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Article
Publication date: 1 April 2004

Nick G. Blismas, William D. Sher, Antony Thorpe and Andrew N. Baldwin

The single project paradigm which dominates the literature of both project and construction management research does not accurately reflect the reality of many construction…

3519

Abstract

The single project paradigm which dominates the literature of both project and construction management research does not accurately reflect the reality of many construction clients, who have large ongoing construction portfolios rather than one‐off construction projects. Although several concepts of multi‐project environments (MPEs) exist, an investigation of the form and dynamic interactions of components within MPEs of construction clients was lacking. This paper presents the factors identified as exerting greatest influence on project delivery within construction clients' MPEs.

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Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 11 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

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Article
Publication date: 1 August 2003

Tabarak M.A. Ballal and William D. Sher

In this study, artificial neural networks have been developed to acquire construction knowledge from past projects to integrate buildability considerations into the preliminary…

1028

Abstract

In this study, artificial neural networks have been developed to acquire construction knowledge from past projects to integrate buildability considerations into the preliminary structural design process. Four artificial neural network models are presented. These allow the generation of an expeditious solution for given sets of design and buildability constraints. Once information is entered into the models, a recommendation of which structural scheme to choose is generated instantaneously. Thus, valuable design time is released, allowing designers the opportunity to invest in other equally important design tasks. The information entered into the models consists of site‐related information including site access; availability of working space; and speed of erection, and conceptual design information including type of building; number of storeys and gross floor area. The results show that artificial neural networks can be successfully used for the implementation of buildability at the preliminary stage of design.

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Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 10 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

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Publication date: 31 October 2023

Paul Oslington

I suggest that the search for Adam Smith’s theodicy is likely to be in vain. The paper begins with a brief history of approaches to evil, emphasizing the context in which they…

Abstract

I suggest that the search for Adam Smith’s theodicy is likely to be in vain. The paper begins with a brief history of approaches to evil, emphasizing the context in which they arose, and the questions authors were addressing. Approaches most relevant to Adam Smith include those of Augustine and Calvin, and the early modern theodicies of Leibniz, Samuel Clarke and William King, as well as the attacks on them by Bayle and Voltaire. Scottish Enlightenment writers were not terribly interested in theodicy, though Hutcheson and Kames did devote space to their versions of problems of evil. David Hume’s Dialogues on Natural Religion are often taken to be classic statement of the problem of theodicy and argument against religious belief, but his concern was to demolish rationalistic theodicies rather than religious belief or practice. The paper then turns to Smith’s writings, considering similarities and differences to these approaches to evil. Smith emphasizes the wisdom and beneficence of God, and that evils we observe are part of a larger providential plan. He makes no attempt to justify the God in the face of evil, and in this respect Smith shares more with Augustine and Calvin than he does with the early modern theodicists. Smith’s approach to evil is simple and ameliorative. Smith’s approach contrasts with early nineteenth century English political economists, from Malthus onwards, for whom theodicy was important. Whatever view we take of the theodicists project of justifying an all-powerful and good God in the face of evil may, we still struggle to make sense of economic suffering and evil.

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Research in the History of Economic Thought and Methodology: Including a Symposium on Religion, the Scottish Enlightenment, and the Rise of Liberalism
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83549-517-9

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Article
Publication date: 1 January 2021

Jianing Luo, Hong Zhang and William Sher

The purpose of this research is to measure incompatibilities between the manufacturing approaches (MA) used by the manufacturing industries, and those used for the off-site…

581

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this research is to measure incompatibilities between the manufacturing approaches (MA) used by the manufacturing industries, and those used for the off-site construction (OSC) of buildings. The aim is to explore which of these approaches could be integrated into OSC in a precise manner as viewed by architects as well as how this might occur.

Design/methodology/approach

An empirical research and empirical cycle (EC) was adopted as a methodological framework to measure incompatibilities. A combination of quantitative and qualitative mixed methods was explored through a literature-based case study of prefabricated houses and cars, nine real-life projects built by the second author's research team and the first-named author's practical experiences of leading these projects, based on a logic framework derived from the authors’ reflections of their architectural practices.

Findings

The findings quantitatively present the incompatibilities between cars (automobile bodies) and prefabricated houses. Design-related aspects have the most potential for integration (42.3% increment). The key lessons were identified as specific design philosophies and related guidelines for architects.

Research limitations/implications

The findings are limited to single types of products (cars) and buildings (prefabricated houses) in particular regions. The key lessons just present a preliminary evaluation of the application of the design philosophies and related guidelines in nine real-life projects to comply with word limit constraints.

Practical implications

This study could help architects and other practitioners to locate and target and alleviated incompatibilities between MA and OSC. It could also precisely identify integration shortcomings to optimize decision-making as well as technical pathways for possible and effective breakthroughs.

Social implications

This study provides fundamental research as a starting point for further discussion and development. A series of additional in-depth investigations combined with case studies are planned for the future. These could provide alternative study approaches to develop more appropriate architectural design methodologies and more streamlined processes.

