FORMULATION AND APPLICATION OF RISK ADJUSTED CUSUM FOR ONLINE QUALITY MONITORING OF READY MIXED CONCRETE
DEBASIS SARKAR
The Cumulative Sum (CUSUM) procedure is an effective statistical process
control tool that can be used to monitor quality of ready mixed concrete (RMC)
during its production process. Online quality monitoring refers to monitoring of
the concrete quality at the RMC plant during its production process. In this paper
an attempt is made to design and apply a new CUSUM procedure for RMC
industry which takes care of the risks involved and associated with the production
of RMC. This new procedure can be termed as Risk Adjusted CUSUM (RACUSUM).
28 days characteristic compressive strengths of the various grades of concrete,
and detailed information regarding the production process and the risks associated
with the production of RMC were collected from the operational RMC plants
in and around Ahmedabad and Delhi. The risks are quantified using a likelihood
based scoring method. Finally a Risk Adjusted CUSUM model is developed by
imposing the weighted score of the estimated risks on the conventional CUSUM
plot. This model is a more effective and realistic tool for strength monitoring
of RMC.
CONTRACTOR KEY COMPETITIVENESS INDICATORS (KCIS): A HONG KONG STUDY
YONG-TAO TAN
LI-YIN SHEN
MICHAEL C H YAM
ANN CHEUNG
Proper understanding on competitiveness indicators is important both for
assisting contractors to formulate effective competition strategies and for
assisting clients to select suitable contractors. This study presents a list of
competitiveness indicators for measuring contractor competitiveness with
reference to Hong Kong construction industry. Contractor Key Competitiveness
Indicators (KCIs) adopted in the local practice are identified. This identification
was conducted through analyzing the data collected from a comprehensive
questionnaire survey of the local industry. Relative Importance Value (RIV)
was used as the criterion for the identification of the KCIs. The findings
from this study provide valuable information for helping contractors from
different backgrounds in the local construction market to understand their
competitive advantages and weaknesses, thus relevant actions can be taken
for improving their competitiveness. The research should provide valuable
references for investigating contractor KCIs in different construction practices.
Key Competitiveness Indicators (KCIs), Contractor, Competitive Strategy,
Relative Importance Value, Hong Kong Construction Industry
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Research Articles
LEAN CONSTRUCTION : A STRATEGIC OPTION FOR COMPETITIVENESS IN CONSTRUCTION IN INDIA
MANISH SINGHAL
K. MOMAYA
Liberalising India has seen a tremendous growth in construction and infrastructure
sector in the last decade. To achieve a double digit growth in GDP, this sector
should continue to grow at much higher rates. Such a growth opportunity
can be leveraged for competitiveness, but can also breed wastage. Delays
were rampant in construction earlier and now costs are often too high for
the quality that is given. With increasing competition from foreign players,
market share of domestic firms in key segments has been shrinking. Luckily,
some progressive companies are trying to learn from domestic and international
contexts and are trying to improve on key fronts of construction. Success of
several manufacturing firms in India in experimenting for innovation has
raised confidence of many to adapt concepts. Among alternatives lean concepts
seems to have higher potential for the construction industry. This paper
highlights the real issues confronting construction firms and explores the
potential of Lean Construction concepts in construction industry in India.
Lean or related concepts had seen successful acceptance in the automotive
sector in many countries and in the construction sector in UK, Denmark,
Chile, Peru, etc. This paper will focus on this emerging concept called Lean
Construction which is based on a few guiding principles and utilize special
tools and techniques to achieve those desired goals of better productivity
and better profit margins.
Lean Construction, Competitiveness, Strategic Transformation, Last Planner, Value
Stream Mapping
Research & Publications Department 