Building performance assessment must address questions of "who", "what" and "how" to assess, it can be summarized in a formula: Context + Mechanism = Outcome, the context includes two parts, type of building and performance subject. A typical research work will choose one type of building and one subject, and develop a tool for it and do some analysis on the outcome. The research works of this kind are abundant. But in terms of mechanism, they are actually much alike, of which the two most typical ones are Professional-only model and POE process. The absence of practice to enhance the users’ capacity to conduct building performance assessment triggers the author to introduce the concept of usability, with spirit of “getting closer to users”, and to propose a usability assessment framework to fill up this gap in research field. The exploration of usability assessment is divided into two parts: theoretical construction and practical implementation. In the first part, author will review relevant theories at roots (including at least community psychology, evaluation capacity building (ECB), process in use and equal opportunity theory) and general empowerment evaluation, to come up with a tentative usability assessment framework, of which the empowerment evaluation is the key element, which is initially defined by Fetterman (1994) as “the use of evaluation concepts and techniques to foster self-determination", it takes the “give someone a fish and you feed her for one day; teach her to fish, and she will feed herself for the rest of her life” concept. The second part of practical implementation is dealing with some aspects identified in the first part. Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) is chosen as the subject and School type buildings are selected, together they form the case study for new practice’s demonstration and development. In each case, participant observation will be employed for addressing issues of “giving empowerment evaluation” and “effective empowerment settings”. Survey will be used for addressing the aspect of “user interpretation of performance assessment”. It must be emphasized that theoretical construction is the crux of the study, the second implementation part will serve to address certain aspects identified in part one and help to refine the framework in addition to demonstrate it in reality. The results are analyzed and the lessons learned are discussed in chapter 6 and the tentative framework was refined correspondingly. This study breaks the routine of current typical researches only focus on results and pays attention to evaluation process as well. It tempers the ethos of the generalization from building performance assessment results by professionals with a fresh emphasis on specificity of each particular building through a generalizable mechanism by users so that the usability could be enhanced. The new roles for building professionals and users were created. This study constructs the theoretical foundation for further development, which would enrich or complement current practices in many aspects. / published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of Master of Science (Building) to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, School of Construction Economics and Management at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2017 / The construction industry in many countries is faced with challenges when it comes to construction project delivery and this may be due to various factors, which are identified in the research. (Memon, et al ,2010), categorized the challenges faced in the construction industry as; delays in completing projects on time, expenditure exceeding budgets as well as poor quality. The purpose of the research is to determine the impact of unrealistic initial construction programmes on time performance on projects. The research Investigates how project managers or project planner determine the initial construction periods. Investigate how the three industry participants i.e. the contractor, the consultants, and the client contribute to project delay due to unrealistic construction time periods. And further investigates what can be done to assist inexperienced consultants in determining construction time periods. This study addresses factors that affect project time performance, with the focus on the initial estimated contract duration. A mono method quantitative research was selected and used, to identify the factors that affect timely completion of projects. 33 out of 70 respondents responded to the questionnaire. Through the analyses of questionnaires, the research reports on how industry professionals use existing construction guidelines in determining the construction duration as well as the impact of programming on project performance. From numerical data obtained from the respondents, 43% believes that the client determines the construction duration, while 38% says it’s the consultant project manager and only 14% says it’s the contractor. The client, through his representative determines the construction duration. There are no regulated or standardized guidelines for determining the construction duration, this is dependent on the project managers experience. Though there are other factors that causes construction delays, and not specifically the initial programme, all these factors can be directly linked to this programme. / XL2018

