The aim of the article is to present the development of photovoltaic energy in the EU countries as one of the alternatives to fossil fuels. The article was prepared on the basis of secondary information and statistical data on the photovoltaic energy market in EU countries, and three hypotheses were formulated: H1—There is a statistically significant correlation between a country’s long-term orientation and its use of photovoltaic energy in European Union countries; H2—There is a statistically significant correlation between GDP per capita and photovoltaic energy use in European Union countries; and H3—There is a relationship between climate and photovoltaic energy use in European Union countries. Correlation coefficients and the Guilford classification were used to analyse the data. Data analysis has shown that photovoltaic energy is the second fastest-growing energy source in the EU, after wind energy. In 2020, 134 TWh of solar energy was produced in the EU countries. Based on the analysis, it can be concluded that there is a statistically significant correlation between the production of photovoltaic energy per person and the level of GDP per capita in the EU countries (Hypothesis 2). Germany and the Netherlands produce the most solar energy. The studies did not confirm Hypothesis 3; however, it can be seen that countries such as Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands have the highest PV energy efficiency compared to average temperature values. A data analysis showed statistically significant correlations between the country’s long-term orientation in the use of photovoltaic energy (Hypothesis 1). In the case of Germany and Belgium, the long-term orientation indicator is very high above 80, while Portugal, Poland and Finland have the lowest indicator, from 30 to 40.

This paper consists of a detailed comprehensive analysis of the client company satisfaction of services received at business incubator centers in the United States (USA) and Poland. This paper also includes how clients rated the importance of different services, which were provided to them at two business incubator centers; clients were generally satisfied with the services they received from the business incubators. Some services were not offered at both incubators to the same extent, which created discrepancy in the assessment results. The clients at the CAN-BE business incubator center already received extensive help from volunteers as well as Penn State faculty and students. However, the highest priority is still assigned to further increase those services. The client companies at the TECHNOPARK business incubator center received very limited help from volunteers, faculty, and students, as they assigned a low priority to those resources. The reason for that may be a lack of exposure and lack of understanding of the extremely valuable services provided by an incubation center. The aim of this article is to compare, analyze, and evaluate the operation of the GLIWICE TECHNOPARK and Hazleton, PA, USA incubation centers from a client satisfaction point of view.

The article presents the application of selected quality engineering methods for solving a problem with product quality in the production process of plastic bags. Defects present in the product were identified and hierarchized by the number of defects in the total production volume. Next, using the Ishikawa diagram, the main causes for the occurrence of the most significant defect, i.e. "foil sticking together" were identified. The scale of the problem for the various causes was determined using FMEA, corrective and preventive measures were proposed and their effectiveness estimated. Thanks to the analysis it was possible to take actions which lead to a decrease in the number of faulty products and introducing preventive measures to reduce the risk of problems occurring in the future.

The article discusses the issue of disabled persons in the perspective of sustainable development and presents barriers that persons with disabilities encounter while being served in local government offices such as town halls. The research was done on the example of 33 Silesian towns. Random selection was applied to choose disabled people who use services of particular municipal cities. The paper is based on the 2846 correctly completed questionnaires. The research has been done in 2014. To data analysis we use qualitative methods and statistical methods. In statistical methods we used particularly: Significance testing and confirmation factor analysis. In the research process we formulated four research questions: What is the impact of the degree of disability on the evaluation level of quality with regard to architectonical barriers? What is the impact of the types of disability on the evaluation level of quality with regard to architectonical barriers? What is the impact of the age of disabled on the evaluation level of quality with regard to architectonical barriers? What hidden factors we can identify in the case of architectural barriers in municipal offices services for peoples with disability? In addition, we formulated two hypotheses as following: H1. The type of disability has a significant impact on the evaluation of architectural barriers in municipal offices by the disabled client. H2. The age of a disabled person influences the evaluation of architectural barriers in municipal offices by the disabled client. We found in the paper statistically significant impact of degree of disability, type of disability and the age of disable person on their assessment of quality level of services in the municipal offices. We found that persons with higher level of disability assess problems with architectural barriers worse comparing person with low level of disability. Problems with architectural barriers also have impact particularly on the persons with motor impediments. From the age point of view the problems with architectural barriers an important for disables persons at the age 40 or higher. Another very important finding of the present paper is the identification of hidden factors affecting persons with disability needs in the case of municipal offices service.

Abstract. The paper presents the example of practical application of theory of constraints. We use this conception to improve production process in the case of company producing electrical equipment for the mining industry. During the observation and on the basis of the ERP system used in the company as well as process mapping, the area in which the so called "bottleneck" problems are present was determined according to the theory of constraints. Analysis of the "bottleneck" using theory of constraints was carried out in the Paint Shop department, as this is the department where the biggest financial losses are generated and the entire painting process inefficient. The aim of the paper is to analyze of the "bottleneck" using theory of constraints in the production industry to improve the process.