Construction Cost Research Articles

Assessment of suitability for photovoltaic power generation in periurban seminatural grasslands: toward the coexistence of seminatural grasslands and photovoltaic power generation

Renewable energy has grown substantially in recent years due to its efficacy in mitigating climate change. The rapid proliferation of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and subsequent alterations in land use have led to concerns about the impact on local ecosystems. Particularly in Japan, seminatural grasslands, which are valuable habitats, are being developed as solar PVs. Here, we focused on stilt-mounted agrivoltaic systems, capable of both photovoltaic power generation and plant growth beneath solar panels. By repurposing this technology, the coexistence of vegetation and solar PV systems can be possibly ensured. To assess the feasibility of this proposed approach, we initially examined the suitability of installing solar PV in seminatural grasslands. The suitability of seminatural grasslands, solar PVs, and random points for solar PV was evaluated in terms of electricity generation and construction costs. The environmental conditions of seminatural grasslands were found to be advantageous for electricity generation. On the other hand, in terms of construction costs, seminatural grasslands were comparable to randomly selected sites. These findings indicate that the suitability of existing seminatural grasslands for solar PV plant installations is not considerably lower than that of other land types. The idea of reconciling solar power generation with ecosystem conservation holds promise and warrants further investigation toward its realization.

Design-Optimization of Conventional Steel Structures for Realization of the Sustainable Development Objectives Using Metaheuristic Algorithm

The construction industry presents a significant environmental challenge due to its substantial environmental footprint, utilization of limited natural resources, and contribution to pollution and climate change. Additionally, optimizing the weight, cost, and duration of construction is crucial for enhancing serviceability, flexibility, efficiency, and profitability. In this research, the relationship between structure weight and other objective functions was explored using the single-objective gray wolf algorithm to investigate their impact on carbon footprint, water footprint, and construction time. Furthermore, employing a multi-objective optimization algorithm, a building structure was optimized for three systems featuring different structural frames based on the specified objective functions. The results revealed that the structure with intermediate steel moment-resisting frames exhibited the shortest construction time but incurred the highest construction cost. Conversely, the structure with intermediate steel moment-resisting frames with special steel concentric bracing demonstrated the lowest carbon footprint and water footprint among the studied structural frames. Consequently, the structure with intermediate steel moment-resisting frames with special concentric steel bracing was proposed as a green structure, emphasizing its environmentally friendly characteristics.

Key decision factors of professional stakeholders (architects, engineers, constructors) when deciding for sustainable construction

The built environment and the construction industry account for a significant share of global harmful emissions. Sustainable construction appears to be an effective strategy to achieve a more sustainable society, although it is still not used enough. It is crucial to understand what the main decision factors of those deciding about building practices are. Professional stakeholders such as architects, engineers, constructors, are the ones advising consumers and deciding about construction. An understanding about their decision factors is needed, in order to increase the implementation of sustainable construction. In this study we provide evidence about key decision factors of professional stakeholders in Slovenia when deciding for sustainable construction practices. By conducting an online survey (questionnaire) we identified and analyzed the main drivers and barriers of professionals when making decisions about sustainable construction solutions. With statistical analysis we found out that professional stakeholders included in the survey mostly already had previous experiences working with sustainable construction. They are familiar with sustainable construction concepts. The most important drivers were connected to the factor of occupant health, and the energy-efficiency of the buildings, while the biggest barrier in their decision making is related to higher cost of sustainable construction and lack of awareness. Professional stakeholders are concerned about climate change and their attitudes towards climate change are affecting their decision related to sustainable construction. Respondent provided many comments, clearly indicating that a simple definition of sustainable construction is needed, and more efforts should be done to raise awareness about sustainable construction. Results are contributing valuable information for professional stakeholders, policymakers and other important stakeholders in the construction ecosystem.

