Since the 1970s, ships in the Kattegat area and the Baltic Sea entrances have been advised to use one of the routes established by the Danish Maritime Safety Administration. As time passed, traffic increased significantly, demanding adjustments to the introduced solutions to accommodate new volumes of ships passing through the entrances to the Baltic Sea. It is estimated that about 70,000 vessels are passaged via Kattegat yearly. Additionally, an increase in the traffic of fishing vessels and small pleasure crafts of different types has been observed, necessitating regulation to ensure the safety of navigation for everyone involved. Therefore, on the 1st of July 2020, a new routing system was introduced in the area of Kattegat by the decision of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). This paper focuses on the exact changes made and how those changes may influence the safety of navigation in Kattegat and the Sound, considering the COLREG rules and human factors in planning and executing passage via this area. A short presentation of recent accidents, and a study of difficulties arising from the new traffic organization, will be given. Brief traffic analysis is conducted using IWRAP MK II software, and historical AIS data from research will advance a more detailed examination and simulations. Finally, the introduced routing system’s effectiveness is compared using density plots from chosen periods. Furthermore, the analysis of the influence on the safety of navigation, as the introduced solution, is observed to be unusual. New routings have been in force for over two years and are accepted and used by most merchant vessels operating in Kattegat. Even so, this period is too short to clearly state that it is completely safe.

Maritime and coastal areas are the lifeblood of many countries. They are vital to the prosperity of countries because they provide trade routes, regulate the climate, are a source of organic and inorganic resources and energy, and provide a place for the public to live and relax. Increasingly, however, there are divergences and barriers to the use of marine areas. On the one hand, available and developed technology and knowledge enable increasingly improved use of the sea. On the other hand, the combined effect of these activities leads to conflicts of interest and the deterioration of the marine environment. The purpose of this study is to analyze the feasibility of using automatic identification system (AIS) maritime traffic data, in terms of its suitability, to correctly assess the utilization of the potential of a specific fleet within the offshore shipping industry. In addition, the authors undertake the task of determining to what extent activities relating to the GPS position of the ship, ship type (i.e., cargo or passenger), ship status (i.e., aground, anchored, moored, not under command, restricted maneuverability, underway sailing, or underway using its engine), ship draught, service speed, total engine power, and deadweight constitute areas and methods for optimizing the use of the offshore fleet under all the conditions previously described that limit this optimization. Given the stated goal, this paper uses both a literature review procedure and statistical methods to conduct a comparative analysis.

The aim of this work was to determine the effectiveness of using the FMEA method in the traditional and modern versions for a small company producing plastic toys. It also identified the production process of a plastic instrument toy selected for analysis by dividing operations into adding and not adding value, in accordance with the Lean concept. Through the FMEA sheets constructed and presented in this work in both versions of this method, the causes and effects of defects in the technological operations of the production process of the test subject were presented. A risk analysis was carried out using assessments available for the traditional and new versions, and preventive and detective actions were proposed. The result of the work was a comparison of risk indicators characteristic for both versions of the FMEA method and an assessment of the effectiveness of this method in the analysed enterprise. Emphasis was placed on the human factor in the research. Both the division of operations into adding and not adding value, as well as the FMEA method, were useful for further optimization and process improvement activities.

