Browsing by Author "Flemmer CL"

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Environmental input-output analysis of the New Zealand dairy industry
(Inderscience Enterprises Ltd., 2/01/2012) Flemmer CL; Nepomuceno-Silo, J
This work presents data and analysis quantifying the total (direct and indirect) resource use and outputs (products and pollutants) of the New Zealand dairy industry for the year April 1997 to March 1998. It also identifies those sectors supplying the dairy industry which make significant indirect contributions to its total inputs and outputs. Although this data is 14 years old, it is the only large-scale, detailed data available. Further, more modern data can be compared with this baseline data. Comparison with the other major New Zealand food and fibre sectors shows that the dairy farming sector has the highest total water consumption and the highest total effluent. It also has high total land use, electricity use and production of animal methane. The dairy processing sector is water and fuel intensive and has high total water effluent and greenhouse gas emissions. The high resource use and pollutants have to be weighed against the enormous economic value of the dairy sectors.
Improving the built environment for manual wheelchair users: A review
(IOP Publishing Ltd, 2022-01-01) Flemmer CL
The aim of Universal Design is to make the built environment accessible to all people regardless of disability. This is a laudable aim, but most people are unaware of the many barriers manual wheelchair users actually face when accessing the built environment. The main challenges for manual wheelchair users arise from three areas. Firstly, there are intrinsic limitations arising from the manual wheelchair user's condition and capability. Secondly, there are features such as ramps and cross slopes in the built environment that fail to comply with building codes relating to wheelchair access. Thirdly, there are cosmetic features such as cracked paths, obstructions and poorly placed signage that place an additional burden on manual wheelchair navigation. Each of these three areas is discussed in this article. The intrinsic limitations of user condition and capability include a wide range of physical impairments and an inherently inefficient manual wheelchair propulsion mechanism. The typical code compliance requirements for wheelchair access in the built environment range from limitations on minimum path widths to maximum permissible ramp slopes. However, even when these features comply with code requirements they may be compromised by temporary obstructions or by poor maintenance so that they become insurmountable challenges to manual wheelchair users. An understanding of these challenges is necessary to improve the built environment so that it is more accessible to manual wheelchair users in the future.
Reinventing the wheel for a manual wheelchair.
(Taylor and Francis Group, 2023-11-02) Flemmer CL; Flemmer RC
Purpose Standard manual wheelchairs (MWCs) are inefficient and pushrim propulsion may cause progressive damage and pain to the user’s arms. We describe a wheel for a MWC with a novel propulsion mechanism. Methods The wheel has two modes of operation called “Standard” mode and “Run” mode. In Run mode, the wheelchair is propelled forward by pushing a compliant handle forward and then pulling it back, both strokes contributing to forward propulsion. We report the propulsive force and preliminary testing on a rough outdoor circuit by three able-bodied participants. Results In Run mode, the peak applied force is reduced to 30% and the maximum force gradient is reduced to 10% of that for standard pushrim propulsion, for the same work output. The travel time for the 1.06 km outdoor circuit is about 60% of that for a brisk walk and about 40% of that for pushrim propulsion. At a propulsion speed of 1 m/s, the cardiovascular effort in Run mode is 56% of that for pushrim propulsion. Automatic hill-hold in Run mode improves safety when ascending slopes. The mechanism has three gears so that it can be used by people with widely varying strength and fitness. Folding the handle away converts the operation to Standard mode with the conventional pushrim propulsion, supplemented by three gears. Conclusions Despite the increased weight, width and friction, the bimodal geared wheels facilitate wheelchair travel on challenging paths. This may bring significant improvement to the quality of life of MWC users.