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Full-Text Articles in Engineering

Synergising Bim And Real-Time Data For Improved Efficiency: An Irish Case Study, Ahmed Hassan, Ankur Mitra, Alan Hore, Mark Mulville Jan 2023

Synergising Bim And Real-Time Data For Improved Efficiency: An Irish Case Study, Ahmed Hassan, Ankur Mitra, Alan Hore, Mark Mulville

Conference papers

The evolution of 3D visualisation and the Internet of Things (IoT) presents a substantial opportunity for integrating real-time data with Building Information Models (BIM) to improve its functionality and construction workflow efficiency. Integrating real-time data with BIM can enhance the digital representation of construction buildings’ physical and functional characteristics and provide recordable status of on-site operations. Nevertheless, the integration between Visualisation and IoT technologies with BIM remains in its preliminary stages and faces a myriad of technical and operational challenges. Furthermore, developing advanced solutions to facilitate this complex integration requires a considerable understanding of the viability and feasibility of merging …


Improving The Reliability Of Visual Inspections Conducted By Environmental Health And Safety Professionals, On A Hyperscale Data Centre Construction Site, Alex A. Schouten, Victor Hrymak Aug 2022

Improving The Reliability Of Visual Inspections Conducted By Environmental Health And Safety Professionals, On A Hyperscale Data Centre Construction Site, Alex A. Schouten, Victor Hrymak

Conference papers

The conduct of visual inspections on construction sites is of crucial importance for workplace safety. This is because visual inspection is the primary method by which construction site hazards are routinely observed, monitored and controlled. However, there is no consensus guidance as to how such visual inspections should be conducted. This is resulting in many observable hazards going unseen and therefore not being appropriately managed on construction sites worldwide. In an attempt to improve the reliability of visual inspection, this study presents results from an innovative method called systematic visual inspection which utilises an iterative set eye scan pattern during …


The Irish Construction Industry’S State Of Readiness For A Bim Mandate In 2020, Barry Mcauley, Alan V. Hore, Roger P. West Aug 2020

The Irish Construction Industry’S State Of Readiness For A Bim Mandate In 2020, Barry Mcauley, Alan V. Hore, Roger P. West

Conference papers

It was recently announced that a BIM mandate for the Irish public sector is not imminent, suggesting that the sector is not yet ready for what such a mandate implies. Following on from a forward-looking BIM Roadmap for Ireland in 2017 and the publication by the authors of a detailed BIM in Ireland study in 2017 and 2019, what is the actual state of readiness for a more general BIM mandate in Ireland? This paper will review recent publications, seminars and industry initiatives on this topic of interest supported by an online survey to assess the current state of readiness …


Competitive Strategies In Small And Medium Sized Enterprises (Sme's): A Cross- Case Analysis Of Irish Construction Professional Service Firms, Oluwasegun O. Seriki, Roisin Murphy Sep 2019

Competitive Strategies In Small And Medium Sized Enterprises (Sme's): A Cross- Case Analysis Of Irish Construction Professional Service Firms, Oluwasegun O. Seriki, Roisin Murphy

Conference papers

Strategy formulation aims to attain strategic fit between an organisation and its business environment in pursuit of competitive advantage. Although competitive strategy research is long established within industries such as manufacturing, financial services and IT, strategy within construction is still under-investigated by comparison. For construction professional service firms (CPSFs), the dearth of academic inquiry is even more apparent, partly due to the intangible nature of their service offerings, highly customised nature of their services and reliance on intellectual capital. The Irish construction sector is experiencing stable growth since following a prolonged recession, thus understanding the strategy process within professional service …


Mechanisms To Improve Employer Engagement In Apprenticeship In The Irish Construction Industry: A Mesolevel Analysis, Eoghan Ó Murchadha, Roisin Murphy Jan 2019

Mechanisms To Improve Employer Engagement In Apprenticeship In The Irish Construction Industry: A Mesolevel Analysis, Eoghan Ó Murchadha, Roisin Murphy

Conference papers

Apprentice training in Ireland remains within a state of flux. Although construction output is steady at present with the sector recording growth in excess of 60 percent over the last three years, there remains an alarming discordant issue of a lack of construction skills. In 2017, the largest representative body of construction related firms in Ireland, the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) endorsed a research study of their membership of more than 1,000 firms in an attempt to quantify the level of engagement in training. This study sought to identify the determinants of engagement and the constraints thereof. Findings from the …


