The design of an electric fence monitoring system : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Technology in Production Technology at Massey University

This thesis presents the design of an Electric Fence Monitoring System (EFMS) which detects and announciates fence malfunctions indicating operational ineffectiveness. The EFMS consists of a master unit and up to sixteen slave units. Each slave unit monitors a single remote point on the fence. Slave units gain their power from the electric fence pulse itself. They use a unique transmission algorithm to transmit the peak electric fence voltage, to the master unit. The electric fence wire is used to convey this transmission. The master unit uses a non-linear switched capacitor filter with variable gain control, to detect the slave unit transmissions. This unit displays the peak voltage at each monitored point and allows the setting of alarm trigger points. This thesis includes modelling of the electric fence energiser and typical electric fence line, and the detailed design of the two units that makeup the EFMS

Strengthening Construction Management in the Rural Rehab Line of Business

The Five Key ObservationsObservation#1: Rural rehab success emanated from positive thinking and persistent implementationObservation #2: Almost every RHRO would benefit from a substantial increase in the per unit funding available, especially in light of the forthcoming HUD HOME requirement to establish written rehab standards in ten subcategories.Observation #3: A smartphone and tablet with 20 to 40 apps is the rehab specialist's Swiss Army knife. They are our, GPS, calculator, spec writer, office lifeline in case of danger, camera, clock, cost estimator calendar and a hundred other single-purpose but very important uses.Observation #4: NeighborWorks® Rural Initiative could provide a clearinghouse for success techniques targeted to rural rehab. Each month it might focus on a specific aspect of rehab management; inspection checklists in January, green specs in February, feasibility checklist in March, contractor qualification questionnaires in April and so on.Observation #5: Even with most components of in-house contractor success formula in place, per the Statistic Research Institute 53% of construction firms go out of business with in the first 4 years. It remains a very risky model that requires significant; funding, staff experience, administrative support and risk tolerance.Three Rehab Production Models And Their AlternativesThis middle section restates the introduction and methodology and offers a detailed review of the Traditional Rehab Specialist, Construction Management Of Subcontractor and the In-House General Contractor production models .for each model the article provides: definition and staffing pattern, design roles and tasks for each major player, benefits and challenges, alternative models and finally recommendations for successful implementationFocus TopicsDuring our interview process, three ideas surfaced that were best served with a mini discussion of the topic rather than being embedded in the already large middle section.The three topics are; software and technology, management of community relations – marketing and quality control, and budget solution

Formal and informal systems of VET: implications for employee involvement

The age-old conundrum embodied in the skills challenge is this: if it is accepted that skills are a good thing, then why is it that the uptake of skills development practices, through, for example, training and lifelong learning agenda, are not widespread? In voluntarist Britain, policy- makers, researchers, educationalists and even practitioners have been grappling for a long time with low training participation, and the low-skills, low-wage route that British industry has adopted. Problems associated with this include claims of a productivity gap that exists between the UK and major competitors and the perpetuation of short-termism that has led to the restriction of capacity development. Scholars offering a panacea to the challenge have often called for the strengthening of institutions, usually supporting such exhortations with evidence from comparative studies that other countries are better in the regulation of both internal and external labour markets. Notwithstanding the necessity to strengthen institutions and to develop a comprehensive vocational education and training (VET) system that respects social partnership and industrial democracy and genuinely involves the employee voice, there is also a need to account for the multi-layered nature that currently exists in formal and informal guises

Developing Effective K-16 Geoscience Partnerships

This article describes the benefits of research partnerships to scientists, students, and teachers. There is growing awareness that the way science is experienced in the K-16 classroom deviates greatly from the experiences of practicing researchers. Whereas researchers are immersed in more open-ended observation and inquiry, many K-16 students find themselves cramming to memorize core scientific content in preparation for standardized examinations. This issue can be mitigated by the development of partnerships in which scientists benefit by added human resources (teachers and students) for data collection and analysis, and teachers and students benefit from a learning process that fosters creativity, sets high standards, teaches problem solving, and is highly motivating. Educational levels: Graduate or professional

Upper Sioux Indian Community Trip Report: Assessment of Mold and Moisture Conditions

Paul Francisco from the Building Research Council (BRC) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Robert Nemeth from Magna Systems, Inc. conducted a site visit at the Upper Sioux Indian Community Housing Department (USICHD) on April21-23, 2004. The USICHD administers the housing program for the Upper Sioux Indian Community. The site visit provided technical assistance to the housing department in assessing mold and moisture conditions in housing units. This report summarizes activities and issues addressed while on site. A detailed analysis of findings and recommendations is found in PART II: Upper Sioux Indian Community Housing Department Technical Housing Assessment Report: Examining Mold and Moisture Conditions of Homes for the Upper Sioux Indian Community.U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Native American Program

Developing a 'road map' to facilitate employers' role in engaging with the skills development agenda

The UK construction skills shortage problem remains highly topical. Despite academic research and industrial efforts to mitigate the problem, construction employers face increasing pressure to get the skilled workforce necessary to fulfil rising workloads in the UK. There is limited success in the recruitment of nontraditional labour, shift towards prefabrication and the employment of migrant labour. Following the Leitch (2006) report, employers will be expected to become more proactive in engaging with the skills development agenda in the future. Yet, the extant literature remains fairly opaque on how employers can achieve this effectively. The research project outlined in this paper attempts to examine the processes involved in engaging employers in the skills development agenda, with a view to develop a decision-support tool (a ‘road-map’) for employers in this respect. The proposed research approach is outlined in this paper, which includes mapping out of current policies and initiatives that are geared towards construction skills development, case studies to explore how employers are presently engaging in skills development and action research to test the prototype tool