Risk-Based Design of Bridge Scour Countermeasures

2000 ◽  
Vol 1696 (1) ◽  
pp. 229-235 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Pearson ◽  
J. Sterling Jones ◽  
Stuart M. Stein

HYRISK was originally developed to prioritize bridges with unknown foundations to determine where to spend limited resources to investigate those bridges. It was later modified to prioritize bridges of any type for scour evaluations where there are limited resources for the evaluations each year. The model is based on information that can be read from the National Bridge Inventory and accounts for average daily traffic, detour lengths, value of lost time, risks associated with scour at various types of foundations, bridge condition, bridge geometry, and bridge age. The model can readily be modified for use as a decision tool to select various levels of countermeasures for a bridge that has already been evaluate and determined to be scour critical for some probability flood event. For that application, the model can use the determined probability of failure and does not need to rely on the assumed risks for various foundation types. The model will need to account for the risk of loss of life on the basis of recent experience. The bridge owner will provide information on the expected life of the bridge and the costs of various levels of protection. The model will determine the optimum level of protection for the bridge and the maximum expenditures that should be accepted to increase the level of protection.

Author(s):  
Hong Lu ◽  
Allison Denby

The pipeline risk assessment has been more and more widely used in the industry because of economic factors and regulatory requirements. The three most popular risk assessment methods are qualitative method (simple decision making matrix method), semi-quantitative method (score index method) and quantitative method. The decision-making matrix method greatly depends on expert’s opinion, and does not provide much information to optimize the mitigation program. The quantitative method provides details of mitigation options, mitigation criteria, and prioritizations, but requires a lot of input data that the pipeline operators usually do not have. The score index risk assessment is widely used in the pipeline industry. The input data is relatively easy to acquire. The method provides details of mitigation options and relative risk values. The score index risk assessment is a relative method. Upstream pipeline operators often have questions, such as “Which is the most effective mitigation option to use with my limited resources?” and how the index scores relate with the actual failure frequencies and failure consequence. In order to effectively answer these questions, this paper outlines a method to correlate the probability of failure score with actual failure probability, and leak impact factor score with actual failure consequence in monetary units. Rather than using the final risk score, this method applies the monetarily calibrated consequence factor to the probability of failure so that a normalized and calibrated risk in monetary unit is obtained. By comparing the cost of an estimated mitigation program, the decision can be made based on relative risk. This process is straightforward and practical for industrial application, especially for upstream companies where operators have limited resources to run an in-depth risk assessment. A case study is presented using this method based on upstream pipelines.


Author(s):  
Hong Lu

The pipeline risk assessment has been part of the integrity management in the industry in today’s environment of increasing regulatory and public oversight. One of the widely used risk assessment method is the score index method. This method has been used for more than two decades and is widely accepted in the pipeline industry. The input data is relatively easy to acquire. The method provides details of mitigation options and relative risk values. However, this method does not provide the simple decision making process. In risk management, it is always the question to choose the most cost effective mitigation option to use limited resources. On the basis of score index risk assessment method, a method to correlate the probability of failure score with actual failure probability, and leak impact factor score with actual failure consequence in monetary units has been developed. This method applies the monetarily calibrated consequence factor to the probability of failure to obtain a normalized and calibrated risk in monetary unit. By comparing the cost of an estimated mitigation program, the decision can be made. Recent regulations in Canada require that risk assessment must have a method to determine the significant risk threshold. Even though some industrial standards have some recommended methods or benchmark data for failure probability, there is no published method to determine the threshold of high risk. Some pipeline companies have the in-house personnel to develop an advanced method to meet regulation requirement. However, many pipeline companies need to have a practical and economical method to determine the significant risk threshold to meet regulation requirement, and to effectively allocate resources. This paper develops a method to determine the significant risk threshold that can be used as a decision-making criterion in pipeline risk management. This process is practical for industrial application, especially for upstream companies where operators have limited resources for advanced risk assessment. A case study is presented using this method based on upstream pipelines.


Author(s):  
Elena Dukhovny ◽  
E. Betsy Kelly

According to the 2010 U.S. Census, over 20% of Americans speak a language other than English in the home, with Spanish, Chinese, and French being the languages most commonly spoken, aside from English. However, few augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems offer multilingual support for individuals with limited functional speech. There has been much discussion in the AAC community about best practices in AAC system design and intervention strategies, but limited resources exist to help us provide robust, flexible systems for users who speak languages other than English. We must provide services that take into consideration the unique needs of culturally and linguistically diverse users of AAC and help them reach their full communication potential. This article outlines basic guidelines for best practices in AAC design and selection, and presents practical applications of these best practices to multilingual/multicultural clients.


Author(s):  
Harald Klingemann ◽  
Justyna Klingemann

Abstract. Introduction: While alcohol treatment predominantly focuses on abstinence, drug treatment objectives include a variety of outcomes related to consumption and quality of life. Consequently harm reduction programs tackling psychoactive substances are well documented and accepted by practitioners, whereas harm reduction programs tackling alcohol are under-researched and met with resistance. Method: The paper is mainly based on key-person interviews with eight program providers conducted in Switzerland in 2009 and up-dated in 2015, and the analysis of reports and mission statements to establish an inventory and description of drinking under control programs (DUCPs). A recent twin program in Amsterdam and Essen was included to exemplify conditions impeding their implementation. Firstly, a typology based on the type of alcohol management, the provided support and admission criteria is developed, complemented by a detailed description of their functioning in practice. Secondly, the case studies are analyzed in terms of factors promoting and impeding the implementation of DUCPs and efforts of legitimize them and assess their success. Results: Residential and non-residential DUCPs show high diversity and pursue individualized approaches as the detailed case descriptions exemplify. Different modalities of proactively providing and including alcohol consumption are conceptualized in a wider framework of program objectives, including among others, quality of life and harm reduction. Typically DUCPs represent an effort to achieve public or institutional order. Their implementation and success are contingent upon their location, media response, type of alcohol management and the response of other substance-oriented stake holders in the treatment system. The legitimization of DUCPs is hampered by the lack of evaluation studies. DUCPs rely mostly – also because of limited resources – on rudimentary self-evaluations and attribute little importance to data collection exercises. Conclusions: Challenges for participants are underestimated and standard evaluation methodologies tend to be incompatible with the rationale and operational objectives of DUCPs. Program-sensitive multimethod approaches enabled by sufficient financing for monitoring and accompanying research is needed to improve the practice-oriented implementation of DUCPs. Barriers for these programs include assumptions that ‘alcohol-assisted’ help abandons hope for recovery and community response to DUCPs as locally unwanted institutions (‘not in my backyard’) fuelled by stigmatization.


GeroPsych ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirko Di Rosa ◽  
Christopher Kofahl ◽  
Kevin McKee ◽  
Barbara Bień ◽  
Giovanni Lamura ◽  
...  

This paper presents the EUROFAMCARE study findings, examining a typology of care situations for family carers of older people, and the interplay of carers with social and health services. Despite the complexity of family caregiving situations across Europe, our analyses determined the existence of seven “caregiving situations,” varying on a range of critical indicators. Our study also describes the availability and use of different support services for carers and care receivers, and carers’ preferences for the characteristics of support services. Our findings have relevance for policy initiatives in Europe, where limited resources need to be more equitably distributed and services should be targeted to caregiving situations reflecting the greatest need, and organized to reflect the preferences of family carers.


1997 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara A. Church ◽  
Robert Martin ◽  
Susan Garnsey
Keyword(s):  

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