Determination of Performance Analysis for an Underground Colliery Utilizing Mechanized Production System

Performance is one of the most important parameters for today’s business organizations. An organizationthat is low on performance, no matter how much high quality products they have, cannot take the share they desirefrom the market. It is the inevitable result for organizations with low performances to lose money and get closed down.Nowadays performance is measured in many ways. In this work; the production performance of Ömerler Colliery,which is the only government controlled mechanized lignite mine authorized under the Western Lignite Corporation(WLC) and the factors that caused performance decrease has been determined. In order to gain performancemeasurements; effectiveness, efficiency and productivity criteria have been used and performance indexes have beenacquired. As the result of the performance analysis, it is understood that there has been malfunctions with; in order; beltconveyor, chain conveyor, shearer and fortification that has been effective in the decrease of performance. Performanceindexes, which are barely derived from the multiplication of performance parameters, are examined and it is deductedthat the highest relation is achieved for the efficiency parameter with a correlation constant (r) of 0.9489 and a certaintyconstant (R²) of 0.9005 while the lowest relation is obtained for the efficiency parameter with a correlation constant (r)of 0.4621 and certainty constant (R²) 0.2135. With this acquired result it has been determined that by only measuringeffectiveness, performance detection cannot be made

An approach to the assessment of the agricultural impacts of coal mining

Contentions that expansion of the British coal mining industry into predominantly rural areas may pose serious threats to agriculture and food production are reviewed in the light of the available evidence. It is considered that, whilst the severity of impacts and rate of future development may have been overstated, the conflicts are sufficiently significant to warrant close examination. Further, land use planners are responding for the first time to mining proposals affecting entire coalfields, thus making it essential to establish the correct principles of development from the outset. It is noted that past assessments of agricultural impacts have failed to reflect their diverse and pervasive nature, thus necessitating the identification of more appropriate methods of forecasting. In the light of current weaknesses in practice, it is argued that a formal system of impact assessment may prove necessary. Those characteristics of mining operations and associated end-uses which are likely to affect agriculture are analysed, as are those aspects of the farm enterprise most vulnerable to disruption. These various characteristics are then used as a basis for the assessment of mining-agriculture impacts. A review of the strategic nature of impacts arising from mining programmes is considered desirable, and limited proposals are made regarding assessment at this scale. More detailed consideration is given to an appraisal framework for individual mining proposals, and this is tested in relation to part of the 'Vale of Belvoirl coalfield. It is concluded that, although further methodological refinements and field investigations are necessary, the early implementation of an impact assessment procedure is nevertheless justified

Engineering linkages with the coal chain

"Industrial restructuring without parallel in recent British industrial history" is how the current Chairman of British Coal, Sir Robert Haslam, has described events in that industry. Since 1960 upwards of three quarters of a million jobs have gone in the deep coal mining industry alone. Numerous studies have analysed the underlying mechanisms behind the rapid decline of the nationalised coal industry, but hitherto little attention has been paid to the national linkage effects of that decline. This thesis is an attempt to analyse the consequences of industrial restructuring in coal mining on its UK engineering suppliers. In so doing, the thesis develops into much more than an empirical case study of industrial linkage and becomes a critical analysis of state capital-private capital relations. In particular, it focusses on the shifting boundaries of state ownership in the energy sector of the 'eighties. It considers what are the main processes involved and some of the consequences for those people and places most dependent on mining related jobs for their livelihoods

Pasture measurements and bio-economic analyses to assess effects of climate, grazing pressure and pasture rundown on soil carbon and returns from legume-based sown pastures in the Condamine region of Southern Queensland. Final Report on project AOTGR1-137 'Increasing soil carbon in degraded cropping and grazing land'

