Kim, Yong-Woo; Han, Seungheon; Shin, Sungwon; Choi, Kunhee. (2011). A Case Study of Activity-Based Costing in Allocating Rebar Fabrication Costs to Projects. Construction Management And Economics, 29(5), 449 – 461.
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Abstract
How to improve cost allocation for reinforced steel bar (rebar) is an ongoing topic of debate among construction manufacturers and contractors. Traditionally, many fabrication shops have used a single overhead-cost pool accounting system. However, a new costing method, activity-based costing (ABC), may provide more advantages than the traditional system. In this case study, a single overhead-cost pool system is compared with the ABC method to demonstrate how ABC improves cost allocation and provides other benefits. The case study findings indicate that ABC provides such benefits as (1) accurate manufacturing costs; (2) cost information on processes; and (3) information on cost drivers. This paper also bridges the construction and cost accounting literature. Our study contributes to the construction management literature by offering a different cost allocation method to refine fabrication costs assigned to projects. The findings are expected to serve as a reference for industry professionals who recognize the shortcomings of a traditional single overheadcost pool system and are in need of a more accurate costing system. © 2011 Taylor & Francis.
Keywords
Bridges; Costs; Fabrication; Lakes; Project Management; Rebar; Accounting System; Activity Based Costing; Construction Management; Fabrication Shops; Industry Professionals; Manufacturing Cost; Overhead Costs; Traditional Systems
Abramson, Daniel Benjamin. (2016). Periurbanization and the Politics of Development-as-City-Building in China. Cities, 53, 156 – 162.
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Abstract
China stands out among recently urbanized societies for the planned physicality of its rural-urban transformation the extensive marshaling of labor, capital and material resources to remake its cities and to transform rural land and communities into new, formal urban space. In China, the rural and the urban are distinguished in deeply dichotomous institutions of government, and peri-urbanization, defined as the disorderly spaces, processes and conditions of becoming urban, would appear to be a temporary stage of transition between an old rural socio-spatial order to a new urban socio-spatial order. The actual contested politics of development as-urbanization suggests otherwise, however, both on a national scale and on a community scale. The definition of development itself is at stake, and emerges unpredictably from peri-urban experience. A view of periurbanization as a process of socio-ecological adaptation is better suited to societies that have evolved in long settled, densely populated anthropogenic agrarian landscapes. (C) 2015 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Keywords
Urban-growth; Chengdu; Urbanization; Adaptation; Resilience; Alternative Development; Socialist New Countryside Construction; New Rural Reconstruction
Iarocci, Louisa. (2019). The Consuming Mob: Bargain Shopping in the City. Architectural Theory Review, 23(2), 195 – 213.
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Abstract
This paper examines the representation of the crowd as the consuming mob in the American department store in the early twentieth century. In store promotions and popular accounts, urban retail spaces provide the setting for the materialization of the crowd as the driving engine and mutated body of mass consumption. Store owners and their backers employed the image of shopping hordes on their premises as an advertisement for the success of modern trade. The department store served as a model of a rational utopian order in its operations and spaces. But in popular representations the growing assemblies of bodies and goods often appeared as a potentially unruly force that threatened the constraints of their surroundings. This paper will trace the path of the urban crowd as it flowed from the city streets into the inner recesses of the store, mapping narratives of shopping through the lenses of gender and class.
Keywords
Crowds; Department Stores; Shopping; City; Consumption
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).
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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
Acolin, Arthur; Colburn, Gregg; Walter, Rebecca J. (2022). How Do Single-Family Homeowners Value Residential and Commercial Density? It Depends. Land Use Policy, 113.
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Abstract
This paper develops estimates of the relationship between local density and single-family home values using 2017 transactions for five U.S. metropolitan regions: Chicago, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Seattle. Proposals to build new commercial and residential development projects that would increase local density commonly face opposition from local homeowners. Academic literature links the response from homeowners to concerns that higher density is associated with lower property values but there is limited empirical evidence establishing this relationship at the local level. We find a positive and significant relationship between density and house value in the core area of the five metropolitan regions we analyze. Within 7.5 miles of the center of these metropolitan regions, a 10% increase in surrounding built area density is associated with a 1.1–1.9% increase in house prices per square foot. For outlying areas, the estimates are smaller and even negative in several cases. We instrument density based on topographic and soil characteristics and find similar results. These findings point to the need for a more nuanced discussion of the relationship between local density and housing values.
