Value in sustainability: the process industry perspective

The most important driver for management is successful business that increases its value to shareholders. The adoption of environmentally responsible business practices can open up an additional range of opportunities for companies, for example by improving material efficiency. The choice to improve environmental performance of a company tends to also improve its financial performance. In this paper, our aim is to study the value of sustainability in process and mining industry from the perspective of interest groups such as investors, customers and the public, by using case examples. Interviews and workshops were employed to investigate whether or not investors and customers are interested in sustainability in the process and mining industries. We also illustrate how easy it can be to jeopardize corporate reputation through. The present situation and challenges faced in bringing sustainability into everyday business practices are summarized and proposals made concerning ways to achieve increased sustainability.     

基于市场表现的中国新能源汽车产业发展政策剖析

发展新能源汽车作为应对能源与环境问题的有效解决方式之一,受到世界各国的重视。中国政府对于新能源汽车产业的发展非常重视,在中央政府层面也提出了多项促进新能源汽车产业发展的相关政策,特别是将产业发展放到国家发展战略的高度。文章在梳理和分类2001-2015年中国新能源汽车产业发展政策(国家层面)、全面展示产业政策的时间演进与变化趋势的基础上,应用产业链分析的方法,按照研发、生产、销售和使用的顺序,选取新能源汽车产业的技术专利数据、产销量数据和商业模式等指标,将中国新能源汽车产业的市场表现与政策进行关联,构建中国新能源汽车产业市场表现与产业政策关联分析框架。然后,在搜集相关市场数据的基础上,采用该分析框架分别从技术专利、产销量和商业模式三个方面对市场表现和产业政策的关联关系进行深入剖析,发现随着产业政策数量与力度的增加,三个方面的市场表现整体均呈现出快速发展的趋势,且技术创新与商业模式创新的战略方向与发展路径均与政策导向基本一致。最后,文章对推广应用补贴和免征车辆购置税的政策变化和影响进行了相关讨论,讨论结果表明随着两项典型政策调整与退坡,国家逐步释放市场信号,显示出政策支持形式与内容在发生变化,特别是体现出对产业技术创新和商业模式创新领域的重视。本文的研究表明:中国已经构建起较为完善的新能源汽车产业发展政策体系,政策体系与市场表现之间存在强关联关系,对新能源汽车产业的技术专利、产品产销量、以及商业模式等市场表现方面起到重要的引领作用;伴随着中国新能源汽车产业政策的调整,提升产业竞争力、占据产业发展新方向将成为产业下一步重点关注的方向。     

An exploration of the potential for re-distributed manufacturing to contribute to a sustainable,resilient city*

Abstract

Re-distributed manufacturing (RDM), broadly described as manufacturing done at a smaller-scale and locally, could be beneficial to business and urban society through creating jobs, reducing the environmental impacts of production, and improving resilience to future disturbances. Consideration of RDM within a city-region requires the consideration of a wide range of issues – societal, technical, economic and environmental. This paper presents the results of a study into the potential for RDM to contribute to a sustainable, resilient city in the face of a range of expected future disturbances on the city and on manufacturing sectors. The study took an integrated assessment approach which incorporated the development of a conceptual framework; a ‘strawman’ causal loop diagram which was reviewed by participants in a workshop; and a stock and flow system dynamics model that represents our understanding about the structure and behaviour of urban manufacturing. Several key themes emerged: similarities between RDM and traditional manufacturing, availability of physical space for RDM to be done, achieving urban resilience through RDM by enabling responsiveness to disturbances, changes in environmental impacts from production, additions or losses in jobs, the competitiveness of local manufacturing, and skills and innovation for RDM technologies. Further work is recommended.     

The political economy of certificates for land use in Germany – experimental evidence

Certificate trading schemes have been discussed as a cost-efficient means of reducing urban land consumption in Germany by capping and reallocating permissions to conduct building projects. However, in contrast to the established cap & trade systems for emissions, reputation-seeking politicians would be in charge of buying and trading certificates – an aspect not considered to date. We thus present a laboratory experiment that captures politicians’ incentives connected to electoral cycles in a cap & trade scheme for land consumption, whereby tradable certificates are auctioned and grandfathered in equal shares. We find the cap & trade system to be efficient at large; yet, there are several politically relevant distortions that are aggravated by self-serving incentives. We thus identify potential problems to a cap & trade system for urban land consumption that could substantially reduce both its assumed superior efficiency and its political feasibility.     

The business cycle and the incidence of workplace injuries: evidence from the U.S.A

Introduction

The current study explored the association between the business cycle and the incidence of workplace injuries to identify cyclically sensitive industries and the relative contribution of physical capital and labor utilization within industries.

