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Publications (73)
Current autonomous building research primarily focuses on energy efficiency and automation. While traditional artificial intelligence has advanced autonomous building research, it often relies on predefined rules and struggles to adapt to complex, evolving building operations. Moreover, the centralized organizational structures of facilities manage...
Automating activities through robots in unstructured environments, such as construction sites, has been a long-standing desire. However, the high degree of unpredictable events in these settings has resulted in far less adoption compared to more structured settings, such as manufacturing, where robots can be hard-coded or trained on narrowly define...
The ongoing improvement of teaching abilities among faculty is recognized as essential across various academic disciplines. Within the Construction Management and Engineering (CME) field, there's a notable need for such professional development. Our study looks into a specific program designed to bolster the teaching capacities of new faculty in fo...
Faculty development programs improve the performance of academic scholars and instructors by providing up-to-date teaching and research management tools and methods. The overall objective of this research was to organize a pilot faculty development program for recent graduates of construction programs in which participants could improve their teach...
The importance of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry has become increasingly salient as the industry continues to struggle with recruitment and retention of high-quality talent throughout construction organizations in the US. The existing literature has explored the barriers faced...
Digital Twins (DTs) have recently drawn considerable attention in the AEC industry and academia. Despite their applications, most models typically represent an isolated DT without considering how they can connect to other DTs, where they can share data. Blockchain-based solutions, and specifically Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), have provided various f...
Digital Twin (DT) technology provides a comprehensive virtual representation and dynamic mirror of the physical infrastructure, which is invaluable for Facility Management (FM) applications. However, its operations and sensitive data are managed by the centralized infrastructure, which is relatively vulnerable to being compromised. To address these...
The architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry is widely known for being fragmented. In this situation, blockchain technology has been introduced as a promising solution to bring trust and transparency to the industry. As blockchain technology continues to evolve, it has embraced new capabilities and features, including Fungible-Tok...
Material procurement comprises a considerable portion of costs in construction projects. In addition to increasing costs, inefficient material procurement can impact a project’s schedule and duration. Nevertheless, efficient procurement management use has been limited in the construction industry. A more efficient approach to information management...
With the advent of technological tools, systems, and mechanisms, the operating system in the construction industry has changed enormously. While technological advancements cover a broad area of software and hardware, those involved in data flow have significant roles in data sustainability. The data flow presupposes various requirements, interactio...
The built environment fundamentally suffers from organisational fragmentation in various aspects, such as data flow, finance, and supply chains. Blockchain technology can be considered a transformative solution to the inherent fragmentation of this industry. This chapter first defines the basics of blockchain technology to show how a peer-to-peer n...
Construction site visits and hands-on experiences are among the important instruments for educators in construction engineering and management to provide students with valuable knowledge and more engaging learning experiences. However, in addition to its existing logistical challenges, the COVID-19 pandemic has made site visits even more inaccessib...
Construction site visits and hands-on experiences are among the important instruments for educators in construction engineering and management to provide students with valuable knowledge and more engaging learning experiences. However, in addition to its existing logistical challenges, the COVID-19 pandemic has made site visits even more inaccessib...
The ever-growing complexity of construction projects on the one hand, and the increasing use of emerging technologies in the AEC industry on the other hand, have significantly escalated computational complexity. This trend is expected to continue. However, conventional computing tools and technologies highly rely on classical computing techniques t...
Circadian rhythms, as nychthemeron cycles, are a component of the body’s internal clock that regulate essential functions and processes, which are vividly reflected in sleep routines. While issues pertaining to sleeping patterns are general, the problem is underscored among students who may not have established norms due to internal and external mo...
Current incentive mechanisms for construction safety highly rely on intermediaries and massive paperwork, which lay a foundation for opportunistic behavior and poor performance in the long run. As a solution, this study introduces an automatic incentive mechanism that rewards contractors with Fungible Tokens (FTs) and Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). Vi...
