No – I haven’t lost my passion for sustainability, the truth is I have been busy of late and can now announce that a project proposal I made recently to develop an energy efficiency course based on the principles of Lean Manufacturing has gotten the thumbs up.

I can’t say too much more than that at this stage, and I will be a busy boy over the next 4 months – so the blog posts will be thin on the ground – but there will be the odd one when I find something new to post in the public arena.

So until then – may the fickle finger of fate lead you to a sustainable future J

Japanese use the word gemba in their daily speech. When the earthquakes shook Kobe in January 1995, TV reporters at the scene referred to themselves as “reporting from gemba”; in the background, one could see houses in flames or collapsed elevated highways. In business, the value-adding activities that satisfy the customer happen in gemba. Within Japanese industry, the word gemba is almost as popular as kaizen.

Kaizen: The 1993 edition of the New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary kaizen as continuous improvement of working practices, personal efficiency, etc., as a business philosophy. The word implies improvement that involves everyone both managers and workers and entails relatively little expense. The kaizen philosophy assumes that our way of life be it our working life, our social life, or our home life should focus on constant-improvement efforts. This concept is so natural and obvious to many Japanese that they don’t even realise they possess it! The kaizen concept explains why Japanese companies cannot remain static for long.

Western management philosophy and strategies tend to be innovation centric relying on major changes in the wake of technological breakthroughs; the latest management concepts or production techniques. Innovation is dramatic, is one-shot, and its results are often problematic.

Kaizen, on the other hand, is often undramatic and subtle, based on common sense and low-cost approaches, assures incremental progress that pays off in the long run and Kaizen is also a low-risk approach that inherently makes it possible for managers to simply go back to the old way without incurring large costs.

Major concepts that must be understood and practised in implementing kaizen are:

• Kaizen and management

• Process versus result

• Following PDCA/SDCA

• Putting quality first

• Speaking with data

• Treating the next process as the customer

A standardised problem-solving procedure to be used at each level of organization the Kaizen story has eight steps:

1. select a project,
2. understand current situations and set objectives,
3. analyze data to identify root causes,
4. establish countermeasures,
5. implement countermeasures,
6. confirm the effect,
7. standardize, and review the above process and
8. work on the next steps

Major systems that must be established to attain a world-class status;

• Total Quality Control (Total Quality Management)
• Just-in-time production system
• Total productive maintenance
• Policy deployment
• Suggestion system
• Small-group activities

The House Of Gemba

Two major activities take place in gemba on a daily basis as regards resource management namely, maintenance and kaizen. The former relates to following existing standards and maintaining the status quo, and the latter relates to improving such standards. Gemba managers engage in one or the other of these two functions, and quality, cost, and delivery (QCD) is the outcome.

The House of Gemba, shows a bird’s-eye view of activities taking place in gemba that achieve QCD. A company that produces quality products or services at a reasonable price and delivers them on time satisfies its customers, and they in turn remain loyal.

So there you have it – a brief introduction to ‘Sustainable Operations’ and two key themes – Kaizen and Gemba, that provide a proven blueprint to continuous improvement, waste reduction and sustainability

However, sometimes things go wrong and usually it is due to a fundamental engineering error or oversight. In the case of Toyota it was not their manufacturing methods that hurt their reputation so badly, resulting in its’ CEO being called before the US Congress for a “please explain!” – it was a simple oversight on the effect of friction.

In an electronic accelerator pedal assembly — when the acceleration pedal is depressed, a sensor tells the car to accelerate and it is essential that the pedal has a certain amount of friction for the driver to maintain a steady throttle position as well as reducing fatigue from continuously apply pressure on the pedal return spring.

A friction factor is designed into the pedal assembly to simulate the intrinsic friction of a traditional throttle cable as it passes through the cable housing. If this in-built friction is excessive, the pedal return spring cannot return the pedal when the driver’s foot is removed — the pedal sticks in the partially open position.

Changing the friction characteristics will, of course, change the accelerator feel for the driver. In addition, if wear or contamination is allowed to occur and change the friction characteristics, not only will the pedal feel change, but the safe operation may also change.

