Target Output, Extended Output and Site Productivity: Tales of the Expected

Target output, extended output and moderate output are compared for selected construction projects in some selected sites in Nigeria. The objective of this study is to examine the attributes of extended and moderate output, setting of benchmarks for purpose of analysis of worker productivity, determination of derivable benefits, with a view to identifying if the effects are the same for both methods. The study procures the primary data used in this study through the use of questionnaires designed in Likert scale 1 to 5, which are sent to clients, builders and consultants. In all, 120 questionnaires were sent to these respondents who recently completed their housing projects based on the two methods. Results of the study indicate that there is significant difference between both methods in terms of risks of value for money, guaranteed sense of self accomplishment, while a significant difference exists between both methods in job burnt- out effect, timely completion of project, and exhaustion, Moderate target output method demonstrates less risk of timely completion of project than the extended target output. This study concludes that there are various types of risks inherent in use of both methods in housing projects. The study displays characteristics of early completion of project and prospects of getting good value for money. Recommendations of the study are that clients, contractors and consultants should use Moderate target output for execution of their future housing projects job allocations, and also they are at liberty to use any of the two methods as they best satisfy their requirements. Implications of this study to policy makers and other stakeholders in the construction industry is that Moderate labour output method should be explored for use in large and complex projects as considerable cost savings can be achieved, timely delivery of project and good value for money are equally derivable benefits of the method. The outcome of this study serves as a watershed to other peculiar issues inn site productivity and job beats’ allocations

Development of a Refrigerant Recovery and Recycling Machine

Indiscriminate discharge of refrigerants into the atmosphere during servicing or overhauling of refrigerating systems by Heating, Ventilation and Air-conditioning (HVAC) Practitioners is one of the major contributing factors to ozone depletion and climate change. The objectives of this study are to: design, fabricate and evaluate the performance of refrigerants recovery and recycling machine. The machine with 19.44 kg/hr rated capacity produced at cost of N106, 503.00 (about USD 500) with locally sourced materials comprises: compressor, drier, capillary tube, solenoid valves, two (2) pressure gauges and heat exchanger as functional parts. In order to evaluate the performance of  this machine, R-12 and R-22 refrigerants were considered for its analysis and results showed that for every 1 kg refrigerant recovered and recycled it has average recovery and recycling efficiencies of 88.5 % and 85.68 % whilst recycling used refrigerant to 99.9 % of its original purity. Keywords: Refrigerants, Ozone Depletion, Global Warming, Recovery, Recycling, Performance evaluatio

Target Output, Extended Output and Site Productivity: Tales of the Expected

Target output, extended output and moderate output  are compared for selected construction projects  in some selected sites in Nigeria. The objective of this study is to examine the attributes of extended and moderate output, setting of benchmarks for purpose of  analysis of worker productivity, determination of derivable benefits, with a view to identifying if the effect are the same for both methods. The study procures the primary data used in this study through the use of questionnaires designed in Likert scale 1 to 5, which are sent to clients, builders and consultants. In all, 120 questionnaires were sent to these respondents who recently completed their housing projects based on the two methods. Results of the study indicate that there is  significant difference between both methods in terms of risks of value for money, guaranteed sense of self accomplishment, while a significant difference exists between both methods in job burnt- out effect, timely completion of project, and exhaustion, Moderate target output method demonstrates less risk of timely completion of project than the extended target output.  This study concludes that there are various types of risks inherent in use of both methods in housing projects. The study displays characteristics of early completion of project and prospects of getting good value for money. Recommendations of the study are that clients, contractors and consultants should use Moderate target output for execution of their future housing projects job allocations, and also they are at liberty to use any of the two methods as they best satisfy their requirements. Implications of this study to policy makers and other stakeholders in the construction industry is that  Moderate labour output method should be explored for use in large and complex projects as  considerable cost savings can be achieved, timely delivery of project and good value for money are equally derivable benefits of the method.  The outcome of this study serves as a watershed to other peculiar issues inn site productivity and job beats’ allocations. Keywords: Moderate Output, Extended Output, Productivity, Targe

Perceived stress and stressors among first-year undergraduate students at a private medical school in Nigeria

Objectives: Medical training has long been globally recognised as involving numerous stressors that can affect the well-being of students. This study, the first to be conducted among first-year medical students at a private university in Nigeria, aims to identify factors associated with students’ perceived stress. Methods: An analytical cross-sectional design was employed. A semi-structured pretested and validated questionnaire was administered to first-year medical students. The data were analysed using IBM SPSS version 25.0. Descriptive and analytical statistics were presented as frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations. The chi-square test was also used to identify the associations between categorical variables. Results: The majority of the respondents were females (72.2%) and Christians (85.8%). Sixty seven percent of the participants perceived medical school as being stressful. More females than males were stressed. Statistically, ethnicity and intrapersonal factors were correlated with perceived stress. Conclusion: In this study, the prevalence of perceived stress among first-year medical undergraduate students was high. Students should be prepared on how to cope with stress by developing coping strategies such as healthy lifestyle patterns, availing of social support, engaging in physical activity, and seeking counselling when needed

Perceived stress and stressors among first-year undergraduate studentsat a private medical school in Nigeria

