The performance of the Hugershoff curve on fitting the growth trends of tree-ring series was tested using ring-width series with different starting years. The fitted values tend to be biased by tree-ring series close to pith, a phenomenon that was referred to as the ‘‘start-fitting problem’’. We determined three parameters with specific biological age-related meanings for the Hugershoff growth curve, i.e. the maximum growth, the maximum slope and the maximum changing ratio of slopes. A set of modified Hugershoff curves with different starting years was proposed to mitigate the start-fitting problem. Behavior of the modified Hugershoff curves on tree-ring series standardizations was tested and discussed. The ‘‘end-fitting problem’’ suggests that deviations in one interval could bias the fitted values of other time periods by using the Hugershoff curve.

La mejora de los procesos es fundamental en el crecimiento de cualquier organización que tenga metas cada más ambiciosa. Entre estas organizaciones se encuentra las empresas del rubro joyero que requieres de diversos recursos como la mano de obra calificada, tecnología y proveedores confiables, que cumplan los plazos de entrega establecidos y cuenten con productos de calidad. Es por ello, que las empresas de este rubro buscan a estos proveedores para mantener una relación a largo plazo con sus clientes, ya que de ellos dependerá del ritmo de producción que tendrá la empresa productora de joyas. En la presente investigación se realiza con la finalidad de analizar la situación actual de trabajo en una empresa productora de joyas y presentar propuestas de mejora en los procesos realizados por esta que pueda aumentar su rentabilidad y satisfacer las necesidades que tengan sus clientes actuales y potenciales. En primer lugar, en el proyecto se dará una presentación de los conceptos teóricos que son necesarios para realizar el diagnóstico de la problemática, de esta manera se tendrá diversas herramientas que serán útiles para poder plantear las diversas propuestas de mejora en Arin S.A. Las propuestas de mejoras estarán planteadas para poder optimizar los procesos que realizan y de esta manera establecer una cultura de mejora continua dentro de la organización. Por último, el objetivo de esta investigación es que se pueda ordenar el área de producción y ejecutar las propuestas de mejora que se consideren necesarias. Gracias a ello, se optimizará los procesos internos de tal manera que se consigan procedimientos eficientes y eficaces cambiando procedimientos, modificando métodos de trabajo, eliminando procesos improductivos y elevando el ritmo de producción. / Process improvement is fundamental to the growth of any organization with increasingly ambitious goals. Among these organizations are the jewelry companies that require various resources such as skilled labor, technology and reliable suppliers, that meet delivery deadlines and have quality products. It is for this reason that the companies in this area look for these suppliers to maintain a long-term relationship with their customers, since they will depend on the rate of production that will have the jewelry producing company. This research is carried out with the aim of analysing the current work situation in a jewellery production company and presenting proposals for improving the processes carried out by this one, so as to increase its profitability and satisfy the needs of its current and potential clients. In the first place, the project will give a presentation of the theoretical concepts that are necessary to make the diagnosis of the problem, in this way will have various tools that will be useful to raise the various proposals for improvement in Arin SA. The proposals for improvements will be raised to optimize the processes they perform and thus establish a culture of continuous improvement within the organization. Finally, the objective of this research is to be able to organize the production area and execute the improvement proposals that are considered necessary. As a result, internal processes will be optimized in such a way that efficient and effective procedures are achieved by changing procedures, modifying working methods, eliminating unproductive processes and increasing the production rate. / Tesis

This exploratory investigation examined the relationship between states' educational standardization and voter turnout, using cultural and critical theory lenses. The study documented the problem of low voter participation and current education standardization policies. The study used a complementarity mixed-methods design with sequential quantitative and qualitative components. The quantitative component developed a tool for measuring states' levels of educational standardization, the Standardized Education Index (SEI). Data for voter age population (VAP) and voter eligible population (VEP) in state presidential elections between 2000 and 2012 were used as measures of voter turnout. A weak correlation was found between the SEI and voter turnout for VEP in 2000 and VAP in 2000, 2004, and 2008, with between 6% and 14% of variability explained. While no evidence of a positive relationship between higher levels of SEI and higher voter turnout was found, no counter argument could be established either. The qualitative component utilized case studies of exemplars of states with high SEI/low voter turnout and high SEI/low voter turnout, which were Arkansas and New Hampshire, respectively. Investigated elements were educational Administrative Rules, voting regulations, and cultural/geographic and demographic attributes. Data were compiled and compared. A binary sort, a Dichotomous Sort of Accountability Concepts, framed the critical analysis of educational standards data. Arkansas was found to be a location of standardized education and restrictive voting regulations. New Hampshire was a location of more differentiated education supporting civic engagement with easier access to voting. This study's results are a baseline for further investigation of the relationship of educational standardization to voter participation. If standards based reform has a positive effect on voter participation, then future correlation analysis will produce a moderate to strong positive relationship. If the relationship remains negative, then it will provide evidence that standards reform does not engender an informed electorate.

