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BIANCA RIMINI
Professore emerito
Dipartimento di Scienze e Metodi dell'Ingegneria
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Pubblicazioni
2022
- Circularity Performances of the Production of a Cement Mortar Reinforced with Recycled Synthetic Fibers
[Capitolo/Saggio]
Marinelli, Simona; Butturi, Maria Angela; Rimini, Bianca; Gamberini, Rita
abstract
Forced by environmental implications and by legislation requirements, the cement sector is moving towards more circular economy practices, with the primary aim to enhance the sector sustainability. This commitment translates into product technology innovation, but also into innovative development perspectives for the industries involved in the supply chain. Moreover, dealing with recycled materials can modify the interaction among stakeholders from a conventional supply chain to an industrial symbiosis approach, where companies mutually exchange products and by-products into circular interactions. The purpose of this article is to investigate the circularity performances deriving from the production of a cement mortar reinforced with recycled synthetic fibers coming from artificial turf carpets. From the collection of artificial turf carpets at the end-of-life stage it is possible to recover several materials: plastic fibers used in the cement mortar, and in addition, silica sand, rubber, and bituminous membrane. The production of the innovative reinforced cement mortar leads to the connection between industries belonging to different sectors and consequently to uneven economic and environmental implications. Starting from the available literature, this study aims at evaluating the circularity potential of the unusual interactions among companies to support the development of an effective strategy, reducing environmental and economic pressures.
2022
- On demand printing with Additive Manufacturing (AM) for spare parts: scenarios for the insourcing of a 3D Printer
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Coruzzolo, A. M.; Lolli, F.; Balugani, E.; Rimini, B.
abstract
Additive Manufacturing (AM) has become a promising technique for spare parts management. The reduced lead time of AM compared to Classical Manufacturing (CM) has attracted the interest of researchers and many applications of AM to spare parts management have been introduced in the literature. However, the high production and equipment costs obscure the advantages of AM to spare parts management to practitioners and academics. The recent literature on spare parts management with AM have two main limitations which we address in this work. The first is that AM spare parts are mistakenly assumed to be less reliable than CM ones, which has been refuted by the recent literature on the mechanical characteristics of AM parts. Secondly, the external supply of AM parts that excludes the investment cost of the equipment. Our model overcomes these limitations by taking into account a spare part installed on a fleet of systems which failures are based on failure data from recent literature. In addition, we consider an insourced 3D printer, and account for the purchasing cost. We propose several scenarios for the insourcing of a 3D printing, considering a future cost reduction and constrained stock systems, individuating constrained stock system with high lead times for the CM part, ideal for in-house printing. The work has been supported by the project SUPERCRAFT, funded by the Emilia-Romagna Region (Italy) with European funds (POR FESR).
2022
- Performance of concrete reinforced with synthetic fibres obtained from recycling end-of-life sport pitches
[Articolo su rivista]
Signorini, Cesare; Marinelli, Simona; Volpini, Valentina; Nobili, Andrea; Radi, Enrico; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Micro-plastics pollution has risen at an alarming pace over the last decades and it is now recognised as a leading environmental emergency. Indeed, only a very small fraction of annual plastic production is successfully reused, while the vast majority is either disposed of (mainly through incineration or landfilling) or dispersed into the environment. In this paper, polyolefins synthetic fibres, obtained from processing disposed artificial turf pitches aimed at paving sport facilities, are studied. Focus is set on assessing their potential for the Fibre Reinforced Concrete (FRC) technology. Mechanical performance is discussed at two fibre volume fractions, namely 3% and 5% vol., alongside environmental impact. The former is assessed in bending and reveals a significant enhancement of the post-crack energy dissipation capability, whose extent is compatible with what is usually obtained by the adoption of virgin fibres. This is especially significant in consideration of the light processing operated on the waste material. Indeed, life cycle assessment is adopted to evaluate the environmental impact of fibre reuse against fibre manufacturing from either virgin materials or plastic waste. It clearly appears that fibre reuse brings a double environmental benefit: on the one side, it decreases the need for new plastics and, on the other, it reduces plastic waste, whose traditional disposal technique, through incineration, entails a considerable footprint.
2022
- Phase Change Material Evolution in Thermal Energy Storage Systems for the Building Sector, with a Focus on Ground-Coupled Heat Pumps
[Articolo su rivista]
Barbi, Silvia; Barbieri, Francesco; Marinelli, Simona; Rimini, Bianca; Merchiori, Sebastiano; Bottarelli, Michele; Montorsi, Monia
abstract
The building sector is responsible for a third of the global energy consumption and a
quarter of greenhouse gas emissions. Phase change materials (PCMs) have shown high potential
for latent thermal energy storage (LTES) through their integration in building materials, with the
aim of enhancing the efficient use of energy. Although research on PCMs began decades ago,
this technology is still far from being widespread. This work analyses the main contributions to
the employment of PCMs in the building sector, to better understand the motivations behind the
restricted employment of PCM-based LTES technologies. The main research and review studies are
critically discussed, focusing on: strategies used to regulate indoor thermal conditions, the variation
of mechanical properties in PCMs-based mortars and cements, and applications with ground-coupled
heat pumps. The employment of materials obtained from wastes and natural sources was also
taken in account as a possible key to developing composite materials with good performance and
sustainability at the same time. As a result, the integration of PCMs in LTES is still in its early stages,
but reveals high potential for employment in the building sector, thanks to the continuous design
improvement and optimization driven by high-performance materials and a new way of coupling
with tailored envelopes.
2021
- Barriers, drivers, and relationships in industrial symbiosis of a network of Brazilian manufacturing companies
[Articolo su rivista]
Sellitto, Miguel Afonso; Murakami, Fábio Kazuhiro; Butturi, Maria Angela; Marinelli, Simona; Kadel, Jr. Nelson; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
2021
- Dimensionality reduced robust ordinal regression applied to life cycle assessment
[Articolo su rivista]
Balugani, E.; Lolli, F.; Pini, M.; Ferrari, A. M.; Neri, P.; Gamberini, R.; Rimini, B.
abstract
Life Cycle Assessment quantifies the multi-dimensional impact of goods and services and can be handled by Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis. In Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis, Robust Ordinal Regression manages all the compatible preference functions at once when assessing a set of alternatives and a group of preferences on reference alternatives. Robust Ordinal Regression is thus a versatile method of reducing the cognitive effort required by decision makers for eliciting their preference structures in Life Cycle Assessment, although it does not directly operate on noisy alternatives and requires Stochastic Multicriteria Acceptability Analysis to deal with such scenarios. We propose integrating a dimensionality reduction technique, Principal Component Analysis, and Robust Ordinal Regression methods, to reduce the problem dimensionality and ensure the actual problem features are considered. A generated dataset, a dataset from literature and a Life Cycle Assessment case study are used to test the effectiveness of the proposed methods.
2021
- Estimating the circularity performance of an emerging industrial symbiosis network: The case of recycled plastic fibers in reinforced concrete
[Articolo su rivista]
Marinelli, S.; Butturi, M. A.; Rimini, B.; Gamberini, R.; Sellitto, M. A.
abstract
In recent times, the construction industry has been handling circular economy strategies in order to face the most important challenges in the sector, namely the lack of raw materials and the environmental impacts derived from all the processes linked to the entire supply chain. The industrial symbiosis approach represents an effective strategy to improve the circularity of the construction industry. This study analyses the circularity performance of an emerging industrial symbiosis network derived from the production of a cement mortar reinforced with recycled synthetic fibers coming from artificial turf carpets. From the collection of artificial turf carpets at the end-of-life stage it is possible to recover several materials, leading to potential unusual interactions between industries belonging to different sectors. A suitable indicator, retrieved from the literature, the Industrial Symbiosis Indicator (ISI), has been used to estimate the level of industrial symbiosis associated with increasing materials recirculation inside the network. Four scenarios—ranging from perfect linearity to perfect circularity—representing growing circularity were tested. Findings demonstrate that the development of an effective industrial symbiosis network can contribute to improving the circular approach within the construction sector, reducing environmental and economic pressures.
2021
- Phase change material-sand mixtures for distributed latent heat thermal energy storage: interaction and performance analysis
[Articolo su rivista]
Barbi, Silvia; Barbieri, Francesco; Marinelli, Simona; Rimini, Bianca; Merchiori, Sebastiano; Larwa, Barbara; Bottarelli, Michele; Montorsi, Monia
abstract
In this study two phase change materials (PCMs) mixed with sand were evaluated for distributed latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) coupled with a novel Flat-Panel ground heat exchanger (GHE) for shallow geothermal applications. N-Octadecane and a commercial paraffin-based PCM were mixed (30% v/v) separately with sand, which is commonly used as backfilling material for GHE. Both two mixtures underwent 16 thermal cycles and specimen’s temperatures and their variation over time were analyzed to evaluate phase change stability and supercooling. Grain size laser diffraction and pore analysis were performed together with optical microscopy, environmental scanning electron microscopy coupled with X-Ray spectrometry (ESEM-EDS) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis to evaluate PCMs-sand dynamic interaction over time and temperature. Results shown that sand addition halves n-Octadecane phase change time, although leading to a limited supercooling equal to 1 °C. Sand addition to commercial PCM leaded to a similar increasing in heat transfer, however in absence of supercooling phenomena. These performances were constant through 16 thermal cycles. Therefore, PCMs mixing in sand as mixture for GHEs backfilling material can be considered a strategy to enhance thermal storage of backfilling material, by increasing the underground thermal energy storage and then the exploitation carried out by shallow geothermal applications.
2021
- Sustainability of logistics infrastructures: operational and technological alternatives to reduce the impact on air quality
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Marinello, S.; Balugani, E.; Rimini, B.
abstract
Modern ports are productive systems characterized by transport-type activities (of goods and people) and by activities typically related to the sectors of industry, construction, commerce and related services. Despite their fundamental role in the economic and social development of the local area, ports also have a negative impact on the environment. This paper analyses the effect on the air quality of a maritime container terminal by assessing the typical activities carried out there. Five scenarios were studied using an EMEP/EEE (2019) bottom-up air pollutant inventory approach and through air quality numerical simulations with the ADMS-5 model. Changes in the layout of where the activities are carried out, the use of cold ironing, and the use of LNG as a fuel are the scenarios compared with the "BASE" condition. The results highlighted the improved air quality due to each solution, demonstrating how the use of alternative fuels or the electrification of the docks reduces pollutants by more than 70-80%. Delocalizing some of the handling was found to have fewer benefits. Economic factors and the engagement of key stakeholders would seem to influence the diffusion of these solutions.
2020
- A second life for cigarette butts? A review of recycling solutions
[Articolo su rivista]
Marinello, S.; Lolli, F.; Gamberini, R.; Rimini, B.
abstract
Trillions of cigarettes are smoked annually making cigarette butts one of the most common types of litter in the world. Due to the materials and toxic substances that they contain, this waste carries a very harmful risk for the environment and for living organisms (including humans). Only a few - barely sustainable - solutions have tried to tackle this waste and alternative solutions to landfilling and incineration are needed. Identifying the best methodological solutions and technologies for recycling this kind of waste in terms of results and applicability to real contexts would reduce the presence of dangerous materials in the environment and ecosystems and would promote the recovery of materials in line with the circular economy and sustainable development. The objective of this review was to collect and analyze the alternative solutions available in the literature for the recovery and recycling of the materials in cigarette butts, considering them as possible sources of secondary raw materials applicable to contexts of common interest. Several papers were selected and the results obtained by the authors are presented in terms of type of treatment process (physical, chemical or both), product derived (in solid, liquid or gaseous form) and its possible use in different sectors (e.g. construction, electronics, energy, chemistry and environmental protection). The main results, together with the advantages and disadvantages are highlighted and proposals for further research are outlined.
2020
- Data on the environmental performance analysis of a dual-source heat pump system
[Articolo su rivista]
Marinelli, S.; Butturi, M. A.; Lolli, F.; Rimini, B.; Gamberini, R.
abstract
This data article reports supplementary input and output data related to the research article “Environmental performance analysis of a dual-source heat pump system” on the life cycle assessment evaluation of an heat pump prototype, able to use alternatively the air and the ground as external heat sources. Primarily, the present article shows the life cycle inventory input data of the system under study and of the conventional air and ground heat pump systems, which were used for comparison. Secondly, complete numerical results are exposed, which are showed only graphically and in an aggregated form in the main article. Data include normalised and unaggregated environmental impacts of each investigated life cycle phase. The article also reports the complete results of the sensitivity analysis conducted using different assumptions on the energy mix and on the energy use.
2020
- Ecotoxicity of Plastics from Informal Waste Electric and Electronic Treatment and Recycling
[Articolo su rivista]
Butturi, MARIA ANGELA; Marinelli, Simona; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Plastic materials account for about 20% of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). The recycling of this plastic fraction is a complex issue, heavily conditioned by the content of harmful additives, such as brominated flame retardants. Thus, the management and reprocessing of WEEE plastics pose environmental and human health concerns, mainly in developing countries, where informal recycling and disposal are practiced. The objective of this study was twofold. Firstly, it aimed to investigate some of the available options described in the literature for the re-use of WEEE plastic scraps in construction materials, a promising recycling route in the developing countries. Moreover, it presents an evaluation of the impact of these available end-of-life scenarios on the environment by means of the life cycle assessment (LCA) approach. In order to consider worker health and human and ecological risks, the LCA analysis focuses on ecotoxicity more than on climate change. The LCA evaluation confirmed that the plastic re-use in the construction sector has a lower toxicity impact on the environment and human health than common landfilling and incineration practices. It also shows that the unregulated handling and dismantling activities, as well as the re-use practices, contribute significantly to the impact of WEEE plastic treatments.
2020
- Empirical Evaluation of the Impact of Resilience and Sustainability on Firms’ Performance
[Articolo su rivista]
Balugani, Elia; Butturi, Maria Angela; Chevers, Delroy; Parker, David; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The concepts of resilience and sustainability appear multi-dimensional and correlated,
depending on the context. Operational sustainability practices can enhance the resilience of a firm,
and support its growth. This study aims at analyzing the impact of a sustainability strategy, measured
by means of a sustainability maturity index (SMI), on the financial performance of a company. Since
the SMI is strictly correlated to resilience capabilities, the performed analysis represents a first level
integration of the sustainability and resilience indicators in a common framework. A data sample
from 53 organizations was collected through structured interviews and analyzed to identify possible
relationships between the SMI and the financial performance indexes. The analysis does not support
commonly reported arguments: we show that profitability does not show a significant relationship
with sustainable strategic intent. Interestingly, firm country of origin, size of the organization, and
market focus, likewise, do not have a significant relationship with SMI. Arguably, multi-dimensional
company performance, including both financial and non-financial measures, should be considered to
assess the impact of sustainability practices. Moreover, further investigations are needed to capture
firms’ nonfinancial indicators of performance that are related to sustainability and resilience, for
building up a unified framework enabling trade-off analysis.
2020
- Environmental benefits of the industrial energy symbiosis approach integrating renewable energy sources
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Marinelli, S; Butturi, M. A.; Balugani, E.; Lolli, F.; Rimini, B.
abstract
Industry sector accounts for almost 40% of final energy demand and is responsible for one-fifth of global energy-related CO₂ emissions. A viable pathway to reduce the carbon footprint of the industry sector is represented by the industrial energy symbiosis, that promotes inter-firm energy exchanges and the sharing of energy-related resources. While a single firm comes across technical and financial barriers that often hamper the implementation of energy conservation projects, the cooperation between firms can enable energy saving measures and the use of renewable energy sources at industry level. Considering a case study involving an energy intensive industry, the study analyses the potential environmental benefits of the industrial energy symbiosis approach integrating renewable energy sources. The research suggests a methodology to design strategic energy symbiosis connections, advantageous for the involved firms, with the objective of reducing carbon emissions and economic costs. The methodology is based on the mathematical optimization through mixed integer linear programming. combined with the environmental analysis conducted with the life-cycle assessment method. The application of the methodology to the case study provides a scenario outlining all the potential energy flows, that are evaluated respect to the state-of-the-art (reference) scenario and alternative electrification strategies, showing the potential environmental benefits.
2020
- Environmental performance analysis of a dual- source heat pump system
[Articolo su rivista]
Marinelli, S.; Lolli, F.; Butturi, Maria Angela; Rimini, B.; Gamberini, R.
abstract
Using all phases of a life cycle assessment (LCA), this paper analyses the environmental impact of a dualsource
heat pump (DSHP) system that uses either the air or the ground as external heat sources. Data on
the production were provided by the manufacturer of the heat pump prototype. The use phase was
considered by evaluating the seasonal and annual energy performance of the system, using dynamic
simulations. The system maintenance and end-of-life were modelled in accordance with the current
regulations and statistical data in this sector. The Ecoinvent database was used as a reference for
background data. The ReCiPe, CED and IPCC 100a impact methods were used to assess the
environmental impact categories. The results were compared with those of conventional air and ground
source heat pump systems. A sensitivity study on the influence of the energy in the use phase was carried
out in terms of a variation in energy use and for different energy mixes, including photovoltaic energy. The
results demonstrated the environmental validity of the technology in comparison with the two conventional
heat pumps used for residential applications in different conditions. The results could be used by heat pump
manufacturers to improve the design and performance of their products, by designers in the selection of
thermal technologies, and by researchers involved in the study of similar emerging renewable energy
technologies.
2020
- Evaluating the environmental benefit of energy symbiosis networks in eco-industrial parks
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Marinelli, Simona; Butturi, MARIA ANGELA; Rimini, Bianca; Gamberini, Rita; Marinello, Samuele
abstract
In order to evaluate the environmental benefits of energy industrial symbiosis networks with the inclusion of renewable technologies, a model that minimises greenhouse gases emissions has been developed. A validation of the model has been carried out comparing the results with those calculated with a life cycle assessment of a reference case. The study demonstrates that energy industrial symbiosis networks integrating renewable energy technologies have the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gases emissions and suggests a methodology to optimise energetic symbiosis connections inside eco-industrial parks.
2019
- A novel Carbon Capture and Utilisation concept applied to the ceramic industry
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Saponelli, R.; Milani, M.; Montorsi, L.; Rimini, B.; Venturelli, M.; Stendardo, S.; Barbarossa, V.
abstract
This paper investigates a new concept for the CO2 emission mitigation in the ceramic industry based on carbon reduction and methane formation. The concept is analysed as a retrofit to the natural gas fuelled ceramic kiln that represents the main responsible of this industry in terms of energy consumption and exhaust emissions. The carbon dioxide conversion to methane is obtained by reduction with hydrogen on a Ni catalyst and thus methane is used to fuel the standard burners that equip the kiln. The paper addresses different sources for the hydrogen used as a feedstock for the proposed concept as well as alternative catalysts are explored and compared in terms of reduction efficiency and costs. A lumped and distributed parameter simulation of the entire ceramic kiln is combined to the CFD simulation of the reactor to estimate the efficiency of the CO2 reduction and the corresponding methane production for a reference ceramic kiln. The results of the numerical simulations are then employed to discuss the potential benefits of the proposed concept in terms of carbon dioxide emission reduction for the ceramic production. An economic assessment of the system analysed is also carried out concept to determine the investment necessary to implement the technology in an existing ceramic kiln. The potential replicability for other industrial sector is also addressed.
2019
- A periodic inventory system of intermittent demand items with fixed lifetimes
[Articolo su rivista]
Balugani, Elia; Lolli, Francesco; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Babai, M. Z.
abstract
Perishable items with a limited lifespan and intermittent/erratic consumption are found in a variety of industrial settings: dealing with such items is challenging for inventory managers. In this study, a periodic inventory control system is analysed, in which items are characterised by intermittent demand and known expiration dates. We propose a new inventory management method, considering both perishability and intermittency constraints. The new method is a modification of a method proposed in the literature, which uses a periodic order-up-to-level inventory policy and a compound Bernoulli demand. We derive the analytical expression of the fill rate and propose a computational procedure to calculate the optimal solution. A comparative numerical analysis is conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed solution against the standard inventory control method, which does not take into account perishability. The proposed method leads to a bias that is only affected by demand size, in contrast to the standard method which is impacted by more severe biases driven by intermittence and periods before expiration.
2019
- Complexity measurement in two supply chains with different competitive priorities
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Sellitto, M. A.; Lolli, F.; Rimini, B.; Balugani, E.
abstract
Complexity measurement based on the Shannon information entropy is widely used to evaluate variety and uncertainty in supply chains. However, how to use a complexity measurement to support control actions is still an open issue. This article presents a method to calculate the relative complexity, i.e., the relationship between the current and the maximum possible complexity in a Supply Chain. The method relies on unexpected information requirements to mitigate uncertainty. The article studies two real-world Supply Chains of the footwear industry, one competing by cost and quality, the other by flexibility, dependability, and innovation. The second is twice as complex as the first, showing that competitive priorities influence the complexity of the system and that lower complexity does not ensure competitivity.
2019
- Corrigendum to “Preparation for reuse activity of waste electrical and electronic equipment: Environmental performance, cost externality and job creation” (Journal of Cleaner Production (2019) 222 (77–89), (S0959652619306870), (10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.03.004))
[Articolo su rivista]
Pini, M.; Lolli, F.; Balugani, E.; Gamberini, R.; Neri, P.; Rimini, B.; Ferrari, A. M.
abstract
The authors regret some errors with the notation of decimals in tables 8, 11, 12, 13 and 14. Following, the authors report the correct number values per each of the above mentioned tables. Table 8 Repair time spent for preparing for reuse of WEEE.
