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1 – 10 of 63Andrew Ebekozien, Wellington Didibhuku Thwala, Clinton Ohis Aigbavboa and Mohamad Shaharudin Samsurijan
Studies showed that construction digitalisation could prevent or mitigate accidents rate on sites. Digitalisation applications may prevent or mitigate building project collapse…
Abstract
Purpose
Studies showed that construction digitalisation could prevent or mitigate accidents rate on sites. Digitalisation applications may prevent or mitigate building project collapse (BPC) but with some encumbrances, especially in developing countries. There is a paucity of research on digital technologies application to prevent or mitigate BPC in Nigeria. Thus, the research aims to explore the perceived barriers that may hinder digital technologies from preventing or mitigating building collapse and recommend measures to improve technology applications during development.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is exploratory because of the unexplored approach. The researchers collected data from knowledgeable participants in digitalisation and building collapse in Nigeria. The research employed a phenomenology approach and analysed collected data via a thematic approach. The study achieved saturation at the 29th interviewee.
Findings
Findings show that lax construction digitalisation implementation, absence of regulatory framework, lax policy, unsafe fieldworkers' behaviours, absence of basic infrastructure, government attitude, hesitation to implement and high technology budget, especially in developing countries, are threats to curbing building collapse menace via digitalisation. The study identified technologies relevant to preventing or mitigating building collapse. Also, it proffered measures to prevent or mitigate building collapse via improved digital technology applications during development.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the construction digitalisation literature, especially in developing countries, and investigates the perceived barriers that may hinder digital technologies usage in preventing or mitigating building collapse in Nigeria.
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Qianmai Luo, Chengshuang Sun, Ying Li, Zhenqiang Qi and Guozong Zhang
With increasing complexity of construction projects and new construction processes and methods are adopted, more safety hazards are emerging at construction sites, requiring the…
Abstract
Purpose
With increasing complexity of construction projects and new construction processes and methods are adopted, more safety hazards are emerging at construction sites, requiring the application of the modern risk management methods. As an emerging technology, digital twin has already made valuable contributions to safety risk management in many fields. Therefore, exploring the application of digital twin technology in construction safety risk management is of great significance. The purpose of this study is to explore the current research status and application potential of digital twin technology in construction safety risk management.
Design/methodology/approach
This study followed a four-stage literature processing approach as outlined in the systematic literature review procedure guidelines. It then combined the quantitative analysis tools and qualitative analysis methods to organize and summarize the current research status of digital twin technology in the field of construction safety risk management, analyze the application of digital twin technology in construction safety risk management and identify future research trends.
Findings
The research findings indicate that the application of digital twin technology in the field of construction safety risk management is still in its early stages. Based on the results of the literature analysis, this paper summarizes five aspects of digital twin technology's application in construction safety risk management: real-time monitoring and early warning, safety risk prediction and assessment, accident simulation and emergency response, safety risk management decision support and safety training and education. It also proposes future research trends based on the current research challenges.
Originality/value
This study provides valuable references for the extended application of digital twin technology and offers a new perspective and approach for modern construction safety risk management. It contributes to the enhancement of the theoretical framework for construction safety risk management and the improvement of on-site construction safety.
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Ning Chen, Zhenyu Zhang and An Chen
Consequence prediction is an emerging topic in safety management concerning the severity outcome of accidents. In practical applications, it is usually implemented through…
Abstract
Purpose
Consequence prediction is an emerging topic in safety management concerning the severity outcome of accidents. In practical applications, it is usually implemented through supervised learning methods; however, the evaluation of classification results remains a challenge. The previous studies mostly adopted simplex evaluation based on empirical and quantitative assessment strategies. This paper aims to shed new light on the comprehensive evaluation and comparison of diverse classification methods through visualization, clustering and ranking techniques.
Design/methodology/approach
An empirical study is conducted using 9 state-of-the-art classification methods on a real-world data set of 653 construction accidents in China for predicting the consequence with respect to 39 carefully featured factors and accident type. The proposed comprehensive evaluation enriches the interpretation of classification results from different perspectives. Furthermore, the critical factors leading to severe construction accidents are identified by analyzing the coefficients of a logistic regression model.