As técnicas de sensoriamento remoto têm evoluído dentro da ciência do solo visando superar as limitações de tempo e custo das análises químicas tradicionalmente utilizadas para quantificação de atributos do solo. As análises espectrais há muito tempo têm provado serem alternativas para complementar às análises tradicionais, sendo consideradas atualmente uma técnica consolidada e de ampla utilização. Os estudos em pedologia espectral têm utilizado os comprimentos de onda entre 350 a 25000 nm, porém, têm se detido com mais frequência na região de 350 a 2500 nm, a qual é dividida em Visível (VIS - 350 a 700 nm), infravermelho próximo (NIR - 700 a 1000 nm), e infravermelho de ondas curtas (SWIR - 1000 até 2500 nm). A exemplo das técnicas laboratoriais tradicionalmente utilizadas em análises de solos, faz-se necessário estabelecer padrões visando a comunicação científica a nível mundial em espectroscopia de solos. Com vista ao futuro da espectroscopia de solos, desenvolveu-se este estudo afim de se avaliar o efeito do uso de amostras padrões na aquisição de dados espectrais de amostras de solos tropicais em três diferentes geometrias de aquisição em três espectrorradiômetros (350 - 2.500 nm). 97 amostras de solos registrados na Biblioteca Espectral de Solos do Brasil (BESB) provenientes do Estado do Mato Grosso do Sul, cedidas pelo projeto AGSPEC foram utilizadas no estudo e duas amostras mestre brancas utilizadas como padrões de referência, sendo estas oriundas das dunas das praias de Wylie Bay (WB - 99 % quartzo) e Lucky Bay (LB - 90 % quartzo e 10 % aragonita), no sudoeste da Austrália. Para avaliar a padronização, as morfologias das curvas espectrais foram observadas quanto curvatura, feições, albedo; complementando as observações descritivas, as diferenças de reflectância entre os tratamentos utilizados (Sensor x Geometria x Correção) foram estudadas pela análise de variância e pelo teste de Tukey a 5 % de significância em três bandas espectrais médias (VIS-NIR-SWIR); e a modelagem para quantificação de teores de argila por meio da regressão por mínimos quadrados parciais (\"partial least squares regression\", PLSR), com validação cruzada (Cross Validation) para cada configuração e outra simulando uma biblioteca espectral mista, composta por combinações entre as configurações. O método de padronização proposto reduz as diferenças entre espectros obtidos em diferentes sensores e geometrias. A predição de argila por uma biblioteca espectral utilizando dados com diferentes configurações é favorecida pela padronização, passando de um de 0,83 para um de 0,85 após a correção, indicando a validade da unificação dos espectros pela técnica proposta. / Remote sensing techniques have evolved within the soil science aiming to overcome time and cost limitations of chemical analysis traditionally used for quantification of soil properties. Spectral analysis have long proven to be alternatives to supplement traditional analysis, currently being considered a mature technique and widely applied. Studies on spectral pedology have used the wavelength between 350 to 25000 nm, however, have held more often in the region of 350 to 2500 nm, which is divided into visible (VIS - 350 to 700 nm), near infrared ( NIR - 700 to 1000 nm) and short wave infrared (SWIR - 1000 to 2500 nm). As traditional laboratory techniques used in soil analysis, it is necessary to establish standards aimed at worldwide scientific communication in soils spectroscopy. Going forward soil spectroscopy, this study was developed in order to evaluate the effect of using standard samples in the acquisition of spectral data of tropical soil in three different geometries acquisition in three spectroradiometers (350-2500 nm). 97 soil samples documented in Brazilian Soils Spectral Library (BESB) from Mato Grosso do Sul State, provided by the AGSPEC project were used in the study and two white master samples used as reference standards, which are from the beaches dunes of Wylie Bay (WB - 99% quartz) and Lucky Bay (LB - 90% quartz and 10% aragonite) in southwestern Australia. To judge the standardization, the morphologies of the spectral curves were observed for curvature, absorption features, albedo; complementing the descriptive observations, the reflectance differences between the configurations (Sensor x Geometry x Correction) were studied by analysis of variance and Tukey test at 5% significance in three average spectral bands (VIS-NIR-SWIR); and modelling for quantification of clay through regression by partial least squares (PLSR) with cross-validation for each configuration and another simulating a mixed spectral library, consisting of combinations of situations. The method proposed standardization reduces differences between spectra obtained from different sensors and geometries. The prediction of clay by a spectral library using data with different settings is favoured to standardize, from R² of 0.83 to 0.85 after correction, indicating the validity of the unification of the spectra by the proposed technique.

