Introduction to Routing and Switching Essay

1. Introduction – Computer Network A computer network is a setup which comprises of multiple computers and devices to create connection in order to support the communication of all such devices. This facilitates sharing of information and resources to all the users present in the network. The following are the main purposes that the network provides to its users:  · Communication- networks allow free flow of communication among all the users. These include chat, messages, emails, conferences, etc.  · Sharing of Resources – Resources can be shared among all the users within a network. These include: o Hardware – The different computers in a network can also make use of a single hardware attached to the network. Consider the example of a shared printer attached to multiple devices in the network like in case of a university or office environment. o Software- Network also allows users to share software application programs through their computers o Files and other data – Files and data can be shared among systems in a network environment through authorized access. This helps members to work and submit tasks on the same domain and within deadlines, thus saving from hassles. 2. The Open Systems Interconnection OSI Model The hardware components of the network operate at the layers of the OSI model which are briefly discussed below: Physical layer This is concerned with the functions that carry a stream of bits over a physical medium at the mechanical and electrical level. Hubs and Repeaters operate at the physical layer of the OSI model. Data link Layer This layer categorizes data from network layer (upper layer) into frames and handles errors of the physical layer to provide to the network layer. The Bridges operate at the Data link layer of the OSI Model. Network Layer The delivery of the packet is the responsibility of the network layer which can include multiple links. Network layer can be used in cases of multiple networks where there are some links between the networks. Routers operate at the Network layer of the OSI model. Transport Layer The transport layer is also responsible for delivery of packets but it also recognizes relationship between messages. This is done in proper order and the layer also ensures control of error and flow at the source as well as the destination. Session Layer This layer controls dialog and synchronizes interaction within the network. Presentation Layer This layer is also one of the most important layers as it is looks into the syntax and semantics of the data being transferred within the network. Application Layer This layer involves interfaces and other supporting frames for the user to access the network. 3. Hardware Components within a Network The following re the basic hardware components within a network to interconnect devices (Sosinsky 33): 3.1 Network Interface Cards (NICs) These are the components used to connect to another networking medium. The NIC has a unique identification number known as Media Access Control address (MAC address) that is provided by the manufacturer. 3.2 Repeaters Repeater is a device used to transmit signals after cleaning them by regenerating the original bit pattern. 3.3 Hubs Hub connects multiple devices in the network so that they appear as a single device, therefore, it has multiple ports. 3.4 Bridges These are also hardware components that connect multiple segments of the network. 4. Network Hardware Components – Routers and Switches Routers and switches are important components of the computer network that support the above mentioned purpose of a network. These are discussed in details as under: 4.1 Routers Router is a software or device that helps in transmitting data between users in a predefined manner, thus helping in serving the purpose of the network. The data is in the form of packets that travels along the network, where the routers process the data present in the packet. In many cases there is a pre-defined forwarding or routing table used to direct the information to the appropriate destination (Beasley 62). The main tasks of the routers include:  · Ensures information forwarding to the required destination  · Keeps track and avoids information from reaching where not needed 4.1.1 Characteristics The following are the characteristics of Routers:  · The routers correspond to internet Protocols such as the internet Protocol, internet Control message Protocol, etc.  · Provides interfaces between the packet networks through the required functions  · Sends and receives datagrams  · Chooses destination for the datagram according to the routing database  · Provides support facilities for network management which includes status and exception reporting, debugging, etc. 4.1.2 Routing Routing is the process of sharing information by connecting networks and translating protocols between them. It functions at the network layer of the OSI model, acquiring addresses from the IP header of the layer to get the sources and destination. Here the Routing Protocols are used. Routers also use the routing tables to decide the destination of the packets. The routing tables include:  · Address information  · Connection Priorities  · Traffic Rules Routing differs in its delivery schemes which include the following:  · Delivery to a single node (unicast) where the node is predefined.  · Delivery to multiple specified nodes (multicast)  · Delivery to all the nodes that are part of the network (Broadcast)

Biography of Fernando Botero Essay

Fernando Botero, also named the most Colombian of Colombian artists, has developed a style the world notices as his own. Fernando was born in 1932 in Medellin, Colombia. Fernando came across heavy schooling as a child, which isolated him from traditional art in museums and such cultural institutions. It was his strict school however that brought art to be an interest for Fernando, the school Botero attended was run by Jesuits who were strict and brought little enjoyment into Botero’s life. To find enjoyment Botero began to draw at a young age. At that young age his inspiration was anything that interest him such as bullfighting. Fernando was a great fan of bullfights so he would paint scenes of this then sold them in front of the arena for 5 pesos. He spent nearly two years painting this subject. He had a growing interest in art his entire life; he shared his thoughts, and studied. When Botero was seventeen he worked for the Medellin newspaper, El Colombiano, titled Picasso and the Nonconformity of Art, which showed Botero’s mind and how it is linked with art. Botero is so well known because of his signature style, robust and round objects and characters. Botero tells critics that he is simply attracted to his form without knowing why. He claims that artists never know why artists use a form, he claims the style is intuitive and that the explanation for their style can be rationalized after it’s adopted. Botero is difficult to understand, as he doesn’t share his opinion with his art or even explaining his art. â€Å"He shares his vision with us but not telling us how to feel about it. Navas- Nieves says. We know his works are personal as some of his famous works depict his youth, â€Å"The Bishop†, â€Å"The Nun†, â€Å"The Bullfighter†, and â€Å"The Widow†. It is unknown to all except Botero however if these drawings reflect the beauty with these no proportional, bright colored, exaggerated sized or the turmoil. Botero eliminated brushwork and texture in his paintings as he favored a smoother look. Botero’s works are abstract and are educated by a Columbian upbringing and social commentary. When Colombian children go to church they see all these Madonnas, so clean and perfect. In South America china-like perfection is very much a part of the ideal toilet of beauty. More so even than the polychrome wood sculptures in Spain, Latin American sculptures look like porcelain. So, in contrast to Europe or North America, you connect the notions of art and beauty at a very early age. I grew up with the idea that art is beauty. All my life I’ve been trying to produce art that is beautiful to discover all the elements that go to make up visual perfection. When you come from my background you can’t be spoilt by beauty, because you’ve never really seen it. If you’re born in Paris, say, you can see art everywhere, so by the time you come to create art yourself you’re spoilt – you’re tired of beauty as such and want to do something else. With me it was quite different. I wasn’t tired of beauty; I was hungering for it. † Botero said this knowing he was not raised with art, which is his beauty. The lack of art in his life made him develop such an original style. The church influences Botero, his baroque style was adopted from the church. Botero is the most Colombian of Colombian artists because of his insulation from international trends. Botero once remarked â€Å"A painter can do things a photographer can’t do, because a painter can make the invisible visible. † This thinking lead Botero to create a series of serious paintings about prisoner abuse in Abu Ghraib. Botero, through his paintings in this series allowed us to feel the prisoners suffering. The paintings brought us to the agony of the victims, the humiliation they felt and all the pain was transferred from the painting to us, making us the victim. This series proved moreover Botero’s skill of art. Many critics thought the series was out of Botero’s league claiming that Botero’s style cannot do justice to the seriousness of the subject. Botero proved the critics wrong when he captures the emotion of the victims. The difference between photographs and paintings are that photographs come with a story. Just something that happened. They can be beautiful but paintings show affects and emotion and thoughts and different depictions. Much more thought goes into a painting, which sets the two apart.

