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Article
Publication date: 1 March 1982

T.A. Kletz

Introduction This article describes some incidents which occurred because someone made a simple mistake, such as forgetting to open a valve or pressing the wrong button. The…

54

Abstract

Introduction This article describes some incidents which occurred because someone made a simple mistake, such as forgetting to open a valve or pressing the wrong button. The mistakes were not due to lack of training or ability—in all the cases described the men knew what they should do and were capable of doing it, but had a moment of aberration or forgetfulness. The article discusses the probability of such mistakes and the action that should be taken to prevent them.

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Industrial Management & Data Systems, vol. 82 no. 3/4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-5577

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Article
Publication date: 1 May 1996

Trevor A. Kletz

Describes some changes made to improve the environment which have had unforeseen and adverse effects on safety and the reasons why we need more case histories. Also discusses the…

873

Abstract

Describes some changes made to improve the environment which have had unforeseen and adverse effects on safety and the reasons why we need more case histories. Also discusses the reasons why there are no permanent solutions to safety problems and the reasons why senior managers should become more involved in safety problems.

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Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 5 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

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Article
Publication date: 1 January 1995

WILLIAM S. DESTER and DAVID I. BLOCKLEY

The construction industry has a poor safety record. There is a common perception that this is because it is an inherently dangerous industry. It is suggested that the industry…

3049

Abstract

The construction industry has a poor safety record. There is a common perception that this is because it is an inherently dangerous industry. It is suggested that the industry would be better characterized as one with a poor safety culture and that attempts to improve the safety record will not be fully effective until the safety culture is improved. The relationship between unsafe behaviour and safety culture is discussed together with the difficulties of assessing and managing safety culture. Some of the influences on safety culture in construction are described. The initiative to develop an improvement in the safety culture of construction needs to come from within the industry through a genuine commitment to safety.

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Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

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Article
Publication date: 1 June 2003

Jyoti Navare

Based on the belief that it is behaviour which constitutes risk rather than procedures, the paper focuses on the awareness of behavioural aspects in risk management techniques and…

1392

Abstract

Based on the belief that it is behaviour which constitutes risk rather than procedures, the paper focuses on the awareness of behavioural aspects in risk management techniques and the consequences that arise out of this awareness. It questions the traditional thinking that risk management is predominantly a set of procedures in the control of risk. The paper also considers the part played by public policy in managing risk and changing behaviour. The paper concludes that it is behaviour, and not the set of procedures, which is the risky factor; therefore in risk management there is need to focus on developing human behaviour that is capable of being flexible in an event.

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Managerial Finance, vol. 29 no. 5/6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

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Article
Publication date: 1 October 1996

Trevor A. Kletz

Technologists and the public look at risks in different ways: technologists try to find a way of estimating the size of each risk and then try to deal with the bigger ones first;…

933

Abstract

Technologists and the public look at risks in different ways: technologists try to find a way of estimating the size of each risk and then try to deal with the bigger ones first; their decisions may not be right but the reasons for them are usually made clear. In contrast, the reasons for the public’s decisions are usually implicit, that is, they have to be deduced from their actions, but nevertheless they show a pattern. Tries to give each side a better understanding of the other’s point of view.

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Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 5 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

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Article
Publication date: 27 June 2008

Duncan Shaw and Neil Blundell

The international nuclear community continues to face the challenge of managing both the legacy waste and the new wastes that emerge from ongoing energy production. The UK is in…

654

Abstract

Purpose

The international nuclear community continues to face the challenge of managing both the legacy waste and the new wastes that emerge from ongoing energy production. The UK is in the early stages of proposing a new convention for its nuclear industry, that is: waste minimisation through closely managing the radioactive source which creates the waste. This paper proposes a new technique (called waste and source material operability study (WASOP)) to qualitatively analyse a complex, waste‐producing system to minimise avoidable waste and thus increase the protection to the public and the environment.

Design/methodology/approach

WASOP critically considers the systemic impact of up and downstream facilities on the minimisation of nuclear waste in a facility. Based on the principles of HAZOP, the technique structures managers' thinking on the impact of mal‐operations in interlinking facilities in order to identify preventative actions to reduce the impact on waste production of those mal‐operations.'

Findings

WASOP was tested with a small group of experienced nuclear regulators and was found to support their qualitative examination of waste minimisation and help them to work towards developing a plan of action.

Originality/value

Given the newness of this convention, the wider methodology in which WASOP sits is still in development. However, this paper communicates the latest thinking from nuclear regulators on decision‐making methodology for supporting waste minimisation and is hoped to form part of future regulatory guidance. WASOP is believed to have widespread potential application to the minimisation of many other forms of waste, including that from other energy sectors and household/general waste.

