This research aims to propose a Risk Management (RM) framework and develop a generic risk-based model for dealing with potential hazards and risk factors associated with offshore terminals' and marine ports' operations and management. Hazard identification was conducted through an appropriate literature review of major risk factors of these logistic infrastructures. As a result in the first phase of this research a Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchal Process (FAHP) method was used for determining the relative weights of the risk factors identified via the literature review. This has led to the development of a generic risk -based model which can help related industrial professionals and risk managers assess the risk factors and develop appropriate strategies to take preventive/corrective actions for mitigation purposes, with a view of maintaining efficient offshore terminals' and marine ports' operations and management. In the second phase of the research the developed risk-based model incorporating Fuzzy Set Theory (FST), an Evidential Reasoning (ER) approach and the IDS software were used to evaluate the risk levels of different ports in real situations using a case study. The IDS software based on an ER approach was used to aggregate the previously determined relative weights of the risk factors with the new evaluation results of risk levels for the real ports. The third phase of the research made use of the Cause and Consequence Analysis (CCA) including the Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) and Event Tree Analysis (ETA) under a fuzzy environment, to analyse in detail the most significant risk factors determined from the first phase of the research, using appropriate case-studies. In the fourth phase of the research an individual RM strategy was tailored and implemented on the most significant risk factor identified previously. In the last phase of the research and in order to complete the RM cycle, the best mitigation strategies were introduced and evaluated in the form of ideal solutions for mitigating the identified risk factors. All methods used in this research have quantitative and qualitative nature. Expert judgements carried out for gathering the required information accounted for the majority of data collected. The proposed RM framework can be a useful method for managers and auditors when conducting their RM programmes in the offshore and marine industries. The novelty of this research can help the Quality, Health, Safety, Environment and Security (QHSES) managers, insurers and risk managers in the offshore and marine industries investigate the potential hazards more appropriately if there is uncertainty of data sources. In this research with considering strategic management approaches to RM development the proposed RM framework and risk based model contribute to knowledge by developing and evaluating an effective methodology for future use of the RM professionals.

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Maintenance is an essential task that must be carried out in an efficient and effective manner in order to sustain and prolong the physical assets of a company. Maintenance may be defined as any action which has the objective of retaining or restoring an item to a state in which it can perform its required function. Maintenance is therefore a valuable part of most industries today, helping improve productivity and output whilst reducing the costs associated with downtime in addition to eliminating failure of equipment. The goal of maintenance, like all other functions of any manufacturing company, must be a cost effective activity. Consequently, it becomes essential for a company to develop a cost effective maintenance strategy that will achieve this goal. Delay-time analysis is a maintenance modelling technique which can achieve such goals in a manufacturing environment. Delay-time analysis, through the input of certain parameters, is capable of establishing an optimum inspection interval from both a downtime standpoint as well as a cost standpoint. The delay-time analysis concept has been further developed in this thesis in order to establish an environmental model. Alongside the downtime model and cost model, the environmental model gives a measure of the consequence of failure in terms of cost to both a company and to the environment. This environmental model has been applied to a company producing a product which is potentially harmful to both humans and the environment. The use of delay-time analysis to establish a downtime model and cost model relies predominantly on objective historical data which, given the correct types of data, makes model development a powerful and accurate tool. The environmental model, however, relies heavily on subjective data and expert judgement in order to establish the required parameters. In order to overcome the inevitable inaccuracies present in subjective expert judgement, due mainly to individual perception, the environmental model has been further enhanced using fuzzy set modelling. The use of delay-time analysis to develop a model involves establishing several important parameters, one such parameter being that of failure rate (λ). This parameter forms an integral part of a delay-time analysis study but is established in a simplistic manner (i. e. number of failures/time). This parameter is established using historical information calculated using statistical averages. Understanding and identifying the influencing factors responsible for failure will serve to improve the understanding and increase accuracy of failure rate. This thesis examines and develops this parameter with the use of Bayesian network modelling. Bayesian network modelling allows differing influences responsible for failure to be considered in an exact and precise manner. The findings of this research is that a methodology has been successfully developed, using delay-time analysis modelling, in order to aid decision making in a manufacturing environment. Further improvement of the delay-time analysis model was brought about with the use of fuzzy set modelling and Bayesian network modelling. The integration of both the fuzzy set model and Bayesian network model into the delay-time model has been conducted. A direct comparison has being drawn between the original delay-time model and the enhanced delay-time model in order to highlight the improvements of the integrated model.