NAB case study Essay

Question 1: List one strength and weakness for each cultural perspective described in this case study. There are numerous cultural perspectives that have been provided. Three major cultural perspectives have been identified, these include: the integration perspective, ambiguity perspective, as well as the differentiation perspective. The Strength of the cultural perspectives that is described in NAB: Cultural Change Program: Integration Perspective at NAB: this is the most widely applied cultural change perspective. It may be reflected in highly visible and tangible manner all through the organization. It should be noted that there has to be accord in the entire firm and it may be reflected via diverse mediums of organizations such as performance metrics and targets, informal and formal rules, business strategies, as well as management practices that govern traditions stories, together with manifestations. In the situation of NAB, business strategies were client- focused. For the creation of the visible manifestations of the firm’s desired culture, the priorities were observed within the mission, vision statements, as well as in the strategic objectives (Allaire and Firsirotu, 2006). Differentiation Perspective: It views culture to incorporate various cultures. Given that it is highly focused on the inconsistencies that are got at the center of culture, it provides organization the opportunity of correcting inconsistencies thorough having better culture. When the inconsistencies are recognized, a number of cultural initiators may be identified with the firm, both externally and internally (Deal and Kennedy, 2002). Ambiguity Perspective: The perspective, neither adheres to the differentiation nor the integration viewpoint of cultural perspective. On the contrary, it offers the suggestion that the  relationships that exist between cultural manifestations are not having highly effective clarity; rather, they are lacking clarity. With them, there is complete vagueness, as well as a contradiction. Individuals within any firm may have common values and views that they share with one another. However, on some values or views, they may differ. It is observed to be a highly realistic perspective concerning culture since it enables the workers to bring forward the issues that they are disagreeing with the line managers. When the issues are established, via the ambiguity perspective, various steps might be taken in order to resolve them. This will also ensure that the employees are satisfied. Besides, the employees will be involved in the organization’s culture (Denison, 2007). Weakness for the cultural perspectives that are mentioned within NAB: Cultural Change Program: The Integration Perspective: This perspective’s weakness is that when the integration perspective is having any trait that is unfavorable, it will be transferred everywhere within the organization since it is always present within the entire organization. In some cases, culture persists in manners that are invisible and which cannot be detected in the firm. This can also be very harmful (Denison, 2007). Differentiation perspective: through this perspective, various inconsistencies that lie at the culture’s focal point, both internally and externally can be identified. Its weakness is that culture is depicted to be a group of several manifestations that may be contradictory to one another (Denison, Cho, and Young, 2000). Ambiguity Perspective: with the ambiguity perspective, employees may agree on certain management issues. However, in other instances, they may pretend to be ignorant. In some cases, they might be completely indifferent. At the same time, they may oppose the entire managerial line. Therefore, the ambiguity perspective in organizations always brings various issues that may make the employees within the organization to be dissatisfied (Jain & Thomson, 2008). Question 2: Complete a force field analysis using Kurt Lewin’s change management model clearly illustrating the driving and restraining forces for change in a force field diagram. The Kurt Lewin’s Change Management Model Force Field Analysis (Lewin, 1951) ‘Force Field Analysis’ Model that was developed by Lewin Kurt is highly  beneficial in providing a description of the present performance level. Force Field Analysis is highly useful technique for decision-making. It helps organizations in making various decisions through the analysis of various forces that are for and against a given change. In addition, through it, organizations have the capacity to effectively communicate the reason that is behind the decisions that are made. It can be applied for two main purposes: deciding whether to proceed with the change; and also to enhance success chances through strengthening various forces that supports the change and also weakening various forces that are against the change (Lewin, 1951). In addition, Force Field Analysis refers to a tool that is applied in order to analyze systematically the various factors that are got within problems that are very complex. It always frames various problems in terms of pressures or the various factors supporting the status quo, as well as the pressures supporting change in the direction that is desired. A factor may be individuals, attitudes, resources, regulations, traditions, needs, values, desires among others. Being a change management tool, it plays a major role in helping in the identification of the various factors, which have to be monitored and addressed for change to be highly successful (Lewin, 1951). Procedure: Step 1: Definition of the Problem In this step, organizations determine the nature of their present situation which is not acceptable, and which requires modification. It is always very prudent to separate specific problem from the things, which are working very well (Maslen and Platts, 1994). Step 2: Definition of the Change Objective This stage entails the determination of the desired situation, which is worth working to attain. There is need for organizations to be very specific (Maslen and Platts, 1994). Step 3: Identification of the Driving Forces This stage entails the determination of the various pressures or factors which support change in the direction that is desired. It also entails determining the forces’ relative strengths. In addition, the driving forcesshould be placed on a chart on Force Field Analysis diagram in labeled arrows with the arrow’s length reflecting each force’s relative strength. It is also very prudent to determine the interrelationships between the various driving forces. Step 4: Identification of the Restraining Forces At this stage, it is very prudent to determine the pressures or factors which resist the change that is proposed. These forces should be represented in the diagram like the ones of the driving forces. The interrelationships between the restraining forces should also be determined (Maslen and Platts, 1994). Step 5: Development of a Comprehensive Change Strategy The diagram that is created in stage three, as well as stage four reflect the thing that can be referred to as a quasi-stationary equilibrium state. Though this is a state that is comparatively stable, movement may be attained through changing the various factors that are presently contributing to the equilibrium. It should be noted that change might occur due to a combination of any these: strengthening one of the various driving forces, as well as the addition of new driving forces, reducing or removing the restraining forces (Lewin, 1951). The Driving Forces are always positive reasonable, economical, reasonable, and conscious. On the other hand, the Restraining Forces are always negative emotional, social, unconscious, psychological, as well as emotional. When organizations are handling dealing with a change or when they are managing change or when they are reacting to given change, the two set of the forces ought to be considered. Lewin made the suggestion that to in order make change to be very easy, as well as long lasting the various forces that are working against the given change ought to be minimized instead of increasing the forces that are for the given change. He also made the suggestion that force modification will be beneficial in ensuring the maintenance of the status quo in a very easy manner instead of changing or instead of increasing the change forces (Thomas, 1985). The above steps can be reduced into three steps: Step 1: Unfreezing: in this step, the strength of the forces that are mandating the present equilibrium is reduced. Step 2: Moving: in this step,the new values of the organization, behaviors, as well as attitudes are developed. They are beneficial in helping to move the firm forward. Step 3: Refreezing: in this stage, when the changes have been made, the various forces ought to be stabilized. This is to ensure that a new equilibrium is maintained (Miner, 2007). However, in some cases, it is always criticized because when an organization is within an environment that is rapidly moving, it will not have the capacity to ‘refreeze’. In a case like that, refreezing will make the organization to be staid and stale. Lewin points out that Refreezing ought not to be viewed as a permanent phase, but a short term phase. In addition, it is highly significant for obtaining certain types of stability in organizations (Maslen and Platts, 1994). The arrow lengths are depicting the quantity of the forces. When a given change is implemented within an organization, the point of equilibrium is moved. For the movement of the equilibrium, driving forces must be increased or added. In addition, resistance forces ought to be reduced or removed (Thomas, 1985). On the contrary, when the driving forces are enhanced, the intensity of resistance will also be enhanced. Hence, it is always good to minimize the resistance. This may be done through the use of various techniques such as motivation, commitment, as well as involvement (Maslen and Platts, 1994). Question 3: which cultural change perspective was adopted by NAB during its change program? The Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority (APRA) has identified numerous limitations in the bank’s internal control framework. In addition, there has also been the claim that various cultural issues lay at the center of the collapse of NAB. In order to obtain an enhanced comprehension of the processes and construct of the entity, effective analysis of the culture through the application of symbolism should be done. On the contrary, analyzing culture through the application of symbolism always lacks measurement scale; hence, it does not offer a ready-made formula to be applied in order to mea sure change, analysis, as well as improvement. In addition, it is always believed that individuals do not have the capacity to manage the things that they do not have the capacity to comprehend. Therefore, this is the main reason as to why researchers, as well as practitioners must depend on the functionalist-integrative viewpoint of cultural change in order to get a much deeper insight into culture’s nature, as well as how culture may be managed effectively in order to attain  the goals that are desired. The present, as well as the former executives of the bank share the functionalist-integrative perspective of culture. This should form a basis for APRA and PriceWaterhouse Coopers (PwC) to carry out proper investigations into the official losses of the Banks Trading. Functionalist-integrative viewpoint of culture lays much emphasis on various factors that are found to be prevalent within the entire organization. On the contrary, there is likelihood that foreign currency trading room where losses were incurred by the bank was totally distinct subculture to the firm. This illustrates that trading room of the bank was existing as a subculture to the firm, something th at offers the suggestion that rogue traders always operate within functionalist-differentiation culture (Sorenson, 2002). However, as illustrated by Dellaportas, Cooper & Braica (2007), a research that is focused on the bank’s foreign currency options trading room is attempting to adopt the integration perspective; however, it is at a very low level analysis. However the differentiation perspective is established to be better in the analysis of the relationships that exists between several subcultures in the organization. The multiple subcultures point out inconsistent cultural manifestations rather than being focused on a given subculture. Hence, it is established that the functionalist-integrative viewpoint is highly applicable and effective in the analysis of the culture within a single organizational department given that is its highly applicable, as well as effective on an organizational-wide basis (Dellaportas, Cooper & Braica, (2007; Graetz, Rimmer, Lawrence and Smith, 2006). It should also be pointed out that integration viewpoint is highly opted by National Australian Bank during the change program. The steps that were taken by the firm in order to ensure cultural change include: Readjusting the major priorities in order to point out that National Australian Bank is an organization that is focused on the clients. Believing in making investments in its reputation, its people, as well as its culture Commencing to differentiate via its reputation and culture in order to ensure that their employees, customers, as well as the community benefits. Making visible manifestations of the culture via its visions, mission, as well as strategic objectives statements being reflected on whole portfolio of National Australian Bank group. Re-launching tangible change initiatives of National Australian Bank brand with an innovative, as  well as a fresh logo. Regaining the public’s confidence through launching the brand and lobo with the Melbourne Commonwealth gam es of the year 2006. The bank was the top sponsor. Focusing on various community developments ‘Developing various ‘team-oriented ‘ structures Question 4: what would be your future recommendations to the CEO or HR team at NAB? There are numerous things that need to be done by the bank’s CEO, HR team in order to ensure its success in the future. First, there is a need for the new leaders that are appointed by National Australian Bank to make conscious efforts in order to effectively implement cultural changes in a manner that is highly effective. They should not focus mainly on the process; however, they should lay much focus on the gravity of the issue (Fairbairn, 2005). Additionally, within the firm, there were no clear responsibilities, as well as accountabilities. There is a need for the management of the firm to ensure that this is seriously fixed in order to ensure that change is effectively implemented y the organization. Additionally, NAB is having a good news culture that ensures the prevention of bad news from arising. The issue is very serious since it is always good to adequately address bad news or problems in their nascent stage instead of waiting for them to be bigger. On the same note, NAB adheres to a Bureaucratic culture. It always tends to overcomplicate things. Therefore, through making a change, as well as enhancing the firm’s culture, there will be a positive difference. Generally, cultural changes always come along with very deep logic of personal commitment. The new CEO should view himself as the â€Å"Chief Ethics Officer† instead of a CEO (Trevino, Hartman and Brown, 2000). Being a Chef Ethics Officer, the CEO should convey strict and strong ethics message that will help the co-leaders. In addition, being a leader, the CEO should have the knowledge of his responsibilities and powers. When these recommendations are put into place by the leadership of NAB, they will have the capacity to address the issues in a highly systematic manner. In addition, they will have the capacity to overcome the crisis. In addition, they will have the capacity to restore their brand image. The firm should also portray itself to be more focused on their customers rather than on profits given that when they portray themselves to be profit centered, they will engage in various activities that are unethical. Cases study 2 Question 1 As pointed out by Child (2005), when determining if a team or a firm over- organized or under-organized, there are always strengths, as well as concerns which have to be taken into consideration. The strengths which should be looked into include: very high commitment to the firm, as well as its mission; norms of straightforwardness and honesty; smart, as well as articulate management; very high interest in learning, as well as growth; and general manager and founders as role-models (Bradford & Burke, 2005). In addition, various firms will always face constant struggles in order to shun the extremes of over-organizing and under-organizing. Every service provider always has a built-in inclination to get off balance organizationally on a single side or to another. The firms that are under-organized, their leaders always struggle mainly with efficiency: how things can be done. Because of inadequate organizing, organizational leaders always get it very hard to pull the correct â€Å"levers† and also to push the correct â€Å"buttons† in order to make the firms work (Bradford & Burke, 2005). Some of the various concerns which have to be looked into include individuals and systems failing to keep pace with the growth; lack of very clear structure, roles, as well as teamwork; lack of common direction, mission, as well as priorities; individuals are stretched to their limit; and the general manager and founders are both firm’s greatest strength, as well as the greatest weakness (DeKler, 2007). There are several other signs of under-organization. administrators and staff are not sure of the activities that they should delegate and thee individuals to whom they should delegate; organizational members are unsure where they can serve best and where they can â€Å"plug in†; huge expenditures in terms of time, as well as effort is needed in order to get various programs adopted, as well as implemented; work load is distributed unevenly —some leaders and members are overworked whereas others are entirely left out; Leaders are very slow to respond and to discern to the members’ needs; Members of the organization are faintly aware of the congregational goals yet they are not well informed regarding the daily activities; The firm experiences huge programs overlapping, as well as consequent effort duplication (Carter, 2004). A firm that is unbalanced by excess organization is always challenged by  effectiveness, the things that ought to be done. Over-organized firms have the capacity to move efficiently to make sure that various things are properly done. In addition, work is delegated smoothly, various job descriptions are effectively followed, and besides, committees deliberate (Schultz, D.P., Schultz, 2006). What are the implications for planning an OD intervention? In the case, intervention planning was required since no individual took responsibility for anything. In addition, they had no structures or guidelines to follow in their work to the latter. Ben and Jerry needed to make it a family and fun work environment. To do this, they did not have the means to put authority in to force. When things got broken, no person could man up to take responsibility for the actions. Had Ben and Jerry ensured that there was authority over fun, it could have made the firm to avid this. If authority was replaced with friendship, they could have avoided the scenario. Is team building a good way to launch an OD effort in this case? Other approaches? Other than team building, several other approaches can be adopted by the firm. Among the various interventions that can be taken into consideration include: Organization Confrontation Meeting: through this change technique, the members of the organization will be mobilized in order to identify various problems, set various action targets, besides commencing to work on various problems. In the case, it will most likely represent numerous meetings between the feuding groups within the organization. On the contrary, the data from the case offers the suggestion that the firm is not prepared for this kind of intervention (Murray, 2005). Inter-group relations: The interventions are specifically designed to enhance interactions between diverse groups, as well as departments within organizations. Microcosm group intervention entails a very small group of individuals whose backgrounds is closely matching the problems of the organization that are being looked into. Inter-group conflict model generally entails a consultant aiding two groups to comprehend the origin of their conflict besides choosing highly relevant solutions (Western, 2010). The various issues that face the firm are highly visible along alignment lines, focus, as well as leadership instead of a true conflict. Large-group Interventions: The interventions entails gathering several stakeholders into  a big meeting in order to clarify significant values; develop fresh working ways; to articulate a fresh organizational vision and also to provide solutions to various pressing problems of the organization. This appears like a very viable option majorly after a team building with some of the top team management. Trying this intervention prior to team building will have similar problems to confrontation meeting. It should be noted that OD is not a science, which may be placed into concise prescriptive. Ben & Jerry experienced issues that affected the entire organization. The firm’s board was not fully prepared to tackle its own issues. In addition, they become united in order to offer the leadership which was needed by the rest of the firm. Therefore, the starting point was the managers. The outdoor methods applied in this case may be effective activities for teambuilding. The other optio n applicable for the firm could have been intervention with the founders and the board and confronting them for lack of leadership, as well as their incapacity to effectively handle their own issues. What next steps would you recommend? After the formation of the management team and its alignment with the founders and the board, there is a splendid opportunity of getting other individuals within the organization to be aligned with the management. In addition, they should be involved in the newly established goals. When the system is highly organized around certain goals, as well as missions, all individuals within the organization will work on the bigger issues. The innovative feature of the firm, as well as the level of commitment of the workers suggests the readiness for a large group involvement to take organization to better levels. References Allaire, Y. and M. Firsirotu (2006), â€Å"Theories of Organizational Culture,† Organization Studies, 5, 193-226. Bradford, D.L. & Burke, W.W. eds, (2005). Organization Development. San Francisco: Pfeiffer. Bradford, D.L. & Burke, W.W.(eds), (2005), Reinventing Organization Development. San Francisco: Pfeiffer. Carter, L.L. (2004), Best Practices in Leadership Development and Organization Change, Jossey Bass, ISBN 0-7879-7625-3 Child, J. (2005). ‘Organization Contemporary Principles and Practice’,292. Blackwell Publishing. Deal, T. E. and A. A. Kennedy (2002), Corporate Cultures: The Rites and Rituals of Corporate Life, Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley Publishing Co. DeKler, M. (2007). Healing emotional trauma in organizations: An O.D. Framework and case study. Organizational Development Journal, 25(2), 49-56. Denison, D. R. (2007), â€Å"Bringing Corporate Culture to the Bottom Line†, Organizational Dynamics, 13, 2, 4-22. Dellaportas, S.,Cooper, B. J. & Braica, P. (2007). ‘Leadership, culture and employee deceit: the case of the National Australia Bank’, Corporate Governance, 15:6: 1442- 52. Denison, D. R. (2007), Corporate Culture and Organizational Effectiveness, New York: Wiley. Denison, D. R., H. J. Cho, and J. Young, (2000), Diagnosing Organizational Culture: Validating a Model and Method, Working Paper, International Institute for Management Development, Lausanne, Switzerland. Fairbairn, U. (2005). ‘HR as a strategic partner: culture change as an American Express case study’, Human Resource Management, 44:1: 79-84. Graetz, F., Rimmer, M., Lawrence, A. and Smith, A. (2006). Managing Organisational Change, 2nd edn (Brisbane: John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd Jain, A. & Thomson, D. (2008). ‘Corporate governance, board responsibilities, and financial performance: the National Bank of Australia’, Corporate Ownership and Control, 6:2: 99- 113. Lewin K. (1951) ‘Field Theory in Social Science’, Harper and Row, New York. Murray, R. (2005). Theory of integral complex organization. In Richardson, K.A. (Ed.), Managing organizational complexity: Philosophy, theory and application (pp. 217-35). Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing. Maslen R., Platts K.W. (1994) ‘Force Field Analysis: A Technique to Help SMEs Realise their Intended Manufacturing Strategy’, in Operations Strategy and Performance, 1st European Operations Management Association Conference, University of Cambridge, June, pp.587-588. Sorenson, J. B. (2002). ‘The strength of corporate culture and reliability of firm performance’, Administrative Science Quarterly, 47: 70- 91. Schultz, D.P., Schultz, S.E. (2006) Psychology and work today: and introduction to industrial and organizational psychology (9th ed.) Upper Saddle River, NY: Prentice Hall p262. ISBN 0-13-193212-8 Thomas J. (1985) ‘Force Field Analysis: A New Way to Evaluate Your Strategy’, Long Range Planning, Vol. 18, No. 6, pp. 54-59. Western, S. (2010), What do we mean by Organizational Development, Krakow: Krakow: Advisio Press

