Residential Construction Sites Research Articles

Job Burnout of Civil Engineers at Residential Construction Site - A Brief Statistical Analysis

Job Burnout of Civil Engineers at Residential Construction Site - A Brief Statistical Analysis

Evaluating Demographic Profiles and Competency Levels of Local Builders in Residential Construction

Abstract This research has investigated and evaluated the demographic profile and competency levels of local builders involved in residential building construction sites at Nawalparasi East, Gandaki province, Nepal. The construction industry is a cornerstone of Nepal’s economic development. The reliability and quality of construction heavily depend on the local builder’s capability to execute the work on the basis of technical and skills proficiency. This study aims to ascertain the status of local builders regarding their competency levels and their construction work profiles on the basis of work experience. The research employs a questionnaire approach, combining quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques. A field survey is administered to local builders to evaluate their demographic profiles, technical skills and knowledge as well as their construction site experiences. The findings of this study reveal what local builders are good at and where they need to improve in residential construction. The results of this research are meant to help construction entrepreneurs, industry players, and local-level authorities come up with plans to boost the local builders and categories them as per their ability and strength. The outcome of the alternate hypothesis indicates that, concerning local builders, there is substantial evidence suggesting that at least one characteristic significantly varies from the others.

Development of Management Systems for Sustainable Municipal Waste Management Systems

Waste Management Systems. are designed to efficiently handle and process waste materials generated by human activities. These systems are crucial for minimizing environmental impacts, promoting sustainability, and protecting throughout its lifecycle, from its generation to its final disposal or recycling. Here is an overview of the key components and processes involved in waste management: Waste Generation: Waste can be generated from various sources, including residential areas, commercial establishments, industries, and construction sites. It encompasses solid waste (such as household waste and packaging materials), liquid waste (such as wastewater and sewage), and hazardous waste (such as chemicals and medical waste). Waste Collection: its source. This involves the placement of collection bins or containers at strategic locations, regular pick-up schedules, and specialized collection vehicles for different types of waste. Waste Segregation: After collection, waste is often sorted and segregated based on its type and characteristics. This helps in the efficient management of different waste streams, enabling appropriate treatment or disposal methods. Segregation can be done at the source (e.g., separating recyclables from non-recyclables) or at dedicated facilities. Future vehicular organizations are supposed to send more limited distances the car employer. Client-server methods revel in decrease execution regardless of standard abnormal network. Another one the worldview of shared content dispersion over the Web is arising with swarm conventions. The objective of Web amassing conventions is to lessen the heap on satisfied servers. Waste Treatment: Waste treatment involves various processes aimed at reducing the volume and toxicity of waste, as well as recovering valuable resources. Common treatment methods include composting, incineration, landfilling, and biological or chemical treatment of wastewater. Advanced technologies, such as anaerobic digestion and plasma gasification, are also used for waste conversion. Recycling and Resource Recovery: Recycling plays a crucial role in waste management systems. Materials like paper, plastics, glass, metals, and electronic waste can be recycled and sent to landfills or incinerators. Resource recovery also involves the extraction of energy from waste, such as through waste-to-energy (WTE) facilities. GWP Uppsala WMS,GWP Uppsala CS, GWP Alvdalen WMS, GWP Alvdalen CS, AP Uppsala WMS. IncAll, Inc90%, BioBus, RecPl. From the result it is seen that GWP Uppsala CSis got the first rank where as is the GWP Alvdalen CSis having the lowest rank. GWP Uppsala CSis ranked first and industrial building is ranked lowest.

Türkiye'de İnşaat İşçilerinin İş Sağlığı ve Güvenliği Konusunda Bilgi, Davranış ve Tutumlarının Değerlendirilmesi

This study was planned as a descriptive cross-sectional study to evaluate the knowledge, behavior, and attitudes of workers working in the construction industry about occupational health and safety. The research was conducted with 356 workers employed at randomly selected nine high-rise residential construction sites between January and July 2021 in Turkey. It was found that 36.3% of the workers wore seat belts while working at heights of seven meters and above. According to 98.4% of the workers, occupational safety meant "life safety". It was stated that the most important reasons for occupational accidents were carelessness at a rate of 66.3% and not taking safety measures at a rate of 33.7%. In addition, 61.8% of the workers thought that occupational health and safety training was necessary. It was determined that as the working experience of the workers increased, the workers found the occupational health and safety training given before starting work more useful (p<.0001). It was determined that the workers who experienced work accidents most were those with low education levels and less work experience.