Recent Innovations in Footwear and the Role of Smart Footwear in Healthcare—A Survey

Smart shoes have ushered in a new era of personalised health monitoring and assistive technologies. Smart shoes leverage technologies such as Bluetooth for data collection and wireless transmission, and incorporate features such as GPS tracking, obstacle detection, and fitness tracking. As the 2010s unfolded, the smart shoe landscape diversified and advanced rapidly, driven by sensor technology enhancements and smartphones’ ubiquity. Shoes have begun incorporating accelerometers, gyroscopes, and pressure sensors, significantly improving the accuracy of data collection and enabling functionalities such as gait analysis. The healthcare sector has recognised the potential of smart shoes, leading to innovations such as shoes designed to monitor diabetic foot ulcers, track rehabilitation progress, and detect falls among older people, thus expanding their application beyond fitness into medical monitoring. This article provides an overview of the current state of smart shoe technology, highlighting the integration of advanced sensors for health monitoring, energy harvesting, assistive features for the visually impaired, and deep learning for data analysis. This study discusses the potential of smart footwear in medical applications, particularly for patients with diabetes, and the ongoing research in this field. Current footwear challenges are also discussed, including complex construction, poor fit, comfort, and high cost.

A Study of Factors Influencing the Compliance of Design Estimates at the Construction Stage of Residential Buildings

This article primarily addresses the factors affecting the possibility of achieving the costs estimated in the design stage of a building after its completion. The authors rely on an information base of twenty-three apartment buildings erected by twelve construction companies between 2017 and 2023, divided into two phases (2017–2020 and 2021–2023). The outputs of the article present the conclusions of several years of research into the identification of factors and risks affecting construction costs, capturing the development of price indicators over time, creating a realistic picture of working with costs from the building’s design stage during its execution and the application of sustainable and digitalization technologies within a selected segment of the building industry. The presented conclusions are based on statistical dependencies compiled using regression analysis to explore the relationships between the cost, time and technological parameters of selected buildings. These outputs provide an interesting and well-founded perspective on the obtained data, thus overcoming the lack of relevant methods, techniques and fitting algorithms for a sophisticated and long-term approach to pricing in the construction sector.

Machine Learning-Powered Earthquake Early Warning System

The most devastating natural disasters on earth are earthquakes that causes long-term effects on geography, civilization, and human life. These unpredictable events pose a serious threat to infrastructure. Furthermore, the current Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) systems are facing issues such as limited warning times, false alarms, maintenance costs, high construction costs, and data interpretation. Highlighting these as an urgent need for mitigation measures, there is a need to improve the effectiveness of electronic alerts and public safety measures. For this transformative machine learning techniques and the integration of disparate data, can embark on creating social security and lives protecting from major environmental disasters like earthquakes. This paper has compared various Machine Learning (ML) techniques by training them by using two datasets: one from India and another from India United States Geological from Research World Database to improve the robustness and generality of the earthquake prediction model in the Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) framework. This represents a major advance for earthquake detection and promises to reduce response time. Among various ML Techniques, Random Forest has performed well in earthquake warning with 96.06% accuracy and 98.6% precision.

Economic analysis of offsite and onsite 3D construction printing techniques for low story buildings: A comparative value stream assessment

In comparison with traditional construction, 3D construction printing (3DCP) has the potential to be cost-effective due to its shorter supply chain and higher level of automation. Previous studies suggested that offsite 3DCP can be more capital-intensive than onsite 3DCP. Thus, there is a need for comprehensive research on the comparative economic analysis of offsite and onsite 3DCP techniques. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the overall construction cost of both techniques. In this regard, the Value stream assessment technique has been used to map the current state of the material flow from the supplier to the construction site. For the detailed cost analysis, mathematical models have been developed that consider transportation, warehousing, setup installation, printing, onsite assembly, and environmental costs based on the current state of Value stream mapping (VSM). The feasibility and practicality of the developed models have been validated through real-time case studies. Results from the cost breakdown analysis and cost based VSM show that offsite 3D printing leads to higher construction costs due to the significant contribution of warehousing costs for pre-printed components and the cost of assembling them. Cost based value stream assessment depicts that offsite and onsite 3DCP have a significant amount of non-value added cost (284.26 €/tonne and 199.05 €/tonne, respectively) and offer more space for process improvement. However, sensitivity analysis revealed that offsite 3DCP has the potential to reduce the transportation cost for small-scale projects involving low volume (<130 tonnes) of construction materials. Onsite 3D printing can be a feasible option for relatively larger projects due to its lower transportation, warehousing and construction costs. The findings of this research offer the construction industry a strategic roadmap to achieve cost-effectiveness and efficiency in construction practices.

