Methodology For Evaluation Of Effectiveness Research Articles

Effectiveness evaluation methodology for safety processes to enhance organisational culture in hazardous installations

Safety performance indicators are widely collected and used in hazardous installations. The IAEA, OECD and other international organisations have developed approaches that strongly promote deployment of safety performance indicators. These indicators focus mainly on operational performance, but some of them also address organisational and safety culture aspects. However, operators of hazardous installations, in particular those with limited resources and time constraints, often find it difficult to collect the large number of different safety performance indicators. Moreover, they also have difficulties with giving a meaning to the numbers and trends recorded, especially to those that should reflect a positive safety culture. In this light, the aim of this article is to address the need to monitor and assess progress on implementation of a programme to enhance safety and organisational culture. It proposes a specific process-view approach to effectiveness evaluation of organisational and safety culture indicators by means of a multi-level system in which safety processes and staff involvement in defining improvement activities are central. In this way safety becomes fully embedded in staff activities. Key members of personnel become directly involved in identifying and supplying leading indicators relating to their own daily activity and become responsible and accountable for keeping the measurement system alive. Besides use of lagging indicators, particular emphasis is placed on the importance of identifying and selecting leading indicators which can be used to drive safety performance for organisational and safety culture aspects as well.

메뉴 구조의 평가 방법론으로서 활성화 확산 모델의 타당성 검증: Eye-Tracking 접근 방법

This study was designed to validate Spreading Activation Theory (SAT) for an evaluation methodology for menu structure through Eye-Tracking approach. When a visual search is on the way, more eye fixations and time are necessary to visually process complex and vague area. From the aspect of recognition, well-designed menu structures were hypothesized to have fewer numbers of fixations and shorter duration because well-designed menu structures reflecting the users' mental model would be well matched with the product's menu structure, resulting in reducing the number of fixations and duration time. The results show that the shorter reaction times for SAT had significantly fewer numbers of fixation and shorter duration time as the hypothesis for this study stated. In conclusion, SAT was proved to be an effective evaluation methodology for menu structure with the eye tracking equipment. In addition, using SAT instead of the real performance experiment would be useful for designing user-centered systems and convenient information structures because SAT was proven to be the theoretical background for design and evaluation of menu structures.

Detection of Debonding in Concrete Members Retrofitted with FRP Using Electromagnetic and Ultrasonic Methods

Microwave and ultrasonic methods have been used for the detection of debonding between concrete and fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP). To determine the capability of the microwave method in detecting thin delamination between two materials of concrete and FRP, concrete specimens are made with the dimensions of 600 mm (length) x 600 mm (width) x 50 mm (depth). Specimens have artificial delamination of 5 and 10 mm thick Styrofoam, which represent debonding in structures. Then, the specimens are partially covered with 1.5 mm thick FRP on the top of 3 mm thick epoxy. A horn antenna with a center frequency of 15 GHz and a frequency bandwidth of 10 GHz is used for the measurements. By transmitting and receiving microwave signals from the horn antenna, differences have been detected for the different types of the targets. Also, measurements using ultrasonic method at 5 kHz have been made on the same series of specimens. This work is directed toward a development of an effective and practical microwave based non-destructive evaluation methodology for the detection and quantification of damages in FRP-covered reinforced concrete members in bridges and buildings.

The slow comeback of industrial policies in Latin America and the Caribbean

The core of a policy for accelerating economic growth is a combination of knowledge accumulation and diversification of the productive structure. These two dimensions are the focus of the present article, which examines industrial policy experiences during the import substitution industrialization period; highlights the policies currently being applied in Latin America and the Caribbean and offers a typology of the strategies underlying them; presents the main lines of action and policy instruments; and analyses issues of policy implementation and impact. The thesis is that, while policymaking capabilities have improved, a great deal of work is still needed on implementation and on the development of effective impact evaluation methodologies. Proper evaluation will show whether industrial policies have a role to play in the region.

