Civil and Environmental Engineering Commons^™

Methods To Expedite And Streamline Utility Relocations For Road Projects, Roy Sturgill, Timothy R.B. Taylor, Seyedmahdi Ghorashinezhad, Jiwen Zhang

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Executive Summary This report describes best practices and tools to streamline and expedite utility relocations when they are required as part of road construction projects. As part of this effort, a research team from the Kentucky Transportation Center (KTC) conducted extensive qualitative research that involved mapping current practices at the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) and reviewing utility manuals from KYTC and other state transportation agencies. The KTC research team also conducted in-depth interviews with KYTC engineers and staff as well as representatives from utility companies (UCs). Based on the data from these investigations, KTC developed a number of recommendations to …

Instrumentation To Monitor Bridge Foundation On The Crosstown Project, Brian Welch

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

The Crosstown Bridge Monitoring Project is located at the intersection of Highway 62 and Interstate I35W a few miles south and west of downtown Minneapolis. The bridge being evaluated is at a railroad overpass located midway along the Crosstown expansion. This research project involved placing instrumentation on the bridge foundation in order to measure the change in the foundation loading during the course of the construction project. For several years there have been questions pertaining to the forces in the pile foundations that support highway embankments. This project placed strain gages on the pile foundations in order to monitor these …

Guidelines For Construction Companies To Decide Between Outsourcing And Self-Performing For Prefabricated Components, Sebastian Soto Ortiz

Open Access Theses

Prefabrication and modularization has been used in the construction industry for decades. It has recently made a resurgence worldwide providing increased productivity, safety, quality and construction schedule. This research has focused on the situation where a construction company has decided to use prefabrication and faces two possibilities, they either will self-perform or they will outsource the construction of the prefabricated components. The decision making process used by a construction company to determine whether to outsource or self-perform prefabricated components is examined and analyzed.

Prefabrication is an industrial process in which certain components are manufactured in a specialized facility. These items …

Employment Opportunities And Skills Requirements For Construction And Property Surveying 2014 - 2018, Roisin Murphy, Stephen Walsh

Reports

In Autumn 2012, a number of Society members expressed their increasing struggle to find qualified graduate surveyors to fill vacancies in their practices. At the same time, members working in academic institutions reported a severe reduction in the number of students enrolling on surveying courses at third level.

Transition Zone Design Final Report, Nikiforos Stamatiadis, Adam J. Kirk, Andrea Cull, Austin Dahlem

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The purpose of this report is to document the activities of the research effort and present the findings of the work accomplished. Transition zone is the area in which it is communicated to drivers that the roadway environment is changing (i.e., from rural to built-up) and that their speed should change as well. This study evaluated treatments that could advise drivers to this. Based on the study findings, it is recommended to add additional speed warning sites to such transition zones.

Developing Guidelines For Including Mobility-Based Performance Specifications In Highway Construction Contracts, Shawn J. Larson

Theses and Dissertations

Construction zones can greatly affect the traffic flow on roadways, especially when lane closures are required. Traditionally, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) has used traffic management specifications that only allow lane closures and road work to be done during predetermined hours or specifications that require a certain number of lanes to be open at all times. Recently, mobility-based work-zone traffic flow maintenance has been considered. This method requires continuous monitoring of mobility-based performance data and a mechanism to send alerts to the contractors when the mobility data does not meet the standards set by the specifications. UDOT recently tested …

A Case Study Of Zero Energy Home Built For Solar Decathlon Competition 2013, Sanjib Mulepati

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Energy consumption in residential homes has been a subject of research related to sustainability. Reduction in the consumption of energy is a goal of sustainable construction. The Department of Energy (DOE) started a Solar Decathlon competition in 2002 in which the students from different universities around the globe build an energy efficient and affordable home suitable for their climate and location. The main goal of this competition is to select the best home that is designed and built in a sustainable way. In this study, the home designed and constructed for participation in the competition by the students at University …

Tools For Applying Constructability Concepts To Project Development (Design), Nikiforos Stamatiadis, Paul Goodrum, Emily Shocklee, Roy Sturgill, Chen Wang