Method

Bureau of Labor Statistics nonfatal injury rates from 1976 through 2007 were examined across five industry sectors with respect to several macroeconomic indicators. Within industries, injury associations with utilization of labor and physical capital over time were tested using time series regression methods.

Results

Pro-cyclical associations between business cycle indicators and injury incidence were observed in mining, construction, and manufacturing but not in agriculture or trade. Physical capital utilization was the highest potential contributor to injuries in mining while labor utilization was the highest potential contributor in construction. In manufacturing each effect had a similar association with injuries.

Conclusion

The incidence of workplace injury is associated with the business cycle. However, the degree of association and the mechanisms through with the business cycle affects the incidence of workplace injuries was not the same across industries.

Impact on Industry

The results suggest that firms in the construction, manufacturing, and mining industries should take additional precautionary safety measures during cyclical upturns. Potential differences among industries in the mechanisms through which the business cycle affects injury incidence suggest different protective strategies for those industries. For example, in construction, additional efforts might be undertaken to ensure workers are adequately trained and not excessively fatigued, while safety procedures continue to be followed even during boom times.     

基于SOA的航空发动机健康管理系统设计

为了解决航空发动机健康管理过程中存在的效率低、费用高、资源相对缺乏等问题,实现航空发动机全生命周期的健康管理,将面向服务的架构（SOA）引入到航空发动机健康管理领域中,提出基于SOA的航空发动机健康管理系统的架构模型,实现不同软件平台的资源共享、降低系统间的耦合性、增加系统的扩展性和伸缩性,缩短了开发时间。结合某航空发动机企业的具体网络环境,设计实现了基于SOA的系统集成方法,给出了详细的工作流程,验证了该体系的有效性,指出SOA在航空发动机健康管理系统开发与应用中的重要价值。     

B2C服饰类电商企业逆向物流网络联建研究

在电子商务环境下,由于网络购物的兴起,导致大量退货逆向物流和回收逆向物流.鉴于国内多数电商企业没有完善的逆向物流系统,相关学术研究和出版物较少,网购产品中81.8％是服装鞋帽类产品,故提出一种基于电商环境下服饰类行业联合构建逆向物流网络.该网络模型旨在降低两大逆向物流的回收成本,形成规模效应和溢出效应.因此,构建了0-1MILP数学模型和模拟数据,借助Lingo9.0计算软件找出模型的最佳运营状态,为服饰类电商企业高效完成逆向物流活动、提高服务质量、增强行业竞争力提供思路.     

我国环保产业现状及环保企业商业模式

我国环保产业处于发展的黄金时期,环保企业的商业模式决定其能否建立强大的产业基础甚至成为产业主导。文章从环保产业发展的外部政策环境、环保产业发展历程和细分产业相关企业商业模式等角度探讨了我国环保产业的现状,并分析了环保企业商业模式的发展方向。新的商业模式将培育出综合环境服务商和环境解决方案提供商。     

人力资本对农户兼业行为及其离农决策的影响研究——基于家庭整体视角

农户兼业行为演化的实质是由家庭成员个体就业行为决策和家庭集体劳动分工决策共同决定的,而人力资本通过影响非农就业对农户兼业决策具有内生作用,但这种作用机制既包括农民个体层面,更涉及农户整体层面。基于家庭整体视角分析了农户人力资本的理论特性,提出了农户人力资本对家庭兼业行为及其离农决策存在双重影响效应的研究假设,在此基础上,运用长三角地区1036户农户调研数据进行了实证研究。结果表明,农户劳动成员平均人力资本数量水平提升和成员间人力资本结构差距缩小,对提升农户非农化兼业程度以及增强其主动离农意愿具有积极意义,其中农户人力资本结构效应对农户离农决策更为显著;进一步比较发现,教育和迁移人力资本对长三角兼业农户的非农化发展和离农意愿具有显著促进作用,而受不同因素影响,健康和以非农工龄为衡量的技能人力资本的作用效应总体却并不明显。文章认为,要把促进兼业农户人力资本发展作为推动其非农兼业升级与离农决策的立足之本,在当前农地征用补偿政策思路上,要从单纯重视对失地农户短期"经济补偿",向扶持家庭成员人力资本投资以增强其长期非农就业发展之"能力补偿"转变,进而构筑可持续生计保障。     

Environmental Management in the Industrial Enterprises of the South of Spain

The eighties were notable for awareness of the need to prevent defects and for orientation towards the client to improve the competitiveness of industrial enterprises. This objective of zero defects has meant for many enterprises a management orientation to zero environmental impact. In this article we analyse the special situation of industrial enterprises in Andalusia (Spain) in the establishment of environmental management systems, proposing a matrix of strategies for their development based on the analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.