• Energy Research

This study is a follow-up on the the implementation of a business model, which was created in a co-creation process between two universities and an established SME specialized in monitoring municipal and industrial water distribution systems.. A shared collaboration sustainability innovation project between two universities and SME company on research, development and innovation context results was analyzed. A product was innovated for water systems monitoring service's needs and generated from two universities and SMEs shared RDI pilot. Authors elaborate findings for commercialization possibilities success factors and challenges for the co-creation concept. Evaluation criteria used are implementation feasibility and environmental & economical value. InTo tool is utilized for after commercialization phase to evaluate business model in this case study. Literature review focuses on collaboration enhanced sustainability innovations, which is used as comparison frame. Authors suggest efficient actions for collaborative innovation and hurdles to stay away for smooth environmental area innovation commercialization.

Solving global sustainability challenges is based on a well-researched understanding of the corresponding underlying problems, key contributing factors, and current state-of-the-art. Utilizing the scope of recent doctoral studies is one potent way to map current young researchers nowadays and near future research focus areas and directions. Here, the authors focused on waste management, especially, mapping dissertations on the grooving global challenge of electronic waste. Currently, this is the first scoping study of its kind, about e-waste -related trends within the circle of waste management-related doctoral studies. Apparently, in a waste-related context, dissertations have a low interest in directly focusing on the topic of consumable e-waste, even though this waste stream is the world’s fastest-growing domestic waste stream. Only a handful of doctoral dissertations, related to e-waste management, were found in the study. In a more general waste-related benchmarking/comparing mapping search, the ProQuest Digital Dissertations database was found to contain 201 dissertations between the years 2015 and 2022, covering waste matters in general. E-waste was covered in six of these 201 dissertations. These six did not have any real overlapping between each other and their research areas. Further thesis content analysis revealed e-waste topics to be currently addressed through consumer behavior, material recovery processes, forecasting, and robotics. The need for future research in the areas of consumable e-waste management is also widely discussed.

Globalization, digitalization and rapid development of technology have made supply chains more complex than ever before. Complexity has forced many organizations to outsource their warehouse activities to Third-Party Logistics service providers. They, in turn, deploy automatization solutions and tools such as warehouse management system (WMS) software to manage in-house logistics services. However, research into third-party logistics (3PL) and WMS has so far been scarce, especially, regarding WMS and its sustainability supporting aspects. Large-scale outsourcing has recently received increasing attention from high-level decision-makers, in particular as regards the overall sustainability of logistics-related actions and processes. This systematic mapping-based study examines the current state of the art of academic literature considering WMS and its intersections with topics related to sustainability. As a result of the specific focus of the work, only a small set of 22 studies was found to add value to the topic, which opens up additional research opportunities in this direction. The majority of the studies were journal articles (13) rather than conference papers (9). The most frequently used keywords in these studies addressed the topics of WMS, ICT, sustainability, warehouse technology and operations. The content-based analysis revealed five main thematic areas, namely, WMS concept development, optimization and improvement, Internet of Things (IoT) and Industry 4.0, safety, and sustainability. Surprisingly, only one publication was devoted purely to WMS and indices built on the triple bottom line approach. The study considered neither the functions of WMS, nor sustainability-related features of WMS. The remaining studies discussed sustainability mainly from the safety perspective. It is concluded on the basis of this study that there are significant opportunities for further research in WMS and sustainability.

Publication reveals the current literature knowledge, intersection of 3PLs and warehouse management systems. The systematic literature review found 58 relevant publications, which were studied and classified to five most apparent and clearly present main groups. Groups were: a clear reference in the publication to WMS and 3PLs, WMS warehouse characteristics, WMS taxonomy division, WMS functions scope and WMS deployment considerations. Only eight publications were found to consider 3PLs using WMSs. The found literature did not contain any publications directly discussing 3PLs running and installing a WMS with the goal of running customers' warehouses. Some found publications used IMS as a substitute for WMS, even when the meaning is not the same. Given the systematic review process, the large number of covered database and wide range of keywords, the scarcity of results was surprising. Not even a publication with content of 3PLs selection a proper WMS for customer warehouse operations was found. Results indicate strong need to fill this research gap.

