Operations Improvement Function and Organisational Adaptability of Petroleum Tank Farms in South-South, Nigeria

The study examined the nexus between operations improvement function (dimensioned by contingency planning, benchmarking and continuous improvement processes) and organisational adaptability of Petroleum tank farms in South-South, Nigeria. The contingency theory and the theory of routine dynamics underpinned the study, and positivism was the underlying philosophy. The study adopted the cross-sectional survey through the use of questionnaire. 820 middle and top-level managers constituted the elements of the population, and the Krejcie & Morgan’s formula was used to determine the sample size of 262 respondents. Structural Equation Modeling was deployed to test the hypotheses at a 0.05 significance level. The results showed that contingency planning;benchmarking and continuous improvement processes all have a significant positive relationship with organisational adaptability of Petroleum tank farms in South-South, Nigeria. The study concludes that Petroleum tank farms’ operations should focus on the adoption of contingency planning, benchmarking and continuous improvement processes to enhance organisational adaptability. Therefore, it is recommended that the management of Petroleum tank farms should put in place mechanisms to advance continuous improvement processes by allocating the necessary amount of resources, such as energy, time and money, in order to promote the continuous development of the continuous improvement systems. Furthermore, managers of Petroleum tank farms should make better the adoption of contingency planning, ensuring that there is as much necessary training and information for employees on how to act during a crises situation, in order to evaluate safety and prepare in advance for recovery from disasters.

On Computing the Suitability of Non-Human Resources for Business Process Analysis

Business process improvement is a systematic approach used by several organizations to continuously improve their quality of service.Integral to that is analyzing the current performance of each task of the process and assigning the most appropriate resources to each task.In continuation of our previous work,we categorize resources into human and non-human resources.For instance,in the healthcare domain,human resources include doctors,nurses,and other associated staff responsible for the execution of healthcare activities;whereas the non-human resources include surgical and other equipment needed for execution.In this study,we contend that the two types of resources(human and non-human)have a different impact on the process performance,so their suitability should be measured differently.However,no work has been done to evaluate the suitability of non-human resources for the tasks of a process.Consequently,it becomes difficult to identify and subsequently overcome the inefficiencies caused by the non-human resources to the task.To address this problem,we present a three-step method to compute a suitability score of non-human resources for the task.As an evaluation of the proposed method,a healthcare case study is used to illustrate the applicability of the proposed method.Furthermore,we performed a controlled experiment to evaluate the usability of the proposed method.The encouraging response shows the usefulness of the proposed method.

Competency Driven Resource Evaluation Method for Business Process Intelligence

Enterprises are continuously aiming at improving the execution of processes to achieve a competitive edge.One of the established ways of improving process performance is to assign the most appropriate resources to each task of the process.However,evaluations of business process improvement approaches have established that a method that can guide decision-makers to identify the most appropriate resources for a task of process improvement in a structured way,is missing.It is because the relationship between resources and tasks is less understood and advancement in business process intelligence is also ignored.To address this problem an integrated resource classification framework is presenting that identifies competence,suitability,and preference as the relationship of task with resources.But,only the competence relationship of human resources with a task is presented in this research as a resource competence model.Furthermore,the competency calculation method is presented as a user guider layer for business process intelligencebased resource competence evaluation.The computed capabilities serve as a basic input for choosing the most appropriate resources for each task of the process.Applicability of method is illustrated through a heathcare case study.

A parallel-pipelining software process model

Software process is a framework for effective and timely delivery of software system. The framework plays a crucial role for software success. However, the development of large-scale software still faces the crisis of high risks, low quality, high costs and long cycle time. This paper proposed a three-phase parallel-pipelining software process model for improving speed and productivity, and reducing software costs and risks without sacrificing software quality. In this model, two strategies were presented. One strategy, based on subsystem-cost priority, was used to prevent software development cost wasting and to reduce software complexity as well; the other strategy, used for balancing subsystem complexity, was designed to reduce the software complexity in the later development stages. Moreover, the proposed function-detailed and workload-simplified subsystem pipelining software process model presents much higher parallelity than the concurrent incremental model. Finally, the component-based product line technology not only ensures software quality and further reduces cycle time, software costs, and software risks but also sufficiently and rationally utilizes previous software product resources and enhances the competition ability of software development organizations.

