Structural equation modelling assessment of personal and social factors on Hajj crowding among African pilgrims in Mina

African pilgrimage to the Mecca date back to the early years of Islam through the Sahara desert. The perception of this group of pilgrims as they embark on the sacred Mina prayer rituals directly translates to how they perceived crowding in Mina. Hajj rituals are carried out at Mina for a minimum of three days. The optimum provision and continuous improvements of the facilities for pilgrims determines how this group reacts to the crowded environment which invariably affects their psychology. This paper assesses the impacts of personal fac-tors (control, expectation, mood and sociability) and social factors (interpersonal similarity, provision of information and activities) on crowding levels perception among pilgrim groups from African origins. A self-administered survey instrument was used in the collection of data from the African origin Hajj group totaling 156 in number. Data analysis was carried out utilizing SPSS on the descriptive data and AMOS for multivariate Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The survey instruments internal consistency, sample adequacy Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) found that the validity was within acceptable thresholds. The pilgrim groups from African origins measurement model revealed that sociability and interpersonal similarity had the highest correlation while level of perceived crowing and activities had the lowest correlation. Furthermore, for personal factors, sociability had the highest inverse impact and for social factors, interpersonal similarity. The authorities formulating policies to managing crowd levels and perception will invari-ably be affected by adapting these research findings to improve the Hajj experience. Subsequently, assessing several other factors, which effect Hajj pilgrims such as physical factors, provides an avenue for future research

Latent provisions for building information modeling (BIM) contracts: a social network analysis approach

The effective adoption and use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) require appropriate contract design to fairly allocate the contracting parties’ rights and responsibilities. Several standards for BIM protocols and contracts have been developed for the industry. However, the awareness and the use of these are rather limited, leading to unclear provisions in BIM contracts. Therefore, the research aims to identify the influential legal aspects that serve as the latent contract provisions in BIM contracts. A questionnaire survey was conducted to survey experts and active BIM users in construction projects. The data were analyzed using social network analysis (SNA) by assuming interdependent relationships among various the legal aspects in BIM contacts. The key legal aspects associated with BIM contracts pertain to the roles and responsibilities of the project participants. The results also reveal that data security is the center of all latent legal aspects in the contracts. The study provides significant new insights into clarifying the required contract provisions in BIM contracts

MyCREST embedded framework for enhancing the adoption of green office building development in Sarawak

Purpose: Green building development practices reduce carbon footprint and promote sustainability in the built environment. To foster green building construction in Malaysia, several strategies and sustainability metrics like the Malaysian Carbon Reduction and Environmental Sustainability Tool (MyCREST) have been established. Yet, the implementation of green office building development in Sarawak still remains low. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to develop MyCREST Embedded Framework (MEF) for enhancing the adoption of green office building construction in Sarawak. Design/methodology/approach: To achieve the research aim, document analysis of the overarching MyCREST Reference Guide was conducted. Then, questionnaire was used to survey 120 green construction professionals in Kuching, the capital of Sarawak. Afterwards, data from the questionnaire was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science software version 22. As a result, the significant strategies for enhancing the adoption of green office building construction in Sarawak were identified, and ranked hierarchically using the Relative Importance Index. Findings: The established significant strategies include: government policies and incentives, sustainable technological practices, defined process for executing green building projects and adequate information for the public. Moreover, this study recommends MyCREST as the suitable Green Building Assessment Tool for developing green office buildings in Sarawak due to its integration of carbon reduction strategies with sustainability indicators. Research limitations/implications: This study is limited to Kuching; hence future study should be extended to other cities in Sarawak. Originality/value: Based on the findings, the MEF is developed to enlighten the industry practitioners on the approaches that will elevate green office building development in Sarawak

The influence of sustainable physical factors on Hajj crowd perception among internal pilgrim group in Mina

Devotional and ritual observance by internal pilgrims to Hajj presents a constant journey towards fulfilling the fifth pillar of Islam. Although, internal pilgrims are within their geographical domain, the large number of pilgrims visiting Mina at a given time stimulates crowding perception. Internal pilgrims perform such rituals in Mina for a minimum of three days. The local authorities are constantly expected to provide adequate amenities which require constant assessment to enable internal pilgrims perform their rituals without the stress of feeling crowded. In the quest for sustainable best practices, this paper examines the effects of sustainable physical factors (coding and signage, disorientation cause, spatial anxiety, orientation strategies and routing strategies) on perceived crowding levels among internal group of pilgrims in Mina. Data was collected via self-Administered questionnaire from 473 internal pilgrims to Hajj. The data was analysed using SPSS for descriptive analysis and AMOS for Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Internal consistency of the developed research instrument, Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy and exploratory factor analysis revealed that the research instrument was suitable. The internal pilgrim group measurement model revealed that orientation strategies and routing strategies had the highest correlation. Furthermore, disorientation cause (0.63), spatial anxiety (-0.59), orientation strategies (0.60) and routing strategies (-0.61) were all significantly affecting level of crowding perception except coding and signage (-0.52). In summary, the findings will aid in directing policies aimed at improving crowd control by authorities in Mina

Building information modelling penetration factors in Malaysia

The construction industry master plan in Malaysia provides ample leverage towards information technology improvements in the construction industry. Building Information Modelling (BIM) transforms the means to which the traditionally thought method is construction is carried out. Changes occur in aspects of people, process and technology during such transformation. Information technology (IT) acceptance theories of Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), Innovation Diffusion Theory (IDT), Decomposed Theory of Planned Behaviour (DTPB), Extension of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM2) and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology stipulates underlining theories to accessing user perception to new systems such as BIM. This paper presents the linking paths to factors of user perceptions (people, process and technology) and how they react in strategic IT implementation and collaborative environment to fully support extensive BIM penetration in the industry. The study further extends the BIM penetration model by Enegbuma and Ali (2012). The model will aid industry practitioners to tackle the various challenges experienced with BIM implementation. Future research will focus on solidifying the proposal with data analysis

Building Information Modelling (BIM) educational framework for quantity surveying students: the Malaysian perspective

For the past few years, the wave of Building Information Modelling (BIM) has been hitting the shores of Malaysian construction industry. The unprecedented change it brings to the design responsibilities of construction professionals in Malaysia has led to a pre-emptive strategic focus for Quantity Surveying (QS) profession. The QS profession adheres to the 5th dimension of BIM, which invariably translates to the context of costing, offering the capability to generate quantity take-off, counts and measurement directly from a model. BIM digitalized data lead to accurate automated estimation which reduces variability in cost estimation. From the academic point of view, requirements to meet this paradigm shift to BIM requires an enhancement to the existing set of skills and knowledge available in Malaysian institutions of higher learning. The promotion of BIM educational framework for the QS graduates have been professional body led. This is carried out by the Royal Institution of Surveyors Malaysia (RISM) which has been actively involved in establishing the educational framework which in turn has been referred to by the higher institutions that offers quantity surveying program. This paper describes the educational framework for the QS in the context of BIM implementation that charts a route on how knowledge on BIM principles and its application can be imparted to the whole-life interdisciplinary design and construction with prime focus on the QS scope of work. The primary aim of the framework lies in equipping QS graduates with the necessary skills in project delivery through the use of BIM by focusing on four spheres of attainment level and two different level of knowledge acquisition