Jenny Crawley, Phillip Biddulph, Jez Wingfield, Minnie Ashdown, Robert Lowe and Cliff Elwell
Compulsory airtightness testing was introduced for new dwellings in England and Wales in 2006 and in Scotland in 2010 to ensure that they are constructed according to design air…
Abstract
Purpose
Compulsory airtightness testing was introduced for new dwellings in England and Wales in 2006 and in Scotland in 2010 to ensure that they are constructed according to design air permeability targets. These targets are set to limit heat loss through air infiltration. Previous work examining the large Air Tightness Testing and Measurement Association (ATTMA) data set of UK airtightness test data suggested that, in a proportion of dwellings, the targets were being met by post-completion sealing as opposed to airtight construction, but did not quantify the prevalence of this practice. The paper aims to discuss this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, the distribution of as-built airtightness and the proportion of dwellings undergoing post-completion sealing are estimated from the ATTMA data set covering 2015–2016. This is carried out by Bayesian statistical modelling, using the data set of recorded test results and a modelled representation of the testing process.
Findings
This analysis finds the mode of the as-built distribution of air permeability as 4.38 ± 0.01 m3/m2h. It predicts that 39 per cent of dwellings aiming for one of the five most common design targets have sealing interventions at the point of pressure testing to meet their target. The as-built distribution of the ATTMA data is compared to airtightness test data obtained from just before compulsory testing was introduced, showing an improvement in the modal air permeability of 3.6 m3/m2h since testing became mandatory.
Originality/value
This paper has investigated the available data beyond simply what is reported, to estimate what the real levels of airtightness in the UK new build stock may be.
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Minnie M.A. Ashdown, Jenny Crawley, Phillip Biddulph, Jez Wingfield, Robert Lowe and Clifford A. Elwell
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the distribution of dwelling airtightness test results for a developer, between 2007 and 2011. The changes in airtightness test results…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the distribution of dwelling airtightness test results for a developer, between 2007 and 2011. The changes in airtightness test results over time are discussed, and links between the airtightness test results and the construction technique are investigated.
Design/methodology/approach
A data set of airtightness test results was statistically analysed by applying probabilistic model of the distribution and using Bayesian parameter estimation techniques.
Findings
The inferred background distributions, those estimated to describe dwelling performance before secondary sealing, suggest an improvement in airtightness between 2008 and 2011, the mode decreases from 5.46±0.09 m3/m2h to 4.12±0.07 m3/m2h with a corresponding shift in practice towards a more target-driven approach. The most airtight dwellings are constructed from reinforced concrete frame, followed by “traditional” (dry lined masonry), timber frame and lightweight steel frame.
Research limitations/implications
This study is limited by the size of the available data set (901 dwellings), and by the fact that the data set contains a larger proportion of flats to houses; however, the metadata has enabled the exploration of the link between construction practices and airtightness.
Practical implications
Developers need better guidance surrounding how to meet more stringent airtightness requirements through improvements to the primary air barrier, with incentives and support to deliver changes in practice. Furthermore, if a large number of dwellings undergo secondary sealing, this may have implications for the long-term efficiency of the dwelling stock.
Originality/value
This analysis investigates two issues that have not previously been studied on a significant number of dwellings: the changes to the distribution of airtightness results over time and the link between construction methods and airtightness.
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Loretta Bellato and Joseph M. Cheer
Using case study analysis, this paper aims to examine the application of capacity development perspectives, critical towards urban tourism that is inclusive and regenerative.
Abstract
Purpose
Using case study analysis, this paper aims to examine the application of capacity development perspectives, critical towards urban tourism that is inclusive and regenerative.
Design/methodology/approach
The study design used a mixed qualitative methods approach underpinned by the inclusive tourism development framework following Scheyvens and Biddulph (2017). This comprised in-depth interviews, focus groups and observational research. A community-based approach was adopted in a diverse cultural and socio-economic field setting.
Findings
The findings demonstrate that people who are marginalised hold valuable tacit knowledge and unique skills that can complement expert tourism knowledge and contribute to the development of more sustainable places and inclusive communities. This finding challenges claims that capacity development must occur before their participation. Local government, alongside non-government organisations and community groups, were found to have a significant role to play in ensuring that residents and people who are marginalised are included in sustainable tourism development.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the burgeoning discourse regarding stakeholder capacity development and readiness for inclusion in urban tourism initiatives. Importantly, regenerative development approaches are applied within the gambit of capacity development making this a unique attempt to integrate stakeholders into the design and implementation of tourism planning processes that uphold inclusive and regenerative priorities.
