Assessing Housing Project End-Users Satisfaction in Ghana: A Case Study of SSNIT Housing Flats in Asuoyeboa-Kumasi

Provision of housing is a critical component of the social and economic structure constituting basic human needs. Housing challenges however ranges from inadequate provision to unsatisfactorily performance regarding project location, housing features and demographic characteristics. This paper identified and assessed factors constituting end-users perception of satisfaction against the performance of the housing development. Thirty-five (35) factors were identified as constituting perception of end-users satisfaction and grouped under building design, neighborhood conditions, social amenities and management practices.A case study approach and purposive sampling of the two types of designs were used. Questionnaires were administered to occupants of thirty-eight (38) flats to rank the factors using five-point Likert scale and Relative Importance Index, the factors were analysed. End-users were generally satisfied with building design features especially room height and material finishes. Respondents were dissatisfied with housing designs without balconies, terraces, and outdoor spaces for traditional food preparation and socio-cultural practices. In addition were location, high dust and noise levels, inadequate social infrastructure and poor management practices. The study recommends gated community concept, consideration of noise and dust buffers, spaces for social-cultural practices and location away from major highway for enhanced end-users satisfaction. Keywords: Assessing, End-User, Ghana, Housing Projects, Satisfaction

An Evaluation of Stakeholder Management Role in GETFund Polytechnics Projects Delivery in Ghana

Construction projects are undertaken to achieve specific goals and the success of it is measured by the realization of the set goals including stakeholder satisfaction. Several stakeholders are involved in construction projects and depending on the nature, complexity, procurement method adopted; stakeholders are involved at different stages of the project undertaking different roles and responsibilities. These stakeholders with varying stake influence and power, plays major roles in the success or failure of the project. Stakeholder Management is therefore essential if project goals are to be achieved. The Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) is a key stakeholder established to provide and maintain educational infrastructure but has failed to achieve its objectives. Several projects have failed and stakeholders are dissatisfied. This study explores the role of Stakeholder Management in GETFund projects delivery. A mixed method approach of qualitative and quantitative surveys using semi-structured interviews and questionnaire was adopted. Research findings were analyzed using triangulation and descriptive analysis methods to evaluate the role of SM in project delivery. SM plays major role in project time, cost overruns, scope variation, non-completion, abandonment and poor payment schedules through poor SM process consideration and records keeping. Respondents agree that SM role should be considered during project planning, development and execution stages using SM framework. Keywords: Evaluation, GETFund, Project Delivery, Role, Stakeholder Managemen

The Use of Mobile Construction Applications in the Ghanaian Construction Industry

There exist several construction applications (Apps) used on mobile phones or tablets within the construction industry, yet there is a gap between technology design and technology use in the Ghanaian construction industry. The aim of this study is to find out the use of construction apps in the Ghanaian construction industry. The objectives were to find out the awareness of the use of construction apps and to evaluate the construction apps used in the Ghanaian construction industry. An extensive literature review was conducted to identify the construction applications available in the construction industry and were group under 5 main headings; namely, estimation, calculators, CAD, construction site and project management Apps. Field survey of Sixty-Two registered building and civil contractors in Ashanti Region was conducted. Questionnaires were distributed to top management team of the firms with a response rate of 89%. Data obtained were analysed with descriptive statistics techniques. The results show that majority were not aware of the use of construction apps by 58% of the respondents yet most use android phones or tablets that support Apps. However, the topmost applications normally used were site photos, microsoft, spirit level, material estimator calculator, AutoCAD WS, Construction Master Pro, Universal Estimator, AndCAD, Carpenter’s Calculator, and painting estimator. It is however important that tertiary educational institutions pursuing construction related programmes should from time to time educate the young construction engineers about the modern and importance of the usage of these construction apps to enhance efficiency in their operations. Keywords: construction Apps, contractors, construction industry, mobile phones, Ghana

