<p>The purpose of this study is to determine if Virtual Reality safety training is more effective at teaching fall protection safety than traditional methods of instruction. A literature review of previous research was conducted and a theoretical framework and methodology was developed to test the two groups for this study. The research design is a difference-in-differences method comparing the pre-test and post-test scores of the participants of each group. There will be other small pieces of analysis that will be done to further understand the results of the data collection. The data will be analyzed and interpreted to better understand how the research question was answered in comparison to previous work and the theoretical framework. Finally, other questions that arose during the process will be addressed and future areas for more research will be defined.</p>

<p dir="ltr">Circularity or circular economy (CE) offers an approach to creating a closed-loop system toward minimizing waste and maximizing resource efficiency. Such a solution is vital in construction as it is known for its substantial resource consumption and waste generation. Despite the growing adoption of this framework in the construction industry, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) lag behind their larger counterparts. This study examines the barriers to implementing circularity practices within SMEs in the United States (U.S.). Through a comprehensive investigation involving case studies comprised of company data and semi-structured interviews with industry professionals from three varying-sized construction firms, the research elucidates client preferences, financial constraints, supply chain fragmentation, and a prevalent skills gap as significant obstacles to the adoption of circularity in construction SMEs. Large enterprises with more resources exhibit a distinct set of challenges, particularly in aligning their established practices with the emerging paradigms of CE. Despite the hurdles, circularity's potential economic, environmental, and societal benefits motivate SMEs and large enterprises alike. The research contributes to the broader discourse on sustainable construction by identifying strategic, operational, and market-based factors stymieing CE adoption. It recommends financial incentives, regulatory support, and increased stakeholder collaboration to overcome identified barriers. The study also underscores the need for continued research to advance the understanding and practical application of circularity principles within the construction industry.</p>

<div> <p>The residential building sector is one of the most energy intensive sectors in today’s civilization. With population growth and a rise in number of homeowners the effect is bound to worsen. A wave of green and sustainable strategies is on the rise hoping to moderate some of the negative effect on the environment. From embracing renewable sources of energy as an alternative to fossil fuels, to improving existing home systems to become more efficient, the construction industry is evolving into becoming more energy conscious. One of the biggest obstacles to this wave is a lack of awareness and a fear of initial costs among contractors, homeowners and clients alike. This research will use Life Cycle Cost Analysis on a varying combination of residential energy systems and the researcher hopes to establish the trade-off between initial investment and long-term benefits. The case being considered is a residence located in Indiana, US. Using past and current utility bills and energy simulation data of different energy consuming systems in the residence over its lifetime, economic models are generated. This research establishes that a combination of passive and active energy conservation measures results in the lowest life cycle cost. The study will be beneficial for further research and as a framework for residential life cycle cost analysis.</p></div>

<p>Building Information Modeling, or BIM, is a process that is quickly changing the way Architectural, Engineering, and Construction companies manage construction projects. Being a company specific process, only parts of the process have been accepted as a standardized method across every company. Those components that are not standardized have become proprietary to each specific company. The goal of the research is to provide a rich and complete description of the use of BIM across multiple Architectural, Engineering and Construction (AEC) companies in order to inform and integrate BIM into construction graphics and management curricula in higher education. The literature review generated a thorough understanding of BIM standards currently identified. The methodology, a comparison of BIM theory to industrial practices, provided a broader picture of all aspects of BIM being utilized in current AEC companies. The results identified a comparison of all aspects of BIM to current AEC practices and paints a well-defined picture of what is being accomplished with BIM within company construction processes across AEC companies that are classified into several categories. BIM practices within each company indicate similarities and differences that give a rich BIM description across the entire AEC industry. The results suggest a high usage of BIM across more areas than just construction of the building branching out to all areas within a set of construction documents for project management. </p>