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The purpose of this report is to document the activities of Phases I and II of the research effort and present the findings of the work accomplished. Phase I developed the Constructability Review Database for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and Phase II conducted a benefit analysis of the constructability review process. The database provides the basis for entry and collection of constructability reviews and allows for the identification of trends leading to potential improvements of the process. The database can be used to summarize activities, generate reports for a project, and be capable of quantifying the benefits from the process. …

Civil Engineering And Construction News, Georgia Southern University

Civil Engineering & Construction: News & Publications (2011-2022)

• Dr. Mike Jackson to Chair New Department of Civil Engineering and Construction Management (CECM)

Effects Of Hinged Dowel System On The Performance Of Concrete Pavement Joints, Alireza Zeinali, Kamyar C. Mahboub, Herbert F. Southgate

Civil Engineering Faculty Publications

Concrete joint failure is a major distress mode in rigid pavements. Improving the joint performance in concrete pavements could yield substantial savings in terms of reduced maintenance and rehabilitation costs. The newly developed Hinged Dowel System (HDS) is a means for transferring loads across the concrete pavement joints. The HDS was patented as a new invention by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and it is envisioned that it could significantly reduce the potential for joint failure in concrete pavements. The HDS assembly comprises a number of dowel bars and a collective hinge provided at the mid-length of the …

Developing A Model To Enhance Labor Productivity Using Bridge Construction Benchmark Data, Seonghoon Kim, Yong Bai

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

The Labor Working Status Monitoring (LWSM) Model that incorporates the WRITE and the industry benchmark data was developed through the five steps to enhance labor productivity in bridge construction operations. The first step of the development process was to conduct a literature review, followed by the second step which was to develop the WRITE. During the development, the authors identified the necessary hardware and software for the WRITE and outlined a schematic to show the connection of major hardware components. The third step was to develop the LWSM Model for monitoring the on-site construction labor working status by comparing data …

Developing Seismic Performance Factors For Prefabricated Bamboo Walls In Comparison To Conventional Timber Shear Walls, David Steenson, Davin Chan

Civil, Environmental and Sustainable Engineering Senior Theses

In order to address the issue of rising demand in resources from providing a growing population with housing, a team of professors and undergraduate students worked to study bamboo's possible utility as a structural element. This team proposed the use of bamboo as a substitute for timber in conventional light frame construction, specifically in the form of bamboo shear walls, which resist lateral loads such as those applied by earthquakes and winds. In order to demonstrate the adequacy of these proposed bamboo walls as a substitute to the control softwood walls, the team used the document FEMA P-795 to develop …

Analysis And Interpretation Of The 2013 Wku Steel Bridge Competition, Dylan H. Ward

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This research centers on building a working steel bridge that can hold over 2500 pounds, while deflecting no more than 1.5 inches. Weighing less than 150 pounds, the bridge was designed by inputting models into programs such as SAP and Visual Analysis, and adding the required load effects. Creating such a bridge involves various disciplines such as fabrication, communication, engineering, computer science, and economics. This presentation will address the design procedure, the building process, and the challenges faced by the team. This experience has allowed the bridge team to see what it takes to finish a project from start to …

Control Charts As A Productivity Improvement Tool In Construction, Jospeh Hubert Ault

Purdue Polytechnic Masters Theses

This study examined the use of individuals control charts to facilitate the productivity improvement of repetitive construction processes. Cycles times for excavation, forming, and reinforcing processes were observed using stratified random sampling during the construction of six residential home foundations. The cycle time information was plotted on control charts followed by an intervention, with the applicable crew members and management, to analyze the charts and propose solutions to any problems identified. Following the intervention, more samples were collected for comparison to the baseline observations collected before the intervention. The mean cycle times were compared before and after the interventions using …

Cyber-Adaptive Physical Systems For Automated Construction Progress Monitoring And Asset Tracking, Syed Hammad Rasheed

