Sheila Walbe Ornstein, Brenda Chaves, Coelho Leite and Cláudia Miranda de Andrade
The city of São Paulo, as one of the World’s mega‐cities, has considerably increased the quantity of commercial floor space recently, with around 160,000m2 added in this sector in…
Abstract
The city of São Paulo, as one of the World’s mega‐cities, has considerably increased the quantity of commercial floor space recently, with around 160,000m2 added in this sector in 1998 and another 400,000m2 planned for 1999. For this post‐occupancy evaluation (POE), the building chosen was a recently designed office building, considered to be high‐tech which has a total of 34 floors including six underground levels, 1,033m2 of useful area per floor and circulation of more than 3,000 people per day. The unique situation of the different users, with their particular layouts, is an area that has still not been analyzed in POEs in Brazil. This paper will present the results of a pilot POE applied to four floors occupied by the headquarters of a manufacturer of domestic appliances, focusing on the methodological approach.
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Sheila Walbe Ornstein, Brenda Chaves Coelho Leite and Cláudia Miranda de Andrade
Presents an innovation in surveys and consulting activities in the performance evaluation of work environments in Brazilian cities such as São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro by means of…
Abstract
Presents an innovation in surveys and consulting activities in the performance evaluation of work environments in Brazilian cities such as São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro by means of selected and specific examples in the financial sector. Large office buildings, as intelligent enterprises, are still in need of efficient tools for quality control of production processes, use, operation and maintenance, besides the concerns for diverse agents involved in this design with aspects such as advanced technology, automation and security. Two case studies have been chosen in the financial sector – one of the fastest growing service sectors in large Latin American cities – where methods and evaluation techniques were applied, with a focus not only on technological aspects, but also on the collection of functional parameters and indicators of occupation, security and automation, which is aimed at productivity and satisfaction for the users and occupants of these office buildings.
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Marina Tsili, Eleftherios I. Amoiralis, Jean Vianei Leite, Sinvaldo R. Moreno and Leandro dos Santos Coelho
Real-world applications in engineering and other fields usually involve simultaneous optimization of multiple objectives, which are generally non-commensurable and conflicting…
Abstract
Purpose
Real-world applications in engineering and other fields usually involve simultaneous optimization of multiple objectives, which are generally non-commensurable and conflicting with each other. This paper aims to treat the transformer design optimization (TDO) as a multiobjective problem (MOP), to minimize the manufacturing cost and the total owing cost, taking into consideration design constraints.
Design/methodology/approach
To deal with this optimization problem, a new method is proposed that combines the unrestricted population-size evolutionary multiobjective optimization algorithm (UPS-EMOA) with differential evolution, also applying lognormal distribution for tuning the scale factor and the beta distribution to adjust the crossover rate (UPS-DELFBC). The proposed UPS-DELFBC is useful to maintain the adequate diversity in the population and avoid the premature convergence during the generational cycle. Numerical results using UPS-DELFBC applied to the transform design optimization of 160, 400 and 630 kVA are promising in terms of spacing and convergence criteria.
Findings
Numerical results using UPS-DELFBC applied to the transform design optimization of 160, 400 and 630 kVA are promising in terms of spacing and convergence criteria.
Originality/value
This paper develops a promising UPS-DELFBC approach to solve MOPs. The TDO problems for three different transformer specifications, with 160, 400 and 630 kVA, have been addressed in this paper. Optimization results show the potential and efficiency of the UPS-DELFBC to solve multiobjective TDO and to produce multiple Pareto solutions.
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Leandro dos Santos Coelho, Viviana Cocco Mariani, Marsil de Athayde Costa e Silva, Nelson Jhoe Batistela and Jean Vianei Leite
The purpose of this paper is to introduce a chaotic harmony search (CHS) approach based on the chaotic Zaslavskii map to parameters identification of Jiles-Atherton vector…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to introduce a chaotic harmony search (CHS) approach based on the chaotic Zaslavskii map to parameters identification of Jiles-Atherton vector hysteresis model.
Design/methodology/approach
In laminated magnetic cores when the magnetic flux rotates in the lamination plane, one observes an increase in the magnetic losses. The magnetization in these regions is very complex needing a vector model to analyze and predict its behavior. The vector Jiles-Atherton hysteresis model can be employed in rotational flux modeling. The vector Jiles-Atherton model needs a set of five parameters for each space direction taken into account. In this context, a significant amount of research has already been undertaken to investigate the application of metaheuristics in solving difficult engineering optimization problems. Harmony search (HS) is a derivative-free real parameter optimization metaheuristic algorithm, and it draws inspiration from the musical improvisation process of searching for a perfect state of harmony. In this paper, a CHS approach based on the chaotic Zaslavskii map is proposed and evaluated.
Findings
The proposed CHS presents an efficient strategy to improve the search performance in preventing premature convergence to local minima when compared with the classical HS algorithm. Numerical comparisons with results using classical HS, genetic algorithms (GAs), particle swarm optimization (PSO), and evolution strategies (ES) demonstrated that the performance of the CHS is promising in parameters identification of Jiles-Atherton vector hysteresis model.
Originality/value
This paper presents an efficient CHS approach applied to parameters identification of Jiles-Atherton vector hysteresis model.
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Vesna Rubežić, Luka Lazović and Ana Jovanović
The purpose of this paper is to propose a chaotic optimization method for identifying the parameters of the Jiles–Atherton (J-A) hysteresis model.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose a chaotic optimization method for identifying the parameters of the Jiles–Atherton (J-A) hysteresis model.
Design/methodology/approach
The J-A model has five parameters which are assigned with physical meaning and whose determination is demanding. To determine these parameters, the fitness function, which represents the difference between the measured and the modeled hysteresis loop, is formed. Optimal parameter values are the values that minimize the fitness function.
