Lee, Wonil; Migliaccio, Giovanni Ciro. (2016). Physiological Cost Of Concrete Construction Activities. Construction Innovation, 16(3), 281 – 306.
View Publication
Abstract
Purpose - The purpose of this paper was to investigate the physiological cost of concrete construction activities. Design/methodology/approach - Five concrete construction workers were recruited. The workers' three-week heart rate (HR) data were collected in summer and autumn. In this paper, several HR indexes were used to investigate the physiological cost of work in concrete construction trades, including average working HR, relative HR and ratio of working HR to resting HR. Findings - This paper measures how absolute and relative HRs vary throughout a workday and how working HR compares to resting HR for individual workers. Research limitations/implications - Field observations are usually extremely difficult as researchers need to overcome a number of barriers, including employers' resistance to perceived additional liabilities, employees' fear that their level of activity will be reported to managers and many other practical and technical difficulties. As these challenges increase exponentially with the number of employers, subjects and sites, this study was limited to a small number of subjects all working for the same employer on the same jobsite. Still, challenges are often unpredictable and lessons learned from this study are expected to guide both our and other researchers' continuation of this work. Originality/value - The time effect on the physiological cost of work has not been considered in previous studies. Thus, this study is noteworthy owing to the depth of the data collected rather than the breadth of the data.
Keywords
Concrete; Construction Industry; Costing; Human Resource Management; Occupational Health; Personnel; Physiology; Physiological Cost; Concrete Construction Activity; Construction Workers; Summer; Autumn; Construction Trade; Working Heart Rate; Relative Heart Rate; Resting Heart Rate; Employee Fear; Jobsite; Heart-rate Strain; Stress; Work; Risk; Management; Fusion; Model; Index; Biosensing And Environmental Sensing; Occupational Safety And Health; Threshold Limit Value; Work Physiology
Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl. (2017). The Past and Future of Pioneer Square Historic Character and Infill Construction in Seattle’s First Historic District. Change Over Time-an International Journal Of Conservation And The Built Environment, 7(2), 320 – 343.
View Publication
Abstract
Seattle designated the Pioneer Square Preservation District, the city's first historic district, nearly fifty years ago. Over the past half century, the district has seen significant infrastructure improvements, a changing resident population, and an evolving mix of businesses. Although many buildings underwent interior alteration, the visible external character of the historic fabric has remained largely intact. The district's Preservation Board reviews a constant stream of small exterior restoration and rehabilitation projects, but it is the relatively few examples of new infill construction that have presented the most challenging questions as the board has had to balance the desire for new development and the activity it brings with the wish to protect historic character. Although the Pioneer Square District ordinance, the Secretary of Interior's Standards, and rules developed by the board all offer guidance, every new design presents questions about the exact meaning of terms like compatible and differentiated. Today, with Seattle's booming economy and growing population, more new projects of a larger scale are being proposed. As a result, the Pioneer Square Preservation District presents a singular case study demonstrating continuing efforts to protect the historic built environment while still allowing appropriate growth.
Mahankali, Ranjeeth; Johnson, Brian R.; Anderson, Alex T. (2018). Deep Learning in Design Workflows: The Elusive Design Pixel. International Journal Of Architectural Computing, 16(4), 328 – 340.
View Publication
Abstract
The recent wave of developments and research in the field of deep learning and artificial intelligence is causing the border between the intuitive and deterministic domains to be redrawn, especially in computer vision and natural language processing. As designers frequently invoke vision and language in the context of design, this article takes a step back to ask if deep learning's capabilities might be applied to design workflows, especially in architecture. In addition to addressing this general question, the article discusses one of several prototypes, BIMToVec, developed to examine the use of deep learning in design. It employs techniques like those used in natural language processing to interpret building information models. The article also proposes a homogeneous data format, provisionally called a design pixel, which can store design information as spatial-semantic maps. This would make designers' intuitive thoughts more accessible to deep learning algorithms while also allowing designers to communicate abstractly with design software.
Keywords
Associative Logic; Creative Processes; Deep Learning; Embedding Vectors; Bimtovec; Homogeneous Design Data Format; Design Pixel; Idea Persistence
Kang, Mingyu; Moudon, Anne Vernez; Kim, Haena; Boyle, Linda Ng. (2019). Intersections and Non-Intersections: A Protocol for Identifying Pedestrian Crash Risk Locations in GIS. International Journal Of Environmental Research And Public Health, 16(19).