Orientador: Flavio Augusto Picchi / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Faculdade de Engenharia Civil, Arquitetura e Urbanismo / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-14T21:59:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Fontanini_PatriciaStellaPucharelli_D.pdf: 5731223 bytes, checksum: b8bbe1ce87f60bc323a348b5bb95ff30 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009 / Resumo: O presente trabalho teve como objetivo principal avaliar o impacto potencial da aplicação dos princípios da mentalidade enxuta nas cadeias de suprimentos na construção civil. A estratégia de pesquisa adotada foi o estudo de caso, sendo realizados três estudos empíricos: dois estudos de caso preliminares realizados em cadeias de suprimentos de aço e argamassa industrializada, e um estudo de caso principal, realizado na cadeia de pisos cerâmicos, no qual também se aplicou outra estratégia de pesquisa: a simulação. Para a simulação, foram elaborados quatro modelos para a avaliação do desempenho da cadeia. Estas modelagens contemplaram indicadores definidos na revisão bibliográfica. Entre os resultados da pesquisa destacam-se (a) avaliação do desempenho da ferramenta Lean (kanban) em diversos pontos da cadeia, (b) criação de modelos sistemáticos e genéricos que possibilitem sua aplicação em outras cadeias de suprimentos e (c) avaliação do potencial de aplicação da ferramenta no contexto das cadeias de suprimentos do setor de construção civil, em função dos indicadores escolhidos. / Abstract: This research has as main objective to evaluate the potencial impact of the application of Lean principles in construction supply chain. The strategy adopted in this research was the case study, being carried through three empirical studies: two preliminary studies in supply chain of pre-cast elements and industrialized mortar, and a main case study in ceramic supply chain. Another research strategy was applied: the mathematical simulation. For this simulation, four models had been elaborated. These models used indicators defined in the literature revision. Some results of this research are: (a) evaluation of the performance of the Lean tool (kanban) in many points of supply chain, (b) creation of systematic and generic models to possible to be applied in other supply chain and (c) evaluation of the potential of application of the tool in the context of the construction supply chain. / Doutorado / Edificações / Doutor em Engenharia Civil

Orientador: Stelamaris Rolla Bertoli / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Civil, Arquitetura e Urbanismo / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-14T23:48:06Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Neto_MariadeFatimaFerreira_D.pdf: 2194109 bytes, checksum: 43db0d9e68378992559f3db31ef023b9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009 / Resumo: O desempenho de uma edificação envolve aspectos fundamentais, como conforto, segurança e durabilidade. Dentro desses aspectos, podem ser avaliados os confortos acústico e térmico, segurança contra incêndio e, resistência estrutural, aos agentes agressivos e à água. Muitas vezes é somente após a entrega do edifício que, ao item conforto, passa a ser dada maior atenção, principalmente, pelo usuário que sente que o conforto acústico recebeu pouca importância durante o projeto e execução da obra. A questão do conforto acústico em edificações pode não estar ligada somente ao valor do isolamento da partição entre ambientes. A percepção total, parcial ou nula da conversação da vizinhança adjacente proporciona níveis de conforto que vão do indesejável ao ideal. Essa percepção da palavra falada pode ser um indicativo do nível de conforto que o usuário anseia. Para avaliar o desempenho de paredes entre unidades habitacionais e o conforto proporcionado foram avaliadas partições em edifícios residenciais no Brasil e em Portugal. No Brasil, as paredes avaliadas eram compostas por blocos cerâmicos de vedação, com espessuras que variam de 115 mm a 140 mm, blocos de concreto de vedação, com espessuras que variam entre 90 a 140 mm e bloco estrutural de concreto, com espessura de 190 mm. Em Portugal foram avaliadas paredes simples e duplas compostas por tijolos cerâmicos com espessuras de 110 e 150 mm. A avaliação foi dividida em parte objetiva, onde é medido o desempenho em relação ao isolamento ao ruído aéreo em laboratório e em campo, a inteligibilidade da fala, além da audibilidade e, parte subjetiva, onde um júri responde sobre a percepção de sentenças faladas, de um ambiente para outro. Os valores obtidos das medições do desempenho em paredes foram comparados com critérios referentes a cada país de origem e também comparados com critérios dos demais países, a fim de verificar o quanto os critérios brasileiros e portugueses aproximam-se dos demais critérios. Dos valores de desempenho em campo, das paredes, e de parâmetros utilizados na avaliação da inteligibilidade da fala, obtém-se, como proposta, valores