Syftet är att ta reda på om det har uppstått missförstånd hos en kursdeltagare efter att en kunskapsöverföring ägt rum från en kursledare. Vilka är de i så fall och hur skiljer sig deras underliggande antaganden, dvs. deras outtalade värderingar och uppfattningar om det hälsorelaterande vetandet som förmedlats? Studien innehåller två intervjuer, dels med en kursledare och dels med en av dennes kursdeltagare. Sedan jämförs intervjuerna med hjälp av ett strateginät, dvs. en form av tankekarta i det relativt nya datorprogrammet Complador. Detta är med andra ord en kvalitativ fallstudie. I intervjuerna framkom det många likheter mellan informanternas underliggande antaganden kring kunskapsöverföringen. Dock är även skillnaderna/missuppfattningarna många. Det betyder att en kursledare alltid bör sträva efter att få så mycket återkoppling från sina kursdeltagare som det bara är möjligt.

This study aims to model a regional rail based intermodal transport system and to examine the feasibility of it through a case study for a shipper of daily consumables distributing in an urban area and to evaluate it regarding cost and emissions. The idea of an intermodal line train is that of making intermediate stops along the route thus enabling the coverage of a larger market area than conventional intermodal services, hence reducing the high cost associated with feeder transports, the congestion on the road network and generated externalities. The results of the case study indicate that the most critical parameters for the feasibility of such a system are the loading space utilization of the train and the cost for terminal handling. / <p>QC 20130531</p> / Regional kombitransportsystem i Mälardalen

Graduation date: 1994

The Saskatchewan Wheat Pool went from being the largest grain handler in western Canada in the mid 1990s to undertaking a $405 million debt restructuring in January 2003. Provincial grain handling market share had been over 60 percent for two decades prior to the Pool becoming publicly traded in 1996. With the share conversion, the Pool began a capital expenditure program in an effort to adapt to industry deregulation and to compete with the multinationals that were entering western Canada. This program was not successful. SWPs long-term debt increased five fold over the period 19961999 and consecutive multi-million dollar net losses were incurred followed by the debt restructuring.<p>This thesis uses dominant logic theory and the principal-agent problem to analyze what went wrong at SWP. Theory suggests organizations faced with major industry change may have difficulty revising their dominant logic, which leads to organizational failure. Not only is there a tendency to hold on to established beliefs, but the creation of new beliefs is prone to error because of bounded rationality. The existence of a principal-agent problem can worsen an organizations ability to revise its dominant logic. Information asymmetry and the principals trust of the agent can lead to inaccurate beliefs and ineffective strategies being approved. <p>The results of personal interviews with twenty-one past management and elected Saskatchewan Wheat Pool personnel and grain industry affiliates are presented and analyzed in a case study format. The results suggest that deregulation of the grain handling industry and the anticipated arrival of multinational competitors pressured the Pool to respond quickly to major industry change. The Pool had difficulty revising its dominant logic; it retained outdated beliefs and accepted inaccurate new beliefs. Interviewees described how some investments were built on erroneous beliefs and lacked complete due diligence. Evidence suggests the principal-agent problem was also at play. The need for confidentiality after the share conversion increased information asymmetry, and management took advantage of the boards lack of experience as investments extended beyond the farm gate. The principal-agent problem in conjunction with an inaccurate revised dominant logic is a reasonable explanation for the Pools failure.

I conducted an integrative field study on male cottonmouths (Agkistrodon piscivorus), a common pitviper of the southeastern United States, to investigate the evolution of contrasting mating patterns in North American pitvipers (bimodal and unimodal annual patterns) and resolve conflicting information about the pattern exhibited by the cottonmouth. I determined a unimodal late summer peak of testosterone (T) and a muted unimodal seasonal cycle of the sexual segment of the kidney (a secondary sexual characteristic), both of which were correlated with the single peak of spermatogenesis in late summer. I also conducted a study to determine diel and seasonal variation of corticosterone (CORT), the effect of captive handling on CORT, and the relationship between CORT and T after captive handling, and detected a significant elevation of CORT and a significant decrease of T after capture in male cottonmouths, as well as a significant negative correlation between CORT and T.