Profiling of Aedes Mosquito Breeding Sites at Residential Construction Sites in Malaysia

Introduction: Poor waste management led to mosquito breeding grounds. Previous research found that construction sites are the mosquito breeding area thus it’s important to understand how construction sites affect mosquito breeding. Methods: This study utilized a prospective study to determine the characteristic of breeding preference in residential construction sites. On-field breeding preference survey was conduct in the selected project site in 12 weeks (1st October 2021 until 31st December 2021). Wet container inspection was carried out according to types of the residential construction building and progress of the site. All possible wet materials and containers was inspected and record accordingly in the form during the surveillance. Results: Result shows that the most preferred containers found was building floor (41.68%), others such as planter box that use for landscape purpose, drainage system, building mould and lift wells. The results of the research indicate that prospective containers with water and breeding sites at high rise construction sites were found to be more than those at low rise construction sites. Conclusion: Overall, substantially fewer water containers were discovered in low rise projects compared to high rise projects. Construction management need encourage all the workers to do best management practice such as proper waste disposal and removal of the water and possible wet container and conduct awareness among the workers.

Survey on solar photovoltaic (PV) technology utilization at residential area at Kampar, Perak

The tropical climate of Malaysia is conducive to the development of solar energy, yet the adoption of solar PV technology in the construction industry is relatively low. Thus, the purpose of this study is to identify the difficulties faced by home users when installing solar PV and to propose recommendations to encourage solar PV. This research was conducted on residential construction sites in Kampar. More than 100 questionnaires were administered physically and online but only 50 responded, which represents a 50% response rate. The respondents were selected purposively mainly among the clients, contractors, developers, and consultants. The data revealed that the major difficulties that the home users encountered in the installation of solar PV include lack of motivation and incentives, huge capital outlay, and inability to secure financial support for the solar PV. To install solar PV, the research found that there is a need to provide attractive loans and incentives, implement policy, educate the households, reduce fossil fuel subsidies, and others. Although this research has been carried out diligently, there are several limitations such as this research only focusing on residential construction projects, having a very small sample size, and this research only using one method for data collection.

PREDICTING CONSTRUCTION CREW PRODUCTIVITY FOR CONCRETE POURING OPERATIONS OF RC COLUMNS USING ANN

In current practice, construction crew productivity (CCP) assessment solely relies on traditional methods like personal judgements or past published data. However, a systematic approach is required to measure and predict the CCP. Modelling with artificial neural networks (ANNs) can be useful for examining interrelationships between factors affecting CCP. The present study aims to predict CCP for concrete pouring operation of reinforced concrete (RC) columns using ANN. To achieve this, 14 factors like crew size, average age of crew, average experience of crew, extent of supervision, working hours, lead distance, working height, location of columns, number of concrete bucket carriers, method of concrete supply, temperature, wind speed, column length, and column width were identified from literature study and industry experts. These identified factors were considered as inputs, while CCP was the output variable for ANN model. The study collected 187 samples from 11 residential and commercial construction sites located in four cities of India. A single-layer feed-forward back propagation neural network was used for prediction. The developed model can estimate productivity rates reasonably with least range of errors. Outcomes of study can be useful to improve the crew’s productivity at construction sites for concrete pouring works of RC columns.

Assessment of Technical Capacity and Performance of Local Builders in Residential Building Construction Sites

Abstract This research aims to investigate the technical capability and performance of local builders on residential building construction sites in Gaindakot Municipality, Nepal. The construction industry plays a vital role in the growth of economies worldwide. The quality of construction heavily depends on the technical capacity and performance of builders involved in residential projects. This study aims to assess local builders’ technical competence and performance operating on residential building construction sites. By examining the capabilities of local builders, this research contributes to enhancing the overall quality and efficiency of residential construction projects. The research employs a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques. A comprehensive survey is administered to local builders to evaluate their technical knowledge, skill sets, and utilisation of modern construction techniques. Concurrently, on-site observations and interviews are conducted to gain insights into the actual performance of builders during different construction phases. The findings of this study shed light on the strengths and weaknesses of local builders in residential construction. The on-site observations and interviews offer qualitative insights into the practical application of skills, compliance with safety protocols, and adherence to project timelines. The outcomes of this research are intended to guide policymakers, industry stakeholders, and training institutions in formulating strategies to enhance the technical capacity of local builders. Bridging the identified gaps can improve construction quality, reduce project delays, and increase customer satisfaction. Additionally, the study emphasizes the need for ongoing professional development programs to keep builders updated with the latest construction techniques and standards.

