Different scandals around the globe during the past, in specific during the last decade, have intrigued the stakeholders to question the roles of both auditors and management. But most of the fingers since then have been raised on the role of auditors, because it is the auditors who are entrusted with the responsibility to detect any errors or frauds in the financial reports of the client-firm. Apart from this, the long-term auditor client relationship has been the center of attention in most of the discussions and debates as well. Numerous studies have been conducted by the academic researchers, financial and professional analysts, regulatory authorities and governing bodies, and in some cases by the auditors and the firms as well regarding the effects of long-term auditor-client relationship on audit quality, equity risk premium, financial reports quality, audit pricing etc. These studies provide us with different results, both with the positive and negative associations and effects of long-term auditor-client relationship on the basis of different factors and contexts. For long, auditing has been discussed in different studies and research areas but mostly in association with publicly listed companies. Less attention has been paid to the relationship of auditors and clients as far as clients in SMEs are concerned. In any country around the globe, SMEs are of major contribution in terms of backing the economy, giving it both the boost and the stability, as they collectively form the major chunk of the economy. If we specify our study to the SMEs in Sweden, then 99% of the enterprises in Sweden represent the SME sector; in addition they employ around 60% of the manpower. Based on these facts, and due to less attention given to auditor-client relationship in terms of SMEs, instead of; we have directed our concerns towards the study of effects of auditor-client relationship on audit quality in SMEs in this particular research study. In this study, we have opted for qualitative research with semi-structured interviews to be used as the tool for data collection. Interviews were conducted with two different groups of interviewees, one group representing the auditors and the other group representing the client-firms (SMEs). A total of seven interviews were conducted in order to strengthen and validate the results for our research question. Due to the limitations of this study, mostly in terms of cost and time, samples were selected from Umeå, Sweden. The data interview structure, data analysis and discussion, and conclusions were all made based on existing theories summarized in the theoretical review of this study. The results of this study suggests that (1) long-term audit tenure is beneficial for the audit quality if certain risk factors like risk of auditor independence and risk of developing complacency are controlled; and (2) factors such as NAS, industry specialization, knowledge and experience of the auditor, internal control in the client-firm, professional ethics, proper audit plan, providence of unbiased information by the client, and appointment of the auditor by the client-firm itself enhances the audit quality.

Prototyping new systems on hardware is a time-consuming task with limited scope for architectural exploration. The aim of this work was to perform fast prototyping of general-purpose graphics processing units (GPGPUs) on field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) using a novel tool chain. This hardware flow combined with the higher level simulation flow using the same source code allowed us to create a whole tool chain to study and build future architectures using new technologies. It also gave us enough flexibility at different granularities to make architectural decisions. We will also discuss some example systems that were built using this tool chain along with some results.

207Pb*/206Pb* chronometry was used to obtain the ages of Ca,Al-rich inclusions (CAIs) and chondrules found in ancient meteorites. Assuming a 238U/235U=137.88, Pb/Pb ages of chondrules in NWA801 (a CR2 meteorite) are 4564.6±1.0 Ma, chondrules in Mokoia (a CV3 chondrite) are 4564.2±1.1Ma, and CAIs in Mokoia are 4567.9±5.4 Ma. The Pb/Pb age of NWA801 chondrules is concordant with 26Al/26Mg ages of CR chondrules. However if a 238U/235U < 137.88 is used, the age for NWA801 chondrules becomes younger by ~1Ma and discordant with 26Al/26Mg ages of CR chondrules. This suggests either a discrepancy with the U compositions or the initial Mg isotopic compositions of NWA801 chondrules. The shapes of NWA801 chondrules, and blebs of FeNi metal in the meteorite matrix, were further studied by 3D X-ray micro-computed tomography (CT). Most chondrules (92%) were ‘armoured’ with one discontinuous layer of FeNi metal. Two layers of FeNi metal (one on the exterior and one concentric through the interior separated by silicate) were rare <8%. Chondrules and matrix blebs occur as oblates, prolate, spheres and triaxial spheroids. It is proposed that the shapes were made free-floating in the nebula likely by flash-melting precursors into molten droplets that were vibrating as harmonic oscillators that ‘froze-in’ their shapes during cooling. Parent-body metamorphism and shock are not likely processes affecting the matrix-bleb and chondrule shapes. Chondrules with ≥2 FeNi metal layers were likely formed by mergers and not by successive deposition and annealing of metal in multiple flash-melting events. Attempts to obtain 207Pb*/206Pb* ages from chondrules and CAIs by thermal extraction (TE)- TIMS were unsuccessful. However LA-ICP-MS was shown to be useful for rapidly determining Pb isotopic trends in meteorites and unknown objects. In particular, it was shown that 137La (T1/2=60ky) should be detectable in recently fallen meteorites using LaF−4 to suppress the 137Ba isobar during tandem accelerator mass spectrometry combined with a novel instrumental technique for isobar separation.

