Category: Construction

Evaluating students performance is one of the foundations of the learning process. There are several arguments highlighting its importance in education. First of all, assessment is critical for finding out whether learners understand educators instructions and determining the extent to which they follow them. Secondly, it serves as a motivation tool because I believe that students will demonstrate more interest in learning if they know that their outcomes will be graded. Finally, evaluating student learning is the best way to conclude whether educational objectives are achieved, and standards are met.

One of the evaluation processes is formative evaluation. Its primary goal is to evaluate students learning performance with the purpose of assessing the effectiveness of current instructions and deciding whether additional instructions are needed (Slavin, 2015). This evaluation process is a combination of motivation, learning effectiveness, and learning efficiency (Rieber, 2008). It aims at detecting the gaps in educational outcomes and estimating success or failure in accomplishing objectives. Moreover, formative evaluation is beneficial for obtaining feedback.

I think that I might want to implement elements of the formative evaluation process in my lesson plans. I would like to add more quizzes to my practice. They might be either right after representing new materials to students or at the beginning of the next lessons. The rationale for choosing this constituent is the fact that it would be beneficial to find out whether the students were attentive during the class and how well they perceived new information. In addition to it, quizzes would be useful for determining whether educating techniques are effective because higher grades mean that the learners understand the educator.

Test Construction

The significance of test construction is close to that of evaluating students performance because it reflects the effectiveness and professionalism of an educator. There are numerous principles applied to constructing tests. First of all, assessments should be based on learning objectives and instructions, i.e., correspond with what students learned. Moreover, they should include those types of tasks, which are familiar to learners and recommended by instructions. In addition to it, tests should carry out their initial function  estimate the level of knowledge and motivate learners to improve as well as to detect the gaps in educational instructions. Finally, they should be interpreted accurately. It means that they should represent true accomplishments and problems with the aim of either adding more precise instructions or continuing following the existing ones (Slavin, 2015). These are the principles that I plan to use in my classroom. Moreover, I would like to include various types of tasks in my tests, from true-false and matching items to open questions because it is the only way to estimate the level of knowledge.

The evaluation process is intricate. Nowadays, schools are obliged to meet high standards of education. It means that the students take standardized tests, which are intended to estimate their performance. However, there is a problem with these tests because some teachers choose to pay more attention to obligatory subjects such as math or reading and focus on higher results instead of factual ones (CBS, 2007). In my classroom, I will not give preference to classes included in federal programs ignoring others because this practice distorts facts and does not point to existing problems. I believe that it is paramount to guarantee that tests correspond with instructions, especially time frames because it is the only way to estimate performance.

References

CBS. (2007). Notebook: Standardized Test [Video file]. Web.

Rieber, L. (2008). Introduction to instructional design: Formative evaluation [Video file]. Web.

Slavin, R. E. (2015). Educational psychology: Theory and practice (11th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Introduction

Growth for housing starts, completions and under construction was negatively affected by the economic downturn in 2008 with only 187,923 units registered. But this has surpassed the 1955 to 2013 historical average, which means that even if there was perceived negative growth the sector was performing well unexpectedly. The impact for Canada and the provinces was momentary as the country has recovered after the economic downturn and attained a steady growth.

The provinces that registered increases in housing starts in 2013 were Alberta and Manitoba, with Alberta having 7.8% increase, departing from the historical average recorded for 1990 and 2013. Alberta gained from the increased wages and employment due to investments in the oil sector which triggered in-migration to the province in 2013. These developments stimulated the need for new homes. Likewise, Manitobas increase in housing starts was triggered by low unemployment.

Analysis

The data shown in figure 1 represent their housing start levels for the period as indicated. The following analysis is based on these data compared to the 1990-2013 average levels. Housing starts for the period 2003 to 2013 have become steady at 207,258 units. There was a decline in 2009 because of the economic downturn, but it soon recovered during 2010 to 2011 with improved economic conditions supporting an increased need of housing starts, while the average is near the 1955 to 2013 historical mean. A moderate improvement in 2013 brought the level back to this historical average (CMHC: Canadian Housing Observer 3-1).

Meanwhile, among the Prairie province Saskatchewan registered a drop in housing starts for the same year 2013. This was reported by builders/contractors as they noted the growing list of completed and unoccupied homes. But this was momentary since in-migration supported the need for housing and so the level rose above the historical average.

In British Columbia, housing starts registered a steady growth at levels comparable to the 1990-2013 average. Figure 1 also shows that Ontario weakened in its record of housing starts in 2013. Later, the condominium builders slowed down their construction activity for apartment units. This made the levels closer to but above the average in Ontario.

Quebec also registered a decline by 20% in 2013. In regard to multiple housing starts Quebecs level of activity surpassed the historical average. The list of completed and unoccupied units stimulates builders to decrease housing starts by 4 percent below the historical average.

Due to reduced economic activity and a relatively slower population growth in the Atlantic provinces, housing starts declined in Prince Edward Island which registered -32 percent, New Brunswick -14 percent, and Nova Scotia -13 percent. The levels of these provinces were below their 1990-2013 average levels.

The quantity of completed and unabsorbed dwellings and those attributed for 10,000 population had a steady increase since the end of the financial crisis in 2008. It remained at 2.9 which is above the 1992-2013 historical mean. This encouraged constructors to slow down their construction.

Existing Homes Recorded Stable Levels in 2013

The Multiple Listing Service (MLS)^® reported 457,761 existing homes sold in 2013 which was relatively unchanged from the previous 2012 level and maintained the 1980-2013 annual average sales of 339,313. Calculated to sales per 10,000 people it stood at 130 units, which is just above but can be considered near the yearly average of 112 sales.

People were still looking for completion homes, the demand was considered steady in 2013 but supply was falling at 0.7% or 866,890 units although previously, between 2009 and 2012, the demand registered an upward trend.

The New Listings in 2013

What is considered a way of roughly measuring the trend in the housing market experts use the sales-to-new listings ratio (SNLR). When the ratio is below 40%, it can be considered a buyers market, but when it is above 55% it is a sellers market. Suppose the SNLR is in the middle of these two thresholds, one can consider the housing market as balanced from a national context, with the average house price rising along with increase in inflation (CMHC: Canadian Housing Observer 3-8).

Thousands of units

The chart in figure 2 shows that the sales-to-new-listings recorded a balance of 52.8 ratio but it can be judged as near the sellers side since 2010. Price reacts to changing market situations. The chart also shows that the market fundamentals gradually shifted from balanced conditions to demand of completion dwellings due to improved economic situation. The period 1999 to 2007 marked a balance on the sellers side where the average MLS price grew at a yearly rate of 8.1%. As the years passed, balance market conditions emerged just close to the sellers market level, making the MLS 2007-2013 price stand at 3.2%.

The Important Role of Condominiums

In 2013 there was slower construction of condominium starts, when it fell into a low of 62,794 units from a high of 77,693 units the previous year. This decline, however, did not mean that it lagged behind the historical average. In fact, it was 50% above the historical average. Condominium construction plays a major role in the entire housing starts business. In the past, one out of five housing starts was a condominium.

Condominium starts were predominant in Vancouver, which reported 62.6 percent; the next is Montréal recording 56.3 percent, and the third is Toronto with a record 53.9 percent. The rental condominium market has been an increasingly significant component of rental housing in Canada. Rental starts are much lower compared to condominium starts; this was noted in the 1990-2013 level. Vancouver and Montreal had an almost similar requirement for rental starts as in the national average. Recent surveys for rental condominiums show that their vacancy rates are relatively low and stable. This means that demand for rental condominiums has grown and expansion is necessary (CMHC: Canadian Housing Observer 3-4).

Condominiums across Canada have almost similar features and are operated and owned privately, mostly by corporations. But there also differences, for example, terms that refer to condominium differ in how people call it (CMHC: Condominium Basics par. 25).

Completed and Unabsorbed Units

New Housing Price Index (NHPI) is a statistical method to measure variations in selling price of houses classified as new single-detached (CMHC: Canadian Housing Observer 3-5). The method uses housing specifications that have been continuous so that changes in quality of homes can be preserved. It notices periods when the list decreases which concur with NHPI growth, and some time when increasing inventory is accompanied by decreasing NHPI. This is demonstrated in figure 3.

The inventory here revealed a very small increase of detached and semi-detached homes caused by the 2008-2009 global economic downturn. NHPI reflected a negative growth of -2.3% during that period.

The chart in figure 4 shows that new construction activity for SAAR (all areas) declined in January in 2016 but later increased in February 2016. The trend in all areas showed that it was almost even, or a very slight decline from the January to February data. From January 1990 up to the present, the trend started from a very high activity, registering at 275,000-280,000 new construction.

There was a sharp decline in the 1990s but fluctuated up to 1993-1995. Housing activity made a sharp ascent in 2006-2007 but slid down in 2008-2009 during the economic downturn. Canadas housing activity recovered in 2010 up to 2012, and from that point up to the current period 2016 there has been a steady average growth  199,107 to 198,880 socially adjusted housing starts.

The data reveal that for housing starts by dwelling, for single apartment, it was 6,072 in 2015 but increased in 2016 to 6,321. For semi-detached, the survey result was 1,247 in 2015 but decreased to 1,091 in 2016. For Row, the trend was 2,220 which increased to 2,459 in 2016. For apartment, it increased from 11,016 in 2015 to 12,781 in 2016.

The chart above is based on a table from CMHC which provides data for starts by dwelling type. For a metropolitan area of 10,000 people the largest number of starts by dwelling type has been registered in Canada which has a total of 12,973. This is followed by Ontario with a total of 4,714, and the next is British Columbia with 4,046. The lowest is Prince Edward Island with only one start recorded for 2016.

Starts and Completion

A start refers to the time construction on a building is begun, such as when the concrete has been mixed for the construction project. A completion refers to the overall work of construction for a particular building or dwelling (CMHC: Housing and Market Information 3).

Data for Dwelling Starts for Canada, Centres of 10,000 people, and other areas.

The data in the graph are provided in group periods, for example data collected for 1982 to 1986 range from 104,792 to 170,863 for centres of 10,000 and over, or an average of 137,827.5; for the period 1987 to 1991, the average is 172,717, or an increase of 34,889.5 dwelling starts.

In 1992 to 1997, the average is 131,673.5; in 2012 to 2014 the historical average is 112,802.5, for centres of 10,000 and over. For Canada, the average for the same period is 124,375 dwelling starts and under construction. The average or mean is taken when two periods are added and the sum is divided by 2. In 1982 to 1986, Canadas dwelling starts and under construction had an average of 162,822.5, which is above the historical average for 1990-2013, and for 2012 to 2014. This means Canadas dwelling starts and under construction has declined due to some factors like global economic downturn.

Data for Canada reveals that for 1982 to 1986, the average is 159,273.5; for 1987 to 1991 the average is 188,995; for 1992 to 1997 the average is 158,315.5; for 1998 to 2001 the average is 147,661; for 2002 to 2006 the average is 200,786; for 2007 to 2011 the average is 192,256; for 2012 to 2014 the average is 178,525.5. All these mean that a comparison of the means of the different periods can give us a trend.