The development of fishery-photovoltaic complementary industry and the studies on its environmental, ecological and economic effects in China: A review

The fishery-photovoltaic complementary industry is an emerging industrial model in China that integrates aquaculture with the solar industry. This innovative model involves conducting aquaculture activities while installing photovoltaic modules on the water surface to harness solar energy for electricity generation. However, despite its rapid growth in China, this model lacks substantial scientific data support across various domains. Therefore, based on an analysis of relevant research literature, this study reviews the current development status, environmental and economic effects, as well as challenges faced by the fishery-photovoltaic complementary industry in China. The aim is to provide scientific references for promoting sustainable development within this sector. The findings reveal that existing fishery-photovoltaic complementary industry projects are primarily concentrated in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and Pearl River Basin. The geographical distribution of these projects is predominantly influenced by local aquaculture areas and available solar energy resources, with a greater impact observed from the former rather than the latter. During summer months when water is shaded by photovoltaic panels, a slight decrease in the average water quality parameters across cases was observed, such as a decrease of 0.2 units in pH, a decrease of 1.06 °C in water temperature, a decrease in dissolved oxygen levels of 0.8 mg/L, inorganic nitrogen content and total phosphorus concentration dropped by 0.08 mg/L and 0.02 mg/L respectively. Conversely, there is a moderate increase noted in total nitrogen and ammonia nitrogen levels. The conclusion of the effect on phytoplankton biomass is not uniform, but it will certainly reduce zooplankton biomass. The impact on the species diversity of the zooplankton community was minimal, and its direction, whether positive or negative, varied depending on the specific aquatic ecosystem. A certain degree of shade is advantageous for the cultivation of shade-loving fish. Through the strategic deployment of photovoltaic panels and the implementation of scientific stocking practices, it is possible to achieve sustained levels of fisheries production. This model also can reduce an average of 978.6 tons of CO2 emissions per megawatt per year through energy production, thus achieving the combined goals of energy conservation and emissions reduction, and ensuring the profitability of power generation. Additionally, compared with the land utilization area of 3.66 hm2 per megawatt of traditional ground-mounted photovoltaics, fishery-photovoltaic complementary only requires 1.64 hm2, which can significantly save land resources by utilizing water surfaces, which mitigates the conflict between land use for agriculture and renewable energy installations. At the same time, research also pointed out that the existence of fishery-photovoltaic complementary will inevitably have some negative impacts on bird communities. Economic analyses indicate that while initial infrastructure costs and long payback periods pose challenges, the overall economic feasibility is promising, especially with governmental support and technological advancements. However, several challenges need to be addressed for further development: these include difficulties associated with infrastructure construction and initial costs, long payback periods; insufficient experience and technical support; as well as a lack of research on ecological and environmental impacts - particularly an urgent need for comprehensive life cycle assessments encompassing both environmental and economic aspects. Future research should focus on life cycle assessments, improved PV technology integration, and optimized aquaculture practices.