Perceptions of stakeholders about technical capacity and performance of local builders in residential building construction sites at Gaindakot Municipality, Nepal

Perceptions of stakeholders about technical capacity and performance of local builders in residential building construction sites at Gaindakot Municipality, Nepal

Use of BIM and visual data collected by UAS and 360° camera for construction progress monitoring

Despite progress monitoring is an essential practice for achieving the success of construction, traditional monitoring methods based on manual information gathered through visual inspections are error-prone, depending on the experience of those who carry them out. Furthermore, most studies of progress monitoring using digital technologies focus on activities carried out outdoors, limiting the application of these methods in residential construction sites, which have several indoor activities. This study proposes a method for outdoor and indoor visual monitoring of construction progress using Building Information Modeling (BIM), 360° camera, and photogrammetry aided by an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS). For this purpose, exploratory case studies were carried out. The first exploratory study aimed to understand data collection and processing operationalization using the proposed technologies. Then, these technologies were used and evaluated to monitor progress in a second exploratory case study, enabling the development of a proposed method for using visual data collected by UAS and 360° camera integrated to BIM for progress monitoring. The status of the external area of the construction site was represented by point clouds generated through images collected by UAS. For monitoring inside the buildings, a 360° camera attached to the safety helmet was used. The results include evaluating the use of a 360° camera to monitor the internal progress of works, presenting its strengths, limitations, and use recommendations. In addition, the results also include the proposal of a method for visual progress monitoring of indoor and outdoor activities using BIM, UAS, and 360° cameras.

Automation of the Choice of a Residential Building Construction Site on the Urban Development Plan

Automation of the Choice of a Residential Building Construction Site on the Urban Development Plan

Using oxygen/ozone nanobubbles for in situ oxidation of dissolved hydrogen sulfide at a residential tunnel-construction site

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a toxic gas, and considerable research has been conducted for its control and removal from industrial wastewater and sewage water. However, no simple and practical technology is available for degrading H2S in situ at tunnel constructing sites. On May 11, 2020, an H2S blowout accident occurred in underground soil at a residential sewer-tunnel construction site in Iwakuni City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan, filling the tunnel with high concentrations of H2S gas, causing the fatality of one worker owing to emphysema. River water flowing near the site was immediately introduced into the tunnel to trap the H2S gas, generating 652-m3 water that contained high concentrations (120 mg/L) of dissolved H2S in the tunnel. To safely and quickly remove H2S in situ, the contaminated water was treated with high-density oxygen and ozone nanobubbles (O2/O3-HDNBs) generated using the ultrafine pore method. Consequently, H2S was removed from the contaminated water in 3 days. This is the first successful application of O2/O3-HDNB technology for the in situ oxidation of H2S in environmental water at a construction site. This study reports the practical application of this advanced technology and the system performance.

JOB DESCRIPTION- RELATED DIFFERENCES IN WORK SAFETY PERCEPTIONS OF THE WORKERS IN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

ABSTRACT The construction sector is a challenging sector where many stakeholders have to work together to ensure occupational health and safety. Workers are the most important actors in ensuring a safe climate. Therefore, the workers’ perceptions of work safety are very substantial in a construction site. This study aims to investigate the work safety perceptions of the workers having different job descriptions in the construction industry. A questionnaire was applied to 130 workers in different job positions at a residential building construction site in Turkey. The workers’ perceptions were asked in four categories: construction work safety, coworkers’ safety attitude, occupational health and safety specialists’ safety attitude, and site manager’s safety attitude. For analysis, the relative importance index was calculated, and ANOVA analysis was used. The results showed that (1) the workers’ work safety perceptions were limited with their job description, (2) the cultural structure of the employees may prevent workers from being impartial in evaluating safety issues, (3) and considering different workgroups’ safety needs and ensuring participation in the safety issues are compulsory for safety managers. The findings of the study are expected to contribute to improvements in safety management practices of safety management actors.

