Ammonia removal is an important problem that Canadian municipalities are encountering in their wastewater treatment systems due to ammonia’s adverse environmental effects and its increasingly stringent discharge standards. Nitrogen compounds are generally removed from wastewater by a combination of nitrification and denitrification. In full nitrification, ammonia is first biologically oxidized to nitrite, which is then oxidized to nitrate by nitrite-oxidizing bacteria. In denitrification, the resulting nitrate has to be first reduced to nitrite in order to be converted to nitrous oxide, then nitric oxide, and finally to nitrogen gas. Since, nitrite is an intermediary compound in both nitrification and denitrification, it may be more efficient to produce a partial nitrification up to nitrite and then denitrification starting from this nitrite. In this research, EnviroPro Designer was used to simulate, optimize and compare process models for both full nitrification and partial nitrification. The Full System model simulates the traditional full nitrification followed by denitrification. Partial System-1 model simulates the partial nitrification process followed by denitrification directly from nitrite. Partial System-1 significantly reduced the ammonia and domestic waste concentrations in the effluent while achieving 1.5 times faster denitrification rates and utilizing 33% less oxygen. Partial System-1 was further optimized to develop a novel nitrogen removal process, Partial System-3, which incorporated an additional third anoxic stage while the aerobic stage in sludge treatment was removed. Partial System-3 successfully reduced the ammonia and nitrite concentrations in the effluent to values well within the current guidelines while consuming 50% less oxygen than the Full System, which reflected favorably on utility savings. It also showed 2 times faster denitrification rates, and displayed superior domestic waste consumption. Furthermore, the capital and operational costs were less than other nitrogen removal systems investigated in this thesis. The novel Partial System-3 appears to be the best option for removal of nitrogen from medium to high strength wastewater, and further experimental research is required to confirm the kinetic and yield constants assumed in the simulations.

The literature presents a number of advantages regarding companies’ strategic focus on product design, arguing that the dimension of visual aesthetics in products may help a company to create commercial success, e.g. through product differentiation and as a means of company brand recognition. However, developing new products that have visual aesthetics as an important dimension is not without difficulty, and may lead to a number of managerial challenges. The purpose of this doctoral thesis is to describe and analyse how companies develop products that have visual aesthetics as an important dimension. The thesis describes and analyses: how the dimension of visual aesthetics affects the characteristics of the new product development process; how companies strike a balance between commercial and creative imperatives during new product development; and how companies source and collaborate using artistic design resources during new product development. Based on findings from five new product development projects and from interviews with managers at twelve Swedish designer furniture manufacturers, the thesis concludes that the dimension of visual aesthetics in products affects new product development in different ways. First, companies’ development of visual aesthetics calls for a more creative, artistic development process whereby, for example, idea generation and evaluation are often flexible in relation to plans made. Moreover, the different and subjective judgement of the aesthetic value of products has implications for new product development, e.g. that the company needs to address and balance imperatives stemming from different audiences, i.e. the designer’s self, peers, and the mass market, during product development. Also, it is concluded that the sourcing of designer resources and the composition of designer portfolios are both critical and related to companies’ desired brand image. A close and trustful working relationship between the designer and the manufacturer is a basis for companies’ successful product development. Theoretically, this research contributes to the product development literature through its findings on companies’ new product development processes in a seldom researched context, i.e. the development of designer products. Additionally, it contributes to the literature on design outsourcing by presenting new findings on the interplay between artistic design resources and managers. Moreover, it also contributes to the marketing literature by providing fresh insights into how companies balance their commercial and creative interests when developing new products. / Design och dess relation till företags marknadsföring är något som diskuteras både i akademisk litteratur och i samhället i övrigt. Genom att förstå och utnyttja design kan företaget skapa kommersiella fördelar, t ex genom att differentiera produkten från konkurrenternas och skapa igenkänning för företagets varumärke. Dock är utveckling av produkter med design som en viktig dimension inte oproblematisk utan kan leda till stora utmaningar för företaget. Tre sådana utmaningar i företag beskrivs och analyseras i denna avhandling. För det första behandlar avhandlingen hur ett fokus på design påverkar företagets produktutvecklingsprocess. Vidare studeras hur företaget balanserar kreativa och kommersiella intressen under produktutvecklingsprocessen. Dessutom behandlar avhandlingen hur företaget införskaffar och samarbetar med formgivare. Den industriella kontext som valts för denna avhandling är den svenska designmöbelindustrin. Avhandlingens slutsatser bygger på fallstudier inom väletablerade och framgångsrika företag inom denna industri. Avhandlingen visar att dimensionen av design påverkar företagens utvecklingsarbete på olika sätt. Först visar studien att de studerade företagens utveckling av designmöbler innebär en kreativ utvecklingsprocess där t.ex. idé-generering och ‑urval sällan grundas i strikta produktplaner utan i stället präglas av flexibilitet och tillvaratagande på uppkomna möjligheter. Vidare är bedömningen av en produkts designvärde subjektiv och svår att formulera i ord. Urvalet av lovande produktidéer grundas därför i hög grad på ledningens goda kunskap om design och erfarenhet inom branschen. Utöver detta påverkas företagens produktutveckling på olika sätt av det faktum att designvärde också skapas genom uppmärksamhet och uppskattning av exempelvis press, mässor och utmärkelser. Det visas också att företagens urval av formgivare är kritiskt och basen för ett framgångsrikt utvecklingsarbete. I de studerade företagen sker utveckling av produkter i nära och förtroendefullt samarbete mellan managers och formgivare. Dessutom kan företag påverka sitt varumärke genom att skapa en genomtänkt strategi för urval av formgivare och samarbetsformer med dessa.