Automated storage and Retrieval (AS/R) systems have had a significant impact on storage and retrieval of finished goods, work-in-process, and raw materials and supplies. A microcomputer-based simulation model was developed to evaluate different unit load AS/R systems serving multiple input sources and output destinations. The simulation results were statistically analyzed on different performance measures including throughput, mean waiting times maximum waiting times and rejects. The results showed that for single-dock, square-in-time layouts, the class based arrangement produced significantly higher throughput for all scheduling policies. Among the scheduling policies, the relief nearest neighbor produced consistently higher throughput. Comparing square-in-time versus non-square-in-time layouts, the square-in-time layout performance was better; the performance deteriorated as deviations from square-in-time increased. For the two dual-dock layouts, at lower arrival rates the dedicated layout produced higher throughput; there was no significant difference between the two layouts at higher arrival rates. / Graduation date: 1992

The blended-wing-body (BWB) configuration appears as a promising contender for the next generation of large transport aircraft. The idea of blending the wing with the fuselage and eliminating the tail is not new, it has long been known that tailless aircraft can suffer from stability and control problems that must be addressed early in the design. This thesis is concerned with identifying and then evaluating the flight dynamics, stability, flight controls and handling qualities of a generic BWB large transport aircraft concept. Longitudinal and lateral-directional static and dynamic stability analysis using aerodynamic data representative of different BWB configurations enabled a better understanding of the BWB aircraft characteristics and identification of the mechanisms that influence its behaviour. The static stability studies revealed that there is limited control power both for the longitudinal and lateral-directional motion. The solution for the longitudinal problem is to limit the static margins to small values around the neutral point, and even to use negative static margins. However, for the directional control problem the solution is to investigate alternative ways of generating directional control power. Additional investigation uncovered dynamic instability due to the low and negative longitudinal and directional static stability. Furthermore, adverse roll and yaw responses were found to aileron inputs. The implementation of a pitch rate command/attitude hold flight control system (FCS) improved the longitudinal basic BWB characteristics to satisfactory levels, or Level 1, flying and handling qualities (FHQ). Although the lateral-directional command and stability FCS also improved the BWB flying and handling qualities it was demonstrated that Level 1 was not achieved for all flight conditions due to limited directional control power. The possibility to use the conventional FHQs criteria and requirements for FCS design and FHQs assessment on BWB configurations was also investigated. Hence, a limited set of simulation trials were undertaken using an augmented BWB configuration. The longitudinal Bandwidth/Phase delay/Gibson dropback criteria, as suggested by the military standards, together with the Generic Control Anticipation Parameter (GCAP) proved possible to use to assess flying and handling qualities of BWB aircraft. For the lateral-directional motion the MIL-F-8785C criteria were used. Although it is possible to assess the FHQ of BWB configuartions using these criteria, more research is recommended specifically on the lateral-directional FHQs criteria and requirements of highly augmented large transport aircraft.

Waste generation is an unavoidable product of man’s activities, however, sustainable management of such waste is a challenge faced in many countries today. Nigeria, a developing country in Africa, has been in a quandary of how to efficiently manage the municipal solid waste its population generates. Many states in the country lack adequate plans and infrastructure required for efficient and sustainable management of municipal solid waste. For Lagos, the most populous and popular state in Nigeria, the problem is further compounded by its rather large and still increasing population. In this research, Lagos is taken as a case study; the extant trend for solid waste handling in households, trends in the formal and informal sector as regards solid waste management from household collection to final disposal are focused upon. Many countries, particularly the developed ones, have employed options in the waste management hierarchy for sustainable management of their municipal solid waste and the blend of options employed is usually highly dependent on local factors. Following the waste management hierarchy, possible options for sustainable municipal solid waste management in Lagos are discussed. It is concluded that waste reduction, reuse, recycling and composting are potential management options for the state. Landfilling will remain an important option for final disposal but reliance on this method could be significantly reduced if management options are exploited to the maximum in a sustainable solid waste management structure.