<p>The United States presents the appropriate conditions for a wider adoption of offsite construction (OSC): steady growth in the construction industry, high construction wages, shortage of labors, and demand for housing – especially multifamily housing. The multifamily housing market is overheated, but many design and construction companies are still struggling to stay strong in this market, marked by tight profit margins, high competitiveness and inefficiencies. OSC presents itself as a solution to help design and construction companies to become more efficient and resilient to potential market crises. However, the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry is hesitant to move to higher levels of OSC adoption, mainly because stakeholders, including owners, developers, designers, and construction companies, are not aware of the potential benefits resulting from OSC and are not prepared to promote the changes necessary for the successful adoption of OSC or for the engagement in modular construction, which would represent an important move towards industrialized construction. This study focused on how to implement strategic changes in design and construction companies, particularly small and medium-size enterprises, interested in successfully using OSC in multifamily housing projects, considering the need for more affordable and sustainable multifamily housing in the United States. Using mixed methods, the study involved five phases of data collection and data analysis and had the contribution of professionals from the AEC industry. Focusing only on the AEC industry of the United States, the researcher first identified the main factors affecting the use of OSC in multifamily projects, as well as the most important changes that design and construction companies need to adopt for the successful use of OSC in multifamily projects. The factors and the changes helped to structure and shape the scope of the principles, which were later consolidated and validated through research with professionals from design and construction companies. The final set of eight principles was divided into four topics: (1) strategy and business model, (2) people, organization, and culture, (3) technology, materials, and tools, and (4) processes and operations. In addition to helping to shape more efficient and resilient construction companies, the application of the proposed principles contributes to building more affordable and sustainable housing in the United States.</p>

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of certification on women-owned construction companies in the United States. The primary objectives were to determine if certification has impacted accessibility to public (government) and private construction work as well as the financial performance of women-owned construction firms. The secondary research objectives were to determine what challenges these firms have encountered during the certification process and their perception of it.

<p>Generally, the trade supervisors are seen swapping stories about how they have done things differently in their previous projects that had resulted in saving man-hours and resources. Since most of them are doing repetitive tasks for years, they rely mainly on their judgments and intuition while making decisions and have developed a plethora of knowledge throughout their experience. They often find it difficult to articulate the knowledge they have acquired most of which is tacit. There is a need to identify this tacit dimension of knowledge to harness it effectively as tacit knowledge is one of the factors determining the competitiveness of a construction firm. The skills shortage in the industry is further aggravated by the growing workforce. Employee retirements and knowledge loss are compelling the specialty contracting firms to capture this tacit knowledge to prepare the future workforce. This study posits an instrument to gauge the reliance of the field supervisors on tacit knowledge and identifies barriers to knowledge sharing through case studies involving electrical contracting firms. The findings of this research clearly show that the experience level of an individual is related to the reliance on tacit knowledge. Most of the experienced field supervisors rely on the tacit dimension of knowledge to perform the major day-to-day routine tasks at the construction site. The education level of an individual seems to have no significant relation with the acquisition and usage of tacit knowledge. Findings also suggest that the viewpoint of the management and the field team are disparate regarding the barriers to knowledge sharing. Management feels that lack of formal processes prevents the trade professionals from sharing their knowledge among themselves whereas according to the field team lack of socialization is identified as the key barrier. Similarly, managers' resistance to change is identified by management as the key barrier that prevents supervisors or managers from sharing their knowledge with the subordinates whereas, for the field team it is the lack of encouragement from the management. Moreover, according to management, lack of formal processes is the key barrier at the organizational level but for the field team, it’s the silo mentality of the managers. The organizations must incorporate the feedback from the field team into the decision making related to knowledge management (KM). The developed framework will benefit the trade contractors to identify on what type of knowledge the field supervisors are relying to perform a particular task and eventually categorizing knowledge into explicit and tacit.</p>

<p dir="ltr">Accurate traffic information plays a crucial role in developing appropriate pavement designs. However, the existing traffic design input module often falls short in accurately describing the real traffic conditions on Indiana highways. Furthermore, a range of issues related to vehicle classification, transit bus traffic characterization, semi-truck platooning, pavement friction assessment, and highway model representation have been identified. This study aims to improve the design, safety, and visual presentation of highways in Indiana. In the realm of design, real-world traffic data will be collected and processed, while a traffic database of urban buses will be established. Both an axle-based digital classification method and a model-based image classification method will be introduced to categorize unclassified vehicles. The updated vehicle class distributions and axle load distributions will serve as pivotal traffic inputs for pavement design. Regarding safety considerations, a model for two-semi-truck platooning will be developed to determine safe and optimal headways. Characteristics pertinent to semi-truck platoons will be outlined and discussed. Additionally, a series of laboratory and field tests will be conducted to assess the frictional properties and performance of aggregates and colored pavements, thereby refining roadway safety measures. In the realm of visual presentation, the Building Information Modeling (BIM) framework will be applied to convert, enrich, and extend a highway model. A BIM-centered repository will be created, amalgamating a wealth of information encompassing traffic specifics and project particulars into an integrated visual platform. Moreover, Open BIM processes will be implemented, streamlining the exchange of highway data and ensuring seamless compatibility of models. The results of this study can offer valuable insights to drive improvements in highway design, safety, and visual presentation throughout Indiana.</p>