[pt] A presente dissertação de mestrado intitulada Metrologia nas normas, normas na metrologia foi motivada por recomendações explícitas contidas no Plano Nacional de Metrologia (PNM) - transformado em instrumento da política metrológica brasileira, por força de Resolução Interministerial do CONMETRO, que propôs ações de fortalecimento do sistema brasileiro de normalização, priorizando a implementação de um comitê brasileiro para normalização em metrologia na estrutra orgânica da ABNT. Entendidas como funções complementares da tecnologia industrial, metrologia e normalização são tratadas não apenas como insumos essenciais para desenvolvimento da competitividade industrial e melhoria da qualidade de vida, mas, também, como elementos indissociáveis no equacionamento de vulnerabilidades que restringem o acesso de produtos brasileiros a mercados competitivos em decorrência de barreiras técnicas ao comércio internacional. Assim, no contexto das recomendações apontadas pelo PNM, a pesquisa de mestrado contemplou: (i) estudo do modus operandi dos organismos internacionais de normalização, para se perceber a forma pela qual o insumo metrológico é agregado às normas internacionais; (ii) análise das práticas vivenciadas por organismos nacionais de normalização de países mais industrializados, objetivando apreender suas experiências no desenvolvimento de normas em metrologia; (iii) entrevista junto a especialistas atuantes em metrologia e em normalização, objetivando definir um padrão de atuação para se equacionar a normalização técnica setorial no Brasil; (iv) caracterização dos principais fatos marcantes que impactaram o alavancamento da normalização técnica no País, provendo subsídio para equacionamento dos óbices ainda existentes e (v) análise das carências e vulnerabilidades do sistema brasileiro de normalização, assim consolidando conhecimento e uma visão crítica para planejamento da pesquisa de mestrado que se constituiu na concepção e formulação das bases conceituais de um comitê técnico para normalização em metrologia, proposto para ser implementado na estrutura orgânica da ABNT, entendido como estratégia de fortalecimento do sistema brasileiro de normalização e (vi) pesquisa de demanda por normalização em metrologia. Objetivando diferenciar as demandas por normalização em metrologia das demandas por metrologia na normalização, a pesquisa foi desenvolvida no contexto de três ambientes: (a) junto aos comitês brasileiros de normalização (ABNT/CB) e organismos de normalização setorial (ONS) que integram a estrutura orgânica da Associação Brasileira de Normas Técnicas (ABNT), com o propósito de conhecer necessidades específicas de metrologia na atividade de normalização bem como as dificuldades relacionadas ao uso e aplicação de fundamentos da metrologia como insumo ao processo de normalização técnica; (b) junto a especialistas de metrologia e normalização, para subsidiar o desenvolvimento de uma interface técnica de cooperação e (c) junto a fóruns especialistas de metrologia, para se identificar demandas por normalização, identificadas ao longo das respectivas cadeias hierárquicas de disseminação das unidades de base e derivadas do Sistema Internacional de Unidades (SI). Adicionalmente às bases de dados (caracterização de demandas por normalização em metrologia) que foram consolidadas pelo presente trabalho e que levaram à ampla reflexão sobre a correlação existente entre metrologia nas normas e normas na metrologia, destacam-se os seguintes resultados que também emergiram da presente dissertação de mestrado: (i) desenvolvimento de uma nova área de concentração em normalização técnica, criada no Programa de Pós- Graduação em Metrologia da PUC-Rio; (ii) indução de um processo para geração de conhecimento e formação de recursos humanos em normalização; (iii) a recente cri / [en] The present master s degree dissertation entitled Metrology in standards, standards in metrology was motivated by explicit recommendations included in the National Metrology Plan (PNM) - which became an instrument of the Brazilian metrology policy, by force of a Interministerial Decision from CONMETRO, that had proposed specific actions to strenghten the Brazilian