The main purpose of this article is to prepare an appropriate plan for the development of the infrastructure of the Bieszczady region for the use of electric cars as the primary means of mass and private transport for residents and tourists in the Bieszczady region. Over the next few years, electric cars will be available to an increasing number of people, thanks to more affordable purchase costs. This is made possible due to the dissemination of technology on the market and the emergence of increasing competition in individual segments of the automotive industry. The decisive condition will be the appropriate infrastructural facilities – i.e., chargers for electric cars, both those “fast” for direct current (DC) and “slow” for alternating current (AC). The development of infrastructure directly contributes to the purchasing decisions of electric cars made by residents of a given territory or people traveling through a given country with their own cars in the context of potential supplementation of electricity. In the first part, a review of the literature on the topic of electric cars is introduced. The second part presents the Bieszczady region in the context of electromobility implementation. In the last part, a detailed analysis of the region’s infrastructure (roads and car parks) is prepared, and, as a consequence, places are selected where the construction of a charging station would be justified. During point selection, the key parameters are the current condition of the road and parking infrastructure, the number of residents and tourists in a given zone of the region, and the strategic importance of the region. This article presents a detailed infrastructure analysis of locations where charging stations could be installed, including their amounts and power, in the Bieszczady region. The latter is divided into communes (i.e., Ustrzyki Dolne, Czarna, and Lutowiska), which provide a total of 14 locations, 55 stations, and 113 charging points. Introduction In the face of the challenge of the current climate crisis, it is necessary to accelerate the so-called energy transition to mitigate the harmful effects on the planet caused by the increase in greenhouse gas emissions into its atmosphere over the last few decades (Cook et al., 2013). One of the main pillars of this transition is the decarbonization of the econom

This paper presents study results on the effect of the addition of polymeric waste on selected mechanical properties (flexural and compressive strength) of cementitious composites with a special emphasis on cement mortars. This research focuses on cement mortars, commonly used in construction applications such as seaports and quays. Here, post-production waste from the production of automobile floor mats is ground to a fraction of 0–2 mm and used in the amounts of 5%, 7.5%, and 10% by weight of cement as an additive or substitute for sand. All the presented tests are conducted in accordance with PN-EN 197-1. The purpose of these tests is to determine the possibility of using thermoplastic waste as an aggregate substitute or additive in cement mortars. The conducted research confirmed the possibility of using the mentioned waste in cement mortar production technology in the amount of 5% as a substitute for sand.

This article presents the influence of ashes generated in the combustion processes of various types of biomasses on the durability (resistance to freezing and thawing after 25 cycles) of cement mortars. Three types of ashes were used for the tests: two fly ashes and one bottom ash. These differ in chemical composition and microstructure in the amounts of 10%, 20%, and 30% of the cement mass and are used as a substitute for standard sand. The ashes are characterized in terms of microstructure and chemical composition. The research shows that, regardless of the type of ash used, all the cement mortars containing ash are characterized by higher durability than the control mortars. Among the modified mortars, the smallest decrease in resistance (by 0.54%) to the process of freezing and thawing is shown by cement mortars containing 10% fly ash from the combustion process of biomass with the addition of sunflower, and the largest (by 7.56%) show mortars containing 30% bottom ash from the combustion of biomass with the addition of sunflower. These findings suggest that the incorporation of biomass ashes, particularly fly ash, into the cement matrix mixes has the potential to improve their durability for road infrastructure applications.

The loss of stability of shallow voids existing in the rock mass often results in the formation of sinkholes on the surface. This has a significant impact on the threat to public safety. Therefore, it is crucial to recognize the presence of such voids, especially in old post-mining areas, where shallow extraction was previously conducted, and there is a lack of mapping documentation indicating the location of underground workings. This paper presents an example illustrating a proposed procedure for recognizing shallow voids, which consists of two research works: geophysical research combined with numerical analyzes used as a kind of forward modeling. This combination increases the possibility of accurately locating potential sinkhole occurrences. The first part of this article provides selected literature information on the occurrence of sinkhole hazards. The second part presents the results of subsurface layer investigations of the rock mass conducted using electrical resistivity tomography (ERT). The third part focuses on assessing the threat of sinkhole formation by using forward numerical modeling performed with the FLAC 3D software to confirm the subsurface structures identified through the ERT method. The results of the analyzes conducted with both methods are then discussed in terms of their suitability for assessing the associated risk. The research conducted within the framework of this study confirms the effectiveness of the ERT method combined with numerical modeling for evaluating the state of the rock mass. This method can be considered a valuable tool for supporting decision-making in identifying post-mining areas that are particularly at risk of sinkhole formation.