de nível de conforto para cada ambiente proporcionado pelas paredes em avaliação. Dos resultados obtidos verifica-se que tanto o Brasil quanto Portugal ainda precisam melhorar o desempenho acústico das edificações residenciais porém, o Brasil, de um modo especial, deve melhorar ainda mais a qualidade acústica de suas edificações a fim de proporcionar aos usuários os níveis desejáveis de conforto e privacidade, oriundos do desempenho das partições e dos ambientes ocupados. / Abstract: The performance of a building involves fundamental aspects such as structural strength, durability, fire safety, impermeability and corrosion. Also fundamental are user related aspects such as acoustic and thermal comfort. These can be designed, measured and evaluated. However, it is often only after occupation of the building that the comfort item is given any attention by the user, who begins to feel that acoustic comfort received very little thought during the design and construction of the building. The issue of acoustic comfort may be not linked to just the value of the insulation of the partition between rooms. The perception, total, partial or inexistent, of conversation in an adjacent dwelling also contributes to comfort levels which may range from unpleasant to ideal. This perception of speech can be an indicator of the comfort level that the user considers desirable. In this thesis, the acoustic performance of walls between housing units was measured and the corresponding degree of comfort evaluated for some residential buildings in Brazil and Portugal. In Brazil, the walls measured were composed of infill ceramic bricks, with thicknesses ranging from 115 mm to 140 mm, infill concrete blocks, with thicknesses ranging from 90 to 140 mm and structural concrete blocks with a thickness of 190 mm. In Portugal single and double walls composed of bricks with thicknesses of 110 and 150 mm were measured. The evaluation was divided into two parts: objective, where the airborne sound insulation in both laboratory and field tests, speech intelligibility and audibility were measured; and subjective, where a jury responded to questions on the perception of sentences spoken in an adjacent environment. The values of wall performance were confronted with the criteria for each country and were also compared with the criteria of other countries, in order to ascertain how the Brazilian and the Portuguese criteria compare internationally. A new parameter for evaluation of acoustic comfort level in a room is proposed. This incorporates the field performance figures of sound insulation and parameters of speech intelligibility. The results indicate that both Brazil and Portugal still have to improve the acoustic performance of residential buildings. Brazil, especially, has a considerable way to go to improve the acoustic quality of its residential buildings in order to provide users with appropriate comfort and privacy levels. / Doutorado / Arquitetura e Construção / Doutor em Engenharia Civil

Orientador: Stelamaris Rolla Bertoli / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Civil, Arquitetura e Urbanismo / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-27T02:02:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Mojolla_Roberto_M.pdf: 4732831 bytes, checksum: e5a198764e38a4eea41b14c8e3fbcaa0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / Resumo: Uma das queixas mais frequentes entre moradores de edifícios residenciais é o incomôdo causado por ruídos de impactos nos sistemas piso-teto decorrentes do caminhar ou quedas de objetos. Segundo as normas nacionais e internacionais, avaliar o desempenho acústico destes sistemas depende do uso de equipamentos normalizados e certificados. Para atender aos métodos de avaliação do desempenho acústico sugerido pelas normas, é necessário importar grande parte dos equipamentos recomendados, causando transtornos de diversas ordens. A avaliação da isolação acústica de pisos submetidos a impactos depende do uso de uma fonte de impacto padronizado (Standard Tapping Machine). Este é o equipamento padronizado para excitação de pisos na avaliação do nível de pressão sonora de impactos. A norma NBR 15575-3 (2013) indica a utilização do método de medição e avaliação do desempenho acústico de pisos com relação ao ruído de impactos proposto pela ISO 140-7 (1998) e ISO 717-2 (2013). No anexo A da norma ISO 140-7 (1998) são descritas as características e funções que a máquina de impacto padronizado deve cumprir. Esta pesquisa teve como objetivo construir e qualificar para uso uma fonte sonora de impacto padronizado. Para construção da fonte, observando as indicações do Anexo A da norma ISO 140-7 (1998), as partes que compõem o equipamento foram desenhadas, confeccionadas e montadas. Para qualificar o protótipo da fonte foram realizadas medidas em campo do nível de pressão sonora de impacto em sistemas piso-teto compartilhado em edifícios, conforme recomendado pela norma NBR 15575-3 (2013), empregando uma máquina de impactos comercial e repetindo o procedimento com o protótipo construído. A comparação dos níveis de pressão sonora de impacto padronizado, obtidos em função de frequências, validou numericamente