207Pb*/206Pb* chronometry was used to obtain the ages of Ca,Al-rich inclusions (CAIs) and chondrules found in ancient meteorites. Assuming a 238U/235U=137.88, Pb/Pb ages of chondrules in NWA801 (a CR2 meteorite) are 4564.6±1.0 Ma, chondrules in Mokoia (a CV3 chondrite) are 4564.2±1.1Ma, and CAIs in Mokoia are 4567.9±5.4 Ma. The Pb/Pb age of NWA801 chondrules is concordant with 26Al/26Mg ages of CR chondrules. However if a 238U/235U < 137.88 is used, the age for NWA801 chondrules becomes younger by ~1Ma and discordant with 26Al/26Mg ages of CR chondrules. This suggests either a discrepancy with the U compositions or the initial Mg isotopic compositions of NWA801 chondrules. The shapes of NWA801 chondrules, and blebs of FeNi metal in the meteorite matrix, were further studied by 3D X-ray micro-computed tomography (CT). Most chondrules (92%) were ‘armoured’ with one discontinuous layer of FeNi metal. Two layers of FeNi metal (one on the exterior and one concentric through the interior separated by silicate) were rare <8%. Chondrules and matrix blebs occur as oblates, prolate, spheres and triaxial spheroids. It is proposed that the shapes were made free-floating in the nebula likely by flash-melting precursors into molten droplets that were vibrating as harmonic oscillators that ‘froze-in’ their shapes during cooling. Parent-body metamorphism and shock are not likely processes affecting the matrix-bleb and chondrule shapes. Chondrules with ≥2 FeNi metal layers were likely formed by mergers and not by successive deposition and annealing of metal in multiple flash-melting events. Attempts to obtain 207Pb*/206Pb* ages from chondrules and CAIs by thermal extraction (TE)- TIMS were unsuccessful. However LA-ICP-MS was shown to be useful for rapidly determining Pb isotopic trends in meteorites and unknown objects. In particular, it was shown that 137La (T1/2=60ky) should be detectable in recently fallen meteorites using LaF−4 to suppress the 137Ba isobar during tandem accelerator mass spectrometry combined with a novel instrumental technique for isobar separation.

Submitted by Automa??o e Estat?stica (sst@bczm.ufrn.br) on 2016-03-31T22:51:30Z No. of bitstreams: 1 HeitorMedeirosFlorencio_DISSERT.pdf: 2810263 bytes, checksum: 7827088e4939b0873f4cea23918b8830 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Arlan Eloi Leite Silva (eloihistoriador@yahoo.com.br) on 2016-04-04T20:28:42Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 HeitorMedeirosFlorencio_DISSERT.pdf: 2810263 bytes, checksum: 7827088e4939b0873f4cea23918b8830 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-04T20:28:42Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 HeitorMedeirosFlorencio_DISSERT.pdf: 2810263 bytes, checksum: 7827088e4939b0873f4cea23918b8830 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-07-20 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior - CAPES / As redes de sensores sem fio (RSSF) est?o gradativamente ganhando espa?o no ambiente industrial devido ? possibilidade de conectar pontos de informa??o que eram inacess?veis com as redes cabeadas. Contudo, existem v?rios desafios na implanta??o e aceita??o dessa tecnologia no meio industrial, sendo um deles a garantia de disponibilidade da informa??o, a qual pode ser influenciada por v?rios par?metros, como a estabilidade do caminho de dados e o consumo de energia do instrumento de campo. Nesse sentido, neste trabalho foi desenvolvido uma ferramenta para avaliar e inferir par?metros de redes industriais sem fio baseadas nos protocolos WirelessHART e ISA 100.11a. A ferramenta disponibiliza funcionalidades de avalia??o quantitativa, avalia??o qualitativa e avalia??o por infer?ncia durante um determinado tempo de execu??o da rede. As avalia??es quantitativa e qualitativa s?o baseadas nas pr?prias defini??es dos par?metros, como o par?metro de estabilidade, ou em ferramentas da estat?stica descritiva, como m?dia, desvio padr?o e diagramas de caixa. J? na avalia??o por infer?ncia ? utilizada a t?cnica inteligente de redes neurais artificiais para estimar alguns par?metros da rede, como vida ?til da bateria. Por fim, s?o apresentados os resultados do uso da ferramenta em diferentes cen?rios de redes, topologias em estrela e em malha, com o intuito de atestar a import?ncia do uso da ferramenta na avalia??o do comportamento dessas redes, como tamb?m, apoiar poss?veis adequa??es ou manuten??es do sistema. / Wireless sensor networks (WSN) have gained ground in the industrial environment, due to the possibility of connecting points of information that were inaccessible to wired networks. However, there are several challenges in the implementation and acceptance of this technology in the industrial environment, one of them the guaranteed availability of information, which can be influenced by various parameters, such as path stability and power consumption of the field device. As such, in this work was developed a tool to evaluate and infer parameters of wireless industrial networks based on the WirelessHART and ISA 100.11a protocols. The tool allows quantitative evaluation, qualitative evaluation and evaluation by inference during a given time of the operating network. The quantitative and qualitative evaluation are based on own definitions of parameters, such as the parameter of stability, or based on descriptive statistics, such as mean, standard deviation and box plots. In the evaluation by inference uses the intelligent technique artificial neural networks to infer some network parameters such as battery life. Finally, it displays the results of use the tool in different scenarios networks, as topologies star and mesh, in order to attest to the importance of tool in evaluation of the behavior of these networks, but also support possible changes or maintenance of the system.

