Critically review how the management of quality has changed over the Essay

Critically review how the management of quality has changed over the last century - Essay Example "With the creation of this new department, there came new services and issues, e.g. standards, training, recording of data and the accuracy of measuring equipment" (the UK Government Department of Quality and Industry 2005). It is obvious that the duties of this "chief inspector" were laying in something more than just an acceptance of goods. Thus a defect prevention practice appeared to be required. The 1920s was the period when statistical methods efficiently merged into quality control practice, and it was in 1924 when Shewhart created the first outline of a timely chart for quality control. Thus his investigations and the work of the followers of this practice represented a great amount of what involved the up-to-date theory of statistical process control. Nevertheless this practice was hardly applied in manufacturing companies until the late 1940s (Ackoff 1993). It is well known that it was the time when industrial system of Japan was actually collapsed, and it was infamously well-known because of cheap counterfeit of goods and an ignorant illiterate labor force. Fortunately the Japanese identified these problems and entered upon solving them in time (Connor 1997). In the beginning of the 1950s quality management quickly occupied a fitting place in Japanese manufacturing business and came into essential play in management philosophy of Japan in such a way that by the 1960s quality management had taken a place of national bias. As a result by the end of 1960s Japan's imports in Europe and the USA surged noticeably, first of all "because of its cheaper, higher quality products, compared to the Western counterparts" (Dooyoung, S., Kalinowski J. G. & El-Enein, G. A. 1998). In 1969 the first cross-border conference on quality control management supported by Japan, The USA and Europe was carried out in Tokyo. A mind appeared that quality control management in Japan even differ from that one in other countries as it was "company wide quality control" with all the working team from a worker to the top manager taking considerable part in the process (The UK Government Department of Quality and Industry 2005). This type of management characterized Japanese companies by the end of the1970s. Although supporting of this tendency in the West began later, nearly in the 1980s, when western companies proposed their own quality policies, concepts and ideas in order to compete and overtake Japan. "Total quality management (TQM) became the centre of these drives in most cases" (Giroux, H. & Landry, S. 1998). In the light of intensive global

Answer questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 10

Answer questions - Assignment Example secured loans such as account receivables, freezing accounts of the business, placing a lien on property owned, in addition to filing a legal suit may well be recommended avenues to collect such loans. The law often prohibits creditors from taking/seizing certain types of properties. Such include collective family equity, furniture, and clothes. As such, first right to property with many interest involved fgalls to the collective owners other than the lender to a specific individual borower. A spouse and/or child cut out of a will can contest the will in a court of law. Such cases can be successful if the established laws or rules in a given state regarding family property are on their side. A prenuptial agreement only affect a will to the extent that its conflict with the terms of the will. One can donate part of her/his property through a written devise -- a gift of property made in a will. A lien is but a legal claim against the assets of a noncompliant taxpayer. If one receives an insurance policy with property tax lien, I file a "withdrawal" notice, notifying the public that I am not competing with other creditors for my property. Application for the Lien Withdrawal is also applicable for income tax lien. Easement is usually part of the deal and does need to be mentioned. For a mortgage and a mechanic lien, virtually impossible for you to sell a property with them, a law suit against such will be quite in order. Property lines are determined through a number of ways such as thorough checking of deed, visiting local assessors’ office for maps on the same or simply visiting the assessors’ official website for the same. One can also hire a surveyor to do the same work. Should problems be found, an agreement with the neighbors can as well resolve any issues arising from the