Companies structure their work to be done using business processes. A widely used modeling language is BPMN which provides a standardized graphical notation and execution semantics. But studies show that many business processes contain logical errors. The detection of these errors priorly to the execution can save money and effort. A wide range of structural analysis methods for business processes exist that transform business processes into Petri nets or workflow graphs. But the analyses are either very slow or lack in the detection of all errors and their details. At the Friedrich Schiller University, a new workflow graph based approach is under development that promises a fast analysis, the detection of all errors and specific details to these errors. The aim of this thesis was to realise a framework that combines the modelling and analysis of business processes in BPMN. The framework should transform business processes into workflow graphs and analyse them dynamically while they are modelled. Analyses are supposed to be easily introducable. Another aspect was the enrichment of the BPMN diagram with process data that can be included into analyses too. The designed framework provides a simple interface to add new analyses or transformations. Analyses can share data independent of workflow graphs, define execution conditions and therefore define dependencies to other analyses. The transformation transforms BPMN diagrams always into analysable workflow graphs through several correction patterns that follow the BPMN semantics.

This thesis aims to elaborate the concept of responsibilty in design towards user in a critical manner. It investigates the perspectives of the professional design organizations through their design definitions and ethical guidelines, and analyzes the approaches to the issue of responsibility towards user in the design literature. The study sekks to understand the concept of user -the subject and object of design- through the concept of &quot / other&quot / borrowed from philosophy, and offers a different conceptualization of responsibility towards user together with its ethical implications.

<p><p>Syftet med denna uppsats var att skildra designprocessen i utformningen av ett matbord där ett bimål var att undersöka hur man som frilansare kommunicerar med ledet ovanför: d.v.s. producenterna. Därav detta egna utformade projekt som tar med er på resan från en inspiration till skapandet av en prototyp av en produkt.</p></p>

