This book broadly explains the requirement to focus on core components in a business and provides a case study of open-pit mining operations throughout the book to understand the management perspective of large organizations. With globalized approaches of large businesses and the rising requirement of understanding the needs of modern organizations, it is necessary to focus on key areas of businesses to ensure sustainability of operations. Organizations look into achieving a high return on investments and short-term measures in increasing sales or revenue is considered unsuitable. It is a necessity to look for sustainability and continuous methods of innovation to boost efficiency. This book provides a case study based on large organizations and uses qualitative methodologies where data was collected using in-depth interviews of respondents from various mining companies in the top and middle-level management from different parts of the world, detailing the state of the art of information systems currently used in large scale open-pit miming (LSOPM). This book provides a sound knowledge of cutting-edge factors to the reader for managing the business to attain operational excellence and long-term sustainability, and caters to a broad spectrum of management and technical readers.

In 1864, a poor Welsh boy, William Pritchard Morgan, emigrated to Australia to make his fortune. He returned a wealthy lawyer and aspiring politician, having used his riches to invest in gold mines and develop new techniques of recovering gold. His political aims were unsuccessful in Australia: the newspaper Morgan used to promote himself was involved a sensational trial against another editor; and a man was even shot whilst bringing in his votes - so Morgan claimed. He returned home, ready to tackle the mining of Welsh gold. After ousting the key players of the 1860s Little Gold Rush, Morgan soon took over Gwynfynydd, one of the area's most lucrative mines, and stood as an independent MP for Merthyr. He boasted of a fantastic seam of gold, so great he would pay off the national debt a hero overnight, the Welsh Gold King took the title of Merthyr's MP. Despite the massive successes of his mines, the government taxed Morgan hard and almost crippled his business, so he refused to pay. When the government tried to shut him down, the public rose to his defence, and Morgan was sued in an avidly watched trial that could change mining in Britain forever. The Welsh Gold King bestowed gifts on many well-known people, including royalty, and promoted the tradition that all royal brides wear wedding rings of Welsh gold. He gave golden prizes - some of which caused great controversy - and his liberal politics were a forerunner of Labour views that were hard for many of his contemporaries to agree with. An extraordinary character, Morgan was pivotal in the story of mining for gold in Wales.

* Shares classroom-tested strategies for maximizing undergraduates' learning in built environment disciplines * Adapts teaching methods from the authors' award-winning classrooms, studios, and labs to any higher education setting * Provides an ideal resource for built environment faculty, from first timers to veteran educators * Distills the latest research on teaching and learning in design and construction disciplines

Direct Natural Gas Conversion to Value-Added Chemicals comprehensively discusses all major aspects of natural gas conversion and introduces a broad spectrum of recent technological developments. Specifically, the book describes heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysis, microwave-assisted conversion, non-thermal plasma conversion, electrochemical conversion, and novel chemical looping conversion approaches. Provides an excellent benchmark resource for the industry and academics Appeals to experienced researchers as well as newcomers to the field, despite the variety of contributing authors and the complexity of the material covered Includes all aspects of direct natural gas conversion: fundamental chemistry, different routes of conversion, catalysts, catalyst deactivation, reaction engineering, novel conversion concepts, thermodynamics, heat and mass transfer issues, system design, and recent research and development Discusses new developments in natural gas conversion and future challenges and opportunities This book is as an excellent resource for advanced students, technology developers, and researchers in chemical engineering, industrial chemistry, and others interested in the conversion of natural gas.

This is the first book to place continuous improvement at the heart of construction cost management Covers theoretical background, before presenting real practical tools to improve construction costs Includes international case studies

This book describes the application of artificial intelligence (AI)/machine learning (ML) concepts to develop predictive models that can be used to design alloy materials, including hard and soft magnetic alloys, nickel-base superalloys, titanium-base alloys, and aluminum-base alloys. Readers new to AI/ML algorithms can use this book as a starting point and use the MATLAB (R) and Python implementation of AI/ML algorithms through included case studies. Experienced AI/ML researchers who want to try new algorithms can use this book and study the case studies for reference. Offers advantages and limitations of several AI concepts and their proper implementation in various data types generated through experiments and computer simulations and from industries in different file formats Helps readers to develop predictive models through AI/ML algorithms by writing their own computer code or using resources where they do not have to write code Covers downloadable resources such as MATLAB GUI/APP and Python implementation that can be used on common mobile devices Discusses the CALPHAD approach and ways to use data generated from it Features a chapter on metallurgical/materials concepts to help readers understand the case studies and thus proper implementation of AI/ML algorithms under the framework of data-driven materials science Uses case studies to examine the importance of using unsupervised machine learning algorithms in determining patterns in datasets This book is written for materials scientists and metallurgists interested in the application of AI, ML, and data science in the development of new materials.

