• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.6 no.1
• /
• pp.46-55
• /
• 2015

Background: Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are often the main pillar of an economy. Minor accidents, ergonomics problems, old and outdated machinery, and lack of awareness have created a need for implementation of safety practices in SMEs. Implementation of healthy working conditions creates positive impacts on economic and social development. Methods: In this study, a questionnaire was developed and administered to 30 randomly chosen SMEs in and around Mumbai, Maharashtra, and other states in India to evaluate safety practices implemented in their facilities. The study also looked into the barriers and drivers for technology innovation and suggestions were also received from the respondent SMEs for best practices on safety issues. Results: In some SMEs, risks associated with safety issues were increased whereas risks were decreased in others. Safety management practices are inadequate in most SMEs. Market competitiveness, better efficiency, less risk, and stringent laws were found to be most significant drivers; and financial constraints, lack of awareness, resistance to change, and lack of training for employees were found to be main barriers. Conclusion: Competition between SMEs was found to be major reason for implementation of safety practices in the SMEs. The major contribution of the study has been awareness building on safety issues in the SMEs that participated in the project.

• Earthquakes and Structures
• /
• v.23 no.3
• /
• pp.315-328
• /
• 2022

Structures designed for wind have an opposite design approach to those designed for earthquakes. These structures are usually reliable if they are constructed in an area where there is almost no or less severe earthquake. However, as seismic activity is unpredictable and it can occur anytime and anywhere, the seismic safety of structures designed for wind must be assessed. Moreover, the design approaches of wind and earthquake systems are opposite where wind design considers higher stiffness but earthquake designs demand a more flexible structure. For this reason, a novel Machine learning framework is proposed that is used to assess and classify the seismic safety of the structures designed for wind load. Moreover, suitable criteria is defined for the design of wind resistance structures considering seismic behavior. Furthermore, the structural behavior as a result of dynamic interaction between superstructure and substructure during seismic events is also studied. The proposed framework achieved an accuracy of more than 90% for classification and prediction as well, when applied to new structures and unknown ground motions.

• Interaction and multiscale mechanics
• /
• v.3 no.4
• /
• pp.405-414
• /
• 2010

The performance of full-scale steel and composite bridge safety barriers under vehicle crash is evaluated by using the nonlinear explicit finite element code LS-DYNA. Two types of vehicles used in this study are passenger car and truck, and the performance criteria considered include structural strength and deformation, occupant protection, and post-crash vehicle behavior. It can be concluded that the composite safety barrier satisfies all performance criteria of vehicle crash. Although the steel safety barrier satisfies the performance criteria of occupant protection and post-crash vehicle behavior, it fails to satisfy the performance criterion of deformation. In all performance evaluations, the composite safety barrier exhibits a superior performance in comparing with the steel safety barrier.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
• /
• v.28 no.5
• /
• pp.376-391
• /
• 2023

Objectives: Our previously published study showed that a workplace nutrition intervention program with personalized goal setting and smartphone-based nutrition counseling improved dietary habits and physical activity in city bus drivers who were overweight/obese. This study explored the facilitators and barriers that participants faced in achieving their dietary and physical activity goals six months after the intervention. Methods: The study included bus drivers and dietitians who participated in the intervention program. Three focus group interviews were conducted with 10 bus drivers (divided by two groups based on their achievement of set goals) and five dietitians who had provided nutrition counseling. Results: Willpower was the most important intrapersonal facilitator for drivers to achieve their goals. Other factors that promoted behavioral changes were nutrition counseling by dietitians, trackable physical activity using smartwatches, and setting of practical and achievable goals. Meanwhile, the most important barriers identified were occupational factors such as long driving hours, short breaks, and shift work. Other barriers were environmental factors such as availability of snackable food, accessibility to convenience stores, and cold weather. Family and colleagues were perceived as both facilitators and barriers. In addition, dietitians identified a lack of knowledge about healthy diet as one of the barriers. Conclusions: Our results suggested that the workplace environment should be improved and that nutrition intervention programs at the workplace could encourage bus drivers to practice healthy eating habits. The facilitators and barriers identified in this study should be considered when planning a nutrition intervention program for bus drivers.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
• /
• v.20 no.2 s.70
• /
• pp.6-10
• /
• 2005

With the rapid industrial development, railways have become a main traffic means of transportation. However, rail traffic noise and vibration have become a major problem in urban areas which is a very serious issue for the living environment. Especially, railway noise induced by rail operations has influenced on the residents living near railway tracks. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the Raynoise modeling in railway applications. Generally, my acoustics have been used to investigate the effectiveness of noise barriers in railway applications and barriers are modeled using the commercial software Raynoise. A-weighted sound pressure level have been measured at six locations, 4m from the track and are compared with experimental values. Based on the analysis of the results, Comparison between numerical and experimental values are within 1dB (A). Also, when a train is m through the Raynoise modeling, the general influential sphere of railway noise can be determined. Therefore, this study will be using basic data in establishing effective railway noise prevention plans far the future. Also, we could know that is applicable of Raynoise modeling at railway noise.

