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Wave energy exploits the movement of the wind across the surface of the sea to provide an inexhaustible, carbon-free energy source for electricity generation. This can potentially provide a significant contribution to electricity generation supply in the UK, meeting up to 20% of the UK’s electricity demand. This represents 30-50 MW capacity of electrical energy by 2020, and potentially 27 GW by 2050 as technology within the industry develops and matures. Studies show that developing marine energy resources in the UK can save 60 metric tons of carbon dioxide by 2025 and aid in the UK meeting 20-20-20 renewable energy objectives. In this paper the design of a wave power station integrated with a decommissioned offshore oil platform is proposed. This approach provides ideal conditions for the exploitation of wave energy for electricity generation. It not only saves the cost of decommissioning but also provides the offshore oil platform with new life, generating electrical energy from an inexhaustible source. The objective of this work was to conduct an extensive feasibility study to develop a proof of concept design for wave energy generation integrated with an offshore oil platform.

This paper investigates the barriers behind the underutilisation of six sigma in Libyan manufacturing companies (LMCs). A mixed-method methodology is proposed, starting by conducting interviews to collect qualitative data followed by the development of a questionnaire to obtain quantitative data. The focus of this paper is on discussing the findings of the interview stage and how these can be used to further develop the questionnaire stage. The interview results showed that only four key barriers were highlighted as being encountered by LMCs. With a difference in terms of their significance, these factors were identified, and placed in descending order according to their importance, namely: “Lack of top management commitment”, “Lack of training”, “Lack of knowledge about six sigma”, and “Culture effect”. The findings also showed that some barriers which, were found in previous studies of six sigma implementation were not considered as barriers to LMCs but can, in fact, be considered as success factors or enablers for six sigma adoption. These factors were identified as: “sufficiency of time and financial resources”; “customers unsatisfied”; “good communication between all departments in the company”; “we are certain about its results and benefits to our company and unhappy with the current quality system”. These results suggest that LMCs face fewer barriers to adopting six sigma than many well-established global companies operating in other countries and could take advantage of these successful factors by developing and implementing a six sigma framework to improve their product quality and competitiveness., {"references":["Otman, W. and E. Karlberg, The Libyan economy: economic diversification and international repositioning. 2007: Springer.","Khan, M. and S. Milbert. 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