2019
- Cost-benefit evaluation of investment in natural gas distribution
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Balugani, Elia; Butturi, MARIA ANGELA; Lolli, Francesco; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Investment in the distribution of natural gas must be assessed by combining a technical analysis of the investment and an assessment of the social costs and benefits, to evaluate the impact of the project on social welfare in monetary terms. This paper describes how such an analysis can be conducted, by developing a methodology for the evaluation of investment in the distribution of natural gas. Once the net social benefit (NSB) of the investment has been evaluated, it is also important to assess the degree of reliability of such an estimate. This assessment can be conducted through two types of tests: sensitivity analysis and risk analysis. The critical variables are identified in sensitivity analysis as those that have a significant impact on the predicted outcome when they change. To address any uncertainties in the critical variables, a risk analysis quantifies the probability that the NSB is less than that estimated when using modal values for the critical variables. This type of analysis, combined with a technical evaluation, can be effectively used to assess the social consequences of an investment.
2019
- Life Cycle Thinking (LCT) applied to residential heat pump systems: A critical review
[Articolo su rivista]
Marinelli, Simona; Lolli, Francesco; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Heat pump technology is widely considered to be one of the promising opportunities for energy-efficient and low-carbon solutions for buildings and construction. However, sustainability is not always an intrinsic feature of all heat pumps. According to the Life Cycle Thinking approach, to assess the complete sustainability of a technology, a direct evaluation of the environmental, economic and social aspects over the entire life cycle is needed. Due to the growing interest in this technology, the present review summarizes the existing contributions on the sustainability of heat pump systems for residential heating and cooling using the Life Cycle environmental and Social Assessment and Life Cycle Costing. The main results are highlighted, then the data input, methodological assumptions and evaluation criteria are analyzed. The study reveals how to improve the sustainability of HP devices from a life cycle thinking approach.
2019
- Machine learning for multi-criteria inventory classification applied to intermittent demand
[Articolo su rivista]
Lolli, F.; Balugani, E.; Ishizaka, A.; Gamberini, R.; Rimini, B.; Regattieri, A.
abstract
Multi-criteria inventory classification groups inventory items into classes, each of which is managed by a specific re-order policy according to its priority. However, the tasks of inventory classification and control are not carried out jointly if the classification criteria and the classification approach are not robustly established from an inventory-cost perspective. Exhaustive simulations at the single item level of the inventory system would directly solve this issue by searching for the best re-order policy per item, thus achieving the subsequent optimal classification without resorting to any multi-criteria classification method. However, this would be very time-consuming in real settings, where a large number of items need to be managed simultaneously. In this article, a reduction in simulation effort is achieved by extracting from the population of items a sample on which to perform an exhaustive search of best re-order policies per item; the lowest cost classification of in-sample items is, therefore, achieved. Then, in line with the increasing need for ICT tools in the production management of Industry 4.0 systems, supervised classifiers from the machine learning research field (i.e. support vector machines with a Gaussian kernel and deep neural networks) are trained on these in-sample items to learn to classify the out-of-sample items solely based on the values they show on the features (i.e. classification criteria). The inventory system adopted here is suitable for intermittent demands, but it may also suit non-intermittent demands, thus providing great flexibility. The experimental analysis of two large datasets showed an excellent accuracy, which suggests that machine learning classifiers could be implemented in advanced inventory classification systems.
2019
- On the elicitation of criteria weights in PROMETHEE-based ranking methods for a mobile application
[Articolo su rivista]
Lolli, Francesco; Balugani, Elia; Ishizaka, Alessio; Gamberini, Rita; Butturi, Maria Angela; Marinello, Samuele; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Today, almost everybody has a smartphone and applications have been developed to help users to take decisions (e.g. which hotel to choose, which museum to visit, etc). In order to improve the recommendations of the mobile application, it is crucial to elicit the preference structures of the user. As problems are often based on several criteria, multicriteria decision aiding methods are most adequate in these cases, and past works have proposed indirect eliciting approaches for multicriteria decision aiding methods. However, they often do not aim of reducing as much as possible the cognitive efforts required by the user. This is prerequisite of mobile applications as they are used by everybody. In this work, the weights to assign to the evaluation criteria in a PROMETHEE-based ranking approach are unknown, and therefore must be elicited indirectly either from a partial ranking provided by the user or from the selection of his/her most preferred alternative into a subset of reference alternatives. In the latter case, the cognitive effort required by the decision-maker is minimal. Starting from a linear optimisation model aimed at searching for the most discriminating vector of weights, three quadratic variants are proposed subsequently to overcome the issues arising from the linear model. An iterative quadratic optimisation model is proposed to fit the real setting in which the application should operate, where the eliciting procedure must be launched iteratively and converge over time to the vector of weights, which are the weights that the user implicitly assigns to the evaluation criteria. Finally, three experiments are performed to confirm the effectiveness and the differences between the proposed models.
2019
- Preparation for reuse activity of waste electrical and electronic equipment: Environmental performance, cost externality and job creation
[Articolo su rivista]
Pini, Martina; Lolli, Francesco; Balugani, Elia; Gamberini, Rita; Neri, Paolo; Rimini, Bianca; Ferrari, Anna Maria
abstract
The European Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment system introduced measures to encourage both the reduction of the amount of electronic waste and its separation to prepare for reuse. The aim of this study is compare the environmental performance, cost externality and job creation of the whole life cycle of new and reconditioned electrical and electronic equipment by adopting Life Cycle Assessment methodology. Five electrical and electronic equipment categories were investigated and the data collection was made on an Italian context. The refurbishing of breakdown electrical and electronic equipment was assessed by considering different sets of faulty components (Scenario A and B) and a total of 25 scenarios were studied. Moreover, both attributional and consequential life cycle inventory modelling framework were adopted to represent the investigated scenarios. The outcomes highlighted that the preparation for reuse process leads to obtaining a sustainable electronic device than the new one, depending on which set of components are replaced. Adopting Scenario B with the attributional model, the environmental damage of reconditioned electrical and electronic equipment decreases compared to the new one. Conversely, the consequential approach determines an environmental credit for all repaired electronic devices except for one category; in particular, Scenario A produced the largest environmental advantage. The analyses of external costs and social aspects confirm that the preparation for reuse activity allows to obtain a more sustainable product than a new one. For these two latter aspects, the results showed a turnaround passing from attributional model to consequential one. Noting the variability in results adopting both different life cycle inventory modelling framework and set of replaced components, the Life Cycle Assessment practitioner, that conducted the study, should help the decision-makers to determine which scenario is more sustainable accomplishing an adequate choice.
2019
- Quality cost-based allocation of training hours using learning-forgetting curves
[Articolo su rivista]
Lolli, Francesco; Balugani, Elia; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The training of suppliers and inbound quality inspectors is a common strategy to increase the quality performance of the supply chain but, under budget constraints, these actors compete for a limited amount of training hours. The proposed model aims to allocate the available training hours so as to minimise a total quality cost function composed of prevention, appraisal, and failure costs; it also sets the inspection rates defining the inspection policies assigned to suppliers. The relationship between decision variables and costs is expressed through organisational and individual learning-forgetting curves, for suppliers and quality inspectors respectively, and the effect of the training hours on quality improvement is measured in terms of failure rates. To the best of our knowledge, a total quality cost model with such decision variables is new in the related literature, as it is a model including both organisational and individual learning-forgetting phenomena. A nonlinear optimisation approach was adopted to solve this complex problem. The experimental section includes a decision trees analysis of simplified scenarios in order to interpret the model functioning, as well as a complex numerical example to extrapolate managerial insights.
2019
- Renewable energy in eco-industrial parks and urban-industrial symbiosis: A literature review and a conceptual synthesis
[Articolo su rivista]
Butturi, M. A.; Lolli, F.; Sellitto, M. A.; Balugani, E.; Gamberini, R.; Rimini, B.
abstract
Replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy sources is considered as an effective means to reduce carbon emissions at the industrial level and it is often supported by local authorities. However, individual firms still encounter technical and financial barriers that hinder the installation of renewables. The eco-industrial park approach aims to create synergies among firms thereby enabling them to share and efficiently use natural and economic resources. It also provides a suitable model to encourage the use of renewable energy sources in the industry sector. Synergies among eco-industrial parks and the adjacent urban areas can lead to the development of optimized energy production plants, so that the excess energy is available to cover some of the energy demands of nearby towns. This study thus provides an overview of the scientific literature on energy synergies within eco-industrial parks, which facilitate the uptake of renewable energy sources at the industrial level, potentially creating urban-industrial energy symbiosis. The literature analysis was conducted by arranging the energy-related content into thematic categories, aimed at exploring energy symbiosis options within eco-industrial parks. It focuses on the urban-industrial energy symbiosis solutions, in terms of design and optimization models, technologies used and organizational strategies. The study highlights four main pathways to implement energy synergies, and demonstrates viable solutions to improve renewable energy sources uptake at the industrial level. A number of research gaps are also identified, revealing that the energy symbiosis networks between industrial and urban areas integrating renewable energy systems, are under-investigated.
2018
- A Fuzzy Logic Control application to the Cement Industry
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Sellitto, M. A.; Balugani, Elia; Gamberini, R.; Rimini, B.
abstract
A case study on continuous process control based on fuzzy logic and supported by expert knowledge is proposed. The aim is to control the coal-grinding operations in a cement manufacturing plant. Fuzzy logic is based on linguistic variables that emulate human judgment and can solve complex modeling problems subject to uncertainty or incomplete information. Fuzzy controllers can handle control problems when an accurate model of the process is unavailable, ill-defined, or subject to excessive parameter variations. The system implementation resulted in productivity gains and energy consumption reductions of 3% and 5% respectively, in line with the literature related to similar applications.
2018
- A human-machine learning curve for stochastic assembly line balancing problems
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Lolli, F.; Balugani, E.; Gamberini, R.; Rimini, B.; Rossi, V.
abstract
The Assembly Line Balancing Problem (ALBP) represents one of the most explored research topics in manufacturing. However, only a few contributions have investigated the effect of the combined abilities of humans and machines in order to reach a balancing solution. It is well-recognized that human beings learn to perform assembly tasks over time, with the effect of reducing the time needed for unitary tasks. This implies a need to re-balance assembly lines periodically, in accordance with the increased level of human experience. However, given an assembly task that is partially performed by automatic equipment, it could be argued that some subtasks are not subject to learning effects. Breaking up assembly tasks into human and automatic subtasks represents the first step towards more sophisticated approaches for ALBP. In this paper, a learning curve is introduced that captures this disaggregation, which is then applied to a stochastic ALBP. Finally, a numerical example is proposed to show how this learning curve affects balancing solutions.
2018
- Clustering for inventory control systems
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Balugani, E.; Lolli, F.; Gamberini, R.; Rimini, B.; Regattieri, A.
abstract
Inventory control is one of the main activities in industrial plant management. Both process owners and line workers interact daily with stocks of components and finite products, and an effective management of these inventory levels is a key factor in an efficient manufacturing process. In this paper the algorithms k-means and Ward's method are used to cluster items into homogenous groups to be managed with uniform inventory control policies. This unsupervised step reduces the need for computationally expensive inventory system control simulations. The performance of this methodology was found to be significant but was strongly impacted by the intermediate feature transformation processes.
2018
- Distributed renewable energy generation: a critical review based on the three pillars of sustainability
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Butturi, MARIA ANGELA; Lolli, Francesco; Balugani, Elia; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Reducing emissions responsible for the climate change is recognized as a strategic goal at European and global level. A higher deployment of renewable energy sources is considered as essential for a low-carbon transition, towards a more sustainable energy system. The 2030 Framework for Climate and Energy sets out the European Union target for 2030 of at least 27% for the share of renewable energy consumption. A high share of renewables requires a new flexible and integrated electricity system to ensure grid stability and match supply and demand. The advances in technologies for renewable electricity and heating production, efficient storage solutions, and advanced ICT allow flexible electrical infrastructures: distributed renewable energy generation is now widely recognized as the main pathway towards an effective integration of discontinuous sources into the energy system. The discussion on renewable energy sources introduction in the energy system has long been focused on technical, economic and policy issues, but the transition to a distributed renewable energy generation approach demands a change of perspective, considering a multi-sectoral sustainability view and the need for multi-stakeholder action. Purpose of this research is reviewing the more recent scientific papers on the distributed renewable energy generation approach, focusing on how all the three key sustainability dimensions, environmental, economic and social, are evaluated and managed in a multi-criteria perspective. The sustainability indicators suggested in literature are classified and discussed to build up an up-to-date and comprehensive set of sustainability related criteria, suitable for future research applications and for supporting decision making processes.
2018
- New and Reconditioned Electrical and Electronic Equipment. How does change the environmental performance?
[Abstract in Atti di Convegno]
Pini, Martina; Neri, Paolo; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Lolli, Francesco; Ferrari, Anna Maria
abstract
The scope of this study, carried out within the LIFE12 ENV/IT001058 - "WEEENmodels" project, was to compare the environmental performance of the life cycle of new electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) and the reused one through the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology. Different set of replaced components have been evaluated in order to understand which determines the best solution. Finally, both attributional and consequential LCI (Life Cycle Inventory) modelling have been implemented.
A representative product has been considered for each WEEE group, assuming that it generates the same environmental damage of the other products belonging to the same category. In particular, the following representative products have been selected: refrigerator (R1), washing machine (R2), cathode ray tube (CRT) (R3), laptop (R4) and fluorescent lamp (R5). In addition, in the use phase, lower performance of reconditioned EEE has been taken into account, e.g. higher energy consumptions. The lifespan of the reused product has been supposed to be equal to half-life time of an equivalent new product. This study evaluated different set of replaced components for each WEEE category in order to examine how the environmental performance can vary adopting different maintenance choices in the reconditioning step. In particular, Scenario A represents the set of replaced components, which damage more frequently; Scenario B is just an alternative set of replaced components.
The environmental comparison between new and reused WEEE, adopting attributional LCI modelling, showed that Scenario B produces a damage decrease for all WEEE categories. Moving on the consequential LCI modelling, the environmental comparison highlighted for both scenarios a considerable damage reduction for the reused EEE respect the new one. In addition, Scenario B determined the best environmental performance. Furthermore, for the reused R1, R2, R3 the analysis of results carried out environmental credits. This is due to the avoided burdens associated to the manufacturing of the new EEE, since the system boundaries have been enlarged until to considering the avoided production of the new product.
Attributional and consequential LCI modelling performed different LCIA results. Following the methodological guidance for the identification of the most adequate LCI modelling framework presented by Laurent et al., 2014, it would recommend to adopt consequential LCI modelling. But we suggest to LCA practitioner to focus also the attention on the request of who commissioned the project, which often in the waste field are local administrations. Generally, they wants a snapshot of the real effects that waste management policies provoke on human health and environment. For this reason, attributional LCI modelling would be the proper LCI modelling to achieve this scope. Considering this LCI modelling the Scenario B determines the best environmental performance.
2018
- Novel biocompatible PBS-based random copolymers containing PEG-like sequences for biomedical applications: From drug delivery to tissue engineering
[Articolo su rivista]
Fabbri, M.; Guidotti, G.; Soccio, M.; Lotti, N.; Govoni, M.; Giordano, E.; Gazzano, M.; Gamberini, R.; Rimini, B.; Munari, A.
abstract
A series of random poly(butylene succinate)-based copolymers, (poly(butylene/triethylene succinate) (P(BSmTESn)), containing ether-oxygen atoms were successfully synthesized by melt polycondensation of succinic acid and 1,4-butanediol in the presence of triethylene glycol (TEG) (TEG content up to 40 mol%). The copolymers were characterized from the molecular, thermal, structural and mechanical point of view. Hydrolytic degradation studies were performed under physiological conditions. The biocompatibility of the samples under investigation through indirect and direct biocompatibility studies was investigated by using embryonic rat cardiac H9c2 cells. To evaluate the potential of these polymers also for controlled drug delivery systems, the diffusion profile of Dexamethasone, an anti-inflammatory drug, through nanoparticles prepared by oil-in-water miniemulsion process was investigated. Results showed that solid-state properties could be tailored nicely by simply varying copolymer composition. Crystallinity degree and hydrophobicity significantly decreased with the increase of triethylene succinate co-unit (TES) mol%. Moreover, hydrolytic degradation of PBS, depending on polymer crystallinity degree and hydrophilicity, was remarkably improved: the copolymer containing 40 mol% of triethylene succinate co-unit after 200 days lost over 22% of its initial weight. The newly developed biomaterials showed lack of cell cytotoxicity. Among them, PBS and the copolymers containing up to 20 mol% of TES co-units sustained a better cell adhesion and proliferation. In addition, such copolymers induced muscle phenotype commitment in H9c2 cells cultured onboard. Lastly, the release profile of Dexamethasone obeyed to a first order kinetic law, the copolymer richest in TES co-unit content showing the highest encapsulation capability and the fastest drug release kinetics. Anyway, PBS and the copolymers containing up to 20 mol% of TES co-unis sustained a better cell adhesion and proliferation, with the copolymers characterized by a myosin heavy chain expression, which appeared to be up to twofold increased on respect to the one of PBS homopolymer.
2018
- Optimal job assignment considering operators’ walking costs and ergonomic aspects
[Articolo su rivista]
Gebennini, Elisa; Zeppetella, Luca; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The paper deals with the problem of assigning jobs to operators in contexts where the operators are not fixed on a single position, but rotate, by travelling on foot, between different stations. The objective is to jointly consider the need for minimising the operators’ walking costs, expressed as both unproductive times and physiological costs, and the ergonomic risk of the scheduled jobs and their combinations. A new optimisation-based methodology is presented by developing a systematic procedure for input data analysis and an original mixed-integer linear programming model which minimises the cost of walking (or the total metabolic cost) by considering workplace safety and physiological needs. Finally, the proposed optimisation approach has been applied to a case study from the plastic industry. The obtained results allow to draw some interesting conclusions about the impact of ergonomic aspects on the optimal assignment of jobs to operators. Moreover, the importance of reducing unproductive times (i.e. walking times) and, if possible, improving the design of manual tasks (e.g. lifting operations) is highlighted by showing that even small ergonomic investments may lead to significant cost savings.
2018
- Stochastic modeling of a single-vendor single-buyer supply chain with (s, S)-inventory policy
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Castellano, D.; Gebennini, E.; Grassi, A.; Murino, T.; Rimini, B.
abstract
Given the relevance of stochastic modelling in supply chain analysis and the advances in queuing theory in different subject fields (such as in-plant manufacturing systems), the present paper deals with the application of a Bernoulli model to the simple but representative (and frequently cited) case of a single-vendor single-buyer supply chain with (s, S)-inventory policy, where the maximum capacity S has to be restored in the intermediate warehouse whenever the inventory position reaches or drops below the reorder point s. An analytical stochastic model is presented which considers two two sources of uncertainty, supply uncertainty and demand uncertainty. The model is analytically formulated and solved in closed-form in order to compute some significant performance measures and, consequently, support tactical decisions (such as the definition of the design parameters s and S). Then, the model setting up is discussed. Specifically, the problem of relating demand and supply probabilities to the behaviour exhibited by the buyer and (particularly) the vendor is addressed. Finally, some numerical results are provided for illustration.
2017
- A methodology for estimating the operating costs of production lines
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gebennini, E.; Grassi, A.; Rimini, B.
abstract
The paper proposes a methodology for the cost assessment of production lines with unreliable machines and finite buffers. This methodology is based on the new concept of "Line Equipment Cost" (LEC), that is the actual operating cost of a certain machine which is used into a certain line configuration. For each machine, this kind of cost not only depends on a set of static parameters describing the statistical and structural properties of the machine, but also on its actual performance which, in turn, strictly depends on the specific line configuration where the machine is installed. If the line configuration is modified (e.g., more/less buffer space is available) the machine's performance is expected to improve/degrade so that its LEC value, which dynamically expresses the machine's actual operating cost, must be properly adjusted. Hence, in order to evaluate any production line, first the specific LEC values of the single machines in that line should be computed, then the "Total Line Cost" (TLC) can be determined by summing up those LEC values. Finally, the paper provides some numerical results in order to show the applicability of the proposed methodology which can be used not only to evaluate the actual operating cost of a specific production line (expressed by the TLC value), but also to compare different line configurations in order to drive strategic decision.
2017
- A multicriteria framework for inventory classification and control with application to intermittent demand
[Articolo su rivista]
Lolli, Francesco; Ishizaka, Alessio; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Several papers have studied inventory classification in order to group items with a view to facilitating their management. The generated classes are then coupled with the specific reorder policies composing the overall inventory control system. However, the effectiveness of inventory classification and control system is strictly interrelated. That is to say, different classification approaches could show different performance if applied to a different set of reorder policies, and vice versa. Furthermore, when the cost structure is subjected to uncertainty, a pure cost-based analysis of the inventory control system could be corrupted. This paper presents a multicriteria framework for the concurrent selection of the item classification approach and the inventory control system through a discrete-event simulation approach. The key performance indicators provided by the simulator (i.e., average holding value, average number of backorders, and average number of emitted orders) are indicative of the multidimensional effectiveness of the adopted inventory control system when coupled with a specific classification approach. By this way, a multicriteria problem arises, where the alternatives are given by exhaustively coupling the item classes, which are generated by different classification approaches, with the reorder policies composing the inventory system. An analytical hierarchy process is then used for selecting the best alternative, as well as for evaluating the effect of the weights assigned to the key performance indicators through a sensitivity analysis. This approach has been validated in a real case study with a company operating in the field of electrical resistor manufacturing, with a view of facilitating the management of items showing intermittent demand.
2017
- AHP-K-GDSS: A new sorting method based on AHP for group decisions
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Ishizaka, Alessio; Lolli, Francesco; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Balugani, Elia
abstract
Some public buildings need for energy requalification intervention as they are responsible for a significant share of energy consumption and other related CO2 emissions. With tight budget constraints choices have to be made. To solve this problem a group sorting decision support system based on the analytic hierarchy process, the Kmeans algorithm has been developed. The system aims at sorting alternatives into ordered classes of importance. A case study carried out in an Italian municipality allowed us to verify the validity of our new method in a real setting.