View Publication
Abstract
Intersection and non-intersection locations are commonly used as spatial units of analysis for modeling pedestrian crashes. While both location types have been previously studied, comparing results is difficult given the different data and methods used to identify crash-risk locations. In this study, a systematic and replicable protocol was developed in GIS (Geographic Information System) to create a consistent spatial unit of analysis for use in pedestrian crash modelling. Four publicly accessible datasets were used to identify unique intersection and non-intersection locations: Roadway intersection points, roadway lanes, legal speed limits, and pedestrian crash records. Two algorithms were developed and tested using five search radii (ranging from 20 to 100 m) to assess the protocol reliability. The algorithms, which were designed to identify crash-risk locations at intersection and non-intersection areas detected 87.2% of the pedestrian crash locations (r: 20 m). Agreement rates between algorithm results and the crash data were 94.1% for intersection and 98.0% for non-intersection locations, respectively. The buffer size of 20 m generally showed the highest performance in the analyses. The present protocol offered an efficient and reliable method to create spatial analysis units for pedestrian crash modeling. It provided researchers a cost-effective method to identify unique intersection and non-intersection locations. Additional search radii should be tested in future studies to refine the capture of crash-risk locations.
Keywords
Traffic Crash; Walking; Collisions; Accidents; Models; Pedestrian Safety; Spatial Autocorrelation; Algorithm
Cheng, Renée. (2020). Opinion: Change Agency, Value Change. Architect, 109(9), 20 – 20.
Keywords
Attitude Change (psychology); Air Flow; Hand Washing
Shang, Luming; Aziz, Ahmed M. Abdel. (2020). Stackelberg Game Theory-Based Optimization Model for Design of Payment Mechanism in Performance-Based PPPs. Journal Of Construction Engineering And Management, 146(4).
View Publication
Abstract
Payment mechanisms lie at the heart of public-private partnership (PPP) contracts. A good design of the payment mechanism should consider the owner's goals in the project, allocate risks appropriately to stakeholders, and assure satisfactory performance by providing reasonable compensation to the private developer. This paper proposes a Stackelberg game theory-based model to assist public agencies in designing payment mechanisms for PPP transportation projects. The interests of both public and private sectors are considered and reflected by a bilevel objective function. The model aims to search for solutions that maximize a project's overall performance for the sake of social welfare while simultaneously maximizing return for the sake of private investment. A variable elimination method and genetic algorithm are used to solve the optimization model. A case study based on a real PPP project is discussed to validate the effectiveness of the proposed model. The solutions provided by the model reveal that the optimal payment mechanism structure could be established such that it would satisfy owners' requirements for overall project performance while optimizing project total payments to contractors.
Keywords
Construction Industry; Contracts; Financial Management; Game Theory; Genetic Algorithms; Investment; Optimisation; Organisational Aspects; Project Management; Public Administration; Transportation; Public-private Partnership Contracts; Good Design; Private Developer; Stackelberg Game Theory-based Model; Ppp Transportation Projects; Public Sectors; Private Sectors; Private Investment; Ppp Project; Optimal Payment Mechanism Structure; Project Performance; Project Total Payments; Stackelberg Game Theory-based Optimization Model; Performance-based Ppps; Public-private Partnerships; Analytic Hierarchy Process; Weighted Sum Method; Multiobjective Optimization; Algorithm; Incentives; Projects; Network; Success; Branch
Wang, Lan; Zhang, Surong; Yang, Zilin; Zhao, Ziyu; Moudon, Anne Vernez; Feng, Huasen; Liang, Junhao; Sun, Wenyao; Cao, Buyang. (2021). What County-level Factors Influence Covid-19 Incidence in the United States? Findings from the First Wave of the Pandemic. Cities, 118.
View Publication
Abstract
Effective control of the COVID-19 pandemic via appropriate management of the built environment is an urgent issue. This study develops a research framework to explore the relationship between COVID-19 incidence and influential factors related to protection of vulnerable populations, intervention in transmission pathways, and provision of healthcare resources. Relevant data for regression analysis and structural equation modeling is collected during the first wave of the pandemic in the United States, from counties with over 100 confirmed cases. In addition to confirming certain factors found in the existing literature, we uncover six new factors significantly associated with COVID-19 incidence. Furthermore, incidence during the lockdown is found to significantly affect incidence after the reopening, highlighting that timely quarantining and treating of patients is essential to avoid the snowballing transmission over time. These findings suggest ways to mitigate the negative effects of subsequent waves of the pandemic, such as special attention of infection prevention in neighborhoods with unsanitary and overcrowded housing, minimization of social activities organized by neighborhood associations, and contactless home delivery service of healthy food. Also worth noting is the need to provide support to people less capable of complying with the stay-at-home order because of their occupations or socio-economic disadvantage.
