The relationship between the satellite-based Vegetation Condition Index (VCI) and frequently used agricultural drought indices like Palmer Drought Severity Index, Palmer’s Z-index, Standard Precipitation Index, percent normal and deciles was evaluated using a comparative correlation analysis. These indices were compared at the county level for all 254 Texas counties for the growing-season months (March to August) using monthly data from 1982-1999. The evaluation revealed that the VCI was most strongly correlated with the 6-month SPI and the PDSI. This suggests that the VCI is most similar to drought indices that account for antecedent moisture conditions. There was also significant spatial variability in the magnitude of the correlations between the VCI and the drought indices. The reasons for this variability were explored by utilizing additional data such as irrigation, prevalent landuse/landcover, water table depth, soil moisture levels and soil hydrologic/hydraulic properties. The results demonstrated that mean annual precipitation, soil moisture, landuse/landcover, and depth of the water table accounted for a significant amount of the spatial variability (explaining more than 75% of the variance) in the relationship between the VCI and traditional drought indices.

Metallische Güter sind aufgrund ihrer Eigenschaften verstärkt von Schäden durch Korrosion betroffen. Insbesondere während der Verpackung, dem Transport und der Lagerung sind Gegenstände aus Metall zahlreichen Umwelteinflüssen ausgesetzt, die zu Korrosion führen können. Die Schutzmaßnahmen werden in permanente und temporäre Varianten unterschieden. Die vorliegende Arbeit befasst sich schwerpunktmäßig mit den temporären Maßnahmen zum Korrosionsschutz, wobei besonders die verpackungstechnischen Schutzlösungen untersucht werden. Als Verpackungen zum temporären Schutz metallischer Güter werden insbesondere welche mit Trockenmitteln oder mit Korrosionsinhibitoren, wie VCI-Mittel, verwendet. Bei der Anwendung der Maßnahmen müssen zahlreiche Faktoren Beachtung finden, um einen bestmöglichen Schutz zu erzielen. Zur Unterstützung der theoretischen Ausführungen zum Korrosionsschutz, wird ein kurzzeitiger Laborversuch durchgeführt. Er verdeutlicht wie schnell Korrosion an ungeschützten Metallgegenstände auftreten kann und untersucht, ob die verwendeten Korrosionsschutzverpackungen die Werkstücke auch bei einer sehr korrosionsfördernden Umgebung schützen. Des Weiteren werden Handlungsanweisungen abgeleitet, die bei der Anwendung dieser temporären Schutzmaßnahmen eingehalten werden sollten. Die Arbeit versucht außerdem mit Hilfe eines Vergleichs herauszufinden, welche Variante am besten geeignet ist, ein metallisches Produkt vor Korrosion zu schützen.:Abbildungsverzeichnis Tabellenverzeichnis 1 Einleitung 2 Grundlagen der Korrosion 2.1 Definition der Korrosion 2.2 Korrosionsarten 2.3 Ursachen und Beeinflussung der Korrosion 3 Korrosionsschutz 3.1 Definition Korrosionsschutz 3.2 Bedeutung des Korrosionsschutzes 3.3 Von Korrosion betroffene Gebiete und Gegenstände 3.4 Aktiver und Passiver Korrosionsschutz 4 Temporäre Korrosionsschutzlösungen 4.1 Verpackungen als Korrosionsschutz 4.2 Trockenmittel 4.2.1 Ausführungen der Trockenmittel 4.2.2 Aufbau der Trockenmittelbeutel 4.2.3 Dimensionierung der Trockenmittel 4.3 VCI-Methode 4.3.1 Definition VCI-Stoffe als Inhibitoren 4.3.2 Wirkungsweise der VCI-Methode 4.3.3 Anwendungen und VCI-Applikatoren 4.4 Vergleich Schutzmaßnahmen 5 Kurzzeitlaborversuch atmosphärische Korrosion von Metallproben 5.1 Einleitung und Ziele des Versuchs 5.2 Methodisches Vorgehen und Versuchsdurchführung 5.2.1 Vorbereitung des Versuchs 5.2.2 Durchführung des Versuchs 5.3 Veränderungen der Proben im Laufe des Versuchs 5.4 Auswertung 5.5 Schlussfolgerungen für die Anwendung von Korrosionsschutzverpackungen 6 Zusammenfassung und Ausblick Literaturverzeichnis Anhang Anhang I: Elektrochemische Spannungsreihe Anhang II: Massenveränderungen der Metallproben Thesen

