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Takt production and decentralized decision-making have been recent areas of interest in (lean) construction management research. Both have the potential to improve flow and contribute to increased production performance. Despite the interest, the efforts toward decentralization have not effectively considered the first-line workers; simultaneously, takt production studies suggest that neglection of workers’ involvement has led to implementation challenges and hampered flow. Thus, combining decentralized decision-making (including the involvement of the first-line workers) and takt production could have the potential for further improving production flow and performance. By utilizing design science research, this explorative single-case study aimed to evaluate the effect of decentralized decision-making and takt production to production flow through formulating, implementing, and validating a decentralized takt production framework. The primary data were collected from three production planning sessions and 17 semi-structured interviews, supported by site observations, resource tracking data, schedule data, cost data, and production progress reports. The framework formulation and validation were also supported by six expert workshops. The findings indicate that decentralization can be combined with takt production, aiding production flow. Good operations flow was especially aided by decentralized decision-making. These positive effects were supported by observations of improved utilization of site teams’ knowledge in planning, better commitment, communication, team-building process, and positive competition between teams. In addition, 23% duration savings were achieved in the production phase in which the framework was implemented. Also, stable resource utilization of trades was achieved. The decentralized decision-making practices were successfully implemented in the planning phase; however, the elements of decentralization were not adequately utilized in the control phase, resulting in the intended benefits not being obtained to their full potential magnitude. An extensive effort over single projects and organizations would be needed to gain all the intended benefits, while the competence to successfully operate with (decentralized) takt production increases with experience. The study makes scientific and managerial contributions to improving construction production planning and control practices and flow by exploring the combination of decentralized decision-making and takt production and by considering site teams and first-line workers’ viewpoints, which have been scarce in previous research.

Abstract Objective Previous studies suggest that daily music listening can aid stroke recovery, but little is known about the stimulus‐dependent and neural mechanisms driving this effect. Building on neuroimaging evidence that vocal music engages extensive and bilateral networks in the brain, we sought to determine if it would be more effective for enhancing cognitive and language recovery and neuroplasticity than instrumental music or speech after stroke. Methods Using data pooled from two single‐blind randomized controlled trials in stroke patients (N = 83), we compared the effects of daily listening to self‐selected vocal music, instrumental music, and audiobooks during the first 3 poststroke months. Outcome measures comprised neuropsychological tests of verbal memory (primary outcome), language, and attention and a mood questionnaire performed at acute, 3‐month, and 6‐month stages and structural and functional MRI at acute and 6‐month stages. Results Listening to vocal music enhanced verbal memory recovery more than instrumental music or audiobooks and language recovery more than audiobooks, especially in aphasic patients. Voxel‐based morphometry and resting‐state and task‐based fMRI results showed that vocal music listening selectively increased gray matter volume in left temporal areas and functional connectivity in the default mode network. Interpretation Vocal music listening is an effective and easily applicable tool to support cognitive recovery after stroke as well as to enhance early language recovery in aphasia. The rehabilitative effects of vocal music are driven by both structural and functional plasticity changes in temporoparietal networks crucial for emotional processing, language, and memory.

Korkeasti koulutetut maahanmuuttaneet naiset kohtaavat syrjivää kohtelua niin arkisissa kohtaamisissa, työnhakuvaiheessa kuin työelämässä. Tarkastelen artikkelissani laadullisen tutkimuksen keinoin, millaisia syrjinnän ja rasismin kokemuksia aineistosta nousi esiin ja millaisia strategioita haastateltavat kuvasivat käyttäneensä syrjintää ja rasismia kohdatessaan. Hyödynnän sukupuolentutkimuksen ja työelämän tutkimuksen teoriakeskusteluja. Kutsuin tutkimukseen 12 haastateltavaa, jotka edustavat monipuolisesti EU:n alueelta sekä sen ulkopuolelta muuttaneita. Tiedonkeruumenetelmänä käytin teemahaastattelua ja analyysimenetelmänä sisällönanalyysiä. Tulosten mukaan rasismia esiintyi jo ennen varsinaista työnhakuprosessia. Syrjintäkokemukset vaikeuttivat ja pitkittivät työnhakuprosessia. Strategiat syrjintää ja rasismia kohdatessa vaihtelivat yksilöllisesti, ja niitä myös vaihdeltiin tilannekohtaisesti. Pitkittynyt työnhakuprosessi ja sitä vaikeuttava syrjivä kohtelu vaikutti kielteisesti yksilön hyvinvointiin, työllistymiseen sekä työuran kehittymiseen. Artikkelin lopuksi esitän kehittämisehdotuksia rekrytointivaiheen syrjinnän vähentämiseksi.