Findings
This paper identifies the critical factors that significantly influence the consequence of construction accidents, which include accident type (particularly collapse), improper accident reporting and handling (E21), inadequate supervision engineers (O41), no special safety department (O11), delayed or low-quality drawings (T11), unqualified contractor (C21), schedule pressure (C11), multi-level subcontracting (C22), lacking safety examination (S22), improper operation of mechanical equipment (R11) and improper construction procedure arrangement (T21). The prediction models and findings of critical factors help make safety intervention measures in a targeted way and enhance the experience of safety professionals in the construction industry.
Research limitations/implications
The empirical study using some well-known classification methods for forecasting the consequences of construction accidents provides some evidence for the comprehensive evaluation of multiple classifiers. These techniques can be used jointly with other evaluation approaches for a comprehensive understanding of the classification algorithms. Despite the limitation of specific methods used in the study, the presented methodology can be configured with other classification methods and performance metrics and even applied to other decision-making problems such as clustering.
Originality/value
This study sheds new light on the comprehensive comparison and evaluation of classification results through visualization, clustering and ranking techniques using an empirical study of consequence prediction of construction accidents. The relevance of construction accident type is discussed with the severity of accidents. The critical factors influencing the accident consequence are identified for the sake of taking prevention measures for risk reduction. The proposed method can be applied to other decision-making tasks where the evaluation is involved as an important component.
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Lianhua Cheng and Dongqiang Cao
Clarifying the risk evolution mechanism of housing construction for work-safety management is essential. Existing studies have inadequately discussed the risk-accumulation process…
Abstract
Purpose
Clarifying the risk evolution mechanism of housing construction for work-safety management is essential. Existing studies have inadequately discussed the risk-accumulation process in housing construction. Therefore, this study aimed to use the complex network theory and risk allocation mechanisms to explore the evolution of risk factors.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors analysed a database of housing construction accidents in China from 2015 to 2020 to identify risk factors. Moreover, the causal relationship between risk factors was determined through a systematic analysis of the logical sequence of risk factors. A complex network was used to construct a risk network for housing construction accidents (RNHCA).
Findings
The risk matrix method was used to define the factor risk threshold, and a risk value was assigned based on the correlation between risk factors. This contributes to the examination of the evolution mechanism of risk networks in the process of risk factor transmission. The case verification results show that the RNHCA quantitative assessment model can better evaluate the system risk status of housing construction accidents. Furthermore, this model can identify the key risk factors and risk chains with high risk in the evolution of the risk network.
Research limitations/implications
Accident investigation reports need to be classified and processed to analyse the evolution law of risk networks under different scales of construction project, such as high-rise buildings, middle-rise buildings, and low-rise buildings.
Practical implications
This study clarified the risk evolution process of complex systems in housing construction and provided a new method for analysing accidents.
Originality/value
This study clarifies the risk value allocation of risk factors in the transmission process and reveals the process of risk factor evolution in housing construction. This study explains the individual risk factors that form a systemic risk through the transmission chain. Moreover, this paper clarified the transformation relationship between system risk and accidents. The paper also provided a new perspective for risk analysis.
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Xiaobo Shi, Yan Liu, Kunkun Ma, Zixin Gu, Yaning Qiao, Guodong Ni, Chibuzor Ojum, Alex Opoku and Yong Liu
The purpose is to identify and evaluate the safety risk factors in the coal mine construction process.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose is to identify and evaluate the safety risk factors in the coal mine construction process.
Design/methodology/approach
The text mining technique was applied in the stage of safety risk factor identification. The association rules method was used to obtain associations with safety risk factors. Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) and Interpretative Structural Modeling (ISM) were utilized to evaluate safety risk factors.
Findings
The results show that 18 safety risk factors are divided into 6 levels. There are 12 risk transmission paths in total. Meanwhile, unsafe behavior and equipment malfunction failure are the direct causes of accidents, and inadequate management system is the basic factor that determines the safety risk status.
Research limitations/implications
Due to the limitation of the computational matrix workload, this article only categorizes numerous lexical items into 18 factors. Then, the workshop relied on a limited number of experts; thus, the findings may be potentially biased. Next, the accident report lacks a universal standard for compilation, and the use of text mining technique may be further optimized. Finally, since the data are all from China, subsequent cross-country studies should be considered.
Social implications
The results can help China coal mine project managers to have a clear understanding of safety risks, efficiently carry out risk hazard identification work and take timely measures to cut off the path of transmission with risks identified in this study. This helps reduce the economic losses of coal mining enterprises, thus improving the safety standards of the entire coal mining industry and the national standards for coal mine safety policy formulation.