The original problem and proposed solution for Toyota, is illustrated below:

“The Toyota pedal assembly includes a shoe that rubs against an adjoining surface during normal pedal ­operation. As discussed above, due to the materials used, wear, and environmental conditions, these surfaces may, over time, begin to stick and slip instead of operating smoothly. In some cases, friction could increase to a point that the pedal is slow to return to the idle position or stick, leaving the throttle partially open. A solution is to insert a spacer that will reduce the friction between the friction shoe and the adjoining surface, thus eliminating the excess friction that can cause the pedal to stick.”

Source: http://www.designnews.com/article/455235-Friction_Fundamentals_and_Accelerating_Cars.php

We all know that we need to increase the number of electric cars. Hybrid electrics, plug-in hybrids, and low-speed vehicles all expand electric transportation.

Electric vehicles (EVs) are highly adaptable and part of everyday society: Electric cars are found on mountain tops in railway trams, cable cars etc, at the bottom of the sea as submarines, on the moon and Mars as the Lunar and Mars Explorer Rovers), in tall buildings as elevators, in cities as subways, light rail, trams, hauling heavy rail freight or as electric rail passengers.

Naturally one can purchase an electric or hybrid vehicle manufactured by either a specialist company or one of the big auto manufacturers or you could build one from scratch or modify an existing vehicle yourself – the options are all there to see.

Assuming you are going to build from scratch or modify an existing vehicle there are a few things you need to know purely from a technical standpoint.

The chassis you pick is the foundation for your EV—choose it wisely.

The first step is to know your options. Your EV should be as light in weight as possible; streamlined, with its body optimized for minimum drag; optimized for minimum rolling resistance from its tires, brakes, and steering; and optimized for minimum drivetrain losses. The motor-drivetrain-battery combination must match the body style you’ve selected. It must also be capable of accomplishing the task most between the two.

Step two is to design for the capability that you want. Your EV’s weight, motor and battery placement, aerodynamics, rolling resistance, handling, gearing, and safety features must also meet your needs. You now have a plan.

Step three is to execute your plan—to buy the chassis that meets your needs. At its heart this is a process no different from any other vehicle purchase you’ve ever made, except that the best solution to your needs might be a vehicle that the owner or dealer can’t wait to get rid of—one with a gas-guzzling, diesel, or otherwise polluting engine— so the tables are completely turned from a normal buying situation.

Electric Motors

The heart of every electric vehicle is its electric motor. Electric motors come in all sizes, shapes, and types and are the most efficient mechanical devices on the planet. Unlike an internal combustion engine, an electric motor emits zero pollutants. Technically, there are three moving parts in an electric motor. Even with three parts, electric motors outlive internal combustion engines every day of the week. The parts are the rotor and two end bearings. This is just one of the main reasons why widespread adoption of EVs or electric drive vehicles are a planet-saving proposition.

Electric motors are inherently powerful. By selecting a design that delivers peak torque at or near stall, you can move a mountain. Nearly all traction motors deliver near peak torque at zero rpm. That’s why electric traction motors have powered our trolley cars, subways, and diesel-electric railroad locomotives for so many years. There is no waiting, as with an internal combustion engine, while it winds up to its peak torque rpm range. Apply electric current to it and you’ve instantly got torque to spare. If any EV’s performance is wimpy, it’s due to a poor design or electric motor selection—not the electric motor itself.

Electric motors are inherently efficient. You can expect to get 90 percent or more electrical energy you put into an electric motor out of it in the form of mechanical torque. Few other mechanical devices even come close to this efficiency.Since electric motors are efficient, the horsepower behind them in a real electric car can initially really stress the vehicles mechanical systems.

Here are some technical points to understand when trying to find the right motor for your electric car:

1. Electric motors are rated at their point of maximum efficiency; they may be capable of 2–4 times their continuous rating but only for a few minutes (acceleration or hill climbing). Internal combustion engines are rated at the peak horsepower. For example, the FB1-4001A motor is rated as 30 hp continuous at 144V and 100 hp peak. The 5-minute rating of the FB1-4001A motor is 48 hp at 144V.