The Impact of Step Parenting on the Health, Behavior and Development of School-aged Children

The American family structure has changed rapidly over the years, from the traditional two-biological-parent household to a variety of other family configurations, leading to a substantial number of children growing up in step-families. This paper examines the impact of step-parenting on child health outcomes among school-aged children

MANAGING CONSTRUCTION STAKEHOLDER S FOR EFFECTIVE PROJECT DELIVERY : A CASE OF CONSULTANT QUANTITY SURVEYORS

Meeting stakeholders’ needs and satisfaction is a primary project success factor in addition to cost, time and quality. Though studies have suggested stakeholders’ dissatisfaction with project success, however, there is lack of studies on quantitysurveyor s’ role and management in developing countries in achieving project success. This paper explored and evaluated quantity surveyor’s consultant’s management approach as part of a broader study aimed at ‘Developing sustainable stakeholder management framework for construction projects in Ghana’. Firstly, literature on construction stakeholder management from journals and published dissertations were reviewed. Whilst, GETFund tertiary education projects in Ghana were used as case study for the research . Data wa s analysed using the stakeholder circle, salience and matrix approaches suggested by scholars and used in similar researches to identify and evaluate key stakeholders role and management. The study confirmed the identification and role of Quantity Surveyor s as key stakeholders though not managed as such by project managers. P roject failures was also establish the an effect of stakeholder management absence and recommends the education, consideration of stakeholder management by project managers, keeping Qu antity Surveyors well informed, monitored and actively involved in the project planning

Exploring Traditional and Cultural Health Models in the Context of Preventive Health Behaviors: Testing the Theory of Planned Behavior and the PEN-3 Cultural Model in the Ghanaian Context

Attempts at finding models that could better explain and predict health behaviors have been fraught with debates concerning their applicability in different contexts. Some scholars argue that traditional health models that stress sense-making, and are developed and tested among Western populations, have universal applicability. Other scholars say that socio-cultural models that stress interconnectedness, social cohesion/support, and structure are better in non-Western contexts. The study compared the strengths of a cultural health model &ndash; the PEN-3 Model &ndash; and that of a traditional health model &ndash; the theory of planned behavior (TPB) &ndash; in predicting preventive health behaviors in the Ghanaian context. The study used a sequential design, first involving 21 college students and 17 dieticians in a focus group and second involving 618 college students who completed a survey. Structural equation modeling analyses showed that the TPB model, measured using global constructs, was better at predicting preventive health behaviors than the PEN-3 Model. Also, two integrated models formed by combining local and global TPB and the PEN-3 Model constructs predicted preventive health behaviors better than the PEN-3 Model. Even though the integrated models explained more variance in preventive health behaviors than the TPB models, the differences were insignificant. Construct-wise, nurturers and subjective norms emerged as main predictors of intention to engage in preventive health behavior, while attitudes and perceptions did not influence behavior. It underscores the importance of social networks, social support and interconnectedness, and social pressure over the individualizing theorizing espoused by traditional models. Intention and PBC emerged as main predictors of preventive health behaviors, suggesting that even though students may have some control over preventive health behaviors, there are structural barriers preventing them from exercising total control over such behaviors. Thematic analyses of focus group data revealed a unique construct, hinderers, who are strangers but are key in obstructing preventive health practices, especially exercise. It deviates from how human drivers of health behaviors had been previously conceptualized only as those in people&rsquo;s close social networks that they care about. These findings underscore the importance of social support/hindrance and social structure in preventive health behaviors in the Ghanaian context. They also expand our knowledge on how we conceptualize the predictors of preventive health behavior by suggesting the introduction of new constructs and models that could help explain health behavior better and guide intervention efforts.</p

