Using blockchain technology to extend the vendor managed inventory for sustainability

Nowadays, Information Technology (IT) is changing the way traditional enterprise management concepts work. One of the most dominant IT achievements is the Blockchain Technology. This technology enables the distributed collaboration of stakeholders for their interactions while fulfilling the security and consensus rules among them. This paper has focused on the application of Blockchain technology to enhance one of traditional inventory management models. The Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) has been considered one of the most efficient mechanisms for vendor inventory planning by the suppliers. While VMI has brought competitive advantages for many industries, however its centralized mechanism limits the collaboration of a pool of suppliers and vendors simultaneously. This paper has studied the recent research for VMI application in industries and also has investigated the applications of Blockchain technology for decentralized collaboration of stakeholders. Focusing on sustainability issue for total supply chain consisting suppliers and vendors, it has proposed a Blockchain based VMI conceptual model. The different capabilities of this model for enabling the collaboration of stakeholders while maintaining the competitive advantages and sustainability issues have been discussed.

Enhanced Thru-Tubing Ceramic Sand Screen: Performance Review from Pilot Installation in Offshore East Malaysia

Sand production remains as one of the most challenging complications in managing mature fields in Malaysia. More than half of the wells in Malaysian fields are completed with downhole primary sand control or require sand management throughout their lifetime. To further aggravate the issue, most primary sand controls installed have suffered from failure after an extended period of production. Thus, operators are often compelled to rely on thru-tubing metallic sand screens to reactivate idle sand wells. However, most metallic sand screens suffer from sustainability issue due to substantial erosion especially for those installed in wells with high gas flow rate. Therefore, alternative technology such as through-tubing ceramic sand screen (TTCSS) has been considered and applied due to its higher durability and resistance against erosion. This paper will discuss the evolution of TTCSS design and performance improvement in terms of longevity. Field application in Malaysian mature fields has shown that ceramic sand screen demonstrates a longer lifetime when compared to conventional metallic sand screen. However, to further improve the mean time between failures (MTBF) of TTCSS, extensive studies have been conducted by carrying out detailed teardown investigation and computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulation. Design changes have been proposed and incorporated to mitigate the erosion risk at end cap area based on previous well installation. The enhanced TTCSS were then installed in the same well with high erosional velocity as pilot testing. The operating well envelope and installation method were maintained following the previous installation. TTCSS with enhanced design were then retrieved after a period of three months for detailed evaluation. Several criteria have been identified as key performance indicators for the success of enhanced TTCSS design. Throughout the pilot testing period, sand production at surface has been closely monitored to detect any sand grains larger than screen slot sizing. Upon retrieval, enhanced design of TTCSS shall not exhibit similar erosion patterns at end cap area which will affect the integrity of spring compensator system and cause the screen to lose its filtration mechanism. Lastly, enhanced TTCSS design shall prevent parting of screen during retrieval, reducing the risk of leaving the screen downhole as fish. This paper will present the outcome of pilot testing of enhanced TTCSS by comparing the performance with the original design using both teardown investigation and velocity calculation. Suggestion for further optimization will also be discussed to ensure TTCSS remains as one of the competent candidates for remedial sand control which can offer greater durability and longevity.

Utilization of solar and wind energy to improve the quality of life for rural communities in Blora Regency – Indonesia: from triple helix to quadruple helix

Studies of triple helix field indicated that involvement of academician, business, government (ABG) were leading players in bringing up invention to be innovation. In the current decade, society actor served as the new actor added in the ABG-S frame concerning to the sustainability issue of innovation. This study aimed to present the role of the concerned actors in proposing an innovative product of a combined solar and wind energy generator installed in rural areas of Blora Regency. Blora was one of the regions in the Central Java Province that utilized electrical energy sourced from non-fossil. A Qualitative research method was utilized in this study to disclose the involvement of each actor in Blora’s case. The study reported that ABG-S actors’ involvement in implementing a combined solar and wind energy generator to the villages.

Value-Added Metabolites from Agricultural Waste and Application of Green Extraction Techniques

The agricultural sector generates approximately 1300 million tonnes of waste annually, where up to 50% comprising of raw material are discarded without treatment. Economic development and rising living standards have increased the quantity and complexity of waste generated resulting in environmental, health and economic issues. This calls for a greener waste management system such as valorization or recovery of waste into products. For successful implementation, social acceptance is an essential component with involvement of all local stakeholders including community to learn and understand the process and objective of the implementation. The agricultural waste product manufacturing industry is expected to increase with the growing demand for organic food. Thus, proper livestock and crop waste management is vital for environmental protection. It will be essential to successfully convert waste into a sustainable product that is reusable and circulated in the system in line with the green concept of circular economy. This review identifies the commercially produced crops by-product that have been considered for valorization and implemented green extraction for recovery. We highlight the importance of social acceptance and the economic value to agricultural waste recycling. Successful implementation of these technologies will overcome current waste management problems, reduce environmental impacts of landfills, and sustainability issue for farm owners.

