på returer. Studien styrker även vissa delar av tidigare forskning inom returer i modebranschen.

Universities are facing the need to rethink their educational strategies, especially due to the emergence of new technologies, such as mobile applications, which have had great expectations. Previous studies have been focused on changes in student engagement from using mobile applications in the classroom, whereas there has been little research on the impact of mobile applications on student assessment. This research uses a quasi-experimental study to examine the relationship between student assessment and the use of a mobile application. Two groups of students (a control and an experimental group) were tested in the same academic semester with the same lecturer. Two analyses were carried out (t-test and difference-in-differences) to evaluate this relationship. Contrary to the general expectations, the results showed that there is no significant difference on assessment when comparing the two groups’ scores. However, students showed a positive attitude in engaging with the mobile application. Although there has been an increase on the use of mobile applications in classrooms, they do not directly affect student scores. This research shows that mobile applications should be used as a complement to traditional education, and not as a substitute to it.

Higher education institutions (HEIs) have been undertaking considerable efforts to embed sustainability into their system; however, there have been limited studies on the incorporation of sustainability into research. In parallel, it has been found that women have an important role in contributing to sustainability since they are more engaged and have a more holistic perspective on sustainability than men. These two phenomena have resulted in limited studies about the contribution of women to sustainability research (i.e., in scientific publishing). A bibliometric analysis of more than 39,000 documents (with 147,090 authorships) was done to fill this gap, focusing on sustainability peer-review publications in Europe between 2015 and 2020. The results show that women's presence in sustainability research has been increasing during the last years; however, there are still few female authorship publications, even in fields that have been traditionally women-oriented. In addition, their publications have been less recognized by the scientific community. The results also show substantial gender differences in terms of author leadership, where female senior researchers are more likely to mentor female junior researchers than men. Female researchers tend to collaborate nationally, but they could improve their international collaboration since this can improve their research and impact. More support should be provided to female researchers to help foster women's sustainability engagement and holistic perspectives, reduce existing negative feedback loops, and increase positive ones. Achieving gender equality is sine qua non in achieving sustainable societies.

Governments need to decide how to allocate their public expenditure, which is commonly misconstrued as simply targeting social issues. Most scientific literature highlights that the role of public spending is to enhance social welfare and fight poverty and inequality. Nonetheless, public expenditure also includes spending on environmental issues. This paper analyses relations between public participation, support for public expenditure, and pro-environmental behaviour (PEB) intentions in the English Channel region. An online public survey was developed to investigate public use of the English and French sides and the public's willingness to change their behaviour to better protect the Channel region. The survey was undertaken in the summer of 2014 and was answered by 2000 respondents. The Channel region public is willing to participate more in behaviour that involves direct changes or switches between buying/purchasing choices. In contrast, there is less willingness to engage in pro-environmental behaviour intentions that involve more active engagement activities. French respondents were slightly less inclined to change their consumer behaviour intentions, while women and older people were slightly more likely to do so. This research shows that pro-environmental behaviour could positively affect support for proposed public expenditure on environmental issues.

Circular Economy (CE) has become one of the most recent ways to address environmental sustainability. CE activities focus exclusively on one of three levels (macro-level, meso-level, and micro-level). The majority of CE research has focused on the macro- and meso-levels, while research on the micro-level has been limited. This paper focusses on the latter by analysing how organisations have implemented the four Rs (reduction, repairing, remanufacturing, and recycling). A survey was sent to a database of 5,299 contacts from different organisations, from whom 256 complete responses were obtained. The results show that organisations focus on reducing and recycling more than repairing and remanufacturing, and in particular on internal CE efforts. Some organisations that engage with the 4Rs do not do it under the CE umbrella, whereas some that claim to apply CE have low levels of engagement with the 4Rs. The results indicate that organisations are using the four Rs to contribute to CE, but not all of them are aware that they are applying CE principles. The paper highlights that organisations need to improve their four Rs efforts to contribute more to CE by better linking its theory with practice. CE also has to be implemented outside the organisations, in a more holistic way, e.g. through better collaboration with stakeholders on CE efforts and activities. This research stresses that the gap between CE theory and practice needs to be closed to make Circular Economy circular.

