The AK4 rifle serves as the primary weapon for the Home Guard, an integral part of the Swedish Armed Forces. Introduced in 1964, the AK4 is the Swedish version of the Heckler & Koch G3 and functions as a fully automatic assault rifle. Among its components, the handguard holds significant importance, providing stability, improving accuracy and control, and protecting the user from heat generated by the barrel. Recognizing the need for optimization, an employee from the ALTEN Group, possessing military experience and expertise in the AK4, launched a project to enhance the ergonomics and versatility of the handguard in a cost-effective manner. This initiative stems from the excessively high cost of commercially available handguards, making them financially unviable for replacing the original handguard of every AK4 used by the Home Guard personnel. This project aims to design and develop a next-generation handguard for the AK4 rifle that addresses the current limitations of the existing handguard. The primary focus is improving the shooter’s performance by establishing a comfortable shape of the handguard, reducing the weight, and enhancing its compatibility with accessories. Additionally, the aim is to ensure the handguard is cost-effective for mass production and meets the requirements set by the Swedish Defense Materiel Administration. To achieve the aims, interviews and a comprehensive user testing study was conducted, collecting quantitative data in the form of participant ratings and rankings for different design concept while also gathering qualitative data through participant feedback that highlighted specific design features contributing to comfort. Additionally, a systematic material selection process was performed, involving the analysis and ranking of various materials based on properties such as weight, price, and specific mechanical properties. Furthermore, the manufacturing analysis relied mainly on conversations with industry experts possessing expertise in the field of plastic manufacturing. Upon conducting a detailed analysis, it has been determined that the ideal configuration for the final product is an octagonal shape. After careful evaluation, Polyamide 6 reinforced with 30% glass fibers has emerged as the most suitable material choice for the handguard. This material had the optimal balance between mechanical properties, thermal performance, durability, cost-effectiveness, and environmental impact. To produce 50,000 handguard units, the recommended manufacturing method was injection molding due to its compatibility with mass production and the advice received from industry experts. Considering the design and selected material, a substantial number of the requirements outlined by FMV could be fulfilled by conducting both theoretical analyses and practical experiments.

The thesis aims to examine how gender structures are portrayed in the Swedish Armed Forces' advertising campaigns before and after 2018, because that is when the conscription became gender neutral. Furthermore, the thesis will discuss the potential consequences of these portrayals. To do so the methodology of the study consists of a critical discourse analysis complimented by a semiotic approach. The main finding suggests that the films prior to 2018 to some extent reproduce male-dominated discourses of how a soldier should be and reinforce traditional gender structures. In contrast, the films from 2018 and onwards challenge these dominant discourses by including more women and other signs that are not typically coded as masculine. It is assumed that this will lead to more women being recruited, as the profession of a soldier is no longer perceived as being exclusively for men, and a more inclusive environment is introduced. These assumptions are based on previous research on gender structures in military institutions, which historically have been structured around male norms and values which force women in the military to adjust to patriarchal rules. The topic is important, as a gender-equal military is believed to lead to increased safety and efficiency, which is desirable for various reasons.

No description available.

No description available.

