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Although many manufacturers depend on international sales, and product-related services continue to increase in importance, little is known about how manufacturers should deliver their product-related services across borders. This paper examines the international configuration decision of industrial service offerings across borders by investigating the impact of different service characteristics and the servitization strategy on this decision. Additionally, the paper sheds light on how digitalization and administrative heritage impact this decision.

116 industrial goods manufacturers from Switzerland and Germany were surveyed.

Servitization leads companies to centralize their service resources in their home countries. However, most service characteristics do not impact decisions regarding centralization, except for knowledge intensity, which leads to more centralization of resources. This implies that the resource configuration does not depend on each service individually but on the overall service strategy. Furthermore, the digital readiness of the host country directly and positively impacts resource centralization. Notwithstanding other variables, larger companies tend to decentralize service resources more than smaller companies.

This paper is among the first to study the international configuration impact of servitization and of individual service characteristics, thereby adding important knowledge regarding the provision of product-related services in the international context. Additionally, different aspects of digitalization are included to analyze its impact on companies and host countries.

The purpose of this present study is to find a scientific method for the evaluation of environmental impacts according to the requirement 4.3.1.

To realize the objectives, the authors worked with a representative sample from certified ISO 14001 organizations. The data aim to identify and evaluate (according to the organization's methodology) significant environmental impacts. In this study, the authors created two models for the evaluation of environmental impacts based on an artificial neural network applied in the pilot organization and compared the results obtained from these models with those obtained by applying an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method. AHP is part of an multi‐criteria decision making method and provides good multi‐criteria support for decision making for problems that can be structured hierarchically.

This paper presents a new approach that uses a backpropagation neural network to evaluate environmental impacts regardless of the organization type.

This paper presents a unique approach for the reliable and objective evaluation of environmental impacts.

This chapter examines the catalysts that led drones to become a vast consumer market in a very short space of time. It tells the story of the drone’s resurgence as an object of popular desire and how this reflects a certain kind of technotopian allure, which is found more widely in the technological consumer culture. In so doing, it examines the historical origins of the drone across military aviation and musical culture, along with the major achievements in modern civilian drone exploration. The chapter also draws on literature in design theory, historical analyses of drone patents and speculative fictions within product development to articulate the central drivers behind the proliferation of drones in civil society.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the application of budgeting and accounting bases and their relation to financial accounting reporting systems through a comparative survey of three South-Eastern European countries (Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina – the Entity of the Republic of Srpska).

The in-depth analysis based on the study of related literature and comprehensive review of existing indicators of accounting systems leads to the identification and characterization of the most important components of the government accounting systems’ focusing also on the information usefulness in the decision-making processes.

Dual reporting based on different bases is the main feature of the accounting information system of selected countries. Budgetary reports based on a cash basis represent the primary source of information for decision making. Selected jurisdictions started with the preparation and presentation of financial reports based on the accrual/modified accrual basis which was not the result of the informational needs of decision-makers, so the information themselves have become their own purpose.

By exploring the opportunities and obstacles in the implementation of the accrual basis in the selected countries, the paper contributes to the development of the EPSAS project.

This paper contributes to the literature on the application of various budgeting and accounting bases, with an emphasis on research of the similarities and differences of the reporting methods, for the purpose of distinguishing more easily two basic types of reports and, consequently, identifying their appropriate use.

Modern unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) are usually equipped with rotors connected to electric motors that enable them to hover and fly in all directions. The purpose of the paper is to design optimal composite rotor blades for such small UAVs and investigate their aerodynamic performances both computationally and experimentally.

Artificial intelligence method (genetic algorithm) is used to optimize the blade airfoil described by six input parameters. Furthermore, different computational methods, e.g. vortex methods and computational fluid dynamics, blade element momentum theory and finite element method, are used to predict the aerodynamic performances of the optimized airfoil and complete rotor as well the structural behaviour of the blade, respectively. Finally, composite blade is manufactured and the rotor performance is also determined experimentally by thrust and torque measurements.

Complete process of blade design (including geometry definition and optimization, estimation of aerodynamic performances, structural analysis and blade manufacturing) is conducted and explained in detail. The correspondence between computed and measured thrust and torque curves of the optimal rotor is satisfactory (differences mostly remain below 15%), which validates and justifies the used design approach formulated specifically for low-cost, small-scale propeller blades. Furthermore, the proposed techniques can easily be applied to any kind of rotating lifting surfaces including helicopter or wind turbine blades.

Blade design methodology is simplified, shortened and made more flexible thus enabling the fast and economic production of propeller blades optimized for specific working conditions.

The purpose of this paper is to present some outcomes of the PROMETEA research project funded by the European Union under FP6 from 2005 to 2007 (see www.prometea.info). PROMETEA is a strongly multidisciplinary and collaborative project involving 17 research teams from 13 different countries.

The paper combines existing knowledge with new in‐depth pilot studies on women academics in engineering and technology, linked to qualitative research work on the experiences of both women and men working in this field, using cross‐comparison as a research strategy.

The paper identifies different issues for further investigations on women researchers in engineering and technology.

The paper focuses on comparative perspectives between countries, disciplines or research topics, age groups, academic and industrial research career paths, etc. The similarity and diversity of academic settings are discussed with an emphasis on the impact of the changing environment of research, the balance between research, teaching and administrative workload with its influence on career choices and patterns, the interactions between industry and academia, work‐life balance, the proportion of women academics in the field, gender awareness, and so on.

This paper aims to report the production of 316L-1 Wt.% NiB cubes by using the selective laser melting (SLM) process. The laser used was pulsed, millisecond Nd:YAG system with maximum average power 100 W.

Densification under different processing conditions (pulse energy, average laser power, laser scan speed, powder layer thickness, pulse frequency) was investigated. Morphology, macro and microstructure of laser melted samples were characterized by digital camera images and by scanning electron microscope. Density of the cubes was determined by Archimedes method in water. Vickers microhardness of samples was determined under the load of 25 g. Corrosion behavior of 316L and 316L-NiB samples was conducted in 5 per cent HCl solution at the testing temperature of 20°C during 240 h.

Using laser power of ∼60-70 W, lower beam overlap and powder layer thickness of 200 µm, 3D cubical samples were obtained with significant balling in individual layers and an overall porosity being around 30 per cent. By increasing laser power to ∼80 W, with higher beam overlap and lower powder layer thickness of 100 µm, SLM parts with no balling and the presence of small pores of up to 4 per cent (20 Hz) and 9 per cent (40 Hz) were obtained. With further increase of laser power to 90 W, overall porosity rose to around 12 per cent. The addition of 1 Wt.% NiB to stainless steel negligibly lowered its corrosion resistance in 5 per cent HCl solution.

A part from 316L stainless steel with balling-free structure and good density was successfully obtained through pulsed-SLM process with the aid of 1 Wt.% of NiB addition. Aside from significant influence on the improved structure of cubes, NiB had a favorable effect on microhardness values while practically not affecting the corrosion resistivity of the base material in an aggressive surrounding.