Effects Of Improper Waste Management Environmental Sciences Essay

Effects Of Improper Waste Management Environmental Sciences Essay The issue of Waste Management has be an ongoing issue in Nigeria but came into lime light in 1988 with the disposal of toxic waste in the then Delta State (Edo state). Nigeria as the most populous country in Africa has an estimated population size of about 160 million people, a growth rate of 2.37% and generates an annual municipal waste figure of 25,000,000 tones. This policy sets to identify the probable sources of waste generation, their effects, and disposal methodology and thereafter recommend mitigation strategy for Waste Management by proffering probable solution to its management by means of: Its Prevention, Its Reduction, Its Beneficial usage through the 3Rs of waste management and Development of Statutory, legal and legislative regulations for the management of waste. Although there are Federal and State Ministry of Environment, Environmental Protection Agency (State and Federal), we still have problems about enforcement of the responsibilities for regulation and monitoring to ensure legal, statutory and social compliance. COUNTRY PROFILE The Nigerian economy is one that has experienced a number of environmental problems in its over fifty (50) years of being an independent nation. There apparently seem to be no end in sight except a few radical changes are made to its economical and environmental policies. The waste management system in operation in Nigeria leaves a lot to be desired. The countrys current environmental issues include but are not limited to: Oil pollution and gas flaring (which affect water, aquatic lives, air, and lead to loss of arable land), Waste pollution (which causes air, land and water pollution), Rapid urbanization. A look at nine (9) of the major cities in Nigeria gives a fairly good idea of the disaster the country is looking at in terms of unchecked waste generation and management. The Map below shows each of the nine (9) states with their generated annual municipal waste One would expect that a country of such magnitude both in population size and economic importance will have structures in place to adequately combat the menace posed by waste generation and management but this is not the case as the country doesnt have a single sanitary landfill for waste disposal. It disposes waste in open landfills and dumps. SOURCES OF WASTE GENERATION The environment is a continuously changing one and the quantity of waste generated increases with an increase in population, peoples attitudes and rapid urbanization. In providing a solution and putting in place a policy to manage waste in the Nigerian economy a clear understanding of what waste is and how it is generated is required. What is waste? The United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) defines waste as materials that are not prime products (that is products produced for the market) for which the generator has no further use in terms of his/her own purposes of production, transformation or consumption, and of which he/she wants to dispose. Waste is generated from: Residential waste: household waste and kitchen waste Commercial waste: office waste e.g. papers Institutional waste: papers Municipal waste: sludge and general waste Process waste: scraps Agricultural waste: pesticides Construction waste: wood, Concrete etc Drilling: Oil spillage, gas flaring, coal, ash Types of waste (Diagram) EFFECTS OF IMPROPER WASTE MANAGEMENT It is a well known fact that our environment is poorly protected and not many Nigerians know the actual scope and the ramifications of this problem. What is Waste Management? Waste management is the act of collection, storage and disposal of waste to prevent pollution, degradation of the environment. This ranges from ordinary household, industrial wastes even generated by factories and nuclear power plants. Proliferation of vermin: Dirt has been known to be the breeding grounds for vermin like rodents, mosquitoes and microbes Water pollution: This occurs mainly when ground water is contaminated from oil spillage and washed off chemicals that enter the ground. This has an adverse effect on marine life, drinking water and deforestation occurs because plants get contaminated water into their roots. Air pollution: This occurs when waste is incinerated indiscriminately in public without the proper facilities being used and even dumped in the open. The incinerated waste especially plastic release toxins that could produce acid rain and the smoke could cause lung damage. Land pollution: This occurs when waste is not deposited at proper disposal sites but is dumped in open landfills. This causes a blot on the landscape and a reduction in property price where such landfills are found. Public Health Issues: The unregulated dumping of waste which gives room for microbes and insect to breed creates health issues such as: malaria (mosquitoes), typhoid (contaminated home water source) etc. Reduction in Agricultural production: waste especially oil spillage, gas flaring, chemical contaminants reduce the quality of the soil and this in turn is noticed in the reduction of agricultural produce Methane production: which if not treated properly causes green house effect and add to ozone depletion (unmanaged waste smells and generates the gas) Climate change leads to an increase in the intensity and frequency of weather extremes, such as heat waves, floods, droughts and tropical cyclones. The people hardest hit by climate change and environmental degradation are those living in the most vulnerable areas such as coastal communities and Delta Regions in Nigeria. This climate change and the effects it generates lead to property damage, business interruption, forest fires and health risks. Flooding: This occurs when waste is disposed in drainages by man or by natural occurrence (washed by rain).This could causes flooding when rain falls. Erosion: The presence of chemical and toxic waste in the soil reduces its compatibility and causes soil wash off when rain falls. PROBLEMS: The problem of inadequate waste disposal and management practice in Nigeria is based on a few controllable factors that are highlighted as: Enlightenment: Nigerias citizens lack the general awareness of worlds best practices for waste disposal, management and the possible effects of non-compliance on their health. Meager funding: The funds allocated to each state for waste management is inadequate to battle the issues of environmental waste. States like Lagos have only 5-7% of the states allocation to battle waste management. Obsolete technology and inadequate equipment: The people who have been given the job of waste disposal and management do not have the equipments and technology to do the job. Inexperience of staff: The staff who have been allocated to manage