2017
- Decision Trees for Supervised Multi-criteria Inventory Classification
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Lolli, Francesco; Ishizaka, Alessio; Gamberini, Rita; Balugani, Elia; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
A multi-criteria inventory classification (MCIC) approach based on supervised classifiers (i.e. decision trees and random forests) is proposed, whose training is performed on a sample of items that has been previously classified by exhaustively simulating a predefined inventory control system. The goal is to classify automatically the whole set of items, in line with the fourth industrial revolution challenges of increased integration of ICT into production management. A case study referring to intermittent demand patterns has been used for validating our proposal, and a comparison with a recent unsupervised MCIC approach has shown promising results.
2017
- Discrete time model of a two-station one-buffer serial system with inventory level-dependent operation
[Articolo su rivista]
Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Fantuzzi, Cesare; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The paper deals with the discrete-time discrete-state modeling of two-station one-buffer serial systems in which the condition of the first station (operative/idle) is controlled according to the inventory level of the intermediate buffer. Briefly, the first station is forced to remain idle each time the buffer fills up until it empties to a predefined inventory level (referred to as restarting-inventory level). Previous works have proved that this control policy, called restart policy, is effective when outage costs (e.g., waste production) are generated each time the first station restarts production after an interruption.
While the works currently available in the literature assume that the buffer has to become completely empty before allowing the first station to resume production, the proposed paper develops a new analytical Markov model in which the restarting-inventory level can be greater than zero and arbitrarily set in the range [2, N-2] , where N is the buffer size. The proposed model is solved in closed form by means of a partitioning procedure and a solution technique described in detail. Then, the most important performance measures are obtained as a function of the restarting-inventory level, the buffer size and the reliability parameters of both stations.
Finally, some numerical results are discussed in order to validate the model and draw some concluding remarks about the values of the restarting-inventory level which maximize the effective efficiency of the system.
2017
- FMECA-based optimization approaches under an evidential reasoning framework
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Lolli, F.; Gamberini, R.; Balugani, E.; Rimini, B.; Mai, Francesco
abstract
One of the major shortcomings of traditional failure modes, effects and criticality analysis is the absence of any interconnection between failure ranking and a procedure for selecting the most critical maintenance/improvement tasks to be carried out. This limits the potential of FMECA for implementation in real environments. In order to bridge this gap, three different 0-1 knapsack models have been formulated. The first aims to select the failures in order to maximise cost savings. The second enriches the selection problem by also taking into account the probabilities of solving the failures with a set of maintenance tasks. The third aims to select the maintenance tasks to maximise the expected profit. In particular, the last two models make use of
an evidential reasoning framework to deal with the epistemic uncertainty related to these probabilities. A dataset from a manufacturer of lift winches has been used to validate this proposal, as well as to comment on the need for group decision support systems that are capable of converting the FMECA ranking into maintenance tasks in real environments.
2017
- Health Risk Assessment per esposizione occupazionale a sostanze chimiche cancerogene e non cancerogene nel riciclo di rifiuti di apparecchiature elettriche e elettroniche (RAEE): dati dal progetto WeeenModels.
[Abstract in Atti di Convegno]
Modenese, A; Ferrari, Am; Gamberini, R; Grasselli, L; Neri, P; Pini, M; Rimini, B; Vinceti, M; Violi, F; Gobba, F.
abstract
Health Risk Assessment per esposizione occupazionale a sostanze chimiche cancerogene e non cancerogene nel riciclo di rifiuti di apparecchiature elettriche e elettroniche (RAEE): dati dal progetto WeeenModels.
2017
- Inventory control system for intermittent items with perishability
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Balugani, E.; Lolli, F.; Gamberini, R.; Rimini, B.
abstract
Perishable items, with a limited lifespan and a known expiration date, are found in a variety of industrial
settings. From the food to the pharmaceutical industries, the supply chains specialize their inventory control
systems to handle the added complexity. These efforts are enhanced when the items present also an
intermittent consumption, characterized by frequent periods without demand mixed to highly variable positive
demand events. In this paper, a novel periodic inventory control system aims at bridging the gap between
these two product features, managing intermittent items with expiration dates. The proposed system performs
a combinatorial analysis evaluating all the demand scenarios before and after an expiration date to measure
the expected fill rate. An optimization algorithm then sets the order quantity, using mathematical properties of
the system to define efficient search boundaries.
2017
- Life Cycle Assessment of a Nano-TiO2 Functionalized Enamel Applied on a Steel Panel
[Articolo su rivista]
Pini, Martina; Neri, Paolo; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Marinelli, Simona; Ferrari, Anna Maria
abstract
In the building sector today, enamelled steel products are largely used because of their longevity and aesthetic qualities. In recent years, the considerable improvement in the chemical frit composition for enamelling has led to the development of TiO2 nanoparticle functionalized coatings. Thanks to the photo-catalytic and super-hydrophilic properties of TiO2, it is possible to obtain both self-cleaning and self-sterilizing surfaces. The benefits of these nanoparticles were substantiated, but their risk to the environment and human health is still being assessed. This study analyses the environmental performance of enamelled steel panels that are nano-TiO2 functionalized, using a life cycle assessment methodology. It applies the previously defined (but still preliminary) human toxicity indicators for TiO2 nanoparticles to the life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) stage, representing an early attempt to evaluate the human health risks caused by these new materials through LCA study.
2017
- Micro-structured 3D-electrospun scaffolds of biodegradable block copolymers for soft tissue regeneration
[Articolo su rivista]
Fabbri, M.; García-Fernández, L.; Vázquez-Lasa, B.; Soccio, M.; Lotti, N.; Gamberini, R.; Rimini, B.; Munari, A.; San Román, J.
abstract
The present article describes the application of a poly(ethylene terephthalate) mesh as template for the preparation of micro-structured fibres mat by electrospinning of biodegradable triblock copolymers based on polylactic acid and poly(butylene succinate/azelate) random copolymer. These copolymers present and excellent controlled biodegradation process in physiological conditions, with interesting applications in targeting and controlled release of different drugs. After the application of the poly(ethylene terephthalate) mesh in the electrospinning process, the detachment of the template provides a specific oriented microfibres mat, that affect to the adhesion and proliferation of cell seeded on the networks. In addition, the microfibres mats were loaded with dexamethasone as anti-inflammatory drug. The release of the drug takes place in a controlled relative short period due to the formation of drug crystals on the surface of the fibres during the electrospinning process. This issue can be restrained by acting on the triblock copolymer composition, improving the drug-polymer compatibility. Copolymerization also allows the modulation of the biodegradation rate. The biodegradable scaffolds under investigation can be therefore considered very promising for regenerative medicine and soft tissue engineering.
2017
- On the Analysis of Effectiveness in a Manufacturing Cell: A Critical Implementation of Existing Approaches
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Galloni, Luca; Lolli, Francesco; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) is a widely used indicator in the evaluation of effectiveness of manufacturing systems. However, several authors published alternative approaches for its computation, complicating the implementation step for practitioners. This study analyses the literature regarding OEE, selects four main methodologies for its evaluation and examines the underlying differences between them. A real life case study is analysed to illustrate problems arising during data collection and the differences in results obtained, together with traceable conclusions for improving the performance of production systems, both in traditional and in innovative industrial plants, following Industry 4.0 principles.
2017
- Optimal production scheduling with customer-driven demand substitution
[Articolo su rivista]
Zeppetella, Luca; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
This paper deals with the production scheduling problem with customer-driven demand substitution. We consider a manufacturing system in a make-to-stock environment which is potentially able to produce a large variety of product options (the so-called long-term product assortment) but, for reasons of capacity and operative limitations, only a subset of those options can be available in stock at the same time (the so-called short-term product assortment). In such a context, typical of fields where high-variety strategies are applied, the first-choice option of the customer could be unavailable at a certain instant of time. In that case, if production is planned by taking demand substitution issues into consideration, other options which are good substitutes will be available, thus increasing the probability that the customer chooses to substitute. The paper proposes two mixed-integer linear programming models (for both the lost sale case and the backorder case) for optimising the production schedule by jointly considering (i) capacity and production constraints, and costs on one hand, (ii) and demand substitution issues on the other hand. An extensive experimental analysis has allowed us to evaluate the models’ behaviour in a variety of operative scenarios and to draw some concluding remarks.
2017
- Requalifying public buildings and utilities using a group decision support system
[Articolo su rivista]
Lolli, Francesco; Ishizaka, Alessio; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Balugani, Elia; Prandini, Laura
abstract
Public buildings and utilities are responsible for a significant share of energy consumption and other related CO2 emissions. There is therefore an acute need for energy requalification interventions. Unfortunately, municipalities are under tight budget constraints, but decisions have to be made.
A new hybrid group decision support system has been proposed in a bid to provide them with firm, transparent support. The system is based on a combination of the analytic hierarchy process, the K-
means algorithm, and the 0-1 knapsack model. The first two methods aim at sorting alternatives into ordered classes of importance. To help in this task, the Bezier curve-fitting approach is used to construct
the preference functions of decision-makers based on reference points. Then, the knapsack model selects the alternatives from the generated classes while complying with the budget constraints. A case study carried out in an Italian municipality allowed us to verify the validity of our new method in a real setting, and to highlight the advantages of an automatic sorting procedure in practice.
2017
- Stochastic assembly line balancing with learning effects
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Lolli, Francesco; Balugani, Elia; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Human learning is nowadays taken into account in several research fields, including the assembly line balancing problem. Despite the plethora of contributions and different approaches to solving the problem, the autonomous learning phenomenon, that is to say, the time-dependent or position-dependent reduction of assembly task times due to repetition, should also be explored using stochastic models which, to the best of our knowledge, have been disregarded. In this paper, a well-established cost-based stochastic balancing heuristic has been coupled with a time-dependent learning curve in order to investigate the role of learning in the rebalancing of assembly lines with repetitive tasks. Finally, a real case study has been conducted with the aim of demonstrating the applicability of our proposal.
2016
- A REVISED FMEA WITH APPLICATION TO A BLOW MOULDING PROCESS
[Articolo su rivista]
Lolli, Francesco; Gamberini, Rita; Pulga, Francesco; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
This paper aims to present a modified failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) in order to make the assignment of the scores for the occurrence factor more robust, and to link the FMEA chart directly to the maintenance activities. A well-known clustering algorithm (i.e. K-Means), along with a normalisation approach, are applied and compared for the assignment of the occurrence scores. Subsequently, the relationship between failures and maintenance operations is made explicit by a correlation matrix. Finally, the K-Means algorithm is applied to the maintenance operations again in order to sort them into priority classes. It is found that this revised FMEA approach improves the standard one due to its more rigorous mathematical formulation and lean applicability in real operating environments. A real case study is introduced in order to show the applicability of this approach to the quality control of a blow moulding process. It is found that this approach reveals a high potentiality for dealing with real issues. The paper provides a further step towards bridging the gap between theory and practical application of the FMEA approach.
2016
- A decision framework for upgrading ERP systems
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Zeppetella, L.; Gebennini, E.; Grassi, A.; Rimini, B.
abstract
The paper proposes a structured decision-making approach for supporting ERP upgrade/replacement projects when new business requirements arise. The proposed framework is composed of three possible steps involving different levels of interventions with the aim of selecting the best ERP upgrade/replacement solution. In each step the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method is applied as an evaluation tool. Specifically, an illustrative application for increasing supply network coordination is described by considering "functionality factors", "vendor factors" and "software system factors".
2016
- A simulative approach for evaluating alternative feeding scenarios in a kanban system
[Articolo su rivista]
Lolli, Francesco; Gamberini, Rita; Giberti, Claudio; Rimini, Bianca; Bondi, Federica
abstract
In accordance with the lean production philosophy, an assembly line may be supplied by means of a kanban system, which regulates and simplifies the flow of materials between the lines and the warehouses. This paper focuses on evaluation of feeding policies that differ from each other in term of the number of kanbans managed per feeding tour. A pure cost-based approach is thus proposed, which considers both inline inventories along with handling costs proportionate to the number of operators involved in the parts-feeding process. A multi-scenario simulative approach is applied in order to establish the number of operators required to avoid inline shortages. The scenario minimising total cost is then selected. The innovation introduced is a model for describing kanban arrivals and their requests for feeding, improving the potential of the simulation to describe real-life environments. Lastly, a case study from the automotive industry is presented in order to highlight the applicability of the proposed approach as well and the effects of alternative feeding policies on the total cost incurred.
2016
- An international partnership for the sustainable development of municipal solid waste management in Guinea-Bissau, West Africa
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Ferrari, Katia; Cerise, Streng; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Most of the developing countries are facing great challenges to manage the increasing quantity of waste produced in the urban areas, that are growing at a very high rate. This paper presents the preliminary results of a technical study aiming at designing the first municipal master plan for the management of urban solid waste in the capital city of Guinea-Bissau, through a sustainable development international partnership. The project is led by the municipality of Bissau. It involves an Italian private enterprise, responsible for the technical transfer of knowledge and experience and count with the support of an international association, which plays the role of cultural bridge to guarantee the translation of innovative knowledge in local and feasible solutions for the African country. The final product of this international partnership should be a master plan, capable to design the waste management strategy for Bissau for the next 10 years, based on accurate data collected about the production and composition of waste in Bissau. The plan would be able to support the local policy makers to create an integrated waste management system, proper for the local characteristics and challenges. Irregular collection service, due to the lack of financial resources, together with a week awareness of the local population about the health and environmental risks related with the current practice of open dumping and burning are the major constrains. The identification of a proper location for a sanitary landfill to substitute the open dumpsite actually used to dispose the unsorted waste, the implementation of an efficient and economically feasible collection system are the current priorities. Future efforts should envisage how to improve and formalize the recycling and reusing activities, that have been realized nowadays informally by waste pickers in armful conditions.
2016
- Analisi LCA di un possibile scenario di riuso delle apparecchiature elettriche ed elettroniche dismesse: il progetto WEEENMODELS
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Pini, Martina; Gamberini, Rita; Lolli, Francesco; Neri, Paolo; Rimini, Bianca; Signori, Alessandra; Ferrari, Anna Maria
abstract
Il sistema europeo di raccolta dei rifiuti da apparecchiature elettriche ed elettroniche (RAEE) ha introdotto misure volte a incentivare la separazione dei RAEE da preparare per il riutilizzo. Obiettivo dello studio, svolto nell’ambito del progetto LIFE12 ENV/IT001058 – “WEEENMODELS”, è la valutazione ambientale di un possibile scenario di riuso di apparecchiature elettriche ed elettroniche dismesse e l’elaborazione di un calcolo approssimato per valutare gli effetti locali e indoor delle emissioni da esso generate.
2016
- Assessing Cancer Risk from Heavy Metals in Recycling Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment: Preliminary Results from the WEENMODELS European Life Programme
[Abstract in Rivista]
Violi, Federica; Modenese, Alberto; Gobba, Fabriziomaria; Ferrari, Anna Maria; Rimini, Bianca; Gamberini, Rita; Pini, Martina; Neri, Paolo; Filippini, Tommaso; Grasselli, Luigi; Montanari, Pinuccia; Vinceti, Marco
abstract
Introduction
The growing amount of waste derived from electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) poses significant challenges to waste management, due to the presence of toxic chemicals with environmental and health implications for the general population and for occupationally-exposed workers.
Methods
Based on an toxicological and epidemiologic evaluation, we carried out a health risk assessment to evaluate the cancer risk deriving from environmental and occupational exposure to heavy metals released during different WEEE recycling procedures (electronic scrap in blister copper, treatment of metals recovery in copper smelter, treatment of shredding, pyrometallurgical treatment of Li-ion battery). We considered the typical WEEE production in a municipality of 150.0000 inhabitants, carrying out a Life Cycle Assessment. Outdoor (1 square km around a treatment plant) and indoor (for a factory volume of 3200 m3) emissions generated during the WEEE recycling procedures were computed. In particular, we estimated the amount of Cd, Ni and As inhaled by the potentially exposed population. We computed the cancer risk due to inhalation of these heavy metals in residents and workers using the methodology proposed by the California Office of Environmental Health and Hazard Assessment
Results
For the metals considered, our results showed negligible cancer risk (from 2,21x10-11 to 4,31x10-08) for the general population around the plant. On the converse, occupational exposures linked to specific procedures were associated with a cancer risk of 1,42x10-3 for workers in the shredding procedures mainly due to Ni exposure, and of 4,68x10-4 for workers with electronic scrap and exposed to As.
Conclusions
Based on our preliminary results from an integrated toxicological and epidemiologic approach, WEEE life cycle may be linked to health risks for workers in the recycling procedures, while it does not seem to adversely affect health of the general population around the treatment plants.
2016
- Assessing cancer risk from heavy metal exposure in recycling waste of electrical and electronic equipment: preliminary results from the Weeenmodels European Life Programme.
[Abstract in Atti di Convegno]
Violi, Federica; Modenese, Alberto; Gobba, Fabriziomaria; Ferrari, Anna Maria; Rimini, Bianca; Gamberini, Rita; Pini, M; Neri, P; Filippini, Tommaso; Grasselli, Luigi; Montanari, P; Vinceti, Marco
abstract
Introduction
The growing amount of waste derived from electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) poses significant challenges to waste management, due to the presence of toxic chemicals with environmental and health implications for the general population and for occupationally-exposed workers.
Methods
Based on an toxicological and epidemiologic evaluation, we carried out a health risk assessment to evaluate the cancer risk deriving from environmental and occupational exposure to heavy metals released during different WEEE recycling procedures (electronic scrap in blister copper, treatment of metals recovery in copper smelter, treatment of shredding, pyrometallurgical treatment of Li-ion battery). We considered the typical WEEE production in a municipality of 150.0000 inhabitants, carrying out a Life Cycle Assessment. Outdoor (1km2 around a treatment plant) and indoor (for a factory volume of 3200m3) emissions generated during the WEEE recycling procedures were computed. In particular, we estimated the amount of Cd, Ni and As inhaled by the potentially exposed population. We computed the cancer risk due to inhalation of these heavy metals in residents and workers using the methodology proposed by the California Office of Environmental Health and Hazard Assessment
Results
For the metals considered, our results showed negligible cancer risk (from 2,21x10-11 to 4,31x10-08) for the general population around the plant. On the converse, occupational exposures linked to specific procedures were associated with a cancer risk of 1,42x10-3 for workers in the shredding procedures mainly due to Ni exposure, and of 4,68x10-4 for workers with electronic scrap and exposed to As.
Conclusions
Based on our preliminary results from an integrated toxicological and epidemiologic approach, WEEE life cycle may be linked to health risks for workers in the recycling procedures, while it does not seem to adversely affect health of the general population around the treatment plants.
2016
- CANCER RISK FROM HEAVY METAL EXPOSURE IN RECYCLING WASTE OF ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT: PRELIMINARY RESULTS FROM THE WEEENMODELS EUROPEAN LIFE PROGRAM
[Abstract in Atti di Convegno]
Violi, Federica; Modenese, Alberto; Gobba, Fabriziomaria; Ferrari, Anna Maria; Rimini, Bianca; Gamberini, Rita; Pini, Martina; Neri, Paolo; Filippini, Tommaso; Grasselli, Luigi; Montanari, Pinuccia; Vinceti, Marco
abstract
Background and objectives: When electrical and electronic equipment reaches
its end of life, it becomes ‘Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment’ (WEEE).
The growing amount of this type of waste has posed significant challenges to
waste management, since WEEE contains a whole range of toxic chemicals
having relevant environmental and health implications. The WEEE life cycle
may expose the general population and workers to various toxic chemicals, such
as heavy metals.
We conducted a health risk assessment to evaluate the cancer risk derived from
environmental and occupational exposure to trace elements from different
recycling procedures (electronic scrap in blister copper, treatment of metals
recovery in copper smelter, treatment of shredding, pyrometallurgical treatment of
Li-ion battery). We considered the typical production of WEEE in a municipality
of 150.0000 inhabitants, where a Life Cycle assessment (LCA) was carried out.
Methods: Outdoor (1km2 around a WEEE treatment plant) and indoor (factory
volume of 3200m3) emissions generated from the above-mentioned procedures
were computed, to perform a health risk assessment for occupationally-exposed
workers and for the general population around the plant. Dose of the heavy
metals cadmium, nickel, arsenic inhaled by the potentially exposed population
was estimated using the values obtained through a toxicological model. Cancer
risk due to inhalation was calculated using the method proposed by the California
Office of Environmental Health and Hazard Assessment.
Results and Conclusions: For the heavy metals considered, generated from
WEEE treatment, these preliminary results show negligible cancer risk for the
general population. On the converse, some risks may be present for occupational
exposures linked to specific procedures (from cancer risk of 1,42x10-3 for men
working in shredding procedure and exposed to nickel to cancer risk of 4,68x10-
4 for women working with electronic scrap and exposed to arsenic).
2016
- Design of fully aliphatic multiblock poly(ester urethane)s displaying thermoplastic elastomeric properties
[Articolo su rivista]
Fabbri, Martina; Soccio, Michelina; Gigli, Matteo; Guidotti, Giulia; Gamberini, Rita; Gazzano, Massimo; Siracusa, Valentina; Rimini, Bianca; Lotti, Nadia; Munari, Andrea
abstract
By the combination of prepolymers with very different physical/chemical properties, better performance materials can be obtained. In the present study, three hydroxyl-terminated fully aliphatic polyesters have been chain extended to prepare new multiblock poly(ester urethane)s (PEU) displaying thermoplastic elastomeric characteristics. Poly(butylene succinate), poly(1,4-cyclohexylenedimethylene-1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylate), and poly(neopentyl glycol adipate) have been respectively used as soft-hard, hard and soft segment. The evaluation of molecular, thermal, and mechanical properties and hydrolytic degradation profile permitted to correlate the behavior of the so-obtained materials with their molecular structure, and highlighted that it is possible to nicely tune the final characteristics of this class of PEUs by just varying the mutual amount of the three segments.