Synthesis of Anatase TiO_2 Nanoparticles by Improved Sol-Gel Process at Low Temperature

The nanocrystalline TiO_2 powder were prepared by improved sol-gel method at low temperature under ambient pressure. The prepared TiO_2 powder was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM). It is found that the yield of anatase TiO_2 significantly increases with the reduction of pH by increasing the nucleation rate of anatase. There is an optimum amount of water in sol for the formation of anatase by combining two effects on the concentration of Ti(OH)_4 in gels. Increasing in reaction temperature also benefit to the nucleation of anatase of TiO_2.

Managing Complexity and Speed of Processes in the Organizations—A Philosophical and Practical Approach

The business challenges of today are managing complexity and the speed of changes with processes and systems since there are continuously new requirements from market, consumers, suppliers, employees, government etc. For example, when product and service innovations are launched on the market, the relevant processes, policies, people, systems, and technologies should have been prepared and set up in advance. Depending on the business sector, the implementation of new processes and systems as well as their continuous improvement can be easy to very complex and of course very costly. Responding to those challenges, there are several methodologies and approaches like Continuous Improvement Process, Lean Management and Kaizen etc. On the other hand, the application of these methodologies to other industries like service and technology companies is not always successful since their conditions and requirements are different than those of manufacturing organizations. Because of these reasons, the management needs to find out （new） ways of working and to implement new solutions in order to master those challenges and problems. This is not always easy and successful. There are different types of solution options that can be applied situational in every organization. Philosophy can help essentially by asking and answering critical questions in order to provide with solution options to reduce the complexity and to increase the speed of processes. There are several proven and new governance concepts, frameworks, and tools which follow their philosophies. This paper demonstrates how those challenges can be responded and managed as well as how a philosophical approach can help primarily to provide with appropriate solutions.

Immune Clone Maximum Likelihood Estimation of Improved Non-homogeneous Poisson Process Model Parameters

Aiming at the solving problem of improved nonhomogeneous Poisson process( NHPP) model in engineering application,the immune clone maximum likelihood estimation( MLE)method for solving model parameters was proposed. The minimum negative log-likelihood function was used as the objective function to optimize instead of using iterative method to solve complex system of equations,and the problem of parameter estimation of improved NHPP model was solved by immune clone algorithm. And the interval estimation of reliability indices was given by using fisher information matrix method and delta method. An example of failure truncated data from multiple numerical control( NC) machine tools was taken to prove the method. and the results show that the algorithm has a higher convergence rate and computational accuracy, which demonstrates the feasibility of the method.

AN IMPROVED NONADIABATIC COLLISION MODEL FOR ION-PIR FORMATION PROCESS:A+BC→A^++BC^- Zheng Ting CAI and Yu Guang MU

Hickman's fast nonadiabatic collision model for the ion-pair formation reaction A+BC→A^++BC^- was improved,where the classical trajectory has been represented by solution of motion equation UR=-dV(R)/dR, here V(R)is Morse potential.Employing this model to the CS+O_2→CS^++O_2^-reaction,a satisfactory agreement with experimental data has been obtained.

面向自愈的智能配电网免疫力评估方法

自愈是智能配电网区别于传统配电网的显著特征,为提高各项自愈技术实用化水平,需要准确掌握智能配电网整体免疫力水平。因此,借鉴人体免疫系统机理,提出了智能配电网免疫系统,包括免疫耐受、免疫自稳、免疫识别、免疫应答和免疫恢复5类功能,在此基础上,提出了基于改进层次分析法与逼近理想解距离法相结合的智能配电网免疫力评估模型构建方法,并构建了智能配电网免疫力评估指标体系以及智能配电网免疫力评估模型。此评估模型能够全面且多层次地考虑影响智能配电网免疫力强弱的各类因素,在实际应用中为智能配电网精细化运维检修和管理提供理论参考。

Water Environmental Impact Assessment and Analysis of Foshan Brewery Project

In recent years, the beer industry is a biological food industry that consumes a lot of water, and it has developed rapidly in China. The sewage discharged from the mass production of beer poses a huge threat to the environment. In order to evaluate and better solve the possible environmental impacts of beer treatment engineering projects, a brewery project in Foshan City is taken as an example to investigate the water pollution generation links of the engineering process including surface water and groundwater. According to the relevant technical methods and standards, water pollution factors are screened, and concentration and discharge are monitored. Through comprehensive analysis, predictive evaluation is obtained. It is confirmed that the project meets the requirements of national laws and regulations and environmental protection standards.

