Construction Engineering Commons^™

Higher-Order Effects In Biaxial Flexure Of Gfrp I-Section Beams, Zia Razzaq, Faridoon Z. Razzaq

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

A theoretical study of Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) beams subjected to biaxial bending moments is presented with a focus on the influence of higher-order effects on maximum normal stresses. It is shown that the biaxial bending type of loading causes a dramatic increase in the maximum normal stress for a GFRP beam when induced torsional effects are included. The study demonstrates that the traditional first-order theory can grossly underestimate the maximum normal stress in a GFRP beam. Based on the numerical results presented using a higher-order theory which also accounts for induced warping normal stresses, the maximum normal stress …

Building Services Engineering January/February 2023

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

A Review On Sustainable Disposal Of Plastic Waste By Integration In Construction Materials, Yara S. El-Metwally, Iman El-Mahallawi, Khaled M. Dewidar, Mostafa R. Refaat

Architectural Engineering

Over the last decades, plastic waste (PW) has increased exponentially and has become a serious threat to our planet, aquatic system and human health. Recycling or reusing PW in producing ecofriendly materials is an efficient solution to reduce plastic pollution and to minimize the depletion of raw materials as well. Previous studies have shown promising potentials of using PW in the construction sector, such as binder, aggregate, or substitute of cement and sand in concrete, brick or mortar. Laboratory results indicate that implementing plastic waste as aggregates in cement composites obtains higher thermal resistance and acoustical performance. However, a reduction …

An Updated Analytical Method For Predicting The Bracing Behavior Of Z-Purlin Supported Standing Seam Diaphragm Systems, Michael W. Seek

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

Roof systems utilizing Z-purlins as a secondary member supporting a standing seam panel system are used extensively by the metal building industry. The Z-purlins rely on the diaphragm action in the standing seam panel system to provide lateral support and transfer forces to anchorages. The behavior of the standing seam system is highly nonlinear making prediction of the interaction between the Z-purlin and the standing seam system difficult. To better understand the behavior of the interaction between the purlins and the panel system, a series of non-linear shell finite element models were developed based on the test results of simple …

Reduction Of Embodied Carbon In Buildings Through Use Of Low Carbon Strategies And Standardization And Enforcement Of Life Cycle Assessment, Bhargavi Sai Sudhakar

Master's Projects and Capstones

The building and construction industry is energy intensive and as of 2021, this industry is responsible for 37% of the total global greenhouse gas emissions. In previous studies of conventional buildings, the operational energy of a building contributed to 80% and the embodied energy contributed to 20% of the total life cycle energy. With increase in policies and standards that focus on reducing the operational energy, low energy and certified green buildings have emerged where the operational energy has considerably reduced. The relative and absolute share of embodied energy in these energy efficient buildings have increased due to excessive use …

Applying Unsupervised Machine Learning Clustering Techniques To Early Childcare Soundscapes, Kenton Hummel, Erica E. Ryherd, Iason Konstantzos, Abbie Raikes

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

Early childhood is a critical time period for language, brain, cognitive, and social/emotional development. Out-of-home childcare is a normative, typical experience for millions of young children. Although Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) in K-12 settings has received recent, significant attention, the links between IEQ and children’s learning and development in early childcare settings is a less understood topic. This work focuses specifically on the sound aspect of IEQ in early childcare settings to better understand typical noise levels and occupant experience. Standard approaches to analyzing background noise will be presented alongside more detailed statistical analyses utilizing unsupervised machine learning clustering techniques. …

A Business Plan For Construction Companies Entering Into Real Estate Development, Dylan Michael Barrett

Construction Management

The construction industry is one that has been lucrative yet difficult to navigate at times. Companies must continually adapt to potential changes in the market and shifting consumer demands while ensuring that their core business ideologies are not abandoned. For these reasons, many construction companies have found that being flexible in the work they do proves to give consistent results for their businesses. One way to change business models is to pursue real estate development. Its lucrative rewards prove a great additional revenue stream. This project aims to provide insight, via a business plan, as to how a construction company …

Likeliness To Recommend: A Mixed Methods Analysis Of Consumer Perception Of Homebuilders, Todd Usher