Lease vs. Borrow Problem after Tax Reform in Slovak Republic

The paper deals with the problem of effectiveness evaluation of long-term property financing through financial leasing, emphasizing the application of quantitative methods within this area. The aim was to focus on defining the financial flows relevant for the analysis, as well as on the derivation of the basic model of the financial leasing effectiveness. The aim of the presented paper is to elaborate the methodology for evaluation of effectiveness of financial leasing under the conditions prevalent in the Slovak Republic. The review of literature devoted to valuation of leasing contracts indicates, that consensus in the field of suitable methodology for valuation of leasing investments does not exist. The authors above mentioned corresponded to tax modification of financial lease before adoption of tax reform in Slovak Republic, when the lessor amortized the lease subject and transferred the benefits of lease mode of depreciation indirectly on lessee in the form of lease payment, representing for him the fully acceptable tax item. For conditions stated by regularization of financial lease and practical use the formula needs further modification.

Integrated Project Models To Evaluate Field-Development Options

This article, written by Technology Editor Dennis Denney, contains highlights of paper SPE 93554, "Using Integrated Project Models To Evaluate Field-Development Options," by M.G. Bilderbeck, SPE, and I.V. Beck, SPE, Gaffney, Cline & Assocs., prepared for the 2005 SPE Middle East Oil and Gas Show and Conference, Bahrain, 12-15 March. A practical and effective development-concept evaluation and screening methodology was developed that recognizes the fundamental relationship between reservoir potential and field-development strategy. The spreadsheet-based project-modeling environment integrates reservoir models and a field-development-planning model. The reservoir models are used to account for uncertainty in reservoir performance. The field-development-planning model handles the scheduling and cost estimation of wells and processing facilities. Introduction Decisions to invest in oilfield development are always made under conditions of uncertainty. The future performance of reservoirs is uncertain, as is the economic climate in which investment decisions are made and the resulting projects operated. Technical and commercial analyses used to evaluate the benefits of oilfield developments, and thereby support accompanying investment decision-making processes, must account for these uncertainties. Many types of uncertainty must be considered. Reservoir performance is affected primarily by the reservoir properties, which can never be defined fully at the point in time at which an investment decision is made. The cost of constructing and operating wells and production facilities also is uncertain, primarily because the design and use of these elements is a direct function of the performance of the reservoir. While the future performance of an oil field is uncertain, the reactions of managers to its performance are, by definition, deterministic. Managers comprehend the reality of a reservoir as it is revealed through its performance. Therefore, development plans must have sufficient flexibility to enable managers to react to, and accommodate, the performance of a reservoir with time. Integrated Evaluation Process The subsurface and surface elements of an oil field are linked and must be recognized and incorporated in any evaluation process used to support investment decisions. This process requires an appropriately staffed evaluation team and use of appropriate evaluation tools. A team with at least the following three broad technical disciplines should work together to perform an evaluation.

Electronic and vibrational dynamic solvent effects on Raman spectra

We report a methodology for the theoretical evaluation of nonequilibrium solvent effects on Raman intensities within the nonequilibrium Polarizable Continuum Model. Effects due to an incomplete solvent response both to the external field-induced oscillation in the solute electronic density and to molecular vibrations are considered. The extent of such effects on absolute scattering factors and relative intensities of few simple molecules (HCHO, FCHO, FCFO, ClCHO, ClCClO) in various solvents are discussed.