2016
- Esposizione occupazionale negli addetti alle attività di riciclo e riuso dei rifiuti di apparecchiature elettriche e elettroniche (RAEE): dati preliminari dal progetto WEEENMODELS.
[Abstract in Atti di Convegno]
Modenese, A.; Violi, F.; Pini, M.; Gioia, T. C.; Ferrari, A. M.; Gamberini, R.; Grasselli, L.; Montanari, G.; Neri, P.; Rimini, B.; Vinceti, M.; Gobba, F.
abstract
Esposizione occupazionale negli addetti alle attività di riciclo e riuso dei rifiuti di apparecchiature elettriche e elettroniche (RAEE): dati preliminari dal progetto WEEENMODELS.
2016
- Key strategic actions to improve the challenge of hazardous waste management in Mozambique
[Articolo su rivista]
Ferrari, Katia; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Abacassamo, Hafido
abstract
Waste management is an international issue with a global impact. Industrialised and emerging countries increasingly need raw materials to feed their industries: natural gas, oil, coal, precious minerals and metals. Most African countries are rich in raw materials, which they are powerless to trade on but eager to negotiate with. However, they have difficulty managing the negative effect that these trades produce, due to poor environmental regulations, inadequate waste disposal infrastructures, lack of technology and public bodies with little experience and resources. This situation makes it challenging for some African governments to manage the increasing quantity and types of waste, resulting from the extracting industries and growing urbanization. Furthermore, the benefits are not fairly distributed, whilst the negative impacts, both environmental and socio-economic, of a failing waste management system are widespread and global. We have studied the situation of hazardous waste management in Mozambique as a case study. Mozambique is one of the poorest countries in the world, but is rich in natural resources, which are being exploited by several global companies in recent years, and with insufficient waste management infrastructure. After the analysis of the local condition, this paper aims to trace guidelines to support different stakeholders to make the first coordinated steps towards a better management of hazardous waste.
2016
- Minimizing operators’ walking times into a linear system layout
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gebennini, Elisa; Zeppetella, Luca; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
This paper deals with the assignment of stations to operators into flexible manufacturing systems by minimizing the operators’ walking times over a given planning horizon. The manufacturing system is supposed to present a linear layout where the stations are aligned along a longitudinal axis. Stations are flexible (so that different jobs can be scheduled on the same station along the planning horizon) and may differ from each other in terms of degree of automation and, consequently, in terms of amount of human labor involved. Thus, two or more stations might share the same operator within the working shift and, consequently, the assignment of the optimal subset of stations to each operator is anything but trivial. Hence, a mixed-integer linear programming model is proposed which takes into account (and minimizes) the travel walking distances of the operators according to the assigned subset of stations. Other realistic constraints, such as the actual availability of the operators and the requirement stating that each scheduled job has to be assigned to a single operator for its entire duration, are included in the model. The validity of the model is proved by discussing a real-world case study from the plastic industry.
2016
- Modelling production cost with the effects of learning and forgetting
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Lolli, Francesco; Messori, Michael; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Balugani, Elia
abstract
Defining a dynamic model for calculating production cost is a challenging goal that requires a good fitting ability with real data over time. A novel cost curve is proposed here with the aim of incorporating both the learning and the forgetting phenomenon during both the production phases and the reworking operations. A single-product cost model is thus obtained, and a procedure for fitting the curve with real data is also introduced. Finally, this proposal is validated on a benchmark dataset in terms of mean square error.
2016
- New fully bio-based PLLA triblock copoly(ester urethane)s as potential candidates for soft tissue engineering
[Articolo su rivista]
Fabbri, Martina; Soccio, Michelina; Costa, Michela; Lotti, Nadia; Gazzano, Massimo; Siracusa, Valentina; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Munari, Andrea; García Fernández, Luis; Vázquez Lasa, Blanca; San Román, Julio
abstract
Novel fully bio-based poly(lactic acid) copoly(ester-urethane)s have been successfully synthesized. The new system is composed of a series of A-B-A triblock copolymers, where A, hard block, is poly(lactic acid) and B, soft block, is an ad hoc designed random aliphatic copolyester, poly(butylene succinate/azelate), characterized by high flexibility. Triblock units are joined by hexamethylene diisocyanate, known chain extender that allows the obtaining of polymers with high molecular weights. The samples synthesized were subjected to a detailed molecular, thermal, structural and mechanical characterization.The results obtained, show that copolymerization leads to better mechanical response with respect to poly(lactic) acid homopolymer. Moreover, the presence of the soft block in the main polymer chain facilitates the process of biodegradability. Nanoparticles of selected copolymers fabricated by using the nanoprecipitation method showed rounded morphology and average hydrodynamic diameters around 180 nm. Cellular behavior was assessed using human fibroblasts in vitro assays and results showed absence of cytotoxicity and a good cellular adhesion and proliferation on all the copolymer surfaces.
2016
- Poly(butylene succinate)-based polyesters for biomedical applications: A review
[Articolo su rivista]
Gigli, Matteo; Fabbri, Martina; Lotti, Nadia; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Munari, Andrea
abstract
This contribution aims to provide an overview on the use of poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) and its copolymers in biomedicine, with particular attention to emerging topics, such as controlled drug release and tissue engineering.
Indeed, PBS is a well-known aliphatic polyester, given its interesting thermo-mechanical properties and the proven biodegradability, combined with acceptable raw material and production costs. Moreover, the reactants employed in the synthesis can be obtained also from renewable resources, making PBS a fully bio-based and sustainable polymer. Although its commercialisation is mainly devoted to biodegradable packaging, the use of PBS in the biomedical field has recently attracted considerable attention.
The synthetic strategies adopted and the solid-state properties, together with data on the biodegradation rate and biocompatibility of this class of polyesters are here reported and compared. Finally, the envisioned applications have been described.
2016
- Solving the group sorting problem with an AHP-based approach
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Lolli, Francesco; Ishizaka, Alessio; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Multi-criteria decision making represents an extended branch of decision sciences which is highly applicable to several real settings. In particular, the question of ranking has attracted wide attention from researchers in the last few decades, through approaches based on different multi-criteria methods. However, ranking alternatives does not solve the question of sorting them into priority classes. When alternatives need to be classified into ordered classes, a sorting method has to be applied, but much less attention has been paid to investigating this kind of problem, especially in the case of multiple decision-makers asked to give subjective scores to different alternatives based on qualitative criteria. In this paper, a new Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP)-based group sorting method is defined, with the aim of achieving ordered classification without asking the decision-makers to provide limiting profiles. The resulting group sorting approach is validated with a numerical example.
2016
- The waste hierarchy: A strategic, tactical and operational approach for developing countries. the case study of Mozambique
[Articolo su rivista]
Ferrari, Katia; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Waste management in Europe is shaped by the waste hierarchy, which guides the legislation and policy of the Member States. This hierarchy applies the following order of priority: (1) prevention; (2) preparing for reuse; (3) recycling; (4) other recovery; (5) disposal. The wide acceptance of this principle in Europe comes from a yearly developed pathway that should not be exported to other countries without consideration of the local framework. Poverty is widespread in most African countries, with the majority of the population surviving on less than 2 US dollars a day and the average waste production per capita being about half the quantity produced in Europe. However, municipal solid waste management is still inadequate throughout the region, with open waste burning and dumping being the only method of disposal in enormous cities. These in turn arise without any planning or basic infrastructure such as roads, sewers or waste landfills. We used the case study of Mozambique to define a strategic, tactical and operational approach for the implementation of the waste hierarchy and to customize it to the local situation. Like other African countries, the major weaknesses in the performance of waste management are the poor legal framework, the lack of institutional structures and the ineffective and poorly coordinated initiatives of the international stakeholders. We propose an interpretation of the waste hierarchy in order to compensate for local deficiencies and to define a local framework for the policy makers whereby prevention is no longer a priority in the short term, in order to stress the awareness and the collection. These are consolidated steps of waste management in industrialized countries but which still pose a challenge in developing nations.
2016
- Waste treatment: an environmental, economic and social analysis with a new group fuzzy PROMETHEE approach
[Articolo su rivista]
Lolli, Francesco; Ishizaka, Alessio; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Ferrari, Anna Maria; Marinelli, Simona; Savazza, Roberto
abstract
Most complex decisions involve several stakeholders and therefore need to be solved using a group multi-criteria decision method. However, stakeholders or decision-makers often have divergent views, especially in the environmental sector. In order to integrate this divergence, a new group fuzzy PROMETHEE approach is introduced to combine the traditional environmental criteria of life cycle assessments with social and economic criteria. The modelling of uncertainty within the group of decision-makers using a fuzzy approach makes this method unique. The proposed fuzzy approach differs significantly from the standard one. The decision-makers express their judgments in crisp forms. In order to take into account the intrinsic dispersion of judgments within the group, a posteriori fuzzification procedure is applied. The crisp values are not simply aggregated; they are converted into a triangular fuzzy number based on the given evaluations. As a consequence, the definition of fuzzy membership functions, as required in standard fuzzy logic, is not required, which simplifies the process and makes it more reliable. The new approach is illustrated with a real case study concerning the selection of the best waste treatment solution in a natural park from among a traditional incinerator and an innovative integrated plant.
2015
- A bi-objective heuristic for supporting fire stations to respond quickly and efficiently in case of micro calamities
[Articolo su rivista]
Lolli, Francesco; Pergreffi, A.; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Regattieri, A.
abstract
Among the wide set of requests of interventions sent to a fire station, the so called ‘micro calamities’ may play a significant role. They are characterized by simultaneous requests of low severity mark from a spread area. These events are completely comparable to those referring to the post-crisis humanitarian logistics. A pure cost-based approach does not fit with this operative issue, as well as a pure minimum latency approach, which is typically applied in the previous acute phases.
Thereby, a bi-objective problem is formulated and solved by means of an ‘a priori’ scalarization heuristic. A case study shows the applicability of the proposed approach and indicates the opportunity of further investigations.
2015
- Analytical modeling of part supply process in a bin-kanban system with logistic trains
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Bursi, Fabio; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
This paper deals with the part supply process in a mixed-model assembly line served by a logistic train.
The mixed-model assembly line is made up of a number s of stations each of which is provided with bins
of different parts. According to the concept of “bin-kanban”, when a bin becomes empty it represents a
request for a replenishment at that station. In this system the empty bins are retrieved by a logistic train
that transports them to a centralized warehouse area where they are refilled (supermarket).
The duration of a tour of the logistic train is a stochastic variable depending on the number of stations
that require a service and the number of bins that must be retrieved or supplied. We assume Poisson arrival
processes and exponential service times.
The aim of this paper is to analytically model the system described above as a “polling system”, that
can be basically defined as a collection of queues served by a single server. In particular, we reformulate the
model proposed by Blanc (1992a) for polling systems with limited service disciplines in order to model a
polling system where the server has a finite capacity.
2015
- FlowSort-GDSS - A novel group multi-criteria decision support system for sorting problems with application to FMEA
[Articolo su rivista]
Lolli, Francesco; Ishizaka, Alessio; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Messori, Michael
abstract
Failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) is a well-known approach for correlating the failure modes of a system to their effects, with the objective of assessing their criticality. The criticality of a failure mode is traditionally established by its risk priority number (RPN), which is the product of the scores assigned to the three risk factors, which are likeness of occurrence, the chance of being undetected and the severity of the effects. Taking a simple "unweighted" product has major shortcomings. One of them is to provide just a number, which does not sort failures modes into priority classes. Moreover, to make the decision more robust, the FMEA is better tackled by multiple decision-makers. Unfortunately, the literature lacks group decision support systems (GDSS) for sorting failures in the field of the FMEA. In this paper, a novel multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) method named FlowSort-GDSS is proposed to sort the failure modes into priority classes by involving multiple decision-makers. The essence of this method lies in the pair-wise comparison between the failure modes and the reference profiles established by the decision-makers on the risk factors. Finally a case study is presented to illustrate the advantages of this new robust method in sorting failures.
2015
- On the modeling of line feeding systems with bin-kanban and logistic trains as polling systems
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Bursi, Fabio; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
This paper deals with the part supply process in a mixed-model assembly line served by a logistic train.
The logistic train periodically follows a fixed route (tour) and, in each tour, it visits all the stations for providing full
bins of parts and retrieving the empty bins (which will be re-filled in a “supermarket” at the end of the tour). The
aim of this paper is to analytically model such a system in order to support the dimensioning of both the logistic train
and the station buffers. The innovative contribution consists in treating the system as a “polling system”, i.e., a set of
queues attended by a single server. This allows us to consider the variability of the station cycle times and the tour
duration of the logistic train. In particular, since the capacity of the logistic train is constrained by the number of
wagons, the study generalizes approaches for the uncapacitated-server polling systems to the capacitated case.
2015
- Production scheduling to optimize the product assortment in case of constrained capacity and customer-driven substitution
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gebennini, Elisa; Zeppetella, Luca; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
This paper deals with the production scheduling problem by considering product assortment
and demand substitution issues, along with capacity and production constraints.
In this study we distinguish between long-term product assortment and short-term product assortment.
The term “long-term product assortment” is used here to indicate the whole set of alternative products
that a company is able to produce over a long horizon of time. On the other hand, the “short-term
product assortment” represents the products that the company is able to offer to its customers at a
time. We assume that, in general, for reasons of capacity constraints and operative costs, the short-term
product assortment is a subset of the long-term product assortment. Thus, the objective is to optimize
the production schedule and, consequently, the short-term product assortment by considering capacity
and production constraints, customer-driven demand substitution and production and inventory costs. In
particular, a mixed-integer linear programming model is proposed in a multi-period and multi-product perspective.
2015
- The effect of plasma surface modification on the biodegradation rate and biocompatibility of a poly(butylene succinate)-based copolymer
[Articolo su rivista]
Fabbri, Martina; Gigli, Matteo; Costa, Michela; Govoni, Marco; Seri, Paolo; Lotti, Nadia; Giordano, Emanuele; Munari, Andrea; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Neretti, Gabriele; Cristofolini, Andrea; Borghi, Carlo A.
abstract
In this contribution, a poly(butylene succinate)-based copolymer containing thioether linkages (P(BS85BTDG15)) has been synthesized and characterized from the molecular, thermal and mechanical point of view. The results have been compared to the parent homopolymer. Films obtained both by PBS and P(BS85BTDG15) have been subjected to surface modification by means of non-thermal plasma surface treatment and the effect on physic/mechanical properties has been considered. Hydrolytic degradation rate under physiological conditions and in vitro biocompatibility of treated and non-treated polymeric films have been also investigated. The introduction of thioether linkages and the plasma etching enhanced the polymer surface wettability, thus resulting in an increased hydrolytic degradation rate. On the other hand, bulk properties were not significantly affected. Biocompatibility assays highlighted the absence of potentially cytotoxic products into the culture medium and proved that the investigated polymeric films can support cell adhesion and proliferation.
2014
- A manpower allocation problem with layout considerations
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Zeppetella, Luca; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
In this study we investigate the problem of assigning tasks to operators in a facility characterized by longitudinal parallel
machines such as in a shop floor served by an overhead travelling crane. Given a master production schedule
(MPS) the objective is to assign all the jobs scheduled on the machines (i.e., the tasks) to the operators in order to
fill to capacity the available workforce minimizing the distance between operators and tasks. In the model we assume
that one task, i.e., a particular production job processed by a particular machine, must be entirely completed by a
single operator. Different levels of automation of the machines are considered, from manual machines that require a
permanent employee to highly-automated machines where a single operator can oversee several machines. During the
setup time or repair time of a machine the operator is considered free to operate on the remaining tasks assigned to
him, if any.
On the basis of the MPS the number of operators is pre-defined in the long-term planning horizon taking in consideration
a fixed mean transfer time between the tasks, that are the different production jobs on different machines. This
value has a huge uncertainty because it is highly influenced by the tasks allocation. In fact a simultaneous multiple allocation
means a continuous back and forth of the operator between his assigned machines. The objective of the model
is the maximization of the operators utilization through minimizing the operator-task distances. The backlogged work
is not admitted, therefore each day is independent of the other days, so a daily staffing is modelled.
The study arises from a specific real-world problem but it could be easily extended to other contexts in which the
operator-task allocation is subject to spatial-layout considerations. In general, non-optimized operators’ travel times
may result in production losses, i.e., machine blocking and work in progress.
2014
- APPLICATION OF TRAMO-SEATS AUTOMATIC PROCEDURE FOR FORECASTING INTERMITTENT DEMAND PATTERNS
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Lolli, Francesco; Gamberini, Rita; Regattieri, A.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Managing intermittent demand represents a very critical task in term of forecasting and stock control due to the variability both of demand sizes and demand arrivals. In this pa-per the forecasting issue is tackled by comparing different extrapolative forecasting ap-proaches. In particular, the SARIMA model (Seasonal Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average) is applied on 60 real time series by means of the TRAMO-SEATS procedure, which is a versatile and automatic procedure allowing a quick identification of the best performing SARIMA model for each item. The forecasting performances are then compared with those obtained by the well-known methods of Croston and Syntetos-Boylan, which represent two modified versions of the simple exponential smoothing specifically introduced for estimating the mean demand per period in case of intermittent demand profiles. Furthermore, the aggre-gation of forecasts in lower-frequency ‘time buckets’ is implemented in order to evaluate how these methods behave on aggregated time horizons.
2014
- An optimization model for the design of rack storage systems
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Ferrara, Andrea; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The paper deals with the design of rack storage systems in multiple product situations. Given the production/delivery patterns of the different products and shared storage policies, the aim is to identify the amount of storage area that should be devoted to single deep selective racks and the amount for non-selective racks. The non-selective rack storage systems under analysis are accessed in a LIFO (last-in first-out) manner (e.g., "drive-in" racks). In particular, the racks under analysis consist of lane levels of different heights. This makes the problem challenging when also the unit loads may have different heights (e.g., because of product load restrictions). In such a situation, small unit loads can be put in high lanes, not vice versa. Moreover, the volumetric utilization and the storage efficiency of the warehouse become key performance indicators, so that the optimal mix of racks of different heights should be investigated. Thus, the paper presents a mathematical programming model able to address the considerations outlined above, along with floor space constraints. The objective is identify the number of single deep selective racks, the mix and number of non-selective racks and the lane depths so that the volumetric storage efficiency is maximized.
2014
- COMPARATIVE LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT OF INNOVATIVE AND TRADITIONAL ADHESIVES FOR THE LAYING OF CERAMIC TILES
[Articolo su rivista]
Ferrari, Anna Maria; Spinelli, Rosangela; Gamberini, Rita; Neri, P.; Pini, Martina; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The mission of sustainable development exerted the pressure demanding for the adoption of proper methods to protect the environment across all industries, including construction. Waste management is considered an urgent problem that needs to be addressed by identifying favorable solutions to minimize its environmental burden. Recycling is one of the strategies inducing the minimization of waste directed to landfill sites, by promoting their reuse, along with reducing demand for new raw materials. In the construction field, the request of aggregates generates a strong impact on the territory because of a mining activity, which can be planned and regulated with great difficulty. It is more and more relevant to focus on the qualitative and quantitative evaluation of contribution that the secondary aggregates, obtained by valorization of waste, can lead to the fulfillment of the needs of the construction industry. For this reason it is necessary to assess, in terms of a technical and environmental point of view, the industrial processes to obtain the secondary raw materials available for use and to compare them with the production of natural aggregates by mining activity. This paper aims to compare the environmental impact due to the production of adhesive for the laying of baked clay, obtained by the manufacturing of baked waste and natural aggregates, by paying attention on the main environmental burdens which characterize the production of natural and recycled aggregates. As a result, the recycling process leads to an increase in environmental impact compared to the production of natural sand as the energy consumption in the recycling process reduces the benefits of saving raw materials. However, the ceramic waste recycling leads to a decrease of the overall potential damage of 44% compared to landfilling.
2014
- DALLA MANUTENZIONE DEGLI IMPIANTI ALLA PREPARAZIONE AL RIUTILIZZO DI ALCUNE CATEGORIE DI RIFIUTI: NUOVE SFIDE PER LA TEORIA DELLA AFFIDABILITA’ E GLI STUDI SUL CICLO DI VITA DEI PRODOTTI
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Galloni, Luca; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
La Direttiva europea 2008/98/CE rappresenta il riferimento per la definizione di misure volte a proteggere l’ambiente e la salute umana prevenendo o riducendo gli impatti negativi della produzione e della gestione dei rifiuti e limitando gli impatti complessivi dell’uso delle risorse. La sua emanazione è preceduta da un ampio confronto all’interno della Comunità Europea (CE), le cui tracce sono evidenti:
- nella decisione n. 1600/2002/CE che istituisce il Sesto programma comunitario di azione in materia di ambiente e sollecita l’estensione o la revisione della normativa in vigore, in particolare al fine di chiarire la distinzione tra ciò che è rifiuto e ciò che non lo è, nonchè di promuovere lo sviluppo di misure in materia di prevenzione e gestione dei rifiuti, compresa la definizione di obiettivi. Peraltro, la necessità di fornire una definizione di “rifiuto” è ribadita nella comunicazione del 27 Maggio 2003 e nella successiva risoluzione del 20 Aprile 2004
- nella direttiva 2000/53/CE che contribuisce a diffondere principi quali “chi inquina paga”, nonchè la necessità di una fase di progettazione dei prodotti in vista del loro riciclaggio e recupero e il conseguente perseguimento di obiettivi prefissati in termini di reimpiego, riciclaggio e recupero dei rifiuti
- nella direttiva 2002/96/CE (ora recente-mente aggiornata dalla direttiva 2012/19/UE), che applica i summenzionati concetti al settore dei RAEE, cioè dei Rifiuti di Apparecchiature Elettriche ed Elettroniche.