Originality/value

The research contributes an alternative architectural perspective when measuring incompatibilities between MA and OSC. The results highlight the implications of precise measurement and provide guidance for architects. These facilitate the effective and successful integration of MA into OSC of buildings and promote the uptake of lean construction (LC) in OSC.

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Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 28 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

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Article
Publication date: 1 November 1947

The two islands of Trinidad and Tobago were made one administrative unit in the year 1889. The total area is something under two thousand square miles— that of an ordinary English…

41

Abstract

The two islands of Trinidad and Tobago were made one administrative unit in the year 1889. The total area is something under two thousand square miles— that of an ordinary English county. The climate is tropical and healthy, the soil extremely fertile. With the exception of the asphalt of La Brea the population is mainly concerned with the forest products and with the care of and development of the sugar and cocoa plantations. The population is mixed—East Indians; people of negro stock, and a small proportion of people of European descent. With a population exhibiting widely different cultural levels the authorities responsible for public health are confronted with correspondingly complex administrative problems. The Government Chemical Department is occupied not only with the administration proper to such a department, but acts in an advisory capacity when matters relating to plantation or local manufactured products are brought to its notice. It is satisfactory to learn of the “notable developments which have taken place in the Department in recent years.” The extent of this development may be partly judged by the estimates, which in 1945 amounted to about twenty‐nine thousand dollars, to those for 1946: these were some forty‐three thousand dollars. This increase led to the enlarging of the Departmental buildings, the purchasing of special apparatus—where this came from is not stated, but if from this country its source of origin is suggested by “the extreme slowness of delivery,” and this it seems is, or let us hope was, delaying the benefits expected from the increase in expenditure. The library, too, was enlarged. Nor are the activities of the Department limited to Trinidad alone. Reference is made to the submission of samples from various islands in the British West Indies. In a word, the Chemical Department is in close and constant touch with all social and industrial developments in the island, and the hope is expressed, and it will no doubt be justified, that the laboratory will stand comparison with any laboratory of its kind and size in the Empire. With regard to the work of the Department, it seems that 5,193 samples were examinend and reported on during the year. Of these, 4,776 were official. The bulk of the work relates to Customs (1,509 samples) and Police (2,577 samples). Among the samples submitted by the police for examination by the Department were nine cases of suspected ground glass in foodstuffs, and 255 of viscera and other articles for poison. The Port of Spain City Council submitted 407 samples of potable water. It is observed that the capital city “appears for the first time as an appreciable source of work.” Only five samples were submitted in each of the two previous years. The result of the analyses showed that the samples submitted were uniformly satisfactory from a chemical point of view. The Customs examination of 146 samples were mainly for the purpose of determining the alcohol content of medical preparations and essences. The Excise examinations for duty purposes—1,314 samples in all—were almost exclusively concerned with samples of rum, bitters, brandy, and so forth. These were all of local manufacture, and they constitute an important item in local manufacture. Angostura and other bitters are too well known to require more than passing mention. The Preventive branch had to consider twelve cases for the possession of prepared opium. Eight prosecutions were successful, and fines, amounting to $925, were inflicted. As remarked above, all the major sources of water supply of the city are now examined each month. Other sources of water supply outside the city are now also subject to examination under the supervision of the Medical Services. The Colonial Secretary, to whom this report was submitted for the information of the Governor of the Colony, had informed the Town Clerk of the Port of Spain in June, 1945, that the Chemist's Department was in a position to carry out analyses of foodstuffs and drugs submitted by the City Council. In spite of this, the amount of work done for the City Council had not been on the scale that was anticipated, for up to the end of the year 1946 no samples of the kind had been sent in for purposes of analysis. On the other hand, we notice that 1,753 food samples were examined in 1946, as against 1,394 in 1945, but these were from areas outside the area under the control of the Port of Spain Authorities, but no drug samples were submitted, nor, it seems, have any been submitted under the Food and Drug Ordinance (chap. 12, No. 3) for several years! We are, therefore, not surprised to read that “it is impossible to say to what extent (if any) these important articles are sold in an adulterated or unsatisfactory condition.” It is true that adulteration of foodstuffs— nobody can say anything about drugs—would seem to be on the decrease as the percentage figure for 1944 was 10·8, that for 1945 was 9·3, and for 1946, 7. The figures, however, refer to foodstuffs in general. If, however, we turn to figures that relate to the purity of the domestic milk supply, we find that they tell in some respects a different tale. Out of the 1,753 samples sent in for analysis 454 were milk samples. Of these, 118, or 25·9 per cent., were reported against. It is true that the figure just given is less than that of the two preceding years—1944, 37·3 per cent., and 1945, 29·5 per cent.—but the chief chemist, writing with a full knowledge of the circumstances and making, no doubt, full allowance for administrative difficulties, calls the 1946 figure “outstandingly bad,” and this percentage of adulteration still does not tell the whole tale. It seems that the larger dairies are not to blame, but “it must be a matter for continued concern that one‐quarter of the milk sold by the smaller retailers is adulterated,” for they number among their customers those “who can least afford the nutritional loss involved.” The figures, it will be noted, show a decrease, and this, it is observed, is due to “greater vigilance” on the part of the police and “other competent authorities.” In the unadulterated samples the average fat content was 3·9 per cent., and of solids not fat 8·6 per cent., so there seems to be nothing wrong with the livestock as far as these figures go, but the average figures for the adulterated samples were 3·2 per cent. of fat and 7·6 per cent. of solids not fat. Of the 118 samples reported against, 69 were deficient in solids not fat, 17 in fat content, 32 were deficient in both. The standards laid down by law for the composition of milk are 8·5 per cent. solids not fat, and 3 per cent. fat. Fines amounting to $2,460 were imposed. It was pointed out that a remedy for the present state of things is to take more samples at more frequent intervals. This has been done, but the percentage of adulteration is still abnormally high. Increased vigilance by the police, who are, it appears, the sampling officers, is certainly demanded. The percentage of adulteration for other foodstuffs is very low. It calls for no special comment.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 49 no. 11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