Development Of A Cloud Solution For Smes In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Alan Redmond, Roger West Jan 2010

Development Of A Cloud Solution For Smes In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Alan Redmond, Roger West

Conference papers

There is a strong emerging trend within the Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector for replacing traditional packaged desktop applications with Web based, outsourced products and services. The drive for this innovative solution is its contribution to enabling software to be developed, delivered and consumed in discrete chunks (known as services) liberating the users from traditional computing and providing services accessible across a range of devices and appliances. The objective of this paper is to report on the progress towards defining this Web based service, commonly known as ‘Cloud computing’, for Small to Medium Size Enterprises (SMEs) in the Irish construction …


Finding A Middleware Ict Solution For The Irish Construction Sme Sector, Alan V. Hore, Alan Redmond, Roger West Jan 2010

Finding A Middleware Ict Solution For The Irish Construction Sme Sector, Alan V. Hore, Alan Redmond, Roger West

Conference papers

A key feature of the Irish construction industry is its fragmented structure. Some 16,000 businesses list their main activity as construction, yet no company has more than 3% of the total Irish output. The top 20 companies have less than 15% of total output. There is a very high number of Small to Medium Sized Enterprises (SME‟s) in the sector. However, most software products which address the specific needs of the construction industry are designed for larger companies. It is felt that the needs of the large number of SME‟s in the sector are underserved. The Construction IT Alliance (CITA) …


Building Support For Coud Computing In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan Redmond, Alan V. Hore, Roger West Jan 2010

Building Support For Coud Computing In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan Redmond, Alan V. Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

The construction industry has been traditionally recognised as a fragmented sector associated with a poor level of implementation and penetration of Information Communication Technology (ICT) by Small to Medium Size Enterprises (SMEs). Cloud computing is a collective term that can facilitate the ability to collaborate within a central repository that can act as a base for interoperability between various construction disciplines and their software applications. Cloud computing is a new layer of internet architecture that creates an open opportunity to add better functionality to an increasingly global network. The characteristics of cloud computing, such as, shared infrastructure, on-demand applications, elasticity …


Cloud Computing And Its Application In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West, Alan Redmond Jan 2010

Cloud Computing And Its Application In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West, Alan Redmond

Conference papers

The significance of Irish Small to Medium Size Enterprises (SMEs) being more effective and efficient with eBusiness solutions in the construction industry has never been more evident than in today’s global economy. Through the development of a strong and proactive network the Construction IT Alliance (CITA) hope to create a platform for implementing the use of eBusiness in the SME community. This network will provide SME companies with a direction on how to improve their efficiency and effectiveness through the use of technology. At present CITA has identified a potential business solution that would make construction software more accessible by …


Creating A Software Marketplace For The Sme Community In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West, Alan Redmond Jan 2009

Creating A Software Marketplace For The Sme Community In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West, Alan Redmond

Conference papers

The Construction Industry is a sector where Information Communication Technology (ICT) and e-Business are used to a lesser extent than in most other sectors. The high concentration of Small to Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) in the industry and the typical nature of the service provided, being an on-site and often highly customised service are generally identified as the reason for the low ICT uptake. The majority of Irish companies in the construction sector are SMEs. E-Business has provided the construction SME industry the opportunity to compete globally. The Construction IT Alliance (CITA) has identified a programme that can create a …


Creating A Digital Sme Community In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West, Alan Redmond Jan 2009

Creating A Digital Sme Community In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West, Alan Redmond

Conference papers

The Construction Industry is a sector where ICT and e-business are used to a lesser extent than in most other sectors. The high concentration of SMEs in the construction industry and the typical nature of the service provided in construction, being an on-site and often highly customised service are generally identi-fied as the reason for the low ICT uptake. The majority of Irish companies in the construction sector are SMEs. It is essential that Irish companies become more effective and efficient with eBusiness technologies in order to compete in the global economy. The Construction IT Alliance in Ireland has identified …


The Future Scenario Of Creating A Digital Sme Community In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West, Alan Redmond Jan 2009

The Future Scenario Of Creating A Digital Sme Community In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West, Alan Redmond