In tale ambito, si sviluppa nella direttiva 2008/98/CE una forte attenzione a una fase innovativa nella gestione dei rifiuti: la preparazione al riutilizzo, intendendo con tale termine le operazioni di controllo, pulizia e riparazione attraverso cui prodotti o componenti di prodotti diventati rifiuti sono preparati in modo da poter essere reimpiegati senza altro pretrattamento. Particolarmente adatti a questa tipologia di trattamento sono i rifiuti ingombranti, i rifiuti di apparecchiature elettriche ed elettroniche, gli abiti usati.
Nel proseguo, l’attenzione sarà rivolta ai rifiuti di apparecchiature elettriche ed elettroniche, per i quali sono già attive sul territorio europeo imprese appartenenti a reti per la preparazione al riutilizzo e per i quali diventa cruciale il tema della previsione della vita utile e conseguentemente della definizione della più opportuna politica di revisione e di sostituzione dei componenti. Nasce così una nuova sfida e un nuovo ambito di applicazione per la teoria della affidabilità e per le competenze ad essa connesse, inclusa la capacità di definizione di standard consolidati. Cruciale è inoltre la loro integrazione con le metodologie per l’analisi del ciclo di vita dei prodotti.
Nei paragrafi successivi, quindi, sarà presentata la recente specifica tecnica PAS 141:2011, definita nel Regno Unito per regolamentare la preparazione al riutilizzo di apparecchiature elettriche ed elettroniche, per arrivare poi a concentrarsi su recenti modelli per valutare la vita utile residua di apparecchiature elettriche ed elettroniche usate.
2014
- DYNAMIC RE-ORDER POLICIES FOR IRREGULAR AND SPORADIC DEMAND PROFILES
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Lolli, Francesco; Regattieri, A.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Irregular and sporadic demand profiles frequently occur in different contexts characterised either by a large fragmentation of client requests within a broad product mix or when new products are introduced. Their optimal management often requires the definition of approaches based on Key Performance Indicators (KPI) other than costs, which in the aforementioned situations are characterised by uncertainty. Specifically, holding costs and stock-out costs are difficult to quantify. This paper examines 104 dynamic re-order policies in an environment where demand patterns with very low demand frequency and demand size equal to very few items are required by customers. Furthermore, the cost structure is uncertain. The aforementioned alternative management approaches are experimentally compared in terms of the average inventory level, average and maximum lost demand and average number of stock-out they can ensure.
2014
- HYDROLYSABLE PBS-BASED POLY(ESTER URETHANE)S THERMOPLASTIC ELASTOMERS
[Articolo su rivista]
Fabbri, Martina; Gigli, M.; Gamberini, Rita; Lotti, N.; Gazzano, M.; Rimini, Bianca; Munari, A.
abstract
In this contribution a new class of aliphatic poly(butylene succinate) (PBS)-based poly(ester urethane)s has been synthesized and characterized from the molecular, thermal and mechanical point of view. Hydrolytic degradation studies under physiological conditions have been conducted to assess their biodegradation rate. To obtain copolymers showing both thermoplastic and elastomeric properties, the chain-linking strategy has been considered. In particular, two hydroxyl-terminated oligomers have been synthesized by melt polycondensation: poly(butylene succinate) (PBS), as a "hard segment", and two poly(butylene adipate/diglycolate) P(BAmBDGn) random copolymers as a "soft segment". The introduction of ether-linkages along the PBA chain permitted to depress its crystallinity degree and to enhance the wettability. Multiblock copolymers were finally obtained by chain extending with hexamethylene diisocyanate each P(BAmBDGn) copolymer with two different mass percentages of PBS: 30% and 50%. All copolymers maintained good thermal stability and were characterized by melting temperatures above 100 °C. Elastic modulus (E) and stress at break (σb) varied with the chemical composition: the higher the PBS amount, the higher E and σb. No yield and very high elongations at break were observed. Hydrolytic degradation studies highlighted an increase of the degradation rate with the increase of the BDG content.
2014
- JOBS PRE-ALLOCATION ON PARALLEL UNRELATED MACHINES WITH SEQUENCE DEPENDENT SETUP TIMES: EVIDENCE FROM A LARGE EXPERIMENTATION
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Castagnetti, E.; Lolli, Francesco; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
In this paper the problem of allocating and scheduling jobs on parallel unrelated machines is studied. Jobs are grouped in families of similar items. A sequence dependent setup is required between batches of jobs belonging to the same and different families, even if in the first case lower time is required. The size of batches is not known a-priori, hence the problem is divided in two different sub-problems: a) the allocation of volumes of work on each machine and b) subsequently the scheduling of
each item. The focus of the paper is on the first step and consequently on the pre-assignment problem. Three different solving approaches are implemented in several real-life case studies.
2014
- LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT OF A LARGE, THIN CERAMIC TILE WITH ADVANTAGEOUS TECHNOLOGICAL PROPERTIES
[Articolo su rivista]
Pini, Martina; Ferrari, Anna Maria; Gamberini, Rita; Neri, P.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Purpose
Ceramic tiles play a strategic role in the Italian market; currently, the Italian production is of 367.2 million m2 (Confindustria Ceramica 2012). In 2009, Italy was positioned as the world’s fourth largest producer of ceramic tiles, producing 368 million m2 of the world’s total production of 1,735 million m2 Giacomini (Ceram World Rev 88:52–68, 2010). Therefore, there is an ongoing effort to create innovations in the products offered and their manufacturing processes, in order to better compete on the market and to create eco-friendly products. Recently, the Italian Ceramic District has increased its focus on environmental issues with the aim of protecting natural resources and reducing the energy and material consumption. For this reason, a new product was born in the Italian Ceramic District, namely, a large thin ceramic tile (dimensions 1,000 mm × 3,000 mm × 3.5 mm) reinforced with a fibreglass backing, which gives the product excellent resistance and flexibility properties. The aim was to manufacture a new product with lower environmental impact than the traditional one. The production of a large thin ceramic tile requires, in fact, a lower quantity of materials, transports and energy consumptions comparing to the same metres square of traditional ceramic tile. At the present, no comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) studies have been performed between traditional and innovative ceramic stoneware tiles. This study analyses, for the first time, a life cycle of the innovative ceramic product (porcelain stoneware) developed by a company of the Italian Ceramic District.
Methods
The analysis is performed using the LCA methodology, in order to identify environmental impacts, energy consumption and CO2 equivalent emissions that occur during extraction of raw materials, transportation, production, material handling, distribution and end-of-life stages within a cradle to grave perspective.
Results and conclusions
LCA analysis indicates that the highest environmental impact mainly affects the respiratory inorganics impact category due to base slip production (27.62 %), caused by the transport of the raw materials and by non-renewable impact category due to both the pasting phase (21.31 %) and the two-component adhesive manufacture. The major greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are related to the production of polyurethane, a component of the adhesive used in the pasting stage, and to the natural gas consumption in the firing process.
2014
- ON THE LIAISON BETWEEN FORECASTING AND PERIODIC INVENTORY CONTROL: APPLICATION OF SARIMA MODELS TO INTERMITTENT DEMAND PROFILES
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Lolli, Francesco; Gamberini, Rita; Regattieri, A.; Rimini, Bianca; Morsiani, M.
abstract
The liaison between forecasting and inventory control represents a promising research field even if they have been often considered as independent problems. Otherwise, this paper follows a recent set of works that proved the importance of simultaneously considering both aspects. As a consequence, the choice of the best-performing approach should not consider only the accuracy of forecasts, but also the effects of forecasting methods on re-order policies. In particular, this paper deals with different periodic inventory control methodologies, with different lead times and safety stocks. The application to intermittent demand patterns is studied. The best Seasonal Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (SARIMA) forecasting models are initially automatically identified by the TRAMO-SEATS software and results obtained are subsequently used for tuning periodic review inventory control approaches. The experimental analysis is performed on a real data set of 40 time series. A discrete-event simulation finally shows the obtained effects.
Two features of this paper are remarkable. The former is that the intermittent data set is not pseudo-random generated and thus assumptions on the best-fitting demand distribution are not required. The latter regards the full automation of the TRAMO-SEATS software, which indicates its ability of being applied also in real industrial environments.
2014
- POST-CONSUMER TEXTILE WASTE RE-USE: MAIN STEPS OF A SUSTAINABLE PROCESS
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Galloni, Luca; Rimini, Bianca; Luppi, M.
abstract
The European Directive 2008/98/EC on Waste provides guidelines for ensuring sustainable waste management. Specifically, a hierarchy for ranking the available management options is established. Highest priority is given to waste prevention, followed by re-use and, only after that, recycling and recovery of materials, energy recovery through incineration and finally, disposal in landfills. However, even the second highest priority, reuse, is often overlooked in favor of recycling, given the existence of well-established technologies. In this paper, re-use of post-consumer textile waste is studied, by specifying the main steps supporting such a sustainable process and by outlining the magnitude of the expected impact. Finally, a case study is presented.
2014
- Progetto di restauro dell’ex sinagoga di Ostiano (CR): verso una valutazione di sostenibilità
[Poster]
Marinelli, Simona; Ferrari, Anna Maria; Gamberini, Rita; Maramotti, Anna; Neri, Paolo; Riccardi, Maria Pia; Settembre Blundo, Davide; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Ostiano, comune in provincia di Cremona, ospitò fino agli anni Trenta una numerosa comunità israelitica, erede di una migrazione risalente al XV secolo. La Sinagoga è sita all’interno del complesso castellano (Fig. 1) del paese, a due passi dal Teatro Gonzaga. Varcato l’antico ingresso si è come attirati dalla grande casa che sorge sul lato di sinistra. La costruzione, nonostante il pessimo stato conservativo, mostra ancora nobiltà di forme. Venne edificata all’inizio del Cinquecento come dimora del rappresentante del potere gonzaghesco, poi rimase ad uso del governatore sino al 1619 quando Francesco Gonzaga, marchese di Ostiano e Vescovo di Mantova, la donava in parti uguali alla parrocchia e al convento francescano dei Santi Gaudenzio e Alessadro. Perduta la sua funzione di residenza, nel 1731 i due enti proprietari la cedevano alla fiorente comunità ebraica locale. Una volta ottenuto l’uso della casa la comunità israelitica iniziò una vasta opera di ristrutturazione. L’edificio venne modificato radicalmente, sopraelevato per creare il matroneo ad uso cultuale: nasceva così la sinagoga. All’epoca della fondazione risalgono gli ambienti del piano terra, composti da due sontuosi saloni e altri vani, tutti ambienti decorati con armoniosi soffitti a volta o a ombrello. Si tratta di ampi spazi, circa 700 mq su tre piani; la sinagoga sorgeva nel sopralzo. L’elegante facciata presenta due balconi.L’analisi del ciclo di vita del restauro del caso oggetto di studio sarà effettuata considerando i materiali che costituiscono l’involucro e le partizioni interne, dall’estrazione delle materie prime, alla produzione dei manufatti, all’assemblaggio in cantiere sino allo scenario di fine vita. Saranno inclusi tutti i trasporti dai vari impianti produttivi sino al cantiere e allo smaltimento finale e saranno incluse tutte le energie impiegate sia per la messa in opera nella fase di cantiere, sia per la fase d’uso dell’intero edificio (riscaldamento e condizionamento, ventilazione forzata, illuminazione artificiale, uso delle utenze) per un tempo di vita utile stimato dell’edificio restaurato pari a 100 anni. Il Metodo di valutazione d’impatto utilizzato sarà IMPACT 2002 + modificato con indicatori culturali ed economici per garantire una maggiore rappresentatività del sistema studiato e al fine di considerare i vantaggi che possono provenire dal restauro e dalla valorizzazione di un edificio storico.
2013
- ALTERNATIVE REFILLING POLICIES FOR AN ASSEMBLY LINE MANAGED BY KANBANS
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Meli, M.; Galloni, Luca; Rimini, Bianca; Lolli, Francesco
abstract
Assembly lines managed by means of lean production philosophy are usually characterized by workstations with inline stock areas, supplied by means of items contained in a larger supermarket zone. Furthermore, inline components necessities are usually showed by means of the use of kanbans. In this work, the number of kanbans and the number of carriers serving the line are computed by means of Erlang-C approach, in order to minimize a total cost function obtained as the sum of an estimation of cost of inline stock and of cost of refilling operations. Specifically, the Erlang-C approach is adopted since assures fast re-design of the system when variations in input data occur. Finally, a real-life case study in a company manufacturing items for the automotive market field is presented in order to highlight the approach potentialities when alternative scenarios are studied.
2013
- AN AUTOMATED PICKING WORKSTATION FOR HEALTHCARE APPLICATIONS
[Articolo su rivista]
Piccinini, P.; Gamberini, Rita; Prati, A.; Rimini, Bianca; Cucchiara, Rita
abstract
The costs associated with the management of healthcare systems have been subject to continuous scrutiny for some time now, with a view to reducing them without affecting the quality as perceived by final users. A number of different solutions have arisen based on centralisation of healthcare services and investments in Information Technology (IT). One such example is centralised management of pharmaceuticals among a group of hospitals which is then incorporated into the different steps of the automation supply chain. This paper focuses on a new picking workstation available for insertion in automated pharmaceutical distribution centres and which is capable of replacing manual workstations and bringing about improvements in working time. The workstation described uses a sophisticated computer vision algorithm to allow picking of very diverse and complex objects randomly available on a belt or in bins. The algorithm exploits state-of-the-art feature descriptors for an approach that is robust against occlusions and distracting objects, and invariant to scale, rotation or illumination changes. Finally, the performance of the designed picking workstation is tested in a large experimentation focused on the management of pharmaceutical items.
2013
- ANALISI DEI GUASTI E DEI DIFETTI MEDIANTE LA METODOLOGIA PAF – PREVENTION APPRAISAL FAILURE: PRINCIPI APPLICATIVI E CASE STUDY
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; Gamberini, Rita; Bianchi, M.; Lolli, Francesco
abstract
La progressiva diffusione delle logiche di gestione delle singole aziende o delle supply chain basate sui principi del Total Quality Management e del Lean Thinking hanno portato ad un cambio di prospettiva, non più focalizzato sul prodotto, ma sulla customer satisfaction e sulle caratteristiche dei processi (interni o esterni all’impresa, di stampo produttivo o organizzativo o legato alla gestione di servizi per il cliente) che permettono di perseguirla. Tale cambiamento è evidente anche analizzando le novità imposte dalla normativa UNI EN ISO 9001: 2000 e dai suoi successivi aggiornamenti.
Obiettivo quindi di ogni sistema produttivo diventa la proposta sul mercato di prodotti e servizi con requisiti di qualità tali da soddisfare clienti sempre più esigenti. Risultato questo perseguibile solo con un forte orientamento ad esso di tutte le componenti aziendali e con un significativo monitoraggio delle componenti di costo legate alla non completa soddisfazione dei requisiti di qualità. Tali componenti di costo nel seguito verranno sinteticamente denominate Non-Conformity-Costs (NCCs).
Il framework di riferimento per lo studio è la normativa ISO 10014:2006 Quality management – Guidelines for realizing financial and economic benefits e la pubblicazione proposta da Feigenbaum nel 1991, che suddivide NCCs mediante il modello PAF – Prevention Appraisal Failure, cioè in base alla loro pertinenza con azioni di prevenzione, controllo o conseguenti alla gestione di un guasto (o più in generale di un difetto). Il presente lavoro descrive i risultati conseguenti al monitoraggio dei NCCs all’interno della supply chain di una azienda manifatturiera operante sul territorio nazionale ed internazionale e l’effetto di una corretta formazione degli operatori coinvolti nel processo, al fine di ridurre la frequenza di presentazione dei guasti e dei difetti.
2013
- ANALISI DI IMPATTO AMBIENTALE DI SISTEMI PER LA RACCOLTA E IL TRATTAMENTO DI RIFIUTI SOLIDI URBANI (RSU)
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Marinelli, Simona; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Ferrari, Anna Maria; Neri, P.; Montorsi, Luca; Milani, Massimo
abstract
L'obiettivo dello studio è la valutazione di impatto ambientale di porzioni incrementali di raccolta
differenziata, provenienti dal circuito dei Rifiuti Solidi Urbani (RSU) prodotti all'interno di aree dedicate a
parco naturale. Mediante l'approccio LCA (LIfe Cycle Assessment) sono stati confrontati diversi sistemi di
gestione e trattamento. Si è comparata la tradizionale gestione mediante incenermento con i risultati
ottenuti da un innovativo sistema integrato, in grado di fornire energia. I primi risultati dimostrano che
l'impatto ambientale è migliorato e che esso diminuisce in maniera considerevole all'aumentare
dell'ammontare di rifiuti differenziati trattati.
2013
- BIODEGRADABLE PBS-BASED ALIPHATIC POLYESTERS FOR BIOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS IN A LIFE CYCLE THINKING PERSPECTIVE
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Fabbri, Martina; Gamberini, Rita; Gigli, M.; Lotti, N.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The development of an eco-friendly item implies the design of a sustainable material. Such a liaison is crucial in the biomedical field, where disposable devices are used in a broad range of applications, i.e. blisters, sutures, implants, scaffolds for tissue engineering and controlled drug delivery systems. As a consequence, the choice of biodegradable and healthy solutions, given their contact with human body, is a fundamental pre-requisite. In this view, this paper compares a set of noteworthy existing PBS-based biodegradable polyesters in order to summarize their main properties and support designers during the material selection step, by following a life cycle thinking perspective.
2013
- COMPOSTING OF MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF EXISTING PLANTS
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Nicandri, P.
abstract
Thousands of tonnes of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) are produced every day, and consignment to landfill represents the most common disposal choice. However, sanitary problems and the increasing demand for dedicated spaces have directed the efforts of researchers and practitioners towards the study of alternative approaches to waste management. Composting is one possible way to treat the organic portion of MSW, and the efficient design and management of composting plants ensure that they are economically sustainable. Analyzing established or pioneering solutions allows guidelines to be drawn up for the design of new plants and/or the management of existing ones. In this paper, a set of engineering indices for the technical and economic analysis of composting plants is first presented and then applied to data collected from 10 existing plants, divided into two subgroups: plants mainly composting the organic fraction of household solid waste, with reduced levels of the organic fraction of agro-industrial waste, green waste and sludge (named Group A), and plants only composting green waste (named Group B). For Group A plants, more complex technological solutions are required, given the need to manage larger portions of untreated waste and leachate, along with odor problems. This means that the need for space (particularly covered space), facilities, operators, and initial investment is greater and annual operating costs are higher. However, Group A plants can also charge more for processing waste.
2013
- Comparative life cycle assessment of traditional and innovative ceramic stoneware tiles
[Abstract in Atti di Convegno]
Pini, Martina; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Neri, Paolo; Ferrari, Anna Maria
abstract
Ceramic tiles are widely used as building materials. It has been estimated that the contribution of all types of ceramic materials included in a building constitute about the 50% of the whole used materials. Recently, in the Sassuolo Ceramic District has increased the attention toward the environmental issues with the aim of protecting natural resources and of reducing energy and material consumptions. This issue results in the production of an innovative ceramic stoneware slab with only 3.5 mm of thickness reinforced with a fiberglass blanket.
The aim of the present study is to compare the environmental impact of a traditional ceramic stoneware tile with a thin reinforced ceramic stoneware tile. The functional units chosen for this study is 1 m2 for both the traditional porcelainized stoneware tile and the innovative ones. The LCA study has been performed using the SimaPro 7.3.3 software and IMPACT 2002+ impact assessement method. The system boundaries for the analysis include the upstream and downstream phases, from raw material extraction to the end of life of the product, thus obtaining “a cradle to grave” overview. The analysis of the results shows that the traditional porcelainized stoneware tile determinates a major impact (11.88 mPt) than the innovative ceramic stoneware tile (7.469 mPt), in particular the total damage decreases of 37.13%. The damage assessment indicates:
• a decrease of 50.16% in Human Health category thanks to the reduction of NOx emissions (-36.37%) generated by transports of raw materials,
• a reduction of 28.85% in Resources category thanks to the saving of natural gas consumption (-10%) in the firing phase,
• a decrease of 22.42% in Climate Change category caused by the CO2 emissions reduction (-23.33%) in the firing process,
• a reduction of 52.52% in Ecosystem Quality category thanks to the Zinc emissions reduction (-54.9%) generated by the transports.
In conclusion the innovative ceramic stoneware tile allows to save energy consumptions, to reduce the raw materials and to decrease the transports compared to the traditional system.
2013
- Costs and opportunities of moving picking activities upstream in distribution networks: A case study from the beverage industry
[Articolo su rivista]
Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca; E., Depietri
abstract
The work addresses the reconfiguration of distributionnetworks where order picking activities have a significant impact on the system performance. In particular, the effects of moving picking activities upstream in the network are investigated taking into consideration an actual case study from the beverage industry. The paper presents a comparison of the main cost factors characterizing two different configurations: the "downstream picking configuration" (AS-IS Configuration), with picking activities executed at intermediate facilities, and the "upstream picking configuration" (TO-BE Configuration), where picking activities are performed upstream in the network at a central distribution center.The actual desirability of the shift to the "upstream picking configuration" is shown, and considerations about the opportunity of automating picking operations are given.
2013
- IL PROGETTO RELS, PARCHI E AREE PROTETTE: STUDIO DELLA APPLICAZIONE DEI RISULTATI OTTENUTI NEI COMUNI DISLOCATI ALL'INTERNO DELL'AREA DEL PARCO DELLE FORESTE CASENTINESI E NELLE ZONE LIMITROFE
[Capitolo/Saggio]
Marinelli, Simona; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Ferrari, Anna Maria; Neri, P.; Milani, Massimo; Montorsi, Luca
abstract
All’interno del progetto RELS è stata valutata l’applicabilità di un impianto integrato che accoppia un processo di digestione anaerobica e di gassificazione, unitamente a un processo per il recupero delle acque reflue in modo da valorizzare energeticamente la frazione organica dei rifiuti solidi urbani, così come la parte non riciclabile della raccolta differenziata. L’energia elettrica prodotta viene immessa in rete, mentre la parte di energia termica rimanente rispetto ai bisogni interni dell’impianto stesso può essere messa a disposizione in funzione delle necessità del territorio.