2. Each 1,000 lbs. of vehicle weight after conversion requires 6–8 hp. This is the continuous rating of the motor. So a 3,000-lb. conversion requires a motor that is rated at approximately 20 hp. More horsepower is required for higher speeds, heavier vehicles, and steeper terrains.

3. The available horsepower of a motor increases with voltage; for example, the FB1-4001A motor is rated at 18 hp continuous at 72V but is rated at 30 hp continuous at 144V. As the voltage is increased the rpm increases. Horsepower is a function of rpm x torque.

4. Although electric motors are rated as “continuous,” the motor can run at less horsepower. If only 10 hp is required for the speed then the motor runs at that reduced load. This is the function of the motor controller.

5. Operating continuously above the rated horsepower will eventually overheat and damage the motor. A motor that is rated at 150 amps can run at 300 amps for a short time (minutes), but longer periods can easily damage the motor. Do not buy an undersized motor for your vehicle for your application—it will not last long. Current is what overheats components.

6. Highway speeds require greater horsepower. The horsepower required at 70 mph is four times the horsepower required at 35 mph. That means the current required is four times also, which means less range.

Depending on your design and component choices, the electric motor in your EV conversion can smoke its tires and routinely offer 60-mile range on a dollar’s worth of
electricity. Compare that to 75 cents per mile in a hydrogen FC car.

Source: Leitman & Brant, 2009, Build your own electric vehicle, McGraw-Hill

Over 380 organisations are currently working with the Sustainability Advantage program to:

• Manage environmental risk and ensure compliance
• Use resources more efficiently
• Integrate environmental strategies with business planning
• Measure their carbon footprint and manage their emissions
• Enhance customer, supplier and community relationships, and
• Engage and train staff to become an employer of choice.

Sustainability Advantage makes sense of all the noise about sustainability, pinpoints how your business can benefit and provides a clear path for action. Rather than creating extra work, we can help you focus your efforts to deliver the best results for your company and for the environment.

When you sign up to Sustainability Advantage you can choose to take part in an exciting new initiative – the Sustainability AdvantageEnergy Saver. Energy Saver subsidises audits of energy use and helps you reduce electricity costs.

A feature of Sustainability Advantage is that it brings together groups of businesses into clusters that share regional, industry or supply chain interests. Cluster meetings held 3-4 times a year provide an opportunity to draw on the ideas and experiences of likeminded organisations.

An initial management diagnostic helps you evaluate your current environmental performance and ranks possible initiatives. Over 18 months, or longer if you choose, you work on tailored, flexible projects selected from Sustainability Advantage modules:

• Participating organisations commit to an 18 month involvement and a modest financial contribution. While results will depend on a company’s own efforts, Sustainability Advantage provides expertise, training, tools and a network of organisations working with you towards sustainability.Case studies describe how Sustainability Advantage has helped participating companies improve their environmental and business performance.

  The Sustainability Advantage recognition scheme also promotes its partners’ work towards environmental performance and advocacy.

  For more information on the Sustainability Advantage program, read the Sustainability Advantage brochure (PDF, 879kb)

  To pursue the Sustainability Advantage for your organisation and contribute to the health of our environment and communities, please contact Business Partnerships on (02) 8837 6000 or sustainbus

The following list summarizes the main requirements of ISO 14001:

• The fundamental requirements of the EMS implemented are that it should:

o Identify and assess the environmental impact of all of a company’s operations, and repeat this on a regular basis.

o Consider all of the company’s operations and activities that are identified as having a potential or actual environmental impact, and set environmental protection targets that are appropriate to the scale and impact of the operations, but within the constraints of what is technically possible and economically affordable.

o Irrespective of cost, ensure that the company at least complies with all relevant environmental legislation that its operations may be subject to in respect of their environmental impact.

o Be continually reviewed and improved wherever possible.

o Have all aspects of the policy written down in documentation that is available to the public.

• Everyone in a company must be fully committed to the EMS being operated.

• Appropriate communication paths must be established to ensure that the EMS operates efficiently.

• Responsibility for the implementation, operation and review of the EMS must be assigned to one designated person.

• The key characteristics of all operations that can have a significant effect on the environment must be regularly monitored and measured, and results must be documented.