All Dissertations

Measures of consumers’ likeliness to recommend a business or company have been shown to relate to business performance. Less is known about how such scores might operate in the homebuilding industry. This study examines the factors influencing consumers’ perceptions of homebuilders, an area with little published research. Using a sequential mixed-methods approach, the study analyzes survey data from consumers (N = 366) who had new homes built within the preceding 12 months. Quantitative analyses of the data reveal several aspects of consumers’ likeliness to recommend a homebuilder. One finding of great interest is that consumers of the survey were more …

Building Services Engineering November/December 2022

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

Developing Mexican And Central American Spanish Phrases For U.S Construction Workforce To Improve Jobsite Communication, Alexis Saborio

All Theses

This paper gives an overview of a study conducted with US construction practitioners and Hispanic construction workers to develop Mexican and Central American construction Spanish phrases. Many companies face the challenge of a language barrier between the English construction supervisors and the Spanish-- speaking speaking Hispanic workers. This language gap is creating poor expectations among different sectors in the construction industry. Over the past several years as the number of Hispanic construction w orkers have increased in the United States so has the language barrier. The majority of the Hispanic construction workforce comes from Mexico and Central America. US construction …

Foreign Object Debris Detection For Airport Pavement Images Based On Self-Supervised Localization And Vision Transformer, Travis Munyer, Daniel Brinkman, Xin Zhong, Chenyu Huang, Iason Konstantzos

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

Supervised object detection methods provide subpar performance when applied to Foreign Object Debris (FOD) detection because FOD could be arbitrary objects according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) specification. Current supervised object detection algorithms require datasets that contain annotated examples of every to-be-detected object. While a large and expensive dataset could be developed to include common FOD examples, it is infeasible to collect all possible FOD examples in the dataset representation because of the openended nature of FOD. Limitations of the dataset could cause FOD detection systems driven by those supervised algorithms to miss certain FOD, which can become dangerous …

Robotics In Architecture <> Robotic Architecture: Why Can’T A Building Be As Smart As A Car?, Josh Vermillion

Creative Collaborations

The built environment is rich with opportunities for embedding and integrating digital technologies and sensors to create responsive and adaptable systems—to become smarter. This poster outlines selected moments from a thirteen-year body of work in research, design, and prototyping of responsive systems that act spatially with the environment at installation scale.

Robotics, sensing, physical computing, and digital fabrication are all topics that have been prioritized by U.S. funding programs such as the National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Education. This poster presents the start of a framework--based around the concept of tinkering--for introducing these systems …

Visualizing The Operative And Managing Complexity: Communicating The Design-Fabrication Feedback Loop With The International Tile Industry, Josh Vermillion

Creative Collaborations

School of Architecture faculty members Joshua Vermillion and Paul Morrison led a multi-disciplinary group of students from Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Theater in a design-build elective, sponsored entirely by companies in the tile and coverings industry. The key to these sorts of collaborations between industry and academe is to see the production, fabrication, and assembly process as something that can inform design, and as a result, the design can augment production by strategic design decision-making. This feedback loop, connecting both ends of the design-production continuum, can yield interesting design research questions. One such question arose repeatedly throughout this semester of …

Smart Technologies To Support Contractual Dispute Resolution In Construction Projects: Trends, Challenges And Application Reality In Ksa, Eisa Soliman Al Faify, Ahmed Omar M.S. Mostafa

Emirates Journal for Engineering Research

Coping with the goals of the Kingdom's Vision 2030, Saudi Arabian construction sector has witnessed a major qualitative leap in recent decades, and is considered one of the highest performer in the construction markets in the Middle East with a value of about $37 Billion. Despite the numerous efforts made by the project authorities in the Kingdom to support this sector to finalize construction projects in accordance with the approved scope, budget, and time schedule, and to avoid the causes of delay or stumbling, the reality of construction projects in The Kingdom shows that the rate of delayed and stumbled …

Skilled Labor Challenges And Automation In The Construction Industry, Olugbenro Ogunrinde, Rapheal Ojelabi, Opeyemi Oyeyipo

Mountain Plains Business Conference

The construction industry remains one of the most labor-intensive industries worldwide, creating an average gross domestic product (GDP) of 8% for the global economy and helping reduce unemployment. However, the last few years have brought a plague of skilled labor shortage and retirement, the most recent pandemic also playing a part in hastening retirement due to the present age cohort (baby boomers). Therefore, the need to begin to source viable alternatives to mitigate these issues that could be catastrophic is critical. One possible option is automation, but the industry remains lethargic toward innovation adoption and its use. Past and present …

The Professional Constructor, Full Issue, Volume 47, Number 02

The Professional Constructor

No abstract provided.