Conference papers

The problems associated with the Construction Industry not being able to manage and com-municate electronically product and project data between collaborating firms and within individual companies is compounded by the large number of small companies that have not adopted advanced Information Com-munication Technology (ICT). The typical nature of the service provided in construction, being an on-site and often highly customised service are generally identified as the reason for the low ICT uptake. The majority of Irish companies in the construction sector are Small to Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs). As eBusiness opens up the Irish economy to international competition Irish SMEs …


Implementing Ecommerce In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West Jan 2008

Implementing Ecommerce In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

The current methods of ordering, delivering and invoicing of materials in the construction in-dustry is enormously inefficient, with vast quantities of paperwork, duplication of effort, scanning, re-keying and resolving mismatches between invoices, delivery dockets and purchase orders. The objective of this pa-per is to set out the progress that is being made by the Construction IT Alliance (CITA) in Ireland to support the implementation of eCommerce in the Irish construction industry. The authors will present the result of a pilot project in 2006 which demonstrated that the technology necessary for implementing an electronic supply chain exists and could be deployed …


Proposal For A Construction Industry Digital Competency Centre For Ireland, Alan V. Hore Jan 2008

Proposal For A Construction Industry Digital Competency Centre For Ireland, Alan V. Hore

Conference papers

The Irish construction industry is facing a series of fundamental challenges that is affecting every player in the AEC lifecycle from architects to owners to tenants. Despite technology advances in recent years, the Irish construction industry lags behind other industries in respect to Information Communications Technology (ICT) investments. Despite a pressing need for innovation, procurement and tendering procedures in Ireland largely discourages new ideas and puts further pressure on wafer-thin margins that characterise the construction sector. This paper will reflect on the deliverables of the Construction Information Technology Alliance (CITA) in Ireland, which was formed in partnership between the Technological …


Citax: A Collaborative Ict Standards Model For The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West Jan 2008

Citax: A Collaborative Ict Standards Model For The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

The Irish construction industry is facing a series of fundamental challenges that is affecting every player in the AEC lifecycle, from architects to engineers to quantity surveyors to owners to tenants. Despite technological advances in recent years, the Irish construction industry lags behind other industries in respect to ICT investments. Although there is a pressing need for innovation, existing procurement and tendering procedures in Ireland largely discourage new ideas and put further pressure on thin margins that characterise the competitiveness of the construction sector. The low level of inter-company ICT connectivity reflects the general fragmented and adversarial nature of the …


Realising Electronic Tendering In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore Jan 2007

Realising Electronic Tendering In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore

Conference papers

No abstract provided.


Efficiency Gains To Be Won Through The Introduction Of Electronic Tendering In The Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West Jan 2007

Efficiency Gains To Be Won Through The Introduction Of Electronic Tendering In The Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

The tendering process predominantly adopted in the Irish construction industry is largely paper-dependent. However, the increase in the availability of high speed Information Communications Technology (ICT) has meant that construction consultants can disseminate this information more cost effectively in an electronic format. The aim of this paper is to present a status report on an industry-led network project currently being undertaken by the Construction Information Technology Alliance (CITA) in Ireland. This project aims to demonstrate how greater effectiveness and efficiency can be applied to the tendering process by the application of ICT already used widely in other industries. The status …


Realising Electronic Purchasing In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West Jan 2005

Realising Electronic Purchasing In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

The use of Information Communication Technologies (ICT) in construction purchasing has been sporadic and piecemeal. Very significant inefficiencies and problems still exist in both paper transactions and non-integrated electronic solutions. At the simplest level, the electronic transmission of business documents offers savings in paper and postage. By going a step further, businesses can make strides in communicating with their partners, at relatively low cost, through direct links between their computers. Existing ICT such as the Internet, Bar-Coding, Radio Frequency Tagging, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), Electronic catalogs and Enterprise Resource Planning Software (ERP) have facilitated electronic commerce (EC) functionality within many …


A Survey Of Electronic Purchasing Practice In Ireland: A Perspective For The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West Jan 2005

A Survey Of Electronic Purchasing Practice In Ireland: A Perspective For The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

There are many millions of trading documents (such as purchase orders, delivery notes and invoices) currently exchanged on paper in business to business (B2B) transactions, each having to be re-keyed as they pass between different locations and computer applications. Existing Information Communications Technologies (ICTs) such as the Internet, Bar-Coding, Radio Frequency Tagging, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), Electronic catalogs and Enterprise Resource Planning Software (ERP) have facilitated electronic commerce (EC) functionality within many business sectors. However, the adoption of such technologies in the Irish construction industry has been very slow with only limited evidence of their application. The results of a …