Purpose

Government-owned companies (GOCs), such as ports, have engaged in efforts to become more sustainable. Most of such efforts have been technological and policy ones and mainly focusing on the environment, with limited research on organisational change management. This paper aims to provide insights into how ports have been addressing sustainability change forces and pressures.

Design/methodology/approach

Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with top-level directors and sustainability managers, representing ports across Europe’s maritime regions and a range of port types and sizes. The interviews were analysed using grounded theory’s constant comparative analysis.

Findings

The findings highlighted that the ports’ success in their process to become more sustainable depends on how they take advantage of the thrust forces and reduce the drag ones. The findings serve to develop the “ports’ sustainability change management framework”, with five stages: reactive, proactive, transactive, interactive, and sustainable port.

Practical implications

Ports, and other GOCs, should capitalise on their private–public nature in their contribution to making societies more sustainable by adopting a holistic perspective and interactive changes.

Originality/value

This paper provides a dynamic perspective on corporate sustainability efforts, particularly on GOCs, through organisational change management complementing technocentric and managerial approaches.

Ports have been working towards becoming more sustainable. Although gender equality (SDG5) is very important within the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, it is ranked almost at the bottom of port priorities. The aim of this research is to provide insights into how ports have been addressing gender equality in their efforts to contribute to sustainability. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with directors and sustainability managers from six European countries. The responses from interviewees were analysed using Grounded Theory’s constant comparative analysis.

The findings show that European ports have engaged in measures aimed at contributing to sustainability through gender equality classified in five stages: (1) Gender segregation, which needs to be overcome, and is, in many cases, the starting point; (2) Compliance with national laws and regulation, e.g. in recruitment and salaries; (3) Gender equity, reducing barriers to entry and compensate for the historical and social disadvantages that women had previously suffered from; (4) Gender equality, guaranteeing the equal treatment of men and women in all processes; and (5) More sustainable ports. Achieving gender equality is a sine qua non to make ports more sustainable, i.e. integrating social issues of sustainability with economic and environmental ones. Internal and external forces affect each of the stages, where thrust forces help ports reduce gender segregation and advance towards becoming more sustainability and drag forces slow or block the efforts and may lead to returning to a previous stage. The findings were used to develop a “Gender equality for sustainability in ports” framework.

This research is especially related to SDG5, target 5.1 (End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere), and 5.5 (Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life). 

Ports, and other traditionally male-dominated industries, could capitalise on women’s holistic perspective and higher engagement to better contribute to accelerating the progress to make Europe more sustainable, especially in these testing times.

Ports have increasingly been addressing sustainability issues; however, gender equality has been a low priority in such efforts. This paper is aimed at providing insights into how ports have been addressing gender equality to contribute to sustainability. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with top-level port managers from six European countries. The responses from the interviewees were analysed using Grounded Theory’s constant comparative analysis. The findings show that European ports have engaged in gender equality measures aimed at contributing to sustainability through gender equality in five stages: (1) Gender segregation, which needs to be overcome, and is, in many cases, the starting point; (2) Compliance with national laws and regulation; (3) Gender equity; (4) Gender equality; and (5) More sustainable ports. Internal and external forces affect each of the stages, where thrust forces help ports reduce gender segregation and advance towards becoming more sustainable and drag forces slow or block the efforts and may lead to returning to a previous stage of the framework. The findings were integrated to develop a “Gender equality for sustainability in ports” framework. Gender equality is a sine qua non for ports, and other male oriented industries, in becoming more sustainable.