Keywords
Pandemics; Covid-19; Covid-19 Pandemic; Infection Prevention; Stay-at-home Orders; Structural Equation Modeling; United States; Communicable Disease Prevention; Influential Factors; Lockdown; Structural Equation Modeling (sem); Prevalence; Disease; Healthy Food; Social Activities; Counties; Neighborhoods; Housing; Built Environment; Prevention; Minimization; Socioeconomic Factors; Intervention; Health Care; Vulnerability; Occupations; Coronaviruses; Food Service; Disease Transmission; United States--us
Sprague, Tyler. (2010). Eero Saarinen, Eduardo Catalano and the Influence of Matthew Nowicki: A Challenge to Form and Function. Nexus Network Journal, 12(2), 249 – 258.
View Publication
Abstract
Matthew Nowicki befriended Eero Saarinen at the Cranbrook Academy and was succeeded as Chair of the School of Design at North Carolina College of Design by Eduardo Catalano. Nowicki's influence is evident in subsequent work of these two architects. Themes of function, structure and humanism resonated differently in each. All three of these interconnected individuals were engaged in the same intellectual milieu, each manifesting his own architecture in a unique yet contextual way. Taken as a whole, their endeavors stand as evidence of the shifting understanding of what modern architecture was about.
Keywords
Eero Saarinen; Eduardo Catalano; Matthew Nowicki; Modern Architecture; Hyperbolic Paraboloids; Saddle Shapes
El-Anwar, Omar. (2013). Maximising the Net Social Benefit of the Construction of Post-Disaster Alternative Housing Projects. Disasters, 37(3), 489 – 515.
View Publication
Abstract
The widespread destruction that follows large-scale natural disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina in August 2005, challenges the efficacy of traditional temporary housing methods in providing adequate solutions to housing needs. Recognising these housing challenges, the Congress of the United States allocated, in 2006, USD 400 million to the Department of Homeland Security to support Alternative Housing Pilot Programs, which are intended to explore the possibilities of providing permanent and affordable housing to displaced families instead of traditional temporary housing. This paper presents a new methodology and optimisation model to identify the optimal configurations of post-shelter housing arrangements to maximise the overall net socioeconomic benefit. The model is capable of quantifying and optimising the impacts of substituting temporary housing with alternative housing on the social and economic welfare of displaced families as well as the required additional costs of doing so. An application example is presented to illustrate the use of the model and its capabilities.
Keywords
Public Housing; Temporary Housing; Hurricane Katrina, 2005; Natural Disasters; Socioeconomic Factors; Mathematical Models; Mathematical Optimization; United States; Alternative Housing Pilot Programs; Optimisation; Socioeconomic Benefit; Disasters
Hyun Woo Lee; Anderson, S.M.; Yong-Woo Kim; Ballard, G.. (2014). Advancing Impact of Education, Training, and Professional Experience on Integrated Project Delivery. Practice Periodical On Structural Design And Construction, 19(1), 8 – 14.
View Publication
Abstract
With the increased interest in applying integrated forms of project delivery to complex and uncertain construction projects, the building industry has been experiencing an increased demand for integrated project delivery (IPD). With the trend, many empirical studies have examined the collaborative characteristics of IPD and reported that participants must make the necessary transition for its contractual, technological, and cultural requirements. However, little study has been done to investigate relevant education, training, or professional experience that can support the transition. In response, this study used an online survey that was designed to investigate the level and type of education, training, and professional experience of project members and their corresponding level of background knowledge for each IPD requirement. The key survey findings include (1) project members have the highest level of background knowledge on the cultural requirements of IPD, but the lowest level on the technological requirements; (2) the group with more design-build experience has more background knowledge; (3) the group that received an IPD kick-off training has more background knowledge; and (4) having a lean construction class can prepare students for the IPD environment. It is expected that the survey findings will advance the education, training, and levels of background knowledge of IPD participants, which will enhance their IPD experience accordingly.
Keywords
Buildings (structures); Construction Industry; Contracts; Cultural Aspects; Industrial Training; Professional Aspects; Project Management; Construction Project; Building Industry; Integrated Project Delivery; Ipd; Contractual Requirement; Cultural Requirement; Professional Experience; Design-build Experience; Training Impact; Education Impact