Prevention, Preparedness, Response and the Bottom Line

Author(s):  
Terry G. Rathwell

This paper discusses the relationship between the management of health, safety and the environment (prevention, preparedness and response) at various phases of pipeline development and operation and the costs and cost benefits associated with this essential management function. HSE management systems are an integral component of all phases of pipeline activity, including concept and design, construction, commissioning, operation and maintenance. Effective HSE management systems are not free and they do involve immediate expenditures of time, resources and money. Future gains are very real but are often difficult to measure in dollars. Future gains may include reduced WCB costs, reduced equipment damage and downtime, reduced property damage claims, reduced production interruptions, improved production quality, improved employee morale, improved customer satisfaction and market share. Management decides the level of expenditure for incident prevention, preparation and response. One approach is to spend little or nothing in advance of a potential incident and react only after an event to correct the conditions that caused the loss. This is unwise. Another approach is to spend the sums needed to cover every conceivable contingency. This is imprudent. We must learn to balance risk and control in an effort to seek an optimum expenditure for all phases of pipeline design, construction, commissioning, operation and maintenance. This paper will discuss the ways and means to accurately assess the costs of actual and potential incidents to learn what the costs are, when and how these costs are incurred and how costs can be minimized. Only when costs are established and understood can we develop appropriate plans to negate these costs. We must learn the difference between the control of costs and the causes of costs relating to health, safety and the environment.

2013 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Mrówczyńska

Abstract The paper attempts to determine an optimum structure of a directional measurement and control network intended for investigating horizontal displacements. For this purpose it uses the notion of entropy as a logarithmical measure of probability of the state of a particular observation system. An optimum number of observations results from the difference of the entropy of the vector of parameters ΔHX̂ (x)corresponding to one extra observation. An increment of entropy interpreted as an increment of the amount of information about the state of the system determines the adoption or rejection of another extra observation to be carried out.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanti Jumaisyaroh Siregar

The purposes of this research were to know: the difference of improvement in self-regulated learning of students that given problem-based learning with students that given  direct learning. The type of this research is a quasi-experimental research by taking samples from the existing population. The variable of this research consist of independent variable that is problem based learning model while the dependent variable isself regulated learning of student.The population of this research is all students of SMP Swasta Ar-rahman Percut and the sample of this research is grade eight with taken sample two classes (experiment and control)  with total 60 students. The instrument of this research were: scale of self-regulated learning. Data that have been collected then analyzed and performed hypothesis testing by using T-test. Based of the results analysis, it showed that: improvment  of the students’ self-regulated learning that given problem-based learning was higher than the students’ ability that given direct learning His then, suggested that problem-based learning be used as an alternative for mathematic teacher to improved students’ ability in mathematical critical thinking and self-regulated learning.


2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-141
Author(s):  
Petya Yordanova – Dinova

This paper explores the comparative analysis of the financial controlling, who is a result from the common controlling concept and the financial management. In the specialized literature, financial controlling is seen as an innovative approach to financial management. It is often presented as the most promising instrument of financial diagnostics. Generally speaking, financial controlling is seen as a process of managing the company`s assets which are valued in monetary measures. The difference between the financial management and the financial controlling is that the second covers all functions of management, analysis and control of finances, aiming at maximizing their effective use and increasing the value of the enterprise. Financial controlling is often seen as a function of the common practice of financial management. Its objective is to preserve the financial stability and financial sustainability of enterprises operating in a highly aggressive business environment.


Robotica ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
M. Garcia ◽  
P. Castillo ◽  
E. Campos ◽  
R. Lozano

SUMMARY A novel underwater vehicle configuration with an operating principle as the Sepiida animal is presented and developed in this paper. The mathematical equations describing the movements of the vehicle are obtained using the Newton–Euler approach. An analysis of the dynamic model is done for control purposes. A prototype and its embedded system are developed for validating analytically and experimentally the proposed mathematical representation. A real-time characterization of one mass is done to relate the pitch angle with the radio of displacement of the mass. In addition, first validation of the closed-loop system is done using a linear controller.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 1184
Author(s):  
Nomfusi Ntsobi ◽  
Morris Fanadzo ◽  
Marilize Le Roes-Hill ◽  
Felix Nchu

