Engineering Commons^™

Soft Trencher, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Excavation near existing electrical lines, gas lines and other underground utilities can be dangerous and time consuming. A self propelled trencher called the Soft Trencher developed by Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, Ohio uses supersonic air to loosen dirt which is then vacuumed up into a truck or piled into a windrow for later removal of backfill. The supersonic air used to break up the soil is harmless to underground utilities and cables. Unlike traditional excavation methods there is no downward force that can be exerted on the underground utilities.

Soundless Chemical Demolition Agents, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

The traditional approach to demolishing concrete structures or reducing the size of large rocks or boulders has typically included the use of explosives. The resulting explosions are associated with the obvious risks posed by shock waves and fly rock. Soundless chemical demolition agents (SCDAs) have proven to be viable substitutes for the use of explosives. SCDAs are powdery materials that will expand considerably when mixed with water.

Lumimark - Safety Traffic Marking System, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Masters Builders, Inc. developed Lumimark HW 100 White and Yellow, polymer-modified, cementitious safety traffic marking products. It's designed for use in edge and center line striping on concrete pavement for both mainline and secondary roads, and all striping needs on runways, taxiways and aprons at airports. This technology helped the department avoid a costly bridge replacement project by rehabilitating a steel truss bridge using lightweight composites.

Dynamic Construction Visualizer, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

The Dynamic Construction Visualizer (DCV) is general-purpose 3D visualization system that allows simulation model developers to animate modeled operations with chronological and spatial accuracy in 3D virtual space. The system is independent of any particular simulation-modeling program or CAD modeling software.

Modular Frp Composite Bridge Deck, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

The bridge infrastructure of the United States is in constant need of repair and rehabilitation. It is reported that 43% of the bridges in the USA have been identified as being structurally deficient or functionally obsolete due to corrosion. SuperdeckTM, a non-corrosive fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composite bridge deck. The Deck is designed and engineered into a lightweight, strong and rigid structure that will not corrode. The deck sections, composed of hexagon and double-trapezoid profiles, are bonded with a high-strength adhesive under controlled conditions in the manufacturing plant.

Superpave System, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

The Superpave is the acronym for 'SUperior PERforming Asphalt PAVEments' system. It was developed by Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP) to give highway engineers and contractors the tools they need to design asphalt pavements that will perform better under extremes of temperature and heavy traffic loads.

Recycled Plastic Composite Railroad Crossties, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL) led a team that developed, demonstrated, and patented innovative recycled plastic composite material for use as railroad crossties to replace chemically-treated wood ties. Replacement of turnout ties is a major cost item because of the size and complexity of these components. Since the mid-1990s CERL has conducted research on composite RR ties made of recycled post-consumer waste plastics. Because these plastic composite ties are inherently resistant to moisture damage, rot, and insect attack, they require no chemical treatments as do wood ties.

Smart Concrete, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Concrete has been widely used for many years as a composite material for various types of structures. One of the weakness of concrete is that it cannot withstand tension which can cause cracks easily. There has been a huge demand to monitor concrete structures cracking and preventing them from propagating further. Smart concrete was developed Dr. Deborah D.L. Chung from State University of New York at Buffalo. Smart concrete is reinforced by carbon fiber as much as 0.2% to 0.5% of volume to increase its sense ability to strain or stress while still has good mechanical properties.

Digital Hardhat System, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

The Digital Hardhat (DHH) is a pen-based personal computer (PC) running a Windows operating system, which is used to collect multimedia information such as text, sound, video, and images. This pen-based computer can also be used to communicate between the construction site and other locations using various connection methods including a wireless network connection, which enables a personnel to roam around the site and video teleconference live with others to solve problems collaboratively.

Bridge Lock-Up Device System, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

The Colebrand Lock-up Device (LUD) provides additional substructure strength to resist seismic forces as a structural shock transmission unit for highway bridges. This system can provide a temporary rigid link between bridge structural members under seismic, braking, or other fast-acting type loads, while permitting slow thermal movements.