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Bhabani Shankar Nayak and Nigel Walton
The paper argues that the classical Marxist theory of capitalist accumulation is inadequate to understand new forms of capitalism and their accumulation processes determined by…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper argues that the classical Marxist theory of capitalist accumulation is inadequate to understand new forms of capitalism and their accumulation processes determined by “platforms” and “big data”. Big data platforms are shaping the processes of production, labour, the price of products and market conditions. “Digital platforms” and “big data” have become an integral part of the processes of production, distribution and exchange relations. These twin pillars are central to the capitalist accumulation processes. The article argues that the classical Marxist theory of capitalist accumulation is inadequate to understand new forms of capitalism and their accumulation processes determined by “platforms” and “big data”.
Design/methodology/approach
As a conceptual paper, this paper follows critical methodological lineages and traditions based on non-linear historical narratives around the conceptualisation, construction and transition of the “Marxist theory of capital accumulation” in the age of platform economy. This paper follows a discourse analysis (Fairclough, 2003) to locate the way in which an artificial intelligence (AI)-led platform economy helps identify and conceptualise new forms of capitalist accumulation. It engages with Jørgensen and Phillips' (2002) contextual and empirical discursive traditions to undertake a qualitative comparative analysis by exploring a broad range of complex factors with case studies and examples from leading firms within the platform economy. Finally, it adopts two steps of “Theory Synthesis and Theory Adaptation” as outlined by Jaakkola (2020) to synthesise, adopt and expand the Marxist theory of capital accumulation under platform capitalism.
Findings
This article identifies new trends and forms of data driven capitalist accumulation processes within the platform capitalism. The findings suggest that an AI led platform economy creates new forms of capitalist accumulation. The article helps to develop theoretical understanding and conceptual frameworks to understand and explain these new forms of capital accumulation.
Originality/value
This study builds upon the limited theorisation on the AI and new capitalist accumulation processes. This article identifies new trends and forms of data driven capitalist accumulation processes within platform capitalism. The article helps to understand digital and platform capitalisms in the lens of digital labour and expands the theory of capitalist accumulation and its new forms in the age of datafication. While critiquing the Marxist theory of capitalist accumulation, the article offers alternative approaches for the future.
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Noel Scott, Brent Moyle, Ana Cláudia Campos, Liubov Skavronskaya and Biqiang Liu
Over the last few decades, there have been significant developments in history education, key among them being the recommendation for an inquiry approach to history teaching to…
Abstract
Purpose
Over the last few decades, there have been significant developments in history education, key among them being the recommendation for an inquiry approach to history teaching to improve students' ability to think historically. While the idea of historical thinking is widely researched, it appears that it has been approached from a conceptual perspective without a consistent focus on the mode of progression and the outcomes that the historical thinking concepts can achieve.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper draws from educational and historical theory and empirical research in history education to propose a framework that specifies the outcomes that a historical thinking classroom activity can aim to achieve.
Findings
The paper argues that the systematic deployment and mediation of disciplinary concepts and substantive knowledge are important means for achieving meaningful and relevant outcomes in history teaching. The paper highlights the need for teacher attention not only to historical theory but also to educational theory for an efficient outcomes-based history education.
Originality/value
This paper contributes not only to discussions on historical thinking but also to discussions on the stances of history which have attracted little theoretical discussion and research on their applicability to classroom teaching.
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The Howard Shuttering Contractors case throws considerable light on the importance which the tribunals attach to warnings before dismissing an employee. In this case the tribunal…
Abstract
The Howard Shuttering Contractors case throws considerable light on the importance which the tribunals attach to warnings before dismissing an employee. In this case the tribunal took great pains to interpret the intention of the parties to the different site agreements, and it came to the conclusion that the agreed procedure was not followed. One other matter, which must be particularly noted by employers, is that where a final warning is required, this final warning must be “a warning”, and not the actual dismissal. So that where, for example, three warnings are to be given, the third must be a “warning”. It is after the employee has misconducted himself thereafter that the employer may dismiss.