Originality/value
Coal mine construction projects are characterized by complexity and difficulties in construction. Current research on the identification and assessment of safety risk factors in coal mine construction is insufficient. This study combines objective and systematic research approaches. The findings contribute to the safety risk management of China coal mine construction projects by providing a basis for the development of safety measures.
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Rafael Borim-de-Souza, Yasmin Shawani Fernandes, Pablo Henrique Paschoal Capucho, Bárbara Galleli and João Gabriel Dias dos Santos
This paper aims to analyze what Samarco and Brazilian magazines speak and say about Mariana’s environmental crime. Discover their doxa in this subject. Interpret the speakings…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to analyze what Samarco and Brazilian magazines speak and say about Mariana’s environmental crime. Discover their doxa in this subject. Interpret the speakings, sayings and doxas through the theories of the treadmills of production, crime and law.
Design/methodology/approach
It is a qualitative and documental research and a narrative analysis. Regarding the documents: 45 were from public authorities, 14 from Samarco Mineração S.A. and 73 from Brazilian magazines. Theoretically, the authors resorted to Bourdieusian sociology (speaking, saying and doxa) and the treadmills of production, crime and law theories.
Findings
Samarco: speaking – mission statements; saying – detailed information and economic and financial concerns; doxa – assistance discourse. Brazilian magazines: speaking – external agents; saying – agreements; doxa – attribution, aggravations, historical facts, impacts and protests.
Research limitations/implications
The absence of discussions that addressed this fatality, with its respective consequences, from an agenda that exposed and denounced how it exacerbated race, class and gender inequalities.
Practical implications
Regarding Mariana’s environmental crime: Samarco Mineração S.A. speaks and says through the treadmill of production theory and supports its doxa through the treadmill of crime theory, and Brazilian magazines speak and say through the treadmill of law theory and support their doxa through the treadmill of crime theory.
Social implications
To provoke reflections on the relationship between the mining companies and the communities where they settle to develop their productive activities.
Originality/value
Concerning environmental crime in perspective, submit it to a theoretical interpretation based on sociological references, approach it in a debate linked to environmental criminology, and describe it through narratives exposed by the guilty company and by Brazilian magazines with high circulation.
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Yuanwen Han, Jiang Shen, Xuwei Zhu, Bang An and Xueying Bao
This study aims to develop an interface management risk interaction modeling and analysis methodology applicable to complex systems in high-speed rail construction projects…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to develop an interface management risk interaction modeling and analysis methodology applicable to complex systems in high-speed rail construction projects, reveal the interaction mechanism of interface management risk and provide theoretical support for project managers to develop appropriate interface management risk response strategies.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper introduces the association rule mining technique to improve the complex network modeling method. Taking China as an example, based on the stakeholder perspective, the risk factors and significant accident types of interface management of high-speed rail construction projects are systematically identified, and a database is established. Then, the Apriori algorithm is used to mine and analyze the strong association rules among the factors in the database, construct the complex network, and analyze its topological characteristics to reveal the interaction mechanism of the interface management risk of high-speed rail construction projects.
Findings
The results show that the network is both scale-free and small-world, implying that construction accidents are not random events but rather the result of strong interactions between numerous interface management risks. Contractors, technical interfaces, mechanical equipment, and environmental factors are the primary direct causal factors of accidents, while owners and designers are essential indirect causal factors. The global importance of stakeholders such as owners, designers, and supervisors rises significantly after considering the indirect correlations between factors. This theoretically explains the need to consider the interactions between interface management risks.
Originality/value
The interaction mechanism between interface management risks is unclear, which is an essential factor influencing the decision of risk response measures. This study proposes a new methodology for analyzing interface management risk response strategies that incorporate quantitative analysis methods and considers the interaction of interface management risks.
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Navid Hooshangi, Navid Mahdizadeh Gharakhanlou and Seyyed Reza Ghaffari-Razin
The duration of an urban search and rescue (USAR) operation directly depends on the number of rescue teams involved. The purpose of this paper is to simplify the earthquake…
Abstract
Purpose
The duration of an urban search and rescue (USAR) operation directly depends on the number of rescue teams involved. The purpose of this paper is to simplify the earthquake environment and determine the initial number of rescuers in earthquake emergencies in USAR operation.
