Improvement in values

You cannot improve value by improving value or by wishing for an improvement in value. Value is an effect. In order to improve value, you need to change the underlying causes of value. You need to change the variables that create those effects. The critical variables that have a strong connection with value are ... 

Collaborative networks Companies have now recognized that great improvements in value can be attained by co-ordinating the efforts of partners along the supply chain. When firms focus only on their internal operations they are making decisions in isolation and as a result this can lead to the overall performance of the supply chain deterioration. As we will see later, firms who work together and share their plans and other information are actually able to improve the overall supply chain performance to then-mutual benefit. 

Organizations are increasingly recognizing that great improvements in value can be attained by co-ordinating the efforts of partners along the supply chain. 

Patient safety in connection with errors and multiple organisational failures that shift professionals away from best practice (with multiple errors in management and inter-professional coordination) appears to be a typical area in which improvement in value has a major impact on the volume of care (poorly delivered care extends hospital stays and overloads the health care system), the cost of care and ultimately of course on quality and safety. 

Adding lead to a fuel increases octane numbers by several points. From an RON of around 92, the increase is on the order of 2 to 3 points for 0.15 g Pb/1 and of 5 to 6 points for 0.4 g Pb/1. For higher concentrations the effect of saturation appears and additional improvement in the octane number becomes more modest. The preceding values concern the RON as well as the MON. Nevertheless, one more often observes slightly larger increases for the RON. In other words, lead addition tends to increase the sensitivity slightly (on an order of one point for 0.4 g Pb/1). 

Introduction and Commercial Application JUe objective of performing appraisal activities on discovered accumulations is to reduce the uncertainty in the description of the hydrocarbon reservoir, and to provide information with which to make a decision on the next action. The next action may be, for example, to undertake more appraisal, to commence development, to stop activities, or to sell the prospect. In any case, the appraisal activity should lead to a decision which yields a greater value than the outcome of a decision made in the absence of the information from the appraisal. The improvement in the value of the action, given the appraisal information, should be greater than the cost of the appraisal activities, otherwise the appraisal effort is not worthwhile. 

In other words, the cost of the appraisal must be less than the improvement in the value of the development which it provides. It is often necessary to assume outcomes of the appraisal In order to estimate the value of the development with these outcomes. 

Advances in fundamental knowledge of adsorption equihbrium and mass transfer will enable further optimization of the performance of existing adsorbent types. Continuing discoveries of new molecular sieve materials will also provide adsorbents with new combinations of useflil properties. New adsorbents and adsorption processes will be developed to provide needed improvements in pollution control, energy conservation, and the separation of high value chemicals. New process cycles and new hybrid processes linking adsorption with other unit operations will continue to be developed. 

Electroporation. When bacteria are exposed to an electric field a number of physical and biochemical changes occur. The bacterial membrane becomes polarized at low electric field. When the membrane potential reaches a critical value of 200—300 mV, areas of reversible local disorganization and transient breakdown occur resulting in a permeable membrane. This results in both molecular influx and efflux. The nature of the membrane disturbance is not clearly understood but bacteria, yeast, and fungi are capable of DNA uptake (see Yeasts). This method, called electroporation, has been used to transform a variety of bacterial and yeast strains that are recalcitrant to other methods (2). Apparatus for electroporation is commercially available, and constant improvements in the design are being made. 

The uses of spunbonded fabrics as coverstock in diapers and other personal absorbent devices will most likely remain unchallenged for the near term. Virtually any other nonwoven production method appears to be at a cost disadvantage opposite spunbonded polypropylene. There have been composite products developed from meltblown and spunbonded combinations, where areas of either improved hydrophobicity or hydrophilicity are desired. These products can be produced on-line at relatively low additional cost and offer high value to diaper manufacturers. Any competitive threat is likely to come from advances in film technology such as large improvements in perforated film used in segments of absorbent product appHcations, particularly sanitary napkins. 

Condenser and eboiler AT. The losses for AT are typically far greater than those for reflux beyond the minimum. The economic optimum for temperature differential is usually under 15°C, in contrast to the values of over 50°C often used in the past. This is probably the biggest opportunity for improvement in the practice of distillation. A specific example is the replacement of direct-fired reboilers with steam (qv) heat. 

Electrodialysis. Electro dialytic membrane process technology is used extensively in Japan to produce granulated—evaporated salt. Filtered seawater is concentrated by membrane electro dialysis and evaporated in multiple-effect evaporators. Seawater can be concentrated to a product brine concentration of 200 g/L at a power consumption of 150 kWh/1 of NaCl (8). Improvements in membrane technology have reduced the power consumption and energy costs so that a high value-added product such as table salt can be produced economically by electro dialysis. However, industrial-grade salt produced in this manner caimot compete economically with the large quantities of low cost solar salt imported into Japan from Austraha and Mexico. 

Many process simulators come with optimizers that vary any arbitrary set of stream variables and operating conditions and optimize an objective function. Such optimizers start with an initial set of values of those variables, carry out the simulation for the entire flow sheet, determine the steady-state values of all the other variables, compute the value of the objective function, and develop a new guess for the variables for the optimization so as to produce an improvement in the objective function. 

The optimization of heat-transfer surfaces also plays a role. At the optimum, the lifetime cost of a surface is approximately equal in value to the lifetime cost of power used to overcome the temperature differential in the condenser and evaporator. Additionally, condensation on insulation is a sign of questionable insulation (see Insulation, thermal). Frost is a certain signal that insulation can be improved. 

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