In gainsharing, a service provider and receiver collaborate in shared operations and process development efforts to improve the value of service, reduce costs, and boost the service provider's operational efficiency. The win-win model aims for continuous development loops; however, the prerequisites that both companies need to consider for success, do have several challenges. Many studies have examined these challenges in gainsharing from different perspectives; however, their focus has remained narrow. This study collates these different views in one summary set and presents them together. This combinatory view examines trust in gainsharing. Ultimately, this study reports the importance of trust in tangible numbers to improve gainsharing models, and the elements that need trust to function, in the context of logistics outsourcing.

The Internet of Things (IoT) has revolutionized interaction with technology, enabling seamless connectivity and data exchanges, opening up new possibilities for engineering applications, addressing humanitarian challenges. However, the widespread adoption of IoT technologies also raises concerns about network security and privacy. The study explores secure integration of IoT-enabled sensors and technologies, connecting engineering applications to humanitarian context. We discuss the importance of robust security measures to protect sensitive data and ensure the reliability and integrity of IoT systems. Furthermore, we highlight IoT engineering applications in humanitarian contexts, including disaster management, healthcare monitoring, environmental monitoring, and infrastructure development. We examine the challenges and opportunities associated with deploying IoT solutions in these areas and present case studies illustrating successful implementations. Additionally, ethical considerations surrounding data privacy, user consent, and the responsible use of IoT technologies are discussed too. By addressing the security concerns and ethical considerations, we can harness the full potential of IoT-enabled sensors and technologies to engineer solutions that improve the well-being and quality of life. Post-print / Final draft

This paper covers the results of a practical study on applicability of passive UHF RFID tags for the needs of construction industry. This research is a response to a need to map and evaluate available solutions for RFID-based identification of particular construction elements, hollow welded steel beams. We present a comparison of performance of five different commercial RFID tags. The performance of each tag is evaluated based on the results of the tests and compared to the given specifications. The results indicate that there are significant differences on performance and read range between various tags. It is shown that the exterior dimensions of the tags do not always relate to the tag performance and read range. The performance is also dependent on the proper use case, which states that careful evaluation process is recommended to be performed for each application to achieve optimal performance. Since the optimal tag for each use case may vary, the compatibility between the tags and RFID-solutions is a highly important issue for the companies in supply chain and is to be considered to minimize the investments for the supporting infrastructure and equipment.

Background: With the continuing growth of warehouses globally, there is an increasing need for sustainable logistics solutions in warehousing, but research linking warehouse management systems (WMS) and sustainability is lacking. Methods: A systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis were conducted in Scopus and Web of Science databases from 2006 to 2022 to investigate academic knowledge of WMS contributing to warehouses’ social and environmental sustainability. Results: Findings revealed only 12 topic-relevant articles from 2013 to 2022, primarily published recently. More recent articles have received more citations than earlier published works. The articles were from multiple research fields, such as business economics, engineering, computer science, and social sciences, with only one article on environmentally sustainable technologies. The top keywords were “warehouse management system”, “internet of things”, “industry 4.0” and “supply chain”. Only six articles had environmental sustainability terms in the keywords. Findings show more discussions about social rather than environmental sustainability. Most studies suggest integrating WMS with other systems to support sustainability efforts in warehousing. Conclusions: The study addressed a gap in academic literature regarding WMS and sustainability. Research findings added knowledge of practical activities to achieve warehouse operations and performance sustainability and proactively reduce warehouse operations’ environmental and social impacts.

Globally approximately 2 billion tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) is generated annually, and the trend is towards growth. To fight the ever-growing waste issue, different countries have different practices and processes with various sustainability levels. Waste can be treated in multiple ways and in the sustainability front, the focus on e.g. circular economy related activities has recently been acknowledged. The importance of recycling is also acknowledged, and luckily the waste management industry is moving towards more holistic approaches and trying to limit the waste disposal to landfills. However, most likely the landfills will still remain in some quantity for the waste that cannot be recycled or disposed in any alternative way. Therefore, it is important to understand what kind of landfills will be deemed as necessity and why, to limit the amount of waste that is disposed to landfills and to manage landfill more efficiently. Looking the solutions from technical and waste processing point of view, this work analyzed one of the most efficient and modern state-of-the-art waste facilities. Based on the found data, authors give technological based options to be considered, to how to solve the waste handling/processing challenges and reduce the need for landfills.