Design/methodology/approach
In the proposed methodology, four primary steps were considered: evaluation of buildings damage and the number of injured people by exerting geospatial information system (GIS) analyses; determining service time by means of task allocation; designing the simulation model (queuing theory); and calculation of survival rate and comparison with the time of rescue operations.
Findings
The calculation of buildings damage for an earthquake with 6.6 Richter in Tehran’s District One indicated that 18% of buildings are subjected to the high damage risk. The number of injured people calculated was 28,856. According to the calculated survival rate, rescue operations in the region must be completed within 22.33 h to save 75% of the casualties. Finally, the design of the queue model indicated that at least 2,300 rescue teams were required to provide the calculated survival rate.
Originality/value
The originality of this paper is an innovative approach for determining an appropriate number of rescue teams by considering the queuing theory. The results showed that the integration of GIS and the simulation of queuing theory could be a helpful tool in natural disaster management, especially in terms of rapid vulnerability assessment in urban districts, the adequacy and appropriateness of the emergency services.
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Younghwan Kim and Hyunseung Lee
This study aims to develop a safe, wearable clothing system that combines visibility-enhancing and emergency–accident-responding functions for two-wheeled vehicle (TWV) users'…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to develop a safe, wearable clothing system that combines visibility-enhancing and emergency–accident-responding functions for two-wheeled vehicle (TWV) users' safety assistance.
Design/methodology/approach
First, the wearable system (WS) allowing users to control turn signals, brake lights and emergency flasher only with head movements was developed. Second, multiconnected systems were developed between WSs and a smartphone application (AS), providing accident occurrence recognition, driving photo capture–storage and emergency notification functions. Third, usability testing in each function was performed to assess the operability of the systems.
Findings
The intuitive interface, which uses head movement as gesture commands, was effectively operated for controlling turn signals, brake lights and emergency flasher when driving, despite differences in user physique and boarding structure among TWVs. In addition, using Bluetooth low energy and Wi-Fi protocols simultaneously can establish automatic accident recognition–notification and driving photo capture–storage–display functions by linking two WSs with one AS.
Research limitations/implications
This study presents a case using relatively accessible technologies within the fashion industry to improve users' safety and provide fundamental data for convergence education for smart fashion products, highlighting the significance of this study in this convergence era.
Originality/value
The WSs and the AS of a TWV user visually evoke the attention of other drivers and pedestrians, reducing the risk of accidents; social contribution regarding public safety will be possible by allowing the system to autonomously inform emergencies and receive emergency medical treatment quickly when the accident occurred.
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Vijaya Prasad Burle, Tattukolla Kiran, N. Anand, Diana Andrushia and Khalifa Al-Jabri
The construction industries at present are focusing on designing sustainable concrete with less carbon footprint. Considering this aspect, a Fibre-Reinforced Geopolymer Concrete…
Abstract
Purpose
The construction industries at present are focusing on designing sustainable concrete with less carbon footprint. Considering this aspect, a Fibre-Reinforced Geopolymer Concrete (FGC) was developed with 8 and 10 molarities (M). At elevated temperatures, concrete experiences deterioration of its mechanical properties which is in some cases associated with spalling, leading to the building collapse.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, six geopolymer-based mix proportions are prepared with crimped steel fibre (SF), polypropylene fibre (PF), basalt fibre (BF), a hybrid mixture consisting of (SF + PF), a hybrid mixture with (SF + BF), and a reference specimen (without fibres). After temperature exposure, ultrasonic pulse velocity, physical characteristics of damaged concrete, loss of compressive strength (CS), split tensile strength (TS), and flexural strength (FS) of concrete are assessed. A polynomial relationship is developed between residual strength properties of concrete, and it showed a good agreement.
Findings
The test results concluded that concrete with BF showed a lower loss in CS after 925 °C (i.e. 60 min of heating) temperature exposure. In the case of TS, and FS, the concrete with SF had lesser loss in strength. After 986 °C and 1029 °C exposure, concrete with the hybrid combination (SF + BF) showed lower strength deterioration in CS, TS, and FS as compared to concrete with PF and SF + PF. The rate of reduction in strength is similar to that of GC-BF in CS, GC-SF in TS and FS.
Originality/value
Performance evaluation under fire exposure is necessary for FGC. In this study, we provided the mechanical behaviour and physical properties of SF, PF, and BF-based geopolymer concrete exposed to high temperatures, which were evaluated according to ISO standards. In addition, micro-structural behaviour and linear polynomials are observed.
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