system of standardization, prioritizing the implementation of a technical committe for standardization in metrology within the ABNT structure. As complementary functions of industrial technology, metrology and standardization are treated not only as essential inputs necessary for the development of industrial competitiveness and quality of life enhancement, but also as intrinsic elements in equating vulnerabilities which restrict access of Brazilian products to competitive markets because of technical barriers to international trade. Thus, within the context of recommendations made by PNM, this master s degree research considered: (i) a study of the modus operandi of international standardization organizations, so as to perceive the way through which metrology inputs are added to international standards; (ii) an analysis of practices by national standardization organizations in industrialized countries so as to capture their experience in developing metrology standards; (iii) interviews with active experts in metrology and standardization with the purpose of defining a performance pattern in order to equate technical standards of industry in Brazil; (iv) a description of the most outstanding facts which had an impact on leveraging technical standardization in the country, providing subsidies to equate existingobstacles; (v) an analysis of the shortages and vulnerabilities of the Brazilian standardization system, thus consolidating knowledge and a critical vision in order to plan this master s dissertation which consisted of conceiving and formulating the conceptual fundamentals of a technical committee for standardization in metrology, to be implemented in ABNT s organic structure, as a strategy to enhance the Brazilian standardization system, and (vi) standardization demand research in metrology. With the aim of distinguishing the demand for standardization in metrology from the demand for metrology in standardization, this research was developed along three different lines: (a) at Brazilian standardization committees (ABNT/CB) and industry standardization organizations (ONS) which make up the organic structure of the Brazilian Association for Technical Standards (ABNT), so as to know the specific needs for metrology in standardization activities, as well as, the difficulties related to the use and application of metrology fundamentals as inputs to the technical standardization process; (b) with metrology and standardization experts in order to subsidize the development of the interface of a new cooperation rationale, and (c) research in forum specialized in metrology so as to identify standardization demands, pointed out throughout respective dissemination hierarchical chains of base units and derived from the International System of Units (SI). In addition tothe data bank which was consolidated by study and research developed and which led to a broad reflection on the existing correlation between metrology in standards and standards in metrology, the following results, which also came out of this master s degree dissertation, can be highlighted: (i) development of a new concentration area in technical standardization, created for the Post Graduate Program in Metrology at the Catholic University (PUC-Rio) in Rio de Janeiro; (ii) introduction of a process to build knowledge and development of human resources in standardization; (iii) the recent creation of ABNT/CB-53, the Brazilian Committee for Standardization in Metrology, whose genesis, conception, framework and implementation came out of the current master s degree work in metrology and which, officially , supplies Brazilian society with a technical forum for standardization in metrology. This d

With many global problems affecting the human population in recent years, which would include aging and increase in chronic diseases, hospitals are becoming overwhelmed by patients. To overcome this issue and ensure appropriate treatment is provided, many proposals and projects have been developed. Quality management is an aspect of care that is needed to minimize the time people stay at hospitals and improve the efficient delivery of healthcare services, while also, the presence of accreditation provides an international mean to assure proper quality of care and performance improvement is delivered. While performance improvement is mainstream in many fields, it is under developed yet highly pertinent to the healthcare sector in order to improve patient care and here is where the importance of this research is illuminated. The current research investigates the impact of accreditation on performance