Globally, fungal inocula are being explored as agents for the optimization of composting processes. This research primarily evaluates the effects of inoculating organic vegetable heaps with the entomopathogenic fungus Clonostachys rosea f. catenula (Hypocreales) on the biophysicochemical properties of the end-product of composting. Six heaps of fresh cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata) waste were inoculated with C. rosea f. catenula conidia and another six were not exposed to the fungus. The composted materials from the fungus- and control-treated heaps were subsequently used as a medium to cultivate tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum). The biophysicochemical characteristics of the composted materials were also assessed after composting. In addition, the protective effect of the fungal inoculum against red spider mite (Tetranychus urticae) infestations in the tomatoes was evaluated through the determination of conidial colonization of the plant tissue and the number of plants infested by the insect. Furthermore, phytotoxicity tests were carried out post experiment. There were few significant variations (p < 0.05) in heap temperature or moisture level between treatments based on the weekly data. We found no significant differences in the levels of compost macronutrient and micronutrient constituents. Remarkably, the composted materials, when incorporated into a growth medium from fungus-treated heaps, induced a 100% endophytic tissue colonization in cultivated tomato plants. While fewer red spider mite infestations were observed in tomato plants grown in composted materials from fungus-treated heaps, the difference was not significant (χ2 = 0.96 and p = 0.32). The fungal treatment yielded composted materials that significantly (p < 0.05) enhanced tomato seed germination, and based on the phytotoxicity test, the composted samples from the heaps exposed to the C. rosea f. catenula inoculum were not toxic to tomato seeds and seedlings. In conclusion, this study showed that C. rosea f. catenula improved the quality of composted materials in terms of fungal endophytism and seed germination.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 804
Author(s):  
Jean Dubé ◽  
Maha AbdelHalim ◽  
Nicolas Devaux

Many applications have relied on the hedonic pricing model (HPM) to measure the willingness-to-pay (WTP) for urban externalities and natural disasters. The classic HPM regresses housing price on a complete list of attributes/characteristics that include spatial or environmental amenities (or disamenities), such as floods, to retrieve the gradients of the market (marginal) WTP for such externalities. The aim of this paper is to propose an innovative methodological framework that extends the causal relations based on a spatial matching difference-in-differences (SM-DID) estimator, and which attempts to calculate the difference between sale price for similar goods within “treated” and “control” groups. To demonstrate the potential of the proposed spatial matching method, the researchers present an empirical investigation based on the case of a flood event recorded in the city of Laval (Québec, Canada) in 1998, using information on transactions occurring between 1995 and 2001. The research results show that the impact of flooding brings a negative premium on the housing price of about 20,000$ Canadian (CAN).


Author(s):  
Surinder Kaur M. S. Pada ◽  
Poh Lishi ◽  
Kim Sim Ng ◽  
Sarathamani Rethenam ◽  
Lilibeth Silagan Alenton ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Computerisation of various processes in hospitals and reliance on electronic devices raises the concern of contamination of these devices from the patient environment. We undertook this study to determine if an attached hand hygiene device that unlocks the screen of a computer on wheels (COW) on usage can be effective in decreasing the microbiological burden on computer keyboards. Methods An electronic hand sanitizer was integrated onto the COW. A prospective cohort study with a crossover design involving 2 control and 2 intervention wards was used. The study end point was the number of colony forming units found on the keyboards. Bacteria were classified into 4 main groups; pathogenic, skin flora, from the environment or those thought to be commensals in healthy individuals. We then used a mixed effects model for the statistical analysis to determine if there were any differences before and after the intervention. Results Thirty-nine keyboards were swabbed at baseline, day 7 and 14, with 234 keyboards cultured, colony forming units (CFUs) counted and organisms isolated. By mixed model analysis, the difference of mean bacteria count between intervention and control for week 1 was 32.74 (− 32.74, CI − 94.29 to 28.75, p = 0.29), for week 2 by 155.86 (− 155.86, CI − 227.45 to − 83.53, p < 0.0001), and after the 2-week period by 157.04 (− 157.04, CI − 231.53 to − 82.67, p < 0.0001). In the sub-analysis, there were significant differences of pathogenic bacteria counts for the Intervention as compared to the Control in contrast with commensal counts. Conclusion A hand hygiene device attached to a COW may be effective in decreasing the microbiological burden on computer keyboards.


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