The COVID-19 outbreak has affected societies and organisations in an unprecedented way. This has resulted in negative impacts to economic and social issues, but it is a “blessing in disguise” for environmental issues. This paper analyses how the outbreak has affected organisations’ sustainability priorities. Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, such priorities were on the economic dimension followed by the environmental and social dimensions. A survey was sent to 11,657 organisations to analyse such changes, with a 5.60% response rate. The results show that for organisations, the main priority is now on the social dimension, followed by the economic one; however, the environmental dimension has suffered a negative impact in prioritisation, regardless of organisation type, country where they are based, organisation size, or the time they have been working on sustainability. We are currently facing an environmental conundrum, where air quality has improved and pollution has decreased in societies, but organisations are starting to neglect such environmental issues. The COVID-19 outbreak is an opportunity for organisations to better contribute to sustainability by ensuring that the efforts that have been undertaken in the last three decades are not forgotten, and that societies and organisations are better coupled to face such crises and avert rebound effects.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) have become the international framework for sustainability policy. Its legacy is linked with the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), established in 2000. In this paper a scientometric analysis was conducted to: (1) Present a new methodological approach to identify the research output related to both SDGs and MDGs (M&SDGs) from 2000 to 2017, with the aim of mapping the global research related to M&SDGs; (2) Describe the thematic specialization based on keyword co-occurrence analysis and citation bursts; and (3) Classify the scientific output into individual SDGs (based on an ad-hoc glossary) and assess SDGs interconnections. Publications conceptually related to M&SDGs (defined by the set of M&SDG core publications and a scientometric expansion based on direct citations) were identified in the in-house CWTS Web of Science database. A total of 25,299 publications were analyzed, of which 21,653 (85.59%) were authored by Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) or academic research centers (RCs). The findings reveal the increasing participation of these organizations in this research (660 institutions in 2000–2005 to 1,744 institutions involved in 2012–2017). Some institutions present both a high production and specialization on M&SDG topics (e.g., London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and World Health Organization); and others with a very high specialization although lower production levels (e.g., Stockholm Environment Institute). Regarding the specific topics of research, health (especially in developing countries), women, and socio-economic issues are the most salient. Moreover, it has been observed an important interlinkage in the research outputs of some SDGs (e.g., SDG11 “Sustainable Cities and Communities” and SDG3 “Good Health and Well-Being”). This study provides first evidence of such interconnections, and the results of this study could be useful for policymakers in order to promote a more evidenced-based setting for their research agendas on SDGs.

Sustainable development and sustainability have appeared as concepts to help address the economic,environmental, and social impacts from previous generations, on this generation, and future ones through a holistic perspective. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have become the international framework for sustainability policy. The 17 SDGs and 169 targets were agreed upon by the 193 member states of the UN in2015 and are to be achieved by 2030. It should be noted that the SDGs were designed by governments for governments. These are based on the principles of: (1) a statement of a social-political priority (goal), (2) a time-bound quantitative aspect to be achieved (target), and (3) the measurement to monitor its progress(indicator). Since the SDGs (i.e. the macro level) are fairly new there is very limited research yet on how organisations (i.e. the micro level) contribute to them, or how such contributions could be advanced.Organisations civil society; companies; and public sector organisations (PSOs) have been instrumental in driving sustainability. In the last lustrum, there has been an increasing interest in organisational sustainability, where the importance of sustainability’s dimensions depends on an organisation’s nature and purpose. The contributions of organisations to sustainability, and by implication to the SDGs, have been proposed by a number of authors,where the most complete definition states that: such contributions entail the continuous incorporation and integration of sustainability issues in the organisation’s system elements (operations and production, strategy and management, governance, organisational systems, service provision, and assessment and reporting), as well as change processes and their rate of change. In this research, we will present some case studies of organisations contributing to the SDGs. The research group is an international leader and responsible for several publications in the field of sustainability, organizational change management, sustainable business models, sustainability assessment and reporting, circular economy, collaboration for sustainability, or education for sustainable development, among others. The multidisciplinary character of the group is a strength that defines our priority research area, mainly focused on sustainability. In this regard, case studies such as the contribution of HigherEducation Institutions to the SDGs or organizational change management in companies will be presented. The results presented will further the discussions on how organisations contribute to the SDGs, and how the micro and macro-level can be better connected.

