Identifying Motivational and Demotivational Productivity Factors in Qatar Construction Projects

Motivation is one of the factors that influence productivity. Project management plays a vital role in the success of projects in Qatar construction industry (QCI). It relies profoundly on the team’s active participation and effective performance. Hence it is important to assess the impact of motivation and demotivation on performance. The main objective of this paper is to identify the key factors that cause motivation and de-motivation in QCI. Literature review, surveys with experts and semi-structured interviews were conducted to identify these factors. Using these factors to conduct specific motivational programs will help improve productivity in QCI. Research on motivational factors impacting productivity has not been conducted in Qatar before, so this work will provide insight on how to deal with productivity issues that QCI faces ahead of a major world event that Qatar will host in 2022

Identifying Motivational and Demotivational Productivity Factors in Qatar Construction Projects

Motivation is one of the factors that influence productivity. Project management plays a vital role in the success of projects in Qatar construction industry (QCI). It relies profoundly on the team’s active participation and effective performance. Hence it is important to assess the impact of motivation and demotivation on performance. The main objective of this paper is to identify the key factors that cause motivation and de-motivation in QCI. Literature review, surveys with experts and semi-structured interviews were conducted to identify these factors. Using these factors to conduct specific motivational programs will help improve productivity in QCI. Research on motivational factors impacting productivity has not been conducted in Qatar before, so this work will provide insight on how to deal with productivity issues that QCI faces ahead of a major world event that Qatar will host in 2022

Exterior noise due to interaction of tyre-thermoplastic transverse rumble strips

Transverse rumble strips (TRS) are a common choice to reduce vehicle speed and increase driver alertness on roadways. However, there is a potential trade-off using them on rural roadway due to the noise problem created when vehicles go over the strips. The present study investigated the noise level, spectral analysis, and the possible noise generation mechanism when the TRS is hit by a vehicle. Tenraised- rumbler (RR) and three-layer-overlapped (TLO) TRS were selected in this study as they have received complaints from the public. Results showed that RR generated a relatively higher noise and impulse at a low speed, and increased sound level in each octave band. Based on these results, RR may irritate human ears even when the vehicle travels at a low speed. It was found that RR increased all noise generation mechanisms of tyre-pavement interaction whilst TLO increased structural resonance, sidewall and surface texture vibration

Stiffness modulus properties of hot mix asphalt containing waste engine oil

This study presents the effect of waste engine oil (WEO) on the mechanical properties of hot mix asphalt mixtures. It was added into mixture at 0%, 3%, 5%, 7%, 10% and 15% by weight of binder. The mechanical properties of the mixes were evaluated by conducting indirect tensile stiffness modulus (ITSM) at temperatures of 25C and 40C. The results indicated that modified mixes exhibited lower stiffness modulus with the increasing amount of WEO as well as testing temperature. The increasing amount of WEO was found to have a good linear correlation to the decreasing of stiffness modulus. The finding showed that the WEO has the significant role as a softening agent which affected the stiffness modulus even at low percentage

Workability and rheological properties of EVA-modified bitumen compared with PG 76 binder

The failures of the flexible pavements are not only caused by harsh climatic conditions prevailing in most of the tropical countries but also due to increase in traffic. The ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) modification of the bitumen can strengthen the properties of binders and also improve the quality of bitumen used for pavements construction. This paper reports the changes in physical and rheological properties of unaged 80-100 grade bitumen modified with different percentages of EVA and compared with the properties of PG 76 binder. The penetration, softening point and viscosity properties were studied. The rheological properties were measured using dynamic shear rheometer and the test was performed at temperatures ranging from 46 to 76 ⁰C at intervals of 6 ⁰C. It was noted that, after modification, the properties of binders had improved. The results show that 5% EVA content by weight in modified binder is adequate in terms of physical and rheological properties studied. In addition, the properties of 5% EVA modified 80-100 grade bitumen are similar to PG 76 binder

