C. Kara-Zaïtri

A Comparative Study of Critical Quality Factors in Malaysia, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Libya

Abstract There is an increasing awareness about the significance of Total Quality Management (TQM) as a tool for improving work culture and organisational efficiency. However, there is a gap in the understanding of how and why the challenges of consolidating TQM differ from one cultural setting to another. This paper compares and contrasts quality visions and practice in five countries: Malaysia, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Libya. On the basis of such comparison, the paper proposes a model of international benchmarking for successful implementation of TQM. The paper argues that while the model derives from the cultural settings, corporate conditions, visions and experiences of developing countries (Africa, Middle East and Asia), it potentially carries the making of a generic framework for successful implementation of TQM in other developing countries.

Disaster prevention and limitation: state of the art; tools and technologies

Carries a review and critique on technology transfer applications to the management of man‐made type disasters. Covers state‐of‐the‐art applications of quality, risk and safety techniques. Quality function deployment (QFD), management overview risk tree (MORT), failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA), digraph and fault tree analysis (FTA), advanced mathematical modelling (simulation), decision support systems’ artificial intelligence (AI), object‐oriented programming (OOP) and innovative training methods (hyper and multimedia) to disaster prevention and limitation. Also reviews recent technology transfer projects in chemical, nuclear and transport applications and demonstrates that these projects can play, and have already played, a major role in improving techni cally and scientifically all aspects of disaster management. For completeness, also provides a listing of selected sites on the so‐called Super Highway which contain a wide spectrum of information relating to disaster prevention and limitation.

Using intervention mapping for the development of a targeted secure web-based outreach strategy named SafeFriend, for Chlamydia trachomatis testing in young people at risk

BackgroundMany young people at high risk for Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct) are not reached by current sexual health care systems, such as general practitioners and public sexual health care centres (sexually transmitted infection clinics).Ct is the most frequently diagnosed bacterial sexually transmitted infection (STI) among sexually active people and in particular young heterosexuals. Innovative screening strategies are needed to interrupt the transmission of Ct among young people and connect the hidden cases to care.MethodsIntervention Mapping (IM), a systematic approach to develop theory- and evidence-based interventions, was used to develop a strategy to target Ct testing towards young people who are currently hidden to care in The Netherlands. Both clinical users (i.e. sexual health care nurses) and public users (i.e., young people at risk for Ct) were closely involved in the IM process. A needs assessment study was carried out using semi-structured interviews among users (N = 21), a literature search and by taking lessons learned from existing screening programmes. Theoretical methods and practical applications to reach high risk young people and influence testing were selected and translated into specific programme components.ResultsThe IM approach resulted in the development of a secure and web-based outreach Ct screening strategy, named SafeFriend. It is developed to target groups of high-risk young people who are currently hidden to care. Key methods include web-based Respondent Driven Sampling, starting from young Ct positive sexual health care centre clients, to reach and motivate peers (i.e., sex partners and friends) to get tested for Ct. Testing and the motivation of peers were proposed as the desired behavioural outcomes and the Precaution Adoption Process Model was chosen as theoretical framework. End users, i.e., young people and sexual health care nurses were interviewed and included in the development process to increase the success of implementation.ConclusionsIM proved useful to develop an intervention for targeted Ct testing among young people. We believe this to be the first web-based outreach screening strategy which combines chain referral sampling with the delivery of targeted Ct testing to high risk young people within their sexual and social networks.

Fire safety management at passenger terminals

Discusses fire safety management in passenger terminals. Describes the design, development, implementation and validation of a fire safety management model for use in airports, railway and bus stations. The research carried out is based on a comprehensive analysis of 25 terminals (air, bus, rail and sea) in the UK and Europe. Develops the relationship existing between fire risk, people and fire safety management. Although the model is still being reviewed and augmented, it has already produced interesting results and has proved to be an efficient, robust and quantifiable tool for use by fire safety managers.

An improved minimal cut set algorithm

Presents a new qualitative fault tree evaluation algorithm based on bit manipulation techniques for the identification of the largest independent sub‐trees and the subsequent determination of all minimal cut sets of large and complex fault trees. The methodology developed is validated by direct application to a complex fault tree taken from the literature. Results obtained are compared with those available in the literature. Shows that the use of the algorithm (FTABMT) developed results in significant savings in both computer time and storage requirements.

Scope and limitations of the irreversible thermodynamics and the solution diffusion models for the separation of binary and multi-component systems in reverse osmosis process

Abstract Reverse osmosis process is used in many industrial applications ranging from solute-solvent to solvent–solvent and gaseous separation. A number of theoretical models have been developed to describe the separation and fluxes of solvent and solute in such processes. This paper looks into the scope and limitations of two main models (the irreversible thermodynamics and the solution diffusion models) used in the past by several researchers for solute-solvent feed separation. Despite the investigation of other complex models, the simple concepts of these models accelerate the feasibility of the implementation of reverse osmosis for different types of systems and variety of industries. Briefly, an extensive review of these mathematical models is conducted by collecting more than 70 examples from literature in this study. In addition, this review has covered the improvement of such models to make them compatible with multi-component systems with consideration of concentration polarization and solvent-solute-membrane interaction.

Optimisation of membrane design parameters of a spiral-wound reverse osmosis module for high rejection of dimethylphenol from wastewater at low energy consumption

Abstract Dimethylphenol is a very toxic pollutant found in wastewater, where its low concentration can hinder the usage of reused water in various industrial applications. Therefore, the removal of this compound from industrial effluents is critical for the safe discharge into surface water. In this research, a simple model based on the solution-diffusion principles is developed and validated using experimental data. The model is then used to simulate a wastewater treatment process using a spiral-wound RO module and assess the impact of membrane design parameters including; membrane length and width, feed channel height on the rejection of dimethylphenol and energy consumption of the process. Finally, the membrane design parameters are optimised within a multi-objective optimisation framework to simultaneously maximise the dimethylphenol rejection and at the same time minimise the energy consumption.

A Hardware Accelerated Semi Analytic Approach for Fault Trees with Repairable Components

Fault tree analysis of complex systems with repairable components can easily be quite complicated and usually requires significant computer time and power despite significant simplifications. Invariably, software-based solutions, particularly those involving Monte Carlo simulation methods, have been used in practice to compute the top event probability. However, these methods require significant computer power and time. In this paper, a hardware-based solution is presented for solving fault trees. The methodology developed uses a new semi analytic approach embedded in a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) using accelerators. Unlike previous attempts, the methodology developed properly handles repairable components in fault trees. Results from a specially written software-based simulation program confirm the accuracy and validate the efficacy of the hardware-oriented approach.

Stochastic modelling of risk severity reduction operations

Abstract Risk severity is generally recognized as the most important stochastic component of risk. Moreover, risk severity reduction operations constitute the most powerful tools of risk control. Stochastic models of such operations are particularly useful for the implementation of the risk management process. The present paper formulates a class of stochastic multiplicative models for describing efficient risk severity reduction operations.

Modeling the Performance of Low Pressure Reverse Osmosis Membrane System for N-nitrosamine Rejection

Abstract In this work, a one-dimensional model of a low-pressure reverse osmosis (LPRO) membrane process has been developed using an augmented model previously developed by the same authors to analyse the rejection of N-nitrosamine from wastewater. The model, based on the principles of the solution-diffusion coupled with the concentration polarization theory, is validated using experimental data of N-nitrosamine rejection from the literature for three different types of membranes in an RO process. Finally, detailed simulation of the LPRO process is carried out for variety of operating conditions such as inlet feed flow rate, pressure, feed concentration, and temperature.