<p><strong>Background:</strong> Around the world, markets deregulates, which leads to increased competition. Meetings between the consumer and the employees of a company determine how the customer perceives the company and / or its brand. This has result in that many companies have realized the importance of internal using the same marketing skills that are used externally. In 2009, pharmacy market went from being a monopoly market to be a regulated competitive market.</p><p><strong>Problem:</strong> Is there any internal conditions for a private company, whose culture and structure was formed under a state monopoly, to create a strong corporate brand?</p><p><strong>Purpose:</strong> The purpose of this paper is to, through a case study, analyze and evaluate the internal marketing in a company which has undergone a change of ownership and retained the same staff.</p><p><strong>Method:</strong> Through interviews with key personnel and staff , data was gathered for the case study, which means that the method is qualitative. Only one of the company's pharmacies has been included in the study.</p><p><strong>Conclusions:</strong> The authors of this paper perceive that company has the required internal conditions to create a strong corporate brand, since the company i.e. has taken into consideration the history of the pharmacy staff, the management shows a personal commitment, campaigns are communicated internally, staff and customers consciously or unconsciously may be involved in shaping the content of the corporate brand, and that dialogue exists between staff and management so that management can have an understanding of how staff perceive the company's vision and corporate brand, which in turn leads the company to form a brand that staff can accept and understand because their norms and values has been taken into consideration.</p>

Background: Around the world, markets deregulates, which leads to increased competition. Meetings between the consumer and the employees of a company determine how the customer perceives the company and / or its brand. This has result in that many companies have realized the importance of internal using the same marketing skills that are used externally. In 2009, pharmacy market went from being a monopoly market to be a regulated competitive market. Problem: Is there any internal conditions for a private company, whose culture and structure was formed under a state monopoly, to create a strong corporate brand? Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to, through a case study, analyze and evaluate the internal marketing in a company which has undergone a change of ownership and retained the same staff. Method: Through interviews with key personnel and staff , data was gathered for the case study, which means that the method is qualitative. Only one of the company's pharmacies has been included in the study. Conclusions: The authors of this paper perceive that company has the required internal conditions to create a strong corporate brand, since the company i.e. has taken into consideration the history of the pharmacy staff, the management shows a personal commitment, campaigns are communicated internally, staff and customers consciously or unconsciously may be involved in shaping the content of the corporate brand, and that dialogue exists between staff and management so that management can have an understanding of how staff perceive the company's vision and corporate brand, which in turn leads the company to form a brand that staff can accept and understand because their norms and values has been taken into consideration.

No bioma Cerrado, a ocorrência das queimadas é uma importante perturbação estimulada pela natureza ou atividades antrópicas. Apesar do crescente esforço para monitorar o Cerrado, um estudo em escala de bioma para caracterizar a ocorrência das queimadas e quantificar e entender a variabilidade das emissões associadas às queimadas é necessário. Considerando sua extensão espacial, o uso de sensores orbitais é a abordagem mais efetiva para estabelecer tais padrões no bioma. O presente estudo objetivou caracterizar os regimes do fogo, precipitação e condição da vegetação no Cerrado, estabelecer padrões espaciais da ocorrência das queimadas e sua correlação com a precipitação e a condição da vegetação, caracterizar e encontrar tendências nas emissões de material particulado com diâmetro menor que 2,5 micrômetros (PM2,5m) associadas às queimadas no bioma utilizando produtos derivados dos sensores Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), dados de precipitação do satélite Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission (TRMM) e a ferramenta PREP-CHEM-SRC. O Cerrado foi, respectivamente, o primeiro e o segundo bioma brasileiro em que mais ocorreu área queimada e focos de calor, sendo que no bioma tais