waste disposal and management do not have the technical knowhow to go about doing the job. Incomplete policy to combat improper waste disposal: The policies on ground have not been improved to meet the changing population size, urbanization and worlds best practice. Sanitary Landfills: Nigeria as a country doesnt have a single sanitary landfill to its name. It uses open landfills and dumpsites for its waste disposal which is not hygienic and environmentally friendly. Traffic: This situation is more prominent in urban cities where the distance between the point of collection of waste and the disposal point could take a whole day to cover because of traffic congestion Legislature implementation: Nigeria has the uniqueness of making laws without having the legal presence to implement them and has cascaded to the waste management sector. Government Legislation: In situations where there are environmental laws in place, the fines attributed to breaking the laws are not a fair representation of the offence committed.eg Environmental Sanitation Edict NO:12.1985 stipulated a fine of two (200 ) naira or two( 2) months in prison for going out on sanitation days. GOVERNMENTS EFFORT SO FAR It is accepted that the Nigerian government has put in place several environmental bodies to curb the increasing environmental issues caused by waste generation. Such bodies include: Federal Environmental Protection Agency (FEPA) was established on 30th December, 1988 by the Federal Government to secure a quality environment for Nigerians. National Environmental Standards and Regulation Enforcement Agency (NESREA) was established in 1999 to enforce environmental laws. It was established as a subset of FEPA. Each state in Nigeria has its own Environmental Protection Agency e.g. Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) State Ministry of Environment National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) ADVISED SOLUTIONS (RECOMMENDATIONS) GOVERNMENT TECHNICAL SOLUTION. The technical solutions recommended for government approval are: Prevention of waste This technique will include practices like: increasing the shelf life of a product (increasing product warranty) by citizens in their everyday life. Waste Generation Reduction. The key to achieving waste generation reduction is for the government to create awareness. Educate people on the effects of waste generation on the economy, the environment and themselves and to advise them on waste generation reduction techniques of shopping. This technique says that: People should only purchase what they need (necessities and essentials) People should purchase reusable products and goods People should buy products with little packaging People should buy recyclable products Composting: The government should set up waste compositing sites at strategic parts of the country. Compositing involves the use of anaerobic bacteria at high temperature and in the presence of Oxygen to digest and breakdown biodegradable waste into different components that are harmless to the environment and the end product can be used as fertilizers by farmers. Recycling The Nigerian government has no recycling department or unit in its environmental agency and also has no recycling plant. The key to recycling is in educating people on the different classes of waste and the different means of disposal and separation. The process of recycling involves the reprocessing of waste to produce a different or new product. This process should involved both the government and the people Incineration: With the reduction of the water content in generated waste, incineration can be carried out in an enclosed space under certain conditions to generate heat and energy that can be used to generate electricity. The government should look at this option as another means for energy generation as with the population size in the country the waste generated will be put to better use. This can only be achieved if citizens develop the practice of classifying waste into: general waste, recyclable waste and reusable waste. Sanitary landfill: Nigeria as a country doesnt have a single sanitary landfill. A sanitary landfill is usually used for the final waste that cannot be reused, recycled or composited. The ground is dug and lined to prevent the contamination of ground water and the waste is packed and lined then covered with dirt to reduce its smell and to stop animals from digging it up. The sanitary landfill site should be located far from residential areas. The government should look at building a few sanitary landfills in key areas in the country GOVERNMENT GENERAL SOLUTION: Set up awareness campaign to educate people on the worlds waste disposal and management best practices Provide technical knowhow and training programmers to environmental waste management agency employees Companies and the type of waste they generate should be registered with the government so as to enable the government put facilities on ground to dispose and manage the waste. Different types of waste should have different disposable sites. The disposal and management responsibility of waste should be cascaded down. The government should get private investors who will assist them in managing the generated waste Encourage the generation of a professional body for waste disposal and management Ensure that there is accountability for any waste disposal issue that might arise in the country. Ensure waste policys are implemented Ensure that physical, informative and financial facilities are put on ground to adequately combat environmental waste disposal and management. Creation of an adequate legal frame work to try offenders of waste management laws will go a long way in. Finance research into waste reduction and waste utilization technique ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF RECOMMENDATIONS Methane: The methane generated from fermentation if managed properly can be used as cooking fuel. This the government can add as another source of cooking fuel instead of kerosene and firewood Re cycling: Stops flooding: Incineration: Heat and Energy generated through this process will be used in electricity generation which in turn reduces our reliance on hydrolic electricity generation Compositing: This is a source of fertilizer to farmers that is environmental friendly Agriculture: The improvement in soil quality will lead to a corresponding increase in agricultural produce which if exported is a source of foreign currency. Reduces erosion: The increase in comportment of the soil will reduces the probability of erosion occurring with rainfall Good ground water and aquatic life survival: This will provide clean water for human consumption and plant growth Healthy populace: With the advent of a sustainable environment the countrys population will be healthy and free of waste and water borne diseases.