The Condamine catchment has been identified as a key area in Australia where there is potential to build soil carbon. There are approximately 1 million hectares of degraded crop and grazing lands in the region that could be potentially improved through establishment of sown pastures, particularly legume-based pastures that have capacity to add nitrogen, lift productivity and build soil carbon. This document provides a final report on several sub-components for the Condamine Alliance project “Increasing soil carbon in degraded cropping and grazing Land (AOTGR1-137)”. The overall objectives of this project were to measure, assess and communicate the impact and feasibility of practices for increasing soil carbon sequestration in cropping and grazing land in the Condamine catchment. Field studies from July 2012 to March 2015 at nine trial sites tested the value of returning crop land to pasture, renovation of pastures and the use of manure and inorganic fertilizer. As part of the overall project, the objectives addressed in this report focus on bio-economic analyses to assess the value of sown pastures in the Condamine region in terms of their capacity to build soil carbon and provide significant economic benefits to industry. The influence of seasonal conditions, land type and management were considered. This included the effects of grazing pressure, manure, fertilizer and importantly the use of legumes. A sown pastures version of the GRASP grazing systems model was used to estimate the effects of season and management on pasture growth and condition, beef production, economic returns, soil carbon sequestration and green-house gas emissions. Nitrogen available for pasture growth was a key component of the model concerning effects of pasture rundown and the influence of legumes. Potential effects of other nutrient limitations particularly phosphorous were recognised but not included in simulation analyses. Soil tests and pasture measurements of net primary production from exclosures and pasture yield/composition from grazed paddocks at the trial sites were used to calibrate and test the modelling process. The sub-tropical sub-humid inland climate of the Condamine region is favourable for growing sub-tropical grass-legume sown pastures in most years. The long-term average rainfall for the region is 672 mm. Weather conditions during the trial period were variable with several extended periods of hot and dry drought conditions; particularly in 2013 and 2014. The modelling and simulation studies were an important tool for overcoming the influences of climate variability on results, as well as reasonable inferences due to the short term duration of the project. The mean observed value of soil carbon (0-30 cm) across all trial sites was 1.13%. Values ranged from 0.63 to 0.88 % carbon (31 to 35 t/ha) on light sandy soils of the Brigalow and Alluvial plains to an average of 1.68 % carbon (52 t/ha) for the black cracking clays of the Basalt uplands with some values up to 2.16%. The mean annual growth of pastures across all sites, pastures, grazing pressures and climatic conditions was estimated to be 3076 kg/ha. This mean was substantially higher on the more fertile clay soils of the region’s Basalt Uplands (3898 kg/ha) but lower on less fertile loam soils of Alluvial Plains (2648 kg/ha) and the sandstone derived soils of the Brigalow Uplands (2708 kg/ha). The optimum commercial grazing pressure in terms of maximum economic return per hectare was estimated to be 25 to 30% utilisation of pasture growth and this was consistent across all trial sites and land types. Lower utilisation levels were estimated to increase live weight gains per head but this reduced overall economic returns. Higher utilisation levels increased short-term economic gain but were likely to cause detrimental effects on pasture condition if persistently used, and also reduce live weight gains per head. This led to lower gross margins and would ultimately lead to reduced soil carbon. Use of legume-based sown pastures in the GRASP simulation experiments was estimated to maximise economic returns at all sites. At the optimum grazing pressure the mean gross margin across all sites of legume-based sown pasture was $78.60/ha compared to$44.50/ha and $40.50/ha respectively for sown grass pastures and native pasture. Soil carbon sequestration rates were estimated from simulation modelling to be much higher in the first decade after planting a sown pasture than in later decades. This reflected changes in pasture productivity associated with pasture rundown and the progress of soil carbon levels towards new equilibrium conditions. In 50 year simulations (repeated for four different time periods at each site), the mean carbon sequestration of sown grass pastures for the first decade was 459 kg/ha/year compared with 10, 15 and -36 kg/ha/year over the last three decades. Grass-legume pastures had the highest carbon sequestration rates. They were estimated to sequester an average of 595 kg/ha/year for the first decade after sowing and 113 for the second decade. This was followed by an average of 32 kg/ha/year over the last three decades. Cattle methane emissions were calculated on the basis of dry matter intake. Estimates from GRASP simulations showed that sown pastures should help to reduce green-house gas emissions because: • the additional mean annual soil carbon sequestered by sown grass pastures (relative to native pasture) was 412 kg CO2e /ha and this was substantially more than the corresponding increase in methane emissions (58 kg CO2e/ha) due to higher stocking rates • the difference was greater for sown grass-legume pastures. Legume-based sown pastures increased carbon sequestration relative to native pasture by 1411 kg CO2e /ha compared with the much lower increase in methane emissions of 127 kg CO2e /ha. Nitrous oxide emissions as CO2e were estimated from legumes (due to nitrogen fixation) and from livestock urine and faeces due to increased stocking rate on sown pastures. These estimates were low in comparison to carbon sequestration and were lower than methane emissions. Key messages communicated to producers at a series of field days in March 2015 were: • Degraded crop and grazing lands are improved through establishment of legume-based pastures with bonus payoffs in production, carrying capacity, economic returns, and GHG emissions and sequestration rates. • Sown pastures are usually most productive in the first few years after planting and then gradually decline in productivity (known as 'pasture rundown' ) in the following years because of nutrient limitations mainly nitrogen • Maintaining legumes in pastures increases soil nitrogen, pasture growth and cattle production. • Legumes can help to offset pasture rundown. • While droughts cause significant losses in some years, nitrogen is limiting in most years. • Stocking rates should aim to utilise 25 to 30 % of pasture growth. • Increased pasture production builds soil carbon which improves soil health. The study has highlighted several concepts that include the following: • Pasture rundown is a consistent feature of sown pastures in grazing systems and therefore needs to be taken into account in farm management planning processes and carbon sequestration rate calculations • Legume contributions of nitrogen to foster additional grass growth were important at all sites to either offset or overcome the effects of pasture rundown. They enable production to plateau at a higher level than grass only pastures, which emphasises the importance of legumes in sown pastures. • Legumes are a relatively minor cost when establishing a sown pasture but they contribute greatly to the profitability of sown pastures. This highlights the value of developing technologies to improve the reliability and resilience of agricultural practices to successfully establish and maintain palatable legume-based sown pastures. Lucerne was demonstrated to be a highly successful legume for pastures on the heavier clay soils of the Condamine region, however, more summer active legumes might give additional benefits in the regions summer dominant rainfall climate. The summer growing legumes, shrubby stylos, particularly Caatinga stylo, desmanthus, Wynn cassia, fine-stem stylo and leucaena are options that should be considered. The sown pastures version of the GRASP model has proved to be a useful tool in several ways. Firstly, it provided a mechanism to integrate information from the trial sites and elsewhere which was then used to interpolate and extrapolate data across sites, time periods and levels of output relevant to industry. Secondly, the simulation results are providing industry with information for discussion that would be otherwise not available, and thirdly GRASP and the sown pastures version of GRASP are providing a platform that may well be useful to other projects. The Condamine Catchment is a highly productive agricultural region and this study has shown that it has the potential to significantly increase soil carbon over a large area with legume-based pastures. The region stands out as an area in Australia to continue work to demonstrate, test the value and seek adoption of sown pastures. Therefore it is recommended that further work be conducted in this field to work with the farming community in planned extension programs to demonstrate the advantages of legume-based pastures for increasing productivity, building soil carbon and improving economic returns. This work should integrate field studies, analyses and communications that emphasise farming practices that help to overcome risks including the risks that are linked with agronomy, grazing management, financial issues and climate variability. The need for this work to continue is accentuated by the continuing rise of carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere and resulting effects on rising global temperatures and increased climate variability, and also to clarify issues concerning the storage of carbon in soils as a greenhouse gas abatement strategy

