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The purpose of this paper is to investigate the extent, drivers, and conditions underlying backshoring in the Finnish manufacturing industry, comparing the results to the wider ongoing relocation of production in the international context.

The survey of 229 Finnish manufacturing firms reveals the background, drivers, and patterns of offshoring and backshoring.

Companies that had transferred their production back to Finland were more commonly in industries with relatively higher technology intensity and they were typically larger than the no-movement companies, and with a higher number of plants. They also reported more commonly having a corporate-wide strategy for guiding production location decisions.

Backshoring activity in the small and open economy of Finland seems to be higher compared to earlier studies in larger countries. The findings suggest that there is a transformation in the manufacturing industries with some gradual replacement of labor-intensive and lower technology-intensive industries toward higher technology-intensive industries.

Moving production across national borders is one option in the strategies of firms to stay competitive. Companies must carefully consider the relevance of various decision-making drivers when determining strategies for their production networks.

Manufacturing industries have traditionally been important for employment in the relatively small and open economies of the Nordic countries. From the social perspective, it is important to understand the ongoing transformation and its implications.

There are few empirical studies available of the ongoing backshoring movement, utilizing data from company decision makers instead of macroeconomic factors.

The aim of this paper is to describe the most important occupational risks in maintenance operations.

This study analyzed all maintenance‐related fatalities since 1985 together with one group of severe accidents in Finland. In connection with the study, risk assessments were carried out in companies with the aim of charting the risks on sites.

The results indicate that the typical risks in maintenance operations involve poor ergonomics and that the most severe risks among these can lead to direct injury. Severe or even fatal injuries are mainly caused by crushing or falling.

To manage the risks, maintenance operations should be taken more carefully into account when designing and reconstructing machinery and work environments. It should be ensured that workers have relevant safety knowledge by means of risk assessments and instruction in safe working practice. In addition, safety cooperation with the customer is essential.

The findings indicate that maintenance operations include certain occupational risks. Among such risks, subcontracting offers a specific challenge to the service provider's safety management. The findings of this study provide advice on the safety measures necessary for accident prevention and how to execute them.

This paper aims to answer the following questions: What conditions must be taken into account in order to manage maintenance‐related risks? and how can the service‐providing company assess and manage maintenance‐related risks?

The study was based on analyses concerning: maintenance‐related risks in companies; literature review; and real accident data. The development process was carried out in cooperation with companies providing maintenance services.

Based on the findings, the method takes into account various risks relating to maintenance operations. The method includes specific parts for safety planning and hazard identification for managing maintenance safety. In addition, it provides a safety check‐list for the worker.

The usability and feasibility of the method should be reassessed and developed. The method could be especially useful in an electronic form.

The method can be utilized for assessing maintenance‐related occupational risks in different working environments. The results from the assessments create the basis for risk management in industrial maintenance.

Owing to certain specific safety challenges, maintenance operations require a specific risk assessment method. However, such a method has not been previously available. The findings and feedback indicate that this kind of a risk assessment tool can be useful in companies.

As hospital operations are undergoing major changes, comprehensive methods are needed for evaluating the indoor environment quality (IEQ) and usability of workspaces in hospital buildings. The purpose of this paper is to present a framework of the characteristics that have an impact on the usability of work environments for hospital renovations, and to use this framework to illustrate the usability evaluation process in the real environment.

The usability of workspaces in hospital environments was evaluated in two hospitals, as an extension of the IEQ survey. The evaluation method was usability walk-through. The main aim was to determine the usability characteristics of hospital facility workspaces that support health, safety, good indoor air quality, and work flow.

The facilities and workspaces were evaluated by means of four main themes: orientation, layout solution, working conditions, and spaces for patients. The most significant usability flaws were cramped spaces, noise/acoustic problems, faulty ergonomics, and insufficient ventilation. Due to rooms being cramped, all furnishing directly caused functionality and safety problems in these spaces.

The paper proposes a framework that links different design characteristics to the usability of hospital workspaces that need renovation.

The purpose of this paper is to create an organized picture of the current understanding of social media-based value creation and business models.

Following the process model presented by Fink (2005), a systematic literature review of academic journal articles published between 2005 and 2014 was conducted. The research was grounded on the theoretical foundations of service-dominant logic.

This study offers detailed descriptions and analyses of the major social media mechanisms affecting how value is created in social media-based value networks and the kinds of impact social media can have on present and future business models.

The study is limited to academic research literature on business organizations, excluding all studies related to public and non-profit organizations.

Attention is given to developing an in-depth understanding of the functions and concrete value creation mechanisms of social media-based co-creation within the different organizational processes (e.g. in product and service development and customer services) and to updating the related practices and knowledge.

This study provides new insight into the challenges related to research models and frameworks commonly used for observing value creation, thus highlighting the need for further studies and updates.

The study was designed to investigate the bidirectional causation between the real estate market characteristics (residential property prices/rents (including PTR), office rents) and the rise of coworking spaces (CSs) in the peripheral areas of Germany.

Based on the desk research, the authors constructed their own database of 1,201 CSs. The authors gathered data on the residential and office prices and rents on a district level. To identify real market differences between districts with and without CSs, the authors applied the t-test for independent samples.

The second-highest number of CSs were found to operate in the office market peripheries. This phenomenon should be explained by a search for lower office rents, which CSs seek. Most CSs in the peripheral areas of Germany were only recently established in tourist-oriented regions in the south and north of Germany. In this paper, the authors confirmed that the strength of peripheral CSs lies in the hybridity of their operations: for the majority of CSs, running a CS is a non-core business. The authors argue that the role of CSs is rather limited in attracting real estate investors and boosting the real estate market in the peripheral areas of Germany.

The research shows that peripheral locations are attracting CSs to significant extent. The study shows that CSs can be part of corporate real estate or workplace strategies. As the majority of peripheral CSs are located in tourism areas, the subletting of vacant spaces could be a lucrative business model for hotels, particularly in the times of pandemics. Therefore, further research should focus on the role of tourist areas in the implementation of CSs model.

The focus of this study (CSs in peripheral areas) is original. Additionally, applying the real estate perspective to study the location of CSs is novel as well.