Transition of the Bulgarian Economy: 1990-1997 :: Essays Papers

Transition of the Bulgarian Economy: 1990-1997 The immense political and economic changes in Central and Eastern Europe have created a variety of unique transition economies. Each country controlling its own development without fully understanding the implications of the monetary and fiscal macroeconomic policies it yields. Bulgaria in particular has had mixed results. A 1992 OECD Economic Assessment of Bulgaria described â€Å"shock therapeitic† reform programs that included the abolition of central planning, the liberalization of most prices, and opening more markets to foreign trade. While the survey concluded that â€Å"much has been achieved in extremely difficult circumstances,† by 1997, economic stability had not been realized. Since 1989, several governments have presided, the banking system has virtually collapsed, GDP has significantly declined along with the lev, inflation is rampant, and economic policies fail to generate confidence. However, Bulgaria’s economic performance is decidedly â€Å"middle of the road† when compared to other transitioning economies. Declines in output and average real income are much greater and unemployment and inflation much higher than the Visegrad group and Baltic Republics though often better than Ukraine, Belarus, and the Russian Republics. Many of Bulgaria’s current economic problems can be traced to economic conditions at the start of its transition. Heavy reliance on CMEA markets devastated the country , more so than any other country. Compared to GDP, over 60% of its imports and exports were orientated to the CMEA market. COMECON’s collapsed devastated Bulgaria, causing large initial declines in GDP and increases in unemployment. This event necessitated the complete restructuring of the modes of production. The complete upheaval of the Bulgarian economy forced a suspension of payments to foreign debts making it practically impossible to attract foreign/western investment to restructure the economy. Current economic instability is due to the lack of decisive economic policy from the seven successive governments following the fall of Todor Zhivkiv the former Communist Party leader in 1989. While each succeeding government has remained committed to economic transition, their policies have lacked cohesion over important controversies such as privatization, subsidies, co-operation with IFIs, and foreign investment. The result of the different policies have resulted in much change but little progress with measures dealing with â€Å"soft budget† enterprises and banks, privitisation of state assets, and attraction of foreign investment. Ripples from the discontinuity of Bulgarian economic policy are evident in the rapidly accumulating domestic debt, payment arrears, and the continual refinancing of inefficiently run commercial banks.