Introduktion Arbetsrelaterad känsla av sammanhang (eng. WSOC) kan användas som en indikator för arbetstrivsel och bygger på hur anställda ser på sitt arbete utifrån hanterbarhet, begriplighet och meningsfullhet. Kunskapsläget gällande hur WSOC påverkar anställdas vilja att stanna hos sin arbetsgivare är begränsat. Syfte Syftet var att undersöka hur WSOC relaterar till anställdas intention att stanna kvar hos sin arbetsgivare. Metod Syfte och frågeställningar besvarades genom en kvantitativ analys baserad på en enkätundersökning bland 450 personer i den svenska Marinen. De statistiska test som genomförts är oberoende t-test och envägs-ANOVA. Resultat De som ser sig stanna kvar hos sin arbetsgivare om tre år eller inte har funderat på att lämna det senaste året har signifikant högre WSOC än de som inte ser sig stanna kvar eller har övervägt att sluta. Starkare WSOC tyder på en högre intention för värnpliktiga att ta anställning och för GSS/K att söka officersutbildning. Resultatet tyder även på ett samband mellan WSOC och balansen mellan arbete och privatliv. Slutsats Resultatet tyder på ett samband mellan ett högre WSOC och en vilja att stanna hos sin arbetsgivare. Med vetskapen om hur personalen uppfattar sin känsla av sammanhang på arbetet kan en arbetsgivare vidta åtgärder för att öka behållandegraden och även som i Försvarsmaktens fall, öka rekryteringsgraden till myndigheten. Nyckelord Arbetsrelaterad känsla av sammanhang, behålla personal, rekrytering, Försvarsmakten, balans mellan arbete och privatliv. / Introduction Work related sense of coherence (WSOC) can be used as an indicator of well-being at work and is based on how employees view their work in terms of manageability, comprehensibility and meaningfulness. Research on how WSOC affects employees’ willingness to stay with their employer is as of now limited. Aim The aim of the study was to investigate how WSOC relates to employees' intention to remain with their employer. Method The aim and sub-questions were answered through a quantitative analysis based on a survey among 450 employees in the Swedish Navy. The statistical tests carried out are independent t- test and one-way ANOVA. Results People who see themselves staying with their employer for the next three years or those who have not considered leaving in the past year have a significantly stronger WSOC than those who do not see themselves staying or have considered leaving. Stronger WSOC furthermore indicated a higher intention for conscripts to take up employment and for employed sailors to enroll for officer training. The results also indicate a relationship between WSOC and work- life balance. Conclusion The results indicated a relationship between a stronger WSOC and a willingness to stay with one's employer. With the knowledge of how the employees perceives their sense of coherence at work, an employer can take measures to increase the retention rate and also, as in the case of the Armed Forces, increase the recruitment rate. Key words Work related sense of coherence (WSOC), retention, recruitment, Armed forces, work-life balance.

Försvarsmakten växer. För att skapa det robustare försvar med ökad förmåga, som beskrivs i Försvarsmaktens Perspektivstudie 2022, krävs under överskådlig framtid en tillväxt av de militära personalkategorierna. En personalkategori som Försvarsmakten har haft svårt att rekrytera är anställda soldater och gruppbefäl.Syftet med denna studie är att utforska vad som motiverar unga vuxna att efter värnplikten välja att ta anställning som kontinuerligt anställda gruppbefäl och soldater i Försvarsmakten. Studien är en kvalitativ, induktiv studie där empirin har inhämtats genom intervjuer och workshop med värnpliktiga och anställda soldater vid tre förband i armén.Studiens referensram beskriver hur de värnpliktiga soldaterna genom socialisation anpassar sig och formar en begynnande professionell identitet. Vidare så beskriver den soldaternas anknytning och engagemang till yrkesrollen. För att ytterligare se på soldaternas motivation genomlyses empirin med ett generationsperspektiv.Studiens resultat visar att de värnpliktiga soldaternas upplevelse av grundutbildningen är avgörande för deras val att fortsätta i Försvarsmakten. De soldater som väljer att stanna i Försvarsmakten som anställda GSS har positiva upplevelser i sin yrkesroll från grundutbildningen och har haft befäl som är starka positiva förebilder för professionen. Soldaternas främsta motiv utgörs av en förväntansbild som präglas av soldatyrkets särskilda karaktär och förutsättning och den starka sammanhållning som de ser som unik för den militära professionen.I studiens slutsatser anför författarna att fler värnpliktiga soldater skulle motiveras att fortsätta som anställda soldater om Försvarsmakten tillämpade ett förhållningssätt och ett ledarskap som inte gör åtskillnad på olika personalkategorier. De anför också att organisationskulturen behöver utvecklas för att bättre möta den nya generationen. / The Swedish armed forces (SAF) are growing. To meet the need for a more robust and capable defense force, as described by the proposed strategical military concept, the SAF must steadily increase military personnel volumes. A personnel category that the SAF has had difficulties recruiting are employed soldiers and squad leaders.The study aims to explore what motivates conscripts to choose voluntary employment as professional soldiers and squad leaders within the Swedish Armed Forces after their mandatory military service. The study is a qualitative, inductive study that gathers empirical facts through interviews with recently employed soldiers and a workshop with conscripted soldiers still completing their military service.The study's frame of reference describes how the conscripted soldiers adapt through socialization and form a nascent professional identity. Furthermore, it describes the soldiers' attachment and commitment to their professional role. To further understand the soldiers' motivation, the empirical evidence is viewed through a generational perspective.The results show that how the soldiers experience their mandatory military service constitutes the decisive factor for their choice to continue in the Armed Forces. Conscripts who choose to stay in the Armed Forces have both had a positive affirmation of their professional identity during their military service and have experienced leaders who are strong and positive role models for the profession. Their primary motivations embody expectations of the special characteristics and prerequisites of the military profession as well as the strong sense of cohesion and comradeship that they regard as unique to the military profession.The authors conclude that more of the conscripted soldiers would be motivated to continue if the SAF would adopt a more coherent approach of culture and leadership that does not differentiate between conscripted and contracted soldiers. The authors also conclude that the organizational culture of the SAF need to adapt to the new generation.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