Sustainable food waste management using modified fuzzy improved analytic hierarchy process:a study of Malaysia

Food waste generation is a pressing issue that requires urgent attention and concerted efforts worldwide.The staggering amount of food wasted each year not only wastes valuable resources but also exacerbates environmental,economic,and social challenges.Food Waste Management(FWM)consists of a complex array of criteria and sub-criteria,and treatments which seems interdependent.There is a need to evaluate the FWM with the help of important criteria and sub-criteria and treatments to address this challenge.In this study,we identified four important criteria,21 sub-criteria,and four alternatives of FWM for the case of Malaysia using the integrated approach of literature review and expert opinions.Further,we employed the approach of Modified Fuzzy Improved Analytical Hierarchy Process(IAHP)to corroborate the interrelationships among the identified criteria and sub-criteria,and their associated treatments.This study undertakes linear normalization methods to transform data into comparable numerical values and the Geometric Mean method to handle uncertainty in human judgments.Moreover,the Centroid method is employed to convert fuzzy weights into crisp sets for ease of interpretation.The results indicate that environmental is the most essential criterion,followed by social,economic,and technical.In addition,air and water pollution is identified as the most critical sub-criteria.Black Soldier Fly is discovered as the most sustainable FWM treatment,since it performs the best while meeting all the criteria and sub-criteria assessed.Sensitivity analysis demonstrates that the outputs from the proposed method are robust and reliable.The finding suggests a proper and robust approach to help decision-makers select suitable FWM treatments to tackle various criteria and alternatives especially when handling inconsistent and uncertain judgments during evaluation.

An automated dispensing system for improving medication timing in the emergency department

BACKGROUND:Numerous medical conditions require timely medication administration in the emergency department(ED).Automated dispensing systems(ADSs)store premixed common doses at the point-of-care to minimize time to administration,but the use of such automation to improved time to medication administration has not been studied.Since vancomycin is a commonly used empiric antimicrobial,we sought to quantify the effect of using an ADS on time to drug delivery in patients presenting to the ED.The study aimed to determine the efficacy of utilizing an ADS to improve time to administration of vancomycin and determine any negative effects on dosing appropriateness.METHODS:The institional review board approved the retrospective quality improvement study took place in a single,urban academic tertiary care ED with an annual census of 80 000.Study subjects were all patients receiving vancomycin for the management of sepsis between March 1 to September 30,2008 and the same time period in 2009.The primary outcome was the proportion of patients who received vancomycin within one hour of bed placement and the secondary outcome was dosing appropriateness.RESULTS:Sixty-three patients had weight and dosing information available(29 before and 34after intervention)and were included in the study.Before intervention,no patient received vancomycin in less than 60 minutes,while after intervention 14.7%of the patients received it in less than 60minutes(difference in proportions 14.7%,95%CI 0.39%-30.0%,P=0.04).A similar proportion of the patients received correct dosing before and after intervention(44.8%vs.41.2%,difference in proportions 3.7%,95%CI-20.0%-26.7%,P=0.770).CONCLUSION:The use of an ADS may improve the timing of medication administration in patients presenting to the ED without affecting dosing appropriateness.

China's Software Industry Aiming at a Higher Standard

The current status of the China's software industry is introduced, including the great potential opportunities and many problems across the path to success. The main measures are discussed to keep abreast of the time needs and fuse with the whole family of global IT industry.

Partnering Together to Reduce Sepsis Mortality： A Novel Approach

Each year 750,000 Americans are diagnosed with sepsis and approximately 220,000 of those patients die. In addition to the toll on human life, sepsis is the most expensive disease to care for in the hospital costing approximately 17 billion dollars annually. National and international initiatives have demonstrated the benefits of recognition, early fluid resuscitation and broad spectrum antibiotics to reduce sepsis mortality. The Surviving Sepsis Campaign recently issued the third iteration of clinical bundles for the management of severe sepsis and septic shock. Robust Process Improvement （RPITM） which integrates the principles of Six Sigma, Lean and Change Management was applied to increase overall compliance to implement the elements of the three hour sepsis bundle in a complex healthcare system. The elements of the three hour sepsis bundle are drawing blood cultures before ordering antibiotics, timely antibiotic administration, obtaining lactate and administering fluid bolus. It has been demonstrated for severe sepsis and septic shock that bundle compliance is associated with a reduction in hospital mortality. The results of this study indicated that the overall bundle compliance increased by 30% which resulted in reducing the sepsis mortality rate by 27%.

Analysis on Technical Measures on Energy Saving and Consumption Reducing During Stevia Sugar Production

Based on the analysis of actual energy consumptions during stevia sugar production,practical measures were proposed to save energy（ gas,water and powder） consumption and reduce cost through waste heat recycle and utilization,process improvement,equipment operation efficiency,application of newly energysaving equipment,and some project applications were provided as case study for some techniques and methods adopted in the production.

