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Publications Repository
Gdańsk University of Technology

Publications from the year 2018

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  • Is data management a new “digitisation”? A change of the role of librarians in the context of changing academic libraries’ tasks
    • Anna Wałek
    2018 Full text

    Academic libraries’ tasks have been evolving over the years. The changes have been stimulated by appearing of electronic resources, automated library systems, digital libraries and Open Access (OA) repositories. Librarians’ tasks and responsibilities in the academic environment have been evolving in accordance with new tasks they were expected to assume. A few years ago there was a discussion during which an attempt was made to answer the question if a digital librarian is still a librarian. Digital librarians were expected to acquire a number of new skills and knowledge which were supposed to allow them to manage and organize the digital library and handle all the specialized tasks of massive digitization, storage, access and reference services. The popularization of OA gave rise to new changes. The role of librarians evolved towards becoming specialists who not only supervised the process of uploading resources on open repositories, provided the training for academic staff, but also promoted the idea of OA. The evolution of the idea of open access to the results of scientific research towards open access to research data, the advent of Data Science and Open Research Data (ORD) management were all lively discussed. The academic staff were faced with a new and difficult tasks of collecting, describing and disseminating the research data. Moreover, the academics were supposed to take advantage and care of the citation impact of their scholarly works. As a result, librarians started learning about ORD management and the strategies of supporting academic institutions’ further development. For the majority of librarians it was a natural way to develop new skills and knowledge. In the course of bringing about the changes a new job appeared – data librarians, soon becoming sought-after specialists at universities all around the world. The article discusses the issues concerning the role of data librarians and their tasks resulting from European Union (EU) grant programmes and the guidelines of the publishers who are supposed to publish the research publications together with the research data. On the basis of this analysis the author will present the strategy for the creation of the Open Science Competence Centre at the Gdańsk University of Technology (GUT).


  • Is Digitalization Improving Governance Quality? Correlating Analog and Digital Benchmarks
    • Jaromir Durkiewicz
    • Tomasz Janowski
    2018 Full text

    The digitalization of public governance and the resulting concept of electronic governance is a characteristic feature of contemporary information society. Both can be defined as the process and outcome of digital transformation: transformation of the “analog” version of governance into “digital” governance. Measuring both versions of governance against typical performance measures of efficiency, effectiveness, equity, openness and others, we expect comparable levels of advancement on both sides. The aim of this paper is to check the validity of this assumption using four international instruments to measure analog and digital governance: E-Government Survey (EGS) provided by the United Nations, Global State of Democracy Index (GSD) provided by International IDEA, Network Readiness Index (NRI) provided by the World Economic Forum and Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) provided by the World Bank. Three WGI indicators – Government Effectiveness, Regulatory Quality, Voice and Accountability, and two GSD indicators – Civil Society Participation and Direct Democracy were selected to measure analog governance; and two EGS indicators – Online Service Index and EParticipation Index, and three NRI indicators – Laws Relating to IT, ICT Use and Government Efficiency, and Importance of ICT to Government’s Vision were selected to measure digital governance. All data is from 2016, except GSD which is from 2015, and mostly covers all 193 United Nations member states. Prior to analysis, 11 analog-digital pairs were recognised for expected positive correlations based on conceptual or theoretical arguments, and various correlation coefficients were calculated for them. The results partly confirm expected correlations, including strong positive correlations between digital indicators and the analog indicators of Government Effectiveness, Regulatory Quality and, partly, Voice and Accountability. The results also show unexpected weak correlation between E-Participation and the analog indicators of Civil Society Participation and Direct Democracy. The paper concludes with discussion on the nature of the analog-digital relationships and on design of reliable governance benchmarks in the digital era.


