Scheduling, Material Requirement Plan (MRP) And Cash Outflow Analysis: A Case Study
Rohit J. Mehendale and Aniket S. Patil
Scheduling, Material Requirement Plan (MRP) and cash outflow analysis are some of the major elements which need to work out in a construction project. Generally, different softwares are available for each of this task. When there is a delay in the planned schedule, it is time consuming to get MRP and cash outflow plan updated according to the revised schedule. An ongoing Residential cum Commercial project located at Nasik has been taken up for the present case study. Microsoft Project software for Scheduling and Microsoft Excel software for MRP and cash outflow analysis have been adopted in the present study. As both the softwares are made by Microsoft, they have a built-in feature to interlink with each other. It is found when there is a delay in an activity; the schedule gets automatically updated by changing the starting date of the delayed activity. It is also found that it is easier to get the MRP and cash outflow to get updated according to the revised schedule.
CPM; MRP; Scheduling; Cash Outflow Analysis
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Research Articles
Critical Factors Impacting BIM Uptake In The Indian Built Environment Sector
Sagar Malsane , Abhishek Shrivas and David Greenwood
It is believed that the Indian AEC industry is lagging behind when it comes to building information modeling (BIM) adoption. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to establish a clear understanding of the present level of awareness of BIM. Furthermore, the study aims to identify significant BIM functions and barriers that might impact the BIM adoption rate. With the help of a survey method, a questionnaire was distributed to the target sample of 80 professionals out of which 65 responded by completing the questionnaire. The researcher selected the sample using a convenience sampling technique.The responses were analyzed using the relative importance index (RII) method to draw the results. The results indicate the current status of BIM awareness and reveal the factors that influence BIM adoption in the form of key BIM functions and barriers from the perspective of professionals. Indian professionals working in the field of technology can use the results drawn in the form of BIM key functions to provide more focused training about them, to ensure their successful diffusion. They can also work on eliminating the key barriers to boost the BIM uptake. Previous researches have essentially focused on finding out the BIM's presence in India. This research contributes primarily by examining, from the perspective of professionals, and using the relative importance index (RII) method to identify the critical factors involved in BIM adoption. Establishing such critical factors is of significant value as they can expedite or hinder BIM's adoption rate in India.
Building information modelling; Relative importance index; BIM functions; BIM barriers; Awareness
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Research Articles
Study On BIM Advantages And Barriers To Its Adoption On Construction Project Sites In India
Babalu L. Rajput , Anil L. Agarwal and Amol D. Pawar
Building Information Modelling (BIM) is well established within the construction industry in developed countries. Use of BIM on building construction project sites has significant potential to improve performance on such projects. Previous research related to BIM showed that use of BIM on construction project sites reduces reworks, changes and increases overall productivity. Despite, BIM has not taken roots as a designing approach in India. Construction industry in India is at a nascent stage in the adoption of BIM for design and construction of different projects. This situation has promoted the need for research to investigate advantages of BIM adoption as well as barriers to the same. A questionnaire survey was used to collect primary data regarding BIM advantages and barriers to its adoption. The questionnaire is intended to determine the professionals' opinions about BIM advantages and barriers to its adoption at construction projects. The questionnaire was developed by using extensive literature review. Relative Importance Index (RII) was calculated to rank advantages and barriers. This research study will help construction industry stakeholders to understand barriers to BIM adoption. Construction project stakeholders can overcome such barriers towards usage of BIM across their construction projects.
Building Information Modelling; Advantages; Barriers; Construction Projects
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Research Articles
Strategies For Reducing Cooling Load Of Buildings
Tushar Jadhav
One of the significant parameters in developing smart cities is to understand the mechanism to reduce the air conditioning load of buildings. The present study deals with various options available to reduce the cooling load of buildings. In majority of cases, the traditional way of designing air conditioning for buildings was using rule of thumb such as 100 to 150 square feet per ton of refrigeration. Today buildings are built and operated successfully with air conditioning usage of 600 to 700 square feet per ton of refrigeration.This systematic and scientific approach has resulted in drastic reduction in air conditioning load of buildings, contributing towards huge savings in the overall cost of air conditioning system. The present study addresses key areas for reducing the building cooling load.The outcomes of this study will help the architects, consultants, engineers and building owners to effectively design air conditioning system for buildings.