O design aliado ao artesanato é um campo de trabalho cada vez mais explorado por designers, assim como, existem muitos artesãos reunidos em grupos a fim de profissionalizar o trabalho artesanal. Também pode ser observado que o saber empírico do artesão, ligado ao conhecimento técnico do designer, profissionaliza e refina o trabalho artesanal. Desta forma, esta pesquisa tem como objetivo analisar a gestão, as intervenções de design, o uso de materiais e técnicas em grupos de artesãos do Rio Grande do Sul. O estudo apresenta as categorias artesanais e onde cada tipo de artesanato se insere, visto que há diversas formas de produzi-lo e representá-lo. A metodologia de pesquisa utilizada foi qualitativa, onde se lançou mão de questionários, entrevistas e observações à coleta de dados, realizada com seis grupos de artesãos que tiveram e não tiveram intervenção de designers. A pesquisa foi desenvolvida em três etapas: na etapa 1 – compreensão; foi realizada uma coleta preliminar e feito um plano de ação da pesquisa; na etapa 2 – captação; foi realizada a pesquisa de campo, aplicação dos questionários, observações realizadas pela pesquisadora no convívio dos grupos de artesãos e entrevistas realizadas com os artesãos; e na etapa 3 – avaliação; ocorreu a análise dos dados coletados. Os resultados dividiram-se basicamente em: pesquisa piloto e pesquisa final indicando, principalmente, que os grupos são carentes de conhecimentos e, ainda observou-se que a atuação conjunta de designers e artesãos favorece o segmento através da otimização do uso de materiais e técnicas melhorando, assim, a qualidade dos produtos e características estético-formais do artesanato. Conclui-se que as junções de design e artesanato podem ser uma importante conexão como objeto ordenador social e de geração de renda. / The design combined with the craftwork is a work camp increasingly explored by designers, as there are many craftsmen gathered in groups in order to professionalize the craftsmanship. It can also be observed that combining the empirical knowledge of the craftsman with the technical knowledge of the designer makes the craftwork more professional and refined. Thus, this research aims to analyze the management, the interventions of design and the usage of materials and techniques among artisans in Rio Grande do Sul. The study presents craftwork categories and the places in which different kinds of craftwork are present, since there are several ways to produce it and represent it. The research approach was a qualitative one and questionnaires, interviews and observations were used to collect data among six groups of artisans who had and had no intervention of designers. The research was conducted in three steps: step 1 - understanding, it was held a preliminary data collection and a research plan; step 2 - catchment, where it was conducted the field research, the questionnaires, the interviews with the artisans and the researcher's observations of the groups of artisans and craftsmen; step 3 - evaluation, was to analyze the data collected. The results were presented in two steps, the first consisting of a pilot survey and final survey, indicating mainly that the groups are lacking in knowledge and, it was also observed that the combined efforts of designers and craftsmen improve the quality of craftwork products, the optimization of the use of materials and techniques, as well as, the aesthetic value of handicraft products. It was concluded that the connection between design and crafts can be an important tool for the social ordering and income generation.

Este trabalho trata do entendimento das atividades dos profissionais de design participantes da gestão de design e tem como objetivo geral estudar e compreender a atividade desses profissionais, almejando a melhoria dos processos de trabalho desses indivíduos nas empresas. Para alcançar o objetivo geral, foram estipulados objetivos específicos, que correspondem aos três artigos constituintes desta dissertação. O primeiro artigo propõe o desenvolvimento de uma revisão sistemática da literatura brasileira, no que tange à gestão de design, buscando identificar o estado da arte do tema em questão. O segundo foca a revisão sistemática de literatura no profissional de design participante da gestão de design, em nível nacional e internacional. Já o terceiro artigo apresenta um estudo de caso com três profissionais de design, mapeando a atividade interna e externa desses profissionais nas empresas e, assim, esclarecendo a estrutura e os fatores intervenientes dessa atividade, bem como as relações com seus principais interlocutores nas organizações. A metodologia utilizada neste trabalho tem caráter exploratório. Em um primeiro momento, foi realizada uma revisão sistemática de literatura, de natureza aplicada e, em um segundo momento, uma pesquisa qualitativa, a partir de um estudo de caso, com realização de entrevistas em profundidade. Como resultado, pôde-se perceber a estrutura e os fatores intervenientes da atividade do profissional de design, bem como suas relações com seus principais interlocutores nas organizações. / This document is about the understanding of the activities of design professionals participating in the design management and aims to study and understand the activity of these professionals, targeting the improvement of the work processes of these individuals in the companies. To achieve the overall objective, specific goals were set, corresponding to the three articles of this dissertation. The first article proposes the development of a systematic review of Brazilian literature, regarding the design management, seeking to identify the state of the art of the theme. The second one focus on the systematic review of the literature of the design professional participating in the design management, in national and international levels. The third article presents a case study with three design professionals, mapping the internal and external activities of these professional in the companies, and, this way, clarifying the structure and intervenient factors of this activity and its relations with its main coworkers in the organizations. The methodology used in this study is exploratory. At first, it was performed a systematic review of the literature, of an applied nature, and, in a second moment, a qualitative research, from a case study, with in-depth interviews. As a result, it was possible to see the structure and intervene factors of the activity of the design professional as well as its relations with its main coworkers in the organizations.

