Construction Engineering and Management Commons^™

Bilingual Training Course For Redwood Residential Fence Company, Adriana Bernabe Martinez

Construction Management

The Hispanic population has been increasing in the US over the past twenty years, and made up 42.9% of the construction workforce in 2018 (Data USA, n.d.). Because of this population increase, it’s expected that 1 in 4 persons will be of Hispanic descent by the year 2050 (Canales, 2009). Due to this increase, many language barriers exist that can create serious issues in construction. Language barriers cause productivity to decrease and increase concerns for the workers’ safety. Although OSHA trainings are available in Spanish, the opportunity to take these courses vary from company to company and it is rare …

Common Issues Of Compliance With Personal Protective Equipment For Construction Workers, Alexandra N. Gattuso

Construction Management

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is an essential component to the safety of workers on construction jobsites. Construction is ranked one of the most dangerous industries to work in, with the highest reports of fatal work injuries. For this reason, it is required that construction employees wear PPE to keep them safe during work. Despite this requirement, many workers neglect to wear PPE, exposing themselves to high risk of injury and death. A survey was conducted on thirty-three (33) construction workers in California to gain a better understanding of issues with PPE and reasons for non-compliance. The survey found that only …

The Feasibility Of Real Time Location Systems In Construction, John O. Brouse Iv

Construction Management

The construction industry is becoming increasingly sophisticated by implementing new computer-based technologies to improve safety, efficiency, accountability, and many other aspects. One new type of technology that is becoming increasingly popular in other labor based industries is real time locating systems. These systems allow for managers to keep accountability of a variety of assets in a manufacturing facility or industrial center. Recent research has shown the benefits and potential uses of these systems on construction jobsites. This paper seeks to analyze the potential for Real Time Location Systems (RTLS) to be used on construction jobsites and compare the different RTLS …

Application Of Autonomous Equipment In Heavy Civil Construction, Roman J. Ruffino

Construction Management

The prevalence of autonomous vehicles in our everyday lives is continually growing. Automobile manufacturers such as Tesla have made great strides in building a car that can safely navigate the world around it and respond to sudden changes. There is great potential in the heavy civil construction industry for equipment such as bulldozers, scrapers, and transport vehicles to add another level of safety and efficiency to the worksite. The goal of this research will be to determine whether a contractor would actually apply this technology, or if it isn’t practical for everyday use. This paper will examine the current state …

Users Background And Perception Of Robotic Demolition Equipment, Matthew Elston Jones

Construction Management

Robotic demolition equipment or demolition robots are robots that resemble excavators without the cab, that can be controlled by an operator at a safe distance. This equipment can access hazardous environments and provides versatility in the demolition methods possible. Robots have become a popular choice for contractors looking for a competitive advantage. Currently there is little research about the demolition robot market and how the industry views the technology. This research first seeks to answer background questions on the users and their experience with demolition robots. The research also answers perception questions such as the benefits, drawbacks, and reasons for …

Case Study: Effects Of Covid-19 On A Mid-Size San Francisco Commercial General Construction Company, Andrew G. Maxwell Jr

Construction Management

The Covid-19 pandemic has had an adverse effect on the commercial construction industry. New safety procedures and regulations set by local government and health officials have made it difficult for construction to proceed at the efficiency level it had prior to the pandemic. The San Francisco Bay Area was subject to strict protocols starting in March of 2020 that vastly limited the capability of construction companies to perform work. This case study looks into the ways in which a mid sized commercial general construction contractor from the San Francisco Bay Area was impacted by Covid-19 and the methods they used …

How Mandatory Stretches Increase Safety In The Workplace, Alec Pitts

Construction Management

The construction industry is one that revolves around safety. Without safety this industry fails. Jobsite safety keeps companies afloat longer whether it's financially, physically, or even mentally. This senior project dives into the benefits of mandatory stretching prior to each work day. This study also questions contractors and tests the stretches and their results. These benefits include muscle warm ups, increase of focus, added flexibility, increased range of motion, and even mental awareness. The idea of these morning stretches means more upfront costs for less costs later down the road. These stretches are an extra form of insurance when completed …

Construction Management Spanish Language Class, Jordan Stephen King

Construction Management

Some research was done by past Cal Poly students into the industry, faculty and student desire for a Spanish Language class through multiple surveys. The results indicated that all parties agreed that a Spanish Language Construction Management class would be beneficial to add to the curriculum. In this project a student at Cal Poly was tasked with creating a Construction Management Spanish Language Class. The deliverables for this project are to provide the Construction Management department with a syllabus, course schedule, thirteen PowerPoints for use as lecture material, thirteen activities for students to apply what they have learned, and thirteen …