Smart Cities; Buildings; Air Conditioning
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Research Articles
Construction Equipment Financing: Need Of Innovation In Tough Market Conditions
Sarbesh Mishra
The mechanization of the construction activity in recent times makes construction equipment a major part of the construction industry. The construction equipment amounts to 25% of the total cost of the project. Hence, financing decision of the construction equipment plays a vital role in the success and profitability of the project. Construction equipment can be procured by hiring or buying. This decision is influenced by various factors such as type of the project, scale of operations, tax rate, government policies etc. Procuring construction equipment and machinery is a high cost affair for most construction firms. With over 90% of all construction activity executed by smaller players, the activity is widely dispersed. These players, because of the monopolistic nature of construction, and with the government being the largest buyer of these services, face an erratic and unpredictable workload. As such the existing equipment stock itself is highly underutilized. At present it is estimated that the country has an operating stock of construction equipment valued at INR 75,000 crores and dormant stock of INR 110,000 crores. With the increase in the size and complexity of construction, construction equipment has become an indispensable part of every project. Several gigantic projects, which were beyond comprehension in the past have now been designed and are using sophisticated and heavy construction equipment. In fact, all aspects of construction in some way or other depends upon equipment. Thus if proper use is made of the construction equipment, they can contribute to economy, quality, safety and speed of a project. About 20 percent of the cost of a typical construction project is accounted for by the machinery and equipment. The current ratio may be over 30 percent. Buy or lease? That is a question being faced by many rural building businesses, even as credit becomes more readily available. While virtually everyone understands the simplicity of buying, leasing is far more complicated. Deciding the best strategy is a tough move for anyone. There is no one correct answer that fits every situation or every building business. Equipment leasing is generally a loan in which the lender buys and owns equipment and then 'rents' it to a building business at a flat monthly rate for a specified number of months. At the end of the lease period, the business may purchase the equipment for its fair market value (or for a fixed pre-determined amount), continue leasing, lease new equipment or return it. Although lease financing is generally more expensive than bank financing, in most instances it is more easily obtained. Leasing of equipments and real assets is a prominent source of private capital formation and a contributor to GDP in many developed and developing economies across the world.The equipment leasing (excluding real estate and consumer asset financing) as a percentage of private capital formation was estimated at 16.4% for US, 16.2% for Germany, 23.8% for Brazil, 20.6% for UK and 2.2% for China in 2008. In contrast, leasing penetration in India is abysmally low and is estimated at 1.5% of private capital formation in financial year 2010, which roughly translates into INR 20,000 crores of annual leasing volumes. In India, Earth Moving and Construction Equipment (ECE) industry is expected to grow at a healthy CAGR of 20 to 25 per cent over the next few years, from the financial year 2013-2014 levels of 48,000 units. This would bring the market to between $16 billion and $21 billion by 2020, up from today's $3 billion. Nevertheless India's ECE market is still underdeveloped: ECE penetration of construction industry is very low compared to other developed countries, indicating there is a significant room for growth. The selection of appropriate equipment is a crucial decision making process as it involves huge capital investment.The purpose of the present study is to develop a model pertaining to the factors influencing the selection of construction equipment. In the present study an attempt has been made to create a sustainable business model for ECE industry with innovation in the available financing arrangements.
