FIELD SURVEY ON LIGHTING ENVIRONMENT FOR WORK FROM HOME IN JAPAN

The working situation has been dramatically changed in 2020 due to COVID-19. The purpose of this study is to identify the lighting environment which can be adapted to various styles of work from home. In this study, questionnaire survey and field measurement were conducted to identify the actual working situation and the lighting environment of the working location at home. This paper reports the results of questionnaire survey and the measurement data comparing the working location in office and at home.

Combination of the Reduction Reaction in the Cement Plant DeNox by the Extended Precalciner Module and Intelligent SNCR System Upgradation

Nox emission is required to be less than 50 Mg/Nm3 for cement industry according to the environmental policies in some provinces. As Nox can be chemically reduced to N2 by reduction reaction, this paper will introduce a new method by the combination of two reduction reaction to reduce the Nox emission in cement plant. One reduction reaction is reducing the Nox by CO which is produced in the extended gasifier calciner. Another reduction reaction is reducing the Nox by ammonia which is produced by spraying the ammonia water in the pre-calciner outlet where temperature is between 850°C and 950°C which is considered as the best reaction temperature range for this reduction reaction. Also, the intelligent SNCR system is introduced in the reduction reaction to control the reaction amount of the ammonia water. The intelligent SNCR system can forecast the working situation by studying the clinker calcining system process data. In this way, Both the Nox emission and the ammonia consumption can be substantially reduced.

START-UP VENTURES: EMERGING TRENDS AND IT’S IMPACT ON GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT OF INDIAN ECONOMY

Changes in the environment lead to generation of ideas to combat the difficulties related to particular time period. Concept of startup is not an exception of it. Various factors giving push for growth of startups in India includes Individuals urge on gaining professional qualification, mobile penetration and increasing internet connectivity, Government initiatives are some of the reasons that affect the decision of starting a venture. Government’s initiative of Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat has instilled some sense of confidence in young entrepreneurs to come up with business ideas and side by side Covid 19 pandemic has led to increase in number of ventures related Internet. Today’s environment seems to be more helpful to entrepreneurs in terms of government support. It is about the constant motivation individuals are getting from leader of the nation. No doubt journey to start a venture is not an easy task but continuous assurance from a leader makes people more confident. Startups in India are not only proving itself beneficial for nation’s economy but also for the individuals who are underemployed or are not satisfied with their current working situation and satisfaction is the key component in delivering the best in each and every sphere of life.

Synthesising Inclusive and Didactic Research – a Way to Ensure the Participation and Learning of Every Student?

The aim of this paper is to compare research criteria for inclusive education in relation to criteria for didactic research. The inclusive researchers that were selected defined inclusive education as removing barriers to social participation and learning for all students. The didactic researchers that we have selected referred to the tradition of successful reading and writing, focused on schools and teaching practices with favourable outcomes. The results indicated that the inclusive education researchers study school mainly from an organisational point of view. In contrast, the didactic researchers focus on a pedagogical approach, that is, on the teachers’ teaching strategies concerning the ways in which each student learns best. Within both fields under study it is considered that in-service training is most effective when it is based on the teachers’ actual working situation and when it emphasizes the importance of cooperative school cultures where the teachers also meet researchers. A reflection is that the inclusive education researchers in the study strive to transfer new knowledge to the teachers, in order to help them broaden their views on reducing social and organisational barriers to inclusion. The reading and writing researchers presented in this study represent a more dialectical process aimed at developing both the teachers’ didactic professionalism, the researchers’ own research questions and, in the end, the students’ learning. Another reflection is that if inclusive education and didactic researchers were to develop collaborative research cultures, this would shorten the way to the common goal: to ensure the participation and learning of all students.

Online survey among maritime pilots: job-related stress and strain and the effects on their work ability

Background Maritime pilots often navigate ships through challenging waterways. The required 24 h standby rotation system (ROS) poses a stressful working situation. This study aims to describe the current job-related stress and strain among maritime pilots and the effects on their work ability, taking into account the different rotation systems. Methods Within a cross-sectional survey, pilots of all German pilots’ associations were asked to complete an online questionnaire. The 1-week ROS (port pilots) was compared with the 4-month ROS (sea and canal pilots). The pilots’ subjective perception of stress and strain was assessed using an established ship-specific questionnaire. Daily sleepiness and work ability were examined respectively using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) and the Work Ability Index (WAI). Results The study group consisted of 401 male German pilots with an average age of 48.5 years (participation rate 46.9%). More than 50% of the pilots evaluated irregular working hours as the main stressor in their job. 79.8% of the pilots (especially 4-month ROS) experienced high psychological demands in their workplace. 83.3% stated having regularly neglected their private obligations due to job assignments. Pilots from the 4-month ROS experienced insufficiently predictable free time and long operation times at a stretch as stressors (p < 0.001 and p = 0.037). Elevated daily sleepiness was found in 41.9% of the pilots. The overall evaluation of the WAI questionnaire showed good to very good work ability at 77.3%. Additionally, no significant differences in the daily sleepiness or the work ability were observed between the pilots of the different two ROS. Conclusions Due to their subjectively higher job-related mental demands, their disturbed work-life balance, and their long operation times at a stretch, it is likely that pilots from the 4-month ROS have significantly higher job stress compared to those in the 1-week ROS. However, this does not lead to more sleepiness or reduced work ability, which suggests that the pilots of this ROS are highly adapted to their working situation. Nevertheless, intervention measures with shortened ROS amongst sea and canal pilots’ associations should be tested in respect of benefit, practicability and acceptance by the pilots.

