Innovative Tools and methods using BIM for an efficient renovation in buildings
This book describes a BIM-based toolkit that has been developed according to the latest research activities on building information modelling and semantic interoperability to optimize the building process. It highlights the impacts of using such new tools to fast renovation activities starting from the decision-making and design stages to the construction site management with the possibility to monitor occupants' and owners’ feedback during the realization process. In this process, a framework has been developed and implemented to allow stakeholders involved in a renovation project to efficiently compile, maintain, and add data about (i) building elements, (ii) building services systems, (iii) tenants, operators, and owners of the building, and (iv) current and predicted performance of the building from the various data sources available. The framework applies and specializes the existing practices in the Semantic Web, Linked Data, and ontology domain to the management of renovation projects. It has been designed to be open so that any system which implements the required functions and uses the specified conventions will be able to achieve semantic interoperability with other framework-compliant systems in the renovation domain. Finally, this book represents the validation process of the toolkit that has been held in three demo sites: a social housing building in Italy and two private residential buildings in Poland and Finland. The outcome shows that the toolkit facilitates the renovation process with relevant reductions of time, costs, and energy consumption and that the inhabitants can take advantage of the increase in building performances, quality, and comfort.
Innovative Superhard Materials and Sustainable Coatings for Advanced Manufacturing ; Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Innovative Superhard Materials and Sustainable Coating, Kiev, Ukraine,12 - 15 May 2004.
Modern industry imposes ever increasing requirements upon tools and tool materials as to the provision for performance under the conditions of high cutting speeds and dynamic loads as well as under intensive thermal and chemical interactions with workpiece materials. The industry demands a higher productivity in combination with the accuracy of geometry and dimensions of workpieces and quality of working surfaces of the machined pieces. These requirements are best met by the tool superhard materials (diamond and diamond-like cubic boron nitride). Ceramics based on silicon carbide, aluminum and boron oxides as well as on titanium, silicon and aluminum nitrides offer promise as tool materials. Tungsten-containing cemented carbides are still considered as suitable tool materials. Hi- hardness and high strength composites based on the above materials fit all the requirements imposed by machining jobs when manufacturing elements of machinery, in particular those operating under the extreme conditions of high temperatures and loads.
Innovative Models for Sustainable Development in Emerging African Countries
Explores key issues and presents recent case studies in areas of importance for the transition to a circular model of development in emerging African countries that will minimize resource consumption and waste production.
Innovative comparative methods for policy analysis : Beyond the quantitative-qualitative divide
Innovative Comparative Methods for Policy Analysis aims to provide a decisive push to the further development and application of innovative and specific comparative methods for the improvement of policy analysis. To take on this challenge, this volume brings together methodologists and specialists from a broad range of social scientific disciplines and policy fields.
Innovations Towards Sustainability : Conditions and Consequences
The volume contains eight articles together with comments by twenty authors and discussants on the topic of innovations and sustainability. It provides a competently written, balanced and differentiated state-of-the-art insight into the relation between innovations and sustainability from the perspective of evolutionary economics. The scope of the contributions encompasses the technological, social, organizational, and political dimensions of the topic. Each article is discussed by a competently written commentary providing a critical evaluation and relating it to the relevant literature. Particular interest lies on the issues of steering opportunities and path formation capabilities by decentralized agents, or governmental institutions from the viewpoint of evolutionary economics.
Innovations and the Environment
The book to provide a systematic review of the forces that drive technologies towards sustainable development, Innovations and the Environment discusses the possibilities for fostering renewable energy and environmental quality oriented innovations from the perspective of decision makers in policy and business.
Innovation, Sustainability and Management in Motorsports: The Case of Formula E
This book provides novel insights on management innovation and sustainability in motorsport. Utilizing the all-electric racing championship called Formula E as case, it draws upon data from multiple sources such as sustainability reports of Formula and its stakeholders, media data, podcasts and newspaper articles, partner publications, and social media outputs
Innovation, Market Archetypes and Outcome : An Integrated Framework
The book examines an integrated innovation environment. Four market archetypes as well as the market outcome for each archetype are described. Innovation dynamics including commoditization, the constant innovation challenge and the sustainability of innovation are analyzed along with cases including the iPod, Lego, Barbie, the browser wars and Google. A diagnostic matrix is presented which enables one to take a ´snapshot´ of a product in the innovation environment. This book is an invaluable tool for the academic, the manager and the consultant to understand ‘where’ a firm is located in an innovation environment, `why’ it is so located and provides valuable clues as to ‘what’ to do when designing strategy.
Innovation in Life Cycle Engineering and Sustainable Development
Business models, which aims at determining how efficient can be a life cycle strategy from different point of view (customer, policy, environment, economics,…). End of life strategies, presenting recent approaches and technological solutions for end-of life treatments. Product development for sustainability, which aims at showing how designers integrate environmental conside- tions to improve their solutions. Product life cycle management, dealing with methods and tools to support life cycle considerations.
Information Technologies in Environmental Engineering ; ITEE 2007 - 3rd International ICSC Symposium
Potentially dangerous environmental changes are happening in the atm- phere, oceans, animal habitats and places where hazardous materials are used, or have been discarded without adequate environmental protections. These increasing problems that also affect human health demand for int- disciplinary approaches where engineers, natural scientists, economists and computer scientists work together. This book publishes the results of the ITEE 2007 conference where information about the topics above has been presented and discussed among environmental engineers, computer scientists and economists.