measurement in hospitals as an effective external assessment scheme. While also, investigating the effect of following international standards developed by accreditation organizations and maintaining high quality of care and performance improvement. Moreover, the current research was conducted at hospitals in different cities of Saudi Arabia, which could be generalised to the whole country and similar healthcare systems including: Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. Based on the pragmatism philosophy, this research is of an exploratory nature, which adapts a mixed method design to collect data from different hospitals in different cities. The main finding of the current research is the provision of a framework which demonstrates the alignment and its connection to the external and internal environment. Moreover, the data were collected through case studies and questionnaires which provided the validation of the current research framework, two new internal environment factors namely: involvement and standardisation and an outcome to the alignment namely improvement. Hence, this research argues that following national and international standards of care are enablers for hospitals to achieve performance improvement and high quality care. Furthermore, the findings of this research suggest that accreditation is directly linked to performance improvement and is essential for the quality of care in hospitals.

No description available.

The main theme of the thesis is standardization of BusinessObjects reporting in a corporation. This work is linked in with my bachelor work, which deals with the transformation of manual reporting from MS Excel to Business Intelligence platform in the form of interactive reports. Standardization of reporting and integration of Business Intelligence system in the infrastructure of the company represents further development in the evolution of the reporting in the organization. This work proposes a method for the implementation of BusinessObjects at the Operations department in the GE Money Bank. This work creates a draft of direction for the owner of BusinessObjects and a set of the most valuable experience I gained in this project. This work deals with the standardization of reporting, that should not be underestimated in any case, even though it happens many times. Multiple data sources often exist in huge organizations, data in production databases are not consistent and the company often uses several suppliers of Business Intelligence solutions. Non-standard reporting means risking in the form of inconsistent and chaotic data sets. This thesis can be used as a practical guide to avoid these mistakes and achieve more efficient and faster reporting. The conclusion of the thesis is that the standardization process of reporting is necessary logical step that organizations have to do if they want to set a unified form of reporting throughout the whole company and to increase consistency and clarity of data in reports.

As técnicas de sensoriamento remoto têm evoluído dentro da ciência do solo visando superar as limitações de tempo e custo das análises químicas tradicionalmente utilizadas para quantificação de atributos do solo. As análises espectrais há muito tempo têm provado serem alternativas para complementar às análises tradicionais, sendo consideradas atualmente uma técnica consolidada e de ampla utilização. Os estudos em pedologia espectral têm utilizado os comprimentos de onda entre 350 a 25000 nm, porém, têm se detido com mais frequência na região de 350 a 2500 nm, a qual é dividida em Visível (VIS - 350 a 700 nm), infravermelho próximo (NIR - 700 a 1000 nm), e infravermelho de ondas curtas (SWIR - 1000 até 2500 nm). A exemplo das técnicas laboratoriais tradicionalmente utilizadas em análises de solos, faz-se necessário estabelecer padrões visando a comunicação científica a nível mundial em espectroscopia de solos. Com vista ao futuro da espectroscopia de solos, desenvolveu-se este estudo afim de se avaliar o efeito do uso de amostras padrões na aquisição de dados espectrais de amostras de solos tropicais em três diferentes geometrias de aquisição em três espectrorradiômetros (350 - 2.500 nm). 