Assessment of the Applicability of Compact Aerating Reactors for the Improvement of Water Quality in a Small Water Body Functioning in an Agricultural Catchment

The study investigates water quality in a small water body in an agricultural catchment in a zone of temperate climate (East Poland). The pond is affected by annual mass cyanobacterial blooms, limiting its use. The improvement of the state of water quality involved the application of underwater aerating reactors. The economic analysis of their application was also an important issue. The analysis of the effectiveness of the proposed solution was conducted from February to October 2021. The results from the analysis of water from the pond showed that the nutrient content and phytoplankton structure conformed to the trophic status of eutrophy–hypertrophy. The primary factors causing excessive eutrophication of the pond included nutrient supply from the river, sediments, and fallen tree leaves. No development of cyanobacterial scum was observed in the water body, a phenomenon which was interpreted as the effect of the operation of the aerators ensuring additional water circulation in the pond and promoting its aeration. It was found that permanent improvement of the water quality in the studied water body is largely dependent on limiting the nitrogen and phosphorus supply to the pond. This should involve the application of systems combining traditional hydrotechnical infrastructure with Nature-Based Solutions (NBS). The economic analysis of the use of underwater aeration reactors confirmed the validity of searching for alternative solutions to power them, e.g., a photovoltaic installation. When designing a reactor system with a photovoltaic installation, it is necessary to choose the correct dimensions to reduce construction costs and, thus, increase the profitability of the potential investment.

The Swedish Production of Apartments as a Function of GNP, Building Costs and Population Changes: Generation of Intelligent Media Content via Big Data Analytics

The Swedish Production of Apartments as a Function of GNP, Building Costs and Population Changes: Generation of Intelligent Media Content via Big Data Analytics

Characteristics, Relationships, and Anatomical Basis of Leaf Hydraulic Traits and Economic Traits in Temperate Desert Shrub Species

Shrubs are a key component of desert ecosystems, playing a crucial role in controlling desertification and promoting revegetation, yet their growth is often impeded by drought. Leaf hydraulic traits and economic traits are both involved in the process of water exchange for carbon dioxide. Exploring the characteristics, relationships, and anatomical basis of these two suites of traits is crucial to understanding the mechanism of desert shrubs adapting to the desert arid environment. However, the relationship between these two sets of traits currently remains ambiguous. This study explored the leaf hydraulic, economic, and anatomical traits of 19 desert shrub species. The key findings include the following: Relatively larger LT values and smaller SLA values were observed in desert shrubs, aligning with the “slow strategy” in the leaf economics spectrum. The relatively high P50leaf, low HSMleaf, negative TLPleaf, and positive HSMtlp values indicated that severe embolism occurs in the leaves during the dry season, while most species were able to maintain normal leaf expansion. This implies a “tolerance” leaf hydraulic strategy in response to arid stress. No significant relationship was observed between P50leaf and Kmax, indicating the absence of a trade-off between hydraulic efficiency and embolism resistance. Certain coupling relationships were observed between leaf hydraulic traits and economic traits, both of which were closely tied to anatomical structures. Out of all of the leaf traits, LT was the central trait of the leaf traits network. The positive correlation between C content and WPleaf and HSMleaf, as well as the positive correlation between N content and HSMtlp, suggested that the cost of leaf construction was synergistic with hydraulic safety. The negative correlation between SLA, P content, GCL, and SAI suggested a functional synergistic relationship between water use efficiency and gas exchange rate. In summary, this research revealed that the coupling relationship between leaf hydraulic traits and economic traits was one of the important physiological and ecological mechanisms of desert shrubs for adapting to desert habitats.

FORMULATION OF THE OPTIMIZATION PROBLEM FOR UNDERGROUND ENGINEERING NETWORK ROUTES

The article considers the implementation of methods for optimizing underground external engineering networks in order to reduce construction costs. For this purpose, the problem of optimizing the route of such networks is set in the form of a nonlinear programming problem. The route is modeled by a spatial polyline with rectilinear segments, and the coordinates of its vertices are considered design variables. The ground surface in the designated area is modeled as a continuous function of two coordinates in the plan using BIM technologies, which ensures the automated use of topographic information when calculating the volume of earthworks and checking compliance with constraints specified by standards requirements. The main result of the study is the formulation of the problem of optimizing the route of the engineering network taking into account the terrain.