  • Isolation of Bacteriocin-producing Staphylococcus spp. Strains from Human Skin Wounds, Soft Tissue Infections and Bovine Mastitis
    • Zalewska Magdalena
    • John Churey
    • Randy Worobo
    • Sławomir Milewski
    • Piotr Szweda
    2018 Full text Polish Journal of Microbiology

    A collection of 206 Staphylococcus spp. isolates was investigated for their ability to produce compounds exhibiting antistaphylococcal activity. This group included Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus xylosus strains recovered from bovine mastitis (n = 158) and human skin wounds and soft tissues infections (n = 48). Production of substances with antimicrobial activity was observed in six strains. Five of them were recovered from bovine mastitis, and one was isolated from the infected human skin wound. Three of the six antimicrobials produced by the different strains showed substantial loss of antimicrobial activity upon treatment with proteolytic enzymes, which suggests their peptidic structure. Additional studies have shown that one of the putative bacteriocins was efficiently secreted to the liquid medium, facilitating its large-scale production and isolation. The peptide produced by the M2B strain exhibited promising activity; however, against narrow spectrum of Staphylococcus spp. clinical and animal isolates. Growth inhibition was observed only in the case of 13 (including nine S. aureus, three S. xylosus and one S. epidermidis strains) out of 206 strains tested. Important advantage of the produced agent was its high thermal stability. Fifteen minutes of incubation at 90°C did not affect its antimicrobial potential. The highest efficiency of production of the agent was demonstrated in TSB medium after 24 hours at 37°C. The researches revealed that ability to production of bacteriocin among staphylococci is not very common. Only one (S. xylosus strain assigned as M2B) out of 206 strains tested produced satisfactory amounts of antistaphylococcal bacteriocin. In spite of that, we would encourage other researchers for investigation of their collections of Staphylococcus spp. isolates towards selection strains producing antimicrobial agents.


  • Isolation of the relative decrease in magnetic permeability contribution to reluctance of an open magnetic circuit based on stray field measurements
    • Zbigniew Usarek
    2018 NDTnet

    The goal of the study was to evaluate a relative decrease in magnetic permeability in open magnetic circuits based on stray magnetic field measurements. The boundary element method was used to simulate magnetic circuits with variable geometry and variable magnetic permeability. The simulated magnetic circuits were rectangular or bone-shaped flat samples. Reluctance was increased in the middle of the samples resulting in leakage of magnetic flux. An analysis was performed to determine relations between the leakage and factors that increase the reluctance of the samples. These factors were the cross-sectional area and magnetic permeability. In case of strong demagnetization of a ferromagnetic sample, an approach to quantitative evaluation of a stray magnetic field distribution was proposed. Results of the analysis indicate that the amplitude of the tangential component of the stray magnetic field increases with the increasing absolute value of the relative change of the reluctance. The same tendency was observed in the case of the gradient of the normal component. The decrease in the cross-sectional area of the sample (and more precisely its width) has similar influence on the stray magnetic field as the decrease in the magnetic permeability. These two factors were also studied in the coincidence and the possibility of isolation of information about a relative decrease in the magnetic permeability was verified. The isolation scheme was formulated and validated based on experimental as well as numerical data. Results of the validation indicate that it is possible to make a rough estimation of a local reduction in the magnetic permeability based on stray field measurements.


  • Istotność procesu selekcji przy wykorzystaniu algorytmów genetycznych do diagnostyki cieplno-przepływowej
    • Marta Drosińska-Komor
    • Jerzy Głuch
    2018 Przegląd Mechaniczny

    Artykuł ten ma za zadanie przedstawić istotność zastosowania procesu selekcji przy diagnozowaniu turbin parowych. Możliwość zastosowania algorytmów genetycznych w diagnostyce cieplno-przepływowej wiąże się z zastosowaniem selekcji występujących parametrów, proces selekcji jest najtrudniejszy ze względu na liczbę parametrów. Liczba degradujących się parametrów może być różna tzn. możemy mówić o degradacji jednokrotnej lub wielokrotnej. Degradacje wielokrotne przysparzają najwięcej trudności podczas procesu selekcji w związku z wyborem odpowiedniego modelu selekcji.


  • Jak transportować produkty chemiczne, czyli przypadek wsadowego szeregowania zadań kompatybilnych
    • Szymon Duraj
    • Marek Kubale
    • Tytus Pikies
    2018

    Pokazano, że pewien problem transportu produktów chemicznych może być sprowadzony do problemu szeregowania identycznych zadań kompatybilnych na wsadowych maszynach jednorodnych i rozwiązany metodami kolorowania grafów. Ponieważ problem ten jest NP-trudny, zbadano przypadki szczególne, które dają się rozwiązać w czasie kwadratowym. Rozważania ogólne są wsparte doświadczeniami komputerowymi zebranymi w trakcie implementacji wybranych algorytmów szeregowania.