97 amostras de solos registrados na Biblioteca Espectral de Solos do Brasil (BESB) provenientes do Estado do Mato Grosso do Sul, cedidas pelo projeto AGSPEC foram utilizadas no estudo e duas amostras mestre brancas utilizadas como padrões de referência, sendo estas oriundas das dunas das praias de Wylie Bay (WB - 99 % quartzo) e Lucky Bay (LB - 90 % quartzo e 10 % aragonita), no sudoeste da Austrália. Para avaliar a padronização, as morfologias das curvas espectrais foram observadas quanto curvatura, feições, albedo; complementando as observações descritivas, as diferenças de reflectância entre os tratamentos utilizados (Sensor x Geometria x Correção) foram estudadas pela análise de variância e pelo teste de Tukey a 5 % de significância em três bandas espectrais médias (VIS-NIR-SWIR); e a modelagem para quantificação de teores de argila por meio da regressão por mínimos quadrados parciais (\"partial least squares regression\", PLSR), com validação cruzada (Cross Validation) para cada configuração e outra simulando uma biblioteca espectral mista, composta por combinações entre as configurações. O método de padronização proposto reduz as diferenças entre espectros obtidos em diferentes sensores e geometrias. A predição de argila por uma biblioteca espectral utilizando dados com diferentes configurações é favorecida pela padronização, passando de um de 0,83 para um de 0,85 após a correção, indicando a validade da unificação dos espectros pela técnica proposta. / Remote sensing techniques have evolved within the soil science aiming to overcome time and cost limitations of chemical analysis traditionally used for quantification of soil properties. Spectral analysis have long proven to be alternatives to supplement traditional analysis, currently being considered a mature technique and widely applied. Studies on spectral pedology have used the wavelength between 350 to 25000 nm, however, have held more often in the region of 350 to 2500 nm, which is divided into visible (VIS - 350 to 700 nm), near infrared ( NIR - 700 to 1000 nm) and short wave infrared (SWIR - 1000 to 2500 nm). As traditional laboratory techniques used in soil analysis, it is necessary to establish standards aimed at worldwide scientific communication in soils spectroscopy. Going forward soil spectroscopy, this study was developed in order to evaluate the effect of using standard samples in the acquisition of spectral data of tropical soil in three different geometries acquisition in three spectroradiometers (350-2500 nm). 97 soil samples documented in Brazilian Soils Spectral Library (BESB) from Mato Grosso do Sul State, provided by the AGSPEC project were used in the study and two white master samples used as reference standards, which are from the beaches dunes of Wylie Bay (WB - 99% quartz) and Lucky Bay (LB - 90% quartz and 10% aragonite) in southwestern Australia. To judge the standardization, the morphologies of the spectral curves were observed for curvature, absorption features, albedo; complementing the descriptive observations, the reflectance differences between the configurations (Sensor x Geometry x Correction) were studied by analysis of variance and Tukey test at 5% significance in three average spectral bands (VIS-NIR-SWIR); and modelling for quantification of clay through regression by partial least squares (PLSR) with cross-validation for each configuration and another simulating a mixed spectral library, consisting of combinations of situations. The method proposed standardization reduces differences between spectra obtained from different sensors and geometries. The prediction of clay by a spectral library using data with different settings is favoured to standardize, from R² of 0.83 to 0.85 after correction, indicating the validity of the unification of the spectra by the proposed technique.

<p>This dissertation focuses on the challenges that arise when the SMEs enter into an international market (Internationalization) and adopting international product strategy to survive in foreign market. To be able to gain better understanding of the subject, research questions concerning the challenges faced during internationalization by SMEs from product adaptation and standardization perspective. Challenges in internationalization have been categorized into internal and external challenges. Internal challenges deals with firm specific while external challenges arise from country and industry specific factors. At the same time international product strategy counting product adaptation and standardization has been discussed. The empirical data includes case study of one Swedish company manufacturing assistive listening devices (hearing equipment for hearing impaired people) situated in Halmstad, Sweden. </p><p>Findings shows that the main challenges in internationalization are socio cultural differences and inadequate knowledge about the foreign market while laws and regulations regarding frequency standards issues are most challenging in international product strategy.</p>