Public participation is crucial for policy-making and can contribute to strengthening democracies and decision-making. Public participation can help to address sustainability challenges and plays a key role in attaining the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While the SDGs are policy concepts, there has been limited research conducted on how the public perceives the SDGs. Public participation in scientific research has been carried out through citizen science (CS). This paper analyzes the public's perception of the SDGs through CS and how the public can participate in their implementation. The paper uses the OSDG community platform, a citizen science platform with >2000 participants, to analyze public perception of the SDGs. A set of 40,062 excerpts of text (v2023-01-01), a topic modeling and agreement scores by using CorTexT Manager software, was analyzed. The results show that some SDGs, e.g. health (SDG3) or life below water (SDG14), have higher levels of agreement from the public, whilst for other SDGs the public disagree on their perception, (e.g. zero hunger). The paper shows that issues affecting citizens' daily lives (e.g. in People related goals) tend to have a higher level of agreement among volunteers, while economic issues and directives have greater discrepancies. The results provide an overview of the differences in public perception on the SDGs and their implementation. The misperceptions regarding the SDGs should be reduced to achieve a better implementation, improve public participation, and help policy-making processes.

Urban resilience is an emergent concept that is receiving an increasing attention. Its definition is linked with the ability of an urban system to resist, maintain continuity and recover through all stresses while adapting and transforming towards sustainability. The aim of this study is two-fold. First, we analyse the research output on urban resilience using bibliometric techniques and Web of Science (WoS) in order to define the scope and identify topics in the urban resilience literature. CiteSpace software is used to establish the intellectual framework. Second, their contribution to sustainability dimensions and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) based on the research output is explored.

For that purpose, we examined 1014 publications during the period 1998–2020. The findings reveal urban resilience literature has grown since the 2009.A specialization in recent years from more theoretical research to a more practical is identified. In terms of contribution towards sustainability, the findings show the number of publications that directly address sustainability is scarce and more balanced to environmental and social perspectives. These findings can provide a better understanding of the patterns and trends in the field and provides first evidence of the contribution of academic research on urban resilience to sustainability.

Sustainability has become a global concern in the 21st century. However, sustainability is an ambivalent concept that can be interpreted in many ways. In the beginning, it was environmentally-related. Later, however, it was linked to social or economic sustainability, which was known as the triple bottom-line or the three-pillar model (social/economic and environmental sustainability). Later, additional dimensions were incorporated, such as institutional, cultural, or even spatial. As a result of the growth and importance of sustainability, this study provides a comprehensive overview of the core of sustainability. With that aim in mind, we will analyse the following aspects of scientific production: volume of scientific output, primary agents involved (countries, institutions), web of science (WoS) categories, collaborations, acknowledgement patterns, and thematic analysis. The findings in this paper suggest an increasing growth in scientific output in all areas of sustainability, albeit with different patterns (e.g., collaboration, specialisation) among the three pillars.

Sustainable Development Goals have emerged as a global strategy to ensure a better and sustainable future for all, balancing the economic, social, and environmental development. These goals represent a long-term perspective that needs to be embedded in the decision-making of governments, businesses and society. Therefore, science, technology and innovation has been recognized as one of the main drivers for shifting to a sustainable path. However, its contribution to sustainable goals remains a complex and unresolved debate.  

Therefore, the aim of this study is twofold. It aims to analyze the (mis)alignment of research in HEIS towards sustainable goals, as well as to analyze the interlinkage among the 17 goals. We examined the research papers from ten universities that compose the Young Universities for the Future of Europe (YUFE) Network. We analyzed 78,241 papers from the Web of Science during the period 2015-2019. We present a novel approach by using an open-source tool called OSDG, which combines an ontology-based approach from previous projects and then matches to the fields of study from Microsoft Academic. Sixty-eight percent of the papers were assigned to, at least, one goal. 

The findings reveal the increasing participation of the institutions of this network in this research. We find that the goals more frequently addressed are related to Health, Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, and Climate Change. We also compare this information with the targets and indicators on each goal to assess the similarity. These preliminary results can provide a better understanding of the research contribution to sustainable goals.

Sustainability science is, per se, a topic that is inherently interdisciplinarity and orientedtowards the resolution of societal problems. In this paper, we propose a classifcation ofscientifc journals that composes the journal category “Green and Sustainable Science andTechnology” in the period 2014–2018 through the entropy-based disciplinarity indicator(EBDI). This indicator allows the classifcation of scientifc journals in four types based onthe citing and cited dimensions: knowledge importer, knowledge exporter, disciplinary andinterdisciplinarity. Moreover, the relationship between this taxonomy and the JCR bibliometric indicators and its predictive capacity of the taxonomy is explored through a CHAIDtree. As well, relations between the Web of Science categories, journals and taxonomy areexplored by the co-occurrence of categories and correspondence analysis. Results suggestthat the great majority of journals in this feld are specialized or interdisciplinary. However,over the 5-year period proposed in this study, interdisciplinary journals tend to be far morestable than specialized ones. The decision tree has shown that the number of citations is thevariable with the greatest discriminating capacity.

