scholarly journals Promoting Health and Safety in Construction through the Procurement Process

Buildings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 437
Author(s):  
Elijah Frimpong Boadu ◽  
Riza Yosia Sunindijo ◽  
Cynthia Changxin Wang
Keyword(s):  
Information Integration ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Planning Stage ◽  
Procurement Process ◽  
Contract Administration ◽  
Questionnaire Surveys ◽  
Project Objectives ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Tender Evaluation ◽  
Project Procurement

This study explored the impact of considering health and safety (H&S) in the construction procurement process based on the extent of H&S implementation on projects. Underpinned by information integration and rational decision-making theories, the study evaluated how the integration of H&S objectives into the overall project objectives, and the subsequent consideration of H&S matters in procurement decisions, influence H&S implementation on projects. Data were collected using questionnaire surveys from 287 respondents in Ghana who had direct involvement in the project procurement process. The survey explored the extent of H&S integration into the procurement process and its subsequent impact on H&S implementation. Path analysis was carried out to determine the causal relationships between the various procurement processes and H&S implementation. The results demonstrate that setting H&S objectives and integrating H&S into the planning stage decisions have a significant impact on the extent to which H&S matters are considered in the tendering and tender evaluation stages, as well as the H&S provisions in conditions of contracts. It also showed that adequate H&S consideration in these procurement stages subsequently influences H&S consideration in contract administration and monitoring and ultimately influences the extent of H&S implementation. These findings demonstrate the importance of integrating H&S in all aspects of construction procurement to promote H&S implementation on projects.

Regulatory and sustainability initiatives lead to improved polyaminopolyamide epichlorohydrin (PAE) wet-strength resins and paper products

TAPPI Journal ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (09) ◽  
pp. 519-532 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Crisp ◽  
Richard Riehle
Keyword(s):  
Health And Safety ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Worker Safety ◽  
Regulatory Requirements ◽  
Wet Strength ◽  
The Past ◽  
Consumer Safety ◽  
Federal Institute ◽  
Sustainability Initiatives ◽  
The Impact

Polyaminopolyamide-epichlorohydrin (PAE) resins are the predominant commercial products used to manufacture wet-strengthened paper products for grades requiring wet-strength permanence. Since their development in the late 1950s, the first generation (G1) resins have proven to be one of the most cost-effective technologies available to provide wet strength to paper. Throughout the past three decades, regulatory directives and sustainability initiatives from various organizations have driven the development of cleaner and safer PAE resins and paper products. Early efforts in this area focused on improving worker safety and reducing the impact of PAE resins on the environment. These efforts led to the development of resins containing significantly reduced levels of 1,3-dichloro-2-propanol (1,3-DCP) and 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD), potentially carcinogenic byproducts formed during the manufacturing process of PAE resins. As the levels of these byproducts decreased, the environmental, health, and safety (EH&S) profile of PAE resins and paper products improved. Recent initiatives from major retailers are focusing on product ingredient transparency and quality, thus encouraging the development of safer product formulations while maintaining performance. PAE resin research over the past 20 years has been directed toward regulatory requirements to improve consumer safety and minimize exposure to potentially carcinogenic materials found in various paper products. One of the best known regulatory requirements is the recommendations of the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), which defines the levels of 1,3-DCP and 3-MCPD that can be extracted by water from various food contact grades of paper. These criteria led to the development of third generation (G3) products that contain very low levels of 1,3-DCP (typically <10 parts per million in the as-received/delivered resin). This paper outlines the PAE resin chemical contributors to adsorbable organic halogens and 3-MCPD in paper and provides recommendations for the use of each PAE resin product generation (G1, G1.5, G2, G2.5, and G3).

Factors Influencing Academic Stress on Students of University of Economics and Business - Vietnam National University

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nham Phong Tuan ◽  
Nguyen Ngoc Quy ◽  
Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen ◽  
Hong Tra My ◽  
Tran Nhu Phu
Keyword(s):  
Academic Stress ◽  
Stress Factors ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Stress Scale ◽  
Perceptions And Attitudes ◽  
National University ◽  
Questionnaire Surveys ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

The objective of this study is to investigate the impact of seven factors causing academic stress on students of University of Economics and Business - Vietnam National University: Lack of leisure time, Academic performance, Fear of failure, Academic overload, Finances, Competition between students, Relationships with university faculty. Based on the results of a practical survey of 185 students who are attending any courses at the University of Economics and Business - Vietnam National University, the study assesses the impact of stress factors on students. The thesis focuses on clarifying the concept of "stress" and the stress level of students, while pointing out its negative effects on students. This study includes two cross-sectional questionnaire surveys. The first survey uses a set of 16 questions to assess students’ perceptions and attitudes based on an instrument to measure academic stress - Educational Stress Scale for Adolescents (ESSA). The second survey aims to test internal consistency, the robustness of the previously established 7-factor structure. Henceforth, the model was brought back and used qualitatively, combined with Cronbach’s Alpha measurement test and EFA discovery factor analysis. This study was conducted from October 2019 to December 2019. From these practical analyzes, several proposals were made for the society, the school and the students themselves.