  • Jakość jako przedmiot badań naukowych i kierunek rozwoju gospodarki
    • Piotr Grudowski
    2018 Full text Biuletyn Informacyjny PR FSNT NOT w Gdańsku

    W artykule przedstawiono rozważania dotyczące włączenia kategorii jakości do nowego wykazu dyscyplin naukowych w Polsce. Podkreślono znaczenie rozwoju problematyki jakości w kontekście społecznym i gospodarczym.


  • Katechol - najważniejszy produkt pośredni szlaków biodegradacji węglowodorów aromatycznych
    • Natalia Filipowicz
    • Malwina Momotko
    • Agata Terebieniec
    2018

    Węglowodory aromatyczne to grupa toksycznych związków organicznych zdolnych do akumulacji w glebie i wodach gruntowych. Bardzo istotnym związkiem, ze względu na jego toksyczność oraz kluczowy udział w szlakach biodegradacji toksycznych węglowodorów aromatycznych, jest katechol. Katechol jest głównym intermediatem w szlakach biodegradacji węglowodorów monoaromatycznych. Pierścień katecholu ulega rozszczepieniu między dwiema grupami hydroksylowymi [rozszczepienie orto-], które przeprowadzane jest z udziałem 1,2-dioksygenaz katecholowych bądź w pozycji meta- w stosunku do pierwszej grupy hydroksylowej [rozszczepienie meta-], zachodzące z udziałem 2,3-dioksygenaz katecholowych. W efekcie tego rozszczepienia powstają związki alifatyczne, które przy udziale szeregu enzymów, zostają przekształcone do intermediatów cyklu Krebsa


  • Katedra Chemii Analitycznej Wydziału Chemicznego Politechniki Gdańskiej, cz. II Dzień dzisiejszy
    • Marek Biziuk
    2018 Analityka: Nauka i Praktyka

    Opisano infrastrukturę oraz aparaturę, jaka dysponuje Katedra Chemii Analitycznej Wydziału Chemicznego PG, a także realizowane granty i zlecenia. Omówiono stan kadrowy oraz rodzaje zajęć dydaktycznych prowadzonych przez Katedrę, a także kierunki dyplomowania oraz studia podyplomowe, kursy i letnie szkoły ścisle związane z Katedrą.


  • Kerogen to bitumen transformation with respect to host rock environment
    • Aleksandra Małachowska
    • Maria Mastalerz
    • Jan Hupka
    2018

    Research focuses on analyzing the role of rock constituents in kerogen transformation. It includes mineral and organic matter characterization, kerogen and bitumen isolation, quantification, and determination of the critical factors of transformation ratio concerning generating mobile versus less mobile hydrocarbons. The results indicate that the ratio mainly depends on the distribution and type of kerogen in the basin, and secondly on the interaction of these macerals with the mineral constituents of the surrounding rock.


  • Key issues in modeling and optimization of lignocellulosic biomass fermentative conversion to gaseous biofuels
    • Karolina Kucharska
    • Iwona Hołowacz
    • Donata Konopacka-Łyskawa
    • Piotr Rybarczyk
    • Marian Antoni Kamiński
    2018 Full text RENEWABLE ENERGY

    The industrial-scale production of lignocellulosic-based biofuels from biomass is expected to benefit society and the environment. The main pathways of residues processing include advanced hydrolysis and fermentation, pyrolysis, gasification, chemical synthesis and biological processes. The products of such treatment are second generation biofuels. The degree of fermentation of organic substances depends primarily on their composition and chemical structure. Optimization of fermentation conditions leads to better understanding of occurring processes. Therefore, an overview of recent developments in fermentation modeling is necessary to establish process parameters enabling high yields of biofuels production. Among process parameters affecting the yield and rate of biogas and biohydrogen, pH of the pulp, temperature, composition, biomass pre-treatment and digestion time are to be considered. The technology of anaerobic co-digestion has been intensively developed as a valuable solution for the disposal of organic wastes and sewage sludge. Modeling of biogas production from lignocellulosic biomass has been intensively investigated and is well described by adapted ADM1 model. Modeling of fermentative hydrogen production lacks a kinetic model incorporating process parameters with the view of pretreatment and fermentation. This paper presents the state-of-the-art on the problems related to lignocellulosic biomass pre-treatment and discusses the mechanisms of lignocellulosics conversion to gaseous biofuels.