Alessandro Volta Biography

Alessandro Volta Biography Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Volta was an Italian scientist that is known for inventing the first battery. Volta was born into a noble family in Como, Italy on February 18, 1785. When Volta was twenty-nine years old he became a physics professor at the ‘Royal School’ in Como, Italy. He studied chemistry gases in the years of 1776 through 1778. By 1778, Volta managed to make an electrical spark using methane, which he discovered in 1776 by collecting the gas from marshes†¦Volta was the first person to discover and isolate the compound methane. The first battery that Alessandro Volta made was called the ‘Voltaic Pile’. The â€Å"Pile† consisted of discs of copper and zinc, stacked alternatively. In 1800, after going through extensive experimentation, Volta developed the voltaic pile. The original voltaic pile consisted of a pile of zinc and silver discs. The discs were separated by pieces of paper or cardboard and they wer e in between the alternating discs.The dividers were soaked in salt water. A copper wire connected the bottom zinc disc to the top silver disc could create frequent sparks. The top and the bottom layers had to be different metals and they were attached by a copper wire. When the circuit was closed electricity flowed through the Voltaic Pile. In 1779, Volta became a professor one again at the â€Å"University of Pavia†, for about 25 years. In 1794, he married a woman named Teresa Peregrini, who was also from Como, Italy.They both raised three sons: Giovanni, Flamino and Zanino Volta. Volta was acquired as a â€Å"count† by the French emperor, Napoleon, for his impeccable invention. He traveled to Paris, where a special gold medal was given him. Volta retired in 1819 in his hometown of Como, Italy. Alessandro Volta died on March 5, 1827, at the age of 82. He was buried in his late house, which is now called ‘Camnago Volta’.

Fight Club Essay

The 1999 film, Fight Club, is controversial in the sense that it can be interpreted at a superfluity of angles. However, the effectiveness of the final scene to reflect the narrator’s catharsis is indisputable as it is accompanied by the song â€Å"Where is My Mind† by The Pixies. The song itself is vital to the ending scene and ultimately the entire film. The lyrics are significant to the narrator’s inner turmoil, not only throughout the film, but also at the concluding moment and the auditory elements parallel the events and emotions of the concluding scene. Fight Club centers around an unnamed narrator who projects his unconscious identity as a separate character, Tyler Durdin. Tyler frees the narrator from his former pretenses of life regarding society through self destruction. The narrator burns his house, quits his job, and beings to live recklessly, seemingly by coincidence. He subconsciously rids himself of all worldly possessions. Together, Tyler and the narrator form Fight Club – an underground group that thrives on destruction of themselves and government establishments. As the narrator gets weaker and less powerful, Tyler gets stronger and better looking, symbolizing his strengthening id. Towards the end of the film, the narrator comes to the realization that he is Tyler. The ending scene puts the narrator and Marla, a woman with whom he has an on again-off again relationship, at the highest story of a city building, holding hands and watching the city collapse around them. The music as it appears in the final scene is essential to the conclusion of the film The lyrics, â€Å"where is my mind,† plays at the very closing moment. The words reflect the state of the character’s mind during the entire film and especially at the final scene. As he rids himself of all superficiality and society’s values, he is freed from his dangerous alter ego and his apparent schizophrenia and left with an open mind. â€Å"Where is my mind,† speaks to the separation between his conscious and subconscious into two people as well as his newfound freedom from materiality. The narrator experiences a â€Å"rebirth† from his prior lifestyle into pure existentialism, a state of being where he is now able to award meaning to his life, rather than society assigning meaning. The auditory elements of the song run parallel to the occurrences of the concluding scene. The song features loud, aggressive, and disharmonic music which is comparable to the city’s crashing buildings and demolition. There is a melodic undertone of chorus voices singing which is reflective of the narrator and Marla’s calmness and almost happiness, it seems, during the outside devastation.