Background
Occupational workers at altitudes are more prone to falls, leading to catastrophic outcomes. Acrophobia, height-related anxiety, and affected executive functions lead to postural instabilities, causing falls. This study investigated the effects of repeated virtual height exposure and training on cognitive processing and height-related an...
Work-related musculoskeletal disorders is a serious problem affecting the construction workforce. Pipe workers are subjected to forward bending tasks that cause back injuries. Recent advancements in wearable robotic technologies have led to a growing interest in the use of back-support exoskeletons as a potential solution to reduce the occurrences...
The potential of using Digital Twins within the context of civil infrastructures has prompted a focus on infrastructure digital twins (IDTs). Despite some attempts to provide an overview of IDT knowledge domains, no specific study has focused on the inner structure and components of IDTs. This paper attempts to address this gap by taking a deeper l...
Safety has been one of the main concerns in the construction industry in recent years. Construction fatalities, injuries, and accidents impose unrecoverable losses and enormous costs every year. Despite all advancements in new methods, tools, equipment, and regulations, the rate of accidents, especially in fatal four, has not considerably improved....
Digital Twins (DTs) have received considerable attention as an emerging technology in recent years, which can offer advantages for improving the performance of infrastructures. However, the inherent complexity of infrastructures alongside the nascent nature of digital twins in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry hinders t...
Purpose
Smart contracts using blockchain technology (BCT) is a tool that decentralizes authority and makes it easier to upgrade the contract administration process by providing an efficient system. Current literature provides a good overview of contracts in the construction industry; however, the specific details of BCT's smart contracts applicatio...
Construction management is considered a hands-on field of study which requires good spatial and visual cognitive ability. Virtual reality and other innovative immersive technologies have been used to facilitate experiential learning and to improve students’ spatial cognitive abilities. Virtual environments have been criticized due to the gamified l...
Research indicates that the projection of traffic volumes is a valuable tool for traffic
management. However, few studies have examined the application of a universal automated framework for car traffic volume prediction. Within this limited literature, studies using broad data sets and inclusive predictors have been inadequate; such works have not...
Knowledge of the truck traffic volumes on state and interstate highways is critical for highway authorities and federal organizations. Increased urbanization, population growth, and economic development have led to an increased demand for freight travel. Several planning applications demand reliable and accurate truck traffic prediction. A review o...
Several converging trends appear to reshape the way citizens and goods move about. These trends are social, including urbanization and population growth, and technological, such as increased automation and connectivity. All these factors influence the market for connected, automated, shared and electric (CASE) vehicles, which presents many opportun...
The concept of a circular economy (CE) encompasses a comprehensive approach to conscious design and material choice, in addition to keeping products at their utmost utility during production, operation, and reuse cycles through the implementation of closed loops. A blockchain allows for a fast, secure, and accessible information network by providin...
The highway network is an economically necessary form of transportation that has a significant impact on the quality of the life of the citizens who use it. Cost overruns in highway projects have been a universal occurrence that jeopardize the development, maintenance, and expansion of this vital infrastructure. Incorrect cost estimations can drive...
Improving the productivity and quality of construction projects along with the minimization of cost and time are significant concerns in construction engineering and management. These concerns have stimulated specialists to gather the best practices and generate new techniques leading to more productive projects. Constructability review is one of t...
Since the Kyoto Protocol was ratified in 1997, many countries have tried to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by implementing various reduction schemes. Carbon credit trading, one of these programs, has been used in many countries to comply with the protocol. In spite of the existence of carbon credit markets for over a decade, global GHG...
Exploring construction education models, defined by the amount of lab or lecture content, and their characteristics, has been a focal point of many studies in recent years. Researchers investigate different aspects of construction curricula and provide guidelines to improve construction education. The range of factors and variables involved makes i...
Earthmoving is one of the main processes involved in heavy construction and mining projects. It requires a significant share of the project budget and can dictate its overall success. Earthmoving related activities have a stochastic nature that affects the project cost and duration. In common practice, the equipment required for a project is select...
