Scientometrics of Indian organic chemistry research

Making use of scientometric techniques, the paper attempts to assess the performance of Indian organic chemistry research during the 70s and 80s. Identifies the significant work and its impact using mainstream connectivity, surrogate measures of quality and relative impact indicators. It is observed that the organic chemistry research performed in India during the later period (80s) has improved slightly as compared to the previous period (70s).     

Impact of visual performance management systems on the performance management practices of organisations

The purpose of this paper was to explore how visual strategy and performance management techniques impact performance measurement and management practices of organisations. A novel visual performance management approach is developed and implemented in qualitative case studies with seven manufacturing SMEs across Europe. The implementation cases demonstrate that visual management systems serve to support ongoing strategy development and implementation, facilitate performance measurement and review, enable people engagement, improve internal and external communication, enhance collaboration and integration, support the development of a continuous improvement culture and foster innovation. Additional explorative and longitudinal research is required to understand the long-term impact of such approaches in both small and larger organisations.     

Thermomechanical performance of composite materials

Summary A brief review of the status of modelling of thermostructural composites is given, emphasizing topics discussed at the workshop sessions. The perceived needs for new models and techniques to predict composite performance under loading conditions of importance in various industrial applications is discussed, with a summary of recommended areas for focussed near-term research.     

An impact-citations-exergy (<Emphasis Type="Italic">iCX</Emphasis>) trajectory analysis of leading research institutions in India

A thermodynamic analogy allows bibliometric research assessment of information production processes to be based on a scalar indicator which is an energy-like term called exergy. Derived from standard indicators like impact, citations and number of papers, the exergy indicator X is a multiplicative product of quality and quantity of a scientist’s or group’s performance using available bibliometric information. Thus, given the bibliometric sequences of leading research agencies and institutions, research performance can be displayed as trajectories on a two-dimensional map as time progresses. In this paper, we track the performance of several of the leading players contributing to academic scientific research in India.     

Aspects of Characterisation of Thin Coating Adhesion at the Nano—Scale

In response to current development of materials in nano-science.characterisation of thin coating adhesion ona nano-scale becomes one of the most important research areas,as new coatings get ever thinner and more technologically advanced.With a review of technology and mechanisms of evaluating the adhesion failure of coatings.three techniques,nano-im-pact,nano-scratch and nano-indentation techniques,for charactering the adhesion of thin coatings on a nano scale are described.Results of charactering the adhesion faliure of thin coatings using three different techniques indicate that the nano scratch and nano-indentation techniques are very useful tools particularly in charactering the performance of thin coatings under nano-abra sive wear conditions.However,results from these types of tests cannot be easily applied to predict the performance of coatings whose are subject to nano-erosive wear,cyclic nano-fatigue or multiple nano-impacts during service.Instead,results of the new dynamic testing technique,im     

The Holy Grail of science policy: Exploring and combining bibliometric tools in search of scientific excellence

Evaluation studies of scientific performance conducted during the past years more and more focus on the identification of research of the 'highest quality', 'top' research, or 'scientific excellence'. This shift in focus has lead to the development of new bibliometric methodologies and indicators. Technically, it meant a shift from bibliometric impact scores based on average values such as the average impact of all papers published by some unit to be evaluated towards indicators reflecting the topof the citation distribution, such as the number of 'highly cited' or 'top' articles. In this study we present a comparative analysis of a number of standard and new indicators of research performance or 'scientific excellence', using techniques applied in studies conducted by CWTS in recent years. It will be shown that each type of indicator reflects a particular dimension of the general concept of research performance. Consequently, the application of one single indicator only may provide an incomplete picture of a unit's performance. It is argued that one needs to combine the various types of indicators in order to offer policy makers and evaluators valid and useful assessment tools. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Autocorrelated SPC for Non‐Normal Situations

The importance of statistical process control (SPC) techniques in quality improvement is well recognized in industry. However, most conventional SPC techniques have been developed under the assumption of independent, identically and normally distributed observations. With advances in sensing and data capturing technologies, large volumes of data are being routinely collected from individual units in manufacturing industries. These data are often autocorrelated and skewed. Conventional SPC techniques can lead to false alarms or other types of poor performance monitoring of such data. There is a great need for process control techniques for variation reduction in these environments. Much recent research has focused on the development of appropriate SPC techniques for autocorrelated data, but few studies have considered the impact of non‐normality on these techniques. This paper investigates the effect of skewness on conventional autocorrelated SPC techniques, and provides an effective approach based on a scaled weighted variance approach to improve SPC performance in such an environment. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Intraclass and between-class training-image registration for correlation-filter synthesis

Correlation filters have traditionally been designed without much attention given to the issue of the training images within a class or the relative spatial position between classes. We examine the impact of training-set registration on correlation-filter performance and develop techniques for centering the training images from a class that result in improved performance. We also show that it is beneficial to adjust the spatial position of the classes relative to one another. Although the proposed techniques are relevant for many types of correlation filter, we limit our discussion to algorithms for the maximum average correlation height filter and the distance classifier correlation filter.     

