Lean Principles: An Innovative Approach for Achieving Sustainability in the Egyptian Construction Industry

In spite of the economic and social contributions of the Construction Industry (CI) in terms of achieving national and international development plans, offering employment opportunities, increasing Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as well as providing community members with buildings and infrastructure projects that meet their needs and fulfil their requirements, it has a major impact on the environment. The construction industry is a very large consumer of non-renewable resources. In addition, it is a significant source of waste and pollution of air and water as well as an important contributor to land dereliction. Furthermore, it is responsible for 50% of the material resources taken from nature, 40% of energy consumed and 50% of total waste generated. Towards saving the planet, it became crucial to stop the depletion of the natural capitals of the earth thorough developing creative and innovative solutions that achieve the objectives of present generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. This paper aims to investigate the role of Lean Principles (LPs) as an innovative approach for achieving sustainability in the Egyptian Construction Industry (ECI). Towards achieving this aim, a research methodology consisting of literature review, case studies and survey questionnaire, is designed to accomplish five objectives. Firstly, reviewing literature related to sustainability, (LPs) and highlighting their relationship as well as discussing the ability of (LPs) to achieve sustainability objectives. Secondly, presenting and analysing four case studies benefited from applying (LPs) to deliver sustainable projects. Thirdly, presenting and analysing results of a survey questionnaire directed to a sample of Egyptian Construction Firms (ECFs) to investigate their perception and application of (LPs) towards achieving sustainability objectives. Fourthly, developing a conceptual framework to promote the use of (LPs) as an innovative tool for achieving sustainability in (ECI). Finally, summarising research conclusions and recommendations useful to governmental authorities and construction professionals

Congestion and admission control in WDM optical networks

The demand for more communication bandwidth and network resources, has pushed researchers to find faster and more reliable data communication networks. Wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) is a promising technology to meet such increasing demands. To make use of the WDM networks, some issues need to be dealt with. This thesis discusses three problems, constraint-based path selection. Congestion Control and Admission Control. When selecting a path between the source and destination, in which some constraints are present, the choice of the path can have dramatic effects on the Quality of Service (QoS). Three path selection algorithms are compared in order to achieve optimum path selection. These algorithms are presented and analyzed in this thesis. The algorithms do not just deal with one path selection constraint but k-constraints. Two controllers are presented: A proposed congestion controller and the second is a call admission controller in circuit switched networks. The proposed congestion control algorithm is based on the fuzzy logic technique and aims to control the congestion in a WDM network through an adequate adjustment of the delay on the calls that are in the queue of the server. The adaptive admission controller for circuit switched networks is based on the optimization of resources in the network. Numerous Simulation results are presented which show the performance of each controller

Pelvic support osteotomy by Ilizarov’s concept: Is it a valuable option in managing neglected hip problems in adolescents and young adults?

For evaluating pelvic support osteotomy as a salvage procedure in managing neglected hip problems in adolescents and young adults, PSO was performed for 20 hips in 20 patients (5 men and 15 women). The mean age was 21.5 years. The etiology was neglected developmental dysplasia of the hip in 9 patients, post-septic hip sequelae in 9 patients, and paralytic dislocation due to poliomyelitis in 2 patients. All patients were treated by two osteotomies: a proximal femoral osteotomy to support the pelvis and correct the flexion and rotational deformities of the hip and a distal varization and lengthening osteotomy. Final clinical evaluation was done 6 months after frame removal. The mean external fixation time was 6.4. Lengthening and mechanical axis parallelism was achieved in all patients. At the final follow-up and according to a predesigned scoring system, there were 7(35%) excellent results, 6(30%) good results, 7(35%) fair results, and no poor results. Hip reconstruction by Ilizarov’s concept can be technically demanding and involving lengthy period wearing the frame but found to be a valuable salvage procedure for numerous neglected hip problems particularly in young patients

A Model-Based Method for Assessment of Salivary Gland and Planning Target Volume Dosimetry in Volumetric-Modulated Arc Therapy Planning on Head-and-Neck Cancer.