Sustainability has been proposed to address societal challenges. A number of efforts have been undertaken to implement sustainability, particularly through frameworks such as tools, initiatives and approaches (TIAs). Most of the research on the implementation efforts has been in the corporate context. This paper is aimed at analysing the implementation of TIAs in academic research. A bibliometric analysis of twenty TIAs during the period 1961–2020 was carried out to analyse their implementation in academic research. The results highlight that there has been research published on all the TIAs analysed. The TIAs have a better balance and interrelations between the sustainability dimensions in their implementation than in the theory. The results show that for a better implementation of TIAs in academic research it is necessary to address sustainability dimensions (economic, environmental, social, and time) in a holistic and balanced way considering alignment of general and specific efforts, i.e. TIAs, and congruence (linking ‘theory’ and ‘implementation’). The results were integrated to propose a ‘Sustainability Implementation Framework’ (SIF), which is divided into three levels (i.e., Initiatives, Approaches, and Tools). The TIAs implementation should follow more strictly the definitions, or, perhaps, the TIAs definitions should be redefined to encompass the insights from their implementation.

There is a growing interest in determining the factors that influence a journal’s flipping to Open Access (OA). Using semi-structured interviews combined with bibliometric indicators, this paper uncovers the perception of Spanish managers related to OA and the decision to flip. The key research questions are twofold: How well do bibliometric measures reflect the changes in the status of the journal? How do journal managers perceive the flipping process? In order to answer these, twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with journal managers of Spanish Journals. The findings suggest the great majority of managers are aware of the indicators, but only two considered they reflect their reality. The results indicate as the main motivations to flip to OA: being imposed by the host institution, economic reasons, and increase visibility and internationalization. An increase in the number of submissions, visibility, or internationalization since the transition is perceived as a benefit while the loss of interchanges with other institutions is seen as the major drawback. Although flipping to OA is perceived by the managers to have many advantages, it raises some challenges too, especially the need for funding, lack of resources capacity for technical support, and the creation of alliances.

There is a growing interest in determining the factors that influence a journal's flipping to Open Access (OA). Using semi-structured interviews combined with bibliometric indicators, this paper uncovers the perception of Spanish managers related to Open Access and the decision to flip. The key research questions are twofold: How well do bibliometric measures reflect the changes in the status of the journal? How do journal managers perceive the flipping process? In order to answer these, twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with journal managers of Spanish Journals. The findings suggest the great majority of managers are aware of the indicators, but only two mentioned they reflect their reality. An increase in the number of submissions, visibility, or internationalization since the transition is perceived as a benefit while the loss of interchanges with other institutions is seen as the major drawback. Although flipping to OA is perceived by the managers to have many advantages, it raises some challenges too, especially the need for funding, lack of resources capacity for technical support, and the creation of alliances.

Purpose

This study aims to analyse and evaluate the methodology followed by the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings (THE-IR), as well as the coverage obtained and the data offered by this ranking, to determine if its methodology reflects the degree of sustainability of universities, and whether their results are accurate enough to be used as a data source for research and strategic decision-making.

Design/methodology/approach

A summative content analysis of the THE-IR methodology was conducted, paying special attention to the macro-structure (university score) and micro-structure (sustainable development goals [SDG] score) levels of the research-related metrics. Then, the data published by THE-IR in the 2019, 2020 and 2021 edition was collected via web scraping. After that, all the data was statistically analysed to find out performance rates, SDGs’ success rates and geographic distributions. Finally, a pairwise comparison of the THE-IR against the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (THE-WUR) was conducted to calculate overlap measures.

Findings

Severe inconsistencies in the THE-IR methodology have been found, offering a distorted view of sustainability in higher education institutions, allowing different strategic actions to participate in the ranking (interested, strategic, committed and outperformer universities). The observed growing number of universities from developing countries and the absence of world-class universities reflect an opportunity for less-esteemed institutions, which might have a chance to gain reputation based on their efforts towards sustainability, but from a flawed ranking which should be avoided for decision-making.

