Parametric estimation of supplier's plant construction costs

Cost engineers of buying enterprises perform detailed product cost calculations of externally manufactured components. The aim of these calculations is to determine what a product should cost and to support purchasing functions in fact-based negotiations. While product cost engineers have deep knowledge in the calculation of direct cost, they need support in the calculation of supplier´s indirect cost categories. The calculation of industrial rent, which is expressed in annual cost per m² of occupied plant building floor space can be improved by providing accurate construction cost estimates. Construction costs are strongly impacting the calculation of supplier´s annual building depreciation, which is a crucial cost driver for the determination of the industrial rent. Academic literature is actually not providing an accurate and suitable cost model for product cost engineers, which is estimating construction cost per m² depending on different industrial building categories and alternative supplier plant locations. The paper aims to close this gap by applying linear regression analysis on a set of European construction cost data considering two industrial building categories: “warehouses/basic factory units” and “high-tech factories”. By regressing construction cost against construction labor rates within different supplier plant locations it was possible to form suitable and accurate parametric regression functions with R² values between 0.74 and 0.88. Next to high R² values acceptable mean average percentage errors between 7.45% and 11.77% could be realized by comparing estimated with observed construction cost. The estimation of industrial construction costs based on the paper´s results can be used to improve the calculation of industrial rent, which is one cost element, that has to be covered within product cost engineer´s Should Cost Calculations.

Implementation of Load Control for Smart Metering in Smart Grids

The conventional energy meters are not suitable for long operating purposes as they spend much human and material resources. Smart meters, on the other hand, are devices that perform advanced functions including electrical energy consumption recording of residential/industrial users, billing, real-time monitoring, and load balancing. In this chapter, a smart home prototype is designed and implemented. Appliances are powered by the grid during daytime, and a photovoltaic panel stored power during the night or in case of an electricity outage. Second, consumed power from both sources is sensed and further processed for cumulative energy, cost calculations and bill establishment for different proposed scenarios using LABVIEW software. Data are communicated using a USB data acquisition card (DAQ-USB 6008). Finally, a simulation framework using LABVIEW software models four houses each equipped with various appliances. The simulator predicts different power consumption profiles to seek of peak-demand reduction through a load control process.

Methods of Calculating the Marginal Cost of Incarceration: A Scoping Review

Criminal justice reforms and corrections cost forecasts require appropriate estimates of the marginal costs of incarceration to adequately assess cost savings and projections. Average costs are simple to calculate while marginal cost calculations require much more detailed data and advanced methods. We undertook a scoping review to identify, report, and summarize the existing academic and gray literature covering the different estimation methods of calculating the marginal costs of incarceration, following the Arksey and O’Malley framework. Eighteen publications met criteria for inclusion in this review, with only one from the peer-reviewed literature. The three main approaches in the literature and their use are reviewed and illustrated. We conclude that there is a lack of, and need for, peer-reviewed literature on methods for calculating the marginal cost of incarceration, and marginal cost estimates of incarceration, to assist program evaluation, policy, and cost forecasting in the field of corrections.

Knowing Your Product Costs: A Primer for Farmers and Food Entrepreneurs

This publication provides a basic introduction to product costing for farm businesses and food processing enterprises. It describes cost concepts, provides product costing examples, and briefly discusses software tools that can assist with cost analysis. The publication is intended to help farmers and food entrepreneurs understand product costing concepts and do their own cost calculations to assist with business decisions.