Syftet med vår uppsats har varit att undersöka vilka möjligheter det civila näringslivet har att stödja Försvarsmakten med reparations- och underhållstjänst av försvarsmaktsgemensam materiel under en säkerhetspolitisk kris. Utvecklingen av vårt Totalförsvars har återigen blivit en aktuell fråga, kopplat till det säkerhetspolitiska läget i Europa idag. Det svenska Totalförsvaret syftar till att det civila försvaret tillsammans med Försvarsmakten gemensamt ska stärka samhällets motståndskraft. Ett starkt och robust civilt försvar är en förutsättning för att samhället ska kunna stödja Försvarsmakten under kriser och krig. Metoden som har varit vår ledstång under studien bygger på en induktiv ansats med ett explorativt förhållningssätt. Själva datainsamlingen och bearbetningen av den har varit kvalitativ, där datainsamlingen har genomförts genom semistrukturerade intervjuer av respondenter från både näringslivet och Försvarsmakten. De insamlade data i form av intervjuunderlag har analyserats, kodats och grupperats i teman enligt metoden tematisk analys. Resultatet från studien visar på att Sverige inte längre har den förmåga till krisberedskap som vi hade i slutet av 1990-talet och där regeringen slutligen upphävde förordningen kring motorreparationstjänsten. Vårt insamlade underlag visar dock på att såväl statliga offentliga utredningar, som myndigheter och det civila näringslivet ser ett behov och möjlighet till att kunna återskapa någon form av samverkan mellan civila företag och Försvarsmakten för att öka tillgängligheten på försvarsmaktsgemensam materiel. Studien har kommit fram till att Sverige har förutsättningar för att kunna bygga upp en krisberedskap kring reparations- och underhållstjänst i likhet med den vi hade före juni 2007. I denna nya krisberedskap har civila företag en uppgift i att stödja Försvarsmakten med reparations- och underhållstjänst av försvarsmaktsgemensam materiel vid kriser, väpnat angrepp och krig. / The purpose of this thesis has been to investigate what opportunities the commercial industry has to support the Armed Forces with repair and maintenance services of armed forces common equipment during a security policy crisis. The development of our Total Defence has once again become a topical issue, linked to the security policy situation in Europe today. The Swedish Total Defence aims to ensure that civil defence, together with the Swedish Armed Forces, jointly strengthens the overall resilience of society. A strong and robust civil defence is a prerequisite for society to be able to support the Armed Forces during crises and war. The method that has been our guidance during the study is based on an inductive approach with an exploratory approach. The data collection and its processing has been qualitative, where the data collection has been carried out through semi-structured interviews of respondents from both the commercial industry and the Swedish Armed Forces. The collected data in the form of interview data has been analysed, coded and grouped into themes according to the method of thematic analysis. The results of the study show that Sweden no longer has the capacity for crisis preparedness that we had in the late 1990s and where the government in the end repealed the regulation on the Total Defence repair and maintenance service. However, our collected data shows that both government public inquiries, as well as authorities and the commercial industry, once again see a need and opportunity to recreate some form of collaboration between civilian companies and the Armed Forces in order to increase the availability of joint armed forces equipment. The study has concluded that Sweden has the prerequisites to be able to establish a repair and maintenance service similar to the one we had before June 2007. Where civilian companies have a role in supporting the Armed Forces with the repair and maintenance service of armed forces common equipment in the event of crises, armed attack or war.