ocorrências são maiores durante a estação seca e na cobertura da terra savana. Os focos de calor se concentraram no norte do bioma, porém focos de calor mais intensos não se localizam necessariamente onde a concentração é maior. A análise espacial mostrou que valores médios/totais podem esconder alguns padrões, como para a precipitação, que tem a menor média em agosto, mas espacialmente o mínimo de precipitação neste mês foi encontrado em apenas 7% do Cerrado. Geralmente, existe uma defasagem de 2-3 meses entre o mínimo de precipitação e máximo de focos de calor e área queimada, enquanto o valor mínimo do índice Vegetation Condition Index (VCI) geralmente ocorre no mesmo mês que o máximo de focos de calor e área queimada. Em média, o Cerrado emitiu 1,08 Tg.ano-1 de PM2,5m associado às queimadas, contribuindo com 25% e 15% das emissões no Brasil e na América do Sul, respectivamente. A maioria das emissões se concentrou no fim da estação seca e na transição entre as estações. Anualmente, 66% das emissões ocorreram no uso savana, porém focos de calor detectados no uso floresta ombrófila densa tendem a emitir mais do que os detectados no uso savana. Espacialmente, cada célula de 0,1º emitiu em média 0,5 ton.km-2.ano-1 de PM2,5m associadas às queimadas, sendo que foram emitidas até 16,6 ton.km-2.ano-1. Considerando o Cerrado como um todo, foi encontrada uma tendência negativa nas emissões anuais de PM2,5m associadas às queimadas que representa -1,78% da média anual de PM2,5m emitido pelas queimadas no bioma durante o período analisado. Já espacialmente foram encontradas tendências anuais que representam até ± 35% da média anual de PM2,5m emitido. / In the Cerrado biome, fire occurrence is a major disturbance driven by both natural and anthropic causes. Despite increasing efforts for monitoring the Cerrado, a biome-scale study for characterizing fire occurrence and quantifying and understanding the variability of fire emissions is still needed. Moreover, considering the spatial extent of the study area, orbital sensors are the most effective approach to establish such patterns in this biome. We aimed to characterize fire, precipitation and vegetation condition regimes in the Cerrado, to establish spatial patterns of fire occurrence and their correlation with precipitation and vegetation condition, and to characterize and find trends in Particulate Matter with diameter less than 2.5m (PM2.5m) fire emissions in the Cerrado biome using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) datasets, Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission (TRMM) rainfall data, and the PREP-CHEM-SRC emissions preprocessing tool. The Cerrado was, respectively, the first and second biome for the occurrence of burned area and hotspots among the Brazilian biomes, being that occurrences were higher during the dry season and in the savanna land use. Hotspots concentrate in the north of the biome, but more intense hotspots are not necessarily located where concentration is higher. Spatial analysis showed that averaged and/or summed values for the entire Cerrado can hide patterns, such as for precipitation, which has the lowest average in August, but spatially minimum precipitation in August was found only in 7% of the biome. Usually, there is a 23-months lag between minimum precipitation and maximum hotspots and burned area, while minimum values of Vegetation Condition Index (VCI) and maximum hotspots and burned area occur in the same month. On average, the Cerrado emitted 1.08 Tg.year-1 of PM2.5m associated with fires, accounting for 25% and 15% of the PM2.5m fire emissions in Brazil and South America, respectively. Most of PM2.5m fire emissions were concentrated in the end of the dry season and in the transitional month. Annually, 66% of the emissions occurred over the savanna land use, however, active fires detected in the evergreen broadleaf land use tended to emit more per event than active fires occurring in the savanna land use. Spatially, each 0.1° grid cell emitted on average 0.5 ton.km-2.year-1 of PM2.5m associated with fires, but values can reach to 16.6 ton.km-2.year-1 in a single cell. Considering the entire Cerrado, we found an annual decreasing trend representing -1.78% of the annual average PM2.5m emitted from fires during the period analyzed, however, the grid cell analysis found annual trends representing ± 35% of the annual average PM2.5m fire emissions.