Implementasi Probability Impact Matriks (PIM) Untuk Mengidentifikasi Kemungkinan dan Dampak Risiko Proyek

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-47
Author(s):  
Sufa'atin Sufa'atin
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Cumulative Effect ◽  
Project Risk ◽  
Project Construction ◽  
Index Terms ◽  
Project Objectives ◽  
The Impact

One of the obstacles in project construction is that the project is experiencing delays. The delay is influenced by several factors including the absence of risk recording, the unavoidability of the opportunities and the impact of risks that arise in the project and its handling, and the neglected risks that may disrupt the project. Project risk is the cumulative effect of an uncertain event opportunity, which affects the project objectives. Several methods can be used to handle the occurrence of project risk, one of the methods used to perform a risk assessment is the Probability Impact Matrix (PIM). PIM is a method that can be used to analyze risk qualitatively based on probability and its impact. By using the PIM method, some of the opportunities and impacts of risks that may arise in the project can be identified. In addition, the PIM method can minimize the risks that arise in the project and quickly resolve the risks. Index Terms— Project, Risk, PIM, Possibility, Impact

Social and Economic Public Policy Goals and Their Impact on Defense Acquisition—A 2019 Update

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 208-228
Author(s):  
Moshe Schwartz
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Defense Acquisition ◽  
Procurement Process ◽  
Defense Procurement ◽  
Policy Goals ◽  
The Impact

This article explores the evolution of social and economic public policy goals and programs embedded in the defense procurement process and explores the impact of these policies on acquisition.

Small Firm Audit Partner Hiring Crisis: A Role Play for Critical Thinking and Negotiation Skills

2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 275-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
George R. Aldhizer
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Small Firm ◽  
Role Play ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Critical Thinking Skills ◽  
Planning Stage ◽  
Skill Sets ◽  
Final Agreement ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACT This role play requires students to consider the complexities of a small CPA firm urgently attempting to replace the unique industry knowledge and experience possessed by a terminally ill audit partner. In this role play, students assume the position of either an existing partner or a former partner who is considering rejoining the firm. This role play includes two sections. First, in the planning stage, students brainstorm mutually equivalent options that satisfy their critical financial and nonfinancial interests to address the problem of replacing the terminally ill partner in their respective existing partner and former partner teams. Second, students engage in a “table” negotiation with their assigned counterpart to reach an amicable agreement to this firm crisis and participate in a debriefing session and prepare a debriefing document. The small firm context provides a unique opportunity to make contributions to the existing accounting and auditing literature related to enhancing students' critical thinking and negotiation skills. Distinctive small firm role play elements that should enhance critical thinking and negotiation skills include considering contingent agreements that dovetail differences in future legal liability forecasts, and dovetailing differences to take advantage of complementary skill sets to mitigate industry-specific auditor detection risks and related business risks.1 Critical thinking skills also should be strengthened through negotiating a package of interests and related options including the impact of various tradeoffs that are not fully known until the table negotiation commences so that the final agreement does not exceed the firm's non-negotiable budgetary constraints.

Women Garment Workers Face Huge Inequities in Global Supply Chain Factories Made Worse by COVID-19

2021 ◽  
pp. 104829112110116
Author(s):  
Garrett D. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Women Workers ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Professional Associations ◽  
Gender Based Violence ◽  
Garment Workers ◽  
Gender Based ◽  
Structural Inequities ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
The Impact

Women make up the large majority of workers in global supply chains, especially factories in the apparel supply chain. These workers face significant inequalities in wages, workplace hazards, and a special burden of gender-based violence and harassment. These “normal” conditions have been compounded by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has exacerbated long-standing structural inequities. Decades of well-financed “corporate social responsibility” programs have failed because they do not address the underlying causes of illegal and abusive working conditions. New initiatives in the past half-decade offer promise in putting the needs and rights of workers front and center. Occupational health and safety professionals can assist in the global effort to improve working and social conditions, and respect for the rights and dignity of women workers, through advocacy and action on the job, in their professional associations, and in society at large.

scholarly journals Social Perception and Urbanscape Identity of Flagship Cultural Developments in Szczecin (in the Re-Urbanization Context)

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 398
Author(s):  
Eliza Sochacka ◽  
Magdalena Rzeszotarska-Pałka
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Social Perception ◽  
Local Identity ◽  
Functional Complexity ◽  
Questionnaire Surveys ◽  
Urban Strategy ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City ◽  
Cultural Developments

