Engineering Commons^™

Project Risk Management In Malaysian Oil And Gas Industry: Implementation By Epc Local Contractor, Che Rosli Zaim Aiman

Student Works (2020-2029)

The megaproject in Downstream Sector of Oil and Gas Industry only achieve 50% success rate which warrants attention by researchers. The Owners and Contractors are not fully aware on the full range of project risks and only few have demonstrated the knowledge and expertise in managing risk effectively. The common understanding had by the EPC Contractor is they are having the full flexibility and freedom in performing execution work by maximizing profit while still complying towards client’s requirement as the contract price has been fixed during award stage. However, there is a hidden risk which seldomly being placed attention by …

The Study On The Use Of Project Success Framework Among Project Personnel, Suring Joshua

Student Works (2020-2029)

Projects, programs and portfolios are essential for human endeavors since time immemorial. However, project success rates in various sectors are dismal and not up to expectations. This research aims to investigate the use of a multilevel project success framework among project personnel in various sectors to identify essential success levels and criteria and determine any weaknesses and gaps for enhancing the framework. This is a qualitative study during which a conceptual framework was developed and tested with data gathered using a questionnaire survey with open-ended questions which was distributed to project personnel based on snowball sampling. A total of 52 …

Quantum Frontiers: To Boldly Go, Michael Dixon, Cali Christensen, Rachael Leisek

Space Dynamics Laboratory Publications

We have lift off!

Cali Christensen started her summer at Quantum Frontiers (QF) at an intern lunch. Seated around her were 20 other interns from universities all over the country who had been selected from a pool of over 900 applicants to participate in high-tech, space-related research endeavors pushing the boundaries of various fields such as engineering, mathematics, computer science, machine learning, and physics. Cali quickly realized after the first presentation that she may be one of the only non-engineer or scientists in the room. Her internship was different from any others that QF had yet sponsored. Instead of making …

Improving Client-Consultant-Contractor Communication In Construction Industry Through Whatsapp Application, Muhammad Hafizul Taib

Student Works (2020-2029)

A Smooth and effective communication is very important in construction industry to prevent iteration and rework which will cause money. Since there are a lot of parties involve in construction,it is important to have a good communication platform. In the current world, people are using the technology advancement to enhance the effectiveness of communication amongst people who work in construction industry. Though there are a lot of mobile application designed for construction purpose, WhatsApp is the most commonly used by all. However, there are no studies done to identify the effectiveness of it. This thesis will gather respond from client, …

Challenges In E-Tendering Implementation In Ministry Of Youth And Sports Malaysia, Azis Ahmad Zamie

Student Works (2020-2029)

The Ministry of Youth and Sport, like most ministries in Malaysia, tenders its projects through the traditional paper-based tendering process, which has many weaknesses, including bureaucracy and lack of transparency. In 2008, e-Tender was one of government incentive under e-Government application was introduced to replace manual tendering system in public agencies to systematic procurement which using internet as platform of transaction. Like any other transition project, implementation of e-tender in Ministry of Youth and Sport, is associated with several challenges. This research aims to explore the challenges facing the implementation of the e-tender system in the Ministry of Youth and …

Study On New Sampling Plans And Optimal Integration With Proactive Maintenance In Production Systems, Sinan Obaidat

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sampling plans are statistical process control (SPC) tools used mainly in production processes. They are employed to control processes by monitoring the quality of produced products and alerting for necessary adjustments or maintenance. Sampling is used when an undesirable change (shift) in a process is unobservable and needs time to discover. Basically, the shift occurs when an assignable cause affects the process. Wrong setups, defective raw materials, degraded components are examples of assignable causes. The assignable cause causes a variable (or attribute) quality characteristic to shift from the desired state to an undesired state.