As seen from the various averages above, the trend has been fluctuating due perhaps to several factors during those times. The 2008-2009 global economic downturn slightly affected Canada but after that period the economy rebounded and has attained a steady growth after the economic downturn.

The data available for under construction are for Canada and the centres of 10,000 and over population. For Canada, the average or mean for the period 1982 to 1986 is 95,247; for 1987 to 1991 the average is 98,236; for 1992 to 1997 the average is 80,751; for 1998 to 2001 the average is 87,354; for 2002 to 2006 the average is 148,965.5; for 2007 to 2011 the average is 186,236.5; and for 2012 to 2014 the average is 210,693. This means that under construction dwellings had fluctuating averages or means for the different periods, but there was increasing trend during 2002-2006 up to 2012-2014 periods.

The data for centres of 10,000 and over for the different periods are the following: the average or mean for the period 1982 to 1986 is 80,542.5; for 1987 to 1991 the average is 95,058; for 1992 to 1997 the average is 64,832.5; for 1998 to 2001 the average is 76,010.5; for 2002 to 2006 the average is 134,051; for 2007 to 2011 the average is 169,969.5; and for 2012 to 2014 the average is 198,150. The trend here is the same with Canadas data, which is fluctuating but a steady growth could also be seen for the last two periods.

Forecast for Atlantic Canada

Housing starts will have relative decline in 2016 and the next year. It will be considered moderate since it is just around 5,850 to 7,800 units this year, and next year (2017) it will be around 5,550 to 8,150 units.

New Brunswick will have growth of.5% this year and will further rise to 1.1% in 2017. Some of the provinces new challenges will include the fragile fiscal stance which makes it a weak contributor to the provincial economy. The countrys currency, the Canadian dollar, though weak at this point will still be able to support manufacturing and export sectors (CMHC: Housing Market Outlook: Atlantic Region Highlights 2).

Global demand will have great influence on exports of prime commodity. Other influences include the slow population growth. International migration will overtake interprovince migration, so this will not have a big impact on the economy. New Brunswick will have a declining full-time employment and a moderate growth. This means that there will also be lower demand for housing starts, completion and construction activity.

Economic growth for Prince Edward Island and housing demand will be almost similar with New Brunswick: a growth of.5% for 2016 and 1.1% in the following year. The agriculture sector will have a relative improvement, and a stronger stance for the tourism industry. The Canadian dollar supports the small sectors.

Employment for the province will have a 0.5% growth this year and 0.6% for the coming year (CMHC: Housing Market Outlook: Atlantic Region Highlights 3).

Nova Scotia will have a higher economic growth of 0.8% this year and 1.6% next year (2017). The shipbuilding industry and the manufacturing sector are expected to grow by 2016 up to 2017. The weak Canadian dollar will benefit the exports sector, but the lower prices in commodity will also impact the commodity exporters (CMHC: Housing Market Outlook: Atlantic Region Highlights 3). Employment growth will improve housing demand and the investment sector.

By 2016, growth of 0.8% is further seen in the employment sector. In the international migration, there is an expected 1,500 migrants annually but there will be a slower inter-province migration this coming year 2017. A controlled decrease in inter-province migration will improve annual net migration. But there will be improved growth in housing demand, or more housing activity this 2016 and the next year. An aging population will affect demand for single-detached homes; instead demand will shift to rental apartments. Therefore, multiple starts will range from 1,600 to 2,500 units this year and will have a very slight change in 2017 (CMHC: Housing Market Outlook: Atlantic Region Highlights 3).

For this year until 2017, Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) will have a slow economic activity and lower growth than the rest of Atlantic Canada. But GDP will be more positive at 0.2% this year (2016), and much stronger at 1.4% next year. The provinces employment growth will be around 0.5 for both 2016 and 2017. Net migration will only become steady by 2017. Housing starts and construction activity will have a moderate demand (CMHC: Housing Market Outlook: Atlantic Region Highlights 3).

Quebec

New home market will have a slow demand for the next few years, but there will be higher demand for condominium construction for 2016. Resale market will have a minor improvement. Vacant rental dwellings also improve this year (CMHA: Housing Market Outlook Quebec CMA 1).

Current Trends: Canada

In 2015, housing starts were maintained at 196,565 units in August, which improved since the previous month July, starts only reached 185,642. The increase in August was attributed to a 19.5 percent increase in starts regarded as multi-units in cities (CMHC: Housing Now Canada 1).

August housing starts in Canadas urban centres increased by 12.2 percent; it recorded 216,924 units. The seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of multi-units also increased to 142,927 believed to be a record high since April 2012. Single-detached starts attained an increase of 1.4 percent. Ontario got break by having the largest increase. This was attributed to Torontos urban condominium units. British Columbia acquired the worst decline in monthly SAAR (CMHC: Housing Now Canada 2).

Completed and unabsorbed housing units were maintained in August of 2015, but an increase was noted later. But the seasonally-adjusted inventory was firmed at 18,100 units, with an upward trend of multiple units equalizing the declined supply of single-detached units. Row units, corresponding to seasonally-adjusted units reached an increase of 1.5 percent at 11,306 units (CMHC: Housing Now Canada 2).

Still for the current trend, construction permits increased in July 2015. Data covered from Canadian municipalities revealed that construction permits registered at 234,600. This is considered new dwellings, which is an increase of 10.6 percent from the previous month of June. The single-family dwellings registered 4.8 percent increase. Housing starts gained momentum during the month of July (CMHC: Housing Now Canada 2).

Residential building permits recorded increase in value (in terms of dollar), and this was supported by a growth in family value. Investment value for new homes rose by 0.5 percent, compared to last year. This data on investment refers to investment spending by individuals or firms, including government. And increases on investment were noted in the provinces of British Columbia, Nova Scotia and Ontario. There were declines recorded in Quebec and Alberta (CMHC: Housing Now Canada 3).

NHPI increased by 1.3 percent and the largest was recorded in Toronto and Oshawa. Largest declines were noted in Victoria and Ottawa. This NHPI increase can be attributed to the house and land factors. MLS sales gathered an increase of 515,580 or a.3 increase from the previous year, 2014. The seasonally-adjusted rate also goes along with this increase.

The MLS HPI had a growth of 6.4 percent; this type of index uses statistical methods in finding changes for quality of homes in the market (CHMC: Housing Now Canada 4). Using this method, 8.9 percent increase was recorded for two-storey single family homes. This was followed by single-detached (single storey) with 6.1 percent increase. Greater Vancouver and Toronto attained the largest increases.

Conclusion

Different trends were registered for housing starts, completions, and under construction, but the 1955 to 2013 historical average has been surpassed by the different data for the various time periods. As a whole, Canadas housing has recorded a steady growth, ignoring economic downturns and financial problems. In 2015 and 2016, increases are even more apparent.

Works Cited

CMHC: Canadian Housing Observer. 2014. Web.

CMHC: Condominium Basics 2016. Web.

CMHC: Housing and Market Information. 2016. Web.

CMHC: Housing Market Outlook: Atlantic Region Highlights. 2015. Web.

CMHC: Housing Market Outlook Quebec CMA. 2014. Web.

CMHC: Housing Now Canada. 2015. Web.

Introduction

Medina Azahara means the City of Flowers and it represents the ruins of the fortified Arab Muslim medieval palace in Spain (Khan, 2012). The palace was built in 929 by Abd al-Rahman. It was constructed approximately 13 kilometers northwest of Cordoba, Spain. According to the precedence set by the previous governments, this was the most ambitious project. The Medina al-Zahara project was carried out in an exaggerated pace since the Caliph was eagerly waiting for its completion. He made the palace to be his administrative and central point of governance (Khan, 2012). This was his way of demonstrating his new status after he had proclaimed himself a Caliph after the Spanish Umayyad lost its power and influence in Spain (Khan, 2012).

The contraction

To be precise, the Caliph spent almost a third of the total revenue on the development and construction of this project. According to the evidence collected in his time, this was the biggest project that had been ever carried out. In fact, the project maintained this historic record for several subsequent centuries. The building was divided into three terraces and the highest point was the caliphs palace. Form this point, he was able to see the entire city in all directions. In addition, the palace was unique because it was situated in isolation from the rest of the city, hence allowing the caliph to have a better view of the entire state.

The reason for making the Caliphs palace significantly unique and visibly isolated was to symbolize power. This was to show the difference between the caliph and the normal civilians as well as creating a sense of power and respect for the leader. From the records gathered about Medina al-Zahra, this palace was the first construction project to be completed in the region (Khan, 2012). In a hierarchical arrangement, after the Caliphs palace, there was the second terrace that hosted the government buildings and palaces (Khan, 2012). At this level in the three terraces of the entire building, there were several halls that were constructed and reserved mainly to accommodate and receive important government visitors.

The building was designed in such a way that there was a void space left in between the middle and the lower terraces. Within the space left between these two levels, there was a mosque which is a very important Muslims house of prayer. It is recorded that the first prayer meeting held in the mosque within the building was done in the year 941 (Khan, 2012). This was the first Friday that the Muslim adherents converged to worship in the mosque for the first time in history. It is also said that the construction work took 1000 craftsmen to complete it within the shortest period of about 48 days (Khan, 2012). The total amount of time taken to build the entire Medina al-Zahra amounted to 40 years.

Levels of construction

The work done in the first two and half decades was under the leadership of Abd al-Rahman III (Khan, 2012). He oversaw the buildings construction from the foundation between the years 936 and 937 until the time of his death in the year 961 (Khan, 2012). After his death, the following one and a half decades were under al-Hakim 11s leadership. During his reign, Hakam extended the great mosque of Cordoba (Khan, 2012). He was responsible for the magnificent design and creation of the reception halls, gardens, bath houses and the excellent fountains all over the palace.

However, the construction of official buildings stalled for sometime soon after Hakams death in the year 976. However, this did not affect the houses in the lower terrace. In essence, construction of all the houses that were not immediately linked to the palace area was not affected and their construction did not stop immediately after Hakams death. The city and its architectural setting lay in the area where simple houses such as garrisons, gardens and markets were the major feature (Khan, 2012). In addition, this area hosted other construction works, such as the subterranean prison and state factories (Khan, 2012). However, the significance of the city and its influence on the Medina al-Zahra palace was reduced when new but similarly named palace was created by al-Mansur.

Al-Mansur was the first minister. Caliph Hisham was still a minor at the time when al-Mansur was creating a new palace in 978-980 (Khan, 2012), but the Medina al-Zahra was still in place by then and it was not destroyed. In the year 1010, the real ruin was made by the rebellious Berber groups (Khan, 2012). Despite the events that unfolded and the ruining of the palace, the new Medina al-Zahra remained closed and inhabited until the 12 century (Khan, 2012). Today, the building has been excavated but not all of it. Notably, the upper and the middle terraces are the only parts of the building that have been found (Khan, 2012). The other parts are still in ruins and very little has been done about them. Notably, the buildings on the lower terrace have not been touched or excavated up to date.

Artistic features

Nonetheless, it is important to note some of the artistic features that characterize the palaces decorations. This is mostly with regard to the caliphs palace. The palace had decorated walls and a mosaic-like floor that was covering the whole floor (Khan, 2012). The main reason for the construction of the palace was not mainly religious or luxurious. The palace was constructed to make a political and administrative statement. In order to establish the authority and influence of the Caliph, there was need for the construction of a new city that would mark a shift in power.