Benefits of Integrating Green Architecture in Public Buildings within the Savannah Region of Nigeria

This study examines the benefits of integrating green architecture into public buildings in the savannah region of Nigeria. The study emphasizes the region's unique climatic conditions, characterized by high temperatures and significant diurnal variations, and explores how green architecture can mitigate environmental challenges and enhance building efficiency. Key benefits identified include reduced energy consumption through natural cooling and ventilation, improved indoor air quality, and enhanced occupant comfort. The implementation of sustainable building materials and practices is discussed, highlighting their potential to reduce the carbon footprint and operational costs of public buildings. Additionally, the review addresses socio-economic impacts, such as job creation in green construction and long-term cost savings for government facilities. By synthesizing existing research, the paper aims to provide an understanding of how green architecture can promote environmental sustainability, economic resilience, and improved public health in the savannah region of Nigeria.

Application Strategy of BIM Technology in the Forward Design of Bridges

Bridge engineering is highly specialized and has spatial characteristics, which puts forward higher requirements for design work. The advancement of information technology has provided ample tools to facilitate bridge design work, with building information modeling (BIM) technology being one of them. BIM technology ensures the efficiency and quality of the forward design of bridges, while also reducing construction costs. This article starts with defining the concept of BIM technology, followed by a discussion on its advantages in bridge design and application process, which serves as a reference for other bridge designers.

When rational functions meet virtual elements: the lightning virtual element method

We propose a lightning Virtual Element Method that eliminates the stabilisation term by actually computing the virtual component of the local VEM basis functions using a lightning approximation. In particular, the lightning VEM approximates the virtual part of the basis functions using rational functions with poles clustered exponentially close to the corners of each element of the polygonal tessellation. This results in two great advantages. First, the mathematical analysis of a priori error estimates is much easier and essentially identical to the one for any other non-conforming Galerkin discretisation. Second, the fact that the lightning VEM truly computes the basis functions allows the user to access the point-wise value of the numerical solution without needing any reconstruction techniques. The cost of the local construction of the VEM basis is the implementation price that one has to pay for the advantages of the lightning VEM method, but the embarrassingly parallelizable nature of this operation will ultimately result in a cost-efficient scheme almost comparable to standard VEM and FEM.

Performance-based assessment of the novel prefabricated CFST bridge pier by numerical approach

This study aims to profoundly investigate the seismic performance and application prospect of the typical continuous beam bridge with the novel prefabricated concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) piers, with advantages in simple on-site assembly, convenient transportation of prefabricated components, good seismic performance, and low construction cost. According to two prototype continuous beam bridges respectively equipped with low and tall typical reinforced concrete (RC) piers, 7 bridge cases with prefabricated CFST piers featuring various configurations of the tie beams are designed. Three-dimensional numerical models of these bridge cases are established and verified with the previous experimental studies, and numerical simulations of all the bridge cases are conducted to assess and compare the seismic responses and fragility curves. The results show that the bridges with prefabricated CFST piers exhibit a reduction in top pier transversal displacement and maximum curvature along the pier height, which are 43 % and 138 % lower than those of the prototype RC piers, respectively. Besides, the bridges with prefabricated CFST piers generally present lower probabilities of being damaged compared to those of the prototype bridges with RC piers.

Breaking the Sisyphean loop: reconceptualizing the treatment of risk and uncertainty in transport projects

Worldwide transport projects repeatedly exceed their budgets. This problem has received widespread attention over several decades, with little progress made to improve project cost performance. Consequently, this has led to the emergence of the following recurring question: How can public agencies responsible for delivering transport projects improve the estimation accuracy of their actual construction costs? We use the metaphor of the Sisyphean task to assist us in suggesting that the conflation of risk and uncertainty results in an inability to estimate actual construction costs accurately. Ambiguity aversion, an illusion of certainty, and the repeated occurrence of cost deviations, as demonstrated by our illustrative example and analysis of the elemental cost models of 39 transport projects, collectively create a Sisyphean loop that is impossible to break. Thus, we question the prevailing conceptualisation and treatment of risk and uncertainty used to estimate the actual construction costs of projects. We offer a new theoretical lens framed around ecologically rational heuristics and provide suggestions to reconceptualize and recalibrate the treatment and assessment of uncertainty in cost estimates. We hope this paper provides a much-needed circuit breaker to public agencies’ prevailing treatment of risk and uncertainty and stimulates new lines of inquiry to improve the cost performance of transport projects.