The Benefits Of Deploying It In The Material Procurement In Ready Mix Concrete In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West Jan 2005

The Benefits Of Deploying It In The Material Procurement In Ready Mix Concrete In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

The current methods of processing orders, deliveries and invoices of concrete products in the construction industry is enormously inefficient, with vast quantities of paperwork, duplication of effort, scanning, re-keying and resolving mismatches between purchase orders, delivery dockets and invoices. This paper sets out results of a survey which reveals attitudes to Information Communication Technologies (ICT) in supporting the purchasing process in construction. The drivers and barriers to ICT use in construction purchasing is discussed from both the contractor‟s and supplier‟s perspective. The paper goes on to describe the outcome of a pilot study in which the efficiencies are investigated arising …


Attitudes Towards Electronic Purchasing In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West Jan 2005

Attitudes Towards Electronic Purchasing In The Irish Construction Industry, Alan V. Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

It is well known that the adoption of information technology in materials procurement in the construction industry has been sporadic and piecemeal. Very significant inefficiencies and problems still exist in both paper transactions and non-integrated electronic solutions. There is a general lack of awareness and take-up of information communication technologies (ICT) within the Irish construction material purchasing supply chain. In order to verify this contention a methodology was adopted which involved the design and distribution of an on-line questionnaire to over 100 Irish construction companies. The survey was designed to ascertain the current level of technology take-up in business-to-business (B2B) …


Enabling The Re-Engineering Of Material Purchasing In The Construction Industry By The Effective Use Of Information Technology, Alan V. Hore, Roger West Jan 2004

Enabling The Re-Engineering Of Material Purchasing In The Construction Industry By The Effective Use Of Information Technology, Alan V. Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

The current methods of ordering, delivering and invoicing of materials in the construction industry is enormously inefficient, with vast quantities of paperwork, duplication of effort, scanning, re-keying and resolving mismatches between invoices, delivery dockets and purchase orders. This paper sets out the results of a successful 2005 pilot project which achieved a three-way electronic match of the purchase order, delivery note and supplier invoice information. The paper goes on to describe the opportunities and challenges of introducing such a system in the Irish construction industry


Rationalising The Construction Materials Purchasing Process, Alan V. Hore Jan 2004

Rationalising The Construction Materials Purchasing Process, Alan V. Hore

Conference papers

This paper is concerned with the process used in locating and removing inefficiency in the construction materials purchasing process. In the first part, a case study is presented showing the build-up of costs involved in purchasing materials. Potential for substantial savings is revealed. The second part of the paper gives a status report on a rationalisation pilot project currently being undertaken by the Construction Information Technology Alliance (CITA). This project aims to show how greater effectiveness and efficiency can be applied to the administration of the construction materials purchasing process by the application of information technology already used widely in …


Rationalising The Construction Materials Purchasing Process, Louis Gunnigan, Alan V. Hore, Trevor Orr Jan 2003

Rationalising The Construction Materials Purchasing Process, Louis Gunnigan, Alan V. Hore, Trevor Orr

Conference papers

This paper is concerned with the process used in locating and removing inefficiency in the construction materials purchasing process. In the first part, a case study is presented showing the build-up of costs involved in purchasing materials. Potential for substantial savings is revealed. The second part of the paper gives a status report on a rationalisation pilot project currently being undertaken by the Construction Information Technology Alliance (CITA). This project aims to show how greater effectiveness and efficiency can be applied to the administration of the construction materials purchasing process by the application of information technology already used widely in …


Rationalising The Construction Materials Purchasing Process, Louis Gunnigan, Alan V. Hore, Trevor Orr Jan 2003

Rationalising The Construction Materials Purchasing Process, Louis Gunnigan, Alan V. Hore, Trevor Orr

Conference papers

This paper is concerned with the process used in locating and removing inefficiency in the construction materials purchasing process. In the first part, a case study is presented showing the build-up of costs involved in purchasing materials. Potential for substantial savings is revealed. The second part of the paper gives a status report on a rationalisation pilot project currently being undertaken by the Construction Information Technology Alliance (CITA). This project aims to show how greater effectiveness and efficiency can be applied to the administration of the construction materials purchasing process by the application of information technology already used widely in …