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This paper is concerned with the repetitive trajectory tracking control for space manipulators under model uncertainties and vibration disturbances.

The model uncertainties and link vibration of manipulators will degrade the tracking performance of space manipulators; in this paper, a new hybrid control scheme that consists of a composite hierarchical anti-disturbance controller and an iterative learning controller is developed to solve this problem.

The composite hierarchical controller can effectively attenuate model uncertainties and reject vibration disturbances, whereas the iterative learning controller is able to improve the tracking accuracy for repetitive reference trajectory.

The proposed scheme compensates for the shortcomings of iterative learning control which can only deal with repetitive disturbances, ensuring the accuracy and repeatability of space manipulators under model uncertainties and random disturbances.

The purpose of this paper is to study the changing perspectives of Chinese trade unions towards labour rights and interest, through exploring the nature of Chinese trade unions from the aspect of shop stewards, or enterprise union cadres. These opinions can explain the nature and orientation of unions towards representation and rights protection for workers.

This paper is based on a survey of 1,811 enterprise union chairpersons, which is analysed by variable interaction analysis through statistical package for social sciences.

Enterprise trade unions have realised the importance of labour representation and are willing to undertake actions for labour rights and interests in the companies. Enterprise union cadres tend to change the union for more autonomy and effectiveness in safeguarding collective labour rights at the workplaces. The enterprise union chairpersons have been learning how to use this multiple role of the Chinese trade union for pursuing the rights and interests of their own members. However, for shop stewards, it is essential for their unions to focus on inside‐company issues, rather than allocating energy or attention to outside issues, which are the duty of upper‐level unions.

Over half of the survey, companies are either state‐owned enterprises or small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises. This undermines the credibility of this research for explaining the situation in all kinds of companies in China. Meanwhile, the survey collects opinions and judgements from the enterprise union chairpersons, while ignoring those of the company managers and workers. This biased perception can then only present the minds and behaviour orientations of the union at the enterprise level.

This paper offers a pioneer study on shop stewards in the Chinese workplace through a large sample survey.

Due to the limitation of acknowledgment, the complexity of software system and the interference of noises, this paper aims to solve the traditional problem: traditional software cost estimation methods face the challenge of poor and uncertain inputs.

Under such circumstances, different cost estimation methods vary greatly on estimation accuracy and effectiveness. Therefore, it is crucial to perform evaluation and selection on estimation methods against a poor information database. This paper presents a grey rough set model by introducing grey system theory into rough set based analysis, aiming for a better choice of software cost estimation method on accuracy and effectiveness.

The results are very encouraging in the sense of comparison among four machine learning techniques and thus indicate it an effective approach to evaluate software cost estimation method where insufficient information is provided.

Based on the grey rough set model, the decision targets can be classified approximately. Furthermore, the grey of information and the limitation of cognition can be overcome during the use of the grey rough interval correlation cluster method.

This paper proposed the grey rough set model combining grey system theory with rough set for software cost estimation method evaluation and selection.

This paper aims to investigate the gear performance during meshing. The effects of line load, velocity and rough surfaces (kurtosis and skewness) on the lubrication characteristics and fatigue life of gears were analyzed.

In the mixed thermoelastohydrodynamic lubrication (TEHL) model, the distributions of pressure and film thickness are predicted using the Reynolds equation. The elastic–plastic rough contact model is used to calculate the contact force and area. To predict the fatigue life of the gears, the Dang–Van fatigue model is used to obtain the fatigue parameters under different line loads, velocities and rough surfaces.

The skewness of rough surfaces has a more significant effect on gear performance. In addition, according to fatigue parameters, it is found that when the load is too large, it leads to an increase in the probability of gear failure.

In this paper, a mixed TEHL model considering the effects of kurtosis and skewness is developed for the line contact to predict the mixed lubrication problem during gear meshing.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/ILT-09-2024-0356/

UNESCO’s ESD for 2030 Agenda places interdisciplinarity at the top of the three interrelated strategies for higher education contributions. However, more needs to be known about interdisciplinarity from a learning perspective, especially its measured relationship with learning outcomes. Does interdisciplinarity improve or hinder learning outcomes? What specific learning outcomes are more sensitive to interdisciplinarity? If a university prides itself on interdisciplinary teaching and learning, how is it fulfilled based on its curriculum? This study aims to focus on an intentionally interdisciplinary undergraduate curriculum at a Chinese university to answer these questions.

This study adopts a concept of interdisciplinary mobility to observe the extent to which undergraduate students would intentionally navigate across academic divisions at key curricular checkpoints. It then adopts student self-reporting on a set of institutional learning outcomes, aligned with AAC&U’s VALUE framework, to examine the correlations between the mobility patterns and the self-reported outcomes. Finally, it uses the qualitative self-reported data to deepen alignment between the institutional learning outcomes and the VALUE framework.

The study finds that students demonstrate distinctive patterns of interdisciplinary mobility when they intentionally navigate across academic divisions at key curricular checkpoints. Students make these decisions, which allow them to become interdisciplinarily wider, narrower or as is. Some of these mobility patterns show significantly positive or negative correlations with the self-reported outcomes, e.g. research capabilities. One mobility pattern demonstrates particularly higher self-reported outcomes.

This study introduces a concept of interdisciplinary mobility, which could inspire creative use of curricular checkpoints and therefore allow examining interdisciplinarity vertically vis-à-vis horizontally.

