Planning the asphalt construction process:Towards more consistent paving and compaction operations

This research addresses the challenge of linking paving and compaction given that they are mostly treated as detached activities, leading to a decrease in the quality of the compacted asphalt layer. The objective was to develop a support tool that can assist decision-making related to equipment allocation and compaction strategies to be followed, such that an asphalt layer- given the prevailing conditions at the construction site- can be compacted efficiently and uniformly within a limited time interval. A basic planning protocol was then developed based on variables such as asphalt cooling, paver characteristics, roller characteristics and road geometry. 12 road construction projects were monitored over a 3- month period. Empirical data on paver speed, roller speed and the number of roller passes served as input for the tool. The monitored projects were evaluated by calculating actual paver output and theoretical and actual roller output on an interval scale and checking whether the output rates were aligned to each other during the whole construction process. The results show that in most cases, paver output, roller output and the available time for compaction were not aligned. The theoretical concepts applied in this research and the developed support tool for decision making appear to be useful for planning and monitoring paving and compaction and for steering it towards a more uniform process. This may lead to an improvement in the quality of the final compacted asphalt layer

Network level bridges maintenance planning using Multi-Attribute Utility Theory

Bridge infrastructure managers are facing multiple challenges to improve the availability and serviceability of ageing infrastructure, while the maintenance planning is constrained by budget restrictions. Many research efforts are ongoing, for the last few decades, ranging from development of bridge management system, decision support tools, optimisation models, life cycle cost analysis, etc. Since transport infrastructures are deeply embedded in society, they are not only subject to technical requirements, but are required to meet the requirements of societal and economic developments. Therefore, bridge maintenance planning should accommodate multiple performance goals which need to be quantified by various performance indicators. In this paper, an application of Multi-Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT) for bridge maintenance planning is illustrated with a case study of bridges from the Netherlands road network. MAUT seeks to optimise multiple objectives by suggesting a trade-off among them and finally assigns a ranking to the considered bridges. Moreover, utility functions of MAUT appropriately account for the involved uncertainty and risk attitude of infrastructure managers. The main contribution of this study is in presenting a proof-of-concept on how MAUT provides a systematic approach to improve the decision-making of maintenance planning by making use of available data, accommodating multiple performance goals, their uncertainty, and preferences of infrastructure managers

Proceedings of the 29th EG-ICE International Workshop on Intelligent Computing in Engineering

This publication is the Proceedings of the 29th EG-ICE International Workshop on Intelligent Computing in Engineering from July 6-8, 2022. The EG-ICE International Workshop on Intelligent Computing in Engineering brings together international experts working on the interface between advanced computing and modern engineering challenges. Many engineering tasks require open-world resolution of challenges such as supporting multi-actor collaboration, coping with approximate models, providing effective engineer-computer interaction, search in multi-dimensional solution spaces, accommodating uncertainty, including specialist domain knowledge, performing sensor-data interpretation and dealing with incomplete knowledge. While results from computer science provide much initial support for resolution, adaptation is unavoidable and most importantly, feedback from addressing engineering challenges drives fundamental computer-science research. Competence and knowledge transfer goes both ways. &nbsp

Proceedings of the 29th EG-ICE International Workshop on Intelligent Computing in Engineering

This publication is the Proceedings of the 29th EG-ICE International Workshop on Intelligent Computing in Engineering from July 6-8, 2022. The EG-ICE International Workshop on Intelligent Computing in Engineering brings together international experts working on the interface between advanced computing and modern engineering challenges. Many engineering tasks require open-world resolution of challenges such as supporting multi-actor collaboration, coping with approximate models, providing effective engineer-computer interaction, search in multi-dimensional solution spaces, accommodating uncertainty, including specialist domain knowledge, performing sensor-data interpretation and dealing with incomplete knowledge. While results from computer science provide much initial support for resolution, adaptation is unavoidable and most importantly, feedback from addressing engineering challenges drives fundamental computer-science research. Competence and knowledge transfer goes both ways. &nbsp