  • KEYSTONE WG2: Activities and Results Overview on Keyword Search
    • Julian Szymański
    • Elena Demidova
    2018 LECTURE NOTES IN COMPUTER SCIENCE

    In this chapter we summarize activities and results achieved by the Keyword Search Working Group (WG2) of the KEYSTONE Cost Action IC1302. We present the goals of the WG2, its main activities in course of the action and provide a summary of the selected publications related to the WG2 goals and co-authored by WG2 members. We concludewith a summary of open research directions in the area of keyword search for structured data.


  • Kinetics of nitrogen removal processes in constructed wetlands
    • Magdalena Gajewska
    • Katarzyna Skrzypiec
    2018 Full text

    The aim of this paper is to present a state-of-the-art review of the kinetics of nitrogen removal in constructed wetlands. Biological processes of nitrogen removal from wastewater can be described using equations and kinetic models. Hence, these kinetic models which have been developed and evaluated allow for predicting the removal of nitrogen in treatment wetlands. One of the most important, first order removal model, which is still applied, was analysed and its rate coefficients and factors were compared. This study also demonstrates the validity of Monod and multiple Monod kinetics, commonly seen today. Finally, a computational example of the reaction kinetics of nitrogen removal was also included in the study.


  • Kinetics of pollutants removal in hybrid treatment wetlands – Case study comparison
    • Magdalena Gajewska
    • Katarzyna Skrzypiec
    • Krzysztof Jóźwiakowski
    • Piotr Bugajski
    2018 Full text ECOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

    Recent years have seen an increasing interest in hybrid constructed wetland (HCW) systems for domestic sewage treatment. This paper is focused on kinetics of removal of the main pollutants occurring in wastewater i.e. organics expressed as chemical oxygen demand, biochemical oxygen demand and total nitrogen. The purpose of the article is to compare different HCW configurations in terms of mass removal rates (MRR) and removal rate coefficients (kA and kv). Analysed data have been collected at two wetland systems, each composed by two subsurface flow beds: horizontal flow (HF) and vertical flow (VF). Reliable evaluation was achieved by using the same composition of influent wastewater in both HCWs. Performance of opposite configurations HF + VF vs. VF + HF was compared after each stage and the overall HCW system. The average mass removal rates of COD, BOD5 and TN in both systems were similar, respectively: 2.30, 0.98 and 0.40 g m−2 d−1. However, removal rates differ between single wetland beds after each treatment stage.


  • Kinetics study of the fully bio-based poly(propylene succinate) synthesis. Functional group approach
    • Paulina Parcheta
    • Janusz Datta
    2018 Full text POLYMER DEGRADATION AND STABILITY

    Currently, the increasing importance of the bio-based chemical compounds development is visible in the polymer chemistry, chemical engineering and materials science. It is well-known that the various purity level and different contaminants characterize petrochemical-based compounds compared to their biobased counterparts. Therefore, it is necessary to find out the contaminants impact on the bio-based monomers synthesis. One of the most important information about the reaction pathway gave the kinetics study. In this work, the fully bio-based poly (propylene succinate)s were synthesized under various temperature conditions via two-step polycondensation reaction. The kinetics studies were investigated with the use of a functional group approach. The first step of the polycondensation reaction was autocatalytic esterification reaction. During the second step, the polycondensation catalyst was used. For macromolecular structure characteristics and the progress of the chemical reaction monitoring, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, and Gel Permeation Chromatography were conducted. The activation energy value of 38.5 kJ/mol was determined for the first step of the bio-based polyols synthesis. The results of the investigations verified that the activation energy for the bio-based poly (propylene succinate) synthesis revealed lower value than the same polyester synthesis based on the petrochemical monomers. Thermal analysis by TGA measurements allowed confirmed the high thermal stability of the prepared bio-based polyols equaled ca. 418 st.C.