That was so important for the caliph that he decided to devote most of the states resources to the construction of this historic building. The caliph had several rivals including the Fatimid of Ifriqiya in northern Africa (Khan, 2012). The construction of a new city was to demonstrate the caliphs superiority over these rivals. The palace served as the main residence for caliphs until in the year 1010 when the ensuing civil war led to its demolition. After its horrific ruin, it was abandoned and most of its features and elements were vandalized and used in other buildings and for other functions. It is approximated that the city remained to be an influential political icon for more than 80 year since its inception.

Reason for the construction of the city

This was a calculated show of might because the city was the first to be built from the ground all the way up in the entire Western Europe (Khan, 2012). The name of the city is said to have been borrowed from the Caliphs favorite concubine who was called Azahara. There are many stories that suggest why the Caliph had to build and name the city after his concubine. Some argue that his favorite concubine was very demanding and that the caliph did this to please her. However, most historians agree on the fact that the main reason for the construction of this city was mostly for political reasons rather than love. Nonetheless, no one knows the exact reason as all of the given rationales are mere speculations. However, political reasons are more sensible considering the events that preceded his decision to construct the city.

He was consolidating his political power at that time and he was almost getting into a political conflict with the Fatimid Dynasty (Khan, 2012). The caliph and the Fatimid Dynasty were fighting to gain control of North Africa at the time (Khan, 2012). It was during this conflict that he ordered the construction of the city and he named it Zahara. In Arabic, Zahara means shining or a radiant object which in this context meant he was the politically shining star and he had the power and authority to take control over North Africa. Putting the name in this context, it clearly makes sense to assume that he meant to give the city a name that carried a political meaning.

Therefore, many critics and historians support the notion that the Caliph was refereeing to his political strength rather than his romantic feelings. Others argue that the naming of the city was an act of paying homage to the Caliphs religious stand. Being a Muslim, it is believed that Fatimah al-Zahra, the Prophet Muhammads daughters was the reason that led to the caliph to name the city Zahara. Most people believe this was a way of paying homage to the caliphs religious belief. Therefore, it is not very clear which of the assumptions with regard to the naming of the city is true (Khan, 2012).

All of these assumptions are very viable in terms of the meaning attached to them. However, the construction of the city had many advantages that were politically aligned. As the construction began, the caliph had declared himself an independent and a true leader. In order to impress the world and to prove his power and political strength, he had to construct the biggest city in the world in order to show his might. However, he understood this was not enough and that he needed to prove his legitimacy to the world.

Conclusion

To achieve this, he introduced political, economic, and ideological measures during his tenure as a political leader (Khan, 2012). This is how the idea of creating a huge record breaking capital city came from. The architecture of the mosque built in the city was one of the most striking features. It was made of marble walls and ceilings of gold (Khan, 2012). It also had carved doors and ivory as well as sculptures made of amber and pearls (Khan, 2012). It is said that the remains seen today in the ruins of Madina al-Zahra is only 10% of its total extent.

Reference

Khan, R. (2012). The palace-city of Medina al-Zahra near Cordoba. Web.

Scenario Description

For this scenario, I will assume the role of a manager for a stone masonry contractor. With the assistance of worker representatives, my task is to carry out a general risk assessment connected to standard masonry techniques and procedures. The purpose of this assessment is to demonstrate the companys approach to worker safety and hazard protection, to win a tender. The document will outline the necessary safety precautions required of the general contractor to assure that the work procedures are carried out safely and properly. The following assessment addresses the operational risks associated with the development of five-story apartment blocks.

Choosing an Appropriate Risk Assessment Model

There are many risk assessment models currently employed in various aspects of the industry. However, not all of them apply to construction. For this assignment, three risk assessment models were taken into consideration. These models are (Brindley 120):

• Failure Mode, Effects, and Criticality Analysis (FMEAC)
• Hazards and Operability Study (HAZOP)
• Fault Tree Analysis (FTA)

Each of these models has its strengths and weaknesses, which make them eligible for a particular sphere of industry. FMEAC is a system widely implemented in high-risk industries, where failure has dangerous consequences. It sees widespread application in nuclear, military, and space programs. It is a bottom-up analytical method that identifies the processes involved in a particular activity, the chances of failure, and consequences of said failure, both in an isolated case and in conjunction with other consecutive failures (Haimes 49). It allows for increased effectiveness of preventive and remedial activities, which works well for bricklaying, as the process can be easily segmented into sets of basic activities that can be represented via a block diagram.

The second method of risk assessment used in construction is the HAZOP method. It is commonly used in complex operations with a multitude of consecutive processes, to detect and analyze weaknesses that would have otherwise not been found. It involves brainstorming and creative thinking when assessing potential troubling situations, which is why it is also excessively used in software development (Haimes 52). Despite its merits, however, the bricklaying process is straightforward with very little deviations from the process, which is why HAZOP may not be an effective risk assessment instrument for it.

The third method is the FTA, which is the opposite of FMEAC in many ways. It is a top-down assessment tool that begins with identifying potential results of operational failures and then identifying ways of how such a failure could occur (Haimes 60). It helps identify system failure conditions and is utilized in cause-effect eliminations procedures. However, while FTA helps preventing large-scale failures (which is why it is used in pharmaceuticals, software development, and other areas that have critical failure conditions), it is less useful in identifying and preventing small-scale failures and safety hazards associated with manual labor.

Out of these three, I believe that the FMEAC risk assessment methodology is the most efficient. Stonemasonry involves a limited number of clearly-defined operations, which could be analyzed and connected to potential risks that may stem from failures to operate, equipment malfunction, or other incidents not directly related to it.

Risk Assessment Process and Criteria

The risk assessment process involves several stages, which are (Haimes 87):

• Identifying potential hazards
• Identifying potential victims and how workers could be harmed
• Identifying the risk prevention measures that would need to be taken at the construction site.
• Identifying the personnel responsible for the implementation, regulation, and enforcement of said measures.

Thus, risk management assessment criteria, by the FMEAC methodology, would involve assessing potential health hazards, potential property damage hazards, and the criticality of the process to the overall construction effort. To identify the hazards, I, as a department manager for my contractor, had to read and assess the Health and Safety in Construction publications available, checked the manufacturing data and instructions for tools and materials implemented in stone masonry, analyzed the bricklaying work process for vulnerabilities and talked to the employees to identify any risks involving work-related practices.

Risk Assessment

As it is possible to see, the majority of the processes involved in bricklaying have very low criticality to the overall building process while at the same time having high scores for potential health damage. This means that while the occurrence would not stop building construction, it will most likely cause significant injuries to the worker or workers in question. Interdependency between processes is relatively weak, as every individual worker follows an individual chain of production. In case of an injury of one or several workers, the overall building speed will be slowed down but not stopped. The two risks that may have potential implications on other activities and the organization as a whole involve machine-associated failures and fires/explosions. For example, a mortar machine breaking down may halt the entire brick-laying process, whereas an explosion/fire may cause significant damage to the construction site as a whole. The methodology and criteria chosen for this risk assessment effectively reflect on the fact that primary risks in stone masonry are those to workers rather than materials or processes.

Action Plan

A comprehensive action plan is required to eliminate or reduce the chances and effects of particular risks. It must be noted that none of the risks mentioned below can be eliminated, as the process of masonry involves a great degree of the human factor. Therefore, all effort is made to reduce the risks and mitigate the potential damage that workers could suffer in an event of it occurring.

Works Cited

Brindley, Clare. Supply Chain Risks. Routledge, 2017.

Buchanan, Andrew, and Anthony Abu. Structural Design for Fire Safety. Wiley, 2017.

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Introduction

The study of acculturation is rooted in a number of subfields of psychology including social psychology, counselling psychology and cross-cultural psychology (e.g. Liebkind, 1996; Wang, Schwartz, & Zamboanga, 2010; Yoon, Hacker, Hewitt, Abrams, & Cleary, 2012). A number of studies have defined acculturation to be a concept involving two different processes of cultural and psychological changes that take place due to contact between at least two cultural groups and their individual group members (e.g. Berry, 2005, Smith & Khawaja, 2011). These processes involve different forms of mutual compromise that lead to adaptations in psychological and sociocultural aspects between both groups (Berry, 2005).

At the group level, members experience a number of changes in areas including cultural practices as well as social structures. At the individual level, on the other hand, it entails changing one’s behavioral repertoire (Berry, 2005). These changes occur for a variety of reasons including migration and sojourning, and carries on long after the establishment of initial contact in culturally plural societies, where ethnic groups maintain characteristics closely tied to their cultural heritage (Berry, 2005). While the process of acculturation continues for as long as culturally different groups coexist and come into contact, there are some longer-term adjustments required to live in such culture-contact environment that take different forms which are, in many instances, the result of compromise and accommodation among groups in contact (Berry, 2005). More often than not, this entails, for example, learning a starkly different language from that of one’s own, sharing each other’s preference for food, as well as adopting the way in which members of the respective cultural groups interact that are characteristic of their group (Berry, 2005). At times, these mutual adjustments occur fairly easily through culture learning, a concept widely studied by Berry (1992). However, culture conflicts and acculturative stress during intercultural interactions may also arise. Hence, acculturating individuals learn to adopt different coping strategies.

Four acculturation approaches were discovered as the foundation upon which individuals adopt to better help themselves adjust to the dominant group’s cultural way of living (Berry, 2008). The first strategy described by Berry (2008) was assimilation, which stated that a person is willing to adapt to the dominant group’s culture at the expense of compromising and possibly losing his or her own cultural identity. The second strategy postulated was separation which Berry (2008) defined as the preference for the acculturating individual to hang on to his or her own cultural identity, while avoiding any form of interaction with others. On the other hand, the integration strategy was described as the interest displayed to retain the individual’s own culture, while simultaneously engaging in interactions and partaking in some aspects of the dominant group (Ndika, 2013). Finally, the last strategy described by Berry (2008) was marginalization, defined as a person’s reluctance not only to retain his or her own cultural practices, but also to acquire and experience the new culture.

The goal of this paper seeks to outline the concept of acculturation stress specifically targeting at immigrant students as it has been extensively researched on and studied in the fields of cross-cultural psychology. Following the aforementioned discussion on the general concept of acculturation, the phenomenon of acculturation stress will be further elaborated below.

Acculturation Stress

According to a study conducted by Berry (1992), two conceptualized outcomes of acculturation have been posited. The first conceptualized outcome has been referred to as “behavioral shifts”, which has been found to be changes in a person’s behavioral repertoire that occur fairly easily and are typically non-problematic. This process of an individual’s shifting behavior encompasses three sub-processes which are cultural shedding, culture learning, as well as cultural conflict (Berry, 2005). Cultural shedding and culture learning involve the intentional loss of behaviors and the replacement of other acquired behaviors that enable the acculturating individual to better integrate. This process, often times also referred to as adjustments, are generally made with little difficulty. However, a certain level of cultural conflict may arise, which in the case of those seeking to assimilate, will resolve the conflict by adopting the dominant group’s behavioral norms (Berry, 2005). For those seeking separation, individuals may disengage from acculturating in order to keep away from cultural conflicts continuing. In the case of people pursuing integration, cultural conflict can be circumvented only when the two cultural groups in contact agree to mutually accommodate to each other. Finally, for those seeking marginalization, individuals tend to seek little involvement in either of the cultures as a form of resolution to culture conflict (Berry, 2005).