Findings
The parameters of J-A model for three magnetic materials are determined. The model with the optimal parameters is validated using measured data and comparison with particle swarm optimization algorithm, genetic algorithm, pattern search and simulated annealing algorithm. The results show that the proposed method provides better agreement between measured and modeled hysteresis loop than other methods used for comparison. The proposed method is also suitable for simultaneous optimization of multiple hysteresis loops.
Originality/value
Chaotic optimization method is implemented for the first time for J-A model parameter identification. Numerical comparisons with results obtained with other optimization algorithms demonstrate that this method is a suitable alternative in parameters identification of J-A hysteresis model. Furthermore, this method is easy to implement and set up.
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Fernanda Polli Leite and Paulo de Paula Baptista
This study develops and validates a scale to measure social media influencers' intimate self-disclosure (SMIs' ISD), by accessing consumer perceptions of the intimacy levels of…
Abstract
Purpose
This study develops and validates a scale to measure social media influencers' intimate self-disclosure (SMIs' ISD), by accessing consumer perceptions of the intimacy levels of SMIs' self-disclosure. The authors further evaluate the extent to which SMIs' ISD fosters consumers' self-brand connections via consumer-SMI parasocial relationships.
Design/methodology/approach
The scale was developed through item generation, purification, and validation. First, items were generated from existing scales and revised based on feedback provided by experts. The items were subjected to exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses using an online survey with 433 participants. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine the predictive power of SMIs' ISD on parasocial relationships and self-brand connections.
Findings
The results suggest that the perceived SMIs' ISD is a unidimensional construct. As proposed, SMIs' ISD enhances consumer-brand connections through the underlying mechanism of consumers' sense of being in a parasocial relationship with an SMI.
Originality/value
This study advances self-disclosure and influencer marketing literature by addressing the lack of measures on SMIs' ISD from a consumer perspective and the scarcity of empirical understanding of how brands can profit from SMIs' capabilities to make intimate self-disclosure. Based on the literature review, this study is the first to empirically consider factual, emotional, and cognitive intimacy to develop scale and demonstrate the importance of SMIs' ISD in developing consumers' self-brand connections.
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Marina Bouzon, Paulo Augusto Cauchick Miguel and Carlos Manuel Taboada Rodriguez
The environmental consciousness of customers and the emergence of stricter environmental regulations has pushed industries to think about environmental management by means of…
Abstract
Purpose
The environmental consciousness of customers and the emergence of stricter environmental regulations has pushed industries to think about environmental management by means of reverse logistics (RL) implementation. The purpose of this paper is to provide a current panorama of RL in Brazil and a comparison to international RL body of literature as well. It also seeks to provide a systematic literature review procedure and a conceptual framework for RL literature categorization.
Design/methodology/approach
A descriptive and content analysis approach was adopted. First, a topic delimitation phase was aimed at defining the main research areas and related keywords. Second, a material collection phase focussed on a selection of peer-reviewed Brazilian and international journals. Third, a total of 34 papers were assessed by quantitative indicators, and a conceptual RL framework was employed to classify them. Finally, papers were evaluated using content analysis.
Findings
The RL research gaps in Brazil are in information technology, facility location, inventory control, outsourcing, and performance measurement. It is also reported that, In Brazil, RL is predominantly linked to recycling activities, and the practice of RL is driven by social conditions and economics in some specific industrial sectors.
Research limitations/implications
The focus is restricted to RL applications in Brazil and the corresponding articles published by Brazilian researchers.
Originality/value
Practitioners and academics might find this review useful, as it outlines gaps and limitations of existing research in the largest Latin America economy. This work is built on the recent research in RL. No systematic literature review of this kind has previously been undertaken.
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Francisca Nathalia de Sousa Leite, Eduardo Rodrigues de Castro and Henrique Ryosuke Tateishi
Constrained input use and lower productivity of rural establishments may be associated with restricted or concentrated access to financial resources, especially in developing…
Abstract
Purpose
Constrained input use and lower productivity of rural establishments may be associated with restricted or concentrated access to financial resources, especially in developing countries. Meanwhile, agricultural activity entails risks associated with the volatility of net cash flows and external events, which may discourage riskier but higher return investments (e.g. technology). As rural credit can alleviate the former, and rural insurance may help alleviate the latter, the combination of both policies might endorse each other. The purpose of this study is to analyze the use of rural credit and rural insurance policies with respect to productivity and crop area, in São Paulo state, Brazil, using farmer's microdata from two surveys realized in 2007/08 and 2016/17.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses propensity score matching and the entropy balance approaches in a complementary way. This study compared three policy treatments – rural credit, rural insurance and both policies combined, against establishments that received neither one. The analysis considered sugarcane, grain and grape crops separately and employed farmer's microdata. Moreover, the analysis was stratified into two categories: establishments owned by family farmers and those that did not.
Findings
Rural credit policy is related to higher productivity and larger cultivated area for grains and only to larger area for grape crops in the last analyzed period (2016/17). Rural insurance, as a unique policy or combined with credit, is related to higher productivity and cultivated areas, for all analyzed crops, only in the second period (2016/17), as the policy became more accessible to farmers. Heterogeneity regarding crops and farmers might influence the effectiveness of these policies. Despite rural insurance being related to a better performance regarding the outcome variables, it still reaches a small share of farmers, especially when combined with credit.
Originality/value
Many studies about the effectiveness of rural credit in Brazil have been conducted throughout the years, while there have been fewer studies regarding rural insurance since it became an important policy in the mid-2000s. However, few studies have conducted an analysis comparing its individual and interactive influences, with such level of disaggregation, on a farm-level database, considering the heterogeneity of the data and the different categories of farmers.