Asthma and Pollution in Phoenix, Arizona Essay Example

Asthma and Pollution in Phoenix, Arizona Essay Example Asthma and Pollution in Phoenix, Arizona Paper Asthma and Pollution in Phoenix, Arizona Paper Introduction: World Regions with accounted mild Asthma are southern Europe with 63%, Australia and New Zealand with 42%. Proportions of people with severe asthma, on the other hand, are 28% in Australia and New Zealand, 26% in Portland, 21% in United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, both 17% in Central and Northern Europe, and 15% in souther Europe. United States has many persons with asthma cases. A research estimated that 20 million had asthma in the country (http://phoenix.about.com/cs/health/a/asthma01.htm). Though asthma, over the past 30 years, is rarely a cause of death for Americans, it had caused them an estimate of $12.7 billion in 1998 alone. Phoenix, Arizona is one of the States in America known for its concentration of asthma patients in its several asthma treatment centers. Does this conclude that living in Arizona makes people more prone to Asthma? What is the current state of its surroundings that may affect the health condition of these people? Background: Asthma is a continual lung disease. Persons living with it are suffering from coughing and shortness of breath caused by the inflammation of his airways. According to medical practitioners in the U.S. government, asthma is hereditary meaning someone that has asthma can have a close relative in the family that also has its unpleasant symptoms.   But new research suggest that being exposed to things that triggers asthma early in life may increase the chances of developing this disease(nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/Asthma/). Asthma is incurable, but it could be controlled so that few and infrequent symptoms can be experienced. Asthma episodes or attacks happened when symptoms get worse than usual. Asthma attack is characterized by the tightening of airways causing airways narrower so the person experience less air intake. In addition, airways cells make more mucus intended for trapping foreign materials that flows with the air inhaled. These two actions by the body make the person hard to breathe. Severe asthma attacks could cause death because of non-delivery of renewed oxygen to vital organs such as the brain and the heart, and non-exhaustion of waste gases from the body such as carbon dioxide. In case of severe asthma attacks, an immediate medical attention is necessary. Several prescribed medicines would make the affected body of the person in control. To avoid such attacks, persons with asthma were advised to consult with his doctor regularly. Asthma is said to be one of the leading causes of children missing in school. Also, occupational asthma are said to be the most prevaling work-related lung disease in developing countries (lycos.com/info/asthmaunited-states.html). Asthma in Phoenix   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Two of United States top 25 cities with the highest asthma prevalence were Tucson ranking first and Phoenix, not far ranking third. Both of them come from the state of Arizona. Someone would presume based on these given data that the latter is one of the worst places for asthmatics. But this would not be the case. Before someone judges, he should first consider all factors that could contribute to these facts. Before, the State of Arizona governing the city of Phoenix had started an ambition of making its territory as a health destination. The government had permitted to build several asthma treatment centers with attractive facilities causing many asthmatics to migrate for a better living in this place. Its climate characteristics which are dry, warm and sunny made Phoenix together with the other parts of Arizona more attractive to better-health seekers. Asthmatics belonging to the middle and upper class, upon knowing this government program, had the n left their own place and inquired how to settle permanently in Arizona. Asthmatics community builds up in the area, mixed up with the local community, they get into inter-marriage, families expanded, and concentration of people with Asthma grew into Arizona’s major cities. Being a city with a high concentration of asthma people, Phoenix’s environment and health officials closely monitors the status of its pollution. They were being alarmed with the harmful effects that were brought by the continuous industrialization in their area. Pollution’s threat to Better-Health Seekers:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      Phoenix, Arizona is a dessert place. Any land disturbances would therefore create dust pollution that would affect its residents. According to the Arizona Republic Online Print Edition, housing construction is a factor in the constant acquiring of pollution of the south Phoenix. Together with this problem is the toxic emmissions from cars and industrial plants. The residents are concerned with the diesel-powered â€Å"16-wheeler† trucks that usually drive through their residential areas. Residents are also worried if industry fires like the 2000 Central Garden Warehouse Fire and chemical spills such as the 1992 Quality Printed Circuits Fire would happen again thus endanger their health. Based on studies, diesel-fuel emmisions are more harmful to people than the regular gasoline emissions. These emissions increase the threat of worsening the condition of people with asthma, together with lung disease and heart attacks. Another r eport states the occurrence of a â€Å"Brown Cloud† over the city that were said to have been caused by the discharge carbon and nitrogen dioxide gas mostly from burning fossil fuels. State Government, Residents and Industry Actions:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Maricopa County Air Quality Department is created in1994 to keep track and enforce air-quality standards. It had organized a seminar at the South Mountain Community College drewing 20 residents as its audience. The residents reported their claims on