When an individual experiences higher levels of cultural conflict and these less than positive experiences become problematic albeit controllable, then acculturative stress, which is the second approach, is the befitting conceptualization (Berry, Kim, Minde, & Mok, 1987). This concept has been defined as a stress reaction in regard to life events stemming from acculturation experiences, and have been found to reduce one’s health status in psychological and social aspects, specifically, experiencing feelings of confusion, anxiousness, depressed mood, as well as identity confusion (Berry et al., 1987).

Acculturative Stressors International Students Experience

Moving abroad to a foreign country to pursue studies can result in a number of possible challenges; international students may encounter acculturative stress which is a result of life changes in the process of acculturating, and problems with adjusting to the new environment and host culture (Smith & Khawaja, 2011). When the individual encounters an acculturative stressor, a further evaluation occurs in correspondence to whether he or she has adequate coping strategies to deal with the stressor. If sufficient strategies to cope are employed, the acculturative stress encountered may be little, however, if the employed strategies are not adequate to overcome the stressor or incorrect coping strategies are used, the experienced acculturative stress levels may be higher, and in more serious cases, depression and anxiety may develop (e.g. Rachel & Khawaja, 2011).

Based on previous extensive studies, researchers have found and underscored the prevalence of life changes an international student may experience being in a new environment and culture (e.g. Berry, 2005; Rachel & Khawaja, 2011). These changes could become stressors to him or her, if they are negatively appraised and thought of as being a challenge (Rachel & Khawaja, 2011).

According to a study conducted by Rachel and Khawaja (2011), the acculturative stressors within the literature pertaining to international students include language, educational stressors, sociocultural stressors and discrimination.

Language Barrier

The first and major stressor faced by international students is language barrier, to which Chen (1999) argued that anxiety derived from having to speak a foreign language is a stressor that interacts with academic and sociocultural related stressors. In the academic aspect, language barriers can have an effect on essay writing, comprehending lectures, and the ability to present in class (Chen, 1999, Mori, 2000). Poyrazli and Kavanaugh’s (2006) study showed that international students studying in the United States of America (U.S.A) who were low academic achievers reported their English proficiency to be lower and greater overall strain on adjustment. In addition, a qualitative study carried out by Trice (2003) which investigated on the perceptions of university academic staff, including professors and deans, underlined that English proficiency was the primary difficulty for international students, and reported that this challenge could have a negative impact on students’ academic achievement.

In the social aspect, language barriers can hinder the attempts of international students to befriend and interact with locals (Chen, 1999; Mori, 2000). Studies have found an association between English proficiency and higher levels of self-esteem, and shown to be positively associated with more interpersonal relationships with locals (e.g. Barratt & Huba, 1994). Additionally, Zhang and Goodson (2011) reported that English competency was a predictor of psychological and sociocultural adaptation. Furthermore, there is extensive evidence that poor English proficiency predicts acculturative stress (e.g. Dao, Lee, & Chang, 2007; Poyrazli, Kavanaugh, Baker, & Al-Timimi, 2004).

Educational Stressors

There are several possible acculturative stress factors that all international students experience; academic stress is believed to be intensified as a result of other added stressors including that of foreign language anxiety and having to adjust to a new educational environment (Smith & Khawaja, 2011). For example, in a study conducted by Misra, Crist and Burant (2003), it was reported that international students pursuing their studies in the U.S.A who encountered academic stress had stronger reactions to other stressors experienced when adapting to the educational environment.

International students may also experience difficulty aligning their academic expectations versus the reality of university life, wherein students may expect to perform better in the host country than that in their home country (Chen, 1999; Mori, 2000). However, their academic achievement may fall below what was expected due to acculturative stressors of studying in a foreign language and adjusting to the new cultural and educational setting (Smith & Khawaja, 2011).

Sociocultural Stressors

In addition to the experienced acculturative stressors in the language and educational aspects, frequently international students are required to establish new social relationships and network after leaving their loved ones and friends back in their hometown (Smith & Khawaja, 2011). A growing body of research have suggested that this may leave an impact on the ability of international students to form new friendships, and in turn, influence sociocultural and psychological adjustment (Brisset, Safdar, Lewis, & Sabatier, 2010), both of which, could lead to feelings of loneliness in the host country (Smith & Khawaja, 2011).

Discrimination

Discrimination has also been reported to be another possible acculturative stressor faced by international students. Previous qualitative studies have revealed that international students not only experience significant discrimination ranging from inferiority complex, employment discrimination and verbal attacks (Poyrazli & Grahame, 2007). According to a plethora of studies, these feelings and experiences of being discriminated can leave a negative impact on the adaptation of international students, and have been found to associate with poor psychological well-being (Atri, Sharma, & Cottrell, 2006; Jung, Hecht, & Wadsworth, 2007).

Conclusion

This piece of assignment has discussed the extensively researched acculturation concepts to examine the extent to which these concepts are representative of the acculturation experience of international students, and are aligned with existing literature for this student group. Although much of the empirical evidence have been supported, there are some limitations in this area of research. Firstly, future research could perhaps further explore acculturation attitudes of locals from the host country so as to better align both their attitudes, thereby reducing the detrimental effect of acculturative stress in the sociocultural domain (Smith & Khawaja, 2011). Secondly, further domains of the postulated models and concepts could perhaps investigate the individual factors that occurred before or during the acculturation process, which include a person’s motivation level that could potentially influence how he or she adapts (Chirkov, Vansteenkiste, Tao, & Lynch, 2007).

References

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This research examines the literature on diversity within the UK construction industry. This research has been prepared for Birmingham City University individual master’s project, as my proposal and literature review. This proposal consists of literature on aspects of diversity in the Construction Industry. Focusing on four main aspects of diversity pertaining to the industry, ethnicity, disability, gender and age. The information acquired from anthropological and sociological research shows that the implementation of positive diversity practice pushes creative boundaries, (Mark Thompson, 2012). This research aims to produce a framework for action towards a more diverse workforce at all tiers of employment within the industry.

The Equality Act 2010 has brought awareness through legislation within the construction sector. The Act has toughened procurement procedures for public funded projects a landmark achievement for diversity within the sector. Brexit, the leaving of the UK from the European union has left concerns regarding diversity management. As stated by (Dougan 2017) the ‘de-Europeanisation of the UK may affect progress that has been made through the European union’s contribution to diversity laws. The addition of sex, age and religious beliefs are owed to the European union, (Tatli, et al. 2012). An examination of where improvements and shortfalls can be rectified is also reason for why this research is being undertaken.

The construction industry has made strides in improving its inclusiveness of ethnic minority, disabled, female and ageing operatives within its workforce. Still a major concern, groups such as ethnic minorities and females are yet to be acknowledged as all round suited employees. Still issues to be examined, this research aims to highlight and quantify achievements and quantify diversity shortfalls within the construction sector. As stated by (Pepper, 2005) traditionally homogeneous in its practices the industry has a marked propensity to recruit predominantly white-nondisabled males.

Prior research has presented many theories as to reasons why ethnic and other minority groups were at the lower end of the list to be chosen for construction vacancies. Some theories, for example jobs were not being applied for by these groups hence they were not given a chance to employ, a theory that requires further research to establish basis for these findings.

Methodology

The basis of this research focuses on diversity within the context of gender, age, ethnic background and disability using examples and evidence gathered through research. Being a social science-based research there will no single answer to a question, as argued by Neuman (2013). In search for solutions to the way forward of increased participation of all equality groups protected by law, interviews and meetings with operatives on all levels will be interviewed for the purpose of information harvesting. The aim of information gathering from current industry operatives, will be for the analysis of their general perception and awareness of diversity issues within the sector.

A qualitative methodology of research will be applied for the gathering of the findings within this report. The employment of methods such as surveys and interviews will also be used to collate insight into the recruiting process within the industry. A qualitative approach was employed due to the nature of the research with use of some numerical data for analysis. Participants of the surveys and interviews will involve and not limited to Employers, recruitment agencies, higher education institutions with a focus on employment of ethnic minority, disabled, the aged and female candidates.

Findings

Evidence garnered from preliminary research shows several areas of the construction industry needs fundamental changes to be made in areas of diversity and inclusion. Areas identified requiring improvements are, a more clear and coherent communication encouraging better practice of diversity within construction inclusive of its supply chain. The coming together of efforts for a concerted approach towards diversity and inclusiveness within UK construction. Regular review of effective monitoring and cost analysis of practices and results from diversity implementation.

Information about the benefits of diversity is not widely published leaving a void in knowledge among industry players. Not many success stories are readily available or widely published in order to encourage companies to adopt good practice. The main findings being to do with the lack of communication about diversity within the construction industry, the topic is somewhat of a taboo subject, hindering the implementation of best practice. On the other side much is being done to change the current the industry fuelled partly by the 1994 Latham Review, The Race Relations Act 2000, Equality and Human Rights Commission, 2010) among others.

Implications

Implications drawn from preliminary research shows much effort from mainly corporate contractors who have implemented diversity assurance schemes within their recruitment schemes. Much innovative ideas for diversity practice have mainly come from NGOs for example Age UK, who organises it activities prioritising diversity and equality of opportunity. The Davies report Women on Boards (Department for Business Innovation & Skills (BIS), 2011) has highlighted the benefits of women on boards, presenting many positive attributes inclusive of increased profits for that company. As stated Mr. Abisogun in the article Can construction overcome BAME bias? (Construction News, Dec 2019), the removal of employer prejudice is the key to diversity on an extensive scale. The idea of an eclectic industry seems to get a lukewarm reception from employers within the sector.

Women in construction still seems to be an idea that needs to be sold to the industry and some parts of society. The article, Women in construction a brief history, (Go Construct, February 2018) presents arguments as to reason why women are needed within the industry. There still seems to be an explanation required as to how women are suited to work within construction. Also, a need to convince the masses as to why women should be employed within the construction sector.

There are also issues with women who are currently working within the industry who feels less valued than their male counterparts. As stated by Robinson, (Women in Construction UK Magazine, August 2019) fundamental change is needed when it comes to the general mindset towards women in construction. As even whilst in employment minorities continue to face issues of inequality in terms of obtaining promotion and leadership roles.

There are other factors such as number of minorities going for jobs in construction which may be difficult to quantify as the research must remain within its parameters and limitations. There are positive signs for the future of diversity within the construction industry, however delivery is hampered by unfaced challenges. There are schemes such as Age UK, Remploy and other equal opportunity projects which has supports diversity for all industries. There are companies who have embraced the change examples which will need to be explored. The Health and Safety Executive states health and safety should not prevent disabled people from gaining employment in construction, a closer look into the feasibility of these stipulation in certain projects.

