Source control SUDS strategic directions

Background to researchThe uptake or transition from traditional drainage to sustainable drainage (SUDS) in Scotland has happened in a relatively short timescale (less than fifteen years) with site and regional control drainage structures such as ponds and basins now considered ‘business as usual’. This rapid transition to SUDS has been facilitated by a stakeholder platform called the Sustainable Urban Drainage Scottish Working Party (SUDSWP) which has promoted their use since 1997. This has subsequently led to Scotland being regarded as a frontrunner in SUDS implementation in the UK. However the uptake of source control as part of a stormwater treatment train is less routine than expected. With the aforementioned in mind, this Phase Three Report seeks to answer the question ‘How can the national uptake of source control be encouraged and influenced by the SUDS Working Party and whether they should recast their remit’? Objectives of research Phase One of this research looked at the background to the evolution of source control in Scotland providing preliminary insight into the enabling factors and obstacles for uptake of the systems since inception in the mid 1990’s. Phase Two appraised source control delivery on a global scale providing insight to enabling factors out with Scotland and appraising current delivery in Scotland by responsible organisations. The transition pathway from traditional drainage to source control SUDS was mapped out to highlight what the key enabling (and disabling) factors were to realise the transition to date. This phase of the research, Phase Three defines the next steps including comment on optimal source control and further considerations and recommendations. This involved analysis and consolidation of the findings from Phases one and two, a workshop delivered to SUDSWP and two surveys delivered online and via telephone interviews with professionals involved in source control SUDS. These findings are used to define barriers and opportunities to inform the development of a strategy to support and encourage implementation of source control within SUDSWP remit.Key findings and recommendationsKey findings and recommendations for the SUDS Working Party are grouped according to transition management cluster activities:* Transition Arena: Strengthen links with internal members and external stakeholders who have a stake in source control SUDS and develop an integrated long-term vision.* Transition Agenda: Develop a shared strategic plan which considers aligning agendas with other infrastructure initiatives and enforcement / inspection policies to ensure cost effective, fit for purpose measures particularly in the areas of unit plot, local streets and regeneration areas.* Transition Experiments / case studies: Encourage research partnerships to validate techniques in the source control toolkit not yet applied in Scotland and showcase case studies.* Transition Monitoring / evaluation: undertake a baseline assessment to gauge source control uptake and performance, revise existing guidance and encourage capacity building programmes.<br/

An intelligent framework and prototype for autonomous maintenance planning in the rail industry

This paper details the development of the AUTONOM project, a project that aims to provide an enterprise system tailored to the planning needs of the rail industry. AUTONOM extends research in novel sensing, scheduling, and decision-making strategies customised for the automated planning of maintenance activities within the rail industry. This paper sets out a framework and software prototype and details the current progress of the project. In the continuation of the AUTONOM project it is anticipated that the combination of techniques brought together in this work will be capable of addressing a wider range of problem types, offered by Network rail and organisations in different industries

Towards a Comprehensive Asset Integrity Management (AIM) Approach for European Infrastructures

Abstract Transport infrastructure is the backbone of national economies, providing connections for people and goods, access to jobs and services, and enabling trade and economic growth. It is of paramount importance to preserve, maintain and upgrade the infrastructure network so that to sustain the economic growth and an intelligent mobility. Asset Integrity Management (AIM) approaches will therefore represent key tools for facing the infrastructure maintenance issue and for tackling the ageing that characterize already existing assets. This paper, starting from analyzing the current state of the art solutions in assets management (Enevoldsen, I., 2008), proposes a comprehensive AIM approach that aims at replacing current time-based approaches with a performance-based approach that can systematically take into account the dynamic nature of the transport network. This means moving from a deterministic to a probabilistic approach in design, rehabilitation and retrofitting of infrastructures for increasing life-time and reducing maintenance costs. Such approach therefore laid the basis of secure sustainable impact since by improving awareness and reducing uncertainties, it might allow achieving an optimal balance among available resources and planning of investments