Construction equipment; Construction project; Construction company; Operating stock; Lease; Asset financing; CAGR; Earth moving and construction equipment industry (ECE)
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Research Articles
Centralized Versus Decentralized Wastewater Treatment And Reuse: A Feasibility Study For NITTTR Campus, Chandigarh
Charul Sharma and Sanjay Sharma
In recent times we have witnessed the emergence of a water availability crisis due to scarcity and pollution of water resources. One of the major causes of water pollution is the widening gap between wastewater generation and treatment which has necessitated a paradigm shift from centralized to decentralized wastewater treatment and onsite reuse. The manuscript attempts to answer the question whether decentralization can be termed as an effective solution to deal with the limitations of centralized wastewater treatment. The scope of decentralization has been explored by means of a feasibility study of decentralized wastewater treatment and onsite reuse in NITTTR campus, Chandigarh. The feasibility study takes into consideration the guidelines, appropriate technology and potential reuse options associated with the adoption of decentralized wastewater management. The purpose of the feasibility study is to determine the saving in freshwater use that can result from adoption of decentralized waste water management and onsite reuse
Integration Of CAD (Computer Aided Drafting), Building Information Modelling (BIM) And GIS (Geographic Information System) In Smart City Projects For Efficient Asset Management: An Indian Scenario
Harshvardhan Khantadia
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on June 25, 2015 launched a 100 Smart Cities Mission. This mission aims at urban renewal and retrofitting of the selected cities and towns in different parts of India so as to make them citizen friendly and sustainable. A total of 980 billion (US$15 billion) ` has been approved by the Indian Cabinet for development of 100 smart cities and rejuvenation of 500 others. 48,000 crore (US$7.5 billion) for the Smart Cities. With so many resources to manage ` for this extensive work, it is imperative to make use of cutting edge technologies for efficient asset management. By the virtue of such widely distributed network of roads, services, etc., today, in the era of sustainability and competitiveness, the local governments face the challenge of asset management so that they can minimize the cost of ownership and streamline their asset management resources. Asset management operation being the systematic process of maintaining, upgrading and operating physical assets, is possible with the help of the triad. Computer Aided Drafting, Building Information Modelling and Geographical Information Systems when combined on a common platform can give us precise and high performance results in comparison to traditional approaches. In this paper, my focus will be on technology as an asset as it is the need of the day to solve the most complicated asset management problems pertaining to smart cities. My research will involve the ways in which the triad namely CAD, BIM and GIS will help the smart city projects to function in a seamless and a precise manner.
Computer aided drafting; Building information modelling; Geographical information systems; Smart city solutions; Asset management
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Research Articles
Linguistic Evaluation of Written Communication in Indian Construction Sector: A Review and Framework
Amit Hiray, Aanchal Ramtekkar, Vasireddy Reshma, Saikrishna Vallurupalli and Divyansh Dwivedi
Effective communication plays a vital role in fostering understanding and coordination among the members of any organization, irrespective of their positions in the organizational hierarchy. Along with transmission of information, organizational communication performs various other crucial functions like instructing, advising, guiding, motivating, negotiating, requesting and warning etc. It is therefore imperative to ensure that communication is clear, concise, complete, correct, concrete, courteous and considerate. As much of the significant communication is in the written form, it is essential to evaluate the overall efficacy of the language used in the written documents like reports, letters, circulars, memos, agendas, minutes and agreements etc. The language use does not merely determine the accuracy of information but also influence interpersonal relationship among the stakeholders. There have been numerous instances of misinterpretation of the message leading to interpersonal and organizational conflicts. In order to measure the effectiveness of written communication, the language used should be evaluated at various levels so as to understand its overall impact on communication. This paper attempts to carry out a systematic literature review in order to identify the research done so far on linguistic analysis in the areas apart from humanities and literature. It aims to explore if such analysis has been done in the context of the Indian construction industry. Upon a comprehensive review of literature, this paper proposes a conceptual framework for carrying out a linguistic analysis of the written communication in construction documents. The framework would also enable to measure the conformity of the language used to the seven Cs (Clarity, Conciseness, Completeness, Concreteness, Consideration, Courtesy and Correctness) of effective communication. Thus, not only some crucial insights about the language used will be gained but also the overall effectiveness of the written communication can be measured.
Linguistic evaluation; Written communication; Conceptual framework; Indian construction industry
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