Practical implications

University managers can be aware of the THE-IR validity when demanding informed decisions. University ranking researchers and practitioners can access a detailed analysis of the THE-IR to determine its properties as a ranking and use raw data from THE-IR in other studies or reports. Policy makers can use the main findings of this work to avoid misinterpretations when developing public policies related to the evaluation of the contribution of universities to the SDGs. Otherwise, these results can help the ranking publisher to improve some of the inconsistencies found in this study.

Social implications

Given the global audience of the THE-IR, this work contributes to minimising the distorted vision that the THE-IR projects about sustainability in higher education institutions, and alerts governments, higher education bodies and policy makers to take precautions when making decisions based on this ranking.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this contribution is the first providing an analysis of the THE-IR’s methodology. The faults in the methodology, the coverage at the country-level and the overlap between THE-IR and THE-WUR have unveiled the existence of specific strategies in the participation of universities, of interest both for experts in university rankings and SDGs.

Higher education institutions have been steadily progressing towards the integration of sustainable practices in their university system. Consequently, an increasing number of these institutions have recognized their responsibility and are incorporating sustainability into their operations, and practices, following a holistic approach. Despite these efforts in the implementation, there are still many challenges to pursue sustainability. In the Spanish framework, there is a lack of studies that investigate sustainable development in higher education by considering all the dimensions. Especially, the efforts of the Spanish Universities in research have been scarcely analysed in detail. This study analyze how Spanish Public and Private Universities (SUE) are integrating sustainability into their institutions by the following dimensions: Research (based on a search strategy proposed by considering the social, economic and environmental perspective); Internationalization (participation in GreenMetrics ranking and European Framework projects), University Governance (Strategic Plans); Assessment and Reporting (Sustainability Plans) and Campus Operations (Green offices).

The findings reveal that some institutions present a higher production of scientific activity on the topic (e.g. UAB), while others with less production are more specialized (e.g. UA). The commitment of the universities has increased over time but it varies greatly among different kind of universities, especially in favour of the public institutions. By analyzing the correlation between sustainability practice, it was found that there are high association between some of the variables i.e. sustainability plan and having a green office. However, this study clearly demonstrates that although SD is recognized as being very important to HEIs and society, it is not yet embedded in the whole system’s strategies, activities, and policies.

In this paper, we propose the application of strategic analysis tools to design an educational program. Findings are based on the case of the Master in Innovative Manufacturing Systems (MIMS), a unique training offer to achieve a multidisciplinary expertise in smart manufacturing, in a two-year program simulating the journey of innovation. Building on novel educational paradigms and recent developments in the area of manufacturing, the main goal of the program is to provide the European industry with outstanding experts willing, able, and trained to bring novel solutions that address relevant societal challenges. Special emphasis is placed on real-world contexts and proactive activities, as well as strategies to continuously update the program. We aim to contribute to the educational facet of smart manufacturing.

In healthcare patients move in a different pattern depending on what the specific patient needs to have done. This pattern is also called a flow, where the flow which this article mentions describes how the patient flows. To offer the best healthcare service, it is important that the patient flow is effective. That the flow being effective means to work towards a logistical, quality and cost-effective flow. This also matches the patient care given in private clinics, where similar patient flows can be seen. The purpose with this study is to identify what affects the patient flow and how the patient flow can be more efficient both quality wise and cost wise. 

To answer the purpose this study performed a case study on a private clinic in the Stockholm area who work with cosmetic as well as reconstructive surgery. To follow a patient flow this study performed a flow mapping of a patient flow, the study also performed interviews with an employee of the private clinic. To collect information that supports this study's conclusion several previous articles were used along with information from literature and necessary internet websites.