In the construction sector, the absence of a framework to incorporate and synchronize the resources required for activities means that projects risk incurring cost and time overruns. In this study, a framework was generated and tested to optimize resource allocation. The framework considers financial constraints through a genetic algorithm process...
Immersive video technologies provide a unique opportunity for transferring and experiencing the real environment at a later time and location. The immersive experience and the real image that this emerging technology presents are well suited for education and training. Previously static 360° panoramas and virtual reality environments were being use...
The widespread and massive effects of climate are now inevitable, and action must be taken by all sectors to mitigate their contributions to its impacts. The building sector accounts for about 40% of global energy consumption and 30% of GHG emissions. This sector must reduce its energy consumption by at least 50% by shifting to hyper-efficient syst...
This paper succinctly reports a study performed to explore planning and scheduling as the two key components of every project. Construction project managers devote a major portion of their daily time to develop, revise, and update their schedules. The same emphasis exists in construction education where the content is provided in one or two major c...
Background
Falls due to postural instability are common in construction environments especially from a height. The purpose of the study was to investigate the impact of virtual reality (VR)-generated environments at different virtual heights on postural stability.
Methods
Nineteen adults were analyzed for postural stability, tested in real (No VR)...
Knowledge of the number of upcoming projects and their impact on the company plays a significant role in strategic planning for project-based companies. The current horizon of planning for companies working on public projects are the latest advertised projects for bidding, which in many cases is reported less than a year in advance. This provides a...
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have been extensively used on construction job sites in the last ten years. UAVs applications span from progress monitoring and site monitoring to structural health inspection and construction safety. While different applications of UAVs on job sites have been extensively researched, the risks and hazards of flying U...
New offsite construction practices are emerging in the construction industry to address a broad set of productivity issues that cut across organizational, technological, and strategic domains. Despite all its benefits from sustainable and economic perspectives, offsite construction still faces significant resistance from both the construction indus...
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to show the feasibility of blockchain technology to perform as an infrastructure for improving built asset sustainability by providing all the necessary information for better decision making at all the stages of its life cycle.
Design/methodology/approach
Blockchain technology can be used as a tool to build a...
Background:
Virtual reality (VR) is becoming a widespread tool in rehabilitation, especially for postural stability. However, the impact of using VR in a "moving wall paradigm" (visual perturbation), specifically without and with anticipation of the perturbation, is unknown.
Methods:
Nineteen healthy subjects performed three trials of static bal...
In recent years, connected automated vehicles (CAV) have received significant attention and have the potential to revolutionize our existing transportation system. Highway infrastructure construction management has to deal with a variety of uncertainties related to traffic volume and capacity due to the impact of AVs in the future. Such ambiguity m...
This paper presents an implementation of smart contracts by integrating BIM and blockchain. After briefly reviewing the literature regarding blockchain technology, smart contracts, and integration of the BIM and blockchain, a blockchain network using Hyperledger fabric is proposed and tested to govern a sample construction project. The proposed fra...
Over the past decade, construction companies have been using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) extensively as a tool for data collection. While UAVs are being used on construction job sites on daily basis, there is no comprehensive quantitative method to measure the risks of flying UAVs over a specific area on a job site. Despite some work in quantif...
Automated vehicles (AV) are undergoing
development at a remarkable pace and have the
potential to revolutionize the existing transportation
system. The ASCE [1] evaluated the United States’
infrastructure as a D+ grade. Moreover, they
predicted radical infrastructure investment gaps in
the surface transportation sector in the upcoming
years. Some n...
Blockchain provides a secure decentralized information management system that can solve many common problems facing the construction industry. The loose structure of the construction industry, the way that public and private projects are tendered, and the supply chain system it uses for material and service delivery provide unique challenges and pr...
Clearly the need for autonomous robots and automated systems is more critical for space construction than terrestrial construction work. It is the collective performance of these devices rather than their individual performances that should be optimized, which calls for the highest level of precision and coordination among all active agents in the...
While Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have been used on construction job sites for different purposes for over a decade, the risks and hazards of flying UAVs on construction job sites has not been either quantitatively or qualitatively assessed. Quantifying the risks of flying UAVs over general populations is a common practice in the general UAV in...
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have been used on construction job sites for a variety of purposes for more than a decade. But the risks and hazards of flying UAVs on construction job sites has never been quantitatively or qualitatively evaluated. While the general aviation industry has been using sophisticated analysis techniques to quantitatively...
Knowledge of the number of upcoming projects and their impact on the company plays a significant role in strategic planning for project-based companies. The current horizon of planning for companies working on public projects are the latest advertised projects for bidding, which in many cases is reported less than a year in advance. This provides a...
Providing a practical and comprehensive methodology to facilitate management and coordination of multiple projects in a company's portfolio is a challenging task. Historically, the focus of research has been limited to the selection and prioritization of the set of known projects, current and near future. It is argued that existing portfolio planni...
Offsite construction is facing slow adoption despite the fact it can be a suitable solution for addressing historical problems faced by the construction industry, such as labor shortages, construction safety, time and costs overrun, and waste. The controlled factory environment creates room for innovation similar to the techniques used in the manuf...
Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) are remote controlled or autonomous vehicles that can safely operate on the surface of water bodies such as oceans, seas, and lakes. USVs, along with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can operate without direct or even indirect human control. Use of UAVs in construction has been discussed extensively in the literature...
During the past few decades the concept of net zero energy (NZE) has gained significant attention and shaped vigorous energy targets at local, state, and federal level. This study aims to evaluate the availability and potential for utilizing different renewable resources in Florida to comply with the NZE strategy as stated in the definition of this...
It is certain that more autonomous robots and automated systems would be used in
Space Construction (SC) compared to construction work on Earth. The performance of
these robots should not be locally optimized but instead, collectively be optimized as a
whole, which calls for the highest level of precision and coordination among all active
agents on...
For more than a decade, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been used on
construction job sites for a variety of purposes including structural inspection, and 3D
mapping of the site and existing structures. Although the advantages that UAVs have
brought to construction are discussed extensively in the literature, applications of other
types of unm...
Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) are remotely-operated robotic agents that can safely deploy and maneuver on the surface of bodies of water. Although, there is an established body of literature on large, complex and expensive USVs in structural health monitoring, comparing the solutions provided with the current available UAVs and their scale, cost...
Advances in information technology (IT) have provided a continuous and
reliable connection to the Internet for everyone. This factor, coupled with the
widespread use of digital devices like laptops, cellphones and tablets, have led to the
emergence of “big data”. Nowadays, society is producing and using data at an
unprecedented rate. Data centers a...
Offsite construction is facing slow adoption despite the fact it can be a suitable solution for addressing historical problems faced by the construction industry, such as labor shortages, construction safety, time and costs overrun, and waste. The controlled factory environment creates room for innovation similar to the techniques used in the manuf...
Background
Construction companies typically work on many projects simultaneously each with its own objectives and resource demands. Consequently, a key managerial function is to allocate financial, equipment, and human resources between these concurrent projects in a way that satisfies the individual project constraints while optimizing the company...
Providing a practical and comprehensive methodology to facilitate management and coordination of multiple projects in a company's portfolio is a challenging task. Historically, the focus of research has been limited to the selection and prioritization of the set of known projects, current and near future. It is argued that existing portfolio planni...
Portfolio management, in particular, the selection and prioritization of projects among a pool of known projects, has been studied extensively by researchers. However, a major gap in the work from a strategic planning perspective is modeling the stream of unknown future projects. This paper presents findings of an ongoing project that explores a so...
Construction companies typically work on multiple projects each with its own objectives and resource demands. Consequently, a key managerial function is to allocate financial, equipment, and human resources between these concurrent projects in a way that satisfies the individual project constraints while optimizing the company's overall objectives....