Application of critical controls for fatality prevention in mining operations

In this study, a new risk management approach was applied to mitigate fatal incidents through the utilization of critical controls. The aim of this study was to create a scalable, minimally invasive proof-of-concept for AngloGold Ashanti that can successfully be implemented at any of the company’s mining operations. The system was designed by adhering to organizational requirements, and ensuring that it is suitable to any mining environment. The designed Critical Control Management System was subsequently implemented at Sunrise Dam, one of AngloGold Ashanti’s Australian mining operations. To ensure that critical controls were also assessed at the operational level, a workplace inspection process was modified to generate control data. All sources of data subsequently were fed into a Business Intelligence environment enabling insight into critical control performance to all company stakeholders. Doing so informs decision-making on safety priorities company-wide, based on real-time data generated on the operational level. Two case studies were performed to assess two of the most significant hazards at Sunrise Dam. The studies showed that the effectiveness of reactive controls changes irrespective of their compliance and performance. Furthermore, the influence of human factors within risk management remains difficult to quantify. Finally, it demonstrates the potential for integration of incident data into the Critical Control Management System, thus creating both leading and lagging indicators for safety performance. The conclusion of this study is that an effective and scalable Critical Control Management System can be successfully implemented in a mining operation if the right conditions are generated. The approach of integration in existing processes demonstrates that companies can achieve greater control over fatality prevention without the need for an additional safety management system. On this basis, it is recommended that other operations are supported in creating an environment suitable for adaptation before Critical Control Management is implemented

IMPROVING SAFTEY PERFORMANCE IN CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN LIBYA (CASE STUDY : IN TRIPOLI CITY)

Abstract In both developed and developing countries, the construction industry is considered to be one of the most significant industries in terms of its impact on health and safety of the working population. Construction industry is both economically and socially important. However, the construction industry is also recognized to be the most hazardous. The objectives of this research are to investigate the safety performance in the construction sites. The data were collected from the contractors, consultant, and owners by using questionnaire to evaluate the safety performance in the construction sites. In total, there were 40 questionnaires which were distributed to respondents, with a response rate of 75%. The results show that there was still a lack of commitment from the government, the insurance company, the labor ministry, the owners, consultants, and also the contractors to improving safety performance on the construction sites. The suggestion is to improve the safety performance on the construction sites. The government should follow up the safety performance by visiting the construction sites. The insurance company should be more active in visiting the construction sites. The owners should be more active towards the safety by controlling, visiting the process in the construction sites. The contractors have to train the workers and promote the safety culture and follow up the safety performance. The consultants should control all the tools in the construction sites to insure that those tools are safe. Keywords: Safety performance, construction project, Tripol

The future of UAS: standards, regulations, and operational experiences [workshop report]

This paper presents the outcomes of "The Future of UAS: Standards, Regulations and Operational Experiences" workshop, held on the 7th and 8th of December, 2006 in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The goal of the workshop was to identify recent international activities in the Unmanned Airborne Systems (UAS) airspace integration problem. The workshop attracted a broad cross-section of the UAS community, including: airspace and safety regulators, developers, operators and researchers. The three themes of discussion were: progress in the development of standards and regulations, lessons learnt from recent operations, and advances in new technologies. This paper summarises the activities of the workshop and explores the important outcomes and trends as perceived by the authors

GIS Application to Support Land Administration Services in Ghana: Institutional Factors and Software Developments

In June 1999, the Ghanaian Government launched a new land policy document that sought to address some fundamental problems associated with land administration and management in the country. The document identified the weak land administration system as a particular problem and recommended the introduction of computer-aided information systems in the ‘lands sector’. In 2001, the Government made further proposals to prepare and implement a Land Administration Programme (LAP) to provide a better platform for evolving an efficient land administration that would translate the ‘National Land Policy’ into action. Thus, an up-to-date land information system (LIS), supporting efficient management of land records, is to be constructed, which provides a context for the research reported in this paper. We document two aspects of our research on the adoption of GIS by the Lands Commission Secretariat (LCS) which form part of a pilot project in GIS diffusion. Part one of the paper mainly outlines the empirical results arising from fieldwork undertaken during 2001 to determine the information and GIS requirements of the LCS in relation to their routine administrative processes and to identify the critical factors that are required to ensure that any new GIS applications are successfully embraced. Part two explains the prototype software system developed using ArcView 3.2 and Access that provides the LCS with a means to automate some of the routine administrative tasks that they are required to fulfil. The software has been modified and upgraded following an initial evaluation by LCS employees also conducted as part of the fieldwork in Accra