Submitted by Simone Souza (simonecgsouza@hotmail.com) on 2017-10-13T15:40:55Z No. of bitstreams: 1 DISS_2014_Marcello Victor Monteiro Dondo.pdf: 1337135 bytes, checksum: 457996e9b77abfd8e0707f729e9c2baa (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Jordan (jordanbiblio@gmail.com) on 2017-11-07T11:32:21Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 DISS_2014_Marcello Victor Monteiro Dondo.pdf: 1337135 bytes, checksum: 457996e9b77abfd8e0707f729e9c2baa (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-11-07T11:32:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DISS_2014_Marcello Victor Monteiro Dondo.pdf: 1337135 bytes, checksum: 457996e9b77abfd8e0707f729e9c2baa (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-08-22 / Nos termos da Política Nacional de Resíduos Sólidos (Lei Nº 12.305 de 2010) e da Resolução do Conselho Nacional do Meio Ambiente Nº 307 de 2002, os resíduos da construção civil (RCC) são aqueles gerados nas construções, reformas, ampliações e reparos de obras de construção civil, incluídos os resultantes da preparação e escavação de terrenos para obras civis sendo de responsabilidade do gerador, transportador, receptor e beneficiador. O trabalho visa avaliar a gestão dos resíduos da construção civil nos municípios de Cuiabá e Várzea Grande, em termos quali-quantitativas, bem como apresentar recomendações para o aperfeiçoamento da gestão de resíduos, exequíveis às municipalidades mato-grossenses. De acordo com o objeto de estudo, para avaliar as nuanças da indústria da construção civil, no que tange aos resíduos da construção civil, elegeu-se as obras de engenharia civil, oriundas dos proponentes públicos e privados, localizadas dentro do perímetro urbano de Cuiabá e Várzea Grande, na modalidade novas construções em andamento, no período de junho de 2012 a junho de 2013, no setor da habitação. Para tanto, foram realizados estudos de caso com aplicação de questionários e levantamentos junto aos órgãos oficiais públicos e privados, canteiro de obras com utilização de estatística descritiva. Diante das obras investigadas e cálculos estatísticos, Cuiabá apresenta geração estimada de resíduos da construção civil de 1.085.500 Kg por dia, contra 609.500 Kg por dia em Várzea Grande. Já, as estimativas de geração de resíduos da construção civil, devido metodologia empregada, para novas construções em andamento, no setor da habitação, de grandes volumes, com áreas acima de 12.000 m², em Cuiabá e Várzea Grande, respectivamente, são 130.850 e 72.770 Kg por dia. / According to National Waste Solid Politic (Law Nº 12.305/2010) and Environmental Council Resolution Nº 307/2002, waste construction generated in buildings, renovations, extensions and repairs construction, including those resulting from the preparation and excavation belongs to generator, transporter, receiver and processor. The proposed is to evaluate the waste construction management works in Cuiabá and Várzea Grande, through qualitative and quantitative terms, as well offer recommendations for improving the waste management enforceable to Mato Grosso cities. According to the object, to evaluate the construction industry, about waste construction, was elected civil engineering construction, coming from public and private sector, located within the cities of Cuiabá and Várzea Grande, modality new ongoing constructions type, from June/2012 to June/2013, concern dwelling sector. Thus, it will be done: studies with questionnaires and surveys of qualitative and quantitative data with public and private official agencies, buildings and also using descriptive statistics. Through the constructions studied and statistics calculation, waste construction estimated in Cuiabá is 1.085.500 Kg daily, versus 609.500 Kg daily in Várzea Grande. Estimates of generating for new constructions in progress, of housing sector, with large volumes, more than 12.000 m², is 130.850 Kg and 72.770 Kg daily, respectively, according to the methodology use, in Cuiaba and Várzea Grande.

<p>In the field of the construction industry, the research work has been widely focused on identifying key performance indicators and critical success factors without assessing the impact of conflict environment factors. This study focusses on the impact of post-conflict environment factors on local construction organization performance. This research presents a performance prediction model comprising the effect of post-conflict environment factors on construction organization performance. The proposed framework of this study has four stages: identify key performance indicators (KPIs), identify post-conflict environment impacting factors, determine critical success factors (CSFs), and formulate success strategy to improve performance. Analytical hierarchy process (AHP) and multiple linear regression (MLR) techniques are applied to analyze the data.</p> <p>The study finding indicates that there is a significant relationship between the post-conflict condition impacting factors and local construction organization performance, which is insufficiently studied in previous research work. Thus, the developed framework will benefit academic scholars and industry practitioners to analyze and evaluate challenges and opportunities caused by different external environment conditions in the post-conflict construction industry. </p>