Imperial connection? Contrasting accounting practices in the coal mines of north-east England and Nova Scotia, 1825-1900

The archives of the General Mining Association (GMA), a London-based enterprise with substantial holdings in the Nova Scotian coal-mining industry during the 19th century, are investigated in this paper. The historical record was examined with particular reference to the degree to which industrial costing techniques were transplanted via engineers/managers within the British Empire. The findings support the hypothesis that linkages to Newcastle were evident in Canadian coal mining, but that the accounting emphases differed somewhat between the two locales. In Nova Scotia, there was a great attention to day-to-day expense control. A similar concern was apparent also in the North-East of England, but here there appeared the additional sophistications of costing capital improvement projects and estimating the profitabil­ity of new workings. With regard to labor, the managers of the GMA\u27s Canadian operations, like their counterparts in the North-East Coalfield, seemed disinterested in tracking the efficiency and productivity of individual miners. We hypothesize that this inattention typified an environment wherein labor was scarce and employment alternatives existed for the work force

A legacy handbook for enterprise

Legacy Handbook reviewing emda's experience of enterprise activity. Identifies key achievements and draws out lessons learned that may be relevant to successor bodies active in this area

Holding multinational corporations accountable for human rights violations under International, African regional and South African Law

This thesis will focus on examining MNCs violation of human rights with specific reference to the environment and child labour. This paper will critique existing measures South Africa has adopted and implemented to prevent MNCs from committing such harmful practices and to hold them accountable for violating the aforementioned rights. This will be done by focusing in particular on MNCs operating in the extractive industry in South Africa. The study will consider the nature of human rights violations MNCs in this sector have been accused of and how, if at all, they are being held accountable. Lastly, this thesis will provide recommendations in respect to better prevention and accountability of MNCs of human rights violations

