HyCon - a virtual reality design support tool for hybrid concrete structural frames

Hybrid concrete can provide high quality, cost effective structural frames in a variety of situations when compared to other, more conventional, solutions such as in-situ concrete and steel frames. The key players in the design and construction supply chain process for hybrid concrete are lead frame contractors and design engineers. The use of hybrid concrete, however, is sometimes not considered by contractors and designers during the initial stages of design. This is often because of a lack of reliable and accessible hybrid concrete cost and production time information. Without this information, contractors and designers may disregard hybrid concrete as a design alternative, potentially omitting the most appropriate solution before it has even been considered. This paper reports on a collaborative research project in the United Kingdom which has developed HyCon - a prototype design support tool which allows contractors and designers at the conceptual design stage to carry out "what if?" analysis in a virtual reality environment to consider various hybrid concrete alternatives against a range of 'hard' and 'soft' performance criteria. The 'hard' criteria allow contractors and designers to assess initial and whole life cycle cost and production duration implications. The 'soft' criteria encourage the whole project team to assess and prioritise the importance and performance of design alternatives against criteria such as physical form and space

The Impact of the Values of Abu-Dhabi Police on the Competencies of their Project Managers

A study of the competencies of Abu-Dhabi Policersquos (ADPrsquos) project managers and the associated impact of the organizationrsquos values was conducted. This paper draws from the study to report on the relationship between the relative attainment of ADPrsquos 5 values and 15 competencies by their project managers.nbsp Following an in-depth literature review, the need for studying the connection between the values and competencies was established. A quantitative approach was adopted for studying the connections where a questionnaire was used to collect data from both project managers and managers who are currently working with ADP. 157 questionnaires were distributed to the potential respondents and 71 completed responses were obtained, representing a response rate of 45%. The data collected was analyzed using ordinal regression analysis which indicated how different ADP values affect the project managersrsquo competencies varyingly. For example, the ADP value of lsquoIntegrity and honestyrsquo was found to have a higher impact on 5 of their project managersrsquo competencies which are: integration management, scope management, time management, action and achieving, and leadership. Similar connections between the other values and some of the competencies were established