With most mainly large companies operating within diversity best practice, research into the how confident minorities feel in going for construction jobs must be researched. If found a mindset of low confidence in going for construction jobs is found it may affect the number of minorities employed within construction. Above all the industry seems to need a uniformed coherent strategy for improving diversity practices in order to attract minority applicants.

Introduction

I chose this research for two main reasons the first being, research into the untapped pool of knowledge being overlooked for traditional homogenous recruitment by employers as described by (Pepper, 2005). The second is to research the view minorities have of the construction industry in order to justify insinuations of low number of applicants to the industry, hence the lack of diversity.

The construction industry functions upon a system made up of subcontractors, bid procurement and building standards that may conflict with diversity and equality within the sector. Diversity within construction has been addressed by recent articles and reports, (Lowe, 2019) pointing out the positives it brings to the sector in aim of influencing change. McCarthy, et al 2013 highlights the mainstreaming of diversity, pointing out the three phase of development theory. The phases being equal treatment, positive action and mainstreaming. A move from diversity management towards mainstreaming is the now approach to diversity. An aim to normalise the acceptance of diverse industries is the aim of the latest approach. The Construction Industry Council (CIC) diversity and inclusion panel sets out to promote and identify diversity policies within the sector. With aims of normalising diversity the CIC strategize ways of engaging with industry leaders, also opening career paths opportunities for minorities and youths. Despite the current pandemic contributing to continued economic downturn and unemployment the construction industry is still short of skills. Figures up to the 1st quarter of 2017 shows the parallel between workload and employment of skilled and specialist operatives (see figure 1,2,3). This information provided by surveys done by the Federation of Master Builders (FMB, 2016).

Construction is a vast industry sector covering a wide range of trades and skills namely managers, planners, architects, engineers, surveyors, among others. The construction industry is unique in comparison to other sectors due to its transitory workforce, capital investment dependent, project milestone and timeframes, workforce flexibility and reliance on a supply chain. Unique in that (C Skills, 2010) reported less than a percent of the industry employs more than 250 workers and 93% of the sector employs less than 10. The industry is found to depend to a high degree on subcontractors and supply chains to deliver its contracts. With a great portion to the tune of 40% of contracts coming from the Government the industry is dependent on public funded projects. As reported by (Weinfass, 2020) the government has placed investments of £5bn for infrastructure projects £1.2bn for schools. Small and medium enterprises which make up north of 90% of construction firms are usually affected more than large contractors in times economic downturn. The construction sector has solidified its place within the economy as a significant contributor and one of the largest employers in the UK.

The organization that often involved in construction projects either on a large scale or a small scale there are will be facing several challenges, problems, and risks during implementation of these projects. Therefore, it is necessary for the parties in charge to identify the possible issues that may occur when making plans for undertaking certain projects. The risks of construction projects typically can be categorized into construction, physical, technology, and design project.

There are several common issues in a construction project. One of the common issues facing the construction project is construction waste. There are more waste materials are produced in construction activities, which has become a challenging issue for the operators of construction sites. The waste is continually causing environmental difficulties and global warming problems to the world (Rawshan et al.,2009). According to Alarcon (1994), building waste not only concentrated on the amount of material wasted on site but also with overproduction, waiting for time, material handling, processing, inventory, and worker turnover.

A case example, there have been several recent news reports that 30 tons of construction waste have been transported to Bandar Hilir, Malacca, and that 17 sections of Petaling Jaya have experienced unusual construction problems, which can cause a variety of health problems for people in that area (The Star, 2011). Overstocking also can be a waste in construction projects such as after a certain period the cement may expire. (Ikau, Joseph, & Tawie, 2016)

Moreover, the waste is usually caused by a combination of events, rather than by an isolated factor. Similarly, Poon et. (2012) found that due to careless and use like Poon et. (2012) also call as wasted. While Rounce (2011) has noted that design changes and variability of design details are the major construction waste sources that appear in design stage. As Craven et. (2012) and Gavilan and Bernold (2013) have been categorized and classified that “construction waste sources into six groups which include design, material procurement, material handling, operations, residual, and ‘others’”. Inadequacy of skilled, knowledge or experience in managing construction waste will make construction projects facing big challenges or issue and it may cause project failure due to wasted too much at the project and cannot overcome it.

According to Fenn, Hall, and Carmicheal, construction disputes that are caused by clients, contractors and designers in the project have identified. Fenn and Speek (1997), the client as a poor communication among the team members, inadequate tracing mechanism for request of information, failure to respond in timely manner, coordination efforts on the part of the project and deficient management supervision, the client mentality to contractors and designers are lowest price in engagement for the project. Next, the reluctance to check constructability, completeness, clarity and also for the project manager position has failure to appoint.

Factors of construction disputes have identified the cause of the consultant itself. Example, the failure to understand the scope of design team contract, underestimating the costs involved and over design. Next, the cumbersome approach to request for information, information delivery, for the specification oversights and design has errors resulting from uncoordinated architectural, structural, mechanical, civil and electrical designs. The drawings and specifications are incompleteness (Hall, 2000). Construction disputes have identified it is caused by the contractors themselves. For example, the inadequate contractors’ management and coordination delay or suspension of work, inadequate CPM update and scheduling requirements (Carmicheal, 2000).

As we know that a successful project is those that meet client requirements, satisfied by the client, delivered the project on schedule and within the allocated budget is the main goal of every project manager. Unfortunately, most construction project still facing a common issue which it fails to deliver project within the cost that estimate at the planning phase and this become a common issue in the construction project and are a big challenge to the project manager.

Cost overrun in the construction project is caused by many factors such as contractor inadequate site management, inaccurate in estimating materials. An example of a case is in Afghanistan construction industry and a survey is conducted to identify the common factors of cost overrun. From the research result in Afghanistan Construction Industry, corruption is the first major factor cause cost overruns which are with an RII value of 0.89 and it has serious impact on construction cost growth. (Niazi & Painting, 2017).

The material management is one of common issues in construction projects. This is very important in order to improve productivity and avoid wasted material. Next, the planning, vendor evaluation, selection, expenditure, purchasing, shipping, warehousing, material receiving, inventory and material distribution that include in materials management functions. The improper handling and managing material on-site during a construction process will influence the time, quality and total project cost.

Delays can have many negative effects on the construction project and their participant parties and considered one of the most common problems in construction projects. The factors delay come from three-stage in the construction project, which is from the construction stage, pre-construction stage, and post-construction stage sequentially. Cause of delay can be categories for four categories which are responsibility, resource-related causes, contract condition relate cause and external cause. From the collection data of cause of delays in Ethiopian researcher found that the top rank cause of delays is corruption which is in the external cause category. The analysis results show that in Ethiopia the time limit and cost limit are the two most common effects of construction delay. (Gebrehiwet & Luo, 2017).

The over delays have found the 56 causes and one of their main delay causes is related to contract disagreement in large projects. The indicated that change orders, site conditions, design, economic conditions, late deliveries and increase in quantity are the main causes of disputes. The consequent delay of construction schedule is one of the factors too. Next, inadequate contractor experience, payment and financing, slow decision making and labor productivity that is the five most important causes of delay and disputes construction project in the contract.

Construction workers have a higher risk of death than any other type of worker. Therefore, the construction industry is at the top of the most dangerous jobs list. Construction workers are more likely to lose their lives on the job and the most common case is when a construction worker falls from a height and loses his or her life on their job. Therefore, having the resources and incentives to ensure that construction workers are properly trained and protected is very important in the construction industry. (Mohammadi, Tavakolan, & Khosravi, 2018)

Tam et al. (2004) investigated the current situation of safety management in Chinese’s construction industry and found that the main factors affecting safety performance included weak safety awareness of senior management, lack of training, weak safety awareness of project managers, reluctance to invest safety resources and reckless operation.

2. Recent technologies/innovations to improve construction projects

Construction is one of the biggest industries in the world, worth approximately $8.5 trillion a year. In 2018, by making this largest industry more efficient and growing more rapidly, new technology and innovation must be used to achieve the goals of every company.

According to (Siebert and Teizer 2014). Drones are widely known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) and Remote Piloted Vehicles (RPVs). Multirotor, fixed-wing, single-rotor and fixed-wing hybrid are the types of drones. (Australia UAV 2017). To aid in mapping construction sites and modeling construction projects, these devices can use add-on equipment such as infrared, geo-location and thermal sensors. The captured footage can be transformed into 3D models with integrated real-world conditions, allowing better replication, higher viability, and more accurate bids during the pre-construction phase.

UAVs can be used for controlling huge construction projects as it can be fitted with infrared cameras, radar and laser-based scope detectors that can greatly improve their monitoring and control capabilities on a construction site (Irizarry and Costa 2016). UAVs is quicker and efficient rather than sending personal worker to the ground. According to (Knight W 2015) the video recorded by using UAVs than will be converted to the site’s 3D image as it reveals how accurately the progress. In addition, UAVs can enhance safety construction. For example, by using UAVs, the risk of workers falling from great height and during maintenance inspection of tall structures such are skyscrapers, bridges, and towers can be avoided and give benefits for managers and workers (Watson M 2016). UAVs can also be used to detect unsafe conditions, tools and hazardous structures in construction sites without putting a worker at risk (Gheisari M, Esmaeili B. 2016).

Based on (Meža et al., 2015). Augmented reality was the better among 2D plans, BIM on a PC, and viewing of schematics on tablets. AR mixed one’s physical environment with computer-generated information and presents it in real-time. Augmented reality helps to build teams’ drive more performance, reliability and overall trust in their projects by integrating digital and physical views. The construction company can produce details models by mixing 3D modeling software and building information modeling (BIM) so that designers and clients can preview structure and make a change before construction begin. This will prevent costly changes in which automatically reduce the cost of the project.

Augmented reality also can be used for real-time visualization and monitoring of activities and tasks also provide great opportunities to enhance construction quality assurance work. job outcomes can be automatically verified by workers and managers since augmented reality created information into real objects. (Kwon et al. 2014) stated that Such technologies have the ability to allow site management and business managers to recognize and resolve quality issues that would effectively reduce time and cut the cost of rework on construction sites

Another latest technology is using self-healing concrete. In construction building concrete is one of the most important materials. Unfortunately, due human mistakes, incorrect handling and unskilled labors cause concrete to crack and collapse as the ground beneath the concrete settles over time. To overcome this matter self-healing concrete it introducing in this industry, although Self-healing concrete is relatively new and it can be pricey, but benefits that these techniques help in another way. Bacillus pseudofirmus or Sporosarcina pasteurii, are the bacteria that used in self-healing concrete which they found out that these bacteria can survive up to 200 years without oxygen or food. And they will be activated when contact with water and calcium lactate used as a source of food, it will produce limestone that will close up the cracks. The main benefit of self-heling concrete is, the lifespan of the building predicted to be 200 years. It will decrease the number of maintenance costs for the building.

Construction work on the job site is where most accidents occur. However, awareness of workers tends to lead or cause an accident seriously. Construction industry leaders must strive to safeguard their employees by emphasis awareness. A leader should ensure all workers fully understand safety and caution on the site. It is the construction manager’s job to make sure that every worker is aware of the dangers that come with working on a construction site and they must protect workers from these dangers. Any manager that fails to tell their crew and staff about how to avoid getting hurt and how to ensure safety is failing as a manager. Ensuring the safety of the construction workers and everyone on the site should be the number one priority of any construction manager. If the workers have no concept of construction site safety, they shouldn’t be allowed on the construction site.