Literature Review of My Dissertation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Literature Review of My Dissertation - Essay Example Prior to the international disaster setting in, it was flourishing and was considered to be Turkey’s trademark and a proof of the active role it played in world economic trade scenario. â€Å"The Turkish shipbuilding industry has made a considerable contribution to the Turkish economy with 1.5 billion $ from new ship building, 1 billion $ from repair and maintenance activities. Furthermore, industry creates an employment opportunity to 25,000 people directly and 100,000 people in total with related industries. In 2007, 98 ships with a total of 670.000 DWT were delivered. 80 Ships and yachts were already contracted for 2008. Over the past three years, Turkey has gone from being the world’s 23rd largest shipbuilder to being 8th on the list.† (Tulay Uyanik) It was truly global in its reach and remained commercially lucrative and profitable for a very long period of time till the worldwide financial recession gripped this business too in its vicious claws. Mr.Zaman, Minister of Transport Binali Yildirim says, â€Å"The shipbuilding capacity has increased by an average of 65 percent in the last four years. The number of shipyards operating or about to start operating in Tuzla as well as in the Black Sea, Izmit Gulf, Yalova, in the Aegean or Mediterranean has reached 60. We used to build ships of up to 20,000 tons maximum but we are currently able to build ships of up to 60,000-70,000 tons.† (www.turks.us) The once-prosperous community of owners who were doing extremely well earlier are now facing a grim situation coupled with many challenges like the over-valued lira which is the currency of Turkey, an unexpected spurt in the overall costs of running the ships and large amounts of contributions made towards the social security benefits of the crew members aboard these active ships. The high costs of protecting the workers’ interests increased the maintenance

Impacts Of Information Technology In Hospitality Industry Essay

Impacts Of Information Technology In Hospitality Industry - Essay Example Hospitality industries are one of the fastest growing industries globally, this has been attributed to the large number of client base that source their services. Hotels are omnipresent in almost every sphere and sector of the economy; as a result, they serve a wide variety of clients ranging from leaders on retreat, families, business meetings and travellers. The advances in technology have therefore played an integral role in the growth and developments of hotels and other related restaurant industries. The changing consumer behaviour patterns in the global market have forced business executives to device new ways of satisfying the needs of the customers. The retention and building a strong customer base is the current headache for most hotel and restaurant managers mainly due to rapid changing face of the industry. Employment of information technology in ensuring that the dynamic customer needs is catered for will promote the growth of hotel industries (Khosrow-pour, 2002). Competitive advantage in this troubled economy is the desire of all industries. Developing products that appeal to the needs of the customers can be the first steps towards building a proper business advantage. Information technology therefore presents several avenues of improving service delivery and consumer satisfaction in hotel businesses (Koutroumanis, 2011). ... Information technology therefore presents several avenues of improving service delivery and consumer satisfaction in hotel businesses (Koutroumanis, 2011). The use of advanced and sophisticated mobile and computer technology has been adopted in various levels of hotel management. Hotels have adopted interactive interface on the internet to communicate with their clients and prospective customers. As a result, service delivery has been tremendously improved as the clients desires and needs are incorporated in various spheres of hotel management. Information technology has had a tremendous change in the management and operation of hotels in the entire globe (Smith, 2002). This paper discusses the impacts that the ever changing face of information technology has had on the operation and success of hospitality industries in the world. The instruments of information technology that are employed in the hotel industry will be discussed, analyzing the impacts that they have and continue to c reate in the sector. Methodology This chapter reviews the methods that were used in the collection of data and information based on the objectives of the thesis. The study seeks to establish the current applications of information technology in hotels and related industries. The areas of applications of information technology and the current new tools of IT used will also be critically evaluated. This study also seeks to establish the effects of information technology in the management of hotels and how information technology increases competitive advantage in the industry. The tools employed in the process of data collection are also described within this chapter. Based on the nature of this research, the case study design is the

