In recent years, additive manufacturing has become a regular process in various industries, and consequently there is an increasing need to evaluate the environmental aspects of this technology and ...its associated materials. In this paper, comparative cradle-to-grave life cycle assessments between a conventional product and a 3D-printed alternative made of polylactic acid (PLA) and PLA-wood material were investigated based on the standard ISO 14044:2006. The environmental impact of each product was quantified for 18 categories. The goal of life cycle assessment (LCA) was to determine whether the use of 3D printed PLA/PLA-wood products can be a sustainable alternative to traditional metal products. The paper presents a case study in which a comparative LCA was conducted. The results show that a metal part manufactured using conventional subtractive processes (milling, drilling, welding, etc.) has a higher environmental impact compared to 3D-printed alternatives made from renewable materials. However, there are many sub-issues that need to be adequately addressed.
Posljednjih je godina aditivna proizvodnja postala redoviti proces u raznim industrijama, a posljedično se pojavila sve veća potreba za procjenom ekoloških aspekata te tehnologije i s njom povezanih materijala. U ovom su radu ispitane i uspoređene procjene životnog vijeka konvencionalnog proizvoda „od kolijevke do groba” te 3D isprintane alternative izrađene od polilaktične kiseline (PLA) i PLA-drvnog materijala na temelju standarda ISO 14044:2006. Utjecaj svakog proizvoda na okoliš kvantificiran je unutar 18 kategorija. Cilj procjene životnog vijeka takvih proizvoda (LCA) bio je utvrditi može li uporaba 3D printanih PLA/PLA-drvnih proizvoda biti održiva alternativa tradicionalnim metalnim proizvodima. U radu je prikazana studija slučaja u kojoj je provedena komparativna procjena životnog vijeka – LCA. Rezultati pokazuju da metalni dio proizveden primjenom konvencionalnih subtraktivnih procesa (glodanja, bušenja, zavarivanja itd.) ima veći utjecaj na okoliš nego 3D isprintane alternative izrađene od obnovljivih materijala. Međutim, u vezi s tim postoje i mnoga potpitanja koja se moraju adekvatno riješiti.
Recently, partly as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, companies are increasingly shifting their activities to the Internet environment, thus accelerating the growth of online shopping. The aim of ...this study was to develop a comprehensive model for the evaluation of websites of wood companies, as a review of the literature shows that such a model does not yet exist. In developing the model, we used an innovative approach and combined the analytic hierarchy process with R-TOPSIS (technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution), which is a novelty in this field. For the final website assessment, the Website Quality Index (WQI) was developed. The main difference to other indexes is that our model has a comprehensive content background (36 criteria and sub-criteria) and a strong mathematical basis, so that it can be used to independently evaluate a single website or to evaluate a larger group of websites from the same industry. We have tested the model on 60 websites of Slovenian wood industry companies with at least ten employees. The results show the low to moderate average quality of the websites, with an average WQI of all evaluated websites of 0.450, indicating only an acceptable website. It has proven to be easy to use, and the results show the reliability of the website rating. Additionally, the designed model is an important tool for industry website developers and the basis for future studies in this field. However, it can also be applied to other areas related to wood and wood products, where the performance of objects should be evaluated with respect to multiple criteria.
This paper deals with the operational efficiency of companies engaged in the production of wooden chairs using selected statistical and DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) methods. Indicators that ...typically characterise the supply chain in the production of selected companies were taken as input and output variables for the DEA method. They included three input variables: inventories, material costs and production services costs and one output variable: company’s net profit. The obtained coefficients of correlation pointed to a high degree of correlation between the variables, which justified the performance of an efficiency analysis using the DEA method. The study included 12 companies engaged in the production of wooden chairs. The results of the conducted analyses show that only one company had a relatively satisfactory operational efficiency (efficiency coefficient of 0.83) for the nine-year period. All other companies, especially micro and small enterprises, had unsatisfactorily low operational efficiency. Micro enterprises had the lowest operational efficiency, with an efficiency coefficient of only 0.14. Small enterprises reached the value of 0.3, and large companies 0.67. Medium companies had the most favourable efficiency coefficient of up to 0.83.
