The Strengths and Weaknesses of Indonesia's Timber Export Business

Timber is another name for wood and is considered to be an essential natural resource in our world today. Lumber is another word for timber, although that describes a packaged wood that is for commercial sale. The timber industry is enormous on a global scale, particularly in Indonesia, and provides a material that is used for a variety of products. Because the majority of the land mass is covered in forest, it is no surprise that timber proves to be an important resource the country to exploit for economic gain.

The exportation of timber by Indonesia is a dominant reason why they have become more economically developed. In 1987, Indonesia exported more than $1.7 billion (U.S. currency) worth of plywood and continues to be its 2nd largest export behind oil. However, after a regulation was put in place to limit the amount of timber extracted, exports have dropped slightly. The Indonesian Department of Forestry is directly responsible for these regulations, mostly to preserve the forests that are still left standing.

Like everything else, timber has some strengths and weaknesses. More than anything, timber has provided a huge economic gain for the country. It provides a third of all timber used in the world, only second to Malaysia. Not only does the timber provide economic gain in the form of cash, but trade as well. Resources that Indonesia desires but doesn’t hold in it’s home land must buy it from other countries (import). The timber that is so readily available can sometimes be used to trade for more specialty items. Because of the abundance of forests in Indonesia and their strong export business, it requires a lot of labor, which is another one of the strengths of timber. Over 300,000 people are employed to contribute to the exportation of timber, which makes the standard of living higher for those employed men and women.

On the flip side, timber has some weaknesses that are detrimental to the country. As stated early, timber can be singled out along with the presence of oil, as being the main reasons why the country has economically expanded. Due to this fact, forests are being destroyed at an alarming rate which has posed obvious problems. Regulations have inevitably been put in place to limit the amount of forestry being chopped down. The problem with these regulations is they do not seem to be strictly enforced which has encouraged illegal activity. In addition to forests continuing to decline more rapidly than wanted, the illegal timber industry has caused the market to be somewhat unstable. Illegal timber is sold at a much lower price which threatens the legal timber market and causes disequilibrium.

Thermodynamic Crystal View

Low-temperature SEM magnification series for a snow crystal. The crystals are captured, stored, and sputter coated with platinum at cryo-temperatures for imaging.

The nature of a crystallization process is governed by both thermodynamic and kinetic factors, which can make it highly variable and difficult to control. Factors such as impurity level, mixing regime, vessel design, and cooling profile can have a major impact on the size, number, and shape of crystals produced.

Now put yourself in the place of a molecule within a pure and perfect crystal, being heated by an external source. At some sharply defined temperature, a bell rings, you must leave your neighbours, and the complicated architecture of the crystal collapses to that of a liquid. Textbook thermodynamics says that melting occurs because the entropy, S, gain in your system by spatial randomization of the molecules has overcome the enthalpy, H, loss due to breaking the crystal packing forces:

T(S_liquid − S_solid) > H_liquid − H_solid

G_liquid < G_solid

This rule suffers no exceptions when the temperature is rising. By the same token, on cooling the melt, at the very same temperature the bell should ring again, and molecules should click back into the very same crystalline form. The entropy decrease due to the ordering of molecules within the system is overcompensated by the thermal randomization of the surroundings, due to the release of the heat of fusion; the entropy of the universe increases.

But liquids that behave in this way on cooling are the exception rather than the rule; in spite of the second principle of thermodynamics, crystallization usually occurs at lower temperatures (supercooling). This can only mean that a crystal is more easily destroyed than it is formed. Similarly, it is usually much easier to dissolve a perfect crystal in a solvent than to grow again a good crystal from the resulting solution. The nucleation and growth of a crystal are under kinetic, rather than thermodynamic, control.