The aim of the diploma thesis "Tests carried out in audit" is evaluation of the general purpose financial statements performed by the asistent auditor in the trainee program. The theoretical part explains the basic concepts of the auditing profession, defines the person authorized to perform audit activities, their rights and obligations. As well it analyses each phase of the audit, characterize the audit process and analyze the audit risk, the concept of materiality and the substantive tests. The practical part of the thesis is focused on the analysis of selected audit procedures in the basic part of the General purpose financial statements (tangible assets, accounts receivable, payroll, cash and cash equivalents).

Det här examensarbetet har utförts på Scania CV AB:s motorbearbetningsavdelning i Södertälje. I dagsläget pågår en omställning av tillverkningsprocessen på avdelningen där två nya tillverkningslinor, en för cylinderblock och en för cylinderhuvud, är under uppbyggnad. Linorna kommer styras med hjälp av ett Manufacturing Execution System. Ett Manufacturing Execution System har i uppgift att samla in data och information från tillverkningsprocessen, som sedan kan presenteras i ett gränssnitt. Vilken information som kommer finnas tillgänglig att presentera i systemet styrs utifrån en intern kravspecifikation som ska spegla International Society of Automation:s standard, även känd som ISA-95. Den kravspecifikation som finns för systemet är framtagen av IT-avdelningen i samråd med avdelningschefer. För närvarande är det osäkert om kravspecifikationen som finns på systemet stämmer överens med vad medarbetarna behöver för att kunna arbeta på ett effektivt sätt. Det här arbetet kartlägger behovet hos medarbetarna och jämför det med den befintliga kravspecifikationen. Genom intervjuer och enkäter har den befintliga kravspecifikationen för systemet jämförts med vad medarbetarna anser vara önskvärda funktioner i systemet. Resultatet av den första omgången intervjuer och enkätutskick var att kravspecifikationen och behovet hos medarbetarna stämmer väl överens. Det mynnade ut i att ytterligare en enkät skickades ut där medarbetarna istället skulle rangordna den information som kommer finnas tillgänglig i systemet utefter en prioriteringsskala i tre nivåer. Resultatet från den enkäten gav en bild av vilken information medarbetarna tycker är viktigast för att kunna arbeta på ett effektivt sätt. / This bachelor thesis has been done at Scania CV AB’s department for engine manufacturing in Södertälje. The manufacturing process at the department is currently under development, where two new lines are being added, one for cylinder head and one for cylinder blocks. These two new manufacturing lines are going to be controlled with the help of a Manufacturing Execution System. The Manufacturing Execution Systems task is to collect data and information from the manufacturing process, which later can be presented in an interface. There is a specification at Scania that presents what information will be available in the system. That specification is in line with what the International Society of Automation has specified in ISA-95. The specification for the system was set by the IT-department in consultation with department managers. There is currently an uncertainty if the specification meets the requirement that the workers has, to be able to work efficiently with the system. This thesis will identify the requirement that the workers has on the system, and compare it with the current specification. What the workers deems is necessary information has been identified and mapped through interviews and a survey. The result of these interviews and the survey made it clear that the specification was well in line with the requirement from the workers. This information led to the decision to send out another survey that asked the workers to prioritize how important the information in the system is, in three different priority levels. This resulted in an overview of what the workers consider is the most important information in the system.