• All instruments and equipment used to measure performance of the EMS must be used properly and calibrated regularly.

• All abnormal situations that might arise in the operations and activities of a company must be identified and their potential environmental impact must be assessed.

• Appropriate procedures must be established and documented for responding to abnormal situations that might cause environmental damage.

• The training needs of anyone in the company whose activities may impact on the environment must be identified and appropriate training provided.

• Regular audits must be carried out to ensure that the EMS is operating satisfactorily and meeting its target of protecting the environment in the way that is expected of it.

• The fundamental responsibility for implementation and successful operation of the EMS lies with the executive management of the company implementing it.

• The executive management must ensure that adequate resources are provided to support the EMS. These resources must include employees with the necessary skills as well as the financial resources necessary to buy whatever equipment is needed.

• The executive management themselves must regularly review the performance of the EMS. To do this, they should ask for performance reports from the person(s) with designated authority for operating the EMS and, having reviewed the reports, direct any necessary action to modify the EMS in order to improve the company’s environmental performance. This review by executive management must be in addition to, and not instead of, the other internal and external performance audits that are carried out.

Readers having direct involvement in planning and implementing an EMS that is to be certified under ISO 14001 are advised to actually read the official ISO document. This is not an onerous task, since the main part of the document only extends to some 10 pages.

Source: ISO 14000 environmental management standards: engineering and financial aspects – By Alan S. Morris – Google Books

Traditionally the process of design has concentrated on the construction phase itself, with the primary object being to optimise efficiency and minimise costs during development and construction. With the move towards more sustainable development comes the need for this short-term approach to be expanded to encompass the entire service life of the structure.

This book explains how to optimise structures for their entire design life, through an optimum integrated life cycle design process. Sustainability and performance issues are detailed.

Integrated Life Cycle Design of Structures provides a comprehensive account of this rapidly emerging field.
It is essential reading for civil and structural engineers, designers, architects, contractors, and clients.

Asko Sarja is Research Professor of Building Technology in Structural Engineering, Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT).

Reference:

Sarja,A., 2002 – Integrated life cycle design of structures, Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005.

CRC CI partners since 2001 have included the Australian Building Codes Board, Arup Australasia, Bovis Lend Lease, Brisbane City Council, Brookwater, Building Commission (Victoria), Commonwealth Scientific
and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), Curtin University of Technology, DEM, John Holland, Kennards Hire, Leighton Contractors, Mirvac, Nexus Point Solutions, Parsons Brinkerhoff, Queensland Building Services Authority, Queensland Department of Main Roads, Queensland Department of Public Works, Queensland Department of State Development and Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, Rider Levett Bucknall, RMIT University, Sydney Opera House, Transfield Services Australia, University of Newcastle, University of Sydney, University of Western Sydney, Thiess, Western Australian Department of Housing and Works, and Woods Bagot.

The efforts of the partners to the CRC have been complemented by the activities of the following industry organizations: Australian Construction Industry Forum (ACIF) Australian Procurement and Construction Council (APCC) Construction and Property Services Industries Skills Council (CPSISC) Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC), which the CRC CI was instrumental in establishing in 2003.

SBE has the broadest built environment research alliance in the country, with Core Members including the Queensland, Victorian and Western Australian Governments, John Holland Group, Parsons Brinkerhoff, Queensland University of Technology, Curtin University of Technology, and Swinburne University of Technology; all of which are represented on the centre’s Board, alongside the Australian Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government as a formal observer to the Board.

Complementing the centre’s Core Members, SBE Associate Members include organisations such as Rider Levett Bucknall, Bovis Lend Lease, Leighton Contractors, Sinclair Knight Merz, Arup and the Sydney Opera House, to name a few. The centre has as a central objective to continue to expand its network, and seeks to leverage partner investments through the development of new strategic linkages with research providers and public and private industry end-users and funding agencies.