The main concern of sampling is …

Blind Image Quality Assessment For Face Pose Problem, Cerine Tafran, Mohamad El-Abed, Ziad Osman, Islam Elkabani

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

No-Reference image quality assessment for face images is of high interest since it can be required for biometric systems such as biometric passport applications to increase system performance. This can be achieved by controlling the quality of biometric sample images during enrollment. This paper proposes a novel no-reference image quality assessment method that extracts several image features and uses data mining techniques for detecting the pose variation problem in facial images. Using subsets from three public 2D face databases PUT, ENSIB, and AR, the experimental results recorded a promising accuracy of 97.06% when using the RandomForest Classifier, which outperforms other …

Studies Of Smba2cu3o7-Δ / Znfe2o4 Superconducting Composites, Hadi Basma, Waleed Abdeen, Ayman El-Tahan, El-Maghraby El-Maghraby, Ahmed Khalaf

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

SmBa2Cu3O7-δ /(ZnFe2O4)x superconducting composites with 0.00 ≤ x ≤ 0.20 wt% were prepared by the usual solid-state reaction method. The prepared samples were investigated using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) at room temperature and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements in the temperature range (100-295 K). It is found that EPR spectra are dominated by an anisotropic Cu2+ EPR pattern. Moreover, the EPR spectral intensity increases as the temperature decrease from room temperature down to 100 K. The number of spins (N) participating in EPR resonance, the activation energy (Ea), the paramagnetic susceptibility (c) and the effective magnetic moment (µeff) are calculated …

Potential Male Contraceptive Effect Of Eriobotrya Japonica Leaves Extract, Alaa Al Moubarak, Manal El Joumaa, Jamilah Borjac

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Nowadays, the stability of population growth is becoming one of the common global social and health problems that could be solved via contraception. Current research in the field of male contraceptives is focusing on the use of oral herbs. Eriobotrya japonica (Loquat) is a medicinal plant that has been commonly valued for its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antidiabetic, hypocholesteremic, and antitumor properties. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of the oral administration of loquat aqueous leaves extract on the fertility of male Balb/c mice. For this aim, six-eight-weeks old male Balb/c mice (~25g) were orally administered (100 mg/Kg/day) loquat leaves …

Dielectric Properties Of Cu0.5tl0.5ba2ca2cu3o10-Δ Superconductor Added With Nano-Fe2o3, Aly Abou-Aly, Ibrahim Ibrahim, Nayera Mohammed, Mona Rekaby

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

A series of high-temperature superconducting samples of type Cu0.5Tl0.5Ba2Ca2Cu3O10-δ, (Cu0.5Tl0.5)-1223, added with nano-Fe2O3 (0.0- 1.0 wt. %) was prepared by a solid-state reaction technique via short time preparation procedure and under ambient pressure. The prepared samples were characterized using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) for phase analysis and microstructure examination. The volume fraction results indicated that nano-Fe2O3 addition was significant in enhancing the formation rate of the (Cu0.5Tl0.5)-1223 phase, especially for x ≤ 0.2 wt. % samples. The electrical resistivity of the prepared samples was measured by the conventional four-probe technique from …

Customer Churn Analysis Using Binary Logistic Regression Model, Mohammad Abiad, Sorin Ionescu

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

These days, the fundamental target of all organizations is to accomplish a reasonable gainfulness. Organizations are looking to decide the elements, which has direct impact on their benefit and attempt to investigate them so as to pick up favorable circumstances on their rivals. With this solid aggressive market, holding customers turns into the fundamental objective of telecom mobile service providers opposed to drawing in new customers, since the expense of holding a customer is viewed as low contrasted with the expense of pulling in another customer as referenced before by numerous researchers. Thus, Customer Churn Analytics is one of the …

Solvent Effects On The Electronic Absorption Spectra Of Some Analytical Indicators, Mamdouh S. Masoud, Rabah H.A. Mohamed, Hesham M. Kamel, Najat O. M. El-Ziani

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Electronic absorption spectra of selected ligands (Alloxan, Carmine, Naphthol Yellow S, Hematoxylin and Cyanine) were recorded in presence of different solvents (H2O, Ethyl acetate, Ethanol, DMF, Isopropyl alcohol, Amyl alcohol and Butanol) of variable physical properties. The electronic transitions were assigned. The data are analyzed based on the multiple linear regression technique explained from the views of different solvent parameters. Statistical analyses of the effect of solvents on the electronic spectra of the present ligands have been investigated.