Crystal growth

Once the first small crystal, the nucleus, forms it acts as a convergence point (if unstable due to supersaturation) for molecules of solute touching – or adjacent to – the crystal so that it increases its own dimension in successive layers. The pattern of growth resembles the rings of an onion, as shown in the picture, where each colour indicates the same mass of solute; this mass creates increasingly thin layers due to the increasing surface area of the growing crystal. The supersaturated solute mass the original nucleus may capture in a time unit is called the growth rate expressed in kg/(m²*h), and is a constant specific to the process. Growth rate is influenced by several physical factors, such as surface tension of solution, pressure, temperature, relative crystal velocity in the solution, Reynolds number, and so forth.

The main values to control are therefore:

• Supersaturation value, as an index of the quantity of solute available for the growth of the crystal;
• Total crystal surface in unit fluid mass, as an index of the capability of the solute to fix onto the crystal;
• Retention time, as an index of the probability of a molecule of solute to come into contact with an existing crystal;
• Flow pattern, again as an index of the probability of a molecule of solute to come into contact with an existing crystal (higher in laminar flow, lower in turbulent flow, but the reverse applies to the probability of contact).

The first value is a consequence of the physical characteristics of the solution, while the others define a difference between a well- and poorly designed crystallizer.

Engineers

All engineers work at planning, designing, implementing and controlling the systems that represent the way people use technology. The systems that are the subject of Industrial Engineering design are broad and are characterized by a need to integrate both the physical and decision making capabilities of humans together with all other aspects of the system design. Problems range from the design of a work method and work station, to the design of a factory layout and methods of controlling the flow of materials on the factory floor, to the design of an overall corporate plan involving materials procurement, production, inventory and distribution. The idea of a factory is also extended to include health care systems, municipal systems, transportation systems; in fact all the systems that are essential to the functioning of modern society. Systems that facilitate effective decision making and implementation in areas such as scheduling, inventory, and quality control are typical of industrial engineering. An integral part of IE:  Designing for People

Human behaviour and capabilities are key element in the systems Industrial Engineers work with. In designing the layout of a production line for an automobile manufacturer, the checkout counter for a supermarket, the organization of office work flow for a bank or the materials handling system for a steel plant, the engineer must consider both physical requirements and cost parameters and the physiological and behavioral performance of the human operators. The Industrial Engineer has a dual role, both to extend human capability to operate, manage and control the overall production system and to ensure the safety and well being of those working in the system.
Design and development of these systems requires the unique background of the Industrial Engineer. The process of engineering always starts with measurement. Where other engineers might measure temperatures, pressures or wind loads, the Industrial Engineer measures the time of a work cycle, dollar values of expenditures, rates of machine failures, and demand processes for finished goods. Usually the mathematical analysis must take into account risk and uncertainty to a larger extent than in other engineering fields. Computer simulation and optimization are often required. The concepts and techniques found in the Industrial Engineering curriculum have been selected to assist the student to develop the skills that meet the specific challenges of systems which involve managerial activities.

Learning Curves – Book Review

Writer - Raph Goldworthy

As most product designers and industrial designers would be aware there is a real shortage of good, high quality books on the topic of design sketching.

For many years designers were relying on the classic Presentation Techniques by Dick Powell. Presentation Techniques was certainly a great book for it’s time (and still is), however most copies were out of date for many years until a re-release was done around 2000. Then after many years of waiting for something new on the design sketching book front, in 2005 Design Sketching by Klara Sj olén and Erik Olofsson was released, an inspirational product design sketching book featuring twenty-four talented students from the Umeå Institute of Design. Hot on the heels of that came Sketching – Drawing Techniques For Product Designers by Koos Eissen and Roselin Steur and Analog Dreams by Michael DiTullo. While all of the above books are superb and provide various tips, tricks and techniques for improving your product design sketching, there was always a nagging feeling in the back of my mind there was something missing from them – what it is, I cannot specifically say.