References:
1. Newton et. al., 2009, Technology, Design and Process Innovation in the Built Environment, Taylor Francis
2. CRC CI – http://www.construction-innovation.info/
3. SBE – http://www.bee.qut.edu.au/research/themes/collab/sbenrc.jsp

Flexibility requirements:
The new flexibility rules require that:

ONE THIRD or more of total units required to gain a qualification will be ELECTIVES

• choice of ELECTIVE units to allow ONE SIXTH of total units to be included from other qualifications in the same Training Package, other Training Packages and accredited courses
• licensed and trade occupations will be exempt from these measures
• for consistency, all units will be called either CORE or ELECTIVE.

Recommended combinations of electives for particular specialisations will be presented as GROUPS

Timelines for implementation

• Top 20 non-exempt qualifications to be adjusted and reformatted by 30 June 2010
• 31 December 2010 – all Industry Skills Councils (ISC) report to the NQC showing that all Training Package qualifications now comply with new packaging rules

National Green Skills Agreement:
The National Green Skills Agreement is designed to ensure skills for sustainability are an integral part of all vocational education and training (VET) and are relevant to the needs of industry. This commitment will be achieved by:

• embedding skills for sustainability in the vocational education and training regulatory framework
• the upskilling of VET instructors and teachers to deliver skills for sustainability
• the review of Training Packages to embed sustainability knowledge, skills and principles
• implementing a transition strategy to re-skill vulnerable workers

Source: Manufacturing Skills Australia

We will experience more change the rest of our lives than has been experienced since the beginning of civilisation.

One study of human resource management practitioners identified six key changes that would have the greatest impact in the workplace and workforce over the next ten years namely;

• Changing technology;
• Increasing globalisation;
• Continuing cost containment;
• Increasing speed in market change;
• Growing importance of knowledge capital; and
• Increasing rate and magnitude of change.

Time has become a key strategic resource. The challenge of the future is to help people adapt to change, often in real time and as events unfold. Time has become important precisely because changing technology provides many possible strategic advantages to organisations.

Organisation development (OD) is about planned change. As change has turned into the only constant, many managers and other people are pursuing change strategies with vigour. OD is a major strategy for leading and managing change at the individual, group, intergroup, organizational, inter-organizational, and large systems levels.

What is effects change having?

One effect is that change begets more change. As organisation leaders struggle to meet competitive challenges, they search for ways to slash cycle times for product development, chase fads to discover new ways to gain advantage, and struggle with efforts to manage across a burgeoning number of improvement programs.

A second effect is that so much change has prompted an increasing amount of cynicism about change, an emerging theme in the literature about change management. Cynicism about change means that workers and managers increasingly question the motives of those who sponsor, champion, or drive change. Cynicism about the motives of other people erodes trust and confidence in organisational leaders. And a growing number of scandals in business, government, education, the media, and the church only reinforce that cynicism.

A third effect is growing stress on individuals and their families. As the rate and magnitude of change increase, individuals struggle to keep up emotionally as well as cognitively. Their stressed-out feelings about change, if expressed, occasionally erupt in workplace violence., It may also prompt increasing instances of “desk rage”, create pushback through growing interest in work/life balance programs, and encourage some people to seek innovative ways to work through telecommuting or other efforts that distance individuals from others.

Change Management Defined

In the simplest sense, change management means the process of helping a person, group, or organization change. The word management implies an effort to plan the change and exert influence over other people in the process. Change management thus implies a purposeful effort to bring about change and may be defined as. “the continuous process of aligning an organisation with its marketplace—and doing it more responsively and effectively than competitors.

There is no single cookbook approach to change, one size does not fit all and one approach to change,
as listed in a step-by-step model, does not work with all groups, all corporate cultures, all national cultures, or all people.

Effective trainers can be in control of a management development effort. But facilitators of organization change are not in control of the change effort. Instead they facilitate in collaborative fashion. They learn and personally change with the organization. Successful change efforts require an ebb and flow. If an inappropriate tool is chosen, it may not bend and relate to the living personality of the system.

The essential platforms that experience has shown that all successful organisational transitions possess are:

1. Acknowledgement that organisational change requires a long term perspective
2. Must be supported by managers at all levels within an organisation – particularly top-management, and,
3. Change is effected principally but not wholly through education

Reference:

Rothwell (Ed), 2005, Practicing Organization Development : A Guide for Consultants, John Wiley & Sons