The Effects Of Covid-19 On The Commercial Construction Industry In California: A Case Study, Emily G. Bohannon

Construction Management

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, construction companies across California have been forced to quickly adapt to new protocols and regulations. Since certain areas of California have been more impacted by the pandemic, construction companies in those counties have been forced to comply with stricter coronavirus guidelines. Between the regions researched in this case study, the Bay Area has been affected the most by COVID-19 shutdowns and regulations. Then, Los Angeles County and San Diego County, which faced similar restrictions. The least restrictive area to build during the pandemic is the Central Valley, where there were less reported cases. …

Fitting In: Analyzing The Fit Of Safety Vests In The Construction Industry, Lizette Galvez Puentes

Construction Management

The construction industry continues to be a male-dominated industry; however, recent decades have seen a change of demographic, including an increase of women leadership. With the changing demographics, there is a lack of awareness and proactive integration of properly fitting safety vests to accommodate different body types. A properly fitting safety vest is crucial in upholding the safety of individuals working on a construction site, where certain genders are more frequently caught on jobsite material. These circumstances hinder the purpose and functionality of the safety vest’s primary functions, which, for the wearer, is increased visibility and the comfort to carry …

Increasing Health And Safety Through The Utilization Of 4d Modeling, Rogan J. Wells

Construction Management

Health and safety is one of the most important aspects of the construction industry. Every year there are thousands of work-related injuries in the construction industry. Avoiding these injuries is of the utmost importance on a jobsite. This paper will analyze how building information modeling, specifically the use of 4D building information modeling, can be utilized to increase the overall health and safety of construction jobsite. An exploratory survey was conducted amongst architecture, engineering, and construction industry professionals who hold a wide range of experience. The aim of this survey was to analyze their knowledge and experiences using building information …

Impact Of Increased Precipitation On Midwestern Construction, Monica Feltman

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This paper presents the current impact of increased precipitation in the Midwest on the construction industry. Mainly, the impact on jobsite safety, increasing insurance rates, and the resulting changes in design codes, or lack thereof. The goal of this independent research is to gather a better understanding of the influence of these changes, because only then can one accurately seek to combat their harmful effects. As a vital element of the global economy, the construction industry must be conscious of their changing relationship with the environment around them. Therefore, understanding the affects of harmful climate change, will increase awareness of …

Hard Hat Safety By California Contractors, Jonathan G. Hernandez

Construction Management

The hard hat is the quintessential item of PPE, and yet it often gets overlooked when ensuring safety standards are being met. We all expect our hard hat to protect us, but many never inspect it to ensure that it is properly fulfilling its purpose. This disregard to inspection and maintenance can lead to serious injury or death in the event of an accident. While organizations such as OSHA and the hard hat manufacturers themselves post information on this topic, it is unclear if this information is actually being received by the people involved in a construction project. This research …

Osha-30 Lab Topics Course On Construction Safety And Hazard Identification, Patrick Garcia

Construction Management

The end goal of this research-based project is to evaluate whether an OSHA-30 integrated lab course would be beneficial to Cal Poly’s Construction Management (CM) program and how it might also benefit the construction industry. The research conducted will be to interpret whether or not there is a need for this type of class to be included into the Construction Management Curriculum. Along with data research, two separate surveys were conducted, one survey taken by the Cal Poly Construction Management student population and the other survey taken by industry professionals. Additionally, a fellow Construction Management student, Mathew Bramlett, is working …

Measuring And Evaluating Safety Maturity Of Construction Contractors: Multicriteria Decision-Making Approach, Ali A. Karakhan, Sathyanarayanan Rajendran, John Gambatese, Chukwuma Nnaji

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of the Sciences

Evaluating the safety maturity of construction contractors before awarding the contract is an effective strategy that many owners have started to implement. Given the importance of workplace safety, awarding the contract to safer contractors can enhance project performance outcomes in terms of safety, quality, cost, and schedule. Safety maturity is one quality of a construction organization encompassing interdependent factors that can be used to evaluate expected safety performance. However, there is no formal decision-making framework available in literature that owners can use to evaluate contractor safety maturity. The present study aims to bridge this gap in safety knowledge by proposing …