• Advances in Energy Research
• /
• v.8 no.3
• /
• pp.165-174
• /
• 2022

Environmental sustainability is critical; else, the whole planet would face climatic disasters in the near future. A transportation system based on electric vehicles is assumed to be capable of providing long-term mobility. However, despite several attempts by national and international authorities, a great aim could not be met in India or the rest of the globe. Existing electric cars have a number of limits and obstacles. This report highlighted significant environmental and safety-related constraints that contribute to the low adoption rate of BEVs in India. A SWOT analysis was also carried out to identify the important elements influencing the future of BEV penetration in India.

• Journal of Korean Society of Transportation
• /
• v.29 no.2
• /
• pp.59-67
• /
• 2011

To minimize the degree of damage in the SMART highway's punctuality and safety occurred from the car-barrier collisions, the impact conditions for longitudinal barriers in SMART highway was determined to be significantly larger than the existing maximum impact conditions. Results from computer simulation runs show that the existing domestic highest-performance roadside barrier did not satisfy the suggested impact conditions. The newly developed N-class barrier designed with computer simulation model and verified by full-scale crash tests has satisfied the SMART highway impact conditions in terms of occupant safety indexes and structural adequacy.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
• /
• v.56 no.5
• /
• pp.533-545
• /
• 2023

In this study, an investigation was conducted on the features, events, and processes (FEP) that could impact the long-term safety of the natural barriers constituting high-level radioactive waste geological repositories. The FEP list was developed utilizing the IFEP list 3.0 provided by the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) as foundational data, supplemented by geological investigations and research findings from leading countries in this field. A total of 49 FEPs related to the performance of the natural barrier were identified. For each FEP, detailed definitions, classifications, impacts on long-term safety, significance in domestic conditions, and feasibility of quantification were provided. Moreover, based on the compiled FEP list, three scenarios that could affect the long-term safety of the disposal facility were developed. Geological factors affecting the performance of the natural barrier in each scenario were selected and their relationships were visualized. The constructed FEP list and the visualization of interrelated factors in various scenarios are anticipated to provide essential information for selecting and organizing factors that must be considered in the development of mathematical models for quantitatively evaluating the long-term safety of deep geological repositories. In addition, these findings could be effectively utilized in establishing criteria related to the key performance of natural barriers for the confirmation of repository sites.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
• /
• v.28 no.5
• /
• pp.764-772
• /
• 2022

The shipping and port industries have traditionally been male-centered, and although the scope of entry for female mariners is increasing, the proportion of female workers is still low. However, research on career barriers and career decision levels in this industry has not yet been conducted. This study can explain the dif iculties in career development experienced by women in this industry and comprehensively explain the socio-cultural context or environmental factors to which the individual belongs in order to improve it. The purpose of this study was to derive career barrier factors and investigate how they affect career decision levels among female students enrolled in M University's Maritime College. The career barriers perceived by female students at Maritime College were derived from gender discrimination (GD), career undecided and lack of preparation (IOU), work-family conflict (WFC), lack of individual characteristics (LPQ), and lower-than-expected job prospects (LOE). As a result of analyzing how the derived career barrier factors af ect the career decision level, it was found that IOU had a significant negative effect on the career decision level. GD, WFC, LPQ, and LOE did not have a significant effect on career decision level. The study conclusions can be used as important data for career guidance and counseling for female maritime college women who want to overcome career barriers and improve their career decision-making levels.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.22 no.4
• /
• pp.33-48
• /
• 2017

An optimum disposal plan of disused sealed radioactive sources (DSRSs) should be established to ensure long-term disposal safety at the low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste (LILW) disposal facility in Gyeongju. In this study, an optimum disposal system was suggested and preliminary post-closure safety assessment was performed. The DSRSs disposal system was composed of a rock cavern and near surface disposal facilities at the Gyeongju LILW disposal facility. The assessment was conducted using GoldSim program, and probabilistic assessment and sensitivity analysis were implemented to evaluate the uncertainties in the input parameters of natural barriers. Deterministic and probabilistic calculations indicated that the maximum dose was below the regulatory limits ($0.1mSvyr^{-1}$ for the normal scenario, $1mSvyr^{-1}$ for the well scenario). It was concluded that the DSRSs disposal system would maintain environmental safety over a long-time. Moreover, the partition coefficient of Np in host rock, Darcy velocity in host rock, and density of the host rock were the most sensitive parameters in predicting exposure dose in the safety assessment.