The paper focuses on capital market integration at sovereign bond market in eleven selected euro zone countries (Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain). The first main objective is to test the degree of capital market integration before and after the crisis using Germany as a benchmark country and also among them as well. Secondly it evaluates and provides reasons of capital integration in time. The examination is applied through i) sigma convergence ii) yield spreads iii) correlation matrix iv) cointegration tests. I found almost zero yield differences before crisis. After 2008 results show segmentation in euro zone countries with certain special characteristic for countries with high credit ratings.

After events like the global financial crisis and the advent of globalisation, companies have experienced increased competition and pressure to improve performance in the new environments in which business is conducted. This has impacted the world of manufacturing, among others, and has necessitated companies in this industry to adopt improvement methodologies to assist in growing the business. This study looks into the implementation of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) as one of these procedures and highlights that most articles and studies on this process concentrate on the highvolume, low-mix manufacturing environment. On account of this, a gap is left in the application of these techniques in the low-volume, high-mix environment. The literature highlights the differences in the two disciplines that have now evolved into one toolkit that is applied as LSS and how that is achieved. The cases highlighted do not, however, cover the low-volume, high-variety manufacturers, and this paper seeks to use the expertise of LSS practitioners in this environment to get information and derive a framework for successful implementation of LSS in the capital equipment environment. The main contributor to the study is a company that manufactures capital equipment for the mines, with other respondents being practitioners in similar companies and customers in the mines. Respondents were sent a survey to get their opinion on the implementation of LSS in their environment. The survey attempted to gather information through five key questions on how LSS was being applied and its impact on the cost, cycle-time and on-time delivery of the organisation. A quantitative study design was adopted to develop a framework for the successful implementation of LSS in the capital equipment industry. A total of 38 respondents gave feedback, which was analysed, and this showed what - according to the professionals involved in this study - are the vital aspects of this implementation to ensure success. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / zkgibs2015 / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / Unrestricted

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Ingeniero Civil Eléctrico / El sueño es un tema que ha tomado mucha fuerza en los últimos años sobre todo por su función neurofisiológica y reparadora. Dentro de los fenómenos fisiológicos más importantes del sueño se encuentra una actividad eléctrica registrada en el EEG (electroencefalograma) llamada Huso Sigma. Este patrón eléctrico se ha asociado por una parte a procesos involucrados en la consolidación de la memoria y por otra a desórdenes tales como retardo mental, hiperkinesia, desarrollo cognitivo, entre otros. Por lo tanto pesquisar y caracterizar este patrón es de suma importancia en el área de la medicina. El objetivo de esta tesis consiste en construir características morfológicas con el fin de caracterizar Husos Sigma y posteriormente detectarlos a través de un sistema de detección automático. Los Husos Sigmas corresponden a trenes de ondas distinguibles de la actividad de fondo del EEG, principalmente notorios en las derivaciones centrales, que comienzan con una baja amplitud, llegan a un máximo y luego decaen, teniendo duraciones típicas entre 0,5 a 2 [s]. El problema de detección consiste en lograr separar entre Husos Sigmas, correspondientes a trozos de señales marcadas por expertos que a su juicio consideran que son Husos Sigmas, de otras marcas hechas por un pre-detector y que no corresponden a Husos Sigmas. Para resolver el problema propuesto se propone un esquema: Descomposición Modal Empírica (EMD por Empirical Mode Decomposition en inglés) - detector de zonas - Matching Pursuit (MP). La EMD permite aislar la componente fusiforme que se busca caracterizar mediante MP en las zonas detectadas por el detector de zonas. El algoritmo MP se encuentra equipado con un diccionario de wavelets Morlet, cuya función es describir de manera sucinta cuando se trata de HS y de manera más compleja cuando se trata de no-HS. La creación del diccionario se hace en base a características extraídas del detector de zonas aplicado previamente. Luego de aplicar el método propuesto se extraen características basadas en el comportamiento morfológico de la componente seleccionada. Tras generar estas características se entrena una Máquina de Soporte Vectorial (SVM por Support Vector Machine en inglés) empleando un kernel Gaussiano. Los SVM se calibran para cada experimento realizado. El funcionamiento del sistema, considerando un largo mínimo del detector de zonas de 0,3 [s], es revisado en el punto de operación TVP=80% y FPR=30%. TVP significa tasa de verdaderos positivos y FPR tasa de falsos positivos. De este análisis se concluye que la aproximación morfológica es buena, sin embargo el método opera de manera similar en varios HS y no-HS. Realizando un análisis entre las características basado en información mutua se concluye que gran parte de la información se encuentra contenida en 3 características; sin embargo el desempeño de ocupar estas tres características en algunos puntos de operación se diferencia bastante con respecto al desempeño de un sistema que emplea todas las características creadas. Finalmente se sugieren nuevos pasos a seguir con el fin de mejorar el sistema propuesto.