a utilização do protótipo nas medições em campo realizadas. Estas medições quantificaram e qualificaram o isolamento sonoro oferecido pelos sistemas piso-teto ensaiados com relação ao ruído de impacto. Foram incorporadas inovações ao protótipo por meio da adoção de rolamentos lineares como guias para queda dos martelos e a inserção de peças resilientes sobre os contados de elevação dos martelos, reduzindo a emissão de ruído aéreo de funcionamento / Abstract: One of the most frequent complaints among inhabitants of residential buildings is the annoyance caused by noise impacts in the floor-ceiling systems resulting from walking or falling objects. According to national and international standards, assess the acoustic performance of these systems depends on the use of standardized and certified equipment. To meet the methods of assessing the acoustic performance suggested by the standards it is necessary to import most of the recommended equipment, causing disturbances of several orders. Assessment of acoustic insulation flooring subjected to impacts depends on use of a standardized source of impacts (Standard Tapping Machine). This is the standard equipment for floors excitation in the evaluation of sound pressure level impacts. The NBR 15575-3 (2013) indicates the use of the method of measurement and evaluation of acoustic performance levels with respect to noise impacts proposed by the ISO 140-7 (1998) and ISO 717-2 (2013). In Annex A of ISO 140-7 (1998) the features and functions are described that the machine must meet standardized impacts. This research aimed to construct and qualify to use a sound source of standardized impacts. For construction of the source, checking the indications in Annex A of ISO 140-7 (1998), the component parts of the equipment are designed, made and assembled. To qualify the prototype of the source were carried out measures in the field of sound pressure level of impact in floor-ceiling shared systems in buildings, as recommended by the standard 15575-3 (2013), using a commercial impact machine and repeating the procedure with the prototype built. Comparison of sound pressure levels of standardized impacts, obtained as a function of frequency, numerically validated the use of the prototype in measurements performed in the field. These measurements quantify and qualify the sound insulation provided by floor-ceiling systems tested with respect to the impact of noise. Innovations were incorporated into the prototype through the adoption of linear bearings as guides for the fall of the hammers and the inclusion of resilient pieces on the numbered elevation of hammers, reducing the emission of airborne noise operation / Mestrado / Arquitetura, Tecnologia e Cidade / Mestre em Arquitetura, Tecnologia e Cidade

The Best PhD Thesis in the Faculties of Architecture, Arts, Business & Economics, Education, Law and Social Sciences (University of Hong Kong), Li Ka Shing Prize, 2005-2006. / published_or_final_version / abstract / Real Estate and Construction / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

This Engineering Doctorate aims to understand the factors that generate variability in small power consumption in commercial office buildings in order to generate more representative, building specific estimates of energy consumption. Current energy modelling practices in England are heavily focussed on simplified calculations for compliance with Building Regulations, which exclude numerous sources of energy use such as small power. When considered, estimates of small power consumption are often based on historic benchmarks, which fail to capture the significant variability of this end-use, as well as the dynamic nature of office environments. Six interrelated studies are presented in this thesis resulting in three contributions to existing theory and practice. The first contribution consists of new monitored data of energy consumption and power demand profiles for individual small power equipment in use in contemporary office buildings. These were used to inform a critical review of existing benchmarks widely used by designers in the UK. In addition, monthly and annual small power consumption data for different tenants occupying similar buildings demonstrated variations of up to 73%. The second contribution consists of a cross-disciplinary investigation into the factors influencing small power consumption. A study based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour demonstrated that perceived behavioural control may account for 17% of the variation in electricity use by different tenants. A subsequent monitoring study at the equipment level identified that user attitudes and actions may have a greater impact on variations in energy consumption than job requirements or computer specification alone. The third contribution consists of two predictive models for estimating small power demand and energy consumption in office buildings. Outputs from both models were validated and demonstrated a good correlation between predictions and monitored data. This research also led to the development and publication of industry guidance on how to stimate operational energy use at the design stage.