This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO licence. It is free to read at Oxford Scholarship Online and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations. New initiatives recognize that resource wealth can provide a means, when properly used, for poorer nations to decisively break with poverty by diversifying economies and funding development spending. Extractive Industries: The Management of Resources as a Driver of Sustainable Development explores the challenges and opportunities facing developing countries in using oil, gas, and mining to achieve inclusive change. While resource wealth can yield prosperity it can also, when mismanaged, cause acute social inequality, deep poverty, environmental damage, and political instability. There is a new determination to improve the benefits of extractive industries to their host countries, and to strengthen the sector's governance. Extractive Industries provides a comprehensive contribution to what must be done in this sector to deliver development, protect often fragile environments from damage, enhance the rights of affected communities, and support climate change action. It brings together international experts to offer ideas and recommendations in the main policy areas. With a breadth of collective insight and experience, it argues that more attention must be given to the development role of extractive industries, and looks to the future to explain how action on climate change will profoundly shape the sector's prospects.

Petroleum collectibles are among the most popular antiques today, and Sinclair is one of the most fondly remembered of all the gasoline marketers. In this beautiful book the authors have told the story of Sinclair Oil, tracing its history through pictures of various marketing items, now highly collectible. Included are over 350 color photographs of early and rare Sinclair pump globes, colorful and interesting Sinclair signs, Sinclair cans emblazoned with "Dino," Sinclair's beloved mascot dinosaur, fabulously restored gas pumps, old station photos, toys, trinkets, and hundreds of other items. A value guide for each item is included, along with insights which will help the collector appreciate the historical value of these unique collectibles.

This practical and design-oriented book focuses on ground characterization and structural calculation, as part of the active structural design methodology. With a focus on rock tunnelling it offers a comprehensive rather than a topic-based perspective, deriving sound tunnel design criteria and methods from basic principles. Ground characterization includes excavations, site investigation, and in situ stress determination, culminating in geotechnical classifications. The book then deals with various construction methods and their appropriate calculations, which range from constitutive models for the stress-strain behaviour of an excavation and tunnel support elements to a full stress-strain analysis methodology. The heavily practical approach of the book draws on the authors' twenty years of tunnelling experience in Spain and South America. It will help any young or established professional who wants to develop a career in the underground field across both civil engineering and geology. As it incorporates the very fundamentals of tunneling design, it can be used as a support for tunneling courses or as a textbook for master's and PhD courses. Benjamin Celada was Chief Tunnel Engineer at Hunosa and Potasas de Navarra S.A. before founding Geocontrol S.A. He has also worked for twenty years as Professor of Underground Works at the Polytechnic Mining University in Madrid, Spain. Z. T. Bieniawski directed the Rock Mechanics Department of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in Pretoria, then taught at the Pennsylvania State University for twenty years.

Includes the latest developments of plumbing technologies and practices Clear illustrations Issues related to Sky-scrapers and special concerns are covered Suitable for a variety of undergraduate courses from Building Services Engineering to Architectural Technology and Civil Engineering. NVQ level 2 and 3 plumbers will also find the book as concise reference

Underground coal mining disturbs both the overburden strata and the immediate floor strata. The subject of surface subsidence deals with the issues associated with the movement of overburden strata, which are the layers from the seam to the surface, where structures and water resources important to human activities are located. Surface Subsidence Engineering provides comprehensive coverage of the major issues associated with surface subsidence. The chapters are written by experts on surface subsidence in the three leading coal producing and consuming countries in the world: Australia, China and the United States. They discuss general features and terminologies, subsidence prediction, subsidence measurement techniques, subsidence impact on water bodies, subsidence damage, mitigation and control, and subsidence on abandoned coal mines. In addition, the final chapter addresses some of the unique features of surface subsidence found in Australian coal mines. The book provides information on coal seams ranging from flat to gently inclined to steep to ultra-steep seams. Written for mining engineers, geotechnical engineers and students of mining engineering, this book covers both theories and practices of surface subsidence. Unlike previous publications, it also deals with the subsidence impact on surface and groundwater bodies, crucial resources that are often neglected by subsidence researchers.

