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This paper outlines a method of sequentially joining steel laminations together using a high strength brazed joint to produce laminated tools. Individual joints were produced by using a heated platen rather than a furnace. Lap shear test samples were used to evaluate the tensile strengths of bonded laminates. Two laminate gauges were tested, 0.8mm and 1.6mm. Ranging trials were undertaken to determine optimum time to produce the joint. Constants for the trials were platen temperature, laminate material, braze material, joint area and joining pressure. At optimum conditions, that is the least time taken for highest tensile strength, the 0.8mm laminate averaged a strength of 4.7kN in 120 seconds’ heating time and the 1.6mm laminate averaged 9.3kN in 210 seconds.

Lastform, a three year EPSRC (IMI) programme, has investigated metallic laminating techniques to produce large‐scale production capable tooling. This work is intended as an overview of the research and development performed at the University of Warwick’s Warwick manufacturing Group. The programme was a collaboration between seven industrial partners and three universities with each university having a discreet area of research. The focus at Warwick was to establish robust methods of joining metal sheets to form tools for different production processes. Bonding mediums, test parts for process evaluation, sample tools and production tools are described. The advantages of metal laminating for different processes are evaluated. Results include reduced lead‐time and cost savings and enhanced processing capability by the use of conformable heating or cooling channels.

The purpose of this paper is to develop and test an extension of a previously conceived framework for improving and embedding project management (PM) practice in organisations. The framework identifies the most useful project management improvement initiatives (PMIIs) and the key factors for embedding PM practice. However, professionals need guidance on how to operationalise such framework in their organisations, therefore a method for applying the framework is developed.

The method being proposed for applying the framework is demonstrated and tested with a large University–Industry consortium case study. During the case study analysis three research methods were applied: participant observation, document analysis and focus groups.

In what concerns both the PMIIs and key embedding factors in the framework, the proposed method comprises their acknowledgement, scoring, relevance analysis, selection and planning. The detailed report on how the framework was applied in the particular case study also sheds light on how University–Industry consortiums can make use of PM to become more successful.

The research was performed using only one case study which limits the generalisability of its findings.

Detailed guidance is provided for applying the framework’s both constructs, “improving” and “embedding”, through a set of clear steps.

The paper shows the explanatory power of the framework for improving and embedding PM practice in a case study, demonstrating that the method for its application is practical and suitable.

University–industry projects provide special challenges in understanding and expressing the values required of project management (PM) in delivering stakeholder benefits. This paper presents a framework for understanding, identifying and managing the values of PM in major university–industry R&D projects.

The value framework identifies for each of the key stakeholders, the key PM values that may require to be managed and are largely derived from research literature. Empirical research then explores, prioritises and selects key PM values that need to be managed for a specific project. A large case study is used involving one university and one industry collaborating on a multi-million Euro initiative over six years. Empirical research was conducted by researchers who observed at close quarters, the challenges and successes of managing the competing values of key stakeholders.

The value framework takes a stakeholders' perspective by identifying the respective PM values for each of six stakeholders: university–industry consortium, university, industry, R&D external entities, funding entity and society.

The research was performed using only one case study which limits the generalisability of its findings; however, the findings are presented as a decision support aid for project consortia in developing values for their own collaboration.

Guidance and decision support are provided to multi-stakeholder research consortia when selecting values that need to be managed for achieving tangible and intangible project benefits.

The paper demonstrates a proposed framework for designing and managing the value of PM in large multi-stakeholder university–industry R&D projects.

This paper aims to explore the relationship between the types of R&D‐activities within science‐based firms and the knowledge transfer channels used for industry‐science collaboration. Rooted in a contingency approach, it seeks to identify patterns in the organization of knowledge transfer and to disclose ways that may support R&D‐managers in achieving effective knowledge transfer.

The paper is an exploratory study in order to obtain a deep understanding of the relationship. At first, both the types of R&D‐activity and the knowledge transfer channels were conceptualized based on an extensive literature review. Second, data were collected by means of semi‐structured interviews with 17 (assistant) R&D‐managers of ten large European chemical firms.