The main issue of this article is to apply and investigate the application of second stability criteria for bulk carriers in typical loading conditions sailing in irregular waves. The author, by the use of linear strip theory, calculates the significant amplitudes of the ship roll with respect to wave height, incident wave angles, and mean sea period. A basic stability analysis, in this case, could be insufficient when considering other related factors like cargo shift, taking up water on the weather deck, wind gusts, inaccuracy of transverse metacentric height, and the case of changing transverse metacentric height in long-crested waves. This article shows that, in some waving conditions, the weather criteria based on standard assumptions of the ISC 2008 may be insufficient. The application of the author’s method of safety margin may increase vessel safety in view of weather criteria.

The state of the technical infrastructure determines the degree to which the quality requirements of products are met and has a significant impact on occupational safety. The purpose of this study is to build a universal model for supporting quality management, which allows the effective implementation of a wide-ranging research path supporting the evaluation of the relationship between the degree of modernity of product processing technology and the quality of the final product and the level of occupational safety. The developed model is verified by its implementation in one of the turning stations. A practical test of the quality management support model confirms that the practice of conducting analyzes of the level of modernity of infrastructure with its application contributed to identifying critical machine components, examining factors affecting the quality of technological operations, reducing uncertainty and the risk of risky events, and conducting activities in line with the concept of continuous improvement. The course of action detailed in the model makes it possible to determine the relationships that exist between key categories of factors and critical product defects, and accidents and near-misses. This allows for the proposal of adequate improvement measures. Further studies concern the implementation of the model at other workstations in the foundry company

Currently, about 90% of world transport is via water, which means that maritime transport is a decisive factor in the development of civilization. In order for it to effectively continue and compete with other means of transport, it is necessary to use the cheapest marine fuels on ships. The demand for machines generating mechanical energy to propel ships resulted in their dynamic development and, simultaneously, forced the search for primary energy sources (fuels) that enable the production of the working medium. The era of coal and petroleum fuels began in the 19th and 20th centuries, respectively. Today, in the 21st century, we stand at a crossroads – what next? The transition fuel will likely be LNG and biofuels. Ammonia will also occupy a significant share of the fuel market, but the target fuel will be hydrogen. Based on historical and contemporary sources, this article discusses the changes in the use of marine fuels that have occurred since the 19th century

Modern cities are focused on the implementation of the assumptions of sustainable transport development. They invest in modern solutions and intelligent technologies that improve the mobility of residents and reduce energy consumption and pollution emitted by means of transport. This article deals with issues of smart urban mobility and carsharing, in particular, as one of the examples of the implementation of sustainable transport policy. The objective of this article is a comparative analysis of the pace of development of the carsharing markets in Poland and Germany. The analysis is carried out using statistical and comparative analysis methods. In addition, for a complete presentation of the problem raised, a literature analysis is performed. The research area covers two countries, Poland and Germany, from which ten cities for each are selected for analysis. In addition, to achieve the assumed objective, we also present the basic assumptions of smart mobility and solutions used in cities, and then determine the increase in the number of cars driving in the carsharing system. In addition, the factors influencing the change in transport patterns of urban residents are analyzed, and the importance of modern communication technologies in the development of carsharing systems is emphasized. The results of the analysis can be used as a tool to support the decisions of city authorities in the field of transportation management and, in particular, the implementation of carsharing systems. They also present the dependencies of the spread of this solution in a given urban space. They indicate the largest problems that may affect the introduction of this solution as an element of the city’s transportation system.