the current condition of their surroundings’ air. Director of the Air Quality Department, Bob Kard, said everyone must contribute to the elimination of these hazardous air pollutants. He specified that South Phoenix’s air pollution is caused by mainly by automotive fumes, waste gases form industrial plant industries and land disturbances such as made by housing construction. Both the agency and the residents share the same sentiment of being worried for another industry accident. The county formed a sub-committee in south Phoenix, the Industry Challenge/Good Neighbor Partnership which aims to reduce the hazardous pollutants from industry emmissions by 20 percent for the next two y ears. The county also had promised they will put into action more safety measures to prevent such chemical spills at plants said to be handling delicate chemicals such as ammonia, chlorine and nitric acid. Even the above twenty companies operating in south Phoenix supports this drive by joining voluntarily into the partnership. The three sectors had all agreed to come up with cleaner air to our sorroundings as soon as possible, therefore making the city of Phoenix still a haven for better-health seekers such as those suffering from the chronic disease asthma. Is Phoenix still be a safe place for asthmatics?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The state government of Arizona started an initiative to protect its air. The drive was both supported by the residents and industry owners. They had all promised that in the near future, there would be an almost clean atmosphere hovering above the cities of Arizona. But environmentalist states that their actions do not suffice to meet their desired objective. One evidence environmentalist states are the persons who suggested using the plenty normal gasoline after one of the two pipelines supplying Phoenix broke last midyear of 2003 ( tinyvital.com/BlogArchives/000252.html). The two pipelines supplies Phoenix own blend of oxygenated gas, which only few refineries produce. The persons, who had gave a suggestion, unfriendly in turn point out that if the government would still prevent the use of normal gasoline, then Phoenix would face a gas shortage. Remember, there is a drive against the use of diesel because it emits more hazard than the r egular gasoline. Why do sacrifice the health of the residents so as the same residents would not suffer from the increase of gasoline prices because of its shortage? Whatever other material reasons, the government would still prioritize the health of its constituents. If it would give chance to the suggestion wether it is just for temporary resolution, then it would give an idea that the government would allow pollution just as its state would not suffer gas shortage setbacks. Healthy people would not be get affected easily but how come to those persons with asthma and other lung disease. Does the person suggest government to throw away his asthma treatment programs in exchange? Conclusion:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     It is nice that Phoenix had set an ambition to be a medical destination with its asthma treatment centers. The government must continue to support the drive for not only clean air but also for clean land and clean water.   If the private sector would support their actions, then Phoenix would be a permanent haven for all better-health seekers. References: Asthma. Retrieved June 15, 2007 from nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/Asthma/ Asthma: United States. Lycos Retriever. Retrieved June 15, 2007 from lycos.com/info/asthmaunited-states.html Eastwood, S. (2006, January). Brown Air in the Valley. About.com. Retrieved June 15, 2007 from http://phoenix.about.com/od/weather/a/browncloud.htm Hedding, J. Asthma in Phoenix and Tucson. About.com. Retrieved June 15, 2007 from http://phoenix.about.com/cs/health/a/asthma01.htm Melendez, M. (2005, September 30). Some of the Valleys worst air pollution hangs over south Phoenix. Retrieved June 15, 2007 from azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/centralphoenix/articles/0930ext-air30Z4.html Moore, J. (2003, August 19). Environmentalist Cause Phoenix Gas Shortage. Retrieved June 15, 2007 from tinyvital.com/BlogArchives/000252.html

Null Hypothesis Definition and Examples

Null Hypothesis Definition and Examples In a scientific experiment, the null hypothesis is the proposition that there is no effect or no relationship between phenomena or populations. If the null hypothesis is true, any observed difference in phenomena or populations would be due to sampling error (random chance) or experimental error. The null hypothesis is useful because it can be tested and found to be false, which then implies that there is a relationship between the observed data. It may be easier to think of it as a nullifiable hypothesis or one that the researcher seeks to nullify. The null hypothesis is also known as the H0, or no-difference hypothesis. The alternate hypothesis, HA or H1, proposes that observations are influenced by a non-random factor. In an experiment, the alternate hypothesis suggests that the experimental or independent variable has an effect on the dependent variable. How to State a Null Hypothesis There are two ways to state a null hypothesis. One is to state it as a declarative sentence, and the other is to present it as a mathematical statement. For example, say a researcher suspects that exercise is correlated to weight loss, assuming diet remains unchanged. The average length of time to achieve a certain amount of weight loss is six weeks when a person works out five times a week. The researcher wants to test whether weight loss takes longer to occur if the number of workouts is reduced to three times a week. The first step to writing the null hypothesis is to find the (alternate) hypothesis. In a word problem like this, youre looking for what you expect to be the outcome of the experiment. In this case, the hypothesis is I expect weight loss to take longer than six weeks. This can be written mathematically