The effects of chemical composition on asphalt microstructure and their association to pavement performance

The primary objective of this paper was to investigate the impact of asphalt chemical composition on the microstructure and performance characteristics of asphalt binder. The methods implemented in this study include adsorption–desorption chromatography analysis and a range of atomic force microscopy (AFM) and chemical force microscopy techniques. It was revealed through the study that certain asphalt chemical parameters have a consistent and measureable effect on the asphalt microstructure that is observed with AFM. Particular microstructures that emerged via chemical doping were then discovered to have unique chemical polarity, which explicitly impact durability and performance of asphalt. In fact, a surprising correlation was found between the saturates chemical parameter and the effects of oxidative aging on asphalt behaviour. The findings from this research directly contribute to the improvement of modelling capability while also creating new prospects for enhancing the performance characteristics and durability of asphalt binder.     

全息数字水印技术在防伪印刷领域的应用研究

将全息数字水印技术应用于防伪印刷无需添加任何新的材料,对设备和工艺也没有特殊的要求,同时还可提高水印的不可见性,其操作性较强。综述了空间域和变换域2类全息数字水印算法的研究现状,提出了现有全息数字水印方案应用于防伪印刷中存在的问题,并展望了其研究方向,即:将现有技术和印刷实验相结合,研究不同承印物、印刷方式和原稿对该技术应用到防伪印刷中的影响,开发一套完善的、应用于印刷品的水印质量评价和鉴别体系。     

建筑系统环境性能研究及现状

建筑系统环境性能涉及到建筑系统对室内环境的影响、对区域环境的影响以及对地球环境的影响，是一个复杂的体系，因此对其进行的研究也很复杂。本文详细地介绍了建筑系统环境性能研究的现状、采用的方法和具有的一些特点，分析了现有研究中存在的不足，并提出了自己的建议。     

模糊评价法表征复合材料层合板低能量冲击行为

通过模糊综合评判的方式,建立复合材料低能量冲击表面损伤与其失效的数学判据。复合材料受到冲击后的表面损伤是冲击程度最直观的表现,因此,对复合材料冲击行为的分析,应基于其表面损伤来进行。本研究选择的观测工具为超景深显微镜,观测、探究了复合材料试样受到冲击后的表面损伤情况,建立损伤程度与材料冲击门槛值之间的数值关系。经实验验证,该数值关系可以精确判断材料是否失效。同时也验证了不同厚度的复合材料,其失效时的表面损伤有某些共同特性,本文给出的判据可以在树脂基复合材料中通用。     

The relationships among functional integration,mass customisation,and firm performance

Previous literature has extensively investigated the impact of supply chain integration on mass customisation and plant performance, but little research has been conducted to examine the impact of functional integration within the focal firm on mass customisation and plant performance. This article seeks to demonstrate this impact theoretically and empirically. Organisational information processing theory and the resource-based view of the firm are used to relate functional integration, mass customisation, and plant performance. Structural equation modelling is applied to analyse a conceptual model with survey data collected from 266 manufacturing plants. The results indicate that functional integration has a significant positive impact on mass customisation and operational performance. Mass customisation partially mediates functional integration's impact on operational performance. Results also indicate that mass customisation's impact on customer satisfaction is not direct. Rather, the relationship is fully mediated by operational performance. Managerial implications of these research findings are discussed.     

Dispatching multi-load AGVs in highly automated seaport container terminals

This paper is concerned with AGV dispatching in seaport container terminals. Special attention is given to multi-load vehicles which can carry more than one container at a time. The characteristics of this complex application environment and the impact on the AGV dispatching problem are analyzed and various solution techniques considered. For practical application within an online logistics control system, a flexible priority rule based approach is developed, making use of an extended concept of the availability of vehicles. For evaluation reasons, this approach is complemented by an alternative MILP formulation. Finally, the performance of the priority rule based approach and the MILP model are analysed for different scenarios with respect to total lateness of the AGVs. The main focus of the numerical investigation is on evaluating the priority rule based approach for single and dual-load vehicles as well as comparing its performance against the MILP modelling approach.     