Den totala biogasproduktionen i Sverige 2009 var 1,4 TWh och 22 % av biogasen producerades i samrötningsanläggningar. Sedan 2005 är det förbjudet att deponera organiskt avfall, vilket har gjort att produktionen från samrötningsanläggningar har ökat de senaste åren. Den totala biogaspotentialen i Sverige är ungefär 15 TWh och där står lantbruket för över 70 %. Avloppsslam, avfall från livsmedelsindustrin och matavfall står för den resterande delen. Det är även dessa tre råvarugrupper som har störst lönsamhet med dagens teknik. Av dessa råvarugrupper finns den största kvarvarande potentialen hos matavfall. Problemet med matavfall är att det ofta innehåller föroreningar som måste sorteras bort för att inte orsaka driftstörningar. Detta orsakar ofta problem på grund av att organiskt material hamnar i rejektet.    Kungsängens gård är en samrötningsanläggning som producerar biogas från olika typer av organiska restprodukter. Under 2009 behandlades 7 536 ton material, av detta var 58 % matavfall. Av inkommande material sorterades 938 ton ut och lämnade anläggningen som rejekt. Under 2011 förväntas mängden inkommande material öka. Dessutom förväntas andelen matavfall öka till 90 % vilket kommer att ge ännu större rejektmängder. Syftet med detta examensarbete var att genom analyser och satsvisa utrötningsförsök bestämma den kemiska sammansättningen samt metanpotentialen hos de olika rejektfraktionerna från biogasanläggningen Kungsängens gård. En utredning gjordes för att undersöka vilka möjligheter och tekniker som potentiellt skulle kunna användas för att framställa biogas av rejektet och också vilka möjligheter som finns för att effektivisera befintlig utrustning. Resultatet från utrötningsförsöken visade att metanpotentialen för de olika rejektfraktionerna var hög och kan jämföras med vad som kan förväntas av källsorterat matavfall. Om rejektet som producerades under 2010 skulle användas för biogasproduktion skulle denna metanpotential motsvara 10 % av den totala biogasproduktionen vid Kungsängens gård under 2010. Utredningen visar att det bästa alternativet för att röta rejektet i sitt befintliga skick är satsvis torrötning. Osäkerheten kring torrötning är dock stor på grund av att det i Sverige inte finns några torrötningsanläggningar och därmed är kunskapsnivån relativt låg. / The biogas production in Sweden in 2009 was 1,4 TWh and 22 % of the biogas was produced in co-digestion plants. Since 2005 it is prohibited to deposit organic waste and this has resulted in an increased biogas production from this type of waste materials in recent years. The total biogas potential in Sweden is approximately 15 TWh and 70 % of that comes from agriculture wastes. Sewage sludge, waste from food industry and food waste accounts for the rest. It is also these three commodity groups that have the greatest profitability with today's technology. Among these groups, food waste have the largest remaining biogas potential. The problem with food waste is that it often contains impurities that must be sorted out in order to avoid operational problems. The out sorting process often causes problems and typically organic material is lost in the reject fraction. The biogas plant Kungsängens gård is a co-digestion plant that produces biogas from different types of organic residues. In 2009 about 7 536 tons of material were treated, of which 58 % was food waste. Of the incoming material 938 tons were sorted out as reject. In 2011 the amount of incoming material is expected to increase. In addition, the proportion of food waste is expected to increase to 90 %, which will result in even larger amounts of reject. The purpose of this study was to perform analysis and batch digestion experiments to determine the chemical composition and methane potential of the reject from the biogas plant Kungsängens gård. An investigation was also made to examine methods and technologies that potentially could be used to produce biogas from the reject. The results from the batch digestion experiments showed that the methane potential of the different reject fractions was high and it can be compared with what might be expected of source separated food waste. If the reject that was produced in 2010 would be used for biogas production, this methane potential is equal to 10 % of the total production of biogas at Kungsängens gård in 2010. The investigation shows that dry fermentation with a batch system is the only technology that potentially could produce biogas from the reject in its existing form. There are no dry fermentation plants in Sweden and therefore the level of knowledge is relatively low. Because of that it is hard to estimate the profitability and efficiency of dry fermentation plants.