What is reality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

What is reality - Essay Example This world is very enchanting and we are enjoying the beauty and charm of this universe in the life we are living. We have all kinds of pleasures achievable from this universe with the aid of our sensory organs.But even after the limitless enjoyment of worldly objects a human being lurk happiness in real sense. It would be a surprising fact to explain that the real happiness in this world only comes from the right knowledge of the world and the self. All human beings have the desire for knowledge but if real knowledge is not connected with outside world. Only when one withdrew his senses from worldly object and concentrate on self then can he attain real knowledge. If we look from the view point of physical body and senses, we assume that the real knowledge is related only with world and its objects. This is because our physical needs and urges are met by physical world.According to article 1â€Å"Every organism is so to speak a nomadic being and it has a world of its own because it has experience of its own†. However if one search for real happiness he needs to go in depth to the urges of soul. On contrast, human culture and civilization always emphasized on external activities rather than internal ones. It is curious nature of man which changed his life, and it is that which persuaded him to turn towards cosmic nature and its power. The mythology and anthropology gave a new dimension to nature and revealed that which man cannot perceive with his sensory organs. A man is a creature which is always in search of himself and according to Socrates he should always be aware of his condition and existence†. But he have this limitation which does not allow him to see the real world .He is bound by mind, intelligence and ego and think what he sees in outside world is all that exist in real sense. We have senses which are restricted in nature and we cannot see things we are not supposed to see. There are lot of things in nature which cannot be viewed with our naked eyes. The rays like gamma and x-rays we cannot observe or comprehend with our senses but their power is beyond our knowledge. In the same way there exist cosmic rays and beyond is the power o f unknown which common men or scientists or physicians cannot understand. According to physical what we see as objects are nothing but matter composed of atoms, electrons and protons. It is the vibration of these makes the world appear as what it is .The quantum physics elaborating the physical universe with the help of time distance and mass. According to article 2â€Å"In its popular sense â€Å"mass† is just another word for weight. But as used by physicist, it denotes a rather different and more fundamental property of matter† The physicist also suggests that light has a dualistic nature which is very difficult to understand and comprehend. And it is reality that every minute particle of universe has something which is unknown attached to it. There is one void ness t o every thing which is related to an unknown source. This unknown reality is the cosmic power or otherwise knows as God or Almighty. However, the people in world live by metaphors that are connected to word rather than action or thought. The way we live our life is metaphorical and we identify every thing in this world relative to our thought and word. Our everyday life is metaphorical and every concept and objects of world are connected to each other. All objects and people in the world are identified with a word and nature .We work automatically in our life, it is mostly the intelligence and mind take the dominant position in our life. In the same way our language also plays a greater role in life by giving meaning to different objects and beings. For an example, the concept of argument is a verbal war and is related to war but there is no physical violence in it. Argument is a war but it is different from the real war. There is winning and losing in a war and an argument also hav e the same. These are different activities but fall in to a same category but we do not consider

Planning Activity Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Planning Activity - Research Proposal Example I have engineers, technicians, chemists, supervisors and laborers working under me. My task is to approve of the right formula for each thing produced to start with. I instruct the engineers taking care of boiler and freezer maintenance to variously monitor the atmosphere for each production function. The supervisors and foremen report faults, if any to me. Since this factory runs each day of the year the inventory also has to be procured and maintained in a safe and proper condition. The perishable goods produced are to be stored in hygienic conditions under the right temperature. Task 3 is the most important because faulty raw materials in turn produce low quality products. The freshness, durability, microbial content, right amount of lipids and other contents of raw milk decide the right taste that will be derived from the end produce. Task 4 becomes easy once proper planning has been done beforehand. It requires a lot more teamwork with the technicians and engineers involved. The maintenance of machinery on a regular basis is of utmost importance as even a small hitch can affect the entire process. Task 5 is very important as the end product consumed by consumers of all age groups needs to be of excellent quality. Quality can never be compromised especially in the case of perishable goods. The shelf life of milk, butter and cheese is printed on the packs to intimate the users of safe usage. Complaints if any, received are seriously considered and errors eliminated. Task 6 is an easy one but also involves answering to the top management on the production done daily/weekly or monthly. KSAO for this job: Knowledge needed is of a highly technical nature. The management of all the functions requires a fair degree of familiarity with business concepts. Skills required are a combination of food processing know how and people, inventory and machine management, Abilities needed include proficiency with the entire gamut of production functions starting from inventory to designing to basic engineering and Other characteristics: The other characteristics needed for the job of a production manager are people management skills in such a way that there is proper communication between various departments involved. There is always the necessity for willingness to learn, to improve and develop products to suit the current trends APPENDIX B: CONTEXT OF JOB PERFORMANCE: The job is on a daily basis and performed as a second line managerial job and is directly under the management head. The context of performance of this job is daily monitoring of an

Homeless English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Homeless English - Essay Example However, many individual, structural, family and social factors are also contributing to this problem. For example, divorce rate is increasing day by day in America and subsequently single parenthood is also rising. Single parenthood prevent families from achieving enough income for managing family expense and the ultimate outcome could be poverty and homelessness. Many people are of the view that governmental intervention and assistances are necessary to assist people do build have their own homes. â€Å"Around $2.5 billion of dollars has already been sanctioned by the Obama administration for solving homelessness problems in America† (Obama Administration awards $1.4 billion in homeless grants). However, many others are of the view that such assistance is not necessary to this problem. In their opinion, such huge assistance will make the people lazy or idle and they will approach the government for everything without doing their duties properly. This paper analyses the argum ents in favor and against governmental assistance to homelessness problems. contribute to the homelessness problem. Children seem to be most important community upon which homelessness problem affect seriously. Government, social organizations and individuals should combine well and act effectively to eradicate homelessness related problem from the world. Homeless children are sick at twice the rate of other children. They suffer twice as many ear infections, have four times the rate of asthma, and have five times more diarrhea and stomach problems. Homeless children go hungry twice as often as nonhomeless children. More than one-fifth of homeless preschoolers have emotional problems serious enough to require professional care, but less than one-third receive any treatment. Homeless children are twice as likely to repeat a grade compared to nonhomeless children. Homeless children have twice the rate of learning disabilities and three times the rate of emotional and behavioral proble ms of nonhomeless children. Half of school-age homeless children experience anxiety, depression, or withdrawal compared to 18 percent of nonhomeless children (Bassuk &Friedman, 2005, p.2). The above statistics clearly show that homelessness may cause extreme damages to the children and it should be reduced or avoided completely for the better development of the children. Children are the future asset of a nation and no country can keep a blind eye towards the healthy development of the children. Homelessness in fact affect children more than any other community. Not only for physical growth, but also for the emotional or mental growth. Children need their own homes. Homelessness will create an unsecure feeling in the minds of the children which is not good for their healthy development. Community based shelter homes are provided to many of the homeless people in America. Such strategies may cause more damage than good to the safe development of children. So, governmental assistance is necessary to avoid homelessness in America. The recent recession, has affected the poor people more than the rich people. Poor people usually stay in rented homes since they are don’t have enough resources to purchase a property and build their own homes. Financial institutions already started the tightening of screws while allocating mortgages or home loans as a result of the lessons they learned from the recent recession. So, poor people are facing extreme difficulties in finding enough financial assistance for making their

Social Policy History Scavenger Hunt Assignment Essay

Social Policy History Scavenger Hunt Assignment - Essay Example Federal law is therefore binding on all states and is superior to state law. Historically all social policies directed towards marijuana have considered its essentially negative impact on the society. The legal history of marijuana shows that the drug has regularly been regulated by the government through different Acts. The role of government has been central in the implementation of laws pertaining to marijuana usage. On several occasions throughout history, regulations restricting marijuana usage have been relaxed and tightened. Since laws vary from state to state, laws pertaining to marijuana usage have also seen many inconsistencies. Despite federal law being superior to state laws and having made marijuana illegal, state laws continue to legalize marijuana usage. In such a case, there is increased confusion regarding what laws should be followed and how states can handle the issue. Federal law has been relatively more consistent with its stand on marijuana usage. However, state laws differ on their stand on marijuana usage. With Washington and Colorado having legalized medicinal and recreational use of marijuana within their states, many other states have been joining in. However, the vast majority of the states still continue to prohibit the use of marijuana. This is due to the social costs of marijuana legalization as a result of which social policy has historically shown great concern for marijuana legalization. The association of marijuana usage with other social vices such as crimes has led social policies to be focused more towards restricting marijuana usage. This stance is aligned with federal law which states that marijuana is illegal. The inconsistencies between state laws have also encouraged people to look for permanent answers in federalism (Reisert, 2015). The similarity between the marijuana legalization issue and social

Researched Literature Review- The Impact of Studying Abroad on review

Researched - The Impact of Studying Abroad on Graduate Employability - Literature review Example As per this essay, the effects of studying abroad are put into consideration in terms of the outcomes that arise when it comes to the labour markets. Analysis of the current graduate labour market- general and specific Within the assignment, the examination of the current opportunities that graduates have as well as the trends that affect their employment chances such as the effects or the impacts that labor markets as well as the bearing of the factors that are externally in the influence of the career patterns and also how they affect the ethical as well as the cultural as well as the ethical issues in relation to the quality and efficiency of the work that the graduates produce. The use of relevant competencies as well as the professional standards affect the graduates that are applying as well as dealing with the pressures of employment after they obtain their documents of qualifications. According to Santiago (2008), the positive as well as the negative impacts of the evaluation of the graduates will in scrutiny in relation to the impacts that they face in the market. Past information shows that there was a great difference between the graduate and the non-graduate jobs. The university graduates either joined the graduate professionals joined their respective jobs that they were qualified for, or they were accepted in the schemes of management training with companies that were large as well as prestige. The graduate market as of the present times is more complex than it was some years back basing this on aspects such as; it is more complex in the sense that there is increased global competition as well as advances when it comes to the ever dynamic field of technology. The latter, therefore, means that the workforce that is needed as a result is more skilled as well experienced more than ever before. The results according to Taylor (1997), that have arisen as a result include the fact that occupations that in the past did not originally need a degree now ne ed one and the expansions of the higher education means that there is an increase in the number of people that are obtaining degrees, which as a result has led to the increase in competition of the public sector. ANALYSIS OF THE CURRENT GRADUATE LABOUR MARKET Recent trends show that employees have increased in their recruitment on the basis of the skills that the graduates posses as well as the quality of their work and in many instances, more vital than the subject knowledge that one may have acquired through their degree. Although it is somewhat hard to define ‘graduate jobs’ in a pin-point manner, OECD, (1998), it is generally known that those graduates that obtain first class honors in their degrees tend to get jobs six months after they graduate. When it comes to the non graduate jobs, in many employment situations, the candidates are required to be in the possession of the relevant skills. An increase in the trend of university leavers to get graduate jobs shows t hat are non graduate and combine them with activities such as the work experience as well as voluntary work to boost their employment prognosis. Some of the options that the graduates are faced with after completion of their degree include a job in the degree subject that they have qualified, a job whereby they use