When I received Learning Curves – An Inspiring Guide to Improve Your Design Sketching Skills by Allan Macdonald and Klara Sj olén I was elated to discover that this book has that “IT” which the others mentioned above are missing in some way. After several reading sessions, many flick throughs admiring the stunning sketches and pondering the great tips, and in between thinking ‘my god I need to polish my sketching skills’, I have come to believe that Learning Curves is probably the best design sketching book released in 20 years.

Learning Curves covers all the standard tips, tricks and techniques you would expect to find in a book dedicated to showing you how to improve your sketching skills. But where it is significantly different from most sketching books is that it actually assumes you have some level of sketching ability or at least that you are currently trying to develop a base level. Instead of focusing on starting completely from scratch, which many other sketching books do and Instead of belting you over the head with the basics, the book covers them quickly and succinctly, then moves through to medium and advanced skill areas.

Every page in Learning Curves is filled with beautiful sketches which sit along side paragraphs full of tips and tricks that are highly useful, informative and in most cases clearly answer some of those sketching questions many designers have argued over forever. Although what really makes the book great is that is doesn’t just force one persons point of view onto the reader, in fact it often presents various designers views, opposing points or ways of doing so readers can choose what works for them or the project they might be working on.

To achieve such an broad and, at the same time, deep exploration of design sketching, over 40 designers and sketching professionals contributed to the book. This means that everyone, whether a raw beginner or a seasoned professional can pick up Learning Curves and gain something from it. What is also really fantastic about the book is that instead of directly competing with the other design sketching books available it actually compliments them.Learning Curves is an extremely well written and informative design sketching book that will assist product designers or industrial designers of any level to build and develop their design sketching skills.

Toddlers served industrial cleaning fluid instead of water by blundering restaurant are taken to hospital with chemical burns

Two toddlers had to be treated in hospital after being mistakenly served industrial cleaning fluid instead of water at a restaurant.
One-year-old Daniel Martin began coughing violently after gulping from a beaker in the incident at a Toby Carvery.
His parents Phil and Claire Martin raised the alarm after they sipped the drink and found it tasted of bleach.

The child’s cup had been accidentally filled with a chemical used to clean pipes, which had been left in an unmarked jug and was picked up by the waiting staff.
Daniel was taken to hospital after the discovery and was treated for chemical burns to his mouth and throat. The family had been visiting friends Stuart and Diane  Watkinson, whose daughter Sophie, 16 months, also drank from a  contaminated cup and needed  hospital treatment.
Both families are now demanding a guarantee from the dining chain that the mix-up can never  be repeated.

Last night, Mrs Martin, 37, a welfare adviser, described how she and her tram driver husband, Stuart, 35, had been at the table with  Daniel and sister Rebekah, four.
‘When Daniel began to cough we were encouraging him to sip more water, which was obviously just making it worse,’ said Mrs Martin, from Bury.
‘At the same time, Stuart and myself took the lids off the  children’s cups. I put it to my mouth and immediately it smelt like bleach.

‘The barmaid came and said: “I’m really sorry, we’ve used the pipe fluid”. I didn’t believe her at first.
‘The manager called the ambulance and gave us a bottle of the cleaner to show us and to show to the doctors.
‘We had to wait several hours for the poisons unit to run the tests.
‘The fluid in the pipes had been diluted. The doctors told us that if it was neat, it would be strong enough to dissolve tissue in the body.’
The accident happened at a Toby Carvery in Ecclesall Road South, Sheffield. Mr Watkinson said that when he took a sip of the water Sophie had been drinking he ‘couldn’t believe it’.

‘To know my child had drunk such a dangerous substance through no fault of her own made me absolutely furious.
‘A moment’s carelessness could have devastated our lives. It just doesn’t bear thinking about how things could have turned out.’  
Kathryn Baines, a public liability solicitor at Irwin Mitchell, said: ‘It beggars belief that this hazardous liquid was, as we understand it, left in a water jug without any warning or hazard signs to identify it.
Pipe cleaner is a highly dangerous substance, especially if consumed, and this basic error in health and safety procedures could have had utterly devastating consequences.’
The restaurant chain, owned by leisure group Mitchells and  Butlers, said staff have been retrained in cleaning practices  following the incident in May.
A spokesman said: ‘We can confirm Toby Carvery has admitted liability and are currently in  correspondence with Mr and Mrs  Martin’s solicitors. The safety and well-being of our customers is our primary concern.’