Students Perception Of Health And Safety Training Practices In The Construction Industry, Adam Will

Construction Management

Since its inception in 1970, the Occupational Safety and Health Act has steadily decreased the rate in which construction injuries, illnesses, and deaths occur in the industry. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) helps enforce these new standards yet some research suggests that safety performance appears to be a response to safety initiatives beyond compliance. Identifying workers’ perceptions of the training they receive is critical to the design and development of effective workplace safety programs. Utilizing a quantitative survey, data was collected from the Cal Poly Construction Management student body to find out how they were taught jobsite safety …

Spanish Language Topics Course Curriculum Proposal, George W. Healy

Construction Management

The objective of this report is to initiate the development of an introductory Spanish topics course within the construction management curriculum at Cal Poly. With each construction management student at Cal Poly that graduates, the industry is gifted another future industry expert. However, in order to be truly successful in construction,one must be excellent at communicating with, and coordinating team’s activities. There is no question that workers in the construction industry are subject to life threatening hazards on a regular basis. In order to mitigate the potential harm of these hazards, allsteps must be taken in managing these risks. Faults …

Case Study: Proven Benefits Of Insurance Backed Stretch And Flex Programs With Cdm Smith, Colin Dzubnar

Construction Management

Safety is the most important aspect of the construction industry. Due to daily strenuous physical activities that occur on a construction jobsite, having your body warmed up, pain-free and ready to perform labor intensive tasks is critical. This case study will examine the correlation between the past and present daily stretching format at the construction jobsite with CDM Smith and Insurance Company. For continuity, it will include an interview with the same CDM Smith Region H&S Manager as well as similar surveys to find out the construction workers thoughts and reactions to stretching prior to work. Although IO to 20 …

Spanish Language Topics Course With An Emphasis On Construction Safety, Austin Changras

Construction Management

The end goal of this research-based project is to evaluate whether a Spanish course with an emphasis on construction site safety would be beneficial to Cal Poly’s Construction Management (CM) program and how it might also benefit the industry. The research orchestrated will be to decipher whether or not there is even a need for this type of class to be included into the curriculum. Along with data research, two separate surveys have been conducted, one administered to the Construction Management student population and the other to industry professionals. Furthermore, George Healy, a fellow CM student, is working on the …

An Embedded Sensory System For Worker Safety: Prototype Development And Evaluation, Chunhee Cho, Jee Woong Park

Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction Faculty Research

At a construction site, workers mainly rely on two senses, which are sight and sound, in order to perceive their physical surroundings. However, they are often hindered by the nature of most construction sites, which are usually dynamic, loud, and complicated. To overcome these challenges, this research explored a method using an embedded sensory system that might offer construction workers an artificial sensing ability to better perceive their surroundings. This study identified three parameters (i.e., intensity, signal length, and delay between consecutive pulses) needed for tactile-based signals for the construction workers to communicate quickly. We developed a prototype system based …

Perceptions Of Efficiency In Construction Jobsite Safety, Jay Doyle

Construction Management

This project is to examine the perception of jobsite safety practices of California contractors. Preliminary research found that jobsite safety practices are not a hinderance on a project schedule when managed well. A survey of students and industry professionals was the methodology used to gather this information. This survey consisted of various questions about the perception of safety practices on jobsites the respondent has worked on themselves, as well as their perception about safety in the construction industry as a whole. Significant findings were that half of the surveyed individuals had worked on a job site in which they lost …

Case Study: Proven Benefits Of Insurance Backed Stretch And Flex Programs With Cdm Smith, Colin Dzubnar

Construction Management

Safety is the most important aspect of the construction industry. Due to daily strenuous physical activities that occur on a construction jobsite, having your body warmed up, pain-free and ready to perform labor intensive tasks is critical. This case study will examine the correlation between the past and present daily stretching format at the construction jobsite with CDM Smith and Insurance Company. For continuity, it will include an interview with the same CDM Smith Region H&S Manager as well as similar surveys to find out the construction workers thoughts and reactions to stretching prior to work. Although IO to 20 …

A Recommendation To Implement "Spanish In Construction" Topics Course, Benjamin W. Dimer