Primecontract.Com, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

The PrimeContract.com network is based on a three-tier software architecture using JAVA in a UNIX environment. The network is designed to effortlessly accommodate large numbers of users in an extremely secure environment.

Prosidyc: Simulation Program For Construction Operations, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

PROSIDYC is a system for simulating construction operations jointly developed by the Planning and Methods Unit of Dragados y Construcciones, Madrid, Spain and the Division of Construction Engineering & Management at Purdue University. PROject SImulation Dragados Y Construcciones (PROSIDYC) is a computer based system for analyzing construction job site production processes. It is used to improve productivity in the field by studying resource utilization and cycle times and identifying opportunities for production improvement. PROSIDYC uses the CYCLic Operations NEtwork (CYCLONE) modeling format originally developed by Daniel W. Halpin

An Industrial Gas Turbine/Compressor Package Designed For Rapid Installation And Commissioning, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

A reduction in both the time and the cost of installation of medium-to-large industrial gas turbine mechanical drive packages can be achieved. Integration of the gas turbine driver, driven equipment, and ancillaries on two easily-assembled skids is made possible by the application of several technological developments, including aeroderivative gas turbine engines, dry gas compressor seals, compact plate-type heat exchangers, variable-speed AC motor drives, and microprocessor-based control systems which are certified for hazardous environments. By minimizing the need for interconnection of piping and wiring between multiple equipment and controls locations, site installation and commissioning time is drastically reduced. This can result …

Stroboscope, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

STROBOSCOPE is an acronym for STate and Resource Based Simulation of COnstructionProcEsses. It is a general-purpose simulation programming language that has been designed for the simulation of very complex construction processes that involve many different types of resources. STROBOSCOPE models are based on a network of interconnected modeling elements and on a series of programming statements that give the elements unique behavior and control the simulation.

Site Characterization And Analysis Penetrometer System (Scaps) : Assessing Site Cotamination, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

While a number of techniques exist for the remediation of contaminated soils, one of the largest problems is often the initial site assessment. It can be a difficult, expensive and time-consuming process to determine the exact extent of site contamination. The U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station (WES) under the sponsorship of the U.S. Army Environmental Center (AEC) initiated the development of the Site Characterization and Analysis Penetrometer System (SCAPS) Research, Development, and Technology Demonstration Program to provide the Department of Defense (DoD) with a rapid and cost-effective means to characterize soil conditions at DoD sites undergoing installation restoration (cleanup).

3d Laser Scanning & Modeling System, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Traditional methods of measuring and modeling the surface geometry of large, complex structures or sites that require engineering or survey-grade accuracy are often inaccurate, incomplete or expensive. Inaccurate or incomplete drawings and models often lead to costly construction errors or delays. A portable, auto-scanning laser and PC system that lets users economically obtain accurate, complete, and timely as-built geometry information for large structures and sites. The system can remotely measure natural surfaces up to 100m away at the speed of 800 points per second. With spacing between adjacent points as fine as 1mm, users can capture an extremely high level …

Real Time Positioning, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Construction operations involve location and positioning elements in the field. There are two primary components to the system; transmitters and receivers. The system allows multiple users to work at the same time once the system is set up. These users can include surveyors, craft people, and equipment operators each of whom is working concurrently and using the positioning system to capture accurate real-time position information about the work environment.

Extraction Of Contaminated Soil Using High Pressure Jet Grouting, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Removal of contaminated soil underneath existing structures causes settlement. There is a need for a remediation technology that eliminates this problem. The jet grouting by the triple rod system can be combined with an on site remediation technology (e.g., soil washing). Jet grouting was developed primarily for underpinning and/or excavation support. The benefits of this technology lie in the future reduction of structural settlement, and site access flexibility.