Proceedings from a 2019 Conference Highlighting Current Practice and Future Requirements for Coal Preparation Engineers. Your resource for advancements in equipment and technology for coal preparation. With recent reductions in U.S. coal production, it is important for coal preparation engineers and practitioners to be aware of advances in technology to improve plant efficiency and productivity in cost-effective ways. Challenges and Opportunities in Coal Preparation provides both a domestic and international perspective on these new technologies and includes papers from industry leaders in the United States, as well as Australia and South Africa. Opportunities for overall plant efficiency improvements and new technologies that address many aspects of the coal preparation value chain-from pre-sorting to coarse and fine coal cleaning to dewatering-are presented. Read the latest thinking from industry experts in this handy reference that will assist current and future plant engineers and designers in achieving higher efficiency and productivity.

This is the first full- length historical analysis of Victoria Falls. The text offers a critical examination of Victoria Falls providing new insight into the British Southern African project and reveals how Victoria Falls became one of the first modern African tourist destinations. This book makes a case for a critical reading of Victoria Falls as much more than a localized natural wonder. Europeans with multiple and often competing agendas, as well as African leaders and laborers were brought into contact with one another at Victoria Falls. Their visions of the past and hopes for the future shared Victoria Falls as a common point of inspiration. The value these parties placed on the Falls extended far beyond its location on the Zambezi and had broad implications for the British Empire in Southern and Central Africa.

This book draws together international contributors to analyse a wide range of aspects of mining history across the globe including mining archaeology, technologies of mining, migration and mining, the everyday life of the miner, the state and mining, industrial relations in mining, gender and mining, environment and mining, mining accidents, the visual history of mining, and mining heritage. The result is a counter balance to more common national and regional case study perspectives.

Disputes and dispossession of property rights in the mining sector are causes of injustice, violence, and forced resettlement around the world. This comprehensive volume examines mining, particularly what is often called 'Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining', from a perspective of governance and rights. It focuses on rights to land, natural resources, and other forms of material 'property'. Many projects, policies, and laws targeting artisanal and small-scale mining are embedded in problematic conceptual and institutional frameworks that implicitly stigmatise and discipline artisanal and small-scale miners. This collection takes a critical look at notions of property to destabilise some of these frameworks. The chapters in this book are notable for their recognition of the agency of artisanal miners and 'local communities' within the uneven hierarchies in which they are embedded, and their acknowledgement of the difficulties of state regulation of such a complex set of issues. The authors use a variety of theoretical tools, engaging with political economy, political ecology, classical economic theory, and socio-cultural concepts derived from ethnographic methods. This book includes insightful case studies from Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Mongolia, South Africa, and Zambia, and is an important resource for academics, development practitioners, and policy-makers. It was originally published online as a special issue of Third World Thematics.

This book explores construction digitalisation, particularly in developing countries. The book conceptualises a digitalisation capability maturity model that will enable construction organisations to self-assess and benchmark their digital capabilities in their quest for digital transformation. Digitalisation offers a significant solution to the age-long problems of the construction industry. Research shows that when construction organisations transform from a traditional service delivery approach to a more digitalised approach, significant improvement in project delivery and better competitive advantage for these organisations will be attained. The attainment of these benefits is evident in developed countries where the digitalisation of construction activities continues apace. Unfortunately, the story is not the same for construction organisations in developing economies. While some organisations might be willing to be digitally transformed, most have no clue how to go about it. To this end, this book provides guidelines for construction organisations seeking to transform their entities digitally. Its content is a valuable read for construction company owners as it provides a model which they can use in the digitalisation of their activities. Also, regulatory bodies in the construction industry can adopt the capabilities identified in the book as essential prerequisites for their members. Furthermore, the book serves as excellent theoretical background reading for management researchers seeking to expand their knowledge on the digitalisation of the construction industry and other associated industries.