The analysis suggests that almost each of the knowledge transfer channels used for industry‐science collaboration has a more or less unique link to a specific type of R&D‐activity. An empirically based model is developed that visualizes the linkages. In addition, explanations for observed links are proposed.

The empirical analysis reported focuses on multinational firms in the science‐based European chemical industry, because they invest heavily in R&D and are hence more interested in collaboration with scientific partners. Further research is needed to determine the model's applicability in other empirical settings, both within and outside science‐based industries.

The paper provides R&D‐managers with a model that may support them in deciding how to organize their collaboration with scientific partners based on the type of their internal R&D‐activity to achieve effective knowledge transfer.

The paper is one of the first studies that empirically assesses the relationship between the types of R&D‐activities in firms and the knowledge transfer channels that are used for industry‐science collaboration.

The purpose of this paper is to present a review of the empirical literature on inter‐organizational R&D collaborations in order to highlight the tendencies in research methodologies so far and to identify possible future research directions.

The literature review is based on a bibliographical search of a number of academic search engines. These sources include all the major management, organizational behavior, marketing, engineering, sociology, and psychology journals, thus ensuring a thorough search on the topic of inter‐organizational R&D. The review includes papers from 1995 to 2010.

The main focus of research on inter‐organizational R&D is on innovation performance enablers, organizational and coordination aspects, and knowledge exchange. The vast majority of which is based on snapshot studies at the management or firm level of analysis that leave open questions regarding the actual inter‐organizational innovation practices. To fill the gap evidenced in the literature, the author concludes that longitudinal qualitative micro‐level research would help to expand existing knowledge on the practices in inter‐organizational R&D.

The paper proposes a practice‐based research framework for future studies of inter‐organizational R&D, in order to gain a better understanding of the social dynamics of such collaborations.

This paper focuses on empirical research in the area of inter‐organizational R&D, and links the methodological approaches used to the limitations in the knowledge base of the topic.

This study aims to understand the current production scenario emphasizing the significance of green manufacturing in achieving economic and environmental sustainability goals to fulfil future needs; to determine the viability of particular strategies and actions performed to increase the process efficiency of electrical discharge machining; and to uphold the values of sustainability in the nonconventional manufacturing sector and to identify future works in this regard.

A thorough analysis of numerous experimental studies and findings is conducted. This prominent nontraditional machining process’s potential machinability and sustainability challenges are discussed, along with the current research to alleviate them. The focus is placed on modifications to the dielectric fluid, choosing affordable substitutes and treating consumable tool electrodes.

Trans-esterified vegetable oils, which are biodegradable and can be used as a substitute for conventional dielectric fluids, provide pollution-free machining with enhanced surface finish and material removal rates. Modifying the dielectric fluid with specific nanomaterials could increase the machining rate and demonstrate a decrease in machining flaws such as micropores, globules and microcracks. Tool electrodes subjected to cryogenic treatment have shown reduced tool metal consumption and downtime for the setup.

The findings suggested eco-friendly machining techniques and optimized control settings that reduce energy consumption, lowering operating expenses and carbon footprints. Using eco-friendly dielectrics, including vegetable oils or biodegradable dielectric fluids, might lessen the adverse effects of the electrical discharge machine operations on the environment. Adopting sustainable practices might enhance a business’s reputation with the public, shareholders and clients because sustainability is becoming increasingly significant across various industries.

A detailed general review of green nontraditional electrical discharge machining process is provided, from high-quality indexed journals. The findings and results contemplated in this review paper can lead the research community to collectively apply it in sustainable techniques to enhance machinability and reduce environmental effects.

In recent years, companies have started to open up their Research and Development (R&D) and their innovation activities to external partners. They aim to access new resources and capabilities and to gain shorter time-to-markets. However, as several studies have shown, it can be difficult to manage collaborative (open) innovation projects to achieve desired outcomes. Starting from this premise, the paper investigates how project stakeholder management is different in open innovation projects from traditional R&D projects.