Bs News

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

Semantic 3d Cad And Its Applications In Construction Industry — An Outlook Of Construction Data Visualization, Zhigang Shen, Raja R. A. Issa, Linxia Gu

Department of Construction Engineering and Management: Faculty Publications

In response to the need of using electronic design data directly in construction management applications, many CAD developers have started implementing semantic data models in their CAD products using industry foundation classes (IFCs). While helpful, these semantic CAD applications have limitations when used in actual construction practices. The case studies in the thesis indicated that: 1) the semantics of the current data model (IFC as an example) is not rich enough to cover the richer details of the real trade practices; 2) the current implementation of the semantic data model lacks the mechanism to provide multiple trades views at various …

Computer-Aided Weld Inspection By Fuzzy Modeling With Selected Features, Sean Najm Ghazavi

LSU Master's Theses

This thesis develops a computer-aided weld inspection methodology based on fuzzy modeling with selected features. The proposed methodology employs several filter feature selection methods for selecting input variables and then builds fuzzy models with the selected features. Our fuzzy modeling method is based on a fuzzy c-means (FCM) variant for the generation of fuzzy terms sets. The implemented FCM variant differs from the original FCM method in two aspects: (1) the two end terms take the maximum and minimum domain values as their centers, and (2) all fuzzy terms are forced to be convex. The optimal number of terms and …

Increasing Effectiveness Of Public Private Partnerships In The Irish Construction Industry, Louis Gunnigan

Doctoral

By 2003 the first Irish Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects had reached the operational stage. Media reports were emerging of significant differences in the effectiveness of these projects.

This research set out to find a means by which effectiveness of PPPs could be increased and to develop a model that would assist PPP practitioners with this task in the future. Through a literature review, the Irish PPP process was mapped, the changes encountered in the introduction of PPP were investigated and a conceptual model – based on a traditional process model - was proposed. The model was tested by examining …

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

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 …

Citax: Defining Xml Standards For Data Exchange In The Construction Industry Supply Chain, Alan V. Hore, Roger West

Conference papers

The current methods of ordering, delivering and invoicing of products 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. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the Construction IT Alliance eXchange (CITAX) project and, in particular, to outline the work carried out-to-date by a special interest group within the project. They are seeking to define a universal set of eXtensible Mark-Up Language (XML) message standards that will allow suppliers and contractors to exchange information with each other in supply chain activity. …

Risk Identification, Classification And Response Methods In The Sudanese Construction Industry, Zena Alwan

Archived Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

An Analysis Of The Accounting Methods Used By Builders Producing Twenty-Five Or Fewer Homes Per Year, David Andrus

Theses and Dissertations

Accounting plays a crucial role in the success of any business, but it is particularly vital in the construction industry, a complex field that typically requires the coordination of multiple subcontractors and multiple jobs in any given year. Although small-volume home builders make up 70 percent of the membership of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), a trade association of the home building industry, little is known about the accounting practices of these builders. This thesis undertook to study the accounting practices of small-volume home builders. Small-volume home builders were defined as those producing 25 homes or fewer in …

Bs News

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

Computer Model To Select Leed Certification For Building Projects, Ruba Mirghani Mohammed

Masters Theses

According to the US Green Building Council (USGBC) residential and commercial buildings in the United State consume huge amounts of natural resources; pollute the environment, and generate large amounts of waste, all of which affect the environment, economy, public health, and productivity. As a result, USGBC committees developed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system to help professionals improve the quality of buildings and lessen their impact on the environment.

The (LEED) Green Building Rating System is a point-based system for certifying the level of a building's sustainability. There are four LEED certification categories: (1) Certified, (2) …

Simulation Based Evaluation Of Parking Facilities, Niru Tiwari

Masters Theses

Transportation facility has emerged as one of the main indicators of a national's prosperity at the advent of 21^st century and is the backbone of American commerce and industry. There are over 600 million motor vehicles that are driven in the world today and the number of cars in use is expected to be doubled in next 30 years. As the number increases, more parking spaces should also be provided; however, it is difficult to supply sufficient parking space due to space limitations. To meet the need, new types of parking and new parking technologies have been introduced. However, …