as:  H1: ÃŽ ¼ 6 In this example, ÃŽ ¼ is the average. Now, the null hypothesis is what you expect if this hypothesis does not happen. In this case, if weight loss isnt achieved in greater than six weeks, then it must occur at a time equal to or less than six weeks. This can be written mathematically as: H0: ÃŽ ¼ ≠¤ 6 The other way to state the null hypothesis is to make no assumption about the outcome of the experiment. In this case, the null hypothesis is simply that the treatment or change will have no effect on the outcome of the experiment. For this example, it would be that reducing the number of workouts would not affect the time needed to achieve weight loss: H0: ÃŽ ¼ 6 Null Hypothesis Examples Hyperactivity is unrelated to eating sugar is an example of a null hypothesis. If the hypothesis is tested and found to be false, using statistics, then a connection between hyperactivity and sugar ingestion may be indicated. A significance test is the most common statistical test used to establish confidence in a null hypothesis. Another example of a null hypothesis is Plant growth rate is unaffected by the presence of cadmium in the soil. A researcher could test the hypothesis by measuring the growth rate of plants grown in a medium lacking cadmium, compared with the growth rate of plants grown in mediums containing different amounts of cadmium. Disproving the null hypothesis would set the groundwork for further research into the effects of different concentrations of the element in soil. Why Test a Null Hypothesis? You may be wondering why you would want to test a hypothesis just to find it false. Why not just test an alternate hypothesis and find it true? The short answer is that it is part of the scientific method. In science, propositions are not explicitly proven. Rather, science uses math to determine the probability that a statement is true or false. It turns out its much easier to disprove a hypothesis than to positively prove one. Also, while the null hypothesis may be simply stated, theres a good chance the alternate hypothesis is incorrect. For example, if your null hypothesis is that plant growth is unaffected by duration of sunlight, you could state the alternate hypothesis in several different ways. Some of these statements might be incorrect. You could say plants are harmed by more than 12 hours of sunlight or that plants need at least three hours of sunlight, etc. There are clear exceptions to those alternate hypotheses, so if you test the wrong plants, you could reach the wrong conclusion. The null hypothesis is a general statement that can be used to develop an alternate hypothesis, which may or may not be correct.

Personal Definition of Innovation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Personal Definition of Innovation - Essay Example In this regard, the essay aims to propose a personal definition of innovation taking into consideration a comparative analysis of the concepts of innovation, invention, and creativity. Likewise, a description of the relationship between technical or traditional problem solving and creative or intuitive problem solving would be proffered. An explanation of the importance of innovation to the success of individuals, organizational leaders, organizations, and nations would also be presented. Finally, a determination of the importance of management systems and styles to creating an organization where innovation is enabled would be discussed. Innovation is a process of creative change with a clearly defined purpose of improving a current system or operating process to attain maximized potentials of resources towards a higher level of growth. As a process, innovation needs the application of effective strategies for improved performance. It accurately defines specific aspects to be addressed: a weakness, a threat, a gap in an organization’s current operating system or structure and outlines alternative courses of action that presents possible and viable solutions to the identified dilemma. Innovation, as a change process, is designed with the vision to increase the satisfaction of the organizations’ target market and thereby contribute to the maximization of organizational goals. Innovation is the â€Å"process by which an idea or invention is translated into a good or service for which people will pay. In business, innovation results often from the application of a scientific or technical idea in decreasing the gap between the needs or expectations of the customers and the performance of a firms products† (Business Dictionary, 1). vaccine against market slowdowns and an elixir that rejuvenates growth† (Rigby, et.al, 79). The authors compared innovation to evolving changes in a fashion industry requiring continuous reinvention of product line,

The European sovereign debt crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The European sovereign debt crisis - Essay Example It was found that from 2009 onwards, some countries in the EMU like Spain, Portugal and other countries in the similar zone, were not able to refinance the debts incurred by the government. This crisis in some of the countries in the EMU had a spill-over effect and had generated an economic scarcity in most of the contemporary economies in the world. The essay in this context desires to throw light on how the crises in some of the economies in the EMU were responsible for the massive and deadly financial crisis in the financial markets of the whole European Union (Ross, 1979). Crisis in a Small Economies Triggered a Large Impact The economies in the contemporary world have become highly integrated in nature after the emergence of globalization and liberalization. The debt crisis that was initially faced by the public authorities in a few small economies in the Euro zone like Spain, Greece etc were responsible for the occurrence of the Sovereign Debt Crisis for the whole European Cont inent. The Property Bubble that occurred in Spain long back in 2007 was largely responsible for the occurrence for the recession in the European economy at the latter