This study aims to improve an earlier safety analysis of port and maritime transportation systems in two cases. The first case does not consider outside impacts and the second case operates under the assumption that they are impacted by their operation processes. New and original suggestions on separate and joint system safety and operation cost optimization are also described and future research is also outlined. Probabilistic modeling methods are used as the research methods. The proposed research procedures enable the determination of the safety function and risk function for the port oil terminal critical infrastructure and the maritime ferry technical system in both examined cases, based on the strictly exact statistical data about their operation processes and on the improved approximate evaluations of their components safety parameters through expert opinion methods that originate directly from the users of these systems. Other proposed practically significant safety and resilience indicators are the mean lifetime up to the exceeding of a critical safety state, the moment when the risk function value exceeds the acceptable safety level, the intensity of ageing/degradation in both cases, the coefficient of operation process impact on system safety, and the coefficient of system resilience to operation process impact in the second case. As a result of this research, it is originally found that the proposed cost optimization procedures and the finding of the corresponding system safety indicators deliver an important possibility for the system total operation cost minimizing and keep fixed the corresponding conditional safety indicators during the operation. It was also established that the proposed system safety optimization procedures, and corresponding system operation total costs, deliver an important possibility for the system safety indicators maximization and keep fixed the corresponding system operation total costs during the operation.

Experienced ship roll during loading is the easiest parameter to observe and measure on board of a loaded ship. Therefore, the ship’s significant roll amplitudes should be the key limiting factor in view of the safety and efficiency of cargo handling operations at sea. For the example of three standard bulk carriers, the authors prepared a method of assessment of bulk carrier suitability to perform safe and efficient cargo handling operations in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in view of significant amplitudes of roll. Via a calculation of the efficiency index for a set of limiting amplitudes of roll during loading simulation, we are able to analyze ship effectiveness. The application of the above-mentioned method can be employed as a useful tool to predict the lowest allowable significant amplitudes of roll when the required efficiency level is specified. Additionally, a calculation is made for the operable days where cargo operations are possible. Investigations show that, according to applied criteria, the effectiveness drops, and not every bulk carrier can perform safe cargo handling operations at sea.

This article concerns the increasing complexity and variability of the business environment and the challenges faced by enterprises that operate within supply chains to properly identify and anticipate disruptions and adequately respond to them (i.e., the ability to resist and rebuild). This article aims to identify and evaluate the importance of the main factors that determine supply chains’ adaptability in the modern economy. A review of the literature on the subject, and the results of a survey conducted in the third quarter of 2022 among entities from the transport forwarding logistics (TFL) industry, diagnose the determinants of the adaptability of supply chains that operate when there are disruptions. They indicate the challenges faced by TFL companies that result from the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine and the directions of changes that result from them, both from the short-term and strategic perspectives. The relationships between the development of adaptability of supply chains and the increase in the competitiveness of entities enable us to verify the research hypothesis that, in the face of increasing disruptions and uncertainty in the business environment, strengthens the adaptability of supply chains producing a great potential in terms of maintaining the competitiveness of enterprises in the TFL industry. To gain and maintain a long-term competitive advantage, companies should strive to create a resilient supply chain that can withstand challenges and disruptions.

The conducted review presents the possibility of using artificial neural networks in sectors related to environmental protection, agriculture, forestry, land uses, groundwater and bathymetric. Today there is a lot of research in these areas with different research methodologies. The result is the improvement of decision-making processes, design, and prediction of certain events that, with appropriate intervention, can prevent severe consequences for society. The review shows the capabilities to optimize and automate the processes of modeling urban and land dynamics. It examines the forecasts of assessment of the damage caused by natural phenomena. Detection of environmental changes via the analysis of certain time intervals and classification of objects on the basis of different images is presented. The practical aspects of this work include the ability to choose the correct artificial neural network model depending on the complexity of the problem. This factor is a novel element since previously reviewed articles did not encounter a study of the correlation between the chosen model or algorithm, depending on the use case or area of the problem. This article seeks to outline the reason for the interest in artificial intelligence. Its purpose is to find answers to the following questions: How can artificial neural networks be used for spatial analysis? What does the implementation of detailed algorithms depend on? It is proved that an artificial intelligence approach can be an effective and powerful tool in various domains where spatial aspects are important.