Utilization of Palm Oil Mill Residue as Sustainable Pavement Materials: A Review

The advances in industrial technology have led to a major rise in the amount and forms of residue, especially during the processing of agricultural products. With the paradigm shift towards renewable energy and sustainability, there is much emphasis on biomass energy around the world which generates an immense volume of residues yearly. These residues are burgeoning issues because they are not effectively managed and utilized. Hence, one solution is utilizing them in the pavement industry. This article focuses on palm oil mill residues that are abundantly available and discarded in Malaysia. This study evaluates published works of literature relating to the utilization of these residues like the Palm Oil Fiber (POF), Palm Oil Fuel Ash (POFA), and Palm Oil Clinker (POC) and Palm Kernel Shell (PKS) in the pavement industry. The outcome of the review acknowledges the greater sustainability potential of these residues with affirmative and satisfactory performance via the result of numerous research work. Also, with a reduction in CO2-emission, low radioactivity, and heavy metal leaching level. Therefore, the review suggests more exploration and utilization of the residue in the pavement industry since it promotes safety and harness sustainability

Evaluating potential of diatomite as anti clogging agent for porous asphalt mixture

Clogging is a major problem that occurs throughout the service life of porous asphalt due to the open nature of the mixture itself. Diatomite with characteristic of abrasiveness and porous structure seems to have potential in order to remove the clogging materials that mainly consists of soils. This study aims to investigate the effects of diatomite as anti-clogging agent on the permeability rate and strength of porous asphalt. The porous asphalt samples were prepared using Malaysia aggregate gradation and polymer modified bitumen of PG76 was used as the binder. This study focuses on clay as the clogging material at different concentration. A fixed amount of 0.5 g/L diatomite was applied to the porous asphalt samples as an anti-clogging agent prior to clogging cycles. The permeability test and resilient modulus were then conducted at different clogging concentrations (0.5, 1.0, 1.5 g/L) and cycles, with and without diatomite. It was found that samples with diatomite have a higher permeability rate compared to those without any application of diatomite after a few clogging cycles. As the clogging cycles increase, the clogging materials have trapped and filled up the voids in the porous asphalt samples and increase the resilient modulus result

Evaluation of vehicle overloading along Muar-Melaka road

Vehicle overloading is considered as one of the most substantial concerns in road transport due to a possible road surface damage. This paper investigates the vehicle overloading at the Muar-Malacca roads. The main objectives for this study were to determine types of vehicles overloaded, the percentage of overloaded vehicles and an average equivalency (EF) for all vehicles. Secondary data were collected from fixed weighbridge station by considering gross vehicle weight, maximum permissible gross vehicle and axle load for the period of two years. The results show that heavy vehicle with 2 axles was the most overloaded vehicle. Category 1% -25% overloaded vehicles had the highest percentage. The calculated EF was 3.14 higher than standard EF. Thus, the road needs to redesigned in order to resist current load to prevent road damage in short term

Application of alternative filler in asphalt mixture: An overview from Indonesia perspective

A good quality and proper quantity of filler material is one of the significant factors in producing asphalt mixture. Many studies have been highlighted waste material as an alternative filler to improve asphalt mixture performance. Hence, this paper reviewed the performance of asphalt mixture using rice husk ash (RHA) as filler in terms of the Marshall properties. It shows that 6% RHA by weight of total aggregate was commonly used and depicted better in Marshall properties than the others. This study also found that the RHA can be used to replace up to 100% of the conventional filler. Even though, higher RHA content could significantly reduce the stability yet it still within the acceptable range and could be applied at medium traffic load road. In return, the higher the RHA content the more waste material can be utilized for road construction. Thus, minimized the usage natural source materials

Relationship between rutting, roughness and resilient modulus of flexible expressway pavement

The study was conducted to investigate the relationship between rutting, roughness and resilient modulus of flexible expressway pavement. The evaluation was conducted at Shah Alam Expressway from km 17.90 to km 52.20. The expressway consisted of three lanes for each bound (slow, middle and fast lanes). The scanner vehicle was used to evaluate the roughness and rutting of the entire test section and the roughness value was given in the International Roughness Index (IRI). While, the resilient modulus values for bituminous layer (E1), road base (E2) and subgrade (E3) were determined by Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD). IRI and rutting values show that the expressway was in a good to satisfactory condition. In term of resilient modulus, most of the E1 and E2 layers were in the sound to satisfactory condition except 20.1% and 32.1% of the slow lane section was in poor condition, respectively. Resilient modulus of E3 for the entire section was in the sound to satisfactory condition. As a conclusion, the fast lane shows a better condition compares to the middle and slow lanes. In addition, poor correlation was found between rutting, roughness and resilient modulus respectively