Adopting innovative methods in the Ghanaian construction industry

Abstract: Increased demand for building infrastructure delivery advocates for innovative construction methods. This paper examines the concept and application of Modern Method of Construction used in the South-West UK, and the Innovative Building Technologies in South Africa. It assesses the methods, current use, off-site manufacturing; identifies and evaluates aspects of the construction process typically used with the aim of identifying and analysing the barriers and merits for the adoption in the Ghanaian construction industry. The research design adopts a qualitative method and case study of two housing projects as part of a broader study to determine an appropriate innovative construction method to meet project targets of time, cost, quality and improved delivery for the Ghanaian industry. The study finds; convenience; speed; reduced cost and improved delivery as the key success factors though there is less than 5% use of the innovative methods in the entire sector for mainly repetitive housing, schools and hospital projects. Negative end-users perception of building quality and low satisfaction; less government intervention through education; promotion; availability of off-site contractors and materials were also the barriers identified. Management contract is adopted in most cases hence the risk transferred to the management contractors. Lessons learnt are outlined and recommendation made for government action plans to mitigate the barriers during its implementation in the Ghanaian construction industry

Ros-E: A smart building monitoring system

Applied project submitted to the Department of Computer Science and Information Systems, Ashesi University, in partial fulfillment of Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science, May 2020Through technology, buildings are no longer just containers for life. With the large amount of data that can be accessed about everything from occupancy, to ambient room conditions and energy use, buildings are becoming smarter. Smart buildings offer new solutions to the problems of smart living. Unfortunately, most buildings in Africa fail to tap into the data that is provided by the ambient conditions inside them as well as the occupants residing in them. This project provides a smart building monitoring system that keeps track of the ambient conditions inside a building by the use of an Arduino powered module connected to sensors that transfers data via Bluetooth and makes further analyses on this data to improve comfortability and usability of occupants.Ashesi Universit

Sediments in the Tema Harbour (Ghana): chemical pollution and sedimentation rates

The Tema Harbour in Ghana has been in operation for nearly six decades and is subject to large influxes of sediments and sediment pollution due to the intense human activities in the harbour area. This thesis assessed sediment pollution in the Tema Harbour by using the standard 10-day Corophium volutator and 28-day Hediste diversicolor whole-sediment toxicity bioassays as well as chemical contaminant (DDTs, HCHs, PAHs and metal - Cd, Pb, Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn and As) data. The bioassay results showed significant C. volutator and H. diversicolor mortalities, indicating that the Tema Harbour sediments are polluted and toxic. Biota-sediment accumulation factors further revealed a high potential for bioaccumulation of the sediment-associated metals, which can have adverse implications for the food chain. Thus, the Tema Harbour sediments are unsuitable for disposal at sea without remediation. The thesis further investigated sediment accumulation rates in the Tema Harbour by the combined analyses of sediment trap and sediment core data. The sediment cores exhibited variable bulk density profiles, indicating highly dynamic and non-steady sedimentation conditions. 7Be-derived gross-estimates of very recent sediment accumulation rates using the constant flux-constant sedimentation (CF-CS) model were in the range of 2.5-9.0 g.cm-2.y-1. These values were much lower than the estimated average settling fluxes from the sediment trap data (15.2-53.8 g.cm-2.y-1), indicating sediment resuspension plays an important role in the sedimentation process. Conventional 210Pb sediment dating models did not allow any estimation of SARs in the Tema Harbour. The 210Pb-based TERESA model, on the other hand, proved to be a good tool for quantifying sediment accumulation rates in the Tema Harbour with time-averaged values in the range of 1.4-3.0 g.cm-2.y-1 and sediment accretion rates of 1.7-3 cm.y-1. In conclusion, this study has shown that the Tema Harbour has been severely affected by anthropogenic activities, resulting in pollution of the sediments, especially those from the Fishing Harbour and the Canoe Basin. Moreover, the sediment accretion rates in the harbour may pose moderate problems for sustainable use of the harbour. There is, therefore, a need to improve sediment and environmental management in the Tema Harbour and regulate the disposal of the dredged material originating from this tropical coastal harbour. </p