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The purpose of this research is to detect, through applying a process-based view, how to manage economisation of the maintenance and modification operations in offshore petroleum logistics operations.

A single case study of engineering services, more specifically, maintenance and modification service operations, on a Norwegian Sea oil platform reveals the dynamics of building network capabilities in a consistent network structure. Two layers of coordination are studied: the engineering process and its context, represented by its network of interconnected firms. This case study empirically grounds how engineering service involves managing reciprocally interdependent exchange processes in the network structure.

Pooled interdependencies are vital in understanding the nature of service provision and use, and sequential interdependencies are vital in narrating the timing of processes to reveal the nature of process emergence to coordinate strings of production events. Furthermore, the network structure, when characterised by multiple interdependent projects, is also dynamic but at a slower pace.

Through the case study, operations management is revealed to be associated with project emergence at two levels: the core process level regarding daily continuous change, including the changing interaction of multiple different and interdependent projects, and the contextual level, where features of interdependency and integration change, affecting engineering service production. This provides guidance as to the economisation of engineering services. They change not only interactions in the flow of production but also its context.

Companies are increasingly engaged with global engineering networks through offshoring of product development activities from R&D to production. This creates many new challenges as operations get physically and culturally decoupled. The purpose of this paper is to improve understanding of how to effectively manage engineering offshoring activities in a context of global engineering networks. The main research question, therefore, is: “Can offshoring of engineering tasks be explained and managed using the concept of Global Engineering Networks (GEN)?” Effective approaches to handling the associated risks of engineering offshoring will be a key area of the investigation.

The research approach is based on the engineering design research methodology developed by Blessing and Chakrabarti, including a descriptive phase and a prescriptive phase. Four case studies of large multinational corporations in Denmark were carried out. Data gathering was mainly documentary studies and interviews. The main data analysis approaches were coding (Strauss and Corbin) and pattern‐matching (Yin). The dataset was analysed using the GEN framework suggested by Zhang et al. and Zhang and Gregory.

Engineering offshoring presents companies with challenges related to communication and knowledge sharing which is addressed through formal and informal mechanisms as well as a more streamlined operation. However, this did not remove the challenges. The GEN framework suggests a systematic approach to understanding global engineering networks through investigating their contextual features, critical capabilities to compete in a particular contextual circumstance, and configuration characteristics to deliver the capabilities. Using the GEN framework, the challenges faced by companies and the risks associated with their engineering offshoring activities can be explained as a mismatch between the required capabilities and the companies' ability to deliver these capabilities.

This paper provides new theoretical insight into both engineering offshoring and GEN theories by extending the GEN framework to address complications within engineering offshoring. This strengthens both academic fields, and will be able to help engineering managers to develop appropriate engineering network configurations for offshore engineering operations.

Strategic trends towards service operations have been widely reported in the recent literature, but organisational capabilities to support such service-centred strategies are less well understood. The purpose of this paper is to identify key organisational issues in managing complex engineering service operations throughout the lifecycle.

Using instruments developed from the product lifecycle management technologies and the network configuration concept, key organisational issues for engineering service operations were identified through case studies focusing on complex engineering products and services systems across a variety of industrial sectors.

The case studies demonstrated different organisational features and strategic priorities of engineering service operations along the whole lifecycle. A generic trend has been observed for engineering systems to move from being design, development and manufacturing focused to embracing support and end-of-life recycling matters.

This paper provides an overall framework for integrating key organisational issues in engineering service operations. It contributes to the service literature by highlighting the need of developing appropriate organisational capabilities to support service-centred strategies with engineering cases. It also provides guidance for companies to manage their engineering network operations throughout the whole lifecycle of complex products and services systems.

This paper aims to improve understanding of how to manage global network operations from an engineering perspective.

This research adopted a theory building approach based on case studies. Grounded in the existing literature, the theoretical framework was refined and enriched through nine in‐depth case studies in the industry sectors of aerospace, automotives, defence and electrics and electronics.

This paper demonstrates the main value creation mechanisms of global network operations along the engineering value chain. Typical organisational features to support the value creation mechanisms are captured, and the key issues in engineering network design and operations are presented with an overall framework.

Evidenced by a series of pilot applications, outputs of this research can help companies to improve the performance of their current engineering networks and design new engineering networks to better support their global businesses and customers in a systematic way.

Issues about the design and operations of global engineering networks (GEN) are poorly understood in the existing literature in contrast to their apparent importance in value creation and realisation. To address this knowledge gap, this paper introduces the concept of engineering value chain to highlight the potential of a value chain approach to the exploration of engineering activities in a complex business context. At the same time, it develops an overall framework for managing GEN along the engineering value chain. This improves our understanding of engineering in industrial value chains and extends the theoretical understanding of GEN through integrating the engineering network theories and the value chain concepts.

The purpose of this paper is to propose an integrating framework for the configuration and performance of global engineering networks (GEN).

The reported study is based on a comprehensive literature review and refined by the practice of three global leading companies along key industry sectors.

This framework presents the key patterns of GEN from an evolution perspective and demonstrates the influence of the major driving forces.

In addition, this study also identifies research opportunities in two areas: further testing the theory of GEN with a broader range of industry sectors, and expanding the study to inter‐firm engineering activities. The further study is planned accordingly.

The paper offers a systematic view of GEN and can help companies in the design and operation.

The purpose of this paper is to present a crack initiation mechanism of the external hydrogen effect on type 304 stainless steel, as well as on fatigue crack propagation in the presence of hydrogen gas.

The effects of external hydrogen on hydrogen-assisted crack initiation in type 304 stainless steel were discussed by performing fatigue crack growth rate and fatigue life tests in 5 MPa argon and hydrogen.

Hydrogen can reduce the incubation period of fatigue crack initiation of smooth fatigue specimens and greatly promote the fatigue crack growth rate during the subsequent fatigue cycle. During the fatigue cycle, hydrogen invades into matrix through the intrusion and extrusion and segregates at the boundaries of α′ martensite and austenite. As the fatigue cycle increased, hydrogen-induced cracks would initiate along the slip bands. The crack initiation progress would greatly accelerate in the presence of hydrogen.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is an original work carried out by the authors on the hydrogen environment embrittlement of type 304 stainless steel. The effects of external hydrogen and argon were compared to provide understanding on the hydrogen-assisted crack initiation behaviors during cycle loading.

The purpose of this study is to develop an electromagnetic loading method for online measurement of the acoustoelastic coefficients and bus bar plane stress.

A method based on the combination of electromagnetic loading and the acoustoelastic effect is proposed to realize online measurement of acoustoelastic coefficients and plane stress. Electromagnetic loading is performed on the bus bar specimen, and the acoustoelastic coefficients and the bus bar plane stress are obtained by the ultrasonic method. An electromagnetic loading experimental platform is designed to provide electromagnetic force to the metal plate, including an electromagnetic loading module, an ultrasonic testing module and a stress simulation module.

The feasibility of the proposed electromagnetic loading method is proved by verification experiments. The acoustoelastic coefficients and plane stress measured using the electromagnetic loading method are more accurate than those measured using the traditional method.

The proposed electromagnetic loading method provides a new study perspective and enables more accurate measurement of the acoustoelastic coefficients and plane stress. The study provides an important basis for evaluating the operation status of electrical equipment.