CAMEVA, a methodology for estimation of target detectability

We present a methodology for computational evaluation of camouflage effectiveness. The methodology is implemented in software at the Danish Defence Research Establishment (DDRE) under the acronym for camouflage evaluation (CAMEVA). Basic input is a single image comprising a highly resolved static target as well as a proper amount of representative background. Separate target and background images can also be handled. Target and background regions are manually selected using the computer’s standard pointing device, the mouse. From the input data, CAMEVA predicts the target detectability as a function of the target distance. The detectability estimate is based on statistical distributions of features extracted from the imagery, establishing a multidimensional feature space. In the feature space, the Bhattacharyaa distance measure is applied as an estimator of the separability between the target and background. The intention is that the extracted features should resemble those applied during the human perception process. Typically, contrast and various measures of edge strength are applied. The Bhattacharyaa distance establishes a relative separability, while the absolute detection range is obtained by deriving a relation between the Bhattacharyaa distance and the estimated target resolution, at range. Thus by introducing parameters of the sensor, typically the human unaided eye, detectability as a function of the range is obtained. The methodology does not reflect individual observer performance but is aimed at providing an estimate of the optimal detection performance, given the selected set of features. During the choice of features and of sensor parameters, perception mechanisms other than the human observer performance can be modeled with this methodology. We discuss theoretical and practical aspects of CAMEVA. Validation and application examples, including results on the Search–1 and Search–2 datasets, are presented together with other data.

Positive Action, Particularism, and Practice

This article provides an analysis of conceptual and operational issues surrounding 'race'related positive action strategies in Britain and connects these with broader concerns about difference and universality. Two case studies - of developments in housing and in media representation - are examined to asses the extent, nature and impact of positive action strategies. Here limited success of 'old-style' positive action is shown in relation to programme goals. Our evaluation is exploratory and there is a need to develop further research and an effective evaluation methodology. The paper then looks beyond the immediate successes and limitations of positive action strategies, to consider the implications of increasing recognition of differentiation, and increasingly particularistic claims, in a context of ethnic and experiential diversity. Positive action strategies are by no means unproblematic in a climate where there are pressures to respond to differences of culture, gender, age, ethnicity, impairment or sexual orientation. Universalistic programmes and standards retain considerable merit in such a context, and the 'fit' between these and positive action strategies may be crucial. In addition, attention to organizational goals and needs, organizational change and the 'compelling interest' to actively respond to continuing patterns of discrimination are highlighted as key issues for the practice agenda.

A Methodology for Evaluating Effectiveness of Risk Control Measures for Ships

This paper proposes a methodology for evaluation of effectiveness of risk control measures of ships, and presents the risk evaluation system that can realize the methodology. The main concept of the methodology is probabilistic risk assessment(PRA). Risk is the concept composed of the consequence of an accident and the probability of the consequence. In this paper lives lost is adopted as consequence. Risk changes as design of target ship changes. Therefore risk is controlled by ship design, in this meaning risk control measures are included in ship design. The risk evaluation system is meant to be used to design of a ship as a useful tool. And an example in which the risk evaluation system is applied to a tested ship is shown.

Factors affecting cake resistance in non‐Newtonian filtration

AbstractA methodology for evaluation of surface effects including polymer adsorption‐gel formation or slip within the pores of a filter cake has been developed and applied to constant pressure filtration of calcium carbonate in aqueous hydroxyethyl cellulose (Natrosol 250G, Hercules Powder Company) slurries. The fundamental framework of non‐Newtonian filtration is generalized to include the Blake, Kozeny‐Ergun and Kozeny‐Carman cake models and the cake resistances γK and αR, in conjunction with the correction terms JRN and Jgen, within a unified framework. Relationships are developed between the latter quantities and the effect of the bed model on the evaluations of the filtration characteristics is delineated.Significant polymer adsorption‐gel formation was found to take place in the constant pressure filtration of calcium carbonate in aqueous Natrosol 250G slurries. The resultant cake porosities were larger and the effective cake porosities lower than comparable porosities for cakes deposited from water slurries.The wide variation of JRN with the characteristic index N is attributed to the small size of the slurry particles. Polymer adsorption is shown to extend, and slip on the particle surface to reduce the variation of JRN with N.

Trends in methodology for evaluation of effects of pollutants on marine organisms and ecosystems

(1973). Trends in methodology for evaluation of effects of pollutants on marine organisms and ecosystems. C R C Critical Reviews in Environmental Control: Vol. 3, No. 1-4, pp. 167-211.