stage. It was found that after a long term sustainable growth, the Spanish economy had become highly unproductive in nature. The entrepreneurs started to invest more in the real estate sector. However, it was found that the prices of the properties constantly increased in the economy because real estate trading was used for speculative purposes in the Spanish economy. Ultimately, this caused a fall in the disposable income of the individuals who had to purchase houses at very high prices. The number of the failed projects in the economy started to increase. All the other economic indicators like the government debt, exchange rates, velocity of money circulation, derivative trading etc became worse in the economy at this point of time. As the countries used to follow the regime of fixed policies, the recession in one pa rticular economy had largely triggered the same in other economies in the Euro zone. Greece was one of the poorest nations that had remained in the Euro Area. The government of the country took large amount of loans from the ECB for mitigating the requirements if the expansionary fiscal policies. However it was a matter of concern that the government of the country could not pay back the loans to the ECB. This was the reason for the huge fiscal deficit in the country. Fiscal deficit in the nation contagiously affected the supply of money in the economy. Thus during 2005 and 2009, some countries which were indeed small economies like Spain, Italy, Greece, Portugal etc. had to face severe financial crisis for reasons like property bubble, high fiscal debt or lack of productivity. Since all the nations in the Euro zone were integrated together in terms of the monetary policies taken for them, the crisis in some of the economies soon triggered the same in other economies in the European Continent and generated the severe Sovereign Debt Crisis in the country (Klann, 2007). Impact in the financial Market The financial market in the Euro zone was distressed after the occurrence of the Sovereign Debt Crisis. The severity of the recession caused in the economy has not been completely recovered from even at this juncture of time. Derivatives Market During the Sovereign Debt Crisis, the European economy faced severe financial crisis. The number of failed out financial projects were excessive. The overall productivity of the economy had fallen to a

Mobile Maintenance Overview

Mobile Maintenance Overview MOBILE MAINTENANCE OVERVIEW THE PROJECT Over the last decade, we have seen the pace of technology development increase hugely. From mobile phones to tablet devices to smart televisions, right up to connected vehicles and homes. This technology shift is inevitably moving into aviation travel sector. Both the Boeing 787 and Airbus A380 require connectivity, and digital tools, to maintain them. Engineering needs to have integrated systems and hardware within the business to keep pace. Achieving such integration will provide us with the latest tools in support of our drive for greater efficiency and improved productivity. Our goal is to use technology to help us become market competitive. The Mobile Maintenance project is one of Engineerings primary Tier 1 programmes and forms part of the Our Plan business objective to use digital technology to transform our business. It aligns with the work we are doing under the banner of the Capella change programme. With investment being made in mobile hardware, a new content management solution and significant enhancements to the SAP, the project will roll out over the next 18 months. Beginning in the ramp arena, online/mobile working will cascade on into hangar maintenance, and then component workshops. The new content management solution will come on stream one aircraft type at a time, with component maintenance manuals shortly thereafter. INVESTING IN OUR FUTURE In the current financial climate, the decision by BAs Capital Investment Committee to approve this capital investment should be seen as a fantastic endorsement of everything Engineering intends to achieve via the project. Once the cost of the original mobile working trial is added in, the total capex underpinning Mobile Maintenance comes to some  £8million. The graphic below provides an indication of how the funds have been invested. 33% 22% 45% INVESTMENT BREAKDOWN Hardware SAP Enhancements INVESTMENT EXPLAINED BENEFITS Of course, the investment decision was driven by the compelling benefits case Engineering were able to make. As well as the obvious productivity and efficiency opportunities, successful implementation opens up the possibility of achieving a wide variety of non-financial gains across Engineering. PEOPLE AND PROCESSES Drive up the quality of information underpinning resource and load planning activities. Reduce the frustration caused by having to leave the aircraft side mid-job. SAFETY AND QUALITY Improve access, and adherence, to maintenance manuals, procedures and processes. Reduce the risk of unrecorded work. OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE Reduce ADDs and delays through easier, quicker and more accurate access to technical information. Vastly improved situational awareness both in the satellite control and for the production teams. SAP Enhancements Just over 1/5 of the investment has gone into the largest single group of changes to SAP since it was introduced in 2004. Resulting in new transactions and improvements to exisiting ones, in addition to the new eTask app. Hardware 1/3 of the investment has been on hardware. From the devices to servers and WIFi infranstructure. This portion of the investment was vital in ensuring the implementation becomes a success. ICMS The largest portion of the investiment is in the new integrated content management system. A replacement for the TI Portal and Knowledge warehouse, ICMS will provide remote, direct, accurate technical documentation to all engineers. For additions or queries regarding the MMHandbook contact [emailprotected] Ensure colleagues carry out their role with the most up-to-date information