Industrial applications of microbial enzymes
Microbial enzymes are important because they can be used for a wide variety of industrial purposes. There is dispersed and scanty information available with respect to microbial enzymes and their industrial applications. In this edited book, leading scientists have covered the various aspects of microbial enzymes and their industrial applications. Using microbial enzymes can help expedite various manufacturing processes and contribute to sustainable development, which is a priority worldwide. Research gaps in the entrainment of microbial enzymes with their direct application in product development are a major focus of this volume.
Indigenous Knowledge and Education in Africa
This book presents a strong philosophical, theoretical and practical argument for the mainstreaming of indigenous knowledge in curricula development, and in teaching and learning across the African continent. Since the dawn of political independence in Africa, there has been an ongoing search for the kind of education that will create a class of principled and innovative citizens who are sensitive to and committed to the needs of the continent. When indigenous or environment-generated knowledge forms the basis of learning in classrooms, learners are able to immediately connect their education with their lived reality. The result is much introspection, creativity and innovation across fields, sectors and disciplines, leading to societal transformation. Drawing on several theoretical assertions, examples from a wide range of disciplines, and experiences gathered from different continents at different points in history, the book establishes that for education to trigger the necessary transformation in Africa, it should be constructed on a strong foundation of learners’ indigenous knowledge. The book presents a distinct and uncharted pathway for Africa to advance sustainably through home-grown and grassroots based ideas, leading to advances in science and technology, growth of indigenous African business and the transformation of Africans into conscious and active participants in the continent’s progress.
Indigenous Cultures and Sustainable Development in Latin America
This book outlines development theory and practice over time as well as critically interrogates the “cultural turn” in development policy in Latin American indigenous communities, specifically, in Guatemala, Honduras, Ecuador, and Bolivia.
Indicator Systems for Sustainable Innovation
In the recent past, environmental innovations have led to a considerable reduction of many pollutants; however, further innovation is required to tackle remaining pollution sources. This work analyses the significance and the effects of framework conditions on innovation activities that contribute to the realisation of a sustainable development. The book links the experiences of different research projects with the aim to develop a system of indicators to evaluate sustainable effects of (environmental) innovations. A comprehensive framework for an indicator system is established that allows to include different environmental innovation fields such as process innovations in the steel production, substitution of dangerous chemicals, organisational innovations in the field of waste disposal or sustainable water management.
Indian Agriculture Towards 2030 : Pathways for Enhancing Farmers’ Income, Nutritional Security and Sustainable Food and Farm Systems
The book comprises of ten contributions. Apart from the overview chapter on transformational change and the concluding chapter on pathways for 2030, there are eight thematic chapters on topics such as transforming Indian agriculture, dietary diversity for nutritive and safe food; climate crisis and risk management; water in agriculture; pests, pandemics, preparedness and biosecurity natural farming; agroecology and biodiverse futures; science, technology and innovation in agriculture; and structural reforms and governance.
Improving Potassium Recommendations for Agricultural Crops
This book highlights concepts discussed at two international conferences that brought together world-renowned scientists to advance the science of potassium (K) recommendations for crops.
Improving Health Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries : A Case Book
This book is a collection of 12 case studies capturing decades of experience improving health care and outcomes in low- and middle-income countries. Each case study is written by healthcare managers and providers who have implemented health improvement projects using quality improvement methodology, with analysis from global health experts on the practical application of improvement methods.
Implementing the mediterranean diet : Nutrition in practice and public health
Situates this ‘gold standard’ of diets within the wider food environment by bridging the gap between the evidence-based health benefits of the Mediterranean diet and its implementation. The text explores the many approaches that can be used by health professionals to help consumers adopt this healthy eating pattern, as well as the barriers encountered with implementing this diet at home and in the wider environment. It also considers sustainable food and farming practices, and national food strategies. A one-stop resource for food and health professionals, this seminal text demonstrates the full range of benefits that the Mediterranean diet can bring to society.
Implementing Strategic Environmental Assessment
More countries are now using Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) than ever before. This timely and comprehensive Handbook describes the implementation of SEA in 18 countries around the world, as well as a critical analysis of different SEA methodologies. The Handbook starts by introducing key SEA principles and the legal requirements of the new European SEA Directive (which became law in 2004). It then describes the implementation of SEA in 11 European Union countries, as well as the USA, Canada and New Zealand. This is contrasted with SEA requirements of four developing countries. The Handbook explores public participation issues and the wide-range of SEA methodologies used in terms of resources (soils, water and biodiversity) and sectors of activity (transport, agriculture, waste management and industry). The Handbook concludes with a discussion on best practice, capacity building and the future of SEA.
IAEA Atlas of Cardiac PET/CT : A Case-Study Approach
This book presents a wide portfolio of examples of positron emission tomography coupled with computer tomography (PET/CT) studies in various cardiac conditions in order to provide a rationale for the implementation of this technology in an array of clinical conditions. Cardiovascular diseases are a major contributor to premature morbidity and mortality worldwide. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are particularly affected by cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), with more than 75% of all CVDs deaths occurring in these countries. For this reason, target 3.4 of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agenda aims at a 30% reduction in premature mortality due to non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which include CVDs, by 2030.



