A growing number of urban interventions, such as culture-led regeneration strategies, has emerged alongside growing awareness of the concept of re-urbanization. These interventions evolve to create a holistic urban vision, with aims to promote social cohesion and strengthen local identity as opposed to traditional goals of measuring the economic impact of new cultural developments. Szczecin’s, Poland urban strategy is focused on the expansion of culture—a condition for improving the quality of life and increasing the city’s attractiveness. This article assesses the potential for re-urbanization of Szczecin’s flagship cultural developments. Questionnaire surveys and qualitative research methods were used to assess the characteristics that distinguish cultural projects in the formal, location-related, functional, and symbolic layers, as well as examining their social perception. The results show that the strength of these indicators of urbanscape identity affects how the cultural developments are assessed by the society. Semiotic coherence and functional complexity of the structures have a significant impact on the sense of identification, while their monumentality and exposure contribute to the assessment of the impact on their surroundings. A development with a firm identity, embedded in the city’s tradition not only preserves the cultural heritage of the city but also makes inhabitants feel association with the new project.

scholarly journals Assessing the Energy Resilience of Office Buildings: Development and Testing of a Simplified Metric for Real Estate Stakeholders

Buildings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 96
Author(s):  
Paul Mathew ◽  
Lino Sanchez ◽  
Sang Hoon Lee ◽  
Travis Walter
Keyword(s):  
Regression Models ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Office Buildings ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
Power Outage ◽  
Continuity Of Operations ◽  
Quasi Monte Carlo ◽  
Building Characteristics ◽  
The Impact

Increasing concern over higher frequency extreme weather events is driving a push towards a more resilient built environment. In recent years there has been growing interest in understanding how to evaluate, measure, and improve building energy resilience, i.e., the ability of a building to provide energy-related services in the event of a local or regional power outage. In addition to human health and safety, many stakeholders are keenly interested in the ability of a building to allow continuity of operations and minimize business disruption. Office buildings are subject to significant economic losses when building operations are disrupted due to a power outage. We propose “occupant hours lost” (OHL) as a means to measure the business productivity lost as the result of a power outage in office buildings. OHL is determined based on indoor conditions in each space for each hour during a power outage, and then aggregated spatially and temporally to determine the whole building OHL. We used quasi-Monte Carlo parametric energy simulations to demonstrate how the OHL metric varies due to different building characteristics across different climate zones and seasons. The simulation dataset was then used to develop simple regression models for assessing the impact of ten key building characteristics on OHL. The most impactful were window-to-wall ratio and window characteristics. The regression models show promise as a simple means to assess and screen for resilience using basic building characteristics, especially for non-critical facilities where it may not be viable to conduct detailed engineering analysis.

The Impact of Organisational, Social Environmental and Job Content Stressors on the Work Related Strains of Probation Officers

2001 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 193-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clare O'donnell ◽  
Christine Stephens
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Workplace Stress ◽  
Probation Officers ◽  
Curvilinear Relationship ◽  
Work Stressors ◽  
Work Related ◽  
Job Content ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

In recent years workplace stress has been seen as an important occupational health and safety problem and probation officers in New Zealand have been identified as suffering from increasing perceptions of stress. Accordingly, the present study was undertaken with a sample of 50 New Zealand Probation Officers in three offices to examine the relationship of individual, organisational and work stressors with work related strains. It was predicted that work stressors would be positively related to strains and that individual differences (e.g., age or gender) would have a moderating effect on the relationship between stressors and strains. The results showed that stressors caused by organisational problems, such as role boundary and overload, were related to strains, more strongly than job content problems, such as difficult clients. Secondly, age may have a curvilinear relationship to strains. Thirdly, the office, or place of work, moderates the stressor strain relationship.

Requirements Capture for Inclusive Design Resources and Tools

Volume 3 ◽  
2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hua Dong ◽  
P. John Clarkson ◽  
Simeon Keates
Keyword(s):  
Unmet Needs ◽  
Fundamental Problem ◽  
Inclusive Design ◽  
Planning Stage ◽  
Product Planning ◽  
The Past ◽  
Design Resources ◽  
User Data ◽  
Design Requirements ◽  
The Impact

In the past twenty years, a number of resources and tools to support inclusive design have been developed. However, the impact of these resources and tools on industry is not evident — few industrialists have been using them in practice. Investigations into industry have identified unmet needs, for example, the lack of appropriate user data relating to inclusive design. The fundamental problem is that few resources and tools have been developed based on rigorous requirements capture. In fact, many of them were developed only because the developers think the information could be useful. It is essential to prepare a detailed requirements list when clarifying the task at the product planning stage. This is also true for developing resources and tools for inclusive design. Requirements capture plays an important role in identifying real needs from users and developing appropriate methods of support for them. This paper starts with a survey of available resources and tools for inclusive design, and a discussion on their merits and deficiencies in respect to industry application. A number of methods are employed for the requirements capture for an inclusive design toolkit, which leads to a consistent result. An outline of the toolkit is also presented.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document