  • Klasyfikator rozmyty użyteczny we wstępnym doborze profili łopatkowych turbin parowych
    • Natalia Szewczuk-Krypa
    2018 Przegląd Mechaniczny

    W artykule przedstawiona została próba stworzenia wstępnego modelu klasyfikatora rozmytego użytecnego we wstępnym doborze profili łopatkowych turbin parowych. Dobór odpowiedniego rozwiązania dokonywany jest na podstawie parametrów przepływu czynnika przez wieńce turbiny. Tego typu narzędzie decyzyjne może okazać się przydatne zarówno w przypadku modernizacji istniejących już obiektów, w których zdiagnozowane uszkodzenia wymuszają kapitalny remont ukladu przepływowego, jak i przy projekcie nowego urządzenia


  • Klimatyzacja i wentylacja szpitalnych zespołów operacyjnych
    • Jacek Poplatek
    • Wiesław Czabański
    2018

    Utrzymywanie czystości i higieny w obiektach ochrony zdrowia jest nieodłącznym elementem troski o zdrowie pacjentów i personelu medycznego. W szpitalu codziennie nawet kilkudziesięciu pacjentów może być poddawanych zabiegom operacyjnym, czasem skomplikowanym, trwającym długo i wymagającym dużego wysiłku od personelu medycznego i lekarzy operatorów. Podczas zabiegów inwazyjnych – szczególnie trudnych i długotrwałych – poziom emisji zanieczyszczeń pyłowych i bakteriologicznych w powietrzu może być znaczny. Wzrost poziomu zanieczyszczeń w sali operacyjnej w trakcie zabiegu jest ściśle związany ze wzrostem ryzyka zakażeń pooperacyjnych. Eliminowanie zakażeń pooperacyjnych należy do najważniejszych zadań każdego szpitala (Wakefield, 1993). Aby to zadanie zrealizować, niezbędne jest przestrzeganie procedur i reżimów sanitarnych w szpitalu (sterylizacji narzędzi, dezynfekcji pomieszczeń, stosowania odpowiedniego ubioru personelu, itp.). Nie mniej istotne jest utrzymywanie odpowiednich parametrów czystości powietrza, mogących znacząco zmniejszyć ryzyko wystąpienia zakażeń wewnątrzszpitalnych. Rozważania w niniejszym rozdziale poświęcono zagadnieniom klimatyzacji i wentylacji oraz utrzymaniu czystości powietrza w szpitalnych zespołach operacyjnych.


  • Kluczowe zagadnienia procesu recyklingu zużytych modułów fotowoltaicznych I i II generacji
    • Anna Kuczyńska-Łażewska
    • Ewa Klugmann-Radziemska
    2018 Full text Zeszyty Naukowe Instytutu Gospodarki Surowcami Mineralnymi i Energią PAN

    W ramach technologii fotowoltaicznych wyróżniamy obecnie trzy generacje ogniw fotowoltaicznych. Pierwsza z nich to ogniwa z mono- i polikrystalicznego krzemu (c-Si), druga obejmuje ogniwa wykonane na bazie technologii cienkowarstwowej, zarówno z krzemu amorficznego (a-Si) jak i diseleneku indowo-miedziowo-galowego (CIGS), tellurku kadmu (CdTe) oraz arsenku galu (GaAs). Trzecia generacja to najnowsze technologie, takie jak: organiczne ogniwa słoneczne, ogniwa uczulane barwnikami czy ogniwa hybrydowe. Przyjmuje się, że średnia długość życia modułu fotowoltaicznego wynosi ok. 17 lat, co w połączeniu ze wzrastającym zainteresowaniem technologią fotowoltaiczną wiąże się ze zwiększona ilością odpadów, trafiających na składowiska. Oszacowano, że w 2026 roku liczba odpadowych modułów fotowoltaicznych osiągnie 5 500 000 ton. Będą to zarówno pozostałości po procesie produkcji, elementy uszkodzone podczas użytkowania oraz zużyte moduły fotowoltaiczne. Rozwój technologii fotowoltaicznych prowadzi również do doskonalenia istniejących i badań nad opracowaniem nowych metod recyklingu, dostosowanych do procesów produkcji modułów. W pracy zaprezentowano stan wiedzy na temat opracowanych technologii recyklingu modułów, wykonanych z krystalicznego krzemu oraz modułów cienkowarstwowych. Przedstawiono wyniki badań własnych nad procesem delaminacji modułów oraz roztwarzania elementów ogniw wykonanych w obu technologiach. W wyniku przeprowadzonych badań określono minimalną temperaturę, która powinna zostać zastosowana podczas dekompozycji materiału laminującego. Udowodniono, że folie wykonane przez różnych producentów ulegają procesom delaminacji w różnym stopniu, co może być spowodowane różnicami w stopniu usieciowana i stosunkowi polietylenu do polioctanu winylu. Przy wykorzystaniu metody trawienia sekwencyjnego podczas usuwania metalizacji można odzyskać nawet 1,6 kg srebra na 1 t połamanych mono- i polikrystalicznych ogniw krzemowych.