Details

International Journal of Energy Sector Management, vol. 2 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6220

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Article
Publication date: 17 February 2012

Chang Woon Nam

A natural gas pipeline accident could prove to be a dangerous fire source in city centers. Taking the explosive danger caused by natural gas leakage as an example, the purpose of…

519

Abstract

Purpose

A natural gas pipeline accident could prove to be a dangerous fire source in city centers. Taking the explosive danger caused by natural gas leakage as an example, the purpose of this paper, based on the box model, is to examine how such an environmental hazard can be hindered by the variation of building heights in the context of urban safety design and land‐use decision making.

Design/methodology/approach

The box model measures the concentration of pollutants within a defined box in which a mixture of pollutants with air and their transport by wind take place. A street surrounded by tall buildings in the city center is a good example for the application of such a model, and the building heights shape the box size and the mixing height. Under the consideration of atmospheric conditions this study identifies how the constellation of physical factors shaping the city‐street box and its change affect the elapsed time to reach the lower explosive limit (LEL) and the upper explosive limit (UEL) of natural gas.

Findings

Ceteris paribus higher building heights expand the time span between initial gas leakage and reaching LEL, in which appropriate safety measures should be taken before ignition, but more rapidly increases the elapsed time to reach UEL, making the time scope for potential explosive danger in the city center even larger.

Originality/value

In the past, the aspect of preventing explosive dangers caused by natural gas leakage has been largely ignored in the building height regulations related to urban safety design and city center development.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 21 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

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Article
Publication date: 10 July 2017

Antonio Casimiro Caputo, Pacifico Marcello Pelagagge and Paolo Salini

The purpose of this paper is to develop a quantitative model to assess probability of errors and errors correction costs in parts feeding systems for assembly lines.

547

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop a quantitative model to assess probability of errors and errors correction costs in parts feeding systems for assembly lines.

Design/methodology/approach

Event trees are adopted to model errors in the picking-handling-delivery-utilization of materials containers from the warehouse to assembly stations. Error probabilities and quality costs functions are developed to compare alternative feeding policies including kitting, line stocking and just-in-time delivery. A numerical case study is included.

Findings

This paper confirms with quantitative evidence the economic relevance of logistic errors (LEs) in parts feeding processes, a problem neglected in the existing literature. It also points out the most frequent or relevant error types and identifies specific corrective measures.

Research limitations/implications

While the model is general purpose, conclusions are specific to each applicative case and are not generalizable, and some modifications may be required to adapt it to specific industrial cases. When no experimental data are available, human error analysis should be used to estimate event probabilities based on underlying modes and causes of human error.

Practical implications

Production managers are given a quantitative decision tool to assess errors probability and errors correction costs in assembly lines parts feeding systems. This allows better comparing of alternative parts feeding policies and identifying corrective measures.

Originality/value

This is the first paper to develop quantitative models for estimating LEs and related quality cost, allowing a comparison between alternative parts feeding policies.

Details

Industrial Management & Data Systems, vol. 117 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-5577

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Article
Publication date: 1 January 2002

ANDREW R. ATKINSON

Research driven by major industrial and transportation incidents is increasingly emphasizing the role of managers and systems factors in errors. This is reflected in recent…

1068

Abstract

Research driven by major industrial and transportation incidents is increasingly emphasizing the role of managers and systems factors in errors. This is reflected in recent reports and legislation which place emphasis on managerial actions. This paper reports research developing a human error perspective, but applying it to lesser failures in the form of construction defects. An observational study of a 61 unit housing site confirms findings from earlier studies, that managerial factors are important in the occurrence of defects, but also that factors can be linked in a ‘causal chain’. Latent managerial errors are often hidden behind more obvious operative errors, leading to incorrect attributions and ineffective remedial action. The study also supports a conceptual model of the nature of errors in construction projects, which makes explicit the influence of management on the generation of defects and the need to treat organizations as a whole in considering the reasons for failure.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 9 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

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Article
Publication date: 1 May 1983

In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of…

16798

Abstract

In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of material poses problems for the researcher in management studies — and, of course, for the librarian: uncovering what has been written in any one area is not an easy task. This volume aims to help the librarian and the researcher overcome some of the immediate problems of identification of material. It is an annotated bibliography of management, drawing on the wide variety of literature produced by MCB University Press. Over the last four years, MCB University Press has produced an extensive range of books and serial publications covering most of the established and many of the developing areas of management. This volume, in conjunction with Volume I, provides a guide to all the material published so far.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 21 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

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