This master’s thesis deals with analysis and following optimisation of a Sigma TN sports car suspension. Knowledge of vehicle dynamics and strength of materials was used during the optimisation. Kinematic and force analysis was carried out in software ADAMS Car. A FEM analysis was processed in Ansys Workbench environment. Three design concepts were worked out, in which Topology optimisation also found use.

Dysfunction in the Sigma-1 receptor (Sig-1R) is implicated in many neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Recently, agonists of the Sig-1R have been found to be neuroprotective in AD and provide significant improvements in symptoms. The hallmarks of AD are aggregation of amyloid-β (Aβ) plaques and development of neurofibrillary tau tangles in the brain, which are thought to be correlated with progressive neuronal cell death in AD. Aβ leads to increased endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, decreased autophagy, and increased apoptosis, all of which may be contributing to the neuronal cell death that is seen in AD. The Sig-1R is known to reduce ER stress, increase autophagy, and decrease apoptosis. However, as of yet there is little research on the ability of the Sig-1R to specifically reduce Aβ toxicity through these pathways. Therefore, through the use of in vitro and ex vivo models, this study examined the pathways through which activation of the Sig-1R may exert its protective effects against Aβ toxicity. Here, it is shown that activation of the Sig-1R reduces neuronal cell apoptosis in vitro, and reduces tissue death in the CA3 region of the hippocampus ex vivo. Furthermore, this reduction in cell and tissue death may be a result of reduction of ER stress and a return towards baseline levels of autophagy. Together, this research provides insight as to how the Sig-1R may be an important therapeutic target in AD through protection against apoptosis and tissue death.

The work deals with the design of novel high order sigma-delta AD converter using switched-capacitors approach. Model of the ideal and real architecture of the third order sigma-delta modulator was designed in MATLAB SIMULINK. The comparison of the ideal and real model of sigma delta architecture is described in this thesis. On the basis of simulation results in MATLAB SIMULINK the stages of modulator on transistors level in CMOS technology were designed. Fully differential operational amplifier, switched capacitor integrator, summing amplifier, comparator, one bit digital to analog converter and nonoverlapping clock generator were designed. The circuit of third order sigma-delta modulator was simulated in CADENCE. Layout of operational amplifier and switched capacitor integrator was made. Through the use of MATLAB was designed decimation filter as well.

Diplomová práce se zabývá analýzou využití projektové metodologie Lean Six Sigma na finančním oddělení ve vybrané mezinárodní společnosti a návrhem postupu na jeho zlepšení. Jsou zde obsaženy teoretické poznatky týkající se metody Lean Six Sigma jako i praktická ukázka použití dané metody v praxi. Na základě údajů a zkoumání použití metody je provedená analýza efektivního využití. Následně je popsané zhodnocení dané analýzy a navržen postup pro zlepšení situace do budoucna.

The diploma thesis deals with reduction of scrapping at zero rework projects. These are the projects where corrections of particular parts are not allowed. If there are any in this way damaged parts, the entire products become scraps. Due to the fact the cost of low quality is increased, which is undesirable. The theoretical part describes the use of the six sigma method, which is then applied in the practical part. By using the IPO analysis the possible causes of the main problem have been chosen and then tested. The output of the diploma thesis is to find out and eliminate the causes of discrepancy, especially bridge walls at zero rework projects. After implementation of the first arrangements the scrapping has already been reduced.

The aim of this thesis is to reduce the cost of poor quality in the chosen production process. Specifically I focused on the winding lines at the production of rotors, which are components of electronic brake systems (EBS) and heating and ventilation systems of cars. The thesis was worked out in accordance with an announced Six Sigma project in the company. I also dealt with the Six Sigma strategy in the theoretical part. The chosen tools are applied afterwards in the practical part, especially in define, measure and analyse phases. The output of this thesis is an analysis of all possible causes of high scrap ratio in the stated production process. I also proposed to adopt measures for cutting the cost of poor quality in the chosen production process.