Sammanfattning Syftet med uppsatsen var att undersöka hur pendlare på sträckan Västerås – Stockholm upplever SJ:s klagomålshantering i dagsläget och hur SJ hanterar klagomål. Vidare syftade uppsatsen till att ge förslag på hur SJ kan arbeta med klagomålshantering i framtiden. I uppsatsen presenteras hur SJ sköter sin klagomålshantering i dagsläget. Vidare presenteras teorier inom service recovery och klagomålshantering. Med utgångspunkt i teorierna skapades en bild av effektiv service recovery och klagomålshantering. För att ta reda på hurpendlarna upplever SJ:s klagomålshantering genomfördes en enkätundersökning på utvalda tåg på sträckan Västerås – Stockholm den 9-11 maj 2011. Totalt samlades det in 373 enkäter varav 299 stycken var korrekt ifyllda. Slutsatser Data från enkätundersökningen analyserades och följande slutsatser kunde dras; SJ bör alltidsträva efter att få in alla klagomål från pendlarna, det skulle ge SJ en bättre översikt avpendlarnas situation. SJ kan först då genomföra åtgärder och förbättringar. SJ måste lyssna till pendlarnas åsikter och visa att de tar till sig av åsikterna. Företaget bördärför arbeta med att förtydliga att klagomålen hanteras och att de leder till förbättringar. Vidare bör SJ implementera en mer användarvänlig process för pendlaren att framföra sin åsikt för att få in så många klagomål som möjligt. En slutsats drogs om att det finns utrymme för SJ att i ansökan om restidsgaranti applicera ett fält där resenärer kan framföra klagomål. Vid lanseringen av en mobil applikation föreslås den innehålla en funktion där pendlaren kan framföra sina klagomål. SJ:s personalutbildningar är i dagsläget bra men en slutsats drogs att de kan inriktas mer på klagomålshantering. Är de pendlare som stannar hos SJ på grund av att SJ är deras enda alternativa färdmedel till jobb eller studieort missnöjda, ökar risken för att negativ word-of-mouth sprids vilket är till stor nackdel för SJ. SJ måste bli bättre på att: åtgärda problem, ge garanti för att åtgärda problem, ta ansvar för problem och för sina kunder, visa förståelse och erbjuda en mer rättvis kompensation. Enligt pendlarna är en snabb handläggningstid av klagomål, enklare att framföra åsikter, en rättvis behandling och möjlighet till att påverka hanteringen av klagomål viktiga faktorer i SJ:s klagomålshanteringsprocess. Förslag Avslutningsvis gavs förslag på hur SJ kan anpassa sin klagomålshantering efter sina pendlare utifrån en indelning efter klagomålsbenägenhetstyperna Passiva, Frispråkiga, Ilskna och Aktivister. Det gjordes för att kunna anpassa klagomålshanteringen efter de olika typer av pendlare som reser med SJ och även för att göra det så enkelt som möjligt för pendlarna att framföra sina åsikter och klagomål till SJ. / Executive summary The purpose of this thesis was to investigate how the commuters travelling between Västeråsand Stockholm were experiencing SJ's customer complaint handling today and how SJ handles customer complaints. Furthermore, the thesis aims to give suggestions how SJ can work with customer complaints in the future. First the thesis present how SJ handles customer complaints today based on questions given directly to SJ. Moreover, theories in service recovery and complaint handling are presented. With starting point in the theories, a better understanding of effective service recovery and customer complaint handling was created. A survey was conducted on selected trains between Västerås and Stockholm, from the 9 th to the 11th of May 2011. In total, 373 surveys were collected from which 299 surveys were complete. Data from the survey was analyzed and the following conclusions could be drawn. Conclusions SJ should always strive to collect all the complaints from the commuters as it would give SJ a better overview of the commuters' situation. SJ needs to listen to the commuter’s opinions and show that they take them into consideration. SJ can only then take action and make improvements. The company should work to clarify that complaints are handled and that they lead to improvements. In addition, SJ should implement a more user-friendly process for the commuters to hand in complaints in order to receive as many complaints as possible. A conclusion was reached that there is room for a field on the application for travel time guarantee where commuters and other travelers can file a complaint. At the launch of a mobile application a proposition is made that it include a feature where commuters can file their complaints. The training of SJ's staff in the current situation is good but a conclusion was reached that it can focus more on customer complaint handling. If the commuters that have no other alternative transport to work or to school are dissatisfied with the service, it increases the risk of spreading negative word-of-mouth, which is highly disadvantageous to SJ. SJ must be better at: fixing problems, providing guarantees for fixing the problems, take responsibility for the problems and for their customers, show understanding and offer a more equitable compensation. According to commuters the turnaround time of complaints, easier to express opinions, a fair treatment in the process and an opportunity to influence the handling of complaints are important factors for SJ in their customer complaint handling. Recommendations Suggestions were given on how SJ can adjust their customer complaint handling after dividing the commuters into four types by their propensity to complain “passive”, “voicers”, “irates” and “activists”. It was made in order to adjust customer complaints handling by the different types of commuters who travel with SJ and also to make it as easy as possible for commuters to forward their opinions and to file their complaints.