<p>På bara ett par år har elektronisk handel potential att radikalt förändra de ekonomiska och sociala förhållanden i samhället. Internets snabba tillväxt kopplar samman individer och organisationer till ett stort globalt nätverk som representerar enorma möjligheter. Det talas om ett nätverkssamhälle och en nätverksekonomi.</p><p>Elektronisk handel driver företag mot att bedriva affärer på ett fundamentalt nytt sätt. Behovet av att dela information i realtid ökar tillsammans med förändringarna i värdekedjan.</p><p>Syftet med studien är att kartlägga elektronisk handel i allmänhet. Studien fokuseras på hur elektronisk handel används för att länka samman företag, stora som små, från råmaterial till konsumenten. Arbetet belyser hinder och krav i samband med elektronisk handel och det sätt de hanteras på.</p><p>Företagen i undersökningen visar ingen tydlig strävan mot att uppnå en totalt integrerad värdekedja. Grundliga affärsprocesser flyttas mot Internet för att utnyttja nätverkets fördelar. Främst används EDI och online-tjänster som Internetbutiker för elektronisk handel.</p>

På bara ett par år har elektronisk handel potential att radikalt förändra de ekonomiska och sociala förhållanden i samhället. Internets snabba tillväxt kopplar samman individer och organisationer till ett stort globalt nätverk som representerar enorma möjligheter. Det talas om ett nätverkssamhälle och en nätverksekonomi. Elektronisk handel driver företag mot att bedriva affärer på ett fundamentalt nytt sätt. Behovet av att dela information i realtid ökar tillsammans med förändringarna i värdekedjan. Syftet med studien är att kartlägga elektronisk handel i allmänhet. Studien fokuseras på hur elektronisk handel används för att länka samman företag, stora som små, från råmaterial till konsumenten. Arbetet belyser hinder och krav i samband med elektronisk handel och det sätt de hanteras på. Företagen i undersökningen visar ingen tydlig strävan mot att uppnå en totalt integrerad värdekedja. Grundliga affärsprocesser flyttas mot Internet för att utnyttja nätverkets fördelar. Främst används EDI och online-tjänster som Internetbutiker för elektronisk handel.

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Policy makers adopt irrigated agriculture for food security, since irrigation doubles crop production. Therefore, the development of large irrigation systems has a long history in many places worldwide. Although large-scale irrigation schemes play an important role in improving food security, many schemes, especially in Africa, do not yield the expected outcomes. This is related to poor water management, which is generally due to a lack of effective evaluation and monitoring. The objective of this study, therefore, is to propose a new methodology to assess, evaluate and monitor large-scale irrigation systems. Information on irrigation indicators is needed to enable the evaluation of irrigation performance. The evaluation is the first and the most significant step in providing information about how it is performing. After reviewing extensive literature, a list of indicators related to the performance of irrigation, rainwater supply and productivity is suggested. The irrigation efficiency indicators Relative Irrigation Supply (RIS) and Relative Water Supply (RWS) are selected. Potential rainwater supply to crops can be tested based on the Moisture Availability Index (MAI) and the Ratio of Moisture Availability (RMA). Water productivity can be assessed by Crop Yield (Y) and Water Use Efficiency (WUE). However, the central problem facing large-scale irrigation schemes is always the lack of data, which calls for the development of a new method of data acquisition that allows evaluation and monitoring. Remote Sensing (RS) technology makes it possible to retrieve data across large areas. Two different approaches via RS, the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Actual Evapotranspiration (ETa), can be utilized for monitoring. The well-known Vegetation Condition Index (VCI), derived from the NDVI, is modified (MVCI) to allow a qualitative spatio-temporal assessment of irrigation efficiency. MVCI takes into account crop response to water availability, while ETa indicates whether water is used as intended. Furthermore, the assessment of the possible hydrological impact of the irrigation system should be considered in the evaluation and monitoring process. The