Instant messaging and Videoconferencing Research Paper

Instant messaging and Videoconferencing - Research Paper Example Another example is when two employees from the same department are working at distance from each other and they have to work in proper collaboration. In such situations, instant messaging is useful as they can send files to them and can talk about them in real time. The benefits of instant messaging include instantaneous response, real time messaging, and file transfer facility. Some other key features of instant messaging include perceived control and telepresence (Zaman, Anandarajan, & Dai, 2010, p. 1009). The challenges related to instant messaging include leakage of trade secrets and privacy issues. Video conferencing helps in communicating being at distance (Judge, 2010, p. 655). It can be useful at workplaces in situations where employees are located at distance from each other and they have to talk to each other frequently to discuss project related issues. Another example is when time is short and manager wants to have a meeting with his/her employees. In such situations, video conferencing is useful because it saves time and increases efficiency and productivity. The benefits of video conferencing include accessibility, utility, and flexibility (Lowden & Hostetter, 2012, p. 377). The challenges related to video conferencing include lack of training to do such interactions and lack of use of nonverbal cues during

Critically analyse and evaluate current developments Essay Example for Free

Critically analyse and evaluate current developments Essay In the 1980s and 1990s the cruise industry saw the emergence of a new market, which was younger people with considerable income but no families. The term DINKYs was given to these couples which meant Double Income No Kids Yet These couples were excellent to target as they had plenty of disposable income and they do not have any children to worry about, being able to go on holiday, when they like and where they like, spending their quality time together and not having to worry about the price. In 1990s 15% of the passengers who cruised with PO and Princess Cruises were from the UK and researches showed that there is still an active UK market. In 1998, the UK cruise market was expanding dramatically. Companies which had operated in the traditional holiday market were adding cruising to their portfolio and greatly increased their supply of cruise holidays for the UK market. Although cruising is loved by many travellers, there is still a staggering 98% of the population who have not taken a cruise, reasons identified by Dickinson and Vladimir (1997) cited in Cartwright and Baird (1999) revealed five main reasons why people do not cruise which consist it being too expensive, the exclusivity, family commitments, claustrophobia and sea sickness. Disabled consumers The disabled consumer group have become more interested in the cruising industry, many cruise liners did not offer ships which catered to disabled people. Now with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, where all places who offer service have to make reasonable adjustments the cruise liners had no choice but to build disability-friendly rooms for their travelling disabled passengers. Not saying that they did not have these rooms before, but some cruise liners did not offer this service for the disabled consumer group, and it was against the law. There should be no problems for disabled people finding a cruise liner suitable for them as all cruise liners now offer fully disabled facilities within the ships to cater to the disabled consumer group. Family Cruising In the 1990s a major development which was companies targeting families with children was put in place, by providing facilities not only for the adults but also for the children to enjoy, now in 2005, almost every cruise line offers family cruises. If a cruise liner does not offer a family cruise they are missing out on making lots of money. Although there are still some cruises which specifically do not allow children, reason being because these cruises are for the older / retired people who do not wish for screaming, noisy, crying children and babies when they are trying to relax. Being a kid is all about having fun. Coincidentally, so is vacation. But kids and parents rarely agree on what is fun. To parents, fancy dinners, late night shows and reading by the pool are fun. Kids have more fun playing games, doing scavenger hunts, and going down waterslides. The good news is that all of these activities occur on a cruise, making a cruise the vacation of choice for todays families. Under the supervision of the youth staff, kids can play video games, eat pizza and play in a ball pit, while parents relax and have a fabulous five course meal. It is a parents and kids dream come true! (familycruise. com [online] 2005) The quote above was taken from www. familycruise. com an internet site which specifically caters for family cruises. Helping families to plan holidays which will keep both parents and kids happy on their holiday. Parents love to go on cruises so they have to be able to find a ship which caters for the family, letting the children have a good time on the cruise and also for the parents to relax and not have to worry about looking after their kids and think about what they are doing and are able to do on-board. The cruise industry has continued to grow rapidly since the introduction of family cruises. This might be due to parents now being able to have their dream holiday, a cruise, and not have to worry about their children as they can go too and have fully trained sitters to look after their kids and keep them occupied all day long. Price Cheap prices are what the lower-end consumers are looking for. A good price with an average cruise holiday, they cannot expect more than that as they are not paying a high price for a luxury cruising holiday. Although the cruise industry is very expensive, there are still many consumers who like to go on cruises. This could be due to status, as only the wealthier people can afford to go on these high-class cruises. In 1999, it was possible to obtain a seven day cruise from the UK for i 399 per person, which then was cheap compared to the top end cruises which were around i 2000 per person. Now in 2005, cruises prices start from i 599+ per person. This is rather expensive as the average family spends around that price for a holiday a year, not per person. Cheaper cruising prices should be being introduced and this would be an excellent idea as many lower-end consumers want to experience a good cruise but unfortunately do not have the funds. If cruise liners offered cheaper cruises with good experiences not only the wealthy passengers can go but so can the lower-end customers. Incentives Cruises in America often have many deals which include, prices starting from $399, book before Jan and receive an extra nights stay, children under 16 cruise for free and many more. This is a good way to make more sales and allow people to pick their company to another one. As there are many incentives available which is what the consumers are looking for as they are paying a high price for their cruising holidays. Receive our special Early-Booking discount and free hotel stay. (cruise. gr [online] 2005) The quote above is very popular within the cruise industry, this is the type of incentive the consumer wants to see to help motivate them to purchasing the holiday. Consumers today are very greedy and like value for money, if they are buying on the internet they will always look for sites which offer them incentives towards their holidays, or when buying in travel agent they will try to get some freebies towards their holidays.