The purpose of this research is to investigate business relationships, by drawing on conflict theories from organization studies and taking a mid-range research perspective to further develop these into industrial marketing research. IMP researchers have examined conflict as a threat to established business relationships and commercial exchanges, drawing on theories and concepts developed in organization studies. I adopt the behavioural approach from organisation studies, and contracts with particularly the socio-psychological approaches relating to the affective emotions of small groups. I find that there is much in common between the definitions of conflict developed by March (1999) and the theories of Jehn and Mannix (2001) on the combination of affective and cognitive ways of undertaking activities in conflicts, as conflict as experienced, emotional, aligned with material entities. These approaches have had a great influence but have not been fully considered in business-to-business research. This thesis aims to investigate how actors manage, and manage in, conflicts, and how their relationships dynamics work within networks. I develop conflict research by drawing on the IMP and Market Studies approaches, which address the pervasive conditions of business activity, encompassing the relationships and resources experienced by actors as events which trigger emotions. The overall research method chosen for this research is the case study. I identify five cases of relationships from the oil and gas industry’s service sector and examine conflict, its emotional dimensions and actors’ activities in conflicts within these cases in three empirical study chapters. Study 1 examines conflict of interest and resources and conflict as experienced by actors. Study 2 examines conflict from the emotional perspective by investigating a series of events and event-triggered emotions across the five cases of relationships. Study 3 focuses on adaptive activities undertaken in conditions of pervasive conflict, which produce incremental innovation. I propose an explanation of how actors manage, and manage in, conflict given that they tend to value and maintain relationships beyond individual episodes of exchange. Conflicts are investigated in relationships from a network perspective, showing that actors experienced these while adapting to changes in their business setting (regulation, technology or/and cost), modifying their roles in that network. By identifying conflict with the organizing forms of relationships and networks, the research shows how actors handle conflict by pursuing and combining a number of strategies, distributing the conflict across an enlarged network. By investigating the emotional dimension of conflicts, I find that affective emotion effects relationships and relationship dynamics. Actors transform and resource emotions with material entities, and in this process markets are shaped. Adaptations are part of the normal activities; actors, driven by medium term Chemical Management Service (CMS) contracts and cost pressures, undertake incremental innovation. An incremental innovation model is designed to illustrate the process of incremental innovation that operates for the ‘green chemical’ industry, and guides actors to contain costs through managing portfolios and resources, forecasting and innovation agenda, and reducing uncertainties in networks.

Risk became popular among management theorists, with many proposing ways to manage all sorts of risks. Some countries require corporations to implement risk management as stand-alone or even integrated element within improved internal control frameworks. As result, several national standards were developed over the last 20 years, but just one arose as truly international solution: ISO 31000. Little has been published on integrated risk management at airlines and the use of industry-wide standards has never been consistently explored before. Two industry-specific standards exist, but their limited scope led to little adherence by airlines. To cover this gap,this thesis analysed the wider picture of integrated airline risk management practices, aiming at identifying improvement areas to propose an adaptation of the ISO 31000 risk management framework. Several empirical methods (including a survey to publications by the ToplOO airlines, and interviews to airline risk managers, experts and practitioners) showed that only six airlines reported using ISO 31000, with two others citing its predecessor, AS/NZS 4360. Many vaguely referred to COSO, customised models or didn't mention any framework. It is unclear why only few airlines use ISO 31000, when other industries applied it successfully before. Therefore, to help disseminating ISO 31000 among airlines, a customised framework has been designed that proposes a truly holistic industry-specific approach, not focussing on individual risk sources. It integrates risk management along the airlines' entire value chain and involves relevant stakeholders in the airlines' internal risk management efforts. The proposal's validation process showed that, while being ambitious in its goals, the customised framework is complete and concise, providing valuable input for airlines using other risk management models. It has been considered particularly suitable for those airlines thinking of launching risk management initiatives. Given that a fundamental culture change is needed, the timeframe for implementation should be generous, allowing for several process iterations and revisions.