Wind turbine operators usually use data from a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system to monitor their conditions, but it is challenging to make decisions about maintenance based on hundreds of different parameters. Information is often hidden within measurements that operators are unaware of. Therefore, different feature extraction techniques are recommended. The pitch system is of particular importance, and operators are highly motivated to search for effective monitoring solutions. This study investigated different dimensionality reduction techniques for monitoring a hydraulic pitch system in wind turbines. These techniques include principal component analysis (PCA), kernel PCA and a deep autoencoder. Their effectiveness was evaluated based on the performance of a support vector machine classifier whose input space is the new extracted feature set. The developed methodology has been applied to data from a wind farm consisting of five 2.3 MW fixed-speed onshore wind turbines. The available dataset is composed of nine pitch events representing normal and faulty classes. The results indicate that the features extracted by the deep autoencoder are more informative than those extracted by PCA and kernel PCA. These features led to the achievement of a 95.5% F1-score, proving its superiority over the traditional usage of original features.

In this article, we address how skilled migrant women experience job search processes in Finland, and the expectations and emotions that arise from these workforce encounters, which we explore through unique qualitative data. Although Finland relies strongly on principles of equality and inclusion, highly educated migrant women face major difficulties in job application processes. The employment level of migrant women in Finland is low compared to other Nordic countries, and even though migrant women are more educated than migrant men and their Finnish language skills are better, they encounter many hurdles in employment. As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the situation is getting more difficult for many women with non-Finnish background.There are multiple hurdles in highly educated women workers’ employment, which relate to structural and cultural aspects and which end up in discrimination in recruitment processes.

Abstract Objectives To develop successful mass-rearing programs of edible insects, knowledge of the feeds and their influence on nutritional content is critical. We assessed the influence of natural food plants (grass inflorescences) and their mixtures on fatty acid profiles of edible Ruspolia differens. We reared neonate nymphs to adult on six dietary treatments consisting of one, and mixtures of two, three, five, six and eight plants. Results The contents of saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, omega-6/omega-3 ratio, and adult body weight did not differ among dietary treatments. However, the composition of fatty acids differed significantly among insects fed on six dietary treatments, but only for the rare fatty acids. Our results demonstrate that even if natural diets (grass inflorescences) do not strongly modify fatty acid contents or compositions of R. differens, when reared from neonate nymphs to adults, their n − 6/n − 3 fatty acid ratio is generally low and thus good for a healthy human diet.

Edible insect rearing could provide one alternative for protein production by having a smaller environmental impact than traditional livestock farming due to insects' ability to convert organic side streams. Currently, the insect rearing industry utilizes soybeans as a major source of protein in the feeds. Protein-rich by-products of food industry could be used to replace them in insect feeds, but it is not known if they also meet the insects' nutritional requirements. Our study evaluated the growth performance of two widely used edible cricket species, Acheta domesticus and Gryllus bimaculatus (Orthoptera: Gryllidae), on 18 experimental diets. The experimental diets included commercial chicken feeds and cricket diets, where soybean was partly and completely replaced with by-products from food industry: potato protein, barley mash, barley feed, compressed leftover of turnip rape and mix of broad bean and pea on three levels of protein. We found that the high- and medium-protein turnip rape and barley mash diets produced the highest yield and an increase in all performance variables. Overall, the high- and medium-protein diets produced the highest yield, growth and fastest development. Our results showed that by-products of food industry could be utilized as a part of the cricket feeds and thus advance the goals of circular economy.

The structure of nanoparticles strongly influences their properties. Here, the authors use single crystal X-ray diffraction to resolve the crystal structures of Ag136 and Ag374nanoparticles, enabling the observation of local structure distortion and the lower size limit of surface plasmon resonance.