Reductive Immobilization of Hexavalent Chromium in Soil Using Hydrazine – Kinetics, Process Optimization, Sonochemical Enhancement, and Cost Estimation

ABSTRACT The presence of hexavalent chromium in soil poses a grave hazard to the environment and human health. This study explores the effectiveness, mechanism, and economic viability of remediation of Cr(VI)-contaminated soil by hydrazine. Soil-phase batch kinetic experiments were performed to examine the feasibility of reducing Cr(VI) while finding the effects of relevant process parameters, such as initial Cr(VI) concentration, hydrazine dosage, pH, soil-to-water ratio, and temperature. The materials were thoroughly characterized to gain insight into the mechanism. TCLP tests were done to affirm the immobilization stability. Complete Cr(VI) reduction was achieved within 3 h using a moderate 326% excess of hydrazine at neutral pH. Sonication of the soil mixed with hydrazine using a probe-type sonicator accelerated the reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III). Kinetic data could be adequately fitted in a second-order rate model, where the rate constant shows a linear dependency on the soil-to-water ratio. Additionally, the logarithmic rate constant demonstrates linearity within the pH range. The leaching toxicity of Cr(VI) and Crtotal complied with the USEPA regulatory limit and remained stable for 75 d. Hydrazine alone and its combination with ultrasound are sustainable and economically feasible for effective remediation of Cr(VI)-contaminated soil. The statistical analysis using RSM indicated a 99.4% reduction, aligning closely with the calculated optimized value. The optimal process conditions are easy to implement for field application at a competitive cost compared to other reductants. A simplified economic analysis was done to check the competitive acceptability of the technique, considering the construction cost of the remediation plant and its daily operational and maintenance expenses. The results show that the proposed technique will be a competitive one for field applications for the remediation of soil contaminated with Cr(VI). The data and kinetic rate equation will be useful for the process design of the remediation of soil contaminated with Cr(VI).

Construction Management by Controlling the Design and Curing Time of a Concrete Mix

Abstract The interval of time after pouring concrete is an important factor, which directly affects the timing and cost of construction. The case study that was investigated in this research, is a tunnel project located in Iran. Eighteen mix designs were prepared using properties such as different water-cement ratios and the use of two types of superplasticizer with different dosages. The optimal mix designs among the samples were separately specified. Concrete mix designs with different curing ages were made to specify the minimum curing time in which the concrete could gain the required compressive strength. Moreover, the concrete’s compressive strength was measured for different ages in order to determine the minimum time interval. For a better insight, two mathematical equations were derived to estimate the minimum curing time and time interval. Finally, a statistical analysis was conducted in order to determine the proper time intervals. Moreover, the analysis specified the impact rate of the research parameters (i.e. the type and dosage of superplasticizer, curing time, and water-cement ratio) on the compressive strength

Economic Perspectives on Renewable Energy in Offshore Oil and Gas Development: Integrating Multiple Functions Combination Degradation Maintenance Strategies

The development and utilization of renewable energy has become a research hotspot in recent years, and it has begun to be experimentally applied in the development of “ultra-deep water” oil and gas fields. This paper proposes an economic perspective of renewable energy in offshore oil and gas development, evaluating the economic feasibility of large, complex, and multi-equipment systems, as well as the grouping maintenance of the system with multiple types of reliability functions. Comprehensively considering the construction cost, maintenance cost and real-time electricity price cost, the reliability and maintenance cost are the objective function, and the real-time electricity price is the influencing factor. The operating costs of offshore oil and gas development over long distances and offshore wind energy are compared. The results show that grouping maintenance can greatly reduce the total cost. As an alternative energy solution, offshore wind can meet the demand for clean energy in the context of economic growth, although the total cost is higher than that of long-distance transmission.