Everest and Blanc (E&B) is at a crossroad. It grew from a ‘mom and pop’ operation into a small professional firm and plateaued. Thus, there is a desire to bring about operation efficiency, followed by expansion of the company. In order to be successful, a systematic decision making process is necessary to ensure a high probability of success, and able to pinpoint dysfunctions early for improvement. In addition, implementing processes need careful consideration and progress monitoring. This study was founded on these premises using M2 mode research methodology to establish an optimal structural course of action by surveying paradigms of management theories and concepts. The study began with an exposition on research methodologies and focused on the M2 research mode. It continued on with considering operations topics (micro concerns), extending to general issues (macro concerns) in conjunction with management theories and concepts. Finally a decision making model was shaped and applied to E&B. During the process, several important decisions were made, grounded on the findings on the research, such as relocating the corporate office anticipating expansion. Overall, the changes introduced, the process of change, the decision-making process, and implementation were all effective. The decision making model, SOMM, Strato Operation Management Model, is an extension of both Ansoff’s and Anthony’s management models together with the decision-making process. The emphasis is on the relationship of the system structure’s characteristics where it is symbolized by a matryoshka representing the three management modules (Strategic Management, Management Control and Planning and Tactical Operation) nesting within each other. Relating to the overall strategic and management control and planning competency, the workhorse is a combination of defensive and offensive approaches together with evaluation methodologies to capture emerging and unintended strategies and to control performance; whereas the tactical operation process is to bring about efficiency and effectiveness. These are new knowledge and policies cast into members of E&B. It is, therefore, fundamental that careful interventions are necessary to cause changes by motivation and to align goal congruency. Further, the inquiry had specifically focused on the needs of E&B, it did not preclude application to other organizations. For academics, it may be an engaging topic for further empirical studies advancing knowledge in management and operations. With respect to a wider world application, it was also concluded that the findings for E&B are applicable and adaptable to other professional and business concerns as innovative tools to their problems and issues.

This dissertation reports the results of case studies on innovation and new product development in eight Scottish food companies and a subsequent triangulation survey of 85 innovative Scottish companies. The case studies are carried out using qualitative research methods and a realistic inductive research strategy. It is found that the case study companies use an informal and cross-functional innovation process, which is independent of the age of enterprise. It is also discovered that these companies develop new products, often luxuriant variants of their existing products, which are mainly indulgences rather than healthy foods and are sold mostly to large retailers. Use of production methods that are amenable to quick changes in final products and networking with customers, suppliers, other food companies and Scottish Enterprise is also observed. Creative people with high innovative proclivity, who often travel to new locations in search of product ideas, drive the process. The case study companies are high-variety-low-volume businesses, possess good understanding of customer needs and circumstances and are able to achieve a good fit between needs of the market and their own resources. Not facing financial constraints, these companies are able to attract and retain talent, needed to develop new products. Continuously learning from their NPD endeavours, they sell their products without any major advertising or marketing effort. The subsequent triangulation survey of 85 innovative Scottish companies, from food as well as non-food sectors, confirms most of the above-mentioned findings. Contrary to the case study results however, the survey discovers that innovative Scottish companies face financial constraints while developing new products, do not sell most of their new products to large retailers or undertake travel to new locations in search of product ideas. The main contributions to knowledge by this research include crystallisation of the new product development practices in Scotland, highlighting difference in product innovation between various sub-groups of enterprises, a new conceptual construct within which all notions and definitions of innovation can be accommodated and identification of a basic flaw in the present innovation policy in Scotland.