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Article
Publication date: 1 January 1954

Aarhus Kommunes Biblioteker (Teknisk Bibliotek), Ingerslevs Plads 7, Aarhus, Denmark. Representative: V. NEDERGAARD PEDERSEN (Librarian).

120

Abstract

Aarhus Kommunes Biblioteker (Teknisk Bibliotek), Ingerslevs Plads 7, Aarhus, Denmark. Representative: V. NEDERGAARD PEDERSEN (Librarian).

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Aslib Proceedings, vol. 6 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0001-253X

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Publication date: 30 April 2021

Norman Conti

This chapter explores that landscape between the imagination and practice of ethnographic research as well as a concomitant transition in a sociologist's felt identity…

Abstract

This chapter explores that landscape between the imagination and practice of ethnographic research as well as a concomitant transition in a sociologist's felt identity. Specifically, it describes the larger effect of building a persona for fieldwork on the self of the ethnographer. The work begins with an examination of the motives behind a proposed study of a deviant counterculture and the efforts that went into crafting a presentation of self appropriate for the milieu. It offers a detailed analysis of the social foundations of the outlaw motorcycle culture and a phase model of their socialization process.

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Radical Interactionism and Critiques of Contemporary Culture
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83982-029-8

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Research in the History of Economic Thought and Methodology: Including a Symposium on Religion, the Scottish Enlightenment, and the Rise of Liberalism
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83549-517-9

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Article
Publication date: 2 June 2022

Gousia Gani, Haroon Naik, Tawheed Amin, Nusrat Jan, Syed Zameer Hussain, Omar Bashir and Abida Jabeen

Currently, there is a great demand for those food products that are easy to prepare or ready for direct consumption. Making pear fruit/juice available round the year is desirous…

141

Abstract

Purpose

Currently, there is a great demand for those food products that are easy to prepare or ready for direct consumption. Making pear fruit/juice available round the year is desirous owing to pears' high-nutritional value and specific pleasant taste. Pear is, however, a seasonal fruit and under ambient conditions has a limited shelf life rendering it available as fresh fruit for a specific period.

Design/methodology/approach

The study aimed to optimize the spray drying process parameters using response surface methodology for the development of pear juice powder. The process variables included the inlet air temperature of 140–210°C, maltodextrin levels of 4–25%, atomization speed of 11,400–28,000 rpm, feed flow rate of 180–630 mL/hr, and feed total soluble solids (TSS) of 13–30°Brix. The dependent responses were powder yield, solubility, antioxidant activity {% 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging capacity}, dispersibility, hygroscopicity and particle density.

Findings

Among independent variables, inlet air temperature showed a predominant effect. The optimum processing conditions for the development of pear juice powder with optimum quality were 163.02°C inlet air temperature, 13.50% maltodextrin, 28,000 rpm atomization speed, 390.94 mL/h feed flow rate, and 25.5°Brix feed TSS. Under these optimum conditions, pear powder with desirable properties could be produced. The experimental and predicted values were found to be in agreement, indicating the suitability of the model in predicting optimizing responses of pear powder. Glass transition temperature of pear powder was found to be 36.60 ± 0.40°C, which is much higher than that of ambient temperature, suggesting better shelf stability.

Originality/value

The processing of pear fruit has resulted in the increased demand for pear juice powder in both domestic and international markets as a primer of new food products. The optimum conditions obtained in the current study could provide a new insight to the food industry in developing spray-dried pear powder of optimum quality. This can open up a new horizon in the field of food industry for the common masses of Jammu and Kashmir, India.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 125 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

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Article
Publication date: 1 March 1911

The subject dealt with in this paper is one of very wide scope, and is surrounded by many difficulties—scientific, legal, commercial and social. Its aspects are many and various…

20

Abstract

The subject dealt with in this paper is one of very wide scope, and is surrounded by many difficulties—scientific, legal, commercial and social. Its aspects are many and various, its subsidiary ramifications are widely extended and often highly complicated, and it is impossible, within the narrow limits of a single paper or lecture, to do more than sketch out its main features in a manner that will enable the general public to appreciate their significance and relative importance.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 13 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

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