Development of a new COVID-19 panel survey: the IAB high-frequency online personal panel (HOPP)

Since January 2020, the COVID-19 crisis has affected everyday life around the world, and rigorous government lockdown restrictions have been implemented to prevent the further spread of the pandemic. The consequences of the corona crisis and the associated lockdown policies for public health, social life, and the economy are vast. In view of the rapidly changing situation during this crisis, policymakers require timely data and research results that allow for informed decisions. Addressing the requirement for adequate databases to assess people’s life and work situations during the pandemic, the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) developed the High-frequency Online Personal Panel (HOPP). The HOPP study started in May 2020 and is based on a random sample of individuals drawn from the administrative data of the Federal Employment Agency in Germany, containing information on all labour market participants except civil servants and self-employed. The main goal of the HOPP study is to assess the short-term as well as long-term changes in people’s social life and working situation in Germany due to the corona pandemic. To assess individual dynamics the HOPP collected data on a monthly (wave one to four) and bi-monthly (wave five to seven) basis. Furthermore, respondents were divided into four groups. The different groups of a new wave were invited to the survey at weekly intervals (wave two to four) or bi-weekly intervals (wave five to seven). This gives us the advantage of being able to provide weekly data while each participant only had to participate on a monthly or bi-monthly basis. In this article, we delineate the HOPP study in terms of its main goals and features, topics, and survey design. Furthermore, we provide a summary of results derived from HOPP and the future prospects of the study.

Situación de las personas con discapacidad en el sector de la Comunicación en España: aspectos laborales, profesionales y académicos

The inclusion of people with disabilities in the work environment is a social issue that has become increasingly relevant in recent years. General data exist on the employability of people with disabilities, but there is a lack of information within the communications sector. The main objective of this investigation is to determine the working situation of people with disabilities in the field of communication. Methodological triangulation is applied based on the current status of this issue, an online survey (quantitative technique), and a discussion group (qualitative technique). The results demonstrate opposing opinions that lead to the conclusion that there are currently many preconceptions and barriers that prevent true inclusivity. Communication professionals with disabilities require normalization of their situation, encompassing not only accessibility but also a commitment to full inclusivity. Resumen La inclusión de las personas con discapacidad en el entorno laboral es una cuestión social que ha ganado relevancia en los últimos años. Existen datos generales sobre la empleabilidad de las personas con discapacidad, pero no hay información sobre la situación en el sector de la Comunicación. Esta investigación tiene como principal objetivo conocer la situación laboral de las personas con discapacidad en el ámbito comunicativo. Se ha optado por aplicar la triangulación metodológica a través de la creación de un estado de la cuestión, la encuesta online (técnica cuantitativa) y el grupo de discusión (técnica cualitativa). Los resultados muestran opiniones contrapuestas que llevan a concluir que todavía existen muchos prejuicios y barreras para conseguir una verdadera inclusión. Los profesionales de la comunicación con discapacidad reclaman la normalización de su situación, donde más allá de la accesibilidad, se apuesta por la plena inclusión.

Multipoint Vibration Response Prediction under Uncorrelated Multiple Sources Load Based on Elastic-Net Regularization in Frequency Domain

In order to solve the problems of large number of conditions at inherent frequencies and low prediction accuracy when using multiple multivariate linear regression methods for vibration response prediction alone, an elastic-net regularization method is proposed. Firstly, a multi-input and multioutput linear regression model of the multipoint frequency domain vibration response is trained using historical data at each frequency point. Secondly, the trained model under each frequency point is improved by the elastic regularization. Finally, the model is used in a working situation. The predicted vibration response on the experimental dataset of cylindrical shell acoustic vibration showed that the improvement of the multivariate regression vibration response prediction model by elastic regularization can better improve the accuracy and reduce the large number of conditions at some frequencies.

Workaholism and Technostress During the COVID-19 Emergency: The Crucial Role of the Leaders on Remote Working

Although remote working can involve positive outcomes both for employees and organizations, in the case of the sudden and forced remote working situation that came into place during the COVID-19 crisis there have also been reports of negative aspects, one of which is technostress. In this context of crisis, leadership is crucial in sustainably managing and supporting employees, especially employees with workaholic tendencies who are more prone to developing negative work and health outcomes. However, while research on the role of the positive aspects of leadership during crises does exist, the negative aspects of leadership during the COVID-19 crisis have not yet been studied. The present study aimed to explore the role of authoritarian leadership in a sample of 339 administrative university employees who worked either completely from home or from home and the workplace. The study examined the moderating effect of a manager on this relationship and the connections between workaholism and technostress through conditional process analysis. Results pointed out that high authoritarian leadership had an enhancing effect, whereas low authoritarian leadership had a protective effect on the relationship between workaholism and technostress, only in the group of complete remote workers. Thus, authoritarian leadership should be avoided and training leaders to be aware of its effect appears to be essential. Limitations, future directions for the study, and practical implications are also discussed.