Strengths And Limitations Of CBT For Social Phobia Psychology Essay

Strengths And Limitations Of CBT For Social Phobia Psychology Essay Social phobia, also known as Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is considered as one of the most common psychological disorders on its own, and also as a comorbid disorder (Kessler, McGonagle, Zhao, et al., 1994). Current research literature suggest Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) as the first treatment choice for social phobia, unless in the case where the client opt for medication or if the client is suffering from comorbid depression or another psychological disorder that makes medication essential (Veale, 2003; Social Anxiety Disorder, 2006; NICE guideline, 2004c). The aim of this paper will be to discuss the application of CBT in the treatment of Social Phobia. However, it is important to emphasise that it will not attempt a detailed discussion on the historical development, or theoretical frameworks of CBT. These aspects of therapy will be emphasised, discussed and analysed where necessary, to comprehend its practicality in the treatment of social phobia. Furthermore, the scope of this paper will be limited to examining the use of CBT for treatment of adults with social phobia but, it will not focus on treatment of social phobia in children and adolescent groups. CBT was initially developed by Aaron T. Beck as a structured, short-term, present-oriented psychotherapy for depression, directed toward solving current problems and modifying dysfunctional thinking and behaviours (Beck, 1995). The basic assumptions of cognitive model suggest that distorted or dysfunctional thinking that influence the patient/clients mood and behaviour is common to all psychological disturbances (Beck, 1995). CBT is a collection of therapies that are designed to help clients suffering from phobias, depression, obsessions compulsions, stress disorders, drug addictions and/or personality disorders. CBT attempts to help people identify the situations that may produce their physiological or emotional symptoms and alter the manner in which they cope with these situations (Smith, Nolen-Hoeksema, Fredrickson, Loftus. 2003). The effectiveness of CBT has been widely tested since the first study on treatment success in 1977 (Beck, 1995). Westbrook, Kennerley and Kirk (2007) stated that CBT has many features common to other therapies. However, they acknowledged that CBT is different from the other psychotherapies with some distinguishing characteristics. This therapeutic approach is a combination of Behaviour Therapy (BT) and Cognitive Therapy (CT). However, these will not discuss in detail. However, as a result of having been evolved from a combination of both BT and CT, modern CBT consist important elements of them both. Westbrook, et al. (2007) presents the CBT model of viewing problem development. For instance, individuals develop cognitions (thoughts beliefs) through life experiences (mostly based on childhood experiences, but sometimes with later experiences). These can be functional (ones that allow making sense of the world around and deal with life issues), as well as dysfunctional beliefs. Most of the time, functional beliefs permit individuals to reasonably cope well with life situations. Whereas dysfunctional beliefs may not cause problems unless/until encountered with an event or a series of events (also known as critical incident) that violates the core beliefs or the assumptions, to the extent of being unable to handle ones positive/functional beliefs. This situation may activate the negative/dysfunctional thoughts over the positive thoughts resulting or provoking unpleasant emotional status such as anxiety or depression. Thus, Westbrook et al. (2007) highlighted the interactions between negative thoughts, emotions, somatic reactions, and behaviours as responses to different life events. These dysfunctional patterns lock the individual into vicious cycles or feedback loops resulting in the perpetuation of the problem. Focussing on the effectiveness of CBT as a therapy, the UK National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) guideline recommends CBT for several major mental health problems including depression (NICE, 2004a), generalised anxiety and panic (NICE, 2004c), and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (NICE, 2005). Furthermore, Westbrook et al. (2007) highlighted the findings of Roth and Fonagy (2005) in their book What works for whom? a landmark summary of psychotherapy efficacy. This book presents evidence on the success of CBT as a therapy for most psychological disorders. However, though there is evidence supporting the successfulness of CBT for numerous psychological disorders, CBT has some limitations as well. Firstly, it is not suitable for everyone. One should be committed and persistent in finding a solution to the problem and improving oneself with the guidance of the therapist (Grazebrook Garland, 2005). Secondly, it may not be helpful in certain conditions. Grazebrook Garland (2005) mentioned that there is increasing evidence of the successful therapeutic use of CBT in a wide variety of psychological conditions. However they pointed that there is a great need for further research to gather evidence on the therapeutic success of CBT in these different types of psychological disorders. Social Phobia Social Phobia is categorised as an Anxiety Disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-IV-TR (DSM-IV-TR) of the American Psychiatric Association (2000). This disorder is characterised by persistent excessive anxiety and fear of scrutiny by others, often accompanied by anxiety symptoms such as tremulousness, blushing, palpitations, and sweating (Social Anxiety Disorder, 2006). The DSM-IV-TR (2000) presents the following diagnostic criteria for social phobia (SAD). Marked and persistent fear of social or performance situations in which the person is exposed to unfamiliar people or to perceived scrutiny by others. This includes the fear of embarrassment or humiliation Exposure to feared social or performance situations that almost invariably provoke anxiety. This may even take the form of a panic attack. In the case of children, the anxiety may be expressed by crying, tantrums, freezing, or shrinking from social situations with unfamiliar people. The person recognises that the fear is unreasonable and that it is excessive. However, this fear and knowledge may be absent in children. The feared social situation or the performance is avoided or else it is endured with intense anxiety or distress. The avoidance, anxious anticipation, or fear causes significant distress or impaired functioning. Fear or avoidance are not due to another psychological, or physiological condition (e.g., a personality disorder such as paranoid personality disorder, a specific phobia, or due to the influence of substance use/abuse) Specify generalised, if the fears include most social situations (e.g., these may range from initiating or maintaining conversations, participating in small groups, dating, speaking to authority figures, or attending parties hindering most parts of a personal social life) According to the criteria stated above, social phobia can be generalised or non-generalised, depending on the breadth of social and performance situations that are feared. While generalised social phobia hinders a vast range of social and performance situations, non-generalised social phobia may hider/restrict only performance of some social activities or engagements. According to health statistics from year 2002, social phobia affects 3% of the Canadian adult population (Social Anxiety Disorder, 2006). In USA 13.3% of the population suffer from social phobia at some point in their life (Kessler et al., 1994). Statistics indicate a life time prevalence of about 8% to 12% making social phobia one of the most common anxiety disorders (Social Anxiety Disorder, 2006; Kessler, et al., 1994). Apart from being a high prevalence disorder, social phobia is also known to have a high comorbidity, specially substance abuse and/or alcohol dependency (Schadà ©, A., Marquenie, L., Van Balkom, et al., 2008; Amies, Gelder, Shaw, 1983; Schneier, Johnson, Hornig, Liebowitz, Weissman, 1992). Kessler et al. (1994) stated that while the lifetime prevalence of social phobia is as high as 13.3%, the prevalence reported in a 30-day period is between 3% 4.5%. In addition, other similar conditions, such as shyness, behavioural inhibition, self-consciousness, selective attention and embarrassment are seen to be correlated with social phobia (Beidel Morris, 1995; Beidel Randall, 1994; Leary Kowalski, 1995; Rosenbaum, Biederman, Pollock, Hirshfeld, 1994; Stemberger, Turner, Beidel, Calhoun, 1995). According to Schneier, Johnson, Hornig, et al. (1992), comorbidity of two or more psychological disorders, is also fairly common with social phobia. Research has also indicated that social phobia is also characterised with a higher frequency of suicide attempts (Schneier et al., 1992). Focusing on the impact of the disorder on the quality of life, social phobia is described as an illness of missed opportunities, because its early onset hinders future social progression such as marital success and career growth (Social Anxiety Disorder, 2006). The authors of this article stated that these individuals were less likely to be well educated, belong to lower socioeconomic status, and are possibly unmarried. In addition, they also suffer greater functional, health, and physical impairments than individuals without social phobia (Social Anxiety Disorder, 2006). Thus the disorder has a significant impact on the quality of life, in particular, socially and emotionally. Emphasising on this point, the authors of this article highlighted that in a community health survey in Canada, people with social phobia were twice as likely to report at least one disability day in the past two weeks, compared to people without social phobia (Social Anxiety Disorder, 2006). Aetiology of social phobia can be traced to Bio-Psycho-Social factors (Smith, Hoeksema, Fredrickson, et al., 2003). Looking at the neuro-biologic factors, research data up to date, provides evidence of dopaminergic, serotonergic, and noradrenergic systems (Stein, Tancer, Uhde, 19992; Tancer, Stein, Uhde, 1993; Yeragani, Blalon, Pohl, 1990). However, Stein, Tancer, Uhde (1995) stated that the evidence for these neuro-biological factors in the predisposition, precipitation, and perpetuation is far from clear. The authors also present the same regarding the effect of antidepressants on social phobia stating that further work is warranted, although preliminary evidence indicates that antidepressants are not entirely effective on social phobia. From a cognitive-behavioural perspective, a person with social phobia develops a series of negative assumptions about themselves and their social world based on some negative experience (Kessler, et al., 1994). These assumptions of behaving inappropriately and being evaluated negatively and/or being humiliated will give rise to anticipatory anxiety that precedes the social situation adding an extra source of concern and perceived danger. Preoccupied with these fears, clients with social phobia have difficulty focussing their attention on the social cues or their own strengths that help them to effectively cope in the phobic situations. In addition, biased memory and focused attention towards negative signs will prevent the individual from perceiving the positive signs (e.g., acceptance, success, admiration) giving rise to performance deficiencies. These may contribute towards producing patterns of negative interactions that may further contribute to the perpetuation of the phobic con dition experienced at the time (Elting Hope, 1995). These explanations are similar to the generic CBT model, of problem development. Thus the research by Kessler et al (1994) has provided supporting evidence to the general CBT explanation and theoretical framework of problem understanding, assessment and treatment. Another dimension of the aetiology of social phobia is the lack of social skills and/or the lack of awareness of ones own social skills. According to Hill (1989), clients with social phobia vary widely in their knowledge of socially appropriate behaviour skills. Many of these individuals seem to have adequate social skills when assessed in a non-threatening environment such as the clinicians office, but they fail to use these skills when laden with anxiety in an unfamiliar social situation that is perceived as threatening. Hill (1989) further described that there is another group of individuals suffering with social phobia who may be unaware of socially appropriate behaviours in certain situations and therefore encounter repeated failures and disappointments. Thus, Hill (1989) suggest that apart from medication and/or conventional CBT, individuals in this group will benefit more from specific training in social skills either through role playing or modelling as appropriate. In addition to the above dimensions, there are developmental and psychodynamic issues associated with the aetiology of social phobia as well. In this view, children who are rejected, belittled, and censured by their parents, teachers or peers may develop feelings of low self-esteem and social alienation (Arrindell, kwee, Methorst, 1989). The authors of this article further stated that clients with social phobia tend to report, having had hypercritical parents. The article further examine the condition of social phobia from a psychodynamic perspective hypothesising that avoidant behaviour may be caused by an exaggerated desire for acceptance, an intolerance of criticism, or a willingness to constrict ones life to maintain a sense of control. Furthermore, they claim that traumatic embarrassing events may lead to loss of self-confidence, increased anxiety, and subsequent poor performance, resulting in a vicious circle that progress to social phobia. Concentrating on treatment seeking behaviours for social phobia, Hill (1989) highlighted that clients rarely see a physician for symptoms relating to social anxiety. More often seeking help will be for conditions such as substance abuse, depression or any other anxiety disorder (e.g. panic attack). Treatment for Social Phobia As mentioned above, social phobia is the result of biopsychosocial factors. Thus, the treatment choices may also vary which may include pharmacotherapy, and/or different types of psychotherapy. Veale (2003) stated that treatment choice for social phobia is up to the client to decide. Medication is indicated if it is the clients first choice, or if CBT has failed or if there is a long waiting list for CBT. Similarly, pharmacotherapy becomes the choice of treatment when social phobia is comorbid with depression (Veale, 2003). Considering the first treatment choice, UK National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) does not have a specific guideline specific for social phobia. However, in its guidelines for anxiety disorders (NICE, 2004), it recommends pharmacotherapy as treatment if the client opts for medication, or if the client opts for psychological treatment, CBT is given as the first choice of therapy. NICE guidelines (2004) too recommend CBT as the first choice of psychologic al therapy for generalised anxiety disorder and other anxiety disorders. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence provides evidence that CBT is more effective than no intervention and that CBT has been found to maintain its effectiveness when examined after long term follow up of eight to fourteen years. This can be used as a cost and time effective therapeutic intervention in group settings and most clients have maintained treatment gains at longer terms (NICE 2004). It further stated that CBT is more effective than psychodynamic therapy and non-specific treatments. Apart from CBT, clients who receive anxiety management training, relaxation and breathing therapy have been proven to be effective compared to having no intervention. Apart from CBT, Veale (2003) also discusses Graded self-exposure as a psychological therapy for social phobia. This therapeutic intervention which is based on the learning theory hypotheses has been the treatment of choice for social phobia for many years. However, as this method of therapy using exposure to previously avoided situations in a graded manner until habituation occurs was only successful with limited amount of clients, alternative approaches such as CBT have become a more frequent therapy choice. NICE guidelines (2006) on computerised cognitive behaviour therapy (CCBT) for depression and anxiety recommend CCBT for mild depressions and anxiety disorders, including social phobia. With reference to two Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs) and two non-RCTs comparing CCBT (programme for panic/phobic disorders FearFighter) with therapist led CBT (TCBT) the NICE guidelines recommend the use of CCBT for mild phobic/panic disorders. When results of CCBT and TCBT were compared after a three month period of therapy for global phobia, both groups showed statistically significant improvement. Similar results were shown in two non-RCT studies too. When these scores were compared with a group who received relaxation techniques as therapy, this third group did not show statistically significant improvement while the other two groups (CCBT TCBT) did. However, it must be noted that the RCT and the non-RCT studies does not report clinically significant improvement. Nevertherless, the dropout r ate of FearFighter group was twice as many as the TCBT dropout rate. However, from a positive point of view on the practicality of CCBT on phobias, delivery of FearFighter programme at the clinical setting for one group, and the other group having access to the programme at home over a 12 week period showed that both groups showed statistically significant improvement in all measures (NICE guidelines, 2006). In terms of client satisfaction too there was no statistically significant difference between TCBT and CCBT (NICE guidelines, 2006). Thus, though further research is warranted to evaluate the clinical significance of CCBT for social phobia specifically, the NICE guidelines recommend CCBT as a choice of therapy for mild levels of depression and anxiety disorders. In addition to the observed effectiveness of CCBT, NICE guidelines also recommend it as a cost effective therapy alternative. Thus, CCBT for social phobia at mild levels could be useful at a practical level too. In a study by Rosser, Erskine Crino (2004), the researchers studied the treatment success of CBT with antidepressants and CBT on its own as treatment for social phobia. The results did not show a statistically significant difference in the treatment progress between the two groups allowing the researchers to conclude that pre-existing use of antidepressants did not enhance or detract from the positive treatment outcome of a structured, group-based CBT programme for social phobia. Application of medication and CBT is common practice in treatment for social phobia (Rosser et al., 2004). Yet, there are not many studies that have studied the combined effectiveness for social phobia. Citing Heimberg (2002) Rosser et al., (2004) describe that there are three possible outcomes from combining medication and CBT. Combined treatment may produce a better outcome than each treatment alone, by potentiating the gains achieved by CBT and also reducing relapse rates following the discontinuation of medication. Alternatively, there may be no difference between the combined approach and each approach individually, if both therapies (pharmacotherapy and CBT) are sufficiently powerful on their own. Also, depending on how individual clients attribute treatment success, effectiveness of CBT might be detracted by medication in a combined approach of treatment. Referring to literature on treatment success for social phobia Rosser et al., (2004) highlighted that combination treatment (CBT and pharmacotherapy) or pharmacotherapy alone has not been found to be of significant advantage. CBT has mostly been successful in overcoming symptoms, minimising relapses and also effective in terms of cost minimisation (Rosser et al., 2004). Focussing on the conclusions Rosser et al. (2004), there were no significant differences between the combination treatment (CBT antidepressants) and CBT alone could be interpreted in different ways. It is possible that since antidepressants and CBT are both re asonably powerful treatments individually, and thus a combination of the two did not contribute to a significantly to improve the outcome. Alternatively it may be that the group who were already taking antidepressants may have been prescribed with the medication because they were more severe in terms of social phobic or depressive symptoms prior to commencing treatment programme. Thus, it may be possible to argue that the combined therapy may not have contributed to a significant improvement compared to the group that that only received CBT, because there was a difference in symptom severity between the two groups. In addition there was no control in allocating (randomly) participants and or having a control over the medication dosage. Thus, the research findings of the study are subjected to the limitations of these variables that were out of the researchers control. However, it has to be noted that it does not devalue the comparative treatment success on the CBT (alone) group. The researchers of this study therefore emphasise the need for further research on combined therapy for social phobia as in real life clinical settings most clients are on medication while receiving CBT. Moreover, Rodebaugh Heimberg (2005) recommends CBT combined with medication as a widely used successful treatment method for social phobia. However, while recommending the above, they also emphasise the need for further research in this regard as the current data reveals mixed results. According to available evidence and theoretical considerations they suggested that some methods of combination could provide short-term benefits, but long-term decreases in efficacy compared to either treatment alone. In this paper Rodebaugh Heimberg (2005) emphasised that most research on the effects of CBT combined with medication had the common research gap of failing to control the medication dose and the allocation of participants in to random samples. However, the authors of this paper emphasised that in most studies combined therapy for social phobia had not shown significant evidence of treatment success compared to either pharmacotherapy or CBT. Rodebaugh Heimberg (2005) highlighted that there is supporting evidence to the treatment success of combining CBT with relaxation training. While mentioning this, they also noted that relaxation training alone has not proven to have any clinically significant benefit for the clients. Thus, it is when combined with CBT that clients have had a successful experience with relaxation training. Rodebaugh Heimberg (2005) stated that all forms of CBT aim to reduce the experience of fear through modification of avoidance and other maladaptive behaviours, thoughts, and beliefs (e.g. through exposure with cognitive restructuring). Thus, in the process of therapy most clients may experience an increase in stress and negative affect and distress in the short-term, but the modification of these earlier components of these earlier components of a behavioural-emotional chain leads to reduction of symptoms over time. In regard to combining treatment methods with CBT as treatment for social phobia, Rodebaugh Heimberg (2005) highlighted the fact that all treatment methods have its own limitations and strengths. Thus when combining two therapies (either pharmacological and CBT or CBT with another psychotherapy), the strengths as well as the weaknesses of the two approaches could be magnified, depending on the nature of the combination. Hence, Rodebaugh Heimberg (2005) stated that an empirically supported method of combining medication and CBT for social anxiety disorder is yet to be established, although under varied circumstances clinicians use different combinations of CBT along with other psychotherapies and medication to maximise effectiveness on a case by case level. Concluding Remarks As discussed in this paper, social phobia may literally be a common mental disorder and it is categorised as an anxiety disorder under the DSM-IV classification system (DSM-IV-TR, 2000). While being highly prevalent, it is also a disorder that may have a large impact on a persons quality of life, hindering opportunities for personal growth and/or social interaction/relationships. Therefore, it is an important area of study and clinical practice in mental health, which has the aim of improving the lives of people suffering from this disorder, and minimising its effect on the society. Research literature on social phobia recommends certain types of medication, and CBT as a psychotherapeutic intervention as the first choice of treatment for this debilitating condition. As it is out of our scope, this paper did not pay detailed attention to the types of pharmacotheraputic interventions that may successfully be used to control symptoms of this disorder and enable clients live a healthy life. From a psychological perspective, CBT is widely recommended through evidence based research as the first choice of psychotherapeutic treatment for social phobia. As discussed in this paper, evidence on the successful combinations of therapeutic methods at present denotes the need for further research in order to determine the best combinations for successful treatment. Another area that needs similar attention is combining different types of psychotherapies with CBT as treatment for social phobia. Focusing on CBT for social phobia, although there is supporting evidence for therapy success, and though it is widely considered as the first choice of psychotherapy for this disorder, it is not always successful with all individuals. Thus, form a practical point of view, it is important that clinicians are able to tailor and combine different therapeutic methods (pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy), not only to maximise treatment success, but also to make it useful with different types of clients/clients from different background and life-experiences. Furthermore, although CBT is recommended as the first therapy choice, there are practical issues regarding meeting the demand for services. This becomes an issue in terms of finance as well as in terms of the limited amount of professionals available to deliver treatment. Some successful methods of overcoming these difficulties would be Group CBT for social phobia and CCBT. However, it must be emphasised that these issues become a much grave problem in countries where psychotherapists trained in CBT are rare, and even methods such as CCBT could be unaffordable and inaccessible for certain groups. In addition, there are also limitations in being able to use programmes such as CCBT in countries where English is not used, or it not the first language. Thus, from a global perspective, the use of CBT as a therapy choice is practically challenged due to limitations of resources and trained personals, leavening pharmacotherapy as the most practical mode of therapy for a large numbers of people suffering from social phobia. To conclude, it must be stated that continued research on the successful use of CBT as a therapeutic tool for social phobia and other disorders should be continued as it proves to be a successful therapy for many psychological disorders (Westbrook et al., 2007). Thus, it can be stated that CBT is a useful and successful therapeutic intervention for social phobia. The practical use of it could be further improved through continued research, and through therapist training programmes to meet the demands for therapy, as it would further increase the effectiveness of CBT as a therapy for social phobia.