No description available.

Revision handlar enligt branschorganisationen FAR (2006) om att på ett oberoende sätt bistå företag med professionella bedömningar av den ekonomiska rapporteringen som företag upprättar. Detta görs i syfte att förse de intressenter som företaget har med tillförlitlig information att använda som underlag för intressenternas beslutsprocesser. En revisors huvudsakliga uppgift blir därmed att bedöma huruvida ett företags ekonomiska rapportering innehåller väsentliga felaktigheter eller inte. Detta menar Messier et al., (2016, s.17), som belyser vikten av att som revisor förstå de risker som är kopplade till företagets verksamhet och hur dessa hanteras, i syfte att göra bedömningen av risker för väsentliga felaktigheter i den ekonomiska rapporteringen på ett optimalt sätt.  För att en revisor ska veta hur denne ska gå till väga för att identifiera och bedöma risker för väsentliga felaktigheter i företagets ekonomiska rapportering så används en revisionsstandard för riskbedömning som ramverk och vägledning. Denna är upprättad av det internationella standardiseringsorganet IAASB och kallas ISA 315, vilket är vad denna studie kommer att handla om.  Under 2019 så omarbetades denna revisionsstandard. Enligt Alfredsson, &amp; Irle (2022) gjordes detta med huvudsakligt syfte att ge en tydligare vägledning för revisorer. Detta beslut togs till följd av den teknologisk utvecklingen som förändrat den ekonomiska miljön. Denna studie aspirerar till att undersöka den omarbetade revisionsstandarden för riskbedömning, och benämns ISA 315R. Det huvudsakliga målet är att undersöka om den omarbetade standarden har förändrat hur auktoriserade revisorer och revisorassistenter genomför sina bedömningar av risker för väsentliga felaktigheter i revisionen, med särskild inriktning på IT-relaterade risker.  Genom en kvalitativ metod har denna studie kommit fram till att riskbedömningen är oförändrad efter ISA 315R, men att revisionsprocessen erhållit ett tillskott i form av fler obligatoriska arbetsdokument i revisionsarbetet. Omarbetningen har därför inte påverkat auktoriserade revisorers och revisorsassistenters bedömningar av väsentliga risker i revisioner. Förståelse för klienten och dess verksamhet var lika viktig innan standarden omarbetades, som den är nu.

I den digitala världen som vi lever i är vi mer uppkopplade och hanterar mer information än någonsin tidigare. Informationen, som i fel händer kan leda till katastrofala händelser för dagens företag. En viktig aspekt som ofta diskuteras är de anställda som ofta regleras av företagsspecifika policyer för att hålla företaget på en säker väg. Efterlevnad från de anställda är inte så enkelt som att bara tala om för dem att följa företagets regler, det måste finnas något mer för att motivera de anställda och därigenom skapa en säker miljö att arbeta inom. Denna rapport presenterar en studie där forskning har utförts för att analysera hur företag i Sverige arbetar för att höja efterlevnaden av företagets policyer med fokus påinformationssäkerhet och medvetenhet om informationssäkerhet. Genom att använda grounded theory i kombination med kvalitativa, semistrukturerade intervjuer med en representant från varje företag som har ansvar för företagets informationssäkerhet, har vi studerat vilka metoder företag använder för att öka efterlevnaden av deras policyer. Resultaten visar att utbildning är en viktig metod som tillämpas, men det finns fleraolika variationer av utbildning och företagen skiljer sig åt i hur de informerar sina anställda om risker som är kopplade till policyer. En annan upptäckt som har kommit fram i denna forskning är att ansvaret för utbildning och policyer är snarlika blandföretagen. I slutsatsen av denna rapport presenteras rekommendationer som potentiellt kan hjälpa företag att öka efterlevnaden av sina IT-policyer. Dessa rekommendationer baseras på de metoder som har framkommit i de intervjuer som utförts i denna studie.