Environmental and Cost Impacts of Food Waste in University Canteen from a Life Cycle Perspective

Food waste has caused double waste of resources in the food itself and the food supply chain of production, transportation, cooking, and processing, resulting in unnecessary greenhouse gas emissions and economic losses. This paper first conducted the quantification of students’ food waste and the collection of canteens operation data in the three canteens at Taiyuan University of Technology (China) in 2019 through the weighing method and interview. Then an integration of Life Cycle Assessment and Life Cycle Costing was used to quantify the impact of food waste in university canteens on the environment and costs. The study found that the total amount of food waste in the university canteens with 22,000 students was 246.75 t/a, the carbon footprint caused by food waste was 539.28 t CO2-eq, and the cost was 4,729,900 yuan. Most of the impact of canteen meals on the environment comes from the use of energy in food cooking and the consumption of animal food types. The innovative integration of life cycle cost calculations highlights the key role of the labor required for cooking. The research results answer the basic scientific questions of how much food is wasted in the university canteens, and the carbon emissions and cost ratios of these wasted food in all links of the supply chain. The research results can provide a policy-making basis and data support for reducing food waste in universities and realizing carbon emission reduction in university canteens.

An Economically Viable 100% Renewable Energy System for All Energy Sectors of Germany in 2030

To be able to fulfil the Paris Climate Agreement and keep global warming with reasonable confidence at a maximum of 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels, Germany must set an end to all greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. At the core of this task is the switch to 100% renewables across all sectors on the same time horizon. Conventional technologies fueled by fossil and nuclear energies are, according to the vast majority of current cost calculations, energetically inefficient, too expensive, and too slow in expansion to be able to deliver a substantial contribution to rapid climate protection. We present the first comprehensive energy scenario that shows the way to 100% renewable energy for all energy sectors by 2030. The result of the calculations is a cost-effective energy system that is compatible with the German share of necessary greenhouse gas reduction. This study shows a target system of generation, conversion, and storage technologies that can achieve the transformation to 100% renewable energy in all energy sectors—electricity, heat, and mobility—in time and at competitive costs below the costs of the current system. Moreover, we demonstrate the huge cost effect that arises if southern Germany renounces its onshore wind resources and find that this would substantially increase the need for high-voltage direct-current transmission capacity.

Evaluation Of Construction Project Time And Cost Control Based On Earned Value And Crash Project Method

Project development and how to control time and costs in the construction project of a public junior high school 1 Surabaya. This research was conducted with the aim of knowing and comparing the amount of duration and cost after acceleration by using the alternative Earned Value Analysis. The case study in this research takes the construction project of a public junior high school 1 Surabaya which is located in Surabaya. The data needed in this study include the S curve, recapitulation of project cost calculations, a list of budget plans (RAB), and a list of unit wage prices for workers. The research method used is to design network planning, calculate the cost variance and variance schedule for each activity that changes due to changes in the duration of implementation, acceleration of work duration, and determination of the optimum cost and duration due to the application of the Earned Value Analysis method. For the calculation of the variance Schedule on week 34 shows a positive result of Rp. 109,550,470. For the calculation of the cost variance from week 34 shows - Rp. 2,488,159. For the calculation of Estimate at completion (EAC) on week 34 of Rp. 6,663,998,229. For the calculation of Estimate temporary schedule, the evaluation week 34 experienced a delay of 53 days from the original schedule. So the work completion time is 233 calendar days

Possibilities for Introducing a New Night Train Connection in Middle Europe

Liberalisation of the rail transport market is the main aim of the European Union in the field of transport policy. Open access on the market allows railway undertakings to provide their services, but it also requires to compete with each other. In recent years, night train services have experienced a renaissance, especially in west-Europe countries. A development of this type of services is important to achieve the goal of carbon neutrality in EU, especially in context of affordable air transport. The aim of this study is to analyse current night train services in middle Europe and find opportunities for their further development. In this article we have proposed new night train connections between Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, and Germany, provided by railway undertaking in open access mode, with a detailed cost calculation. This is necessary to assess the economic efficiency of introducing new connections. Results of the cost calculations form the basis of the price for transport on newly introduced routes.

Repair programs development taking into account the presence of high-risk defects on bridges

Introduction. In recent years in Ukraine, the weight and traffic volume of vehicles on the roads have increased significantly. Most of the bridges that are operating on these roads were built according to norms, the design loadings of which are not corresponding to the modern loadings on transport facilities.