Zero Net Energy Test House, Timothy Hemsath, James D. Goedert, Avery Don Schwer, Yong Cho

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

This paper describes the first phase of a residential research program to reduce the impact of new construction on the environment through research and education using a Zero Net Energy Test House as a framework. Containing four bedrooms, three and a half baths, the 1,800 square foot house, 1,000 square foot basement, is located in Omaha, Nebraska. It is being used to validate several research projects and provides a platform for applications research of a number of technological advances. Laminated photovoltaic solar panels, a wind turbine, and an occupant monitoring energy control system are some of the sustainable design innovations …

Best Practices For Reducing Construction Accidents Involving Hispanic Construction Workers, Michael E. Asuquo, Khalid Siddiqi

The Professional Constructor

The objective of this study was to determine best practices for reducing accidents among Hispanic construction workers. It was hypothesized that language barrier between the Hispanics and American workers contributed immensely to high rate of construction accidents on industrial projects. Accident case studies and questionnaire survey were both used. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with Hispanic workers involved in industrial construction projects in Metro Atlanta. Findings from the study concluded that most accidents involving Hispanic workers were caused due to lack of communication from supervisors, ignorance of workers on work procedures, lack of equipment training, and worker negligence. Language …

Construction Management Internship: A Key Opportunity For Assessment And Continuous Curriculum Improvement, James S. Vaux, Bree Dority, Dana E. Vaux

The Professional Constructor

The internship is an integral part of most Construction Management curricula. Studies have noted the importance and reciprocal value of internships for the student, the employer, and the academic program. However, to date, no studies have specifically outlined the value internships provide to the CM program for assessment and evaluation. This paper examines the value of the CM internship as an indirect measure to assess and incorporate change into program curricula. With 10 years of qualitative and quantitative data collected from CM student interns, industry employers, and university internship supervisors, this study supports that CM internships are a valuable tool …

Building Services Engineering September/October 2022

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

Stick Built Vs. Precut Wall Framing For New Home Construction: A Comparison Of Framing Labor Hours, Waste Hauls, And Purchase Orders, Eric A. Holt, Mark Laliberte, Tristan Grant, Jordan Dentz

The Professional Constructor

Due to many trends in the construction industry (material cost increase, labor shortages, supply chain issues, pandemic, market demand outpacing supply), the homebuilding industry is looking for alternative ways to frame homes. In response to the National Housing Endowment (NHE) Request for Proposal, the researchers reviewed the literature on the housing market’s current state regarding the scale and scope of the skilled construction framers shortage and the current market share of single-family framing method; stick-built vs. precut framing packages. Working with industry partners, the team analyzed time studies for multiple new home builds. It was found that precut wall framing …

Total Cost Of Ownership Of Battery-Powered Vs. Hardwired Sensor Faucets In Commercial And Educational Construction Projects, Marie Patterson, Blake Wentz

The Professional Constructor

Owners who are pursing the construction of a new commercial building are becoming increasingly more interested in the sustainability, energy efficiency and life cycle costs of their proposed project. These owners are asking designers and construction companies to develop innovative strategies to lower their utility use and total cost in their projects. One area of opportunity to meet this owner need is the decision to use sensor lavatory faucets that are either battery-powered or hardwired.Several construction projects of various types and locations were analyzed to determine the total cost of ownership of both types of sensor faucets over a 12-year …

Critical Evaluation Of Time And Cost Of Terrestrial Laser Scanning For Construction Automated Qa Analysis, Joao Rocha, Davitt Lamon

Capstone Reports

Many governments agencies and private owners are demanding up-to-date information related to the current conditions of their facilities. Conventional QA is time-consuming and inefficient; thus, 3D terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) technology has been adopted due to the fast speed and high accuracy in acquiring data. Automated QA analysis can reduce the labour and time needed, reduce the costs, and improve the overall project efficiency. However, very few research efforts have been made to study the benefits of the automated QA analysis in a quantitative way. The process of the TLS-based geometric QA based in an automated data analysis process is …

Residents’ Satisfaction With Apartment Living In Kuwait: A Study Of The Design Of Jaber Al Ahmad Apartments, Fawzi Alzamil, Qutaiba E. Al-Shaheen

Emirates Journal for Engineering Research

This study examines public housing in Kuwait and Jaber Al Ahmad apartments housing project. It tries to figure out how housing provision, citizen expectations, and satisfaction are linked.