Performance Of Concrete Containing Waste Plastic Straw Fibers, Jamal Khatib, Ali Jahami, Oussama Baalbaki, Adel Elkordi, Abed Bakri, Roba Alaina

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Using fibers in concrete applications has become a common practice. This is partly due to improvement in ductility and crack control of concrete. There will be an added advantage if these fibers come from a waste source as it would lead to reduction in environmental pollution and the need for landfill spaces. This paper forms the initial part of a wide range investigation on the use of waste plastic fibers in concrete applications. This study attempts to apply the concept of sustainability and reduces the environmental pollution by producing fibers from waste plastic straws and adding them to plain concrete …

Effect Of Partial Replacement Of Sand By Mswi-Ba On The Properties Of Mortar, Hassan Ghanem, Jamal Khatib, Adel Elkordi

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Disposal of municipal solid wastes (MSW) has recently become a major problem in Lebanon as finding appropriate landfill is becoming more challenging than ever. Incineration is a technique currently used to reduce the volume of MSW generated. The output of this treatment is a residue well known as Municipal Solid Waste Incineration bottom and fly ash. This study is focused on the mortar containing Municipal Solid Waste Incineration Bottom Ash (MSWI-BA) as partial replacement of sand. For this purpose, mortar specimens were prepared with 25, 50 and 100% (by weight) MSWI-BA to replace the sand. Specimens were cured in water …

Behavior Of Reinforced Concrete Beams Containing Lightweight Aggregate In The Tensile Zone, Jamal Khatib, Ali Jahami, Oussama Baalbaki, Adel Elkordi, Hakim Abdelgader

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

In reinforced concrete design, the concrete in the tensile zone is assumed to be ineffective and increase the dead load of the structural elements. In order to reduce the self-weight, this paper examines the structural behavior of reinforced concrete beams containing lightweight concrete in the tensile region and normal weight concrete in the rest of the beam. The lightweight concrete was made from waste polystyrene. Four reinforced concrete beams were prepared with different depth of lightweight concrete. The control beam B1 consists of normal concrete. In Beams B2, B3 and B4, the depth of lightweight concrete was 25%, 50% and …

Fuzzy Logic Velocity Optimization Of Autonomous Vehicles Based On Road Bump Geometry, Yassine Zein, Mohamad Darwiche

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

In today’s world of fast developing technologies, semi-autonomous vehicles are becoming a common sight and increasing in numbers. Some feature autopilot systems that drive the vehicle without any intervention from the driver in certain situations or warn the driver of dangers ahead. A fully autonomous vehicle is yet to come due to old fashioned road infrastructures that would convey challenging scenarios for it. From speed bumps and traffic lights to road lanes and warning signs, current autopilot systems will have to cope with all. A system that ensures safe crossing of speed bumps when in autopilot mode is discussed in …

Emergency Vehicles Allocation Model For Urban City, Ramzi Fayad, Hadi Abou Chakra

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

The Emergency Medical Service (EMS) plays a vital role in any community. The accessibility, distribution, and utilization of the emergency health care services have a great impact on the effectiveness and the efficiency of the EMS. In this study, an algorithm has been devised to optimize choosing the appropriate station location, allocating the right number of emergency vehicles to a station, and directing the critical and non-critical patients to the most suitable hospitals. XPRESS-MP solver engine was used in this study to derive a deterministic mathematical model using mixed integer linear programming. This model is customized for Beirut city. The …

Integrating Entrepreneurial Mindset In A Multidisciplinary Course On Engineering Design And Technical Communication, Kevin Dahm, Scott C. Streiner, Cheryl Bodnar, Kaitlin Mallouk, Bruce Oestreich, Ted Howell, Jennifer Tole

Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering Departmental Research

The engineering curriculum at XXXX University includes a sophomore level two-course sequence (required for engineering students in all disciplines) in which the primary learning outcomes are engineering design and technical communication. These courses are team-taught by faculty from Engineering and from Communications, specifically, Writing Arts in the fall and Public Speaking in the spring. Historically, the fall course has featured three major course deliverables: (1) a “research sequence” consisting of a rhetorical analysis, and annotated bibliography and a literature review, (2) a humanities assignment in which students explore the impact of technology on societal needs, and (3) laboratory and design …

Developing And Applying Knowledge And Skills In Ethics And Professional Morality: An Evidence-Based Practice Paper, Donald Winiecki, Lynn Catlin, Harold Ackler

Organizational Performance and Workplace Learning Faculty Publications and Presentations

Even without a focused interest in the topic, as we enter the third decade of the 21st Century one would have a difficult time ignoring the steady flow of stories reporting tragic consequences arising from engineering decisions that appear to have omitted ethical components, and of ethical dilemmas arising from contemporary engineering and computer science. Similarly, one would have to be willful to miss an equally steady drumbeat of calls for improved ethics in engineering and computer science education.

However, one can make the argument that simply offering new or more content related to ethics in engineering education is not …

Work In Progress: Students' Perception Of Collaborative Online International Learning, Philip Appiah-Kubi, Jennifer Nichwitz

Engineering Management and Systems Faculty Publications

Teaching and learning in the digital age harness the opportunities created by internet technologies to distribute and learn various information all over the world. This is commonly referred to as connectivism, and it values the impact of stakeholder information appraisal skills, virtual and personal communication skills [1], and the sense of cultural awareness. Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL), a type of connectivism, typically involves instructors and students from at least two geographically and culturally distinct areas who collaborate virtually on a common project for four or more weeks.

The objective is to create a culturally diverse virtual environment where students …

An Assessment Of The Decision-Making Units' Efficiency In Service Systems, Maoloud Yakhlif Dabab

Dissertations and Theses

Most tools and models of performance and quality of service management are generic and do not solve complex technical systems. The critical components of the system need such tools to assess their efficiency to make a better decision about them. One of the primary objectives in the service systems is to improve the ability of efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability of critical assets. One of the challenges with improving critical assets is the amount of major capital spending needed to upgrade a technology infrastructure with a high obsolescence rate. This along with usage and reliability issues, makes evaluating mobile cells to …

"Thinking Across Borders." 13th Annual Research Week: Event Proceedings, Office Of Research And Sponsored Projects Operations

Excellence Summit (Research Week) Archived Proceedings

Poster and podium presentations of research by students and faculty of University of the Incarnate Word.

Virginia Digital Shipbuilding Program (Vdsp): Building An Agile Modern Workforce To Improve Performance In The Shipbuilding And Ship Repair Industry, Joseph Peter Kosteczko, Katherine Smith, Jessica Johnson, Rafael Diaz

VMASC Publications

Industry 4.0 is the latest stage in the Industrial Revolution and is reflected in the digital transformation and use of emergent technologies including the Internet of Things, Big Data, Robotic automation of processes, 3D printing and additive manufacturing, drones and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the manufacturing industry. The implementation of these technologies in the Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Industry is currently in a nascent stage. Considering this, there is huge potential to increase cost savings, decrease production timelines, and drive down inefficiencies in Lifecyle management of ships. However, the implementation of these Industry 4.0 technologies is hindered by a noticeable …

The Effects Of Computer And Information Technology On Education, Iwasan D. Kejawa

School of Computing: Faculty Publications

In the society of ours, is it true really that computers and information technology have contributed immensely to the way we learn? After observing and reading various educational paraphernalia and scanning the environment research has shown that the educational systems have greatly been impacted by computers and information technology. With the growth of technology, the ways we learn have been improved tremendously. Innovative technologies have contributed to the innovation of learning in the education arena and outside. The traditional ways of conveying instructions to learners have been augmented with the use of computers information technologies. The educational system of our …