Masters Theses

Despite the benefits of building information models as a means of communication, collaboration and integration in construction projects, their use is often limited to the design and tendering/bidding stage. Potential of building information models lies in its implementation during construction, operations and maintenance phases of a facility’s lifecycle. Tight Integration of building information model and physical facility by means of computational resources is required to achieve this potential such that changes in one environment are automatically reflected in the other. This is termed a cyber-adaptive physical systems approach. This research investigates the applicability of a cyber-adaptive physical systems approach in …

Bringing To Life The World’S Tallest Structure, Jonathan Weigand

Pursuit - The Journal of Undergraduate Research at The University of Tennessee

Intended as the centerpiece of constructional developments in Dubai, the Burj Khalifa now stands as the tallest building ever constructed. The uniquely designed foundation consists of a concrete raft supported by a cast-in-place pile system protected by waterproofing membrane to inhibit corrosion. The structural design integrates high-performance reinforced concrete and steel and incorporates an engineered “Y” shape that limits the lateral wind pressure on the building. Engineers applied the latest advancements in high-rise technology to develop an optimized construction plan that consisted of segmented tasks that promoted the staff to work at a quick yet manageable pace. This article details …

Tools For Applying Constructability Concepts To Project Development (Design), Nikiforos Stamatiadis, Paul Goodrum, Emily Shocklee, Chen Wang

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The purpose of this report is to document the activities of Phase I of the research effort and present the development of the Constructability Review Database developed for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. The database provides the basis for entry and collection of constructability reviews and allows for the identification of trends leading to potential improvements of the process. The database can be used to summarize activities, generate reports for a project, and be capable of quantifying the benefits from the process.

Implementation, Design, And Cost Analysis Of A Concrete Washout System, Omar Adina

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

With the increase of environmental pollution in today’s world, many strategies and regulations are being enforced. These enforcements come from the state and federal governments, but public awareness is often overlooked. Stormwater regulations here in California have dramatically changed over the last decade, as the topic is investigated more often.

This senior project encompassed the design prototype and cost analysis of a permanent concrete washout station for the BioResource and Agricultural Engineering Department at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. The design parameters given were to construct a steel bin for the excess concrete to be dumped into during …

Analysis Of Uncontrolled Concrete Bridge Parapet Cracking, Jeffrey D. Bazzo

ETD Archive

The Ohio Transportation has recently identified the problem of wide-spread premature cracking of concrete bridge parapets throughout its District 12 region (Northeast Ohio). Many of the bridge decks that contain these prematurely cracked parapets are of relatively recent construction. In severe cases, replacement of the parapet may be required before replacement of the bridge deck itself. This incurs a sunk cost upon the bridge owner, as the parapets will again be replaced during the regularly scheduled replacement of the bridge deck. In a recent instance, the replacement of a cracked parapet (without replacing the deck) cost District 12 approximately $140,000. …

2:1 The Paper Tube Project, Noel Brady

Articles

Review of applied technological solution to rapid building techniques using paper tube and analogous materials to create space enclosing geodesic systems.

Construction And Demolition Debris Recovery And Recycling In Orange County, Fl, Michael Stephen Toth Ii

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In 2008, the State of Florida established a recycling goal of 75% to be achieved by 2020. In response to the Florida goal Orange County (OC), Florida has made the development and implementation of an efficient strategy for landfill diversion of its solid waste a top priority. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) estimated that 23 % of municipal solid waste was generated by construction and demolition (C&D) activities in 2009, with only 30 percent of C&D debris being recycled. Therefore, OC decided to create a solid waste integrated resource plan (SWIRP) initially focused on the recovery and recycling …

A Framework For Process Data Collection, Analysis, And Visualization In Construction Projects, Reza Akhavian

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Automated data collection, simulation and visualization can substantially enhance the process of designing, analysis, planning, and control of many engineering processes. In particular, managing processes that are dynamic in nature can significantly benefit from such techniques. Construction projects are good examples of such processes where a variety of equipment and resources constantly interact inside an evolving environment. Management of such settings requires a platform capable of providing decision-makers with updated information about the status of project entities and assisting site personnel making critical decisions under uncertainty. To this end, the current practice of using historical data or expert judgments as …

