Enhancing productivity in infrastructure development: The key role of project management offices

Infrastructure development contributes to economic growth and constitutes the backbone of industries. The importance of this underpinning sector of the construction industry has led contracting organizations to adopt robust project management mechanisms; enabling them to tackle ever-increasing complexities and uncertainties associated with infrastructure delivery. Project management Office (PMO) is one of the emerging concepts that has been introduced to centrally coordinate projects and integrate project management arrangements in support of ontarget delivery of large-scale infrastructure projects. Previous research underlines the potential benefits of employing these entities in the construction industry. However, there is a paucity of research on the role of these units in enhancing productivity in construction operations. This study focuses on this area and explains the requirements for boosting productivity in infrastructure delivery. The opinions of 20 construction management experts in Australian organizations were obtained and their suggestions were thematically analysed to develop a framework for boosting productivity by leveraging PMO units. The results revealed that employing such units can result in achieving higher productivity outcomes by emphasizing initiatives such as resource optimization; safety improvement; cost minimization; and waste control. The suggested approach provides construction contractors with insights on how to employ PMO entities and run them effectively to achieve satisfactory outcomes in infrastructure delivery

Barriers to achieving sustainable construction project procurement in the private sector

Sustainable procurement management (SPM) as an approach to integrating sustainability into project procurement takes into account the social, ecological, and economical consequences of procurement decisions. Several challenges hinder the proper achievement of SPM objectives in the construction industry. Previous studies have delved into such barriers in the public sector while the private sector is still less explored and requires further in-depth investigation. Regarding limited research in this area, the purpose of this study is to identify barriers hindering SPM in the private sector through an empirical study. A case study analysis based on interviews was conducted to solicit the viewpoints of construction professionals in a high-profile construction organization. Two categories of intra-organizational and extra-organizational barriers were identified; The intra-organizational barriers relate to the mechanisms, resources, and capacities within an organization while extra-organizational barriers relate to a broader environment in which an organization interacts with stakeholders in an integrated supply chain. The findings provide an improved understanding of SPM obstacles and shed light on the possible solutions, which can be used by both academics and practitioners to improve the current status of SPM practice

A knowledge-based planning assessment approach for timely delivery of construction projects

Planning is the first phase throughout the project lifecycle that ensures proper execution based on correct estimations to achieve objectives. Leveraging previous lessons learned significantly help to rectify planning mistakes and use more effective techniques. This paper explains the application of lessons learned for improving the planning outcomes in construction projects. An empirical methodology based on a case study was adopted to (1) introduce an effective method for diagnosing and resolving planning issues in construction projects, and (2) test this method in a case study project. This process underlines the importance of documenting and employing lessons learned from previous projects towards improving processes and enriching the organization's knowledge base on effective project delivery methods. The suggested approach provides construction contractors with practical insights on the topic and extends the literature by proposing a planning assessment method

A safety warning algorithm based on axis aligned bounding box method to prevent onsite accidents of mobile construction machineries

Mobile construction machineries are accident-prone on a dynamic construction site, as the site environment is constantly changing and continuous safety monitoring by human beings is impossible. These accidents usually happen in the form of machinery overturning or collapsing into risk areas, including the foundation pit, slopes, or soft soil area. Therefore, preventing mobile construction machineries from entering risk areas is the key. However, currently, there is a lack of practical safety management techniques to achieve this. Utilizing a wireless sensor device to collect the location information of mobile construction machineries, this research develops a safety warning algorithm to prevent the machineries moving into risk area and reduces onsite overturning or collapsing accidents. A modified axis aligned bounding box method is proposed according to the movement patterns of mobile construction machineries, and the warning algorithm is developed based on the onsite safety management regulations. The algorithm is validated in a real case simulation when machinery enters the warning zone. The simulation results showed that the overall algorithm combining the location sensing technology and the modified bounding box method could detect risk and give warnings in a timely manner. This algorithm can be implemented for the safety monitoring of mobile construction machineries in daily onsite management

A Highly Efficient Method for Synthesis of Bisarylmethylidenes of Cyclic Ketones in [BMIm]Cl/NaOH System as New and Recyclable Catalyst