This book takes a fresh approach to the puzzle of sub-Saharan Africa's resource curse. Moving beyond current scholarship's state-centric approach, it presents cutting-edge evidence gathered through interviews with mining company executives and industry representatives to demonstrate that firms are actively controlling the regulation of the gold mining sector. It shows how large mining firms with significant private authority in South Africa, Ghana and Tanzania are able to engender rules and regulations that are acknowledged by other actors, and in some cases even adopted by the state. In doing so, it establishes that firms are co-governing Africa's gold mining sector. By exploring the implications for resource-cursed states, this significant work argues that firm-led regulation can improve governance, but that many of these initiatives fail to address country/mine specific issues where there remains a role for the state in ensuring the benefits of mining flow to local communities. It will appeal to economists, political scientists, and policy-makers and practitioners working in the field of mining and extractives.

After more than three decades of economic malaise, many African countries are experiencing an upsurge in their economic fortunes linked to the booming international market for minerals. Spurred by the shrinking viability of peasant agriculture, rural dwellers have been engaged in a massive search for alternative livelihoods, one of the most lucrative being artisanal mining. While an expanding literature has documented the economic expansion of artisanal mining, this book is the first to probe its societal impact, demonstrating that artisanal mining has the potential to be far more democratic and emancipating than preceding modes. Delineating the paradoxes of artisanal miners working alongside the expansion of large-scale mining investment in Africa, Mining and Social Transformation in Africa concentrates on the Tanzanian experience. Written by authors with fresh research insights, focus is placed on how artisanal mining is configured in relation to local, regional and national mining investments and social class differentiation. The work lives and associated lifestyles of miners and residents of mining settlements are brought to the fore, asking where this historical interlude is taking them and their communities in the future. The question of value transfers out of the artisanal mining sector, value capture by elites and changing configurations of gender, age and class differentiation, all arise.

The large-scale extraction of natural resources for sale in capitalist markets is not a new phenomenon, but in recent years global demand for resources has increased, leading to greater attention to the role of resource extraction in the development of the exporting countries. The term neoextractivism was coined to refer to the complex of state-private sector policies intended to utilize the income from natural resources sales for development objectives and for improving the lives of a country's citizens. However, this book argues that neoextractivism is merely another conduit for capitalist development, reinforcing the position of elites, with few benefits for working people. With particular reference to the role of neoextractivism within Latin America and the Caribbean, using Guyana as a case study, the book aims to provide readers with the tools they need to critically analyze neoextractivism as a development model, identifying alternative paths for improving the human condition. This book will be of interest to academics and students in the fields of international development, political economy, sociology, and globalization, as well as to policymakers and political activists engaged in social movements in the natural resources sector.

Land, Chiefs, Mining explores aspects of the experience of the Batswana in the thornveld and bushveld regions of the North-West Province, shedding light on defi ning issues, moments and individuals in this lesser known region of South Africa. Some of the focuses are: an important Tswana kgosi (chief ), Moiloa II of the Bahurutshe; responses to and participation in the South African War and its aftermath, 1899-1907; land acquisition; economic and political conditions in the reserves; resistance to Mangope's Bophuthatswana; the impact of game parks and the Sun City resort; rural resistance and the liberation struggle; and African reaction to the platinum mining revolution. Written in a direct and accessible style, and illustrated with photographs and maps, the book provides an understanding, for a general reader ship, of the region and its recent history. At the same time it opens up avenues for further research. The authors, Andrew Manson and Bernard Mbenga, both based at North-West University, Mahikeng Campus, have, for some thirty years, been studying and writing on the region's past.

An innovative study of labor relations, particularly the interactions of recruitment agents and migrant workers, in the mining concessions of Wassa, Gold Coast Colony, 1879 to 1909. Recent years have seen renewed interest in the historical study of labor in Africa. Unlike those of the past, these new studies are rooted in the recognition of Africa's dynamic, expansive, and productive informal sector. While this book focuses on one of West Africa's earliest large-scale industries, namely the Wassa gold mines in the southwest Gold Coast, it is not solely concerned with the traditional working class. Rather, it explores the plurality oflabor relations that characterized the mining concessions during the period 1879 to 1909, including the presence of migrants from various parts of West Africa as well as casual and tributary laborers, both male and female. In capturing the phenomenon of labor mobility as it played out in Wassa, Mediators, Contract Men, and Colonial Capital presents one of the fullest accounts of the labor agents who regularly brought groups of migrant laborers to the mines. The narrative discusses these agents' means of employment and roles in the informalization and indentureship of labor; in addition, it explores the regional dynamics of the recruitment machinery and confronts issues of coercion and choice. Scholars interested in African history, global labor history, economic history, and women's work in Africa will find much of value in this innovative study. Cassandra Mark-Thiesen is aResearch Fellow of the Swiss National Science Foundation (Marie-Heim Voegtlin Grant) in the history department of the University of Basel.

