Search results for "Ability"
showing 10 items of 18559 documents
Towards Shipping 4.0. A preliminary gap analysis
2020
Abstract The paradigm of Industry 4.0 involves a substantial innovation to the value creation approach thought the supply chain and the application of digital enabling technologies like the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data Analytics (BDA) and cloud computing. The fourth industrial revolution is thus expected to have a disruptive impact on maritime transport and shipping sectors, where smart ships and autonomous vessels well be part of a new and fully interconnected maritime ecosystem. Specific hardware components, such as sensors, actuators, or processors will be embedded in the ship’s key systems in order to provide valuable information to increase the efficiency, sustainability and safe…
Dissipativity-Based Small-Gain Theorems for Stochastic Network Systems
2016
In this paper, some small-gain theorems are proposed for stochastic network systems which describe large-scale systems with interconnections, uncertainties and random disturbances. By the aid of conditional dissipativity and showing times of stochastic interval, small-gain conditions proposed for the deterministic case are extended to the stochastic case. When some design parameters are tunable in practice, we invaginate a simpler method to verify small-gain condition by selecting one subsystem as a monitor. Compared with the existing results, the existence-and-uniqueness of solution and ultimate uniform boundedness of input are removed from requirements of input-to-state stability and smal…
The shear strength of Opalinus Clay shale in the remoulded state
2020
Abstract The Opalinus Clay shale formation is considered as a potential host geomaterial for the Swiss deep geological repository for radioactive waste. It presents different facies and it is characterised by a multi-scale heterogeneous composition, by a typical fissile structure with well-defined bedding planes and by anisotropic hydro-mechanical behaviour. This peculiar complexity makes it difficult to assign a unique set of geomechanical parameters to the material. This paper presents an experimental study aimed at characterising the lowest values of the shear strength parameters. In this sense, the shear behaviour was investigated on remoulded samples where the fabric and the diagenetic…
Challenges influencing the safety of migrant workers in the construction industry: A qualitative study in Italy, Spain, and the UK
2021
Abstract The construction industry is notoriously high risk for accidents, injuries, and deaths, particularly for non-national or migrant workers, who comprise a significant proportion of the workforce. This paper presents an international, qualitative study focused on exploring the challenges which influence the safety of migrant construction workers in Italy, Spain, and the UK. Based on a comprehensive review of the literature, we formulated two research questions about the challenges relating to safety that migrant workers face and the challenges to safety training effectively improving migrant workers’ safety behaviours. We present our template analysis of semi-structured interviews and…
Comparison of fully non-stationary artificial accelerogram generation methods in reproducing seismicity at a given site
2020
Abstract Seismic input modelling is a crucial step when Non-Linear Time-History Analyses (NLTHAs) are performed, the seismic response of structures being highly responsive to the input employed. When natural accelerograms able to represent local seismicity are not available, the use of generated accelerograms is an efficient solution for input modelling. The aim of the present paper is to compare four methods for generating fully non-stationary artificial accelerograms on the basis of a target spectrum, identified using seven recorded accelerograms registered in the neighbourhood of the construction site during a single event, assumed as target accelerograms. For each method, seven accelero…
Exploring the application of blockchain to humanitarian supply chains: insights from Humanitarian Supply Blockchain pilot project
2021
PurposeSome studies and reports have recently suggested using blockchain technology to improve transparency and trust in humanitarian supply chains (HSCs). However, evidence-based studies to display the utility and applicability of blockchains in HSCs are missing in the literature. This paper aims to investigate the key drivers and barriers of blockchain application to HSCs and explore whether evidence could support that the application of blockchain improves transparency and trust in HSCs.Design/methodology/approachThis paper puts forward a two-stage approach to explore the blockchain application in HSCs: an initial exploration of humanitarian practitioners and academicians interested in b…
Conditional Versus Joint Probability Assessments
1984
AbstractThe assessment of conditional and / or joint probabilities of events that constitute scenarios is necessary for sound planning, forecasting, and decision making. The assessment process is complex and subtle, and various difficulties are encountered in the elicitation of such probabilities such as, implicit violations ofthe probability calculus and some meaningfjilness conditions. The necessary and sufficient as well as meaningfulness conditions that the elicited information on conditional and joint probabilities must satisfy are evaluated against actual assessments empirically. A high frequency of violation of these conditions was observed in assessing both conditional and joint pro…
A Novel Border Identification Algorithm Based on an “Anti-Bayesian” Paradigm
2013
Published version of a chapter in the book: Computer Analysis of Images and Patterns. Also available from the publisher at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-40261-6_23 Border Identification (BI) algorithms, a subset of Prototype Reduction Schemes (PRS) aim to reduce the number of training vectors so that the reduced set (the border set) contains only those patterns which lie near the border of the classes, and have sufficient information to perform a meaningful classification. However, one can see that the true border patterns (“near” border) are not able to perform the task independently as they are not able to always distinguish the testing samples. Thus, researchers have worked on thi…
The Integration of the Supply Chain as a Dynamic Capability for Sustainability: The Case of an Innovative Organic Company
2018
Numerous research projects have demonstrated that a firm’s ability to integrate, build, and reconfigure internal and external competencies to adapt to changes in its environment is a key capability for its competitiveness. However, in the case of developing the capabilities needed to implement innovation, we have found that the ability to integrate knowledge into the supply chain is also crucial since it is an essential requirement for bringing in technological change and product innovation. The purpose of this chapter is to understand the role of supplier integration in the implementation of radical innovation. First, we propose a theoretical model to connect supplier integration as a dyna…
Ranking corporate sustainability: a flexible multidimensional approach based on linguistic variables
2017
Corporate sustainability implies a compromise between the present environmental, social, and economic needs of a firm's stakeholders and their future needs. Corporate sustainability is therefore a multidimensional concept. Nowadays, several independent rating agencies rate firms in terms of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria. These ratings are usually used by main sustainability indices such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, FTSE4 Good, Stoxx Sustainability Index, or Euronext Vigeo Family to select companies to invest in. Only those firms performing better than the average of their sector are selected. However, although providing linguistic ratings about the performan…