Keywords
Population Density; Soil Density; Single Family Housing; Home Ownership; Housing Development; Housing Discrimination; Home Prices; Los Angeles (calif.); Density; Single-family House Value; Urban Form; Residential Development; Real Estate; Property Values; Residential Density; Development Programs; Housing; Estimates; Metropolitan Areas; Development Projects; Empirical Analysis; Families & Family Life; Soil Characteristics
Stover, Victor W.; Bae, C.-H. Christine. (2011). Impact of Gasoline Prices on Transit Ridership in Washington State. Transportation Research Record, 2217, 1 – 10.
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Abstract
Gasoline prices in the United States have been extremely volatile in recent years and rose to record high levels during the summer of 2008. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average U.S. gasoline price for the year 2008 was $3.26 a gallon, which was the second highest yearly average in history when adjusted for inflation. Transportation agencies reported changes in travel behavior as a result of the price spike, with transit systems experiencing record ridership and state departments of transportation reporting reductions in traffic volumes. This study examined the impact of changing gasoline prices on transit ridership in Washington State by measuring the price elasticity of demand of ridership with respect to gasoline price. Ordinary least-squares regression was used to model transit ridership for transit agencies in 11 counties in Washington State during 2004 to 2008. The price of gasoline had a statistically significant effect on transit ridership for seven systems studied, with elasticities ranging from 0.09 to 0.47. A panel data model was estimated with data from all 11 agencies to measure the overall impact of gasoline prices on transit ridership in the state. The elasticity from the panel data model was 0.17. Results indicated that transit ridership increased as gasoline prices increased during the study period. The findings were consistent with those from previous studies on the topic.
Keywords
Time-series Analysis; Gas Prices; Elasticities; Demand
Choi, Kunhee; Lee, Hyun Woo. (2016). Deconstructing the Construction Industry: A Spatiotemporal Clustering Approach to Profitability Modeling. Journal Of Construction Engineering And Management, 142(10).
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Abstract
In spite of the strong influence of the construction industry on the national health of the United States' economy, very little research has specifically aimed at evaluating the key performance parameters and trends (KPPT) of the industry. Due to this knowledge gap, concerns have been constantly raised over lack of accurate measures of KPPT. To circumvent these challenges, this study investigates and models the macroeconomic KPPT of the industry through spatiotemporal clustering modeling. This study specifically aims to analyze the industry in 14 of its subsectors and subsequently, by 51 geographic spatial areas at a 15-year temporal scale. KPPT and their interdependence were firstly examined by utilizing the interpolated comprehensive U.S. economic census data. A hierarchical spatiotemporal clustering analysis was then performed to create predictive models that can reliably determine firm's profitability as a function of the key parameters. Lastly, the robustness of the predictive models was tested by a cross-validation technique called the predicted error sum of square. This study yields a notable conclusion that three key performance parameterslabor productivity, gross margin, and labor wageshave steadily improved over the study period from 1992 to 2007. This study also reveals that labor productivity is the most critical factor; the states and subsectors with the highest productivity are the most profitable. This study should be of value to decision-makers when plotting a roadmap for future growth and rendering a strategic business decisions.
Keywords
Construction Industry; Decision Making; Knowledge Management; Labour Resources; Macroeconomics; Organisational Aspects; Productivity; Profitability; Salaries; Statistical Analysis; Strategic Planning; Hierarchical Spatiotemporal Clustering Approach; National Health; Macroeconomic Kppt; Knowledge Gap; Spatiotemporal Clustering Modeling; Interpolated Comprehensive U.s. Economic Census Data; Parameters-labor Productivity; Gross Margin; Labor Wages; Strategic Business Decisions; Deconstructing; Key Performance Parameters And Trends; Firms Profitability; Error Sum Of Square; Labor Productivity; Projects; Firms; Performance; Performance Measurement; Cluster Analysis; Economic Census; Project Planning And Design
Idziorek, Katherine; Chalana, Manish. (2019). Managing Change: Seattle’s 21st Century Urban Renaissance. Journal Of Urbanism, 12(3), 320 – 345.
