Harris Tweed: A glocal case study

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 475-494 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Cross ◽  
Josie Steed ◽  
Yang Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Textile Industry ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Human Hand ◽  
Arts And Humanities ◽  
Online Sales ◽  
Generation Z ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Textile Manufacture ◽  
Immersive Technologies

Fast and effectively disposable fashion has seen clothing reduced to transient items, worn for a short period of time then discarded. This has pushed down prices, moving textile and clothing production to low-cost labour countries and decimating the traditional Scottish textile economy. Fast fashion drives consumer demand for newness and uses finite resources that are damaging to the environment. In 2019, the pressure to move towards a more sustainable fashion and textile industry is intense. Traditional textile manufacture using natural, renewable sources that are inherently long-lasting offers a slow fashion alternative, epitomized by the Harris Tweed handweaver community in Scotland. Fashion has embraced digital, with growing online sales and increasing focus on digital content. This presents an opportunity to redress the balance by using technology to shape a sustainable future for traditional textiles. Utilizing an interpretive paradigm and inductive approach, an Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funded networking grant is presented as a qualitative case study, investigating how immersive technologies can be used to safeguard the future of traditional textile products, to educate contemporary, global audiences on the provenance and human hand behind manufacturing processes and to encourage consumption of products with longevity. This explanatory case study finds that fashion brands are using immersive technologies for virtual changing rooms or creative customer experiences but are not exploiting the possibilities of immersive technologies in engendering a sense of place or people behind the product. Findings also reveal that the Harris Tweed Authority and Harris Tweed Hebrides brand successfully use landscape to convey a sense of place, but are under-utilizing the handwoven value and sustainable, slow fashion credentials of Harris Tweed. China is identified as a potential place for Harris Tweed to gain valuable market share, with increasingly wealthy Chinese Generation Z consumers seeking individual exclusivity and sustainability in their clothing purchases, criteria that embody Harris Tweed.

Low Temperature Fault Isolation Using Soft Defect Localization

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristopher D. Staller
Keyword(s):  
Low Temperatures ◽  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Fault Isolation ◽  
Laser Scanning Microscopy ◽  
Cold Temperature ◽  
Multiple Point ◽  
Defect Localization ◽  
Low Levels

Abstract Cold temperature failures are often difficult to resolve, especially those at extreme low levels (< -40°C). Momentary application of chill spray can confirm the failure mode, but is impractical during photoemission microscopy (PEM), laser scanning microscopy (LSM), and multiple point microprobing. This paper will examine relatively low-cost cold temperature systems that can hold samples at steady state extreme low temperatures and describe a case study where a cold temperature stage was combined with LSM soft defect localization (SDL) to rapidly identify the cause of a complex cold temperature failure mechanism.

scholarly journals Rapid, large-scale species discovery in hyperdiverse taxa using 1D MinION sequencing

BMC Biology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amrita Srivathsan ◽  
Emily Hartop ◽  
Jayanthi Puniamoorthy ◽  
Wan Ting Lee ◽  
Sujatha Narayanan Kutty ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Small Body ◽  
Small Subset ◽  
Similar Species ◽  
Large Species ◽  
Morphological Examination ◽  
Species Discovery ◽  
Short Period

Abstract Background More than 80% of all animal species remain unknown to science. Most of these species live in the tropics and belong to animal taxa that combine small body size with high specimen abundance and large species richness. For such clades, using morphology for species discovery is slow because large numbers of specimens must be sorted based on detailed microscopic investigations. Fortunately, species discovery could be greatly accelerated if DNA sequences could be used for sorting specimens to species. Morphological verification of such “molecular operational taxonomic units” (mOTUs) could then be based on dissection of a small subset of specimens. However, this approach requires cost-effective and low-tech DNA barcoding techniques because well-equipped, well-funded molecular laboratories are not readily available in many biodiverse countries. Results We here document how MinION sequencing can be used for large-scale species discovery in a specimen- and species-rich taxon like the hyperdiverse fly family Phoridae (Diptera). We sequenced 7059 specimens collected in a single Malaise trap in Kibale National Park, Uganda, over the short period of 8 weeks. We discovered > 650 species which exceeds the number of phorid species currently described for the entire Afrotropical region. The barcodes were obtained using an improved low-cost MinION pipeline that increased the barcoding capacity sevenfold from 500 to 3500 barcodes per flowcell. This was achieved by adopting 1D sequencing, resequencing weak amplicons on a used flowcell, and improving demultiplexing. Comparison with Illumina data revealed that the MinION barcodes were very accurate (99.99% accuracy, 0.46% Ns) and thus yielded very similar species units (match ratio 0.991). Morphological examination of 100 mOTUs also confirmed good congruence with morphology (93% of mOTUs; > 99% of specimens) and revealed that 90% of the putative species belong to the neglected, megadiverse genus Megaselia. We demonstrate for one Megaselia species how the molecular data can guide the description of a new species (Megaselia sepsioides sp. nov.). Conclusions We document that one field site in Africa can be home to an estimated 1000 species of phorids and speculate that the Afrotropical diversity could exceed 200,000 species. We furthermore conclude that low-cost MinION sequencers are very suitable for reliable, rapid, and large-scale species discovery in hyperdiverse taxa. MinION sequencing could quickly reveal the extent of the unknown diversity and is especially suitable for biodiverse countries with limited access to capital-intensive sequencing facilities.