The façade retrofit market faces some key barriers: the selection of performance criteria and the reliability of the performance data. On the demand side, the problem is approached from an investment perspective which creates "split incentives" between the stakeholders who pay for the investment and those who benefit from it. On the supply side, there is an inherent complexity in modeling these options because of the incomplete knowledge of the physical and cost parameters involved in the performance evaluation. The thermal comfort of the building occupant is an important component of the retrofit performance assessment. This research attempts to fill a gap in the approach to façade retrofit decision by 1) quantifying uncertainties in these three dimensions of performance, 2) incorporating new financing models available in the retrofit market, 3) considering the target and risk attitude of the decision maker. The methodology proposed in this research integrates key indicators for delivery process, environmental performance, and investment performance. The purpose is to provide a methodological framework for performance evaluation. A residential case study is conducted to test the proposed framework. Three retrofit scenarios including the financing structure are examined. Each façade retrofit scenario is then evaluated based on the level of confidence to meet or exceed a specific target improvement for the Net Present Value and the risk to fall below a minimum improvement threshold. The case study results confirm that risk must be considered for more reliable façade retrofit decision-making. Research findings point to further research needed to expand the understanding of the interdependencies among uncertain parameters.

M.Tech. (Construction Management) / Sophiatown residence is one of the newly built residential accommodations in University of Johannesburg. The residence is currently the biggest residence in University of Johannesburg in terms of rooms and is a residential accommodation for only students of University of Johannesburg. The residence is a three storey building and has 416 room all single rooms and 416 students occupying it. This research work is post occupancy evaluation of an education building in Johannesburg. The study evaluates the building performance; the extent to which the students are satisfied with the indoor environmental quality and investigates the extent to which the University of Johannesburg newly constructed residence is satisfactory to its occupants (students). It also evaluates the indoor environmental quality elements that affect the student’s health and common illness that affect the student’s performance. The methodology used for this study was quantitative. A structured questionnaire with multiple choices, scaled, matrix-type and open ended question was used to conduct the interview and obtain data during the survey. Findings from the survey revealed that the building is not performing as intended because the occupants needed improvements in some area in the residence like; quality of natural light in there room, size of the study hall, quality of space provided in there study hall and others. The students were satisfied with the building although they need improvements in the study hall, toilet and bathroom, kitchen and TV room, internet services and others. However, students need little improvement in the quality of artificial light in their room, quality of natural light in their room, size of their study hall, and others. They also needed improvements in the size of their room, temperature in their room, noise level in the study hall (ability to have conversation without neighbors overhearing it), and others. Lastly, it was revealed that Fatigue (tiredness) is the most commonly experience illness while nausea is most frequently illness had and also affect the students’ performance. Based on the findings from the study, it is recommended that the institution evaluates the IEQ at specific intervals to ensure that occupants are happy at all times and also to empower the executive managers in such a way that they are able to choose the correct materials during the design stage to promote good indoor air quality. It is important that the managers attend workshops (trainings) so that they have a better understanding of good indoor air quality that will keep occupants satisfied with the performance of the building.