at their fingertips. Increase the productivity and efficiency of the delivery and support teams in the organisation. Provide the opportunity for greater visibility of task work steps. Remove SAP data entry lag, and risk of data transcription errors, to improve compliance data timeliness and quality. Better quality data will provide greater richness of information to improve the quality, and delivery, of the daily production plan. DELIVERABLES DELIVERABLES OVERVIEW Mobile maintenance often attracts the immediate thought of iPads and the eTask app, mobile maintenance is a huge amount more than just an app on a device. The SAP enhancements upstream all interlink with one another, from enhancing the notifications we rely on for compliance, to creating a balanced plan and managing our operation. The information produced upstream of the app allows the engineer to work with accurate, well planned information on his device, while the app offers him/her immediate benefits with the functionality offered by eTask. DEFECT WORKBENCH The defect workbench is a new SAP transaction available for use by both production and the EOCC. It allows a user to search, review and fully define a D3 or D7. The transaction is data rich and allows accurate definition of notifications ensuring the user has all the information available to make informed decisions on what action should be taken. Notifications can be directed to relevant departments using the new milestone function while communication lines between planning, production and the engineer at the aircraft side are opened up with the remarks function. SLOT PLAN The slot plan is an engineering version of the airops software we use today to monitor the operation, it is a graphical display of our aircrafts flying schedule allowing a planner to select and analyse maintenance opportunities to plan revisions. The slot plan is the point of entry to the planning workbench and is the first step in the process to creating a new revision or editing an existing one. PLANNING WORKBENCH A data rich transaction allowing a planner to analyse the outstanding notifications of an aircraft. A compliance pane, defect pane and modification pane organise the notifications in a logical manner while quick review columns offer immediate information about a notification including; material status, life rule and number of re-assess alongside many others. The main function of the planning workbench is to create accurate plans for work in the production environment. LOAD AND CAPACITY Once the notification definition process we will have going forward with mobile maintenance improves and the data is more accurate the load and capacity tool will be a very important tool for engineering. The load and capacity tool will offer a graphical representation of the capacity (resource available) vs the Load (the planned work). This will allow a planner to balance revisions and ensure the plan is achievable. The tool depends on engineering working together to define notifications properly, most importantly defining man hours on ADDs. RESOURCE PLANNING DASHBOARD (RPD) The resource planning dashboard is a digital T card board and interlinks with both the load and capacity tool and the TACD. The RPD (resource planning dashboard) allows a shift manager to organise a shifts colleagues in to teams based on who is available. The transaction offers information of the colleagues skills, cover and availability and so the teams can be planned accurately and efficiently. There will also be a crew room view which will show everyone which teams they are allocated to. The RPD relies on data fed from the HR system and time manager, with this in mind, it is vital that any time manager data is entered in advance of the event, this includes overtime, leave, sickness and any other absence. Failure to do so will result in the colleagues absent or on overtime failing to show correctly in the RPD. This is important as the RPD feeds the allocation system in the TACD which allocates work to the engineers devices. TASK ALLOCATION AND CONTROL DASHBOARD (TACD) TACD is the new version of the electronic whiteboard we use today to manage our operation in the satellites. It allows the FSDE to view and analyse the progress of the work being carried out by the engineers on the aircraft, while having the ability to create tasks from VHF calls and allocating them directly to an engineers device instantly. The TACD interlinks directly with the eTask app and the functionality provided allows the progress of tasks and revisions to be monitored in real time offering a substantial operational awareness improvement. ETASK APP (IPAD BASED) The eTask app is the next generation Ramp app. Following on from the trial version, the eTask app has an abundance of functionalities available that allow an engineer to work more efficiently and effectively. Greater task detail, allocation flexibility, stores integration and reporting functions offer huge improvements to the initial ramp app. The major benefit being increased engagement time at the aircraft side, integration to the content management system and access to up to date technical documentation supports the information already on offer within each task pushed to the device. INTEGRATED CONTENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (ICMS) The new content management system is engineerings single solution for technical documentation and procedures. ICMS replaces the TI Portal and knowledge warehouse bringing considerable aesthetic, control and accessibility improvements. Desktop and device access provides aircraft manuals in the same format, hyperlinked and integrated with the eTask app whilst offering smart search functionality. Offline content also allows manuals to be saved to a device for review with automated updates adding in any TRs directly to the manual ensuring adherence to the most recent version. TRAINING TRAINING SOLUTION With engineering investing in one of the biggest change projects since the introduction of SAP it is vital that the training solution provided gives