Flexibly Serving A Finite Number Of Heterogeneous Jobs In A Tandem System, Yun Fong Lim, Bingnan Lu, Rowan Wang, Wenjia Zhang

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Many manufacturing and service systems require a finite number of heterogeneous jobs to be processed by two stations in tandem. Each station serves at most one job at a time and there is a finite buffer between the two stations. We consider two flexible servers that are cross-trained to work at both stations. The duration for a server to finish a job at a station is exponentially distributed with a rate that depends on the server, the station, and the job. Our goal is to identify an efficient policy to dynamically assign the servers to the stations such that the …

Learning From Digital Failures? The Effectiveness Of Firms’ Divestiture And Management Turnover Responses To Data Breaches, Gui-Deng Say, Gurneeta Vasudeva

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

We examine whether firms learn from digital technology failures in the form of data breach events, based on the effectiveness of their failure responses. We argue that firms experiencing such technological failures interpret them broadly as organizational problems, and undertake unrelated divestitures and top management turnover to achieve better standardization and to remove dysfunctional routines. We test our hypotheses on unrelated subsidiary divestitures and chief technology officer (CTO) turnovers undertaken by 8,760 publicly traded U.S. firms that were at risk of experiencing data breaches in- volving the loss of personally identifiable information during the period 2005–2016. We find that data …

Antecedents Of Career Development Success: Insights Into 10 Years Of Research, Sara Karam Nassredine, Nasser Fathi Easa

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

This paper intends to review a flow of previous literature on the antecedents of career development success over ten years, from 2008 to 2018. A systematic literature review has been employed to extract the constitution of literature. A total of 41 relevant articles have been extracted from 16 different top ranked journals. Drawing on the literature, a conceptual model is provided as a clear depiction of what has been studied. Specifically, dependent, independents, mediators, and moderators variables are determined. The systematic literature review identifies six main themes; leadership, organizational and individual commitment, talent management, human resources management practices, career management …

Guidelines For Sustainable Construction Methods To Build Over Difficult Topographies, Israa R. Fadel, Marwan Halabi, Hiba Mohsen, Maged Youssef

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

Sustainable construction development is a recent term that is required to create an eco-friendly built environment using renewable and recyclable resources and to reduce energy consumption and waste within protecting the natural environment. This term means such an improvement that pleases the current requirements without limitation of the prospect of sustaining requirements in future. Many problems face builders while executing projects, especially these projects were decided to be built over difficult topographies, such as rivers, falls, inclinations, caves, ridges, cliffs, and mountains. Construction challenges to build a project over a difficult topography are diverse starting by executing piles, retaining walls, …

The Reflection Of Effective Interactive Graphic Design, George Nader Naguib Morcos

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

Graphic design has a rich history as a creative practice, which connects different design elements to build effective message. It combines typography and visual elements like Illustrations or photos to create a visual message, graphic design is considered as an important branch in the modern communication technology. Graphic design nowadays has becoming more advanced and moves from the static phase to the dynamic phase which includes unlimited technologies like virtual reality, 3D motion and interactivity, which becomes one of the important factors that affects the successes of the visual communication or the message that has to be sent via the …

Effect Of Different Visible Light Curing Systems On The Color Stability Of Resin Cements, Mohamed A. Ibrahim, Ehab A. Farghaly, Sherine B.Y. Badr

BAU Journal - Creative Sustainable Development

The present study aimed to compare the color stability of zirconia cemented veneers, using self-etch adhesive cement after curing with various systems and aging process. Materials and methods: A total of 27 veneers zirconia samples were cemented using resin cement on 27 labially prepared extracted anterior teeth to reach a flat surface, and classified into three groups according to the light curing units (LCU); Group I (Cured with Polywave Ivoclar Bluephase style LCU), Group II (Cured with Polywave Woodpecker iLED LCU), Group III (Cured with Monowave 3M Elipar LCU). Results: Monowave LCU exhibited significantly higher color changes than the polywave …