Energy saving performance optimization and regional adaptability of prefabricated buildings with PCM in different climates

In recent years, prefabricated building is widely used in residential building and construction site. However, due to the high heat transfer performance of prefabricated building envelopment, the indoor thermal environment of prefabricated building is poor. The application of phase change material (PCM) of prefabricated building envelopment is an effective mean to improve the indoor thermal condition in building. In this paper, the thermal performance and energy consumption of prefabricated building with PCM were investigated by using EnergyPlus software in five different climatic regions. Results showed that PCM placed inside the building wall or roof is more energy-saving than outside; PCM placed on the east or west side building wall is better for energy saving and indoor air temperature improvement; cetane has the best energy-saving effect among the five kinds of PCM; thickness of PCM with optimal energy saving is 10 mm, 10 mm, 20 mm, 30 mm and 30 mm in the areas of severe cold, cold, mild, hot summer and cold winter, hot summer and warm winter, respectively. Conclusively, PCM can significantly improve the thermal and energy performance of prefabricated building in different regions, which promote the development of such buildings.

Image translation between high-resolution optical and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data

ABSTRACT This paper presents a novel study: remote-sensing image translation between high-resolution optical and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data through machine learning approaches. To this end, conditional Generative Adversarial Networks (cGANs) have been proposed with the guide of high-level image features. Efficiency of the proposed methods have been verified with different SAR parameters on three regions from the world: Toronto, Vancouver in Canada and Shanghai in China. The generated SAR and optical images have been evaluated by pixel-based image classification with detailed land cover types including: low and high-density residential area, industry area, construction site, golf course, water, forest, pasture and crops. Results showed that the translated image could effectively keep many land cover types with compatible classification accuracy to the ground truth data. In comparison with state-of-the-art image translation approaches, the proposed methods could improve the translation results under the criteria of common similarity indicators. This is one of first study on multi-source remote-sensing data translation by machine learning.

Can Be Applied for Bluetooth Low Energy to i-construction? : Characterization of BLE on Excavator

The Government of Japan has declared that construction sites must implement i-construction, in which information communication technology (ICT) is used to improve construction site productivity and throughput. Examples of i-construction include remote and automatic control systems for construction machinery, for which wireless communication is generally required; however, the wireless characteristics that must be considered in i-construction remain unclear. To clarify these characteristics, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon module is implemented for construction machines, and we investigate its communication characteristics. We focussed on two evaluations: characterisation of the BLE unit module and its feasibility in i-construction. Experimental results were used to characterise BLE communication in a residential area and construction site. In the latter, BLE beacon module communication was possible between a sender located in an excavator attachment and a receiver in its cabin.

Mapping of construction waste for eco-costs per value ratio (EVR) index using Google My Maps in Shah Alam, Malaysia

Construction waste is one of the major challenges faced in our world today. The residential, commercial and infrastructure industries in Malaysia are recognised as rapidly growing sectors that indirectly bring economic growth to our country. However, the generation of waste in the construction industry is increasing in proportion to the development of new construction. This increase has resulted in negative environmental impacts. To address these issues, the present study focused on the mapping of construction waste generation in low-rise residential construction sites in Shah Alam district, Selangor, using the Google My Maps application. Information on construction waste generation data such as coordinates, photos, types of materials, types of waste, quantity of waste, gross floor area, labour cost, material life-spans and eco-costing per value ratio (EVR) index for monitoring was gathered manually through case studies and site observations over 14 months—the contract period. The collected data was inserted into Google My Maps and AppSheet for the mapping process. The findings of this analysis were based on five selected sample sites in Shah Alam that were under construction from 2013 to 2017. The results identified a total of nine types of construction waste, i.e. rebar and BRC, concrete grade 25, timber formwork, bricks, plaster cement, tiles, drywall, metal deck roofing and ceiling. These types of waste accounted for varying values of the EVR index in the construction projects during the contract period. The system proposed by this study will help to monitor the total construction waste generated from the start of a project and will potentially result in the reduction of construction waste, thereby contributing to sustainable construction.