The study identifies capacity, information transparency and logistics as causes of inefficiency. This study comes to the conclusion that lean tools could be implemented in an organization whose operations are active in healthcare. Out of those tools presented in the analysis three different categories occur where the lean tools are placed. The different categories are planning tools, improvement tools and preventive measures. With the help of previous research where similar, if not the same tools were used, positive results could be seen with consequent results being empathized. This study comes to the conclusion that a combination of tools from the three different categories is the best alternative to ensure an improvement of the efficiency long term. Planning for the future, while improving existing waste and at the same time using tools that act as an aid towards future waste is the best way to improve efficiency on the patient flow long term. 

Keywords: Lean, efficiency, improvement, healthcare, logistics, patient flow

Säkerhet inom alla verksamhetens processer är en viktig del i organisationer för att de ska fungera långsiktigt. Människans välmående och hälsa är grundläggande för att ett företag ska kunna bedriva en fungerande verksamhet. Trots detta kan organisationer göra felaktiga beslut inom säkerhet baserat på deras tolkning av risker (Robinson et al., 2013). Dödsfall och skador inom process- och tillverkningsindustrin har minskat avsevärt under de tre senaste decennierna. Enligt Arbetsmiljöverket (2021) har antalet arbetsolyckor utan sjukfrånvaro haft en relativt stabil ökning på den svenska arbetsplatsen från år 1980 - 2021 bland både kvinnor och män. Detta kan indikera på att säkerhet på arbetsplatsen är ett område som är i behov av mer undersökning och utveckling.  Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka risker för arbetsplatsolyckor och säkerhetshantering i ett tillverkande företag samt ge förbättringsförslag för en hälsosammare arbetsmiljö. Studien genomfördes genom en kvalitativ och kvantitativ metod i form av intervjuer, observation och en enkätundersökning. Resultatet jämfördes med relevant teori om säkerhetshantering. Denna studie avgränsas till Duro Svenska Tapetmästare och företagets produktion som innefattar färgproduktion, tapettillverkning och beskärning av tapetrullar.  Duros nuvarande riskhantering och säkerhetsarbete är i form av skyddsronder som innebär att samtliga aktiviteter och utrymmen kontinuerligt inspekteras för att identifiera risker. Duros säkerhetshantering visade sig ha brister i flera områden inom produktionen vilket framkom från FMEA-analysen, intervjuerna, enkäten samt observationen. Bristerna inkluderade körning av maskiner, räcke vid gångramp och ventilation. Därutöver identifierades det ergonomiska brister, otillräckliga skyddsronder samt avsaknad av säkerhets- och miljöpolicy.  Studien kom fram till att det finns flera hinder för att öka säkerheten på arbetsplatsen. Det identifierades ett gap inom säkerhetshanteringen eftersom företagets ledning, beslutsfattare och medarbetare anser att säkerhetsarbetet är tillräckligt trots att vår undersökning påvisar att den inte är det. Denna uppfattning utgör ett hinder för vidare utveckling av säkerheten och gäller även ledningens uppfattning av medarbetarna. Vidare har studien identifierat centrala nyckelfaktorer som företag bör ta i beaktande. Riskbedömningsmetoder som FMEA och JHA bidrar med en överblick över företagets arbetsprocesser och produktion eftersom dessa metoder inkluderar riskbedömning i produktionens samtliga aktiviteter. Detta kan kombineras med fler riskhanteringsverktyg som i sin tur ger möjlighet till att identifiera, utvärdera och åtgärda risker för en säkrare arbetsmiljö. 

The effects of implementing Lean has been widely studied within the context of discrete manufacturing, where it originated, but much less so within the process industry. Within discrete manufacturing there are major benefits to implementing Lean with a focus on respect for people and human aspects, particularly on employee health and organisational culture, but does the same hold true in the process industry? The purpose of this thesis is to look into this question. In order to do so, a case company within the process industry, which was working with a consultant firm to implement Lean, was contacted. The primary method of gathering data was through semi-structured interviews, further backed by KPIs provided by the case company. The data from the case company has been analysed and compared with theories and ideas gathered from literature, and then discussed. The results indicated that there had not been enough time to see the full extent of benefits or issues on employee health or organisational culture in relation to implementing Lean, only minor effects could be observed. However, better contact between employees, increased motivation, but also increased stress could be seen. In order to gain a broader understanding of the human aspects within the context of process industry while implementing Lean, future research could look at more long-term effects, or the generalisability through a quantitative approach.