Despite servitization being widely regarded as an essential catalyst to improve manufacturing firms' survival and competitiveness, how to attain servitization remains debatable. The primary objective of this research is to explore whether or not, how, and when the dynamic capabilities affect servitization in the digital economy background. This research investigates the relationships between servitization and dynamic capabilities by incorporating firm ownership, firm lifecycle stage, digital economy level and environmental uncertainty as contingency factors in the research framework.

This research develops and verifies a conceptual framework for manufacturing servitization by employing the fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) in analyzing the secondary longitudinal data from 148 China-listed manufacturing firms involved in servitization from 2015 to 2020.

The analytical results of fsQCA identify several configurational solutions for the success of manufacturing servitization. Each factor can be an enabler for servitization success despite none of the factors discovered as an absolute condition. Manufacturing servitization success within the digital economy depends on the interactions between dynamic capabilities and contingency factors such as digital economy level, environmental uncertainty, firm ownership, and lifecycle stage.

All of the construct's measurements in this research adopt secondary data, and further investigation calls for primary data (e.g. survey) for higher validity.

This research extends the current view of servitization by proposing an integrative conceptual framework, allowing manufacturing servitization to be examined more pertinently and comprehensively. Second, the research is an initial attempt that adopts fsQCA in servitization studies. The study sheds light on the mechanisms of attaining servitization by revealing the importance of dynamic capabilities and their interactions with the contingency factors. Third, the research extends the application scopes of dynamic capability theory, firm lifecycle theory, contingency theory, and institutional theory. Fourth, the research findings enrich the understanding of servitization in the digital economy and give business practitioners insights on leveraging dynamic capabilities in different conditions to attain successful servitization under the current circumstances.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze Lenovo’s successful acquisition of IBM’s PC division using Ghemawat’s (2001) CAGE framework. It was an acquisition that was so full of symbols that it is difficult to know where to begin. Lenovo’s purchase of IBM in 2005 was first seen as a sign of the rapid growth and expansion of the Chinese economy and its transformation away from the traditional manufacturing base to more high-tech areas. For doomsday merchants in the land of Uncle Sam, it foretold the end of the world domination of the US economy. Despite a considerable number of skeptics at the time, Lenovo was clearly up to the task. Such was the success of the acquisition that by 2015, Lenovo could claim to have grown into the world’s number 1 PC maker, number 3 smartphone manufacturer and number 3 in the production of tablet computers.

This paper is a case study.

Despite a considerable number of skeptics at the time, Lenovo was clearly up to the task. Such was the success of the acquisition that by 2015, Lenovo could claim to have grown into the world’s number 1 PC maker, number 3 smartphone manufacturer and number 3 in the production of tablet computers. Indeed, by 2014, the firm had enough confidence to add the IBM server business to its portfolio.

The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Against the backdrop of IBM Personal Computer Business's acquisition by Lenovo Group, this case introduces the remodeling process of Lenovo's HR organization and development team, during which the company's 5P principle, namely “Plan (think clearly before making promise), Perform (promise is to be fulfilled), Prioritize (company's interest is top priority), Practice (make progress every day in every year), Pioneering (venture any experiment to be a trailblazer), takes shape. After learning about Lenovo's recruitment of internationalized talents, cross-cultural coaches for senior leaders, cultural development in internationalization and risk aversion in international operations, we can understand what Lenovo's HR team does to avoid conflicts in corporate culture and ethnic culture in cross-border mergers and acquisitions and integration, and how to adjust and change the HR management system.

This study aims to provide a new perspective and path to reduce the unsafe behavior of new generation of construction workers (NGCWs) in China. The purpose of this study is to explore the influencing mechanism of work-family balance on the unsafe behavior of NGCWs and test the mediating effect of job satisfaction and the moderating effect of group safety climate.

A theoretical model on the influencing mechanism of work-family balance on unsafe behavior of NGCWs was constructed through theoretical analysis. Research data were collected from 502 NGCWs via a questionnaire survey, and research hypotheses were testified with regression analysis.

The results show that work-family balance not only directly reduces NGCWs’ unsafe behavior but also indirectly reduces it through job satisfaction, which plays a partial mediating role. In addition to positively moderating the relationship between work-family balance and NGCWs’ unsafe behavior, group safety climate can also moderate the relationship between work-family balance and job satisfaction in a positive way.

This study provides practical implications for construction companies to reduce the unsafe behaviors of NGCWs from the perspective of work-family balance. Specifically, construction companies should adopt more flexible work rules, such as flexible organization and rotation systems, to increase their work autonomy. Meanwhile, construction companies need to improve the work environment and basic conditions for NGCWs, establish a reasonable salary system and provide attractive promotion opportunities to increase their job satisfaction. In addition, construction companies should provide active safety lectures and training, and supervisors should improve safety communication and interaction levels. Co-workers should remind workers about their safety attitudes and behaviors promptly. A good group safety climate will be created through the efforts of construction companies, supervisors and co-workers.

This study clarifies the influencing mechanism of work-family balance on the NGCWs’ unsafe behavior and further tests the partial mediating role of job satisfaction and the positively moderating effect of group safety climate on the influence relationship of work-family balance on job satisfaction and NGCWs’ unsafe behavior, which defines the boundary conditions of the relationship between work-family balance and NGCWs’ unsafe behavior, and promotes the effective integration of social exchange theory and theoretical system of influencing mechanism of construction workers’ unsafe behavior.