The results presented in this article are part of the research on fatigue life of various foundry alloys carried out in recent years in the Lukasiewicz Research Network – Institute of Precision Mechanics and AGH University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Foundry Engineering. The article discusses the test results obtained for the EN-GJS-600-3 cast iron in an original modified low-cycle fatigue test (MLCF), which seems to be a beneficial research tool allowing its users to evaluate the mechanical properties of materials with microstructural heterogeneities under both static and dynamic loads. For a comprehensive analysis of the mechanical behaviour with a focus on fatigue life of alloys, an original modified low cycle fatigue method (MLCF) adapted to the actually available test machine was used. The results of metallographic examinations carried out by light microscopy were also presented. From the analysis of the results of the conducted mechanical tests and structural examinations it follows that the MLCF method is fully applicable in a quick and economically justified assessment of the quality of ductile iron after normalizing treatment.
The presented paper encompasses four threads of deliberation that show the essence, cognitive value and utility of the concept of creative cities in the shaping of the future of contemporary cities. These threads are: creative development, a model of a creative city, preconditions of a creative city, and the use of a creative city as a vehicle of development.
The article presents a structured approach to the attractiveness and competitiveness of Polish regions in the context of selected international experiences.
The article aims at presenting the philosophy and model of the development vehicle to be understood as a new concept and tool to investigate and program local and regional development processes. The practical issues covered by the article include the identification and discovery of development vehicles, the elements of which can be observed in Polish metropolitan areas and agglomerations.
The article contains new approach to creating future of cities and urban regions based on the concept of creative cities. The core of this approach is to treat the genetic code of development as a tool for creating future of the territorial units. The combination and synergy of development genes that were considered as creativity, innovativeness and entrepreneurship allows the use of the fundamental elements of strategic analysis. On one hand, these elements are future challenges of cities and urban regions that they face in the perspective of global trends; on the other hand, they are strategic capabilities of sectors inseparably linked with creativity – sectors of culture, science and business, the integration of which is based on cultural heritage of cities and urban regions. The next issue of the article is the description of the way genes of urban development are manifested in the four sectors. It allows to present the genetic code of development function as a generator of strategic capabilities of creative sectors in cities and urban regions. Finally, the ideas of cross-sectoral undertakings for Polish big cities and urban agglomerations that enable facing intellectual and strategic global challenges were presented. This takes place through the use of strategic capabilities based on the genes of creativity, innovativeness and entrepreneurship; in this way, the genetic code of the development of large cities and urban agglomerations served as the new prospective approach to creating their future.