Introduktion: Globaliseringen innebär att företag i allt högre grad måste utvärdera, utveckla och förbättra den egna verksamheten för att möta kundernas nya krav och behov. Allt fler företag strävar efter att tillämpa Lean-filosofin för att möta dessa krav och behov. Lean påvisar positiva effekter på produktivitet, lönsamhet och kvalitet. Däremot innebär ofta tillämpningen av Lean försämringar för arbetstagarna och arbetssituationen. Högre arbetstempo, mindre kontroll över arbetssituation och höga krav är vanliga effekter på arbetssituationen. Tillämpningen av Lean är ofta omotiverad av ledningen och kunskap hos arbetstagarna prioriteras lågt, trots att kunskap är avgörande för hur framgångsrikt Lean tillämpningen resulterar i.  

Syfte: Syftet med rapporten är att analysera hur utbildning om Lean kan påverka kunskap om Lean och upplevelsen av stress hos människan. 

Metod: En litteraturgenomgång genomfördes där relevanta områden inom Lean togs ut samt litteratur om hälsa och arbetsrelaterad stress. Utifrån detta utformades den teoretiska referensramen. Empirin samlades in genom en fallstudie på två tillverkande företag. En kvantitativ enkät användes som metod och skickades ut till montörerna på företagen. Därefter genomfördes en analys där empirin och teorin ställdes mot varandra, för att vidare kunna dra slutsatser.  

Resultat: Respondenterna ansåg sig ha större kunskap inom samtliga områden om Lean om de har erhållit utbildning, däremot varierade svaren mer i de stressrelaterade frågorna. Det finns en del mönster i korrelationerna mellan kunskap och stress. 

Slutsats: Kunskapen om Lean påverkas av utbildning, samt att kunskapen bedöms lägre inom de mänskliga aspekterna än de tekniska aspekterna om Lean. Upplevelsen av stress påverkas till viss del av om montörerna har fått utbildning eller inte genom givna tillfällen på arbetstid. Utbildning ger effekter som ökad kontroll över arbetssituationen, ökad säkerhet i hur arbetsuppgifter ska utföras och utbildning ger också goda effekter på sömnkvaliteten. 

Purpose: This thesis explores the bi-directional flows of material perceived by manufacturing firms in the supply chain and accordingly derive suggestions to properly manage these flows to increase customer satisfaction and reduce cost.

Methods: A literature review was summarized in a conceptual framework. This framework was then illustrated in a case. In this case, 11 semi-structured interviews, 3 participant observations and 3 types of archival records were collected. Analysis and discussion of the preliminary conceptual framework compared to the case was the basis for the modified conceptual framework that was designed.

Main findings: In general material flows downstream the supply chain, but because of quality issues, recycling or returns material need to flow upstream the supply chain. This thesis provides a holistic view of how to manage these flows with a modified conceptual framework.

Academic contributions: Previously, almost no academic research has been conducted on decision variables when it comes to managing material flows upstream the supply chain. This thesis contributes to closing this gap by suggesting different actions to properly manage the bi-directional flow of material. Furthermore, previous research addressing how to manage material flows has been re-accessed and expanded.

Managerial implications: By using the framework, practitioners can determine helpful activities to increase customer satisfaction and reduce cost. This means management gets directions of where to allocate their resources.

Limitations: The perspective and evidence in this research are only collected from the manufacturer’s point of view, valuable insight from suppliers and customers may have been overlooked. The suggestions of how to manage the bi-directional flow of materials have not been tested and the outcome of these recommendations has not been compared to KPIs or other measurements.

As large corporations outsource parts of their manufacturing and services, many small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) suppliers are expected to deepen their capabilities and take on the role of system suppliers. The purpose of this paper is to analyse how knowledge integration with customers may help a SME develop system supplier capabilities. The study is based on a deep longitudinal case study of a SME manufacturer and focuses on continuous development capability as one of the core system supplier capabilities. The results show that knowledge integration (KI) with customers is an effective means to build system capability but that this is a stepwise process. The study identifies three levels of KI with customers: unidirectional knowledge transfer, mutual knowledge exchange and full-range knowledge integration. The analysis further indicates that each level of KI requires specific supplier capabilities.