O design aliado ao artesanato é um campo de trabalho cada vez mais explorado por designers, assim como, existem muitos artesãos reunidos em grupos a fim de profissionalizar o trabalho artesanal. Também pode ser observado que o saber empírico do artesão, ligado ao conhecimento técnico do designer, profissionaliza e refina o trabalho artesanal. Desta forma, esta pesquisa tem como objetivo analisar a gestão, as intervenções de design, o uso de materiais e técnicas em grupos de artesãos do Rio Grande do Sul. O estudo apresenta as categorias artesanais e onde cada tipo de artesanato se insere, visto que há diversas formas de produzi-lo e representá-lo. A metodologia de pesquisa utilizada foi qualitativa, onde se lançou mão de questionários, entrevistas e observações à coleta de dados, realizada com seis grupos de artesãos que tiveram e não tiveram intervenção de designers. A pesquisa foi desenvolvida em três etapas: na etapa 1 – compreensão; foi realizada uma coleta preliminar e feito um plano de ação da pesquisa; na etapa 2 – captação; foi realizada a pesquisa de campo, aplicação dos questionários, observações realizadas pela pesquisadora no convívio dos grupos de artesãos e entrevistas realizadas com os artesãos; e na etapa 3 – avaliação; ocorreu a análise dos dados coletados. Os resultados dividiram-se basicamente em: pesquisa piloto e pesquisa final indicando, principalmente, que os grupos são carentes de conhecimentos e, ainda observou-se que a atuação conjunta de designers e artesãos favorece o segmento através da otimização do uso de materiais e técnicas melhorando, assim, a qualidade dos produtos e características estético-formais do artesanato. Conclui-se que as junções de design e artesanato podem ser uma importante conexão como objeto ordenador social e de geração de renda. / The design combined with the craftwork is a work camp increasingly explored by designers, as there are many craftsmen gathered in groups in order to professionalize the craftsmanship. It can also be observed that combining the empirical knowledge of the craftsman with the technical knowledge of the designer makes the craftwork more professional and refined. Thus, this research aims to analyze the management, the interventions of design and the usage of materials and techniques among artisans in Rio Grande do Sul. The study presents craftwork categories and the places in which different kinds of craftwork are present, since there are several ways to produce it and represent it. The research approach was a qualitative one and questionnaires, interviews and observations were used to collect data among six groups of artisans who had and had no intervention of designers. The research was conducted in three steps: step 1 - understanding, it was held a preliminary data collection and a research plan; step 2 - catchment, where it was conducted the field research, the questionnaires, the interviews with the artisans and the researcher's observations of the groups of artisans and craftsmen; step 3 - evaluation, was to analyze the data collected. The results were presented in two steps, the first consisting of a pilot survey and final survey, indicating mainly that the groups are lacking in knowledge and, it was also observed that the combined efforts of designers and craftsmen improve the quality of craftwork products, the optimization of the use of materials and techniques, as well as, the aesthetic value of handicraft products. It was concluded that the connection between design and crafts can be an important tool for the social ordering and income generation.