The use of secondary data for research can offer benefits, particularly when limited resources are available for conducting research using primary methods. Researchers and students at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, including their academic instructors, are increasingly recognising the immense opportunities in applying secondary research methods in built environment research. Advances in technology has also led to vast amounts of existing datasets that can be utilized for secondary research. This textbook provides a systematic guide on how to apply secondary research methods in the built environment, including their various underpinning methodologies. It provides guidance on the secondary research process, benefits, and drawbacks of applying secondary research methods, how to source for secondary data, ethical considerations, and the various secondary research methods that can be applied in built environment research. The book incorporates chapters dealing with qualitative secondary analysis, systematic literature reviews, legal analysis, bibliometric and scientometric analysis, literature-based discovery, and meta-analysis. Secondary Research Methods in the Built Environment is an ideal research book for undergraduate and postgraduate students in construction management, construction project management, quantity surveying, construction law and dispute resolution, real estate and property management, building services engineering, architecture, and civil engineering.

Leveraging Synergies Between Refining and Petrochemical Processes provides a detailed description of the interfaces and connections between crude oil refining and petrochemicals. It offers a view of global and regional markets and economic opportunities for synergies between these sectors. Features: Shows a global and regional market outlook for crude oil refining and petrochemical sectors Explores economic and market opportunities for taking advantage of the synergies between both sectors Analyzes the technical challenges and opportunities that come with these synergies Gives an outlook and prediction of what companies will be able to achieve in the mid-term future Provides introductory and explanatory material as well as in-depth insight into future technology and market developments This book serves as a reference for professionals in chemical engineering, oil and gas engineering, and industrial chemistry. It aims to help engineers and industry professionals understand the challenges and the potential benefits of developing expansion or optimization projects that may bridge the gap between refining and petrochemicals.

This book covers the main mining issues where geostatistics, a discipline founded in the 1960s to study regionalized variables measured at a limited number of points in space, is expected to play a role. Each chapter of the book is associated with a stage of the mining sequence, including the interpretation and geological modeling of mineral deposits, evaluation of in-situ and recoverable resources, long-term mine planning, short-term planning and ore control, geotechnics, geometallurgy and sampling. This work, featuring more than 150 illustrations, avoids the traditional laborious and crippling theoretical treatment of geostatistics and is systematically oriented toward a practical exhibition of the problems and proposed solutions. The writing is fluid and intended to involve the reader. The book is the fruit of more than 35 cumulative years of applied research by the authors, a professor at the University of Chile and a researcher at Mines ParisTech, carried out in collaboration with the Chilean company Codelco since the late 1990s. Despite focusing on copper porphyry deposits, the generalization of the methods presented to the entire mining industry is straightforward. The broad range of problems addressed, including generally neglected disciplines such as geotechnics, geometallurgy and sampling, and their practical presentation make this book unique and usable by a very wide audience - students, researchers, geologists, engineers, geotechnicians and metallurgists.

Understanding FIDIC explains in simple and practical terms what is often seen as a very complex range of international engineering and construction contracts. Covering the FIDIC 2017 Red, Yellow and Silver Books (referred to as "The Rainbow Suite"), the book gives an overview of all three contracts, including coverage of changes between the 1999 contracts and the present 2017 suite. FIDIC contracts are widely used as far afield as Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Australia, and this book provides a practical yet thorough guide to the key elements that practitioners preparing and administering these contracts would need to be aware of. In his approachable and readable style, Kelvin Hughes covers: The obligations and responsibilities of the Employer, the Employer's Representative, the Engineer and the Contractor Quality and Defects Liability Design Responsibility and Liability Variations, Measurement and Payment Procedures Progress, Delays, Extensions of Time and Completion Suspension and Termination Insurances Employer's and Contractor's Claims The Dispute Avoidance/Adjudication Board and the Resolution of Disputes Tendering Anyone working with FIDIC contracts whether as the Employer, Employer's Representative, Engineer or Contractor will benefit greatly from this easy-to-read guide to the Rainbow Suite. Students on professional courses or researching the contracts for project work will also find this book extremely useful.