Objectives:Medical training has long been globally rec-ognised as involving numerous stressors that can affectthe well-being of students. This study, the first to beconducted among first-year medical students at a privateuniversity in Nigeria, aims to identify factors associatedwith students’ perceived stress.Methods:An analytical cross-sectional design wasemployed. A semi-structured pretested and validatedquestionnaire was administered to first-year medicalstudents. The data were analysed using IBM SPSSversion 25.0. Descriptive and analytical statistics werepresented as frequencies, percentages, means, andstandard deviations. The chi-square test was also usedto identify the associations between categoricalvariables.Results:The majority of the respondents were females(72.2%) and Christians (85.8%). Sixty seven percent ofthe participants perceived medical school as beingstressful. More females than males were stressed. Statis-tically, ethnicity and intrapersonal factors were correlatedwith perceived stress.Conclusion:In this study, the prevalence of perceivedstress among first-year medical undergraduate studentswas high. Students should be prepared on how to copewith stress by developing coping strategies such ashealthy lifestyle patterns, availing of social support,engaging in physical activity, and seeking counsellingwhen neede

Synthesis of 4-oxatricyclo[5.2.1.02,6]dec-8-ene-3,5-dione derivatives as lead scaffolds for neuroprotective agents

Neurodegenerative disorders are characterised by progressive loss of neuronal functions. Of the proposed mechanisms, excitotoxicity, mediated by prolonged glutamate activation and calcium overload, is prominent. NGP1-01, a polycyclic cage amine, and tricyclo[6.2.1.02,7]undec-9-ene-3,6-dione have been shown to display calcium-modulating properties. In this study, we synthesised structurally-related 4-oxatricyclo[5.2.1.02,6]dec-8-ene-3,5-dione as the base scaffold, and incorporated various functional moieties through aminolysis, to afford a series of imide derivatives. All final compounds were obtained in yields between 47-97% and their structures were confirmed by NMR, IR and MS. These structurally-related derivatives could potentially act as neuroprotective agents. Additionally, their synthetic versatilities could make them precursors, as lead compounds, to potential pharmacologically-active agents

Factors Affecting the Competencies and Project Delivery of Small-Sized Indigenous Construction Firms in Lagos State

Every industry is prone to problems Performance is a general challenge affecting construction and most especially small-sized indigenous construction companies. The study focused on determining the likely factors affecting the competencies and project delivery of small-sized construction firms in Lagos. 60 questionnaires were designed and administered to professionals (15-Architects, 15-Builders, 15-Engineers, and 15-Quantity Surveyors) working in the construction companies in Lagos State and 48 questionnaires were retrieved. These questionnaires were analysed with SPSS and several findings were derived from this analysis. The various factors affecting the performance and project delivery at varying degrees are: high cost of plants, equipment, materials and labour, lack of skilled craftsmen, unavailability of funds, poor managerial skills, lack of government patronage, and poor communication among stakeholders. The study found out that the most prominent factors are poor managerial skills, lack of project planning and unavailability of funds. The main factors affecting the performance of small sized indigenous construction firms are based on three key elements namely time, quality and cost. These three elements when properly harnessed will increase the performance of small sized indigenous firms. The study recommended that the use of ICT would help improve performance by making work flow more easily. Access to bank loans and more machinery on site and sufficient government patronage would improve performance. It concluded that better management and project planning would go a long way in improving competencies and project delivery of small sized construction firms

Occurrence of Banana bunchy top virus in banana and plantain (Musa sp.) in Benin

In July 2011, banana and plantain that displayed stunting and leaf symptoms typical of banana bunchy top disease were observed to be widespread in Dangbo Commune, Ouémé Department, Benin. To identify the cause of the disease, a roving survey was conducted in December 2011 in nine locations in Avrankou, Dangbo, Akpro-Missérété and Porto-Novo Communes, in Ouémé. In each location, the incidence of symptom-bearing plants was estimated from counts of 15 mats, and samples were collected for Banana bunchy top virus (BBTV) assessment. Approximately 60% of the 94 banana mats assessed had plants exhibiting typical symptoms of BBTV infection - chlorotic leaf margins, dark green streaks on petioles, narrow leaves that bunched at the top, and severe stunting. Total DNA was extracted from 25 leaf samples collected from plants with symptoms; they were then tested for BBTV by polymerase chain reaction. The sequences showed 100% nucleotide sequence identity with a BBTV isolate from Cameroon (FJ580970) and 99-100% identity with several other BBTV isolates from the GenBank database belonging to the South Pacific group, which consisted of BBTV isolates from Africa, Australia, India and South Pacific. This finding confirmed that the virus isolate associated with the diseased plants in Benin was of the BBTV South Pacific type. This is thought to be the first report of BBTV in Benin. The disease is widespread in all the four communes surveyed

Repositioning Technical Education a Panacea to Solving Globalization Challenges in Construction Sector

Globalization has created a wind of change that has eroded landscapes of economy of nations of the world. Globalization era has led to emergence of new engineering ideology, concepts, tools, machines as well as systems and procedure. In some places, private economy drive has been left to private sector while government provides policy and ideology formulation interphase. Technical education is one of the areas affected by this phenomenon and in turn, the construction sector, thus the need for its repositioning towards quality delivery. Technology education is at the forefront of providing landscape training towards individuals being produced by the sector having thorough understanding of their place in contributing to the economic growth of construction sector. Thus, technical education need to be repositioned further to enable more relevance of its products to their environment. Therefore, the study considered repositioning technical education towards solving globalization challenges in building sector. In order to achieve this, sampling technique was used in this study, 120 structured questionnaire, designed in Likert scale form, on scale 1 to 5, was used for the study. It was discovered that repositioning the technical education in developing economy like Nigeria would involve taking the following position; overviewing of the current curriculum, running technical-based education, introducing cutting edge equipment and tools, technology transfer, technical symbiotic relations among economic drivers, adjustment of government policy, training and retraining issue, preventing discriminatory tendencies between technical based vocations and non-technical based jobs, emphasizing technical competence and partnership between education institutions and industry. The study concluded by recommending the following as a solution: infrastructure, research, adequate funding, technology incubation center and training/retraining for the practitioner