Este trabalho trata do entendimento das atividades dos profissionais de design participantes da gestão de design e tem como objetivo geral estudar e compreender a atividade desses profissionais, almejando a melhoria dos processos de trabalho desses indivíduos nas empresas. Para alcançar o objetivo geral, foram estipulados objetivos específicos, que correspondem aos três artigos constituintes desta dissertação. O primeiro artigo propõe o desenvolvimento de uma revisão sistemática da literatura brasileira, no que tange à gestão de design, buscando identificar o estado da arte do tema em questão. O segundo foca a revisão sistemática de literatura no profissional de design participante da gestão de design, em nível nacional e internacional. Já o terceiro artigo apresenta um estudo de caso com três profissionais de design, mapeando a atividade interna e externa desses profissionais nas empresas e, assim, esclarecendo a estrutura e os fatores intervenientes dessa atividade, bem como as relações com seus principais interlocutores nas organizações. A metodologia utilizada neste trabalho tem caráter exploratório. Em um primeiro momento, foi realizada uma revisão sistemática de literatura, de natureza aplicada e, em um segundo momento, uma pesquisa qualitativa, a partir de um estudo de caso, com realização de entrevistas em profundidade. Como resultado, pôde-se perceber a estrutura e os fatores intervenientes da atividade do profissional de design, bem como suas relações com seus principais interlocutores nas organizações. / This document is about the understanding of the activities of design professionals participating in the design management and aims to study and understand the activity of these professionals, targeting the improvement of the work processes of these individuals in the companies. To achieve the overall objective, specific goals were set, corresponding to the three articles of this dissertation. The first article proposes the development of a systematic review of Brazilian literature, regarding the design management, seeking to identify the state of the art of the theme. The second one focus on the systematic review of the literature of the design professional participating in the design management, in national and international levels. The third article presents a case study with three design professionals, mapping the internal and external activities of these professional in the companies, and, this way, clarifying the structure and intervenient factors of this activity and its relations with its main coworkers in the organizations. The methodology used in this study is exploratory. At first, it was performed a systematic review of the literature, of an applied nature, and, in a second moment, a qualitative research, from a case study, with in-depth interviews. As a result, it was possible to see the structure and intervene factors of the activity of the design professional as well as its relations with its main coworkers in the organizations.

O design aliado ao artesanato é um campo de trabalho cada vez mais explorado por designers, assim como, existem muitos artesãos reunidos em grupos a fim de profissionalizar o trabalho artesanal. Também pode ser observado que o saber empírico do artesão, ligado ao conhecimento técnico do designer, profissionaliza e refina o trabalho artesanal. Desta forma, esta pesquisa tem como objetivo analisar a gestão, as intervenções de design, o uso de materiais e técnicas em grupos de artesãos do Rio Grande do Sul. O estudo apresenta as categorias artesanais e onde cada tipo de artesanato se insere, visto que há diversas formas de produzi-lo e representá-lo. A metodologia de pesquisa utilizada foi qualitativa, onde se lançou mão de questionários, entrevistas e observações à coleta de dados, realizada com seis grupos de artesãos que tiveram e não tiveram intervenção de designers. A pesquisa foi desenvolvida em três etapas: na etapa 1 – compreensão; foi realizada uma coleta preliminar e feito um plano de ação da pesquisa; na etapa 2 – captação; foi realizada a pesquisa de campo, aplicação dos questionários, observações realizadas pela pesquisadora no convívio dos grupos de artesãos e entrevistas realizadas com os artesãos; e na etapa 3 – avaliação; ocorreu a análise dos dados coletados. Os resultados dividiram-se basicamente em: pesquisa piloto e pesquisa final indicando, principalmente, que os grupos são carentes de conhecimentos e, ainda observou-se que a atuação conjunta de designers e artesãos favorece o segmento através da otimização do uso de materiais e técnicas melhorando, assim, a qualidade dos produtos e características estético-formais do artesanato. Conclui-se que as junções de design e artesanato podem ser uma importante conexão como objeto ordenador social e de geração de renda. / The design combined with the craftwork is a work camp increasingly explored by designers, as there are many craftsmen gathered in groups in order to professionalize the craftsmanship. It can also be observed that combining the empirical knowledge of the craftsman with the technical knowledge of the designer makes the craftwork more professional and refined. Thus, this research aims to analyze the management, the interventions of design and the usage of materials and techniques among artisans in Rio Grande do Sul. The study presents craftwork categories and the places in which different kinds of craftwork are present, since there are several ways to produce it and represent it. The research approach was a qualitative one and questionnaires, interviews and observations were used to collect data among six groups of artisans who had and had no intervention of designers. The research was conducted in three steps: step 1 - understanding, it was held a preliminary data collection and a research plan; step 2 - catchment, where it was conducted the field research, the questionnaires, the interviews with the artisans and the researcher's observations of the groups of artisans and craftsmen; step 3 - evaluation, was to analyze the data collected. The results were presented in two steps, the first consisting of a pilot survey and final survey, indicating mainly that the groups are lacking in knowledge and, it was also observed that the combined efforts of designers and craftsmen improve the quality of craftwork products, the optimization of the use of materials and techniques, as well as, the aesthetic value of handicraft products. It was concluded that the connection between design and crafts can be an important tool for the social ordering and income generation.