Sudanese Gezira Scheme of 8,000 square kilometers in the Nile Basin, where performance evaluation and monitoring are absent or poorly conducted, is no exception. This research takes the large-scale irrigation of the Gezira Scheme as a case study, as it is the largest scheme, not only in the Nile Basin but also in the world, under single management. The first long-term historical evaluation of the scheme is conducted for the period 1961–2012 rather than only on a short-time scale as is the common practice. An increase in RIS and RWS values from 1.40 and 1.70 to 2.23 and 2.60, respectively, since the 1993/94 season shows decreasing irrigation efficiency. MAI and RMA for summer crops indicate a promising rainfall contribution to irrigation in July and August. The Gezira Scheme achieves low yield and WUE in comparison to many irrigation schemes of the globe. Low productivity is mainly due to poor distribution and irrigation mismanagement. This is indicated by the 15-year MVCI spatio-temporal analysis, which shows that the northern part of the scheme experiences characteristic drought during the summer crop season. Although MVCI can be considered a monitoring tool, the index does not deduct the soil water content, and water could be wasted and available in other ways (e.g. water depressions). Spatio-temporal information for ETa is required to better quantify water depletion and establish links between land use and water allocation. However, several RS models have been developed for estimating ETa. Thus, improving the understanding of performance of such models in arid climates, as well as large-scale irrigation schemes, is taken into account in this study. Four different models based on the energy balance method, the Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL), Mapping EvapoTranspiration at High Resolution with Internalized Calibration (METRIC™), Simplified Surface Energy Balance (SSEB) and MOD16 ET are applied in order to determine the optimal approach for obtaining ETa. Outputs from these models are compared to actual water balance (WB) estimates during the 2004/05 season at field scale. Several statistical measures are evaluated, and a score is given for each model in order to select the best-performing model. Based on ranking criteria, SSEB gives the best performance and is seen as a suitable operational ETa model for the scheme. SSEB subsequently is applied for summer and winter crop seasons for the period 2000–2014. Unfortunately, one of the limitations faced in the current research is the absence of validation data on a regional scale. Therefore, the assessment focuses on spatial distribution and trends rather than absolute values. As with the MVCI distribution, the seasonal ETa for the Gezira Scheme is higher in the southern and central parts than in the northern part. This confirms the robustness of the developed MVCI. To avoid using absolute values of ETa, the ratio of ETa from agricultural areas (ETagr) to the total evapotranspiration (ET) from the scheme (ETsum) is calculated. The ETagr/ETsum ratio shows a descending trend over recent years, indicating that the water is available but not being utilized for agricultural production. This study shows that SSEB is also useful for identifying the location of water losses on a daily basis. Around 80 channels are identified as having leakage problems for the 2013/14 crop season. Such information is very useful for reducing losses at the scheme. In addition, Rainwater Harvesting (WH) is addressed and found to be applicable as an alternative solution for accounting for rainfall in irrigation. It is seen that these management scenarios could save water and increase the overall efficiency of the scheme. It is possible to save 68 million cubic meters of water per year when the overall irrigation efficiency of the scheme is improved by only 1%. A level of efficiency of 75% is predicted from the proposed management scenarios, which could save about 2.6 billion cubic meters of water per year. In conclusion, the present study has developed an innovative method of identifying the problems of large-scale schemes as well as proposing management scenarios to enhance irrigation water management practice. Improved agricultural water management in terms of crop, water and land management can increase food production, thereby alleviating poverty and hunger in an environmentally sustainable manner.