Kuwait's government provide housing for Kuwaiti married couples as part of a welfare program. This goal has proven difficult to achieve, with a waiting list of over 100,000 people. While the majority of applicants apply for a residential plot and a housing loan to build a single-family home, a small number of candidates apply for the apartment unit’s alternative.

The government's capacity to reduce housing demand hinges on its ability to persuade …

Corrosion Performance Of Embedded Steel Bar In Cl--Contaminated Limestone Calcined Clay Cement (Lc3) At Initial Stage Of Hydration, Weiwen Li, Zuhua Xu, Yaocheng Wang, Xin Wang, Feng Xing

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

Limestone Calcined Clay Cement (LC3) presents brilliant properties in binding Cl^- so that the embedded steel bars are probably protected in Cl^--contaminated condition, which meets the need of sea sand application. However, the corrosion performance of steel bars embedded in LC3 paste with Cl^‑ is unclear, especially in early age hydration. Thus, a series of experiments were carried out to evaluate the corrosion performance of steel bars on initial and hardened stages of hydration, including concentration of OH^- and Cl^- in real pore solution, open circuit potential (OCP) and chemical elements of steel bars. …

The Effect Of Initial Water Saturation On Freeze-Thaw Damage Of Submerged Mortar Materials, Siyuan Chen, Huigang Xiao

International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

An indispensable condition for the occurrence of the freeze-thaw (F-T) damage in unsaturated cement-based materials is that the specimens absorb water during the F-T process and reach a critical level of water saturation, which is influenced by the initial degree of water saturation (IDWS). However, the fast-freeze method commonly used in the laboratory does not reflect the effect of the IDWS on F-T damage. Thus, this study investigated the effect of different IDWS on the development of F-T damage in specimens to fill the gap in this research area. In this study, compressive strength tests were used to characterize the …

Building Services Engineering July/August 2022

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

“Top Trends And Challenges Of Digital Technologies To Enhance The Efficiency Of Building Thermal Insulation And The Reality Of Its Application In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia”, Abrar Nasser Hamdi, Ahmed Omar M.S. Mostafa

Emirates Journal for Engineering Research

تشكل التقنيات الرقمية إحدى أهم مظاهر التقدم الحضاري في القرن الحادي والعشرين والتي اثرت بشكل كبير علـى النتاج المعماري تصميماً وانشاءً سواء على مستوى تقنيات المواد، أو تقنيات التطبيقات الرقمية أو تقنيات الأجهزة الإلكترونية الرقمية التي تساعد في تحسين أداء المباني عموماً ورفع كفاءة أداء العزل الحراري على وجه الخصوص. وعلى الرغم من انتشار تطبيق تقنيات مواد البناء في العديد من المجالات التي ترتبط بالعزل الحراري الى جانب تطبيقها وقياس ادائها باستخدام بالتقنيات الرقمية في أغلب الدول المتقدمة، الا انها لم تصل الى المستوى المأمول في السوق المحلي بالمملكة وهو ما يمثل إشكالية البحث الرئيسية. ويهدف البحث إلى استكشاف أهم …

Center For Centering: Analysis Of A Modular Timber Dome, Lucas J. Brown

Architectural Engineering

Analysis of a modular timber dome with focus on inductive, sensory, social, and environmental aspects.

Shabang Music Festival Seating, Carter L. Norton

Construction Management

This outlines the process of the building and installation of four shaded seating areas at the SHABANG Music Festival located at Laguna Lake Park in San Luis Obispo. This paper places an emphasis on the pre-construction elements of the building stage. SHABANG Music Group rented out a section of Laguna Lake Park to host a music festival designed to bring the San Luis Obispo community together. The goal of the project discussed was to build a raised VIP seating area facing the main stage on which music lovers could relax while still being able to enjoy an unobstructed view of …