An ionic liquid 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazoliumchloride[BMIm]Cl/sodium hydroxide system, was employed as a catalyst for the fast and one-pot crossed aldol-condensation of various aromatic aldehydes and cyclic ketones, to produce a variety of substituted α,α'-bis(benzylidene)-cycloalkanones under neat conditions. This process is simple, efficient and environmentally benign and proceeds in high yield and short reaction times. The ionic liquid can be recycled for subsequent reactions without any appreciable loss of efficiency

The impact on neighbourhood residential property valuations of a newly proposed public transport project: The Sydney Northwest Metro case study

© 2019 The Authors The development of new and upgraded transport infrastructure projects are driving economic benefits for business, the environment and society. Major transport projects can fundamentally reshape the very fabric of urban development. However, they are also incredibly expensive to build and can represent a significant burden on the public purse. A vexed question is how the broader benefit of improved transport infrastructure in operation might usefully be leveraged to contribute to the capital investment cost. The Transit-Oriented Development impact of new transportation infrastructure on the value of local property is gaining increasing attention as a potential source of capital contribution. This study investigates the extent of value uplift in property brought about by the announcement and construction of a major transport infrastructure development in Sydney, Australia. A Hedonic Price Model approach is used to assess data on the market valuation of nearby properties and relevant Census data over two distinct project stages: project announcement (2008–2012), and project construction (2013–2019). Findings of the case study show that the impact of rail transit on property prices is significant, but are generally negative at the announcement stage and positive at the construction stage. At the construction stage, residential prices rose an average of 0.037% for every 1% reduction in the distance to the nearest metro station. Of the three models considered for the Hedonic Price Model the Log-linear model (elastic model) has been shown to perform best in representing the relationships in this particular case

Disaster risk management approaches in construction and built environment: A research collaboration networks perspective

© 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: Currently there is no analysis of the development of disaster risk management literature in the construction and built environment context, the changes in its research paradigms over time and the role of different key players in the advance of its current body of knowledge. This study aims to address that gap by investigating the longitudinal data of disaster risk management literature published over the past three decades. Design/methodology/approach: A social network analysis approach is used in this study to show the overall development of the field and specifically the impact of research collaborations between different organisations and countries on research productivity. Findings: The results indicate that the focus of disaster risk management research in the built environment context is heavily biased towards reactive strategies (response and recovery) over proactive strategies (mitigation and preparedness). The findings also demonstrate that collaboration between disaster risk management researchers has a significant influence on their research productivity. Originality/value: The findings from this study should be of value to researchers, policymakers and academic strategists. This study for the first time shows the ability of the social networks paradigm to reveal frailties in research connections in the field of disaster risk management in construction and built environment and highlights where networking strategies are needed

Efficacy of intrauterine infusion of granulocyte colony stimulating factor on patients with history of implantation failure: A randomized control trial

Background: Although pregnancy rate in in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer (IVF-ET) cycles has been increased over the preceding years, but the majority of IVF-ET cycles still fail. Granulocyte colony stimulating factor (GCSF) is a glycoprotein that stimulates cytokine growth factor and induces immune system which may improve pregnancy rate in women with history of implantation failure. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate GCSF ability to improve pregnancy rate in women with history of implantation failure Materials and Methods: 0.5 ml (300 μg/ml) GCSF was infused intrauterine in intervention group. Pregnancy outcomes were assessed based on clinical pregnancy. Results: The mean age of participants was 31.95±4.71 years old. There were no significant differences between demographic characteristics in two groups (p>0.05). The pregnancy outcome in GCSF group was improved significantly (p=0.043). Conclusion: GCSF can improve pregnancy outcome in patients with history of implantation failur

A gentle introduction to unification in modal logics

International audienceUnification in propositional logics is an active research area. In this paper, we introduce the results we have obtained within the context of modal logics and epistemic logics and we present some of the open problems whose solution will have an important impact on the future of the area.L'unification dans les logiques propositionnelles est un domaine de recherche actif. Dans cet article, nous présentons les résultats que nous avons obtenus dans le cadre des logiques modales et des logiqueś epistémiques et nous introduisons quelques uns des problèmes ouverts dont la résolution aura un impact important sur l'avenir du domaine