Other than that, although workers are expected to attend regular safety training sessions about construction safety throughout the year, being able to practice safety training skills on-site would help construction workers enforce the safety rules. Practicing construction site safety training skills on-site will force workers to practice these skills in an environment where safety is essential and will make sure they are trained. Without proper training, construction workers can be easily injured or even killed. In such an environment where injuries and fatalities are highly likely, training is necessary and will prevent things like workplace injuries that will hurt you ethically and economically.

According to Francouis Buy (2015), many factors affecting project delay due to design error cost overrun, inappropriate and inadequate procurement, complexity of project and post-execution phase. A project manager should play roles on how to overcome those issue by involving their professional skills and expertise handling project. To eliminate or reduce the effect of delay and cost overrun due to project issues, vigorous planning should be done, incorporating every important aspect of the project scope, milestones, detailed WBS, delivery time, stakeholders, and methodology to be used. In addition, effective project planning, controlling and monitoring should be established to enhance project performance throughout the project life cycle. Proper site investigation also should be done to ensure that all site conditions are noted in the design, and application of value management could be used to obtain.

The implementation of these regulations and effective ways to archive project goals will lead to a better understanding of the issues in which the project manager needs to address and design a control system that will monitor these issues. The project owner and the project manager should be able to clearly define the management success and product success so that the project team has clear knowledge of its objectives.

Good waste management needs coordinated and actions of a state, business and professional groups. Several societies and non-governmental organizations successfully identified best management practices in the interest of public health and welfare. Absent coordinated regulations, realistic business opportunities, and the commitment of design and construction professionals and their clients for sustainability improvement of industry practices, consistent and stable markets for recovered materials cannot be achieved or sustained.

Management of building-related waste is expensive and often presents unwanted accidents. However, every work team plays roles to reduce, reuse and recycle to keep environmental safety. It stands to reason that efficient and effective elimination and minimization of waste, and reuse of materials are essential aspects of design and construction activity. Creativity, persistence, knowledge of available markets and businesses and understanding of applicable regulations are important skills for design and construction professionals

References

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1. Background

The construction industry is the pinnacle of human development. Construction defines the process of reshaping the physical environment to establish human settlements. Construction however alters the physical landscape including soils and the natural drainage system. It is therefore irrefutable that the construction industry negates the natural environment, disrupt ecosystem services, and perpetuate climatic variability (Janak, 2009).

Human induced climate change is probably one of the greatest tragedies of this century and beyond. Climate change is largely a result of greenhouse emissions from power generation, agricultural activities, and buildings. Conventional buildings emit substantial amounts of CO2 (Rehm & Ade, 2013). In more economically developed countries, residential and commercial buildings emit one-third of the total greenhouse gas emissions (Rehm & Ade, 2013; UNEP, 2009). Furthermore, conventional buildings in the European Bloc consume 16% of potable water, 50% of raw materials (Rehm & Ade, 2013; Keeping, Dixon, & Roberts, 2007).

1.2 Aim and objectives

As the world grapples with increased demand for natural resources due to population implosion and urbanisation, it is imperative to rethink construction with a focus on sustainable development. The purpose of this study is to discuss the role of sustainability in the construction industry. Besides, the research shall suggest sustainable options to minimise the negative environmental consequences of construction.

The aim and objectives of this research was answered by a literature study. The review was done with the aid of a number of databases and journals, including Web of Science, LUBSearch, Science-Direct and Taylor & Francis Online. The research was founded on broad search on sustainability, construction practice and environmental management.

2. Sustainability in the construction industry

According to United Nations’ Brundtland report, (1987) sustainability refers to ‘development which meets the need of the present without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs’. It is clear from literature that the capacity of the earth and its environs to sustain life is undergoing severe exploitation since the beginning of the Industrial revolution (Uher and Lawson, 1998). The duo further alleges that if the current way of doing things in the construction sector persists an irreversible degradation of the planet particularly land and forests is imminent (Uher and Lawson, 1998). Ultimately, ecosystems services will be disrupted further deteriorating the quality of life (Uher and Lawson, 1998).

2.1 Impact of construction on the environment

The impact of the construction industry on the environment is tremendous. It includes loss of soil and agricultural land, forests and woodlots, air and water pollution and severe depletion of energy and mineral resources (Uher and Lawson, 1998; Spence and Mulligan, 1995). It has a high-energy demand, and emits significant amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) (Yu et al, 2018). These twin evils inflict severe impacts on the environment.

In terms of the total environmental burden, the construction industry accounts for between 12 to 42% of the major environmental stressor categories (Levin, 1997; Uher and Lawson, 1998). Viz are consumption of raw materials (30%), land (12%), generation of wastewater effluents (20%) and solid waste (25%) (Levin, 1997; Uher and Lawson, 1998; Lam et al., 2011; Zolfagharian, 2012).

The construction sector consumes 40% of energy and emits almost 40% of CO2 in developed countries especially in North America and Europe (Yu et al, 2018; Berardi, 2015; USGBC, 2007). Besides, 56% of the input resources are lost during the construction process (Yu et al, 2018). The loss of input resources in the construction sector is quite high in comparison to other industries averaging 26% (Yu et al, 2018). In the United Kingdom, on average 6tonnes of construction materials are used for person per year (Cooper and Curwell, 1997).

The construction industry is inherently unsustainable and exert negative direct and indirect impacts on the environment (Levin, 1997). As shown in the aforegoing discussion the construction industry tramples upon every aspect of environmental sustainability both in developed and in developing countries. The sector has a very low productivity. The importance of sustainability in the construction industry hence cannot be overemphasized. There is need for the sector to rethink and re-engineer (Uher and Lawson, 1998) the entire construction system to minimise its environmental impact.

2.2 Sustainable construction

Sustainable construction is a subset of sustainable development (Uher and Lawson, 1998). According to Hill and Bowen (1997) cited by Uher and Lawson (1998), sustainable construction elucidates the role of the construction industry to realise environmental sustainability. The duo described sustainability based on four key attributes namely social, economic, biophysical, and technical (Uher and Lawson, 1998). Sustainable construction entails a process of developing a healthy environment with a focus on resource efficiency and sound ecological principles (Kibert, 1994). Figure 1 shows the sustainable construction model proposed by Kibert (2005).

Figure 1: The process of sustainable construction (Source: Kibert, 2005)

In this model, Kibert (2005) asserts that sustainable principles are supposed to be taken into consideration in all the stages of the life cycle of a construction project. As mentioned by Yilmaz and Bakis (2015) design is at the heart of this sustainable construction model. In sustainable construction, the aim of the design is to minimise negative environmental impact (Yilmaz and Bakis, 2015). The sustainable construction model enhances resource utilisation and construe a balance between environmental, economic, and social objectives (Burgan and Simon, 2006).

Although sustainable construction is a novel idea, the model its implementation is quite low in most countries. In fact construction companies and project managers alike prefer to follow conventional construction methodology that is overly profit-oriented. An interesting observation however is the apparent lack of enforceable policy and regulation with regard to sustainable construction. At best, national governments have designed laws specific to projects in their respective jurisdiction. The next section discusses policy and regulation in the context of sustainable construction.

3. The Legislative and Policy Context for Sustainability

The UK has made significant strides to develop legislation and policy with a focus on sustainable construction. The UK government has identified the construction industry as a key enabler to meet sustainable development goals (Rostami and Thomson, 2017). The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs insists that buildings emit 50% of the UK CO2 emissions, 50% of water consumption, 35% of landfill waste and 13% of all input resources in the UK (DEFRA, 2007; Rostami and Thomson, 2017). As a result, the UK has set out ambitious CO2 emission reductions targets in the Climate Change Act of which the construction industry is a key sector to achieve the set targets (Rostami and Thomson, 2017).

UK has formulated several policies to promote sustainable construction. In 2004, the government created the Sustainable Buildings Task Group whose report established recommendations of minimum standards of energy and water efficiency, waste and use of key raw materials (Akadiri and Fadiya, 2013; Rostami and Thomson, 2017). In terms of legislation, the UK Government has directed that starting in 2016 all new constructions should be zero emission on heating and cooling (Rostami and Thomson, 2017; Akadiri and Fadiya, 2013). In 2013, the UK Government introduced the new Strategy (BIS, 2013) that set new objectives with a focus to position the UK as a global leader in sustainable construction by the year 2025 (Rostami and Thomson, 2017).

Sustainable construction in the UK is still in infancy even though several legislative and policy initiatives were developed. Knowledge and skills remain a key barrier in adoption of sustainable construction model (Rostami and Thomson, 2017). The duo also identified numerous barriers that include cost and profitability, risk, time, culture, poor information dissemination, responsibility and communication (Rostami and Thomson, 2017).

4. Environmental management as a tool to enhance sustainability

Knowledge and skills in environmental management is cited by several studies as a barrier to promote sustainable construction in the UK. Sustainable practice demands the development of human resources with a capacity to implement resource-efficient and ecologically sustainable construction process (Reffat, 2004).

Environmental Management for the Consruction Industry discipline should equip participants with knowledge and skills that enhances the capacity of, professionals, tradesmen and laborers to enact sustainable construction principles. Besides, there is need for the discipline to reconstitute the curricula to suit the new legislation and policy on sustainable development. Moreover, the discipline should suggest sustainable options to address environmental issues bedeviling the world today. People need to be aware of the negative impacts of conventional buildings and understand the benefits of sustainable building. There is need to ensure that the principles of sustainable construction disseminate to clients, project contractors and relevant government departments. The success of sustainability calls for integration of planning activities amongst diverse project team members.

The discipline, Environmental Management for the Construction Industry, should enable participants to develop tools and techniques to enable project professionals to incorporate environment management systems in construction. Professionals must be equipped with capacity to undertake environmental impact assessment, as well as social impact and biodiversity impact assessment. These tools and processes minimize conflict and dissuades unorthodox cultural perspectives on sustainable construction.

5. Sustainability and profitability in the construction industry.

Sustainability is associated with an increase in cost of construction. Project managers as well as environmentalists concur that sustainable development comes at a cost. The reality is however contrary to his widely held belief. Green building, for instance, is considered relatively more expensive than conventional buildings. The additional investment costs of building green ranges between 15-17% (Lützkendorf, 2005; Persson et al, 2008). Nonetheless, the works of Kats et al (2003) and Matheissen and Morris (2007) asserts that a green building do not require additional investment at all. Furthermore, the benefits of a green building exceeds the initial investment by over ten times (Persson et al, 2008). In the US, Kats (2010) estimates that the majority of green buildings require an additional cost of between 0% and 4%.

It is clear that the additional cost of sustainable building is a mere perception. Construction firms are more likely to maintain their profit margins. It is however imperative to mention that construction firms would need to revise and optimize the design process to achieve maximum returns.