Neural network signal understanding for instrumentation

A report is presented on the use of neural signal interpretation theory and techniques for the purpose of classifying the shapes of a set of instrumentation signals, in order to calibrate devices, diagnose anomalies, generate tuning/settings, and interpret the measurement results. Neural signal understanding research is surveyed, and the selected implementation and its performance in terms of correct classification rates and robustness to noise are described. Formal results on neural net training time and sensitivity to weights are given. A theory for neural control using functional link nets is given, and an explanation facility designed to help neural signal understanding is described. The results are compared to those obtained with a knowledge-based signal interpretation system using the same instrument and data     

Subfield-specific normalized relative indicators and a new generation of relational charts: Methodological foundations illustrated on the assessment of institutional research performance

A common problem in comparative bibliometric studies at the meso and micro level is the differentiation and specialisation of research profiles of the objects of analysis at lower levels of aggregation. Already the institutional level requires the application of more sophisticated techniques than customary in evaluation of national research performance. In this study institutional profile clusters are used to examine which level of the hierarchical subject-classification should preferably be used to build subject-normalised citation indicators. It is shown that a set of properly normalised indicators can serve as a basis of comparative assessment within and even among different clusters, provided that their profiles still overlap and such comparison is thus meaningful. On the basis of 24 selected European universities, a new version of relational charts is presented for the comparative assessment of citation impact.     

Computational design of hypervelocity launchers

The andia ypervelocity auncher (HVL) uses two-stage light-gas gun impact techniques to launch flier plates to velocities in excess of 10 km/s. An important requirement in designing successful third stage techniques for impact launching fliers to such velocities is detailed understanding of the interior ballistic performance of the third stage. This is crucial for preventing melt and fracture of the flier plates during the extraordinary accelerations that they undergo (10⁹ g). We seek to optimize HVL launch conditions in order to achieve two major goals: first, to maximize the potential launch velocity for a given flier, and second, to allow different flier configurations. One tool that we have applied in studying HVL performance are multi-dimensional wave propagation codes, particularly the Sandia Eulerian code CTH. Recently this work has culminated in a major contribution to HVL design, namely the capability to launch “chunk” fliers. The initial phases of design development were solely devoted to CTH computations that studied potential designs, identified problems, and posed possible solutions for launching chunk fliers on the HVL. Our computations sufficiently narrowed the design space to the point that systematic experimental progress was possible. Our first experiment resulted in the successful launch of an intact 0.33 gram titanium alloy chunk flier to a velocity of 10.2 km/s. The thickness to diameter ratio of this flier was approximately 0.5.     

Quality management and performance: An annotated review

Within the operations management literature, quality management (QM) has been one of the most popular research areas over the last two decades. QM is an integrative management philosophy aimed at the continuous improvement of performance. Consequently, the impact of QM practices on firm performance has been the subject of constant interest and challenge among researchers. Numerous empirical studies have attempted to investigate QM practice–performance relationships in different contexts. Based on an extensive review of the literature, this paper attempts to reflect the research stream on the impact of QM on firm performance and to provide insights for future research. For this purpose, the reviewed QM literature is organised and classified along three main themes: QM practices, performance and QM–performance relationships.     

The objectivity of national research foundation peer review in South Africa assessed against bibliometric indexes

This paper examines the strength of association between the outcomes of National Research Foundation (NRF) peer review based rating mechanisms, and a range of objective measures of performance of researchers. The analysis is conducted on 1932 scholars that have received an NRF rating or an NRF research chair. We find that on average scholars with higher NRF ratings record higher performance against research output and impact metrics. However, we also record anomalies in the probabilities of different NRF ratings when assessed against bibliometric performance measures, and record a disproportionately large incidence of scholars with high peer-review based ratings with low levels of recorded research output and impact. Moreover, we find strong cross-disciplinary differences in terms of the impact that objective levels of performance have on the probability of achieving different NRF ratings. Finally, we report evidence that NRF peer review is less likely to reward multi-authored research output than single-authored output. Claims of a lack of bias in NRF peer review are thus difficult to sustain.     

Some mechanical properties of untreated jute fabric-reinforced polyester composites

This research work is concerned with the evaluation of the mechanical properties—modulus, Poisson's ratio and strength—of woven jute fabric-reinforced composites. The specimens are prepared using hand lay-up techniques as per the ASTM standard. This is the first report by any single group of researchers in which tensile strength, compressive strength, flexural strength, impact strength, inplane shear strength, interlaminar shear strength and hardness are given. This work being an experimental study on untreated (`as received' jute fabric) woven jute fabric-reinforced polyester composites, demonstrates the potential of this renewable source of natural fibre for use in a number of consumable goods.