Construction Management

The purpose of this report is to recommend the addition of a Spanish in Construction class to the Construction Management curriculum. Many of Cal Poly’s graduates enter a construction workforce which is composed heavily of Hispanic and Latino members. Historically, Hispanics and Latinos account for not only the most rapidly growing populations of construction, but also the most proportionally at-risk. In an industry as dangerous as construction, it is important that students are well-rounded and well-prepared to contribute as safely, efficiently, and flawlessly as possible. Thorough literature review and an interview of part-time Cal Poly lecturer and industry veteran, Eric …

Industrial-Grade Monitoring Solution: Hoistcam, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Safety and productivity are top priorities for contractors and industrial operations. Improving either makes a company more profitable and competitive. Technology advancements that can do both are important for every company to consider. HoistCam^TM industrial-grade video monitoring solutions can improve employees’ productivity and workplace safety in the construction industries. HoistCam also improves efficiency of operations and reduces job site accidents resulting in substantial cost savings to a contractor.

HoistCam™ is an integrated, wireless video system. The use of HoistCam eliminates blind lifts, blind spots and can share the live video with anyone, anywhere with solid security and easy control. …

Quantitative Analysis Of The Impact Of Craft Labor Availability On Construction Project Performance, Hossein Karimi

Theses and Dissertations--Civil Engineering

A shortage of skilled craft labor in the North American construction industry has been an unfortunate cyclic trend since the late 1980s. This shortage has been reported and discussed frequently by numerous past studies in the context of construction industry. The 2008 U.S. recession was at least one period when the craft shortage temporarily improved, as witnessed by spikes in construction unemployment rates above 20% due to the work slowdowns. However, the current economic recovery period is once again experiencing craft shortages in some sectors of the U.S. construction industry. Although the past literature provides wealth of information about influence …

Pervious Pavement Systems For High Traffic Roadways, Kevin M. Smith

Construction Management

This report highlights the benefits and detriments of pervious pavement systems through research of existing knowledge and multifaceted experiments to determine the feasibility of implementing a pervious pavement system on high traffic roadways. With over 40,000 miles of highway in the United States alone and severe water crises in states like California and growing environmental and safety concerns, the need for pervious pavements is abundantly clear. The research conducted utilizes existing knowledge on pervious pavements and applies it to the application of high traffic roadways. The experiment tests four different pervious concrete mix designs to determine compressive strength and water …

Object Detection For Agricultural And Construction Environments Using An Ultrasonic Sensor, Joseph S. Dvorak, Marvin L. Stone, Kelvin P. Self

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

This study tested an ultrasonic sensor‘s ability to detect several objects commonly encountered in outdoor agricultural or construction environments: a water jug, a sheet of oriented strand board (OSB), a metal fence post, a human model, a wooden fence post, a Dracaena plant, a juniper plant, and a dog model. Tests were performed with each target object at distances from 0.01 to 3 m. Five tests were performed with each object at each location, and the sensor‘s ability to detect the object during each test was categorized as "undetected," "intermittent," "incorrect distance," "good." Rigid objects that presented a larger surface …

Accident Patterns In Road Construction Work Zones, Tariq Shehab, Leah Phu

The Professional Constructor

Traffic safety in road construction zones has always been a major concern for engineering practitioners, departments of transportation, law enforcement professionals, researchers and many others. Due to the deteriorated condition of road and underground infrastructure facilities in the United States, the number of rehabilitation projects and their associated traffic accidents have increased over the past few years. To perform the needed road and underground utility rehabilitation activities in safer environments, researchers need to understand the causes behind these accidents. Although many researchers have been exploring the safety of many construction activities, research pertaining to road construction projects is lacking and …

3m Personal Air Monitoring Systems, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

3M monitors are made to allow sample desorption directly in the monitor itself. The monitor comes with a snap-on elution cap that permits the desorbing solvent to be injected into the monitor. The solution is then poured into sample vials for analysis. 3M monitors use standard analytical methods: gas chromatography for the organic vapor monitor and ethylene oxide monitor, and colorimetry for the formaldehyde monitor.

Pipeman:Safety In Trenches, Purdue Ect Team

ECT Fact Sheets Archive

Even though heavy construction equipment such as a crane or backhoe excavator, is used to perform the task of pipe laying in the trench, workers are required to be inside the trench to guide the excavation, pipe laying, and final alignment. Work place safety has become a major concern in the construction industry over the past few decades, and trench cave-ins have caused serious and often fatal injuries to workers in the United States. The Construction Automation and Robotics Laboratory(CARL) at North Carolina State University has developed an alternative which involves advanced new technology: the prototype robotic excavation and pipe …