6. The future

Professional environmental management practice is an important component of sustainable construction. Although it is such a vital discipline, its implementation is lagging behind across the globe. In the short term there is need to upgrade knowledge and skills of environment managers to cope with new demands of sustainability in the construction sector. As alluded to in this essay, sustainable construction brings a new paradigm (resource efficiency without jeopardizing the quality of life or cultural orientation) as a result, the discipline should produce managers of repute with the capacity to conform to the new reality.

Sustainable construction is the new norm. As such, the environmental management practice should synchronize its operating modalities with the demands of sustainability in construction and design process. In essence, the discipline should be the core of construction practice and management. It is indeed a long process of change with a fair share of obstacles. Nonetheless, it is probably the most vital intervention to save the earth.

7. Conclusion

The global population is expanding tremendously in this decade and beyond. The growth in population however does not tally with the available resources under siege from conventional exploitation systems. The current construction system exacerbate carbon emissions, consume significant amounts of energy and water resources. Besides, it demands high input resources and generate considerable amount of solid waste. Sustainable construction is possibly the best way to redress the negative environment impact of construction. Sustainability in construction however demands formulation of enforceable legislation and policy, and alignment of its model to environmental management practice.

8. References

1. Akadiri, PO and Fadiya, OO, 2013. Empirical analysis of the determinants of environmentally sustainable practices in the UK construction industry, Construction Innovation, Vol. 13 No. 4, p352 -373.
2. Berardi U, 2015. Building energy consumption in US, EU, and BRIC countries. Procedia Eng. 2015, 118, 128–136.
3. BIS, 2013. “Construction 2025, Industrial Strategy: government and industry in partnership”. Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, Crown Copyright.
4. Burgan BA and Simon MR, 2006. Sustainable steel construction, J. Constr. Steel Res. 62 (2006) 1178–1183.
5. Cooper, I. and Cur-well, S., 1997. BEQUEST – Building Environmental Quality Evaluation for Sustainability through Time. Proceedings Second International Conference on Buildings and the Environment, CSTB and CIB, Vol. 2, Paris, June, pp. 515-23.
6. DEFRA (2007), Draft Strategy for Sustainable Construction: A Consultation Paper, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, London.
7. Hill, R.C. and Bowen, P.A., 1997. Sustainable construction: principles and a framework. Construction Management and Economics, Vol. 15, p223-39
8. Janak HN, 2009. Three State-run Green Building Programs: A Comparative Case Study Analysis and Assessment. Masters Thesis 1911 – February 2014. 337.
9. Keeping, M., Dixon, T., & Roberts, C. (2007). The energy performance of buildings directive and commercial property investment. https://www.ipf.org.uk/home/research/ipf_research_programme_2011-2015/major_projects/ipf_research_reports/energy_performance_and_cpi/default.aspx/. Accessed February 2, 2020.
10. Kibert, C. J, 1994. Final session of First International Conference of CIB TG16 on Sustainable Construction, Tampa, Florida, November.
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12. Levin, H, 1997. Systematic evaluation and assessment of building environmental performance (ASEABEP). Proceedings Second International Conference on Buildings and the Environment, CSTB and CIB, Vol. 2, Paris, June, p3-10.
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23. Persson U, Landin A, Olander S, and Persson M, 2008. Sustainable Construction Management at a Project Level: A Modified Environmental Management System Structure. Conference paper. Division of Construction Management, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
24. Kats G. Alevantis L. Berman A. Mills E. Perlman J. 2003: The Costs and Financial benefits of Green Buildings. A report to California’s Sustainable Building Task Force October 2003.
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26. Matheissen L.F. and Morris P. 2007: The Cost of Green Revisited – Re-examining the Feasibility and Cost Impact of Sustainable Design in the Light of Increased Market Adoption. Davis Langdon, USA.

As the construction industry has grown drastically in the past few decades, the industry is no longer starved for work, however, construction companies are now struggling to find and retain employees. Vital to the success of the construction industry, construction companies, large or small, must increase their inclusiveness and diversity to remain competitive and continue to thrive in one of the leading world markets. In this essay I will talk about the real and perceived barriers to inclusion within the construction industry, and ways in which companies and organizations can help to mitigate these issues. The construction industry is full of opportunities and wonderful people. It is our responsibility as leaders to do a better job at blending the perception with the reality of this industry.

The engineering, construction and infrastructure industry has experienced several changes within the past few decades, from the transformation to BIM and the digital asset model, to stricter regulations and higher expectations. As a result of these drastic changes and improvements to the construction industry, skilled labor and professionals are at a higher demand now than ever. This high increase in demand poses as a great opportunity for anyone with an interest in engineering and construction. However, companies within the industry must improve their recruiting techniques and inclusion factors in order to effectively exploit all individuals interested in this predominately white-male industry. The construction industry faces many inclusion barriers, starting with diversity in regard to gender. Many times, this industry has been referred to as a boys-club, and it is no surprise. According to the Census Bureau, 89.5% of the construction workforce consists of males (see Fig. 1), why any female would want to work in such an environment is beyond me and many others. The chart found below illustrates the gender difference amongst the industry.

Fig. 1 Gender composition in the construction industry in the US. Graph from Data USA (data provided by the Census Bureau)

According to a study done on women in construction rolled out by the National Women’s Law Center, harassment, intimidation and sabotage are a major reason why women avoid or do not remain working in this industry. In past years, women have been vastly discouraged from joining the construction industry, and there is a dire need for their presence in our workforce. Women in Construction Still Breaking Ground (June, 2014) reports that a jaw dropping eighty-eight percent of women working in the construction industry have experienced some form of harassment. In recent years, the female population has increased amongst the construction industry, but the concern of being exposed to harassment still largely exists. Another possible explanation to the lack of women within the construction force is the culture. Much of the perceived culture found amongst our industry is based on old stereotypes suggesting that construction is a male-only occupation. Considering the direction that our industry is headed, and the improvements and realizations that have taken place, perception does not match up with the reality. However, it is not surprising that this is the perception and reputation that the construction industry employs. When you walk on a job site, finding a female laborer is like finding a needle in a haystack. When you walk into job trailers or construction office buildings, the same can be said with the exception of the human resources departments. I can only imagine how discouraging this must be for women considering a career path in construction. The final point I have regarding why women may be discouraged from joining our opportunity filled industry is the pay gap between males and females working in construction. According to the Census Bureau, males in this industry make 1.14 times more than their female counterparts (see Fig. 2). The chart found below illustrates the gender-based wage discrepancy amongst the five most popular occupations in the construction industry.

Fig. 2 Wage by gender in common construction occupations in the US. Graph from Data USA (data provided by the Census Bureau)

President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act more than fifty years ago, yet as seen above, women are still paid less than their male counterparts for performing similar tasks. The construction industry has made large strides in closing this pay gap, but history may be the driving factor in this perceived view.

The lack of representation of women in construction and the perceived culture are not the only inclusion barriers that this industry is faced with. The lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer or questioning community (LGBTQ) is also faced with discriminatory issues, ultimately curving their interest in the construction industry. The job site environment can be confrontational for anyone that does not fit in with others working amongst them. According to an LGBTQ survey done by Construction News covering 2017, a bulk of this community feels discomforted or obstructed while working in construction due to their sexual orientation. 27.8% of respondents to the survey mentioned above claimed that they have experienced harassment or banter regarding their sexual orientation or gender identity, (see Fig. 3). The chart below illustrates percentages of the LGBTQ community that have experienced insulting comments in 2016 and 2017.

Fig. 3 LGBTQ community experiencing insulting comments in the construction industry. Graph from Construction News (data provided by Construction News LGBTQ survey)

Homophobia appears to still be an issue amongst the construction industry worldwide. This issue of homophobia can relate back to the topic of the construction workforce culture. The term “gay” is an insulting word often used by employees our industry. It is very obvious why the LGBTQ community does not feel comfortable or welcomed on our job sites, job trailers, or office spaces. The “locker room” talk that takes place amongst many of the male employees in the construction industry is creating a toxic culture that could detrimentally affect the industry as a whole.

In my own personal perspective solely based on my experience within the construction industry, the leadership does a great job at mitigating inclusion issues amongst the companies which they are working for. On my nine-month internship with Sundt Construction, Inc. I never once experienced an inclusion barrier or witnessed any form of harassment and or discrimination. Granted I am an able-bodied white male; however, I do not feel that if I were a minority my experiences would have been any different. While on my internship I attended several minority outreach events, soliciting minority owned sub-contractors and vendors. There was an immense amount of emphasis and importance placed on soliciting these minority owned companies, ensuring that they felt included and welcomed to work with Sundt Construction. In addition to this focus on inclusion, our project had minority requirements that we were required to meet to even place a bid on that project. The project was also a joint venture with Davila Construction, a minority owned general contractor located in San Antonio, Texas. Aside from minority and diversity inclusion, we also had several women that worked in site and in our offices. These women held important positions within the company, granting them a vast amount of authority. They were apart of our project teams, and it was very obvious that they felt included and respected. In fact, in many occurrences, they gained the attention and respect from management and craft employees easier than some of the males that I worked alongside. I would be naïve to say or think that my experience is an industry wide representation of inclusion and culture, but based on what I have observed, I do not have any negative experiences with these issues of inclusion and diversity that the construction industry is slandered with.

The world around us is everchanging and the construction industry must keep up with these changes to continue its level of prosperity. The industry is increasing their candidate pipeline to include younger, more diverse employees of all genders. Recruiters are attending career fairs held by universities with greater minority and African American populations. Companies within the industry are partnering with universities to provide scholarships to women, minorities, and economically disadvantaged students studying within a construction related program. Additionally, there are more programs in place today than ever before that focus on making women and diverse groups of people feel welcomed and desired by the construction industry. Many companies have structured departments to assist in diminishing this issue of inclusion and lack of diversity, and it is heavily advertised. The policies and procedures that majority of construction companies have implemented into their structure do not tolerate any harassment, lack of inclusion or discrimination. Leadership within the industry has acknowledged this issue and has proactively worked diligently to transform the culture into a more inclusive and welcoming environment to all ethnicities, genders, and diverse communities. Implementing programs and organizations are great ways to tackle this issue head on. Recruiting from minority populated universities and employing female leadership are also very positive and effective solutions to decreasing diversity and inclusion barriers. As far as the perceived image that the public has of the construction industry goes, improvements to this perception will take time to change. If companies focus on aspects that are within their control and make a strong effort to make necessary changes within, the rest will take care of itself.

While construction companies in the industry have made great strides in improving their diversity and inclusiveness, organizations such as AGC must do more. Hosting seminars and publishing articles regarding diversity and inclusion within the construction industry is a minimal effort on their part. I have yet to see AGC representatives educate the younger generations in universities and high schools on the importance of mitigating this issue. Actions speak louder than words, and organizations such as AGC need to revisit with themselves and collaborate on doing more than just preaching. These organizations play a major role in our industry and carry an equal amount, if not more responsibility for the diversity and inclusion affairs that construction companies are being slandered for. AGC is the forefront of the construction industry, it is their job to lead by example, going above and beyond in every way possible.