Frigg Field Case Study

Frigg Field Case Study CUTTING AND REMOVAL OF PLATFORM FOUNDATIONS Callum Toole: 201662274 Antonios Poulis: 201685557 Marinos Mavroulis: 201667892 Abraham Ejiro Ibodje: 201653157 1.1 NORTH SEA Since the first steel piled jacket foundation (SPJF) was installed in the North Sea in 1967 there has been a total of 556 installed and 52 have been decommissioned after operational use. The operational water depth of the North Sea varies as SPJF are split into small and large categories. Of the original 556 foundations 392 were installed in water depths of less than 55m leaving 164 foundations reaching to depths of 190m (Oil Gas UK, 2012) (Offshore-mag, 2000). With oil and gas reserves depleting in this area more and more installations are applying for cease of production (CoP) to begin the decommissioning cycle. It has been estimated that over the next 25 years there will be  £35bn spent on decommissioning activity in the North Sea alone (Decom North Sea, 2014). 1.2 CASE STUDY FRIGG FIELD The Frigg Field is situated in the North Sea with 6 differing fixed foundation structures spread over UK and Norwegian blocks 10/1 and 25/1 respectively. These fixed foundations are a mixture of SPJF and Gravity Based Structures (GBS). For the remainder of this assignment the Frigg Field case study will only consider the cutting and removal of DP2 an 8 leg SJPF which supported a drilling and production platform Figure 2, (Total, 2003). Key aspects of the Frigg Field DP2 to be considered are: Water depth 98m (321.5ft) Production depth 1850m (6070ft) 24 wells drilled in total for production 20 original steel pile foundations (4 external at each corner leg and 4 internal at inner legs) (T Gram, 2011) at 60 diameter (Total, 2003) Jacket recovery via re-float technique after successful installation of buoyancy and cutting of foundations In the North Sea, the selection of the ROV system is vital to its success of the cutting and removal of the DP2 jacket foundations. This is due to the ever-changing dynamic offshore environment that effect cutting, lifting and removal of subsea infrastructure. 2.1 ROV UNIT The Oceaneering Millennium Plus (OMP) 220hp heavy work class ROV was selected for the cutting and removal of the Frigg DP2 foundations due to its operational capabilities. The ROVs working class design allows for front assembled dual manipulators to be interactive with the task in hand. Weighing in at 4,000kg the OMPs dimensions are 3.31.71.9m (LxWxH) (Oceaneering, 2017). The depth capabilities of the ROV exceed the depth needed to fully operate in the North Sea conditions at the Frigg site as it is rated for up to depths of 3,000m. A main consideration of the OMP is its station keeping abilities and dual hydraulic units of 110hp powering 4 vectored horizontal and 4 vertical propulsion units. This allows for 2,000lbs of thrust to be used in the lateral, forward and reverse directions with a vertical thrust of 2,800lbs. 2.2 VISIBILITY TOOL INTERACTION Another main consideration of the ROV selected is its ability to interact clearly with tooling and structures at the water depth. This is made possible by the dual manipulators having 5 degrees of function which is powered by a 24V DC and 110V AC power supply on board. To successfully clear, cut and remove the 20 pile foundations the OMP is versatile enough to interact with heavy duty tools to do the jobs of dredging, cutting and use its manipulators to fit buoyancy cans within 15 mm tolerance for removal operations (Oceaneering, 2017) (Total, 2011). The OMP will be interacting with a standalone subsea dredge and an External Cutting Tool when at operational depths. But also has the ability to be fitted with various skid pans if needed. The ECT selected for the cutting operations of the pile foundations is an abrasive water jet cutting approach due to its multi-dimensional clamp configurations that allow for various diameters form 16 72 pipe to be cut. This is made possible by 8 fully mounted 250W high intensity LED lighting units surrounding the front facing operating area working in conjunction with visuals. The visual output of the OMP comes from cameras which can either be standard, high or 3D high definition (HD) -   3D HD is preferred for the operations due to enhanced visuals allowing for a safer more efficient operation. 2.3 NAVIGATION Automatic controls for the OMP are used via fly by wire systems that allow for station keeping regarding depth, pitch, altitude and automatic pre-programmed headings. To allow for the altitude and headings to be correct a surveying grade gyro and backup fluxgate compass is available on board the ROV. Depth of the ROV unit is vital due to the foundations being at seabed level and to avoid collisions with the seabed and/or cuttings pilings in the area (Oceaneering, 2017). 2.4 LAUNCH AND RECOVERY SYSTEM (LARS) The adaptability of the OMP with regards to different LARS allows it to be used with multiple possible vessels when on site. There are various options available for the OMP: heavy weather over boarding, A-frame, cursor and heavy lift winching. To safely and successfully launch and recover the OMP an A-frame system was selected. This is due to its simplicity, lifting capabilities and cost reduction during mobilisation at a new site or location. 2.5 TETHER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (TMS) During under water operations the OMP can work either free swimming or via a TMS. Free swimming operations are directly connected to the ROV transmitting electrical power, mechanical payloads and optical signal by means of a tether during operations.   A TMS configuration includes the use of a side entry garage or a Top-hat connection where the topside umbilical is connected and then redistributes the power and signals to the ROV via a tethered connection. During this operation at the Frigg Field a Top-hat TMS would be used to guide, control and position the OMP throughout its cutting and removal operations. This is due to strong advantages such as: providing protection to the OMP as it is securely connected during launch and recovery, secure positioning reduces complications at splash zone interaction, the addition of the Top-hat TMS allows for a further working radius from the garage rather than free swimming operations and allowing for greater precision on deployment to the work site. A typical mission for the OMP varies depending on the level of cutting and removal of foundations during decommissioning operations. Regarding the case study adopted for the Frigg Field the typical mission expected would be as follows: Environmental checks would be carried out on the vessel to determine there is safe working conditions for the OMP to operate OMP and top-hat configuration would be connected and moved to launch platform of the A-frame Final checks of OMP before launch Launching and lowering of the OMP (via A-frame) into the water through the splash zone monitoring tension on the line Grounding at operational level of 98m Subsea pressure and containment checks then release from top-hat configuration Movement towards and interaction with dredging equipment via manipulators Dredging work carried out with standalone subsea dredge on completion the tooling would be removed Inspection of pile surfaces to be cut via front mounted cameras Interaction with ECT cutting equipment via manipulators Attachment of ECT cutting equipment to initial foundations monitoring workload from visuals Interaction with buoyancy sections being used for re-float x4 interaction, manipulation, fastening and final checks Final checks of whole system and foundation structure before final piles are cut Attachment of ECT cutting equipment for final cuts x4 carried out Monitoring the floating of the jacket structure and buoyancy module interaction via visuals Final checks of the seabed environment and coverage of unburied foundations Recovery operations via the top-hat configuration and return to surface Checks, assessment and maintenance of the ROV reported Having selected the OMP for the decommissioning and removal of the DP2 SPJF there are various areas that may cause difficulties during the installation, operating and maintaining the OMP. 4.1 SEA STATES WAVE AND CURRENTS In the Frigg field, the average speed of wind between the winter months December to February is about 9.9 m/s. For this wind velocity, waves are most likely to have a maximum height of 2.5m. However, during severe winter storms which occur roughly once per decade in the area, there is a significant possibility of wave average heights from 12.1m and maximum height of 24m. Currents do fluctuate, reliant on the speed and direction of the winds (Total, 2003). With these environmental considerations in the North Sea it was necessary to choose an ROV with high performance thrusters to aid in station keeping whilst operating. The OMP permits this with four powerful vectored horizontal and four vertical thrusters, which allow the system to move in four directions, vertical, lateral, roll and pitch comfortably with 2,000lbs of thrust available (Oceaneering, 2017). 4.2 LAUNCH AND RECOVERY OPERATIONS During launch and recovery operations there are expected difficulties such as: Large waves and high winds can cause the OMP and Top-hat TMS to swing wildly potentially impacting the vessel and causing damage to equipment Difficult deployment and recovery procedures when there a reduced deck space to accommodate the operation On drilling rigs the proximity of the OMP and Top-hat to the vessels hull and thrusters during entry and exit into the splash zone can become complicated Deployed extension cables can be required to reach satellite sites where it was not practical or possible to install via the Top-hat TMS 4.3 OPERATIONAL CUTTINGS Operational drill cuttings can be problematic with the removal of platform foundations due to its chemical makeup and mass surrounding the foundations at the sea bed. With the DP2 platform, 24 wells were drilled in total with an estimated upheaval of contained in an area of 80m x 120m at a maximum thickness of 20cm. Due to the low toxicity of the drilling mud used the cuttings can be removed and treated (Total, 2003). To combat this the OMP is capable of using a stand-alone 12 subsea dredge which can manipulate the suction nozzle aiding in the removal of drill cuttings and sediment surrounding the foundations before cutting operations (Oceaneering DTS, 2013). 5.1 OIL GAS The OMP can be used for different operations in the oil gas industry such as: inspection, maintenance and repair, installation, workover and control system (IWOCS), surveying, dredging, subsea tie-ins, flow assurance checks, assisting in the removal of subsea productions systems, mooring line servicing, cable laying operations, video servicing, acoustic positioning and BOP intervention. Such operations like these can take place in the deep-water environments up to 3,000m maximum operational depths of the OMP. With respect to maintenance, repair and installation operations, the OMP has the capacity of transferring hot tap fittings, pipeline clamps, misalignment ball connectors, swivel-ring flanges, breakaway joints, riser connections and other equipment for delivery, repair and installation. Trenching burial of pipes and cables are operations that are carried out by ROVs that have 200hp and above. The OMP can be considered for these types of laying and burial operations due to its classification and built in features (Oceaneering, 2017). One of the challenges facing operations in the offshore wind farm environment is observation and maintenance of fixed foundation based, cable monitoring, structural integrity checks and seabed surveys, the OMP is well suited to address these issues due to its comprehensive build, mostly in winter and less visible conditions (UnderwaterVision, 2017). 5.2 FRIGG FIELD VERSATILITY During the decommissioning operation of the DP2 jacket it became aware that extra preparation in cutting and removal of pile guides was needed to successfully fit and mount the buoyancy cans for removal. A solution to this was that a bespoke diamond wire tool and buoyancy solution was designed for operations to be carried out by ROV. With the OMP this could be successfully carried out due to its adaptability and tooling interaction (Proserv, 2017). 5.3 OCEAN SCIENCE The OMP can be used for scientific research under water such a sea animal and plants studies in natural environment, Arctic operations, if equipped with various sampling devices. Also, as it is equipped with 3D HD Camera (highly intensity LED) it can operate in extreme environments. Another strong versatile function is that it could be used for underwater interactions documentaries, filmmaking, archaeology projects, e.g. Mystery Mardi Gras shipwreck (Landis, 2017). 5.3 MILITARY The Millennium Plus vehicle optional power/ data interfaces (Ethernet/optical fibre) and other features built in it can be used for naval/military operation, primarily for mine hunting and mine breaking. Neutralizing and retrieving of explosives, moored mines and also inspection tasks like meteorology, detection of environmental hazard, port security, mine countermeasure and maritime intelligence. 5.4 FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE The over exploitation of the North Sea remains a highly-discussed topic to date to combat this there has been a growing market for offshore fish farms. A typical mission would involve the OMP to either help install or inspect and monitor fish inside, inspect netting/cages that have been used for containment. The manipulator operability would allow for heavy cages to be moved into place and fastened securely whilst clearly visual (R. D. Christ, 2014), The OMP can perform a widespread range of activities however there is still the possibility for improvements that may be considered for future development and improved efficiency. 6.1 VISUAL Currently the OMP can be fitted with either: Standard Definition (SD), High Definition (HD) or a 3D HD camera. For improved visibility during decommissioning operations and dredging procedures where the water conditions could be blurred due to sediment, an upgrade to a 4K Ultra HD camera would be beneficial. The light sensitivity and quality of video produced would offer the OMP user a confidence even when the seabed conditions are not clear to operate. The upgraded camera can be fitted with some more technical specifications such as noise reduction, a wider area of view and higher contrast. With these camera upgrades, the user will have less misrepresentations and even better situation and spatial awareness. 6.2 POWER OUTPUT THRUST CAPABILITIES Improving the hydraulic power units on board to 2 x 125hp would allow for an increase in 300lbs of thrust in the vertical, lateral, forward and reverse directions this would allow for the OMP to: improve its station keeping abilities, be quicker during launch and recovery, manoeuvre heavier standalone tools and extra up thrust would allow the OMP to return to the surface with heavier loads more efficiently. 6.3 MANIPULATORS Increasing the manipulators range of motion would allow for more detailed technical operations to be carried out and improve the pilot/ROV interaction. This could be made possible by improving the dual manipulators to have 7 degrees of function and mounting a wrist camera assembly to improve visibility (Oceaneering, 2017). 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R. D. Christ, R. L. W., 2014. The ROV Manual A User Guide for Remotely Operated Vehicles. 2nd ed. Waltham: Elsevier. stevo6187, 2017. imagala.com. [Online] Available at: http://www.imagala.com/post/1X5SEdD4ZD[Accessed 4 March 2017]. T Gram, R. K. J. K. M. J. E. K. C. H. A. S., 2011. Decommissioning of Frigg and MCP01 A Contractor View. Offshore Technology Conference, Volume 21708. Total, 2003. Frigg Field Cessation Plan, Stravanger: Total. Total, 2011. Frigg Field Cessation Plan Close Out Report, s.l.: Total. UnderwaterVision, 2017. Underwater Vision. [Online] Available at: http://www.underwatervision.co.uk/services/wind-farms-and-offshore/[Accessed 4 March 2017].