U radu je analizirana učinkovitost poslovanja tvrtki za proizvodnju drvenih stolica primjenom odabranih statističkih metoda i DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) metode. Kao ulazne i izlazne varijable za DEA metodu izabrani su tipični pokazatelji koji su karakteristični za lanac opskrbe u proizvodnji odabranih tvrtki. To obuhvaća tri ulazne varijable: zalihe, materijalne troškove i troškove proizvodnih usluga te jednu izlaznu varijablu – neto dobit tvrtke. Dobiveni koeficijenti korelacije pokazali su visok stupanj međusobne povezanosti odabranih varijabli, što potvrđuje opravdanost primjene DEA metode za analizu učinkovitosti poduzeća. Istraživanje je obuhvatilo 12 tvrtki koje se bave proizvodnjom drvenih stolica. Rezultati provedene analize pokazuju da je samo jedna od njih u posljednjih devet godina imala relativno zadovoljavajuću učinkovitost poslovanja (koeficijent učinkovitosti 0,83). Sve ostale tvrtke, posebice mikropoduzeća i mala poduzeća, imale su nezadovoljavajuće nisku učinkovitost poslovanja. U mikropoduzećima je zabilježena najmanja učinkovitost poslovanja, s koeficijentom učinkovitosti 0,14. Mala poduzeća postigla su koeficijent učinkovitosti od 0,3, a velika poduzeća od 0,67. Srednja poduzeća imala su najbolji koeficijent učinkovitosti: 0,83.
Timber companies must continually strive to improve or at least maintain their market share. There are several methods to achieve this, and advertising is one of them. When timber companies make ...decisions about advertising, many of them choose radio advertising instead of television advertising, because it is less expensive. Companies should prepare advertisements that consumers will find attractive and appealing. To achieve this, they must take into account a number of criteria, as well as the fact that some of them are more important than the others. In this paper, the AHP analysis was used to determine the opinion of market professionals about the importance of criteria in radio advertising of timber products. Based on the results, a model for evaluating radio advertisements was developed and tested with random respondents, who evaluated a sample radio advertisement of timber companies.
Corporate leaders often view innovation as a key contributor to superior profits, market sharing, and competitive positioning. However, confusion regarding the definition of innovation, how to create ...it, and how to implement it remains. In countries that are recent European Union members, little research has been done on innovation and how innovation is related to corporate management activities. In this study, the linkages were examined in the Croatian furniture industry. The first part of the study was to deconstruct innovation into three components: product innovation, production process innovation, and human resource innovation. The second part of the study evaluates the relationships between these innovation components and four company management activities/factors (research and development investments, company flexibility, export activity, and the Internet usage) were examined. Scale testing resulted in valid deconstruction measures of innovation. Hypothesized correlations between innovation components and company management factors were supported, although the results were not fully consistent with those of previous studies.
The paper shows research results for the consumption of all types of wood fuels in the households in Bosnia and Herzegovina and its entities in 2015. The research was conducted in the period from ...March 15th to August 26th, 2016 in 109 cities/municipalities in the entire Bosnia and Herzegovina. Complex methodological approach was used for conducting the research, which required field research on the sample of 8,602 households on the entire territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as adequate statistical processing of the obtained data pursuant to the high statistical standards. Research results show that in 2015, 5.4 million m3 of firewood, 81,656 tones of wood pellets, and 6,780 tones of wood briquettes were consumed in the households in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Total expenses of households necessary for the supply of wood fuels in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2015 were 239.8 M?, with the largest share of firewood (226.8 M?), followed by wood pellets (11.6 M?), and wood briquettes (720.9 thousand ?). Average firewood consumption per household in Bosnia and Herzegovina is 6.43 m3. Compared to the surrounding countries it is on the level of Slovenia (6.5 m3 per household), less than in Serbia (7.3 m3 per household) and more than in Montenegro (5.49 m3 per household). Average consumption of energy from firewood expressed in kWh/m2 of the heated surface was 252.7 kWh, which is significantly higher than the average in the EU. One of the reasons for such high consumption of wood energy per 1 m2 of the heated surface is the fact that only 36.1% of the households using solid fuels have thermal insulation on their residential facilities.
nema
This paper is the continuation of the presentation of results obtained in
comprehensive researches of woody biomass consumption in Serbia conducted as
a part of the TCP/FAO project ?Wood energy for ...sustainable rural
development?. The previous paper (No. 3, 2011) showed results of wood fuels
consumption for households heating and this paper shows their consumption for
the needs of industry, commercial and public facilities. Research results
show that total consumption of woody biomass in Serbia in 2010 was 7.41
million m3, out of which 7.03 million m3 was in the form of roundwood and
0.38 million m3 was in the form of wood residue from industry. The biggest
consumers of woody biomass (roundwood, chips, residues) are households with
the participation of 86.54%, followed by the production of wood-based panels
with 4.47% and energy production for own purposes of wood processing
companies with 2.96%. Compared to the officially registered consumption in
energy balance in the amount of 0.281 Mtoe, actual consumption of wood energy
in Serbia in 2010 was 1.37 Mtoe or 4.9 times higher. Participation of wood
energy in final energy consumption in Serbia was 57,300 TJ or 13.6% in 2010.
Current use of wood energy substitutes imports of light heating oil in the
value of 1.3 billion ? or 650 million ? in the case of natural gas
substituting. Use of wood fuel prevented emissions of about 7 million tonnes
of CO2 from fossil fuels.
nema
PR Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 43007: Research of climate changing and their impact on environment: Monitoring of impact, adaptation, and mitigation
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