Safety Issues Among Hispanic Construction Workers Along The Wasatch Front In Utah, Phavel Israel Loayza Chahuayo

Theses and Dissertations

During the last few decades immigration by foreigners seeking work in the construction industry in the United States has increased dramatically. Of those seeking jobs in construction, Hispanics represent the largest and fastest growing population. The proportion of reportable accidents among Hispanic on-site construction workers in the United States is higher than that of non-Hispanics. This trend of on-site construction accidents is evident not only in states that have traditionally high populations of Hispanics, such as New York, Florida, California, Arizona, and Texas, it is also manifested in the State of Utah. This research focused on causes of accidents among …

Combined Heat, Air Moisture And Pollutant Simulations (Champs) For Buildings, Jianshun Zhang, Menghao Qin

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering - All Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Improved Bridge Expansion Joints, Sudhir Palle, Theodore Hopwood Ii, Bobby W. Meade

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) has both open and closed bridge expansion joints and associated details that are problematic. Several state highway agencies (SHA) have joints that they believe are superior performers to other types and have prepared guidance documents for their use. A literature search indicated that several previous research studies, including national surveys, addressing SHA joint practices have been conducted over the past 10 years. For up-to-date information, a new set of surveys were developed and distributed to all the SHAs by email through the AASHTO Subcommittee on Maintenance-Bridge Technical Working Group chairman in June 2010. There were …

Fate And Transport Of Escherichia Coli Within Sediment Basins On Active Construction Sites, Elizabeth Tempel

All Theses

The conventional method of controlling sediment-laden runoff on construction sites is the use of sediment basins. These basins slow the velocity of runoff and allow the particles to settle from the water column before discharge to surface waters offsite. This best management practice, however, may create a reservoir for pathogenic bacteria. Sediment is known to provide protection for bacteria; therefore, while these basins decrease sediment loadings to water bodies downstream, they may introduce harmful levels of pathogenic bacteria into these surface waters. In addition to causing human health risks, these high bacteria levels alter natural biological makeup of downstream ecosystems. …

A Financial Impact Assessment Of Ld 1725: Stream Crossings, New England Environmental Finance Center, Muskie School Of Public Service

Water

This report looks at the potential financial impact of LD 1725 on the estimated 30,000 stream crossings in the State of Maine that would be affected by the law. Our research for this report included the analysis of nearly 2000 stream crossings and the data collection necessary for the development of extensive stream crossing replacement cost models. We found that the 1.2 bankfull requirements in LD 1725 would result in a 75% ‐ 250% increase in structure widths for stream crossing projects across the state. An upsize of this magnitude would increase the cost of replacing stream crossings statewide by …

A Financial Impact Assessment Of Ld 1725: Stream Crossings (Presentation), New England Environmental Finance Center, Muskie School Of Public Service

Water

This report looks at the potential financial impact of LD 1725 on the estimated 30,000 stream crossings in the State of Maine that would be affected by the law. Our research for this report included the analysis of nearly 2000 stream crossings and the data collection necessary for the development of extensive stream crossing replacement cost models. We found that the 1.2 bankfull requirements in LD 1725 would result in a 75% ‐ 250% increase in structure widths for stream crossing projects across the state. An upsize of this magnitude would increase the cost of replacing stream crossings statewide by …

Characteristics And Causal Factors Of Claims In Michigan Highway Construction Projects, Abel K. Sahlool

Wayne State University Dissertations

The US highway system is the largest road network system in the world. MDOT administers about 9,722 route-miles, (28,000 lane-miles) of roadway networks in Michigan. Every year, hundreds of projects worth millions of dollars are let by the State Transportation Agency (STA).

Majority of these projects are successfully completed within the original scope of work, budget, schedule, and without litigation. However; some projects end up in litigation and disputes costing tax payers a great amount of money and the STA a great amount of resources. The number and cost of these construction claims has been substantially increasing in recent years. …

Bs News January/February

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.