Competencies in Local Government Contracting Out: A Critical Review

This paper reviews the current literature on contracting out competencies and capacities in order to ensure successful implementation of contracting out initiatives. After a brief discussion on concept, this paper illustrates the various competencies and capacities needed during contracting processes. The complete b faith of the neo-liberal development paradigm in market-friendliness and contracting out ignores the competences needed to guarantee effective contracting out. The question of which sector or combination of sectors is best at offering public services have become more relevant and controversial overtime. Contracting out of the provision of public services is part of efforts to reconfigure state-market relations in order to give more prominence to markets and the private sectors. Applying the competencies approach helps determine which model of provision will provide optimal public services to citizens. This paper argues that the effective and efficient management of the relationships with the private sector by government agencies requires a solid foundation of project management and policy competencies. This study found out that legal, regulatory and policy, organisational and individual capacities are cornerstones of effective contract management process. The Bowman et al.’s (2010) Competency Triangle model of Public Service Professionalism informed remarkably the study. Keywords: contracting out, private sector, public sector, competency, capacit

Accounting and estate management in North-East England c.1700-1770 with particular reference to the Bowes estates

Through the accounts, the thesis examines estate accounting and management practice in the north-east of England, with special reference to the Bowes, in order to ascertain whether estates were managed efficiently as productive investments, and whether accounting aided managerial activity at this early stage of industrial development. George Bowes was the estate proprietor for most of the period in question. His active involvement in the day-to day operations of his estates, coupled with the geographical spread of his activities and his distance from events, necessitated a centralised organisational structure, that was capable of delegating responsibility to stewards in key areas, whilst, at the same time, retaining control at the centre. This was achieved through a unified reporting network, which ensured that management and accounting practices were highly integrated over different activities. Generally, the accounts were based on the bilateral recording of cash receipts and payments, with adjustments for opening and closing debtors, creditors and stocks as appropriate. Charge and discharge accounts did not predominate. Most of the accounts were prepared by the stewards. The majority of the estate accounts were designed to keep track of rights and obligations. There was a close linkage between the form of the accounts and the mode of organisational control, and the accounting procedures were flexible enough to respond to organisational changes. Written agreements underpinned the contractual obligations of third parties, and accounts were used to monitor compliance. Internal audit checks increased their effectiveness as a control mechanism. The survival of cost analysis, profit statements and planning data indicates that profit maximisation was also an important issue - the estates were not treated simply as units of consumption - and that the accounts played an important facilitating role. Colliery viewers were instrumental here. There are indications that a knowledge-power mechanism also existed within the estates, casting doubt on both the mutual- exclusivity of particular explanations of accounting activities, and on the notion that a relevant distinction exists between 'modern' and 'pre-modern' business organisation

The Landed Interest and the Development of the South Yorkshire Coalfield 1750 to 1830

The Norfolk and Rockingham-Fitzwilliam families possessed the two most extensive landed estates in South Yorkshire. It was the consolidated nature of the property which placed the owners in a favourable position for the exploitation of minerals. This is essentially a comparative study between the two great landed estates in the development of their collieries. Both landed proprietors were initially reluctant to take the collieries into direct management, but once the financial situation forced them to do so, the ensuing capital investment turned their mines into the most extensive in South Yorkshire, Although the thesis is concerned mainly with the expansion and management of the collieries, no work of this kind can omit social factors relating to mining, and therefore these will be referred to where appropriate. The expansion and profitability of the two mining enterprises were determined by transport developments. Whereas Norfolk sought to protect his Sheffield market by opposing transport schemes into Sheffield, Rockingham and Fitzwilliam actively participated in schemes that appeared to open more extensive markets. However, neither landed proprietor was able to break out of the limited South Yorkshire market, before the coming of the railways. The proprietors of extensive collieries in the eighteenth century were pioneers in mining technology and it was in this area that the Norfolks, in particular, made notable contributions. But problems associated with management and accounting were not adequately solved. Although the proprietors of both estates could exercise control only from a distance, they were not prepared to delegate managerial responsibilities. This led not only to inefficiency but an inadequate response to changing market conditions. In accounting, too much reliance was placed on the steward and master system - then common practice on the landed estates. They were unable to come to terms with current and capital accounts, with little attempt at depreciation accounting, which disguised the true profit situation of their collieries. Even so, the owners of the Sheffield and Wentworth estates were pioneers in large- scale mining, and it was on their capital investment, technological innovations, and development of coal markets that the nineteenth century coal industry in South Yorkshire was built