La presenza come partner del Parco delle Foreste Casentinesi ha permesso di raccogliere informazioni e dati sulla raccolta di rifiuti nell’area del parco e nei comuni che afferiscono al parco stesso. Nel progetto RELS sono stati analizzati diversi scenari e configurazioni d’impianto in modo da identificare quale soluzione progettuale meglio si adatta alle esigenze del territorio.
2013
- Life Cycle Assessment of a nanoTiO2 glazed steel panel
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Marinelli, Simona; Gamberini, Rita; Neri, Paolo; Pini, Martina; Rimini, Bianca; Ferrari, Anna Maria
abstract
Titanium dioxide is one of the most important and common photocatalyst because of its outstanding efficiency (even under weak solar irradiation), compatibility with a large number of materials and good stability. With the development of TiO2 nanomaterials, its uses ranges over a variety of fields such as functional coating photoelectrolysis, photocatalysis, dye sensitized solar cells, gas sensor, optical fibers, electrochromic material for display devices, biomedical fields, etcThe present study concerns the ecodesign of industrial scale up of nanoTiO2 glazed steel panel production performed by LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) methodology.
The functional unit chosen for this study is 1 m2 of steel panel (size 1000 mm x 1000 mm x 1 mm) on which is applied glaze funzionalized with TiO2 nanoparticles. The system boundaries of the entire life-cycle include production, distribution/installation, use and end of life phases, thus obtaining “a cradle to the grave” overview.
The LCA study has been performed using the SimaPro7.3.3 software and IMPACT 2002+ impact assessment method.
The phase of the life cycle with the highest environmental impact is the production (34.42% of the total damage) due to Nitrogen oxides (28.82%) and Particulates < 2.5m (21.16%) air emissions. In particular, the application of white funzionalized glaze step has the higher environmental load (74.2% of the production damage), followed by the grund application step (20.78%) and by the production of the white glaze through a wet grinding of frits mixture and nanoTiO2 solution with alumina balls (3.65%).
Regarding the others life cycle phases, the impact of usage step (27.43% of the total damage) is caused by CO2 emissions (52.05%) and the end of life step (13.09% of the total damage) affects with Nitrogen oxide and Particulates, <100nm (indoor) air emissions
2013
- MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT: IDENTIFICATION AND ANALYSIS OF ENGINEERING INDEXES REPRESENTING DEMAND AND COSTS GENERATED IN VIRTUOUS ITALIAN COMMUNITIES
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; DEL BUONO, D.; Lolli, Francesco; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The definition and utilisation of engineering indexes in the field of Municipal Solid Waste Management
(MSWM) is an issue of interest for technicians and scientists, which is widely discussed in literature. Specifically,
the availability of consolidated engineering indexes is useful when new waste collection services
are designed, along with when their performance is evaluated after a warm-up period. However, most
published works in the field of MSWM complete their study with an analysis of isolated case studies. Conversely,
decision makers require tools for information collection and exchange in order to trace the trends
of these engineering indexes in large experiments. In this paper, common engineering indexes are presented
and their values analysed in virtuous Italian communities, with the aim of contributing to the creation
of a useful database whose data could be used during experiments, by indicating examples of
MSWM demand profiles and the costs required to manage them.
2013
- ON SHUFFLING OPERATIONS BEFORE THE STORAGE OF PRODUCTION BATCHES: AN ALGORITHM FOR CERAMIC TILE MANUFACTURERS
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Consoli, D.; Lolli, Francesco; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
For ceramic tile manufacturers, warehouse management represents an extremely critical issue due to the necessity of storing pallets in an open yard by stacking them according to specific storage rules. In particular, pallets belonging to the same production batch must be stored in adjacent bins because customer orders must be collected from the same batch. Hence, a high fragmentation of the yard must be avoided. In order to free the bins that are to be assigned to the batches, shuffling operations must be performed before the batches are delivered by the production lines. In this paper, a shuffling algorithm is presented with the aim of designing a useful and flexible tool that may be integrated into a Warehouse Management System.
2013
- On the challenges and opportunities of implementing lean practices in northern Italian manufacturing districts
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Zeppetella, Luca; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The study analyses the challenges of the implementation of lean practices in some manufacturing districts of northern Italy. Lean practices aim at waste reduction and quality improvement in order to eliminate anything that does not contribute to the creation of value for the customer. In particular, owing to the highly fragmentation of customer demand which occurred in past decades, the economic sustainability is directly linked to the reduction of inventories and cycle times along the whole supply chain. This is truly relevant and challenging in those manufacturing districts that have been developed in the last years to exploit economy of scale. This strategy has led to a growing trend of outsourcing and, consequently, to the lengthening of supply chains. Longer supply chains result in longer cycle times and higher inventory levels that cannot be reduced by simply exploiting the overcapacity resulting from the current reduction of customer demand. Thus, it is necessary to identify the main economic, operational, and organizational factors characterizing these districts and relate them to the challenges and opportunities of implementing lean practices. This analysis emphasizes the need for some coordination mechanisms and the implementation of lean practices, not locally, but on the whole supply chain.
2012
- ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES FOR OEE EVALUATION: SOME GUIDELINES DIRECTING THE CHOICE
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Galloni, Luca; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) is a useful tool for evaluating the time that manufacturing resources spend on adding value operations and for idle or waste time, whose elimination or at least whose reduction is progressively recommended.
In this paper, four alternative approaches for OEE evaluation are reviewed and commented on in order to guide practitioners in the choice preceding their adoption. Specifically, in accordance with data required for the computation and results assured by the implementation, a preferable operating field is suggested.
2012
- ANALISI LCA COMPARATIVA DEI PROCESSI DI MACINAZIONE DI IMPASTI CERAMICI PER GRES PORCELLANATO PRODOTTO IN EGITTO
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Pini, Martina; Ferrari, Anna Maria; Gamberini, Rita; Iannotti, Mario; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
L’obiettivo dello studio è la valutazione comparativa del danno ambientale dovuto al ciclo di vita dei processi di macinazione a secco e a umido di impasti ceramici per la produzione del grès porcellanato prodotto in Egitto. L’analisi ha evidenziato come la tecnologia di macinazione a secco comporti una riduzione del danno ambientale del 25% rispetto alla macinazione a umido principalmente a causa dell’utilizzo del deflocculante.
2012
- DESIGN AND OPTIMIZATION OF PICKING IN THE CASE OF MULTI-ITEM MULTI-LOCATION MULTI-PALLET CUSTOMER ORDERS
[Capitolo/Saggio]
Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Dell'Amico, Mauro; Lolli, Francesco; Bianchi, M.
abstract
Order picking related costs may account for up to 65% of the total expense of warehouse management. Hence, the implementation of robust design and optimization procedures for planning picking is addressed by researchers and practitioners.In this chapter the case of warehouses served by humans, in picker-to-parts systems, with a discrete picking organization is studied. Specifically, the case of orders including multiple different items, located in different aisles and requiring more than one forklift load to completely satisfy customer requests is analyzed, with the aim of minimizing the time for retrieving an order. Specifically, two aspects are studied:•the grouping of orders into a finite number of forklift missions, by assuring that each required item is picked in the required amount•the optimization of the routing to be followed by handling facilities in accordance with the objective of minimizing the total travelled distance and the computation of the number of handling facilities necessary for serving the warehouse aisles.
2012
- L'INDICE OEE PER L'ANALISI DELL'IMPATTO NELLA MANUTENZIONE PREVENTIVA
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Galloni, Luca; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
La crescente attenzione verso le tematiche ambientali e la sicurezza degli operatori hanno portato recentemente le aziende a focalizzare la loro attenzione all’uso più efficace degli impianti di produzione e alla prevenzione dei guasti. Alla politica di gestione della ma-nutenzione "a guasto", cioè alla realizzazione degli interventi di manutenzione solo in se-guito a momenti di fermo, fa seguito lo svi-luppo di politiche di manutenzione preventiva, lo sviluppo di approcci di gestione degli interventi basati sulla analisi statistica del comportamento degli impianti, al fine di pre-vederne il malfunzionamento e quindi di anti-cipare le attività di manutenzione in periodi di fermo già schedulati.
La manutenzione preventiva, tuttavia, richiede risorse per essere implementata in maniera efficiente, a causa della mole di dati necessa-ria per avere una affidabile previsione dei modi e dei tempi di guasto e per la loro suc-cessiva elaborazione. Ne consegue che stru-menti atti a selezionare gli interventi a mag-giore impatto sull'efficienza complessiva del sistema in analisi risultano particolarmente interessanti e attrattivi.
Uno strumento a disposizione dei decision makers è l'indice OEE - Overall Equipment Effectiveness, fortemente influenzato dalle politiche di manutenzione preventiva implementabili in azienda. Tale legame costituisce il focus del paper.
2012
- RE-DESIGNING MANUFACTURING AREAS DEDICATED TO HEAVY AND VOLUMINOUS PRODUCTS
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Bicchierini, E.; Lolli, Francesco; Rimini, Bianca; Regattieri, A.; Galloni, Luca
abstract
The Assembly Line Balancing Problem (ALBP) consists in assigning tasks to operators engaged on a line in such a way that the final item is produced according to a pre-determined production rate and by optimizing pre-defined objective functions. In the literature, a wide range of algorithms claiming to solve ALBP are found, however almost all of them consider this problem from a mathematical standpoint, thus disregarding details which are useful for ensuring the correct implementation of proposed solutions in real-life environments. Authors have gradually narrowed the gap between theory and practice by introducing stochastic operating times when manual operations are executed, or by describing more and more complex versions of the problem, usually known by the term GALBP (Generalized Assembly Line Balancing Problem), where a wide variety of objective functions and constraints are managed. By researching such an area, this paper will investigate the case of redesigning a manufacturing area dedicated to the production of heavy and voluminous items by highlighting the characteristics and peculiarities of the problem. Finally, a real-life case study is solved.
2011
- A MULTI-ITEM MULTI-RACK APPROACH FOR DESIGNING LIFO STORAGE SYSTEMS: A CASE STUDY FROM THE FOOD INDUSTRY
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca; Gamberini, Rita
abstract
In a variety of industrial sectors rack storage is adopted for holding stock-keeping units (SKUs) between production (or purchasing from external supplier) and delivery. It is well known that, among the different types of rack storage, racks accessed in a Last-In-Fist-Out manner are the most economically convenient solutions. Nevertheless, especially when product shelf-life is critical as occurs in the food industry, the design of LIFO storage systems is not trivial. Thus, this paper presents an approach able to take into consideration two different measures for assessing the performance of a storage system, with the aim of assigning each item type in inventory to the optimal type of lane racks. Lastly, a significant case study from the food industry is discussed.
2011
- AN INNOVATIVE APPROACH FOR JOB PRE-ALLOCATION TO PARALLEL UNRELATED MACHINES IN THE CASE OF A BATCH SEQUENCE-DEPENDENT MANUFACTURING ENVIRONMENT
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Lolli, Francesco; Rimini, Bianca; Torelli, M.; Castagnetti, E.
abstract
The problem of allocating jobs to a set of parallel unrelated machines in a make to stock manufacturingsystem is studied. The items are subdivided into families of similar products. Sequence-dependent setupsarise when products belonging both to the same family and to different families are sequenced. Restrictionson the number of available setups should be considered. The availability of planning batch production exists.Nevertheless, batch size is not known a priori. Hence, a solving approach considering both a preassignmentprocedure and a scheduling algorithm is proposed. Specifically, the focus of the paper is on thepre-assignment methodology: a pre-assignment model (solved by a commercial solver) and two heuristicsare presented and compared, in order to minimize the average idle residual capacity during the planninghorizon, while considering pejorative factors related with the split volumes of the same product on differentmachines, unsatisfied demand along with demand produced in advance in each time period. The applicationto a case study is finally described in order to assess the performance of the proposed approach.
2011
- ANALISI LCA DI UN PROCESSO DI CROMATURA TRADIZIONALE
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Ferrari, Anna Maria; Barbieri, Luisa; Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Neri, P.; Pini, Martina
abstract
Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) has been recognized as a valuable tool to investigate the environmental load of products as well as processes and services by evaluating energy, water and materials usage and environmental releases. On the basis of an LCA analysis it is possible to point out the critical stages of the life cycle and to improve the environmental performance of the investigated system. This research aims to evaluate the life cycle impact of a hard chrome plating process in order to identify the criticalities and to provide alternative solutions for reducing the environmental loads.
2011
- APPLICATION OF TRAMO-SEATS AUTOMATIC PROCEDURE FOR FORECASTING SPORADIC AND IRREGULAR DEMAND PATTERNS WITH SEASONALITY
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Lolli, Francesco; Gamberini, Rita; Regattieri, A.; Rimini, Bianca; Grassi, Andrea; Belluti, P.
abstract
Managing sporadic and irregular demand patterns represents a relevant issue in several industrial contexts. Two main aspects have to be underlined due to their prominence: the former is the problem of forecasting future demand profiles, and the latter choosing and determining the best re-order policy to be applied, in accordance with information gained during the forecasting step. In this paper the former issue is discussed, by focusing on the management of items with sporadic and irregular demand patterns that also present a seasonality component. TRAMO-SEATS is a versatile procedure that allows quick identification of the best SARIMA forecasting model from an available set. Results obtained by its implementation are compared with those obtained by the Croston (1972) and Syntetos-Boylan (2005) methods, which represent two modified versions of simple exponential smoothing, introduced in literature for forecasting mean demand size per period specifically in case of irregular and sporadic demand profiles. In particular, two items are analysed, with the aim of demonstrating that when the strict hypothesis required by Croston’s and Syntetos-Boylan’s approaches fails, alternative forecasting methods could be required. TRAMO-SEATS represents a promising and user-friendly option.
2011
- CLUSTERING APPROACHES FOR MANAGING SIMILAR ITEMS IN THE FIELD OF IRREGULAR AND SPORADIC DEMAND PROFILES: EVIDENCE FROM AN EMPIRICAL COMPARISON
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Lolli, Francesco; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Managing irregular and sporadic demand patterns is a fundamental task in several real life contexts, such as spare parts consumption, multi-echelon supply chains or start-up production. This work is a study of re-order policies and stock inventory management approaches aimed at optimizing pre-defined performance indexes. Specifically, given a firm operating in the field of electric resistance manufacturing, the focus is on the application of different item clustering methods, in order to define groups of items with similar behavior that require similar management approaches. The work offers a framework for the comparative evaluation of two different item clustering methods, by means of a simulative approach, available when product demand profiles are irregular and sporadic. In order to compare them, a multi-criteria technique is preferable because of the high uncertainty of the cost structure. Hence, after running the simulation, three Key Performance Indicators (KPI) are estimated: the average inventory level, the average number of backorders that occurred and the average number of emitted orders. Finally, some conclusions are drawn by defining a field of implementation for each clustering approach studied.
2011
- DESIGN AND EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSIS OF A PROTOTYPE WATERJET FACILITY FOR CATHODE RAY TUBE CUTTING: EVIDENCE FROM A CASE STUDY
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Galloni, Luca; Baroni, A.
abstract
Cathode Ray Tubes (CRTs) adopted in TV sets and computer monitors represent a consistent portion of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE). In comparison with the recycling of WEEE such as refrigerators or washing machines, the recovery process for CRT containing devices is very difficult. CRTs are composed of four types of glass (panel, funnel, neck and frit seal) with different compositions. Furthermore, dangerous substances are contained within (i.e. lead, barium, strontium and fluorescent dust). Hence, the need to define robust processes for the design and implementation of efficient facilities for CRT cutting arises. This work describes steps guiding the design and the experimental optimal setting of a prototype facility for water-jet cutting of CRTs, in order to obtain recyclable high quality glass. Initially, a version of the cutting facility with manual movement of the cutting tool is set, in order to evaluate expectable cutting results. Subsequently, a detailed setting of automated movement of the cutting tool is carried out, in order to improve the quality of obtainable glass. As a consequence, a water-jet cutting facility which guarantees the cutting of high quality CRTs is finally set and a prototype is implemented.
2011
- Efficiency estimation of LIFO storage systems managed with automated guided vehicles (AGVs)
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Ferrara, Andrea; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The paper deals with the design of storage systems. Specifically, we focus on storage racks that are accessed in a Last-In-Fist-Out (LIFO) manner (e.g. “drive-in” racks). On one hand, such a type of rack storage is more space-efficient than, e.g., single deep selective racks (less aisle space is required per pallet location); on the other hand, pallets are not independently accessible and replenishing/emptying cycles are required. This leads to a reduction of a performance measure called here storage efficiency. The aim of the study is to present a methodology for computing the storage efficiency of such a type of rack system with respect to different production/delivery patterns of the allocated items. Then, the overall system performance can be assessed by investigating the trade-off between storage efficiency and space utilization. Moreover, the benefit of integrating LIFO storage with automated guided vehicles (AGVs) is discussed. The methodology is finally applied to a case study.
2011
- ON THE INTRODUCTION OF A RESTART POLICY IN ANALYTICAL MODELS OF MANUFACTURING SERIAL LINES
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca; Grassi, Andrea; Gamberini, Rita; Gebennini, Elisa
abstract
This paper deals with analytical models of manufacturing serial lines where adjacent line stages (i.e. machines or work-stations) are decoupled by a finite buffer. Specifically, the aim is to take into account the inherent uncertainty arising from unpredictable, or predictable but not constant, disruptions of the manufacturing process. As regards production lines, since times to failure and times to repair can generally be assumed to be exponentially (or geometrically) distributed, Markov process models are suitable for performance assessment. On the other hand, Bernoulli process models are more appropriate in case of assembly lines. This work discusses some of the most popular Markov and Bernoulli models of manufacturing lines; then, an interesting extension, called “restart policy”, is presented. The new models with restart policy can be applied to a number of industrial production and assembly systems when it is important to reduce the probability of blocking events.
2011
- PERISHABLE ITEMS ALLOCATION IN LIFO STORAGE SYSTEMS SERVED BY AUTOMATED GUIDED VEHICLES
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca; Grassi, Andrea; Gamberini, Rita; Gebennini, Elisa; Lolli, Francesco; Ferrara, A.
abstract
The paper describes a study of designing rack storage systems managed according to a Last-In Fist-Out (LIFO) policy. The system is supposed to house a number of cyclic items (i.e. characterized by batch production and continuous deliveries policies). This kind of behaviour is common for high-consumption products in the food industry, such as pasta and bakery products.The aim of the study is to define a static design solution by assigning each item to a number of LIFO racks so that the overall system performance results are satisfactory. The dynamic behaviour is kept under control by adopting automated material handling devices such as Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs).This paper is an extension of a previous work by Ferrara et al. (2011), here named the single-allocation procedure, by allowing each item to be assigned to two different rack typologies (double-allocation solution).The convenience of the double-allocation solution in comparison with the single-allocation one is proven by a significant case study from the food industry.
2011
- PROJECT MANAGEMENT IN THE FIELD OF UNDERGROUND WASTE COLLECTION SYSTEMS: DESIGN PRODUCTION AND INSTALLATION OF A CUSTOMIZED ITEM
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca; Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Galloni, Luca; DE ROSA, A.; Reggiani, E.
abstract
Waste collection is a problem frequently attracting the interest of both academics and practitioners due to a continuously increasing number of laws addressing its efficiency and effects on humans and the environment when inefficiencies occur. In recent years, interesting results have been achieved through the use of innovative underground collection systems. Main expected effects are connected with improvements in pollutant and noise emissions during waste collection and transport, low obstruction to traffic during waste collection, small space requirement for collecting bins. Nevertheless, the design, production and installation process for these underground systems still remains a crucial aspect, given the strict deadlines that must be respected. Difficulties arise when customizations are required. Hence, project management is a key issue for ensuring expected results in terms of time, costs and perceived quality. In this paper, steps characterising project management in the field of underground waste collection systems, especially focusing on customised items, is analysed. Data obtained in a case study is commented on.
2010
- A methodology for the design of simulation campaigns based on population variance characterization
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Grassi, Andrea; Gebennini, Elisa; Perrica, Giuseppe; Fantuzzi, Cesare; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Manufacturing industrial systems are complex systems whose performance is characterized by interactions among different parts of the system as well as by stochastic phenomena affecting the operation of the parts themselves.A key aspect in studying a complex system is the ability to model its evolution over time and, as a consequence, to identify, from a statistical point of view, the trend of the performance measures (i.e. productivity) over time. Discrete event system simulation (DESS) is certainly the widespread technique adopted to this aim.In this paper, a methodology to characterize the trend of the variance of the population for a flow-line production system is developed. The knowledge of the relation between the variance of the population and the system run time allows the analyst to better design simulation campaigns and define warm-up period. Moreover, this result is also useful when in-field tests have to be designed to certify performances of a newly deployed system.
2010
- Costs and opportunities of centralizing/automating picking activities in supply chains
[Abstract in Atti di Convegno]
E., Depietri; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca; M., Pelliciari
abstract
The work addresses the reconfiguration of a three-level distribution network in the beverage industry where order picking activities have a significant impact on the system performance. Specifically, two different configurations are analysed in detail and finally compared. In the decentralized configuration(AS-IS Configuration) manual picking activities are executed in distribution centers at the second level of the distribution network.In the centralized configuration (TO-BE Configuration) automated picking systems are installed at the central distribution centerso that the final multi-item pallets are directly arranged at the first level of the distribution network.Some interesting considerations about the opportunity to invest in automated picking systems are given along with a comparison of costs and resources employed in the two configurations.