This study examined the relationship of achievable mean dose and percent volumetric overlap of salivary gland with the planning target volume (PTV) in volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) plan in radiotherapy for a patient with head-and-neck cancer. The aim was to develop a model to predict the viability of planning objectives for both PTV coverage and organs-at-risk (OAR) sparing based on overlap volumes between PTVs and OARs, before the planning process. Forty patients with head-and-neck cancer were selected for this retrospective plan analysis. The patients were treated using 6 MV photons with 2-arc VMAT plan in prescriptions with simultaneous integrated boost in dose of 70 Gy, 63 Gy, and 58.1 Gy to primary tumor sites, high-risk nodal regions, and low-risk nodal regions, respectively, over 35 fractions. A VMAT plan was generated using Varian Eclipse (V13.6), in optimization with biological-based generalized equivalent uniform dose (gEUD) objective for OARs and targets. Target dose coverage

Endotracheal Tube Dislodgment in a High Risk Pulmonary Hypertensive Patient due to Undiagnosed Tracheomegaly: A Case Report

Introduction Airway enlargement was first described histologically in 1872, but it was not clinically reported until 1932, when Dr. Mounier-Kuhn published his seminal radiographic studies.1 Since then, it is estimated that several hundred case reports have been published on congenital Mounier-Kuhn Syndrome (MKS), acquired tracheomegaly, and tracheobronchomegaly (TBM), yet only a few comprehensive literature reviews exist.2 Case This case report details an elective nasal procedure for a patient with a history of significant pulmonary hypertension ad COPD on 5L home O2 who had a symptomatic facial trauma. He was considered high risk secondary to his pulmonary disease, but he was considered medically optimized for surgery and had undergone a prior uncomplicated general anesthetic. An intraoperative endotracheal tube dislodgement necessitated emergency airway rescue with difficulty in re-establishing adequate ventilation resulting in the patient being brought to the ICU post-operatively. After a second endotracheal dislodgement shortly later, retrospective radiographic airway analysis revealed tracheal dimensions of 32 x 26mm, suggesting a previously undiagnosed tracheomegaly. Written consent and HIPAA authorization was obtained from the patient for the publication of this case report. Conclusion This case highlights the clinical importance for anesthesiologists to be aware of tracheobronchomegaly (TBM) despite limited provider experience with these patients and sparse reporting on the condition. It is underdiagnosed radiographically and may first present in the OR. TBM can manifest in many ways with potentially fatal complications thus it is vital for anesthesiologists to be able to recognize, troubleshoot, and potentially treat issues related to the disease

Study and Design of a Multi-range Programmable Sensor for Temperature Measurement

In this paper, a wide-range high-precision sensor has been designed in order to accurately measure the temperature in a medium with arbitrary temperature variation and the implementation of a wide-spectrum temperature measurement system with a self-selected multi-sensor has been realized. This multi-sensor core is made up of different sensors combined to measure different temperature ranges. This concept can be used for high-precision temperature measurement in electrical capacitance tomography applications. The proposed technique is well suited for temperatures in boilers, industries, and everywhere high temperature measurement sensitivity is needed by using different combined temperature sensors of high precision

Analysis of coal hydrogasification processes. Final report

Bechtel Corporation has conducted a program to investigate the operability potential and scaleup feasibility of the Cities Service, Rocketdyne, Pittsburgh Energy Research Center (PERC), and Brookhaven National Laboratory coal hydrogasification processes. A reactor model study has been performed for each of the processes, and a conceptual, full-scale hydrogasification reactor design has been generated. The entrained-downflow reactor systems operate at temperatures up to 2,000/sup 0/F and pressures up to 3,000 psi. Reactor product is primarily methane, with smaller amounts of ethane, BTX, light oils, and carbon-oxides. Bechtel has collected and analyzed bituminous, subbituminous, and lignite coal hydrogasification and hydropyrolysis data from Rocketdyne, Cities Service, PERC, and Brookhaven National Laboratory. Semiempirical correlations for predicting overall carbon conversion efficiency and carbon selectivity to gaseous products have been fitted to the data. A conceptual design of a full-scale hydrogasification reactor has been generated, on the basis of the subbituminous coal data gathered in the Cities Service and Rocketdyne reactors, together with the predictive reactor performance models fitted to the data. The hydrogasification stage has a configuration similar to the Rocketdyne reactor assembly