A strategy for population pharmaceutical quality assessment based on quality by design

From a regulatory perspective,drug quality consistency evaluation must concern different processes used for the same drug.In this study,an assessment strategy based on quality by design(QbD)was developed for population pharmaceutical quality evaluation.A descriptive analysis method based on QbD concept was first established to characterize the process by critical evaluation attributes(CEAs).Then quantitative analysis method based on an improved statistical process control(SPC)method was established to investigate the process indicators(PIs)in the process population,such as mean distribution,batch-to-batch difference and abnormal quality probability.After that rules for risk assessment were established based on the SPC limitations and parameters.Both the SPC parameters of the CEAs and the risk of PIs were visualized according to the interaction test results to obtain a better understanding of the population pharmaceutical quality.Finally,an assessment strategy was built and applied to generic drug consistency assessment,process risk assessment and quality trend tracking.The strategy demonstrated in this study could help reveal quality consistency from the perspective of process control and process risk,and further show the recent development status of domestic pharmaceutical production processes.In addition,a process risk assessment and population quality trend tracking provide databased information for approval.Not only can this information serve as a further basis for decisionmaking by the regulatory authority regarding early warnings,but it can also reduce some avoidable adverse reactions.With continuous addition of data,dynamic population pharmaceutical quality is meaningful for emergencies and decision-making regarding drug regulation.

Imaging process and signal-to-noise ratio improvement of enhanced self-heterodyne synthetic aperture imaging ladar

This Letter gives the general construction of an enhanced self-heterodyne synthetic aperture imaging ladar（SAIL） system, and proposes the principle of image processing. A point target is reconstructed in the enhanced self-heterodyne SAIL as well as in down-looking SAIL experiments, and the achieved imaging resolution of the enhanced self-heterodyne SAIL is analyzed. The signal-to-noise ratio（SNR） of the point target final image in the enhanced self-heterodyne SAIL is higher than that in the down-looking SAIL. The enhanced self-heterodyne SAIL can improve the SNR of the target image in far-distance imaging, with practicality.

Analysis on Failure Mode Severity of Machining Center Spindle System

According to the subjectivity and fuzziness of analysis on failure mode severity about spindle system of machining center,an analysis model of the failure mode severity of such a system is proposed based on the new fault severity index system, improved analytic hierarchy process( IAHP) and entropy-based fuzzy comprehensive evaluation. IAHP and entropy methods are adopted to determine the comprehensive failure severity index weight. The evaluation result is obtained after the factor set,comment set,weight set,and other parameters are determined,and then the level of risk degree and numerical value order of every spindle system failure mode is given. By taking an example,we verify that the proposed method can quantify the qualitative problem comprehensively,obtain more accurate analysis results,and provide the theoretical reference for mechanization and sequencing of failure mode effect analysis in reliability analysis. The calculation results can also serve as the basis of failure mode,effects,and criticality analysis in the subsequent step.

Operation safety risk analysis method of hydropower project considering time-dependent effect

In order to consider the time-dependent characteristic of risk factors of hydropower project,the method of stochastic process simulating structure resistance and load effect is adopted.On the basis of analyzing the structure characteristics and mode of operation,the operation safety risk rate assessment model of hydropower project is established on the comprehensive application of the improved analytic hierarchy process,the time-dependent reliability theory and the risk rate threshold.A scheme to demonstrate the time-dependent risk rate assessment method for an example of the earth-rock dam is particularly implemented by the proposed approach.The example shows that operation safety risk rate is closely related to both the service period and design standard;considering the effect of time-dependent,the risk rate increases with time and the intersection of them reflects the technical service life of structures.It could provide scientific basis for the operation safety and risk decision of the hydropower project by predicting the trend of risk rate via this model.

Use of Quality Control Circles-A Fad or Need

Different techniques including Quality Control Circles, Business Process Reengineering and Statistical Process Control （SPC）, Total Quality Management have been in use to reduce waste in the industry. Waste is considered as necessary evil and there are many types of waste in the industry. There are many ways and means to reduce waste but the less costly is to use Quality Control Circles technique effectively and efficiently. In quality control circles human resources that consist of small groups of employees are selected, who voluntarily meet at regular intervals to identify, analyze and solve quality and other problems in their work areas. In the Quality Control Circles different techniques of the quality improvement and total quality management are utilized which could be numeric or nonnumeric such as statistical quality control techniques and fish bone diagram or brain storming respectively. This article discusses that how reduction of waste in Pakistan industry is possible by using Quality Control Circles implementation.