scholarly journals A Regenerative Business Model with Flexible, Modular and Scalable Processes in A Post-Covid Era: The Case of The Spinning Mesh Disc Reactor (SMDR)

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6944
Author(s):  
Emma Anna Carolina Emanuelsson ◽  
Aurelie Charles ◽  
Parimala Shivaprasad
Keyword(s):  
Business Model ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Sustainable Manufacturing ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Capital Costs ◽  
Implementing Change ◽  
Chemical Manufacturing ◽  
Manufacturing Techniques ◽  
Flexible Operation

With stringent environmental regulations and a new drive for sustainable manufacturing, there is an unprecedented opportunity to incorporate novel manufacturing techniques. Recent political and pandemic events have shown the vulnerability to supply chains, highlighting the need for localised manufacturing capabilities to better respond flexibly to national demand. In this paper, we have used the spinning mesh disc reactor (SMDR) as a case study to demonstrate the path forward for manufacturing in the post-Covid world. The SMDR uses centrifugal force to allow the spread of thin film across the spinning disc which has a cloth with immobilised catalyst. The modularity of the design combined with the flexibility to perform a range of chemical reactions in a single equipment is an opportunity towards sustainable manufacturing. A global approach to market research allowed us to identify sectors within the chemical industry interested in novel reactor designs. The drivers for implementing change were identified as low capital cost, flexible operation and consistent product quality. Barriers include cost of change (regulatory and capital costs), limited technical awareness, safety concerns and lack of motivation towards change. Finally, applying the key features of a Sustainable Business Model (SBM) to SMDR, we show the strengths and opportunities for SMDR to align with an SBM allowing for a low-cost, sustainable and regenerative system of chemical manufacturing.

scholarly journals Comparative Analysis of Low-Cost GNSS OEM Board K706 AND BX316 (Case Study: Bulusidokare Village Sidoarjo Regency)

2021 ◽  
Vol 731 (1) ◽  
pp. 012024
Author(s):  
M N Cahyadi ◽  
E Y Handoko ◽  
R Mardiyanto ◽  
I M Anjasmara ◽  
Khomsin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Low Cost

MECHANIZATION OF POTATO GRADING ON SMALL-SCALE FARMS: A CASE STUDY FROM PERU

2005 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. P. BUTLER ◽  
T. BERNET ◽  
K. MANRIQUE
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Market Integration ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Agricultural Products ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Critical Aspect ◽  
Small Scale Farmers ◽  
Important Cash Crop

Potatoes are an important cash crop for small-scale producers worldwide. The move away from subsistence to commercialized farming, combined with the rapid growth in demand for processed agricultural products in developing countries, implies that small-scale farmers and researchers alike must begin to respond to these market changes and consider post-harvest treatment as a critical aspect of the potato farming system. This paper presents and assesses a low cost potato-grading machine that was designed explicitly to enable small-scale potato growers to sort tubers by size for supply to commercial processors. The results of ten experiments reveal that the machine achieves an accuracy of sort similar to commercially available graders. The machine, which uses parallel conical rollers, has the capacity to grade different tuber shapes and to adjust sorting classes, making it suitable for locations with high potato diversity. Its relatively low cost suggests that an improved and adapted version of this machine might enhance market integration of small-scale potato producers not only in Peru, but in other developing countries as well.

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