Policy makers adopt irrigated agriculture for food security, since irrigation doubles crop production. Therefore, the development of large irrigation systems has a long history in many places worldwide. Although large-scale irrigation schemes play an important role in improving food security, many schemes, especially in Africa, do not yield the expected outcomes. This is related to poor water management, which is generally due to a lack of effective evaluation and monitoring. The objective of this study, therefore, is to propose a new methodology to assess, evaluate and monitor large-scale irrigation systems. Information on irrigation indicators is needed to enable the evaluation of irrigation performance. The evaluation is the first and the most significant step in providing information about how it is performing. After reviewing extensive literature, a list of indicators related to the performance of irrigation, rainwater supply and productivity is suggested. The irrigation efficiency indicators Relative Irrigation Supply (RIS) and Relative Water Supply (RWS) are selected. Potential rainwater supply to crops can be tested based on the Moisture Availability Index (MAI) and the Ratio of Moisture Availability (RMA). Water productivity can be assessed by Crop Yield (Y) and Water Use Efficiency (WUE). However, the central problem facing large-scale irrigation schemes is always the lack of data, which calls for the development of a new method of data acquisition that allows evaluation and monitoring. Remote Sensing (RS) technology makes it possible to retrieve data across large areas. Two different approaches via RS, the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Actual Evapotranspiration (ETa), can be utilized for monitoring. The well-known Vegetation Condition Index (VCI), derived from the NDVI, is modified (MVCI) to allow a qualitative spatio-temporal assessment of irrigation efficiency. MVCI takes into account crop response to water availability, while ETa indicates whether water is used as intended. Furthermore, the assessment of the possible hydrological impact of the irrigation system should be considered in the evaluation and monitoring process. The Sudanese Gezira Scheme of 8,000 square kilometers in the Nile Basin, where performance evaluation and monitoring are absent or poorly conducted, is no exception. This research takes the large-scale irrigation of the Gezira Scheme as a case study, as it is the largest scheme, not only in the Nile Basin but also in the world, under single management. The first long-term historical evaluation of the scheme is conducted for the period 1961–2012 rather than only on a short-time scale as is the common practice. An increase in RIS and RWS values from 1.40 and 1.70 to 2.23 and 2.60, respectively, since the 1993/94 season shows decreasing irrigation efficiency. MAI and RMA for summer crops indicate a promising rainfall contribution to irrigation in July and August. The Gezira Scheme achieves low yield and WUE in comparison to many irrigation schemes of the globe. Low productivity is mainly due to poor distribution and irrigation mismanagement. This is indicated by the 15-year MVCI spatio-temporal analysis, which shows that the northern part of the scheme experiences characteristic drought during the summer crop season. Although MVCI can be considered a monitoring tool, the index does not deduct the soil water content, and water could be wasted and available in other ways (e.g. water depressions). Spatio-temporal information for ETa is required to better quantify water depletion and establish links between land use and water allocation. However, several RS models have been developed for estimating ETa. Thus, improving the understanding of performance of such models in arid climates, as well as large-scale irrigation schemes, is taken into account in this study. Four different models based on the energy balance method, the Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL), Mapping EvapoTranspiration at High Resolution with Internalized Calibration (METRIC™), Simplified Surface Energy Balance (SSEB) and MOD16 ET are applied in order to determine the optimal approach for obtaining ETa. Outputs from these models are compared to actual water balance (WB) estimates during the 2004/05 season at field scale. Several statistical measures are evaluated, and a score is given for each model in order to select the best-performing model. Based on ranking criteria, SSEB gives the best performance and is seen as a suitable operational ETa model for the scheme. SSEB subsequently is applied for summer and winter crop seasons for the period 2000–2014. Unfortunately, one of the limitations faced in the current research is the absence of validation data on a regional scale. Therefore, the assessment focuses on spatial distribution and trends rather than absolute values. As with the MVCI distribution, the seasonal ETa for the Gezira Scheme is higher in the southern and central parts than in the northern part. This confirms the robustness of the developed MVCI. To avoid using absolute values of ETa, the ratio of ETa from agricultural areas (ETagr) to the total evapotranspiration (ET) from the scheme (ETsum) is calculated. The ETagr/ETsum ratio shows a descending trend over recent years, indicating that the water is available but not being utilized for agricultural production. This study shows that SSEB is also useful for identifying the location of water losses on a daily basis. Around 80 channels are identified as having leakage problems for the 2013/14 crop season. Such information is very useful for reducing losses at the scheme. In addition, Rainwater Harvesting (WH) is addressed and found to be applicable as an alternative solution for accounting for rainfall in irrigation. It is seen that these management scenarios could save water and increase the overall efficiency of the scheme. It is possible to save 68 million cubic meters of water per year when the overall irrigation efficiency of the scheme is improved by only 1%. A level of efficiency of 75% is predicted from the proposed management scenarios, which could save about 2.6 billion cubic meters of water per year. In conclusion, the present study has developed an innovative method of identifying the problems of large-scale schemes as well as proposing management scenarios to enhance irrigation water management practice. Improved agricultural water management in terms of crop, water and land management can increase food production, thereby alleviating poverty and hunger in an environmentally sustainable manner.