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Abstract
Evolution of the urban planning and historic preservation disciplines has resulted in an “uneasy alliance” in practice, one further complicated by the back-to-the-city movement and increased development pressure in older urban neighbourhoods. In Seattle, as in other U.S. cities, the pace, intensity and scale of redevelopment has caused dramatic spatial and social transformations. Although research has shown that older built fabric provides economic and social benefit for cities, neither regulations created by planners for guiding redevelopment nor strategies created by preservationists for retaining urban heritage have been successful in reconciling these different, yet interconnected, sets of values. We engage three Seattle neighbourhood case studies to clarify and evaluate policies, programs and strategies used by planners and preservationists for reimagining neighbourhood transformations. This work suggests a need for more creative, integrative collaboration between the two fields to simultaneously engage – and reconcile – social and economic tensions caused by urban redevelopment.
Keywords
Renaissance; Urban Planning; Biological Evolution; Historic Preservation; Seattle (wash.); Everyday Heritage; Seattle; Urban Conservation; Urban Renaissance; Redevelopment; Change Management; Neighborhoods; Regulation; Urban Renewal; Transformations; Cities; Preservation; Urban Areas; Planners; 21st Century; Cultural Heritage
Acolin, Arthur; Ramiller, Alex; Walter, Rebecca J; Thompson, Samantha; Wang, Ruoniu. (2021). Transitioning to Homeownership: Asset Building for Low- and Moderate-Income Households. Housing Policy Debate, 31(6), 1032 – 1049.
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Abstract
This article assesses the asset building of households that take part in shared-equity homeownership (SEH) models. The contribution of this article is a comparison of outcomes for households participating in shared-equity programs with other low- and moderate-income households who rent or own properties without restrictions on appreciation. We matched participants in SEH programs to households with similar characteristics from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) over the 1997-2017 period. The findings indicate that in real terms, median SEH homeowners accumulated about $1,700 in housing wealth annually or around $10,000 during their holding period. This amount is lower than the $2,100 median annual gain in home equity experienced by similar PSID owners but statistically and economically significantly larger than the $16 in annual gain experienced by similar PSID renters. The findings provide evidence that households participating in SEH programs experienced positive, but modest, wealth gains that were slightly lower than those of homeowners in unrestricted units but substantially higher than those of renters.
Keywords
Appreciation; Households; Property; Wealth; Income; Housing; Dynamic Tests; Home Ownership; Assets; Tenants; Equity; Owners
Armbruster, Ginger; Endicott-Popousky, Barbara; Whittington, Jan. (2012). Are We Prepared for the Economic Risk Resulting from Telecom Hotel Disruptions? International Journal Of Critical Infrastructure Protection, 5(2), 55 – 65.
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Abstract
Large and small businesses in Seattle, Washington, as in most urban centers across the United States, increasingly rely on telecom hotels and related telecommunications centers to conduct business operations. What would be the economic impact to these businesses if a natural or man-made disaster were to make this infrastructure unavailable for a significant period of time? How long would it take for the owners of small businesses, which provide the foundation for economic recovery, to give up and move away? Are metropolitan regions prepared for this risk? This paper draws on publicly available reports of telecom hotel investments to examine the economic risks that such telecommunications hubs pose at the regional scale. New York City and Seattle are two urban areas that depend on key investments in telecom hotels. In the Pacific Northwest, these assets are located downtown, primarily in the center of the urban real estate market of Seattle. Although the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 were directed at the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan, collateral damage to a major telecommunications hub brought outages during and after the attacks that highlighted the serious risk posed to small- and mid-sized businesses from disruptions in telecommunications service. The Seattle case study illustrates the potential to learn from the experience in Lower Manhattan and apply this knowledge across the United States. Regional economic analysis of the benefits of and the means to protect small- and mid-sized businesses can provide the basis for strategic investments that minimize economic loss and reduce the recovery time. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords
Telecommunications Hubs; Telecom Hotels; Business Continuity; Risk