By Paul Sim

Order Selecting Ergonomic Innovation Creating Safe, Easy

As workers and producers of high importance placed on ergonomic equipment and processes, based warehouse order picking has become more friendly employees. New technologies and lean process has allowed for workers to work more efficiently and safely when assembling or picking orders. In stock orders came, workers must choose the right items and the number of correct items to be shipped to customers or retail stores. Ergonomics focuses on minimizing bending, reaching, and appealing associated with the tasks in the warehouse and manufacturing facilities.
Distance
The days of walking back and forth throughout the warehouse and climb up and down stepladders to reach a large and heavy box over. Instead, the system chose a unique integrated and workstations has revolutionized the process. The items in storage that is sent to a station close to the order selector. Travel time is minimized, by the box or product rolling forward position as one of the shelf region select each taken from inventory. There are at least reaching and carrying, and do not climb, the more ergonomically sound.
Rack Mobility
Workstation is used to ask employees to walk about while filling or assembling orders. Several types of units now allow workstations to storage racks and shelves to come to the workers. Modular workstation has changed how workers complete their tasks with ergonomic considerations and mobility features. Mobile unit has wheels on the bottom, which allows the entire unit to move easily when it is empty, the shift above or when changing to a different order pickers. There is a slight bending, lifting and stretching involved in this workstation,
Stock rotation
Instead of employees had to pull each item off the shelf stationary while filling an order, choose the system or module provides FIFO inventory stocking rotation of the rear of the unit that does not disrupt the process of choosing. If necessary, a box or product can be incorporated into the return path to take them away. The first alternative is to pile them on the floor, which could create the danger of chaos, tripping or causing tension from bending back.
Access Angle
Reach, bend, bend, climb and play used to be required to select the inventory items right off the shelf or shelves. Ergonomic design makes for easy and preferred employee-friendly, reduce injuries and muscle tension. By increasing the angle and height of the rack to take stock of workers have a better view of the box and the products and can reach them more easily. Physical effort to select the items have now been transformed into a more ergonomic angle, making the work easier and lower risk of injury.

How To Design A Space Efficient Factories

If you operate a factory and wants to add more machines and people to the area, but lack of space, there are some things you can consider. A factory building may have a specific size and space allowed for the purpose of factory work. While there may be no way to increase the size of the building, there are ways to make better use of the area and the size of his room. Learning some simple tricks and strategies, can improve the way that the area function.

If your company has grown in the growth and you need to add more machines and workers, without moving to a larger facility, then you are in luck. That's because there are some great ideas that you can consider when making better use of space.

The machines are present, they may have been formed to meet the space requirements at the time. If the new changes have emerged later, the changes also may need to be made to the machine and where they are established. This may help to have an engineer out to be more organized space.

An engineer will measure the size of the machine and knowing how each space relates to the width and overall length. Using mathematical equations, they will help to fix the machines and systems so that more space is created.

A professional company that went out to organize the space will ensure that everything moves with safety in mind. There are safety precautions that must be followed when designing the plant room. Safety workers will hold in mind when planning out the new settings system.

Sloping conveyor belt used in some locations. When a company uses a system that is able to create more functional space, they can allow them to carry out some work through different levels within the building. If there are different levels of the building, finding a way to organize space efficiently can help.

Learning how to create more space in the factory, it can be done with the help of a professional engineer. There may be a way to save space and without having to change locations. If your company is doing well and you have to make room for more machines and people, hire a professional company to help could be ideal. Companies may find that there are several different methods to create enough space, so they do not have to upgrade to a larger facility.