Additive Manufacturing in the Clothing Industry: Towards Sustainable New Business Models

The clothing industry is among the most polluting and waste-generating industries in the world, and it is responsible for the release of large amounts of greenhouse gases. The industry’s massive size and significant environmental footprint with regard to water and energy consumption and waste generation make it a valid improvement candidate. While in recent years, global clothing brands and retailers have taken steps to reduce their ecological footprint, there still is a lot of room for improvement. In this research, we view this sustainability issue from a lifecycle perspective and study the new business models (NBMs) that may arise from the utilization of additive manufacturing (AM) technology. AM is emerging as a method of production for final parts. Moreover, as the range of material and available production processes expands, it is increasingly important to study the potential impact of this promising production technology and potential NBMs enabled by it on the clothing industry. Additionally, the obstacles to AM utilization in the clothing industry are explored. We utilize secondary data related to relevant implementation cases to theoretically study the NBMs that AM can enable to improve sustainability. Three NBMs of “clothing as a service”, “collaborative consumption”, and “direct sale/distribution” were envisioned through the study of current AM applications in other industries, as well as current fashion trends. The results of this research have implications for the sustainability of the fashion industry while also providing directions for AM technology development.

Insect feeds in salmon aquaculture: sociotechnical imagination and responsible story-telling

Salmon aquaculture is a growing industry with increasing challenges of feed sustainability and availability. This global sustainability issue has led to calls for novel feeds. Aquafly, a Norwegian research project, has performed small-scale tests using the black soldier fly as an ingredient in salmon diet. However, in order for insect feeds to become a reality on the industrial scale, workable scientific, technical and political solutions have to be envisioned in tandem. In this study, we studied, elicited and assessed sociotechnical imaginaries in the Aquafly research consortium, using the approaches of concomitant ELSA research, the Ethical Matrix and Quantitative Story-Telling. We show how the sociotechnical imaginaries develop together with the scientific trajectory of the project, and how this also affects the assessment of the ethical and environmental impacts of the technology, including issues of food and feed safety and security, fish health and welfare, pollution and efficient use of waste streams. We show how there are intrinsic challenges when dealing with global sustainability issues in the research project. For instance, overcoming the problem of salmon feed scarcity may aggravate the challenges caused by intensive aquaculture. We report the results of a Quantitative Story-Telling exercise that indicates that Aquafly can be seen as part of a larger economy of technological promise, and discuss if and how this critique can be employed and integrated into scientific and technical imagination in a research project, contributing to Responsible Research and Innovation.

Equity Structure, Strategic Investment Psychology, and Performance in China’s Green Economy Context

This study empirically tests the impacts of equity structure on strategic investment psychology in green affairs in R&D vs. Marketing dimensions and company performance. Based on data from Chinese high-tech industry listed companies, the empirical results show that: (1) the largest shareholder’s shareholding ratio has a positive effect on marketing investment psychology and a negative impact on R&D investment psychology, (2) other large shareholders’ shareholding ratio are positive related to R&D investment psychology; (3) R&D investment psychology has a negative effect and marketing investment psychology has a positive influence on the current performance; (4) equity counterbalance is positive related to R&D investment psychology and has a negative effect on the current performance. This study contributes to the literature of corporate governance on sustainability issue by providing a new psychological perspective. The results also provide an important guidance for the corporate governance practice in green economies.

Zero Waste Strategy for a Green Campus

When adopting the zero waste strategy for the implementation of waste management measures at a Higher Education Institution, the commitment in the institution is of fundamental importance, not only with solid waste, but with the sustainability issue under a circular economy perspective, which should gradually be incorporated to the different programs and routine actions from universities. Several directions can be taken in the construction of this path so that universities are managed under the sustainability’s premises. In this article, the zero waste strategy for implementation of a circular economy program will be analyzed as a way to consolidate the process Green Campus. A qualitative and exploratory research was undertaken on green campus and zero waste strategies, mainly in universities. Although there is still a limited number of universities committed to zero waste actions, it was possible to appoint the benefits when implementing institutional programs related to sustainability and the fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Utilization of Iraqi Metakaolin in Special Types of Concrete: A Review Based on National Researches

Portland cement concrete is the most commonly used construction material in the world for decades. However, the searches in concrete technology are remaining growing to meet particular properties related to its strength, durability, and sustainability issue. Thus, several types of concrete have been developed to enhance concrete performance. Most of the modern concrete types have to contain supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) as a partial replacement of cement. These materials are either by-products of waste such as fly ash, slag, rice husk ash, and silica fume or from a geological resource like natural pozzolans and metakaolin (MK). Ideally, the utilization of SCMs will enhance the concrete performance, minimize environmental pollution and mitigate the drawbacks of cement production attributed to the highly CO2 emission. In general, MK's ultra-fineness and high pozzolanic activity are exhibited a remarkable performance of concrete in terms of strength and durability. However, the filler effect, acceleration of cement hydration, and the pozzolanic reaction with calcium hydroxide (CH) are the main factors influencing the performance of metakaolin as a cementitious material. Therefore, numerous researches have been undertaken on inclusion MK in concrete and mortar and production of (free-cement concrete) geopolymer concrete. This paper reviews some of previous native researches on effect of using Iraqi metakaolin as a pozzolanic material in different types of concrete. The standpoint of this review will guide the researchers on the importance of utilization of local MK and highlight the missing researches toward completing a comprehensive understanding of incorporation Iraqi-metakaolin in concrete technology.

Evolution of Construction Materials and Sustainability

Increasing demand of human beings has a greater effect on the self-sustaining nature of Earth. New technologies facilitated the new generations but created a question mark on the existence of the next generation. The only way to remove this possibility is sustainable development. Through this paper review of evolution of various construction materials is drawn from sustainability aspects and various alternative solutions are highlighted. From the evolutionary history of construction materials, it is found that all other materials have some sustainability issue or construction issue and hence with the development of advanced material their use in construction is reduced. With this study it has been concluded that concrete has been a widely used construction material since the 19th century. With the advancement in concrete technology this will remain popular for a longer time and hence those aspects of concrete which create sustainability issues are to be resolved.