2010
- FAILURE ANALYSIS AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT: A CASE STUDY IN THE FIELD OF WEEE TREATMENT
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Galloni, Luca; Baroni, A.
abstract
The treatment of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) is a topic of interest for researchers and practitioners due to directives and laws addressing Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) end of life management along with the necesity of executing optimal management in order to assure profit to companies operating in such a field. Nevertheless, only recent contributions have proposed technologies and operative procedures for WEEE treatment. As a consequence wide data bases concerning occuring failures are rare. In this paper data concerning failures occuring in a WEEE treatment plant operating in Modena (Italy) are collected for a period nine months. Specifically, technologies and operative procedures for the treatment of Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) containing devices (i.e. televisions and computer monitors) and refrigerating devices are studied. Finally, corrective actions and modifications in adopted facilities and operative procedures are proposed, by supporting the study with the assessment of the environmetal impact associated with the presence or the absence of the main failures.
2010
- FORECASTING OF SPORADIC DEMAND PATTERNS WITH SEASONALITY AND TREND COMPONENTS: AN EMPIRICAL COMPARISON BETWEEN HOLT-WINTERS AND (S)ARIMA METHODS
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Lolli, Francesco; Rimini, Bianca; Sgarbossa, F.
abstract
Items with irregular and sporadic demand profiles are frequently tackled by companies, given the necessity of proposing wider and wider mix, along with characteristics of specific market fields (i.e. when spare parts are manufactured and sold). Furthermore, a new company entering into the market is featured by irregular customers orders. Hence, consistent efforts are spent with the aim of correctly forecasting and managing irregular and sporadic products demand. In this paper, the problem of correctly forecasting customers orders is analyzed by empirically comparing existing forecasting techniques. The case of items with irregular demand profiles, coupled with seasonality and trend components, is investigated. Specifically, forecasting methods (i.e. Holt-Winters approach and (S)ARIMA) available for items with seasonality and trend components are empirically analyzed and tested in the case of data coming from the industrial field and characterized by intermittence. Hence, in the conclusions section, well performing approaches are addressed.
2010
- TRADITIONAL BULKY-BINS FOR WASTE COLLECTION AND UNDERGROUND SYSTEMS: TECHNICAL, ECONOMICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Galloni, Luca; Paese, S.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Waste collection is a problem recently involving researchers and practitioners. In order to address the adoption of well performing solutions, the necessity of technically and economically evaluating alternative waste management systems arises. Furthermore, the analysis of the effect following their adoption attracts interests, specifically in the field of sustainable development, due to both an increasing number of laws and directives directing the computation of the impacts on humans and the environment along with the increasing environmentally-consciousness of consumers. In this paper a user-friendly methodology that compares waste collection systems is described. Specifically, technical, economical and environmental performance indexes are evaluated (such as: pollutant emissions during waste transport and collection, noise during waste transport and collection, obstructions to traffic during collection, visual impact and space of bins, costs). Each aspect is qualitatively and quantitatively defined. An operative tool is created, implementing the described approach. Finally a case study is analysed, in order to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. Specifically, traditional bulky-bins and innovative underground collection systems are compared.
2009
- A FUZZY MULTI-ATTRIBUTE MODEL FOR RISK EVALUATION IN WORKPLACES
[Articolo su rivista]
Grassi, Andrea; Gamberini, Rita; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Risk assessment constitutes a critical phase of the safety management process. It basically consists of evaluating the risks involved in the execution of working activities, so as to provide the managers with information suitable to address intervention measures. The most important activity in risk assessment is the risk evaluation task but, despite its importance, national and international regulations have never formalized a standard methodology for addressing it, leaving companies complete freedom to adopt the approach they consider appropriate. As a consequence, companies generally settle on the use of simple methodologies which frequently are not able to emphasize all the main aspects affecting risk in the workplace and to produce a precise ranking of hazardous activities. In this paper, a new methodology for risk evaluation is then proposed with the aim to overcome limitations of the classical approaches. In particular, new factors are introduced to take into account effects of human behavior and environment on risk level, other than the classical injury magnitude and occurrence probability of an accident. The proposed methodology also integrates an estimative approach based on the fuzzy logic theory, which permits more coherence in the evaluation process, producing a very suitable final rank of hazardous activities. Finally, an actual case study is reported to show the capabilities of the new risk evaluation model.
2009
- AN INNOVATIVE APPROACH FOR JOBS PRE-ALLOCATION TO PARALLEL UNRELATED MACHINES IN THE CASE OF BATCH SEQUENCE-DEPENDENT MANUFACTURING ENVIRONMENT
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Lolli, F.; Rimini, Bianca; Torelli, M.
abstract
The problem of allocating jobs to a set of parallel unrelated machines in a make to stock manufacturing system is studied. The items are subdivided into families of similar products. Sequence-dependent setups arise when products belonging both to the same family and a different family are sequenced. Restrictions on the number of available setups should be considered. The availability of planning batch production exists. Nevertheless, batch size is not known a priori. Hence, a solving approach considering both a pre-assignment procedure and a scheduling algorithm is proposed. Specifically, the focus of the paper is on the pre-assignment methodology: a pre-assignment model (solved by a commercial solver) and two heuristics are presented and compared, in order to minimize the average idle residual capacity during the planning horizon, while considering pejorative factors related with the split volumes of the same product on different machines, unsatisfied demand along with demand produced in advance in each time period. The application to a case study is finally described in order to asses the performance of the proposed approach.
2009
- AN INNOVATIVE CONTAINER FOR WEEE COLLECTION AND TRANSPORT: DETAILS AND EFFECT FOLLOWING THE ADOPTION
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Gebennini, Elisa; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The content of hazardous components in Waste arising from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) is a major concern that urges governments and industry to take measures to ensure proper treatment and disposal. Thus, the European Union issued directives to encourage reuse, recycling and other proper forms of recovery of such waste while companies and academics are still studying methods and technologies for optimizing recovery processes. This paper presents an analysis of the logistics process assuring the correct collection, handling, transportation and storing of WEEE. The experience comes from an Italian WEEE treatment plant (TRED Carpi S.r.l.) where a new kind of container has been introduced in order to improve the logistics system. An evaluation framework is described and used in order to compare different system configurations and assess the advantages emerging from adopting proper equipments for WEEE transport and handling.
2009
- Adoption of control policies in a simulative model for the design of AGV systems
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gebennini, Elisa; Dallari, Sara; Perrica, Giuseppe; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca; Fantuzzi, Cesare
abstract
Nowadays, industrial applications are showing an increasing interest toward the adoption of automated logistic handling systems, such as systems including Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs). A logistic handling system represents the physical link between the production system (i.e. parallel production lines) and the shipment system (i.e. fleets of vehicles for goods delivery). The synchronization between these two processes is an important issue, especially for companies producing final goods and giving priority to direct shipments rather than to store products inside the plant. Nevertheless, the variability in the generation of production patterns and shipment arrivals may lead to an unacceptable loss of synchronization. In order to prevent this harmful situation, some control policies can be adopted: it could be necessary to review short-term plans acting on production patterns and/or on shipment priority.This paper deals with the design and management of a logistic handling system including AGVs by using a simulation model. Normally, the objective of the design phase is the identification of the optimal number of AGVs to include in the system. For this purpose, an effective simulative model has to consider what happens both in the upstream (i.e. production system) and in the downstream (i.e. shipment system) of the logistic system. Nevertheless, the modeling of a real complex system has also to include the control policies that assure the necessary synchronization between the production and shipment processes. A methodological approach is then proposed and an application to a design problem derived form an actual case study is presented and discussed.
2009
- COSTI DI ADEGUAMENTO ALLA DIRETTIVA ROHS - ANALISI SPERIMENTALE SUI PROCESSI PRODUTTIVI CARATTERIZZATI DA SALDATURA LEAD FREE
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Rimini, Bianca; Lolli, Francesco
abstract
In diversi settori della produzione industriale si sta sempre piùaffermando l’esigenza di progettare e produrre prestandoattenzione all’impatto ambientale. In questo contesto si collocala direttiva RoHS (Restriction of the use of HazardousSubstances), finalizzata a ridurre o eliminare l’utilizzo di alcunesostanze definite come genericamente pericolose. Questo articolo affronta l’analisi sperimentale dei costi di adeguamento alla suddetta direttiva in un’impresa di piccole-medie dimensioni che realizza cablaggi su commessa, nella quale la direttiva ha significativamente modificato i cicli tecnologici di saldatura, che tradizionalmente venivano effettuati con leghe di saldatura al piombo ora bandite dal mercato. In particolare, si è focalizzata l’attenzione sulle voci di costo di adeguamento alla direttiva che sono risultate più significative: costi di modifica dei cicli tecnologici e costi di stoccaggio. I risultati ottenuti confermano l’elevata incidenza sui costi di produzione che la direttiva RoHS genera nel caso di una piccola-media impresa.
2009
- EVALUATION AND COMPARISON OF WASTE COLLECTION SERVICES
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Galloni, Luca; Rimini, Bianca; Beltrami, F.; Ori, M.
abstract
Waste collection services are usually executed by companies who win a public offer published by communities. Hence, the necessity of evaluating and comparing different methodologies for executing the services arises. Nevertheless, input data (i.e. the amount and the frequency of conferred waste, approaches adopted for service design, the service level satisfying community citizens) are often uncertain, as are the performance indexes strictly related with them. Alternatively, a comparison of output data, featuring the proposed services, can be carried out, in order to address future decisions.In this paper a monitoring scheme is proposed, in order to define data that need to be traced, along with results that can be obtained. Finally, a case study is analysed, in order to support the applicability and the effectiveness of the introduced approach.
2009
- Low cost automation and poka yoke devices: Tools for optimising production processes
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Gebennini, Elisa; Rimini, Bianca; Spadaccini, E.; Zilocchi, D.
abstract
Low cost automation and poka yoke philosophy assure good results when applied to manufacturing processes with a high incidence of human operators, with a low availability of time for solution implementation and with expensive effects associated with errors in executing operative procedures. Hence, their joint adoption is addressed in order to access the benefits they bothguarantee. Specifically, in this paper, the case of a manufacturing line for heat exchangers is studied. Operative tools are redesigned in accordance with both low cost automation and poka yoke philosophy principles. Furthermore, since poka yoke solutions are subdivided between those preventing errors and those detecting them, the former are preferred. It emerges that LCA and poka yoke solutions adopted induce consistent improvements in the line productivity.
2009
- Simulation and analysis of a production line with multiple output formats
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Grassi, Andrea; Perrica, Giuseppe; Gebennini, Elisa; Dallari, Sara; Fantuzzi, Cesare; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
This paper deals with simulation based performance analysis of production lines characterized by the capability to produce multiple product formats at the same time. This situation is typical of several line production systems, mainly in packaging lines where the output consists in different formats of secondary packages containing a different amount of single products. The line is then configured in a first part that works single units of product, and in a second part in which the production flow is split into different branches where specific machines arrange single products in the format needed by the requested secondary package. In the paper, which is derived from an actual case study, key factors of such kind of lines are analyzed and their effects on line performance are investigated. Some crucial aspects and guidelines are then pointed out to constitute a support in the line design phase.
2008
- AN INNOVATIVE APPROACH FOR OPTIMIZING WAREHOUSE CAPACITY UTILIZATION
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The optimal utilization of storage capacity is a key issue for companies with undersized warehouses, especially in situations where storage areas are expensive (i.e. warehouses with refrigeration systems). Since package size influences storage area design, in this paper an approach for jointly configuringsecondary packages, pallets and storage racks is introduced. In particular, the multi-item model version of the problem is studied. Three alternative storage policies are explored: random, class-based, and dedicated locations. Finally, a case study highlights the relevance of the proposed methodology to real-life situations.
2008
- AN INNOVATIVE MODEL FOR WEEE RECOVERY NETWORK MANAGEMENT IN ACCORDANCE WITH EU DIRECTIVES
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
An increased interest towards environmental respect amongstconsumers, managers and researchers is registered, owing both to changing sensitivity and guidelines described in technical regulations. In this scenario, the European Union (EU) directives 2002/96/EC and 2003/108/EC, controlling the management of Wastes of Electric and Electronic Equipments (WEEE) are well-inserted. Companies producing Electric and Electronic Equipments (EEE) become responsible for end of life steps of their products. Hence, great efforts are made to optimise both recovery networks and remanufacturing and recycling processes. This paper proposes an innovative model for recovery network management. Included is a case study.
2007
- ANALISI DI UN IMPIANTO PER IL RECUPERO DEI RAEE E VALUTAZIONE ECONOMICA DELLE ATTIVITÀ DI SUPPORTO
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Ogni anno in Italia vengono dismessi alcuni milioni di elettrodomestici usati, di cui una percentuale significativa è costituita da apparati refrigeranti obsoleti, quali frigoriferi, congelatori e condizionatori. All’interno della macrocategoria dei rifiuti da apparecchiature elettriche ed elettroniche (RAEE), il frigorifero si presenta come un elettrodomestico particolarmente critico a fine vita. La ragione di ciò risiede nelle problematiche connesse al trattamento dei CloroFluoroCarburi dannosi per l’ozono stratosferico, degli oli esausti contenuti nel compressore e degli interruttori al mercurio. Tali considerazioni pongono in evidenza il problema dello smaltimento dei RAEE in impianti conformi alle norme vigenti in modo da evitare la contaminazione ambientale. La gestione del recupero dei RAEE in un impianto di trattamento si basa infatti sull’implementazione di metodologie di lavorazione in grado di intercettare e recuperare i CloroFluoroCarburi ed altre sostanze dannose mediante procedimenti di triturazione in ambiente controllato; tale tecnologia consente inoltre di ridurre la quantità di rifiuti destinati alle discariche e di recuperare materiali, quali rame, alluminio e ferro. Il presente studio riguarda l’analisi di un impianto di trattamento di RAEE eseguita presso il centro Tred Carpi S.r.l (Fossoli, Modena). Dapprima viene esaminato l’intero ciclo di lavorazione del frigorifero per poi focalizzasi sul dimensionamento di alcune attrezzature specifiche. Infine si procede alla valutazione dei costi e dei ricavi connessi a tutte le attività che sono indispensabili per il corretto funzionamento di un centro di trattamento di RAEE attualmente operativo: il valore aggiunto dello studio proposto consiste infatti nel presentare dati difficilmente reperibili in letteratura relativi a operazioni, attrezzature e personale di supporto all’impianto di triturazione e separazione vero e proprio, unitamente alle stime dei ricavi ottenibili dalla vendita dei materiali recuperati.
2007
- COMPLEX PACKAGING LINE MODELLING AND SIMULATION
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Grassi, Andrea; Gebennini, Elisa; Goldoni, G.; Fantuzzi, Cesare; Gamberini, Rita; Nevin, R.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The paper presents advanced issues in modelling and simulation of complex packaging line. In particular, we developed a theoretical model of a line with two machines and a buffer, which is a simplified version of a real packaging line from Tetra Pak company. The paper reports also about simulation results that confirm theoretical supposals.
2007
- LEGISLATIVE, TECHNOLOGICAL, ADMINISTRATIVE, ECONOMICAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL ASPECTS OF THE EXECUTIVE RAEE AND ROHS
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Barbieri, Luisa; Cannio, Maria; Cassanelli, Giulia; Colombo, Paolo; Pozzi, Paolo; Rabitti, Daniela; Rimini, Bianca; Rovati, Luigi
abstract
-The Italian Decree D. Lgs. n. 151/2005 and subsequent changes and supplements in agreement with Directives WEEE 2002/96/CE and 2003/108/CE “for the recovery and recycling of waste from electric and electronic equipments” and Directive RoHS 2002/95/CE “on the restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment” has been analysed here. In particular, the aim of this work is to introduce legal, technological, administrative outcomes about interpretation and application of the D. Lgs. 151/2005. The main legislative novelty is represented by the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) that it is transferred in the burden of producers and distributors which have to support economically national systems for the WEEE recovery and treatment at the end of life. The correct management of the WEEE nevertheless, parallel of new requirements, offers to the producers stimulating opportunity both in the field of Integrated Product Policy and in the optimization of the distribution/collection nets.
2007
- RECUPERO DEI RAEE NELLA PROVINCIA DI REGGIO EMILIA - OTTIMIZZAZIONE DELLA RETE ESISTENTE SECONDO LA NORMATIVA ATTUALE MEDIANTE ANALISI SIMULATIVA
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Gebennini, Elisa; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
La gestione del fine vita dei Rifiuti di Apparecchiature Elettriche ed Elettroniche (RAEE) è regolamentata, in Italia, dal D.Lgs. n. 151 del 25 Luglio 2005, che recepisce le direttive europee 2002/96/CEE e 2003/108/CEE. Le nuove direttive, facendo ricadere la responsabilità del recupero sui produttori di Apparecchiature Elettriche ed Elettroniche (AEE) e stabilendo l’obbligo, da parte dei rivenditori, di accettare gli elettrodomestici dismessi in seguito all’acquisto di nuovi prodotti, aumentano la complessità gestionale delle operazioni di raccolta. Emerge, quindi, la necessità di definire una metodologia in grado di ottimizzare le esistenti reti di recupero organizzando le attività di raccolta considerando le esigenze imposte dalla nuova normativa. Nel seguito, si presenta lo studio effettuato in collaborazione con TRED Carpi S.r.l., al fine di ottimizzare la raccolta dei RAEE nella provincia di Reggio Emilia.
2006
- A NEW MULTI-OBJECTIVE HEURISTIC ALGORITHM FOR SOLVING THE STOCHASTIC ASSEMBLY LINE RE-BALANCING PROBLEM
[Articolo su rivista]
Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
In this paper a new heuristic for solving the assembly line re-balancing problem is presented. The method is based on the integration of a multi-attribute decision-making procedure, named ‘‘Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution’’ (TOPSIS), and the well-known Kottas and Lau heuristic approach. The proposed methodology does not focus on the balancing of a new line, rather it takes into account the more interesting current industrial aspect of rebalancing an existing line, when some changes in the input parameters (i.e. product characteristics and cycle time) occur. Hence, the algorithm deals with the assembly line balancing problem by considering the minimization of two performance criteria: (i) the unit labour and expected unit incompletion costs, and (ii) tasks re-assignment. Particularly, the latter objective addresses the problem of keeping a high degree of similarity between previous and new balancing, in order to avoid costs related to tasks movements: operators training, product quality assurance, equipment installation and moving. To assess the performance of the presented approach a comparison with the original Kottas and Laumethodology is carried out. The results demonstrate the capability of the proposed algorithm of dealing with the multiobjective nature of the re-balancing problem. Solutions with advantages both in workload re-assignment, implying beneficial effects on the costs factors affected by tasks movements, and in completion costs are obtained in almost half of all problems solved. In the other cases, trade-off balancings with low increases in completion costs are presented.
2005
- A FRAMEWORK FOR ADDRESSING JOB SHOP SCHEDULING IN A REAL INDUSTRIAL CONTEXT
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Performance and efficiency of production systems is hugely influenced by the capability to efficiently manage material flows. Even if today’s approaches are oriented towards applying lean-agile paradigms, in several industrial contexts, which are characterized by high complexity and personalization of products together with high volatility in demand, production scheduling remains one of the most profitable techniques for achieving acceptable levels of efficiency. As a matter of fact, the consistent amount of models proposed by scientific literature is not able to address the majority of aspects and constraints involved in real industrial contexts scheduling, while, on the other hand, commercial scheduling softwares mainly act as a simple task loader, thus not allowing to obtain high system performances. Within the aim of reducing this gap, a new framework for addressing job shop scheduling in real industrial contexts is presented in this paper. In particular, the classical graph representation of the job shop problem is extended to include constraints and characteristics typically found in a real shop floor. Moreover, new strategies are proposed to solve the problem and a representative case is reported to show the suitability of the new approach. Finally, guidelines are reported to address future developments.
2005
- CONCURRENT PACKAGE AND WAREHOUSE DESIGN IN THE CASE OF RANDOM STORAGE POLICY
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Strategic reasons have led companies to keeping warehouses, such as providing inventories for rapidly satisfying changeable customers demand, along with protecting against unexpected delays in the manufacturing process. However, warehouses involve costs, due to both their construction and their management. Hence, the optimal saturation of the available storage space is an important issue to be pursued. Since packages dimensions and features strictly influence pallet loading configuration, which affects warehouses capacity, in this paper an algorithm for concurrent package and warehouse design in accordance with the design for logistics principles is presented. Particularly, the case of random storage policy is considered, as a common method to manage warehouses. Finally, an application in an Italian pasta manufacturing company is presented.
2005
- LIFE CYCLE ANALYSIS OF REVERSE SUPPLY CHAIN OF A REFRIGERATOR
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The recovery, recycle and remanufacturing of a product at the end of its life is recently receiving much attention, due to the growing interest in the reverse supply chain. Greater attention to the environment, the development of waste regulations and competition in industry as regards product recovery lead to the creation of reverse logistics networks. This paper deals with the evaluation of the environmental and social impact of the reverse supply chain, through the use of Life Cycle Analysis methodology, the results of which can be used for policy and strategy decision-making. This paper investigates the reverse supply chain of electrical and electronic equipment (RAEE) and in particular it concerns the life cycle assessment of an household refrigeration, in order to analyze the environmental and economical impact of its closed supply chain.