The Production of Gaseous Biofuels Using Biomass Waste from Construction Sites in Recife, Brazil

Due to climate change problems caused by greenhouse gas emissions generated by fossil fuels and from waste disposition, fuel alternatives for power generation are being extensively researched. Currently, in Brazil and in many countries, wood waste is disposed in landfills. However, due to lignin, one of the major constituents of biomass, which prevents wood waste from suffering microbial degradation, there is no significant mass degradation, even over decades, when landfilled. Hence, landfilling is not a solution to discard wood waste. Hence, one of the solutions to get rid of the great amount of wood waste is to use it as feedstock in waste-to-electricity (WTE) projects. WTE projects are in high demand in the world, as they can replace fossil fuels and they reduce two major environmental problems (greenhouse gas emissions due to the use of fossil fuels and the accumulation of waste in landfills), while generating biofuels and/or electricity. One of the residues that can be used in WTE projects is biomass residue from construction sites (CCbiowaste). CCbiowaste could be converted into gaseous biofuels through pyrolysis or gasification. These gaseous biofuels can be used in Otto engines connected to an electricity generator (gensets) to produce electricity and/or heat (cogeneration applications). Hence, the objective of this research was to characterize (physically, chemically, and energetically) civil construction biomass wastes (CCbiowaste), produced in a residential building construction site in Recife, Brazil, and to use these wastes in a bench-scale gasifier to produce gaseous biofuels at the temperatures of 700 °C, 800 °C, and 900 °C. The gaseous fuels were collected in the gasifier and analyzed in a gas chromatograph equipped with a thermal conductivity detector (TCD) to determine their composition and heating values. The lower heating value (LHV) results varied from 8.07 MJ∙m−3 to 10.74 MJ∙m−3 for 700 °C to 900 °C gasification temperature. These gaseous fuels were tested in an adapted Otto cycle engine connected to an electricity generator to prove the feasibility of this application. The highest total energy per ton of biomass was obtained for mixed wood and Pinus at 900 °C, with approximately 13 GJ∙ton−1. Hence, the use of CCbiowaste can become an option for the reuse of wasted wood instead of simply dumping in a landfill.

An empirical study on waste generation rates at different stages of construction projects in China

Estimation of construction waste generation is critical to construction waste management decisions. However, current construction waste estimation methods have various limitations (e.g. small samples). To address those limitations, this research conducts an empirical study to evaluate the waste generation rate of different types of waste at different construction stages. In this study, construction waste from 148 new-built residential construction sites in China were sorted and weighted on site and their waste generation rates were estimated separately. The results indicated that the amount of inorganic nonmetallic waste with a generation rate of 16.59 kg m-2 was the highest among the five types of waste (i.e. inorganic nonmetallic waste, organic waste, metallic waste, composite waste, hazardous waste), while the waste generation rate for the underground construction stage, which was 27.57 kg m-2, was the highest among the three stages (i.e. underground stage, superstructure stage, finishing stage). Compared with previous data, the new waste generation rate proposed in this research can better estimate the actual waste generation situation in construction sites, which provides reliable information for proper decision-making. Furthermore, based on the result of the empirical study, some recommendations for construction waste reduction are proposed.

Assessing the social cost of housing projects on the built environment: Analysis and monetization of the adverse impacts incurred on the neighbouring communities

Construction projects generate serious environmental adverse impacts on the adjacent residents. All those harmful consequences and damages that third parties or the community sustain due to the implementation of construction processes are called social costs. Although, the presence of social costs is widely mentioned in the literature, in the projects' initial cost estimation practices, the social costs are not estimated and included. Whereas since these costs are not compensated, problems can be emerged by the community. It is a truism that the majority of the models proposed to quantify the social costs have been concentrated on construction, repair, and maintenance of the infrastructure projects namely; utilities, roads, and highways. On the other hand, up to the present, a limited number of attempts has been made to quantify residential housing construction associated social costs. Thus, this research aims to expand and/or contribute to the existing body of knowledge via estimating how much social cost society surrounding residential housing construction sites are subjected to. For this purpose, a social cost estimation model is developed to assist industry professionals on how to estimate social costs in residential construction projects. The social cost estimation model is developed to provide guidance for phase by phase monetization of the residential construction associated social costs. In this paper, the model proposed for social cost estimation is validated via a case study in Turkey.