  • Knowledge management approaches among KIBS companies and their determinants – case study analysis
    • Małgorzata Zięba
    • Ettore Bolisani
    • Enrico Scarso
    2018 Full text

    This paper aims to present knowledge management (KM) approaches manifested by knowledge intensive business service (KIBS) companies together with their potential determinants (company size, type of services offered, and organizational structure). In particular, two types of approaches have been selected and examined, i.e. emergent KM approach and deliberate KM approach. Indeed, although KM approaches have been abundantly investigated in the literature, there are still not many studies comparing emergent KM approach with a deliberate one, especially with regard to the determinants of the two. Hence, the paper contributes to a better understanding of the differences between these two approaches and their influencing factors. The list of their potential determinants was established on the basis of literature review. Further on, ten case studies (from companies of various sizes and offering various services) have been examined to verify the factors determining the selection of KM approach. Although it is not possible to generalize, and such an assignment cannot be taken as a golden rule, the paper advocates that emergent KM approach is determined more by being a small company, while deliberate KM approach is determined to more extent by being a medium-sized one. As the analysis shows, the emergent/deliberate approach can also be determined by the type of service offered – if the service is not somehow regulated, then emergent approach is more common (e.g. IT services); while if the service has to conform some legal regulations and laws (e.g. legal/accounting services), then deliberate approach is more probable to be detected. Finally, in many cases being a hierarchical organization determines choosing deliberate KM approach, while having a flat structure – choosing emergent KM approach. The findings of both literature review and case study analysis indicate that there is a need to further analyse emergent and deliberate KM approaches with regard to their determinants. In addition, from the practical point of view, the paper shows that the two different approaches towards KM can be chosen by managers depending on the characteristics of the company (e.g. its size, offered services and organizational structure)


  • Knowledge Management Approaches of Small and Medium-Sized KIBS Firms: a Descriptive Analysis of Four Countries
    • Vlad-Andrei Alexandru
    • Andreia Gabriela Andrei
    • Ettore Bolisani
    • Juan Gabriel Cegarra Navarro
    • Marco Paiola
    • Enrico Scarso
    • Elena Madalina Vatamanescu
    • Małgorzata Zięba
    2018 Full text

    Purpose –There is evidence that small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) do not manage knowledge the same way as large firms, and that they approach knowledge management (KM) in various ways. However, the literature on this topic is still scarce and fragmented. In order to fill this gap, the paper aims to single out and discuss the different features that characterize the approaches to KM adopted by small companies. Design/methodology/approach – The paper examines the KM approaches followed by companies of various KIBS sectors in 4 countries (Italy, Poland, Spain, and Romania) as they emerge from the findings of a quantitative survey which involved 223 small KIBS firms. KIBS companies were investigated because knowledge and its management are their distinctive elements, as highlighted in past studies. Research results - The study confirms that small KIBS firms regard knowledge as a key competitive resource, and transferring/sharing knowledge as the main KM process. However, their approaches to KM are firm-specific and differ in several aspects, e.g.: number and kind of adopted KM practices; motivation and promoters of implementation; obstacles encountered in introduction; strategic and operational aims of such practices; level of formalisation and use in the company. Despite this variety, some regularities also emerge. In particular, the study shows that companies that implement KM activities as a response to knowledge-related problems coming from the daily practice follow a substantially different approach from those that implement them after a strategic analysis by the management. Originality/value – The paper contributes to a better understanding of KM strategies followed by small KIBS companies with a diversified number of employees and belonging to different sectors. Also, it provides an evidence-based survey of the features in different countries, which helps to highlight regularities in KM approaches even across multiple national contexts. Practical implications – The study provides useful insights into possible KM approaches in the KIBS sector; also, it contributes to a better understanding of KM in small enterprises in general. This can be of use to company executives for revising their KM approach, for implementing more suitable strategies in their organizational settings and, more generally, for developing awareness of KM-related problems and possible solutions.