With the construction industry growing at the rapid rate that it is, the obstacle of fulfilling job openings will continue to linger. With the older baby boomer generation approaching retirement, women and other diverse groups are a shoulder that we can lean on. Finding and retaining not only hardworking employees, but the right employees within the construction industry is a difficult obstacle to hurdle, but with the correct approach, is very attainable. Leadership within construction companies must continue working diligently to become more inclusive and promote welcoming environments to all genders and ethnicities. Zero tolerance policies must continue to be implemented by industry leaders and companies within. These policies must be followed and employees need to be held accountable for outlandish comments or behavior. This industry is not for the faint hearted, and the reality of the workforce in regard to the difficulty of tasks that construction employees endure will remain what it is today. If the construction industry can continue taking the necessary steps toward encouraging diversity and inclusion to all, the industry as a whole will benefit immensely.

Works Cited

1. · Flood, Matthew. “How Construction Industry Can Address LGBT Discrimination.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 12 Dec. 2014, www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2014/dec/12/how-construction-industry-can-address-lgbt-discrimination.
2. · USA, Data. “Construction.” Data USA, 2017, datausa.io/profile/naics/construction-group.
3. · Peiffer, Emily. “3 Key Takeaways from ABC’s Summit on Diversity in Construction.” Construction Dive, 27 June 2016,
4. · Jaime Partners. “Diversity and Inclusion: Key to the Construction Industry.” Jaimepartners.com, 2017, jaimepartners.com/diversity-and-inclusion-key-to-the-construction-industry/.
5. · Alderson, Lucy. “LGBT+ Survey: Construction’s Slow Progress Laid Bare.” Construction News, 28 Mar. 2019, www.constructionnews.co.uk/data/data-news/lgbt-survey-constructions-slow-progress-laid-bare-25-01-2018/.
6. · Chatlani, Shalina. “Filling the Void: How Construction Executives Can Embrace Diversity in an Evolving Workforce.” Construction Dive, 2 Aug. 2016, www.constructiondive.com/news/construction-industry-diversity-in-workforce/423550/.

Article Critique

Construction leads every other industry in worker casualty as a result of occupational hazards (Jones, 2018). The type of activity carried out on site, the simultaneous interaction of personnel, plant and equipment; coupled with the dynamic movement of construction resources and constantly changing site environment makes the construction environment inherently accident prone (Kim et al., 2017; Idoro, 2011; Al-Tabtabai, 2002; Asan & Akasah, 2015). Hence in a bid to augment construction safety, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) specifically requires employers to be responsible for the safety of the workplace (Koehn 1996). A safety supervisor is usually employed; with the duty to manage safety practices such as the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), and the oversight of safety training and safety regulation (Kim et al., 2017). To ease the work of the safety manager, there is increasing use of information and technology in construction safety (Wang et al., 2017; Gheisari & Esmaeili, 2016). In the article “UAS4SAFETY: The Potential of Unmanned Aerial Systems for Construction Safety Applications”, Masoud Gheisari., Javier Irizarry and Bruce N. Walker examined the potential application of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in enhancing safety on construction job sites through the provision of real-time visual access to job site environments. While this article produced notable results showing that providing safety managers with a safety inspection assistant drone would be beneficial and can enable them to achieve the goals of the safety inspection; there are some questions with respect to the sample used for the research which might limit the replicability and generalizability of findings. Nonetheless, the article provides a distinctly positive standpoint with respect to the use of information and technology in bolstering construction H&S practices.

Gheisari and Irizary (2014) in their article studied the important concept of health and safety in construction; focusing on the responsibility of employers to provide a safe environment in which employees can safely carry out their duties. The duty of a safety manager to “observe” construction work was specifically highlighted as a means of preventing construction accidents. The writers recommended the use of a communication tool that can enable the safety manager to be present at any time and in different areas of the construction job site; while also providing the workers with real-time feedback. They introduced a quadrotor helicopter (AR.Drone quadricopter) as an early prototype of a safety manager’s assistant drone, and proposed that the drone can be used to fly frequently over the construction job site to provide the safety managers with real-time information about what is happening on the job site through frequent and direct observation as well as direct interaction. Gheisari and Irizary (2014) carried out a usability evaluation of the quadricopter using an expert analysis (Heuristic Evaluation) and a user participation analysis. Ten adult participants (5 male and 5 female) from Georgia Tech community were chosen to carry out a usability evaluation of the AR Drone quadricopter in order to test the hypotheses that the quadcopter would serve as a suitable inspection tool; and that the accuracy of the user in identifying safety-relevant features in a scene is directly related to the size of the screen that displays the scene image (in other words; the larger the screen size, the higher the accuracy of the image identified by the user). To test this hypothesis, the writers carried out an experiment in which the subjects would count the number of hardhats they could see in different images of the construction job site under three conditions (plain view, using iPad, and using iPhone). After performing the experiment, a repeated measure analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to test the hypotheses that: (1) the quadcopter would serve as a suitable inspection tool; and (2) the accuracy of the user in identifying safety-relevant features in a scene has a direct relationship with the size of the screen that displays the scene image. A Shapiro-Wilk test (appropriate for small sample sizes) was used to derive the conclusion that display screen size is a major factor in satisfaction and perceived effectiveness.

The researchers discussed an important topic, as the construction industry is still experiencing a high accident rate despite its recent adoption of technology in construction health and safety procedure. While the use of drones could be effectively used to augment construction health and safety, there are a few irregularities noticed in the research article which will make difficult the replicability of this sort of program; and this will be subsequently discussed in the text.

Gheisari and Irizary (2014) started off the article by highlighting the importance of creating a safe environment for construction and listed some 8 root causes of construction accidents and eventually reiterated that observation is needed to prevent the root cause of accidents on site. This assertion that onsite observation is tantamount to the creation of a safe environment is disagreed by (Albert and Hallowell, 2012; Harvey, 2001) in their articles in which they opined that the safety performance of work-crew is hinged on the ability of a worker to identify and respond to hazards in the environment; thus stressing the need for workers to be made to go through formal hazard recognition training programs in order to enable them to use their sensory cues to actively gather information necessary for identifying conditions that are precursors to the loss of safety on site. While it is agreeable that the duty of a safety manager to frequently walk around the job site and get real-time data is important, consideration must be given to the fact that different types of accident happen at different construction sites, and some inherent hazards cannot be extinguished by mere observation of the construction site (Williams et al., 2018; Radmin, 2017; Asanka & Ranasinghe, 2015). Safety experts in the industry assert that the primary causes of job site injuries and fatalities could be greatly minimized with advanced planning and coordination as a proactive approach towards construction health and safety (Ventura, 2016; Bigham, 2018). These alternative viewpoints to safety highlight the total incomprehensiveness of the literature review, and a need for a more robust review of construction safety.

Another limitation observed in the literature review is its sole focus on the “usability” of technology, and neglect of “acceptation” of technology. Gheisari & Irizary (2014) in their article asserted that the ultimate goal of their effort was to provide a job site free of hazard to workers, and that UAS can be an ideal safety inspection assistant; providing a safety manager with real-time access to videos or images from a range of predefined paths and locations around the job site, as well as voice interaction with construction workers. While this holds true, no mention was made on how to handle several social challenges that might accompany the use of a drone on the construction job site; hence their proposed conceptual system was not validated by construction safety managers as it carried little information on the opinions of actual safety managers collected in the field (Gheisari & Esmaeili, 2016). The correctness of the study in terms of UAS use in safety-related operations was discredited by the fact that little information was collected from actual safety managers in the field (Gheisari & Esmaeili, 2016). Inherent downsides of a drone such as the loud noise generated by drone (Goering, n.d.), short drone flight time (Ballard, 2018), and the possibility of interference causing a delay in the real-time transmission of images and videos (Yajnanarayana, Wang, Gao, Muruganathan, & Lin Ericsson, 2018) are but some crucial factors that could influence the adoption of the drone system in safety management. As it stands, it remains to be seen if the use of drones will be accepted by construction workers who are already used to having a safety manager walk through the construction job site to check the safety requirements (Gheisari & Irizary, 2014). Having a safety assistant drone which flies over the job site and sometimes allows safety managers to talk to workers remotely might seem awkward to construction workers, hence there needs to be a more robust literature review that is inclusive of the acceptation of the technology, rather than its usability alone.

A critical review of the article methodology showed that there was no explicitly stated ‘research question’ that justifies the significance of the study. However, the selected participants that make up the sample size provides a greater cause for concern with respect to the accuracy of the study findings. The size of the sample that was used consisted of ten adult participants (5 male and 5 female), and such a small sample size makes it difficult to generalize the findings of the experiment on a larger community. Another constraint of the sample size is the location from which they were chosen (from the same institution; Georgia Tech community). The researchers did not indicate the criteria that informed their choice of participants, neither did they specify how they controlled the probable bias of response similarity as a result of the proximity of location the participants were selected from. This means that a larger community might feel differently about the preference of the iPad to the iPhone, hence questioning the universality of the research findings.

Also, the participant preference of screen display size was not established before the experiment. This means that the outcome of the experiment might have been as a result of the predisposition of participants to a larger screen (iPad), and not the unsuitability of the smaller screen (iPhone) as proven by the research experiment. This could have been an important factor that impacted the answers to the subjective survey questions, as well as the observed accuracy of the iPad images over the iPhone images; and the research methodology didn’t indicate how this important observation could have impacted the choice of the gadget by participants during the experiment.

The article of Gheisari & Irizary (2014) concluded with the assertion that providing safety managers with a safety inspection assistant drone will be extremely beneficial to the achievement of the goals of safety management. Even though the research assertion isn’t false, it doesn’t take into cognizance several factors that culminate into site safety, and hence cannot be a generalizable assertion for other site locations. An important factor in consideration is the dynamic nature of the construction industry. According to Fenrick and Getachew (2012), construction accident data are typically large, heterogeneous and dynamic; and there exists a nonlinear relationship among accident causation variables in different construction sites (Gholizadeh and Esmaeili, 2016). This practically makes it difficult for the data generated from the Quadrotor helicopter to be used to generalize inferences to other construction projects, except through the use of other dedicated software. Hence it is safe to say the conclusion of the research finding is fallacious.

This article focused on a crucial topic within the construction industry, as the dynamic movement of construction resources; coupled with the increasing complexity of construction work and the trend of accidents in construction continues to make the issue of construction health and safety a matter of high priority in the industry. The use of information and technology in construction health and safety is gradually increasing (Wang et al., 2017; Gheisari & Esmaeili, 2016); and Gheisari and Irizary (2014) in their research provided insight into the applicability of drones in the performance of site management duty. However, the information considered before conclusions were drawn from the research wasn’t enough for the research findings to gain approval from actual site managers. The study did not explicitly specify the criteria for choosing the small sample size, and there was an observed lack of diversity among participants that could limit the generalizability of the research findings. Moreover, certain subtle but critical information concerning participants that could impact research findings were unprovided (e.g. individual screen size display preference, bandwagon effect due to the similarity of the location of selected participants, etc.), especially for information that could influence the research results. In conclusion, future research on drone suitability for site management should be done with a clear specification of the factors that culminate into the acceptance of the use of drones by construction workers, while the opinion of site managers should not be taken with levity. Improvements can also be made on the research methodology especially in terms of the size and structure of the sample size in order to ease the application of the research findings in the augmentation of the health and safety condition into the construction industry at large.

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