The study has a qualitative nature and is based on the interpretative paradigm with an inductive orientation. The paper leverages interviews with experts involved in open innovation projects conducted in two Science and Technology Parks between Sweden and Italy.

The analysis shows how companies manage multiple stakeholders in open innovation projects and the peculiarities project stakeholder management faces in these projects when compared with traditional R&D projects. The paper shows how the relationships with external partners in open innovation projects are regulated by informal identification and analysis frameworks, which reduce the tensions deriving from these multiple collaborations. In addition, it underlines a set of good practices, and project management aspects for developing effective absorptive capacity of know-how, resources, and capabilities from external stakeholders in open innovation projects.

The paper analyzes for the first time how companies manage multiple stakeholders in open innovation projects in a different way from traditional R&D projects. Furthermore, the paper introduces a shift in the focus of the analysis: it focuses on the level of the project conducted through multiple collaborations instead of on the level of the firms involved in the project. Finally, the paper integrates open innovation research with project management research.

To determine the feasibility of sealing and finishing conformal cooling/heating channels in profiled edge laminae (PEL) rapid tooling (RT) using abrasive flow machining (AFM).

Sample PEL tools constructed of both aluminum and steel were designed and assembled for finishing by AFM. A simple design of experiments approach was utilized. Output parameters of interest included the material removal, surface roughness improvement and, most importantly, the ability to withstand a pressurized oil leak test.

AFM significantly improved the finish in the channels for aluminum and steel PEL tooling. Leak testing found that AFM also improved the sealing of both stacks at static pressures up to 690 kPa. The steel tooling appeared to benefit more from the AFM process. It has been postulated that the primary cause of the sealing is the plastic deformation of workpiece material in the plowing mode.

The conformal channels studied had a simple cross‐sectional geometry and straight runs. The PEL tools were only made of two materials. However, the research results show great promise for large RT, including thermoforming and composite forming molds where temperature control is a critical issue.

The ability to seal the interfaces between individual laminae expands the potential application of AFM tremendously. AFM also has the potential to finish a wide range of internal passages in a variety of RT.

AFM has been previously used for finishing stereolithography prototypes. This is the first known attempt to seal and finish channels in laminated RT using AFM.

The main aim of this study is to generate curved-form cut on the edge of an adaptive layer. The resulting surface would have much less geometry deviation error and closely fit its computer aided design (CAD) model boundary.

This method is inspired by the manual peeling of an apple in which a knife's orientation and movement are continuously changed and adjusted to cut each slice with minimum waste. In this method, topology and geometry information are extracted from the previously generated adaptive layers. Then, the thickness of an adaptive layer and the bottom and top contours of the adjacent layers are fed into the proposed algorithm in the form of the contour and normal vector to create curved-form sloping surfaces. Following curved-form adaptive slicing, a customized machine path compatible with a five-axis abrasive waterjet (AWJ) machine will be generated for any user-defined sheet thicknesses.

The implemented system yields curved-form adaptive slices for a variety of models with diverse types of surfaces (e.g. flat, convex, and concave), different slicing direction, and different number of sheets with different thicknesses. The decrease in layer thickness and increase of the number of the sloped cuts can make the prototype as close as needed to the CAD model.

The algorithm is designed for use with five-axis AWJ cutting of any kind of geometrical complex surfaces. Future research would deal with the nesting problem of the layers being spread on the predefined sheet as the input to the five-axis AWJ cutter machine to minimize the cutting waste.

The algorithm generates adaptive layers with concave or convex curved-form surfaces that conform closely to the surface of original CAD model. This will pave the way for the accurate fabrication of metallic functional parts and tooling that are made by the attachment of one layer to another. Validation of the output has been tested only as the simulation model. The next step is the customization of the output for the physical tests on a variety of five-axis machines.

This paper proposes a new close to CAD design sloped-edge adaptive slicing algorithm applicable to a variety of five-axis processes that allow variable thickness layering and slicing in different orientations (e.g. AWJ, laser, or plasma cutting). Slices can later be bonded to build fully solid prototypes.