all colleagues the most support in the movement towards mobile working. This section will explain the training solution offered as well as where supplementary information and support can be found. TRAINING DEVELOPMENT Mobile maintenance training was developed in house by a team of hard working experienced engineering colleagues. They are volunteers who devoted their time to the project to ensure that the content developed was in the best interests of their own colleagues and engineering as a whole. The training concepts were developed alongside the GLA and their own experts to ensure it adhered to training guidelines. In respect of the practical training the colleagues whom deliver the courses are also engineering production colleagues who volunteered to support the work areas in the road towards mobile working. ASCEND British Airways corporate learning tool is Ascend, it allows courses to be built and stored online for completion at a time that suits without being off lined from the work areas. Ascend also allows learning to be tracked and audited by quality. SAP ENHANCEMENTS ASCEND COURSES The mobile maintenance ascend courses were designed to give a how to demonstration of the new SAP enhancements. Software is a difficult product to train and the team toyed with different methods. One being the use of screenshots and annotations, however, when analysed, it was found that around 2000 screenshots would need to be produced which was both unmanageable and counterproductive as a training tool. The chosen method was to use videos of the transaction actually in a realistic scenario. Many software products use this method for training and a professional software was sourced to produce the content over a period of 2 months. The videos can be stopped, paused and scrolled through if further time is required on a certain point or notes need to be taken. ETASK ASCEND COURSE BALEARNING APP The eTask ascend course is a little different to that of the SAP Enhancements, the ascend course serves as a placeholder for the competency assessment but the content itself is based on a BA corporate app named BALearning on the iPad device itself. The BALearning app allows an identical mimic of the real eTask app to be created. The content can then be manipulated to direct a user to choose the correct process and function resulting in the user becoming familiar and aware of how the eTask app works. If a user makes an error it is not a problem as the learning app offers a safe environment to practice in. The eTask training app that is released is available at any time allowing a user to refresh on functionality when required. BALEARNING APP FIX Some users have reported the BALearning app is malfunctioning and the screen blanks on opening. This is due to a problem Mobile Enabled Operations encountered in March with corporate apps across the BA network having issues. The fix: Delete BALogin App and Device Doctor App and then reinstall, following that enter the BA App store and ensure all apps are up to date including the BALearning app. This should remedy the fault. ASCEND COMPETENCY ASSESSEMENTS The ascend competency assessments are a quality requirement. PRACTICAL TRAINING The training team were very keen to have a practical element of training included in the solution, one that allows candidates to practice using the new tools in a safe environment with instructors who are experts in the developments. The solutions were again developed by the SME team alongside the GLA. EOCC PRACTICAL TRAINING The EOCC have developed a comprehensive practical training and readiness programme. This includes a full 1 day training course using the new tools in a safe environment while learning new processes and procedures attached to those tools. They also assess individuals on a 1 on 1 basis prior to going live ensuring the candidates are capable and ready to use the tools, assessing competency in addition to setting up layouts and variants applicable to their role. MVS MAINTENANCE VISIT SIMULATION Production colleagues, once they have completed the mandatory ascend modules will be allocated to an MVS course. A Maintenance Visit Simulation course is a 1 day offline course where a candidate will experience and use all of the tools produced from mobile maintenance in a simulated aircraft visit. The simulation begins prior to the aircraft visit highlighting the process of data enrichment and timely entering of HR data, from there the simulation moves through the satellite to the aircraft arrival and through to the aircraft departure. At each point of the aircraft visit the instructors demonstrate functionality and highlight any key points while the candidates actually work the aircraft on the devices like they would in a real life scenario. The candidates are assessed by monitoring their engagement throughout the session as well as a written exam at the end of the session. POST TRAINING SUPPORT For additions or queries regarding the MMHandbook contact [emailprotected] As with any training programme there are often further questions and clarity required by a candidate. For that reason a post training support structure has been implemented. KEY USERS Key users in each area are the first port of call for any clarifications or questions regarding mobile maintenance and they will be on hand to every shift to aid in the process of implementation and beyond. Again key users are engineering colleagues and have candidates best interests in mind. YAMMER Yammer is BAs business social media option. There is a mobile maintenance group which is monitored daily by the project team. Any questions or queries will be answered in a timely and accurate manner so dont hesitate to ask for any clarity or report any issues found. Yammer is available via a desktop or via the app store on the iPad. KEY FUNCTIONS QRH This mobile maintenance handbook offers an overview of the project, deliverables, training as well as offering a comprehensive quick reference handbook (QRH) for functionality of the new deliverables. It is a working document so if there is anything that is missing please report it to the owner or mobile maintenance yammer page. ENGINEERING PROCEDURES BA ENGINEERING TECHNICAL PROCEDURES AND WORK INSTRUCTIONS Mobile Maintenance is now part of British Airways Engineering Technical Procedures/Work Instructions. Alongside this there will be local procedures which will be briefed and cascaded by your business area representatives. Follow the instructions below to access the engineering procedures and work instructions related to Mobile Maintenance