2005
- SVILUPPO DI UNA METODOLOGIA APPLICATIVA PER LA STIMA DEI TEMPI DI COLLAUDO DI COMPONENTI MECCANICI
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Il settore delle lavorazioni meccaniche per conto terzi e della realizzazione di componenti meccanici su commessa, è da sempre caratterizzato da scarsa ripetibilità dei prodotti e dalla necessità di seguire le specifiche del cliente, spesso note solo dopo l’acquisizione dell’ordine. In questo contesto, caratterizzato da produzione intermittente o frammentaria e da volumi di produzione medio-bassi, risulta essere fondamentale l’implementazione della programmazione e del controllo della produzione e la attendibilità dei dati di ingresso dello schedulatore a capacità finita, relativi ai tempi di lavorazione e di collaudo. In particolare le fasi di collaudo e di controllo qualità presentano un’elevata criticità per la realizzazione di componenti high tech di lavorazione meccanica, sia perché devono essere schedulate in più punti del ciclo tecnologico, sia per l’elevata difficoltà di stimarne la durata. Esse, infatti, sono fortemente dipendenti dall’esperienza e dalla capacità dell’operatore e risultano essere apparentemente non correlate alle caratteristiche del pezzo. In questa memoria viene presentata una metodologia pratica ed innovativa che permette la stima dei tempi di collaudo di un componente a partire dal suo disegno costruttivo, in funzione delle caratteristiche tecniche del pezzo. La determinazione di tempi standard e la valutazione a priori dei tempi relativi alle fasi di progettazione, programmazione e di running dell’operazione di collaudo di componenti meccanici, permettono di ottenere una buona stima dei tempi necessari per eseguire il controllo qualità, in funzione della schedulazione dell’intero processo produttivo. L’applicazione di questa metodologia ad un’azienda di medie dimensioni, che opera nel settore delle lavorazioni meccaniche di piccola serie e di prototipi, ha dimostrato la bontà della stima dei tempi di collaudo, ottenuti a partire dai disegni costruttivi dei componenti presi in esame.
2004
- APPLICAZIONE DELLA LEAN-AGILE MANUFACTURING AD UNA PMI DEL SETTORE CHIMICO DELLE VERNICI
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Già da parecchi anni, le piccole-medie imprese del settore italiano delle vernici si sono orientate verso una produzione di tipo batch, per fronteggiare le pressanti richieste, da parte del mercato, di ampliamento del mix produttivo, di riduzione della quantità da produrre per tipologia di prodotto e di tempi di consegna sempre più restrittivi. Questo ha portato al conseguente aumento dei livelli di scorta di prodotti finiti, per garantire un elevato livello di servizio al cliente. La contemporanea esigenza di raggiungere la riduzione dei costi di capitale immobilizzato rende necessaria l’adozione di un sistema produttivo che permetta di abbattere i tempi di attraversamento del prodotto. In questo contesto si inseriscono i paradigmi della lean production e dell’agile manufacturing che, tra le altre cose, puntano alla riduzione dei tempi di risposta, al raggiungimento di un elevato livello qualitativo e alle riduzione del capitale immobilizzato. La filosofia del modello ibrido di lean-agile manufacturing è stata quindi applicata in un colorificio reggiano di piccole-medie dimensioni. L’individuazione di un punto di disaccoppiamento, tramite l’analisi critica delle composizioni chimiche, ha permesso di suddividere il processo produttivo in due fasi. La prima consiste nella realizzazione di un premiscelato, comune a diversi codici di prodotto finito, mentre l’altra riguarda la personalizzazione del prodotto in presenza delle precise specifiche del cliente. Per rendere efficace il processo produttivo così ottenuto, si è quindi proceduto ad una sua riconfigurazione, allo scopo di identificare le potenzialità produttive e le necessità di stoccaggio del premiscelato stesso. I vantaggi della modularizzazione del prodotto si esplicitano in una maggiore rapidità di risposta e nel miglioramento del controllo qualitativo del processo. Per migliorare ulteriormente la qualità percepita dal cliente si è inoltre introdotta una classificazione dei prodotti secondo fasce di tonalità omogenee, che permettono la consegna di vernici di colore uniforme al medesimo cliente.
2004
- Accelerated TPM by simulation
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
M., Catena; A., Persona; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Personalization of products, mix variability, short time to market and risk of products obsolescence are the most important factors that have forced many companies to adopt the concepts of Just-in-Time production.
2004
- Accelerated TPM by simulation
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Catena, M.; Persona, A.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
-
2004
- STUDIO DI FATTIBILITA’ DI UN IMPIANTO DI COGENERAZIONE ALIMENTATO A GAS NATURALE PER UN’AZIENDA OSPEDALIERA
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Gli aspetti inerenti il consumo e l’approvvigionamento di energia elettrica e termica stanno rivestendo un ruolo sempre più importante nel sistema ospedaliero. In tale settore, in passato è stata quasi esclusivamente rivolta attenzione verso la qualità del servizio offerto, mentre oggigiorno, anche come conseguenza dei sempre più restrittivi vincoli di spesa, si comincia a prendere atto che alcuni interventi per il contenimento dei costi dell’energia possono essere posti in opera senza portare ad una riduzione del livello di servizio. In quest’ambito, l’adozione di impianti di cogenerazione per la produzione combinata di energia elettrica e termica rappresenta una valida alternativa all’impiego dei tradizionali metodi di approvvigionamento. Per contro, la loro installazione comporta un notevole esborso iniziale. La realizzazione di una buona progettazione e di una corretta valutazione dei tempi di recupero dell’investimento diventano quindi fondamentali per poter mettere in luce la reale convenienza che deriva dall’adozione di tali sistemi. Nella presente memoria è quindi presentato lo studio di fattibilità di un impianto di cogenerazione a gas naturale destinato a servire un importante ospedale situato in Umbria. Lo studio, dopo aver affrontato in una prima fase tutti gli aspetti tecnici e progettuali, mostra come la soluzione cogenerativa possa portare a notevoli convenienze economiche con tempi di recupero dell’investimento più che accettabili.
2003
- UN NUOVO APPROCCIO MULTI ATTRIBUTO ALLA VALUTAZIONE DEL RISCHIO PER LA GESTIONE DELLA SICUREZZA
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
In questa memoria è presentata una metodologia innovativa per la valutazione del rischio nell’ambito della gestione della sicurezza industriale. Oggigiorno il rischio di un evento è generalmente valutato mediante il prodotto di due indici numerici, di cui uno rappresentante la probabilità di accadimento e l’altro indicativo della magnitudo dei danni conseguenti all’evento stesso. Questo modo di affrontare il problema presenta diversi limiti in termini di completezza e di robustezza dell’analisi, in quanto: (i) oltre alla frequenza di accadimento ed alla magnitudo, vi sono fattori di natura umana e ambientale che devono essere considerati al fine di ottenere una più efficace valutazione del rischio, (ii) le valutazioni dei diversi fattori sono spesso affette da incertezza, e quindi non dovrebbero essere analizzate secondo i rigidi canoni della matematica classica e (iii) un indice di rischio calcolato come prodotto di più fattori presenta una scarsa significatività in quanto, non essendo in scala lineare, risulta notevolmente suscettibile alle variazioni dei singoli giudizi. Al fine di superare i suddetti limiti, è stato esteso il modello di rischio classico identificando nuovi fattori di valutazione ed è stata adottata una nuova metodologia di analisi, basata sull’integrazione di una tecnica multi attributo (Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution, TOPSIS) con la matematica fuzzy. La metodologia sviluppata costituisce quindi uno strumento affidabile, in grado di fornire la classificazione di un insieme di eventi di rischio rispetto a più fattori di analisi, anche se suscettibili ad incertezze di valutazione. Per dimostrare l’applicabilità e l’efficacia del metodo proposto è infine riportato un esempio concreto riguardante la gestione della sicurezza in un’industria alimentare.
2003
- UN NUOVO APPROCCIO MULTI OBIETTIVO PER IL BILANCIAMENTO DELLE LINEE DI MONTAGGIO OPERANTI SU PRODOTTI SOGGETTI A PERSONALIZZAZIONI
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Gamberini, Rita; Grassi, Andrea; Mora, C.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
La memoria presenta un algoritmo innovativo per il bilanciamento delle linee di montaggio manuali, di tipo Single-Model a cadenza imposta, operanti su prodotti soggetti a modifiche, come conseguenza di personalizzazioni richieste dal mercato. La complessità del problema nasce dalla necessità di riassegnare i carichi di lavoro alle stazioni costituenti la linea ogni volta che si deve abbandonare la realizzazione di un prodotto per avviare la produzione di una versione differente e, contemporaneamente, dalla necessità di ridurre i tempi di risposta del sistema produttivo. A tal fine, il bilanciamento della linea dovrà essere ridefinito limitando le variazioni nei gruppi di operazioni assegnate alle stazioni nella precedente configurazione, mantenendo comunque contenuti i costi. La metodologia proposta contempla questo obiettivo ricercando le soluzioni che minimizzano sia (i) i costi totali attesi di montaggio che (ii) le modifiche nell’assegnazione delle operazioni alle stazioni. Il modello è basato sull’integrazione di una tecnica multi obiettivo, denominata Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), con il noto euristico di Kottas e Lau. In particolare, è stata adottata la versione Multiple Single-Pass al fine di ottenere diverse soluzioni candidate, tra le quali il decisore possa scegliere quella che più si addice alle sue esigenze. L’efficacia dell’approccio proposto è evidenziata mediante la simulazione di una linea di assemblaggio di gruppi elettrogeni, in cui, per assecondare nuove richieste del mercato, si sostituisce il prodotto realizzato con una versione caratterizzata da requisiti di maggiore leggerezza.
2002
- Integration of the Quality Management System ISO 9001-2000 with typical Characteristics of a Production System – The ALCOA Italy, Automotive Plant Case
[Working paper]
Cigarini, M.; Chiarini, A.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
-
2002
- Theoretical and experimental analysis of powder mixing systems
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
M., Bevilacqua; Grassi, Andrea; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
In this paper a comparative study concerning four classes of powder mixing systems is presented. Several factors such as; filling sequence, loading conditions, material dimensions and chemical characteristics are taken into account.In particular, a thorough analysis of mixture quality and power adsorption is carried out. A number of experimental tests are executed, varying the operating conditions and the powder characteristics. In this way factors such as mixing time, revolutions per minute, chamber volume, mixture composition and Froude number are taken into account.The experimental results are reported graphically and show, among other things, the influence of revolutions per minute on standard deviation and mean value of mixture quality. The power adsorption is also reported, as a function of Froude number and mixture composition.The result obtained can be useful for powder mixing system selection and the optimization of mixing parameters.
2000
- DOSING The intelligent screw for the dosing system
[Articolo su rivista]
M., Bortolamasi; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
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2000
- Theoretical and experimental aspects of powder mixing techniques
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Bevilacqua, M.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
-
1999
- New dosing system: the intelligent screw feed
[Articolo su rivista]
M., Bortolamasi; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
One of the main problems in almost all industrial processes handling molten metal is the accurate dosing of powder metal. This is particularly crucial in the pharmaceutical and food industries. The article looks at a new dosing system using an innovative new screw feed, analysing the results of tests carried out in the WAM Spa laboratories. The screw feed doser was developed to respond to the growing demand for an accurate dosing system as an alternative to the conventional weighing conveyor belts. Screw feeders are known for their simple construction and reliability. Originally developed for use in the food industry they have gone on to find application in a wide range of industries. The screw feed is a closed system capable of handling volatile material. Another important advantage is that it is as economical and as efficient as weighing belts. The screw feed system consists of a screw feed, weigh bridge and automatic checking and regulating system. The tests carried out produced satisfactory results, showing this system to be efficient and reliable. This system can certainly be used instead of a weighing belt in many applications, although in others the weighing conveyor belt cannot be replaced. Future developments in the screw feed system look very interesting although there is still a long way to go in terms of realising its full potential.
1999
- STUDIO DI FATTIBILITA' DI PIATTAFORME OFFSHORE PER GIACIMENTI DI GAS NATURALE
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; Rizzi, A.
abstract
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1999
- Un nuovo sistema di dosaggio: La coclea intelligente
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; Bortolamasi, M.
abstract
Uno dei problemi principali che si presentano in quasi tutti i processi industriali che comportano la manipolazione e il trattamento di materiale solido sfuso è il dosaggio accurato del materiale in polvere. In alternativa ai tradizionali nastri trasportatori, è stato sviluppato un nuovo sistema di dosaggio a coclea con caratteristiche innovative, provato presso i laboratori della WAM
1998
- OTTIMIZZAZIONE DELL'ALTEZZA EFFETTIVA DI SCARICO DI EFFLUENTI GASSOSI DA IMPIANTI INDUSTRIALI
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Ferretti, G.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
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1997
- ANALISI DELLA CAPACITA' INNOVATIVA DELLE IMPRESE OPERANTI NEL SETTORE DELL'IMPIANTISTICA ALIMENTARE
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Ferretti, G.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
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1997
- DIMENSIONAMENTO DI UN DISPOSITIVO DI DEPOLVERAZIONE: RAFFRONTI TEORICO-SPERIMENTALI
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca; Ferretti, G.
abstract
-
1997
- Dimensionamento Di Un Dispositivo Di Depolverazione: Raffronti Teorici/Sperimentali
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; G., Ferretti
abstract
-
1997
- SIZING OF A DEDUSTING SYSTEM
[Articolo su rivista]
Ferretti, G.; Rimini, Bianca; Bortolamasi, M.
abstract
One of the main problems present in almost all industrial processes that involve the handling and treatment of bulk solids is the generation and emission of airborne dust, which must be maintained within the limits imposed by the law. Among the most frequently adopted dedusting systems, a particularly important role is played by textile filters, which are generally utilised in the form of bag filters, pocket filters, panels, and so on. This article analyses the criteria adopted for correct sizing of such devices. The initial section, containing a brief theoretical analysis of the mechanisms involved in the filtration process on which the characteristic dimensions of the system depend, is followed by a series of analytical reports with discussions, chosen for their potential usefulness in the design of a dust filter. In closing, the article presents an analysis of the results of tests conducted at the laboratories of SRMP srl, aimed at evaluating the performance of cleanable dust filters.
1996
- Air pollution due to an oil refinery: Correlation analysis to meteorological conditions
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Bevilacqua, M.; Giacchetta, G.; Melloni, Riccardo; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
This paper analizes gaseous pollutant flow rates released by an oil refinery
1996
- METODOLOGIE PER LA VALUTAZIONE DEI RISCHI DI PROGETTO
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca
abstract
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1995
- Evaluation of the Environment Pollution due to an Oil Refinery: analysis of pollutant concentration and their evaluation by means of a simple analytical model
[Articolo su rivista]
M., Bevilacqua; G., Giacchetta; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
In questo articolo è stata effettuata una analisi delle emissioni degli effluenti gassosi da una raffineria.
1995
- Quality Management for Packaging in the Food Industry
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca; Melloni, Riccardo
abstract
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1995
- Valutazione economica di impianti per l'industria mangimistica
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca; Melloni, Riccardo
abstract
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1994
- Impatto dell'approccio simulativo nelle modifiche di lay-out di un'azienda manifatturiera meccanica
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
E., Ferrari; A., Persona; Rimini, Bianca; M., Schenone
abstract
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1994
- Problemi di congestionamento nelle testate di magazzini robotizzati
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
G., Ferretti; Melloni, Riccardo; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
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1994
- Valutazione delle relazioni esistenti tra lotto economico di produzione e JIT
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
G., Ferretti; Melloni, Riccardo; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
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1991
- Aspetti economico-ambientali dell'impiego di RDF in un forno da cemento
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; O., Ortali
abstract
In questo articolo vengono esaminate le possibilità di impiego dell'RDF (Refuse Derived Fuel) come combustibile ausiliario nei cementifici.
1990
- Considerazioni sul dimensionamento di magazzini robotizzati
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca
abstract
In questo articolo viene proposta l'adozione di traslo-robot per la movimentazione di colli in un magazzino di grande capacità.
1990
- Metodologia pinch per la sintesi delle reti di scambio termico
[Articolo su rivista]
M., Bevilacqua; G., Giacchetta; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
Nel presente lavoro si affronta la problematica della sintesi automatica di reti di scambiatori di calore
1990
- Modello di previsione del comportamento dell'acqua nel trasporto in condotta di miscele bifase di idrocarburi gas-liquido
[Articolo su rivista]
F., Ferrini; P., Foschi; G., Ciacchetta; A., Pareschi; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
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1990
- Models estimate pressure losses in gas-condensate systems
[Articolo su rivista]
Ferrini, F.; Foschi, P.; Giachetta, G.; Pareschi, A.; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The efficiency of currently available correlations for two-phase gas-condensate flows is undermined by the presence of water in these flow systems. Water radically modifies the pressure-loss mechanism. Five models have been developed for estimating the global pressure loss of such pipelines in actual operation. The results of these calculations are compared with field data contained in the American Gas Association's Multiphase Pipeline Data Bank which concerns different measurements relative to three lines of two-phase gas-condensate mixtures in the presence of water. The available correlations greatly underestimate pressure losses even if the water concentration is low compared to the entire liquid phase. In fact, the two-phase condensate-gas system becomes a three-phase water-condensate-gas flow in which the physical properties of liquid phases are quite different from each other.
1990
- New Concept Aeronautical Producing Units Testing and Correction through Animated Simulation Language
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
R., Mosca; P., Giribone; Rimini, Bianca; M., Schenone
abstract
The main objective of the paper is the dimensional checking of a new plant for the production of three aircraft models' spare parts preproject.
1990
- RDF Pneumatic Transport to Stoke a Cement Kiln
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The partial feeding of a cement kiln by using RDF as fuel is examined and the pneumatic conveying pipeline to transport the RDF from the collecting silos to the kiln is analysed.
1989
- Contaminazione al suolo per deposizione umida dovuta all'emissione di inquinanti gassosi
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; G., Ferretti; G., Giacchetta
abstract
In questo articolo viene proposto un modello di calcolo per lo studio della contaminazione al suolo a seguito di emissioni incidentali
1989
- Metodologia oinch oer la sintesi delle reti di scambio termico
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
M., Bevilacqua; G., Giacchetta; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
-
1989
- Modello di previsione del comportamento dell'acqua nel trasporto in condotta di miscele bifase di idrocarburi gas-liquido.
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
F., Ferrini; P., Foschi; G., Giacchetta; A., Pareschi; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
-
1989
- Valutazione analitica dell'entropia di Shannon nella programmazione reticolare
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; G., Ferretti
abstract
In questo articolo viene fornita una soluzione analitica esatta per l'entropia di Shannon, facendo specifico riferimento alla programmazione PERT
1988
- Analisi sperimentale del comportamento di un sistema di pompaggio di miscele bifase gas-liquido
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
M., Bevilacqua; G., Giacchetta; A., Pareschi; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
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1988
- Criteri generali di descrizione e di valutazione dei trasporti pneumatici
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
G., Ferretti; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
-
1988
- Impianto di radiosterilizzazione a Co60: analisi dei parametri che influenzano la produzione di materiale irraggiato
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; E., Sobrero
abstract
Viene esaminato un impianto di radiosterilizzazione a Co60 del tipo a piscina, in cui è utilizzazta una sorgente radiante discretizzata
1988
- Spray cooling and Bottom Flooding for Light Water Reactors Core: a Review
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca
abstract
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1987
- Sulla diffusione in atmosfera e sulla ricaduta al suolo di elementi inquinanti emessi da impianto di potenza nucleare a seguito di evento incidentale
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca
abstract
-
1986
- Simulazione di sistemi termoidraulici con modelli a parametri concentrati
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
F., Donatini; R., Di Gregorio; Rimini, Bianca; E., Sobrero; G. P., Stefanutti
abstract
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1985
- Impianto di radiosterilizzazione con sorgente a geometria variabile
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; E., Sobrero; A., Munari
abstract
Nel presente lavoro viene svolta una analisi dei parametri fondamentali di un impianto di radiosterilizzazione a Co60 del tipo a piscina
1984
- Codice di calcolo per l'analisi parametrica dei transitori nello Shield Building Annulus di contenitori di sicurezza in impianti nucleari ad acqua leggera
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; E., Sobrero; E., Dalpane
abstract
In this paper the phisical-mathematical model for transient analysis in the Shield Building Annulus of LWR's containments is studied and a computer code for the parametric study iof these transients s finally proposed.
1984
- Condizioni ottimali dei cicli rigenerativi con preriscaldatori a superficie
[Articolo su rivista]
E., Sobrero; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
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1984
- Criteri generali di progettazione e ottimizzazione del sistema di ventilazione dello S.B.A. di contenitori di sicurezza per impianti nucleari ad acqua leggera
[Articolo su rivista]
E., Sobrero; Rimini, Bianca
abstract
In this paper is developed a systematic study of the transients in the S.B.A. of L.W.R.s Safety containments in order to determine general design criteria of the S.B.A. ventilation system and to define the essential parameters.
1984
- Criteri generali di progettazione ed ottimizzazione del sistema di ventilazione dello S.B.A. di contenitori di sicurezza per impianti nucleari ad acqua leggera
[Relazione in Atti di Convegno]
Rimini, Bianca; E., Sobrero
abstract
Nel presente lavoro viene effettuato uno studio sistematico dei transitori nello S.B.A. dei contenitori di sicurezza di impianti nucleari ad acqua leggera, al fine di definire i criteri generali di progettazione del sistema di ventilazione ad esso associato e di determinare i principali parametri di progetto in gioco.
1984
- Metodo di calcolo di generatori di vapore a tubi di calore per centrali nucleari con L.M.F.B.R.
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; E., Sobrero
abstract
In this paper the design of the sections of heat pipe steam-water generators for L.M.F.B.R. nuclear power plants is considered.
1983
- Modello semplificato per il calcolo diretto delle aree controllate attorno ad impianti nucleotermoelettrici
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca; E., Sobrero
abstract
This paper describes and proposes a relationship for the direct evaluation of exclusion and controlled area vs. installed thermal power for nuclear power plants.
1980
- Evaluation of the Uncertainties of the Temperature in the Channels of Liquid Metal Cooled Reactors. | [SULLA VALUTAZIONE DELLE INCERTEZZE DELLE TEMPERATURE IN CANALI DI REATTORI RAFFREDDATI CON METALLI LIQUIDI.]
[Articolo su rivista]
Rimini, Bianca
abstract
The paper deals with the principal factors influencing the variations from nominal values of measured variables (such as coolant and fuel temperatures) in the control system of a nuclear reactor core. The possibility of a control system based upon the measurement of coolant outlet temperatures from reactor channels is examined and some computations of variations from nominal values are also presented in case of Liquid Metal Breeder Reactors.