Conventional Supermarkets Essay

Retail Branding Strategy Retailer branding strategy can be defined as an approach planned by the organisation to achieve the organisation’s missions and goals. Retail branding strategies also facilitates in their competitive advantage in the industry. With strategies applied, companies can be viewed as a distinctive store as compared to other companies. There are various strategies that retail companies can adapt and one of the retailing strategies consists of seven factors; operating procedures, location, merchandising customer services, consumers, pricing, and promotion factors. (cite book) Conventional Supermarket An industry that we would also touch upon is conventional supermarket. Conventional supermarket is a departmentalized food store with a wide range of food and related products. The supermarkets are usually differentiated by their sizes e.g. a conventional supermarket is between 500 and 2000m2. (cite pdf) Supermarket Strategy Goods Conventional supermarkets should have a basic retailing strategy that they can adapt globally. Firstly, what goods do conventional supermarkets want to offer? A conventional supermarket typically offers a wide range of products and assortment and their merchandises would include both private and generic labels. Private labels are also known as house brands in food retailing. House brands were introduced to promote brand loyalty and are usually priced at affordable prices as compared to other brands that the supermarket takes in. Prices Prices are generally competitive in conventional supermarkets due to high competition within many firms for the same consumer with homogeneous product offerings (Dolan and Simon, 1996; Kotler, 2003; Lucas et al., 1994) Competitive price is defined as price of a product is based on what other competitors are charging thus it is not relatively as low as the old-fashioned neighbourhood convenience stores that are also locally known as ‘Indian Mama Shops’. Consumers Secondly, a supermarket has to decide on the target consumers in order to proceed with the location of the supermarket. Since conventional supermarkets offer largely food and related household products, they aim mainly on families that come from middle to low income. In addition, it targets working or non-working adults that are aged above 30 years. Location Since conventional supermarkets target on families, these supermarkets are located in the neighbourhood area with large trading area. The supermarkets are situated in residential areas as it is highly accessible and gives convenience for consumers. Their location might also be influenced due to location of competitors as it would enhance their trading areas. Operating procedures The operating procedure of supermarkets starts with Supermarket Licence which is mandated by the Environmental Public Health Act. Every business owners has to comply with cleanliness and food safety guidelines to prevent any food-borne diseases. The basic operating procedures that supermarkets have to follow are Hazard Analysis and Critical Control point (HACCP) system, cleaning and sanitation programs, pest control programs, waste management, transportation of finished products and maintenance program (Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore 2012). Store Atmosphere & Customer Services Conventional supermarkets have average store atmosphere whereby it is neither isolated nor too crowded. A good strategy that supermarkets do is categorizing the items for shoppers’ convenience in searching for goods. Customer services should be good as staffs play important role in assisting customers at the counters and shelves. Promotion Conventional supermarkets are one of the market players in the industry that invest highly in their promotions. Promotions include heavy use of newspaper, flyers and TV advertisements. These promotions have to be kept in line with the customers that supermarkets are targeting e.g. if the supermarket aims to attract younger customers, online promotions would be  preferred. Sheng Siong Supermarket Sheng Siong is one of Singapore’s largest retailers with over S$578.4 million in revenue for year 2011. Sheng Siong supermarket provides customers with both â€Å"wet and dry† shopping experience and their merchandises include a wide assortment of seafood, meat and vegetables, processed, packaged and/or preserved food products as well as general merchandise such as toiletries and essential household products. Sheng Siong Strategy Sheng Siong has complied with most of the strategies stated in the above. Firstly, the supermarket offers wide variety of food products and general merchandise. They also provide both generic and house brands products. The Housebrands stated in the image below are owned by Sheng Siong supermarket. (Sheng Siong 2012) These house brands allow bigger savings for consumers as they are priced lower than other generic products. Prices at Sheng Siong are generally low but competitive as we are able to find same products at other supermarkets at the same price. Sheng Siong supermarkets are located strategically in the heartlands of Singapore. With 33 stores located in the North, South, East, West and Central parts of Singapore, it shows that Sheng Siong aims to targets on every family in Singapore regardless of income status or age. Photo of Sheng Siong supermarket at Bedok Reservoir Road Photo of Neighbourhood opposite Sheng Siong supermarket @ Bedok Reservoir Road In complying with the operational procedures that are set by government bodies e.g. National Environmental Agency, Singapore Civil Defence Force and AVA, Sheng Siong has acquired licenses, permits, approvals and certifications for the business operations in Singapore (Sheng Siong 2012). Sheng Siong is also strategically categorized their merchandise for shoppers’ ease of identifying and convenience. Sheng Siong also provides consumers with a unique ‘push-basket’ for customers to shop at ease. Row 7 – Snacks/TidbitsWheeled basket Customer service is not really emphasized in Sheng Siong’s values but the supermarket offers weighing services for customers and they have many staffs in the supermarket to assist customers. Lastly, Sheng Siong has come up with promotion strategy using flyers and newspapers. One of their current promotions is lucky draw and winners are announced on the Sheng Siong Show. Weighing Service Sheng Siong Lucky Draw promotion 2012 NTUC Fairprice Supermarket One of the largest competitors of Sheng Siong is NTUC Fairprice. NTUC Fairprice is Singapore’s largest retailer with a network of over 230 outlets comprising FairPrice supermarkets, FairPrice Finest, FairPrice Xtra, FairPrice Xpress and Cheers convenience stores. NTUC Fairprice Strategy Fairprice supermarket offers a wide range of foods products and household merchandise as well. Similarly, they provide house brand which is named after the company’s name i.e. Fairprice. NTUC Fairprice supermarket has come up with a strategy of having discounts on their specific house brand in order to attract customers to patronize their private brands instead. The image below shows the differences of the prices between their generic and house brand products. Also, Fairprice supermarket has also strategically located itself in the heartlands within walking distance from housing estates and competitors. They currently have over 90 stores of Fairprice supermarkets located across Singapore to cater to varied needs of consumers. This strategy is to gather more consumers as competitors would increase the trading area for Fairprice supermarket. Fairprice supermarket located nearby Guardian and 7-11 convenience stores Fairprice supermarkets have also complied with the licenses and regulations of supermarket in Singapore. In fairprice, customer service is emphasized as a key value in order to serve customers better. They also provide self-service methods for the consumers to have a freedom in their goods’ choice. Their promotions are similar to Sheng Siong’s such as newspapers and flyers. Fairprice supermarket also offers festive promotions such as discounts in Christmas period. Pros & Cons of Conventional Supermarkets Conventional supermarkets serve both advantages and disadvantages to both retailer and customer. Firstly, supermarkets have the advantage of low cost of operations thus being able to sell goods at lower price. Due to low cost of purchasing products from suppliers, it enables customers to purchase products at discounted prices as compared to convenient stores which mark up prices of the products. Conventional supermarket definitely offers the freedom of selection to customers due to wide variety and ease of shopping. They also have high degree of efficiency due to elimination of service such as packing. It is also an advantage to customers as the shelves are easily reached out and the size of the shopping experience is neither too big nor small e.g. convenient stores offers limited products and hypermarkets offer too wide of variety for customers who do daily shopping. However, there are downsides regarding conventional supermarkets. References Genessa M. Fratto, Michelle R. Jones, Nancy L. Cassill, (2006),†An investigation of competitive pricing among apparel retailers and brands†, Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, Vol. 10 Iss: 4 pp. 387 – 404 Barry Berman and Joel R. Evans. 2012. Retail Management, A Strategic Approach. http://www.fairprice.com.sg http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/bitstream/9407/1/sp07be06.pdf http://singaporesupermarketrecipes.com/fairprice-ntuc-weekly-promotions-week-37/ (ntuc promo pic) http://www.sgsaleinfo.com/v2.0/tagsearch/Sheng%20Shiong/1 (sheng siong promo pic) http://www.guidemesingapore.com/industry-guides/retail/setting-up-a-retail-outlet-in-singapore http://www.ava.gov.sg/FoodSector/FoodTradersAndEst/LicOtherFoodProcessEst/ http://www.asiaone.com/News/The%2BStraits%2BTimes/Story/A1Story20080205-48245.html http://singaporesupermarketrecipes.com/category/shopping-guide/supermarkets/sheng-siong/ (supermarket)

Distinctive View About Giotto And Piero s Paintings

Distinctive View about Giotto and Piero’s Paintings There were many famous painters in the Pro- Renaissance period and Early Renaissance. Representatives were Giotto di Bondone and Piero della Francesca. Gitto and Piero paintings were a mirror to reflect Italy world in the period of Pro- Renaissance period and Early Renaissance. In addition, there were many similarities and differences between Giotto and Piero painting style, such as naturalism and humanism; religious piety with good business and religious piety with human development for needs. Obviously, Giotto and Piero were painting giant. Giotto di Bondone was regarded as the first painter in the period of Proto-Renaissance and some scholars described that Giotto was the father of Western pictorial art. Giotto was from Florence, which was a famous city especially on the aspect of artistic centers and town of trade and textile. In fact, Giotto’s patting style is naturalism; it is more focus on the realistic stuff, so everything painting is based on real life. Dante and Cimabue might affect Giotto painting style; therefore, Giotto s painting was more focus on the nature and reality. Giotto created many famous paintings; one of the frescos was Lamentation. Lamentation was a fresco painting created by Giotto Di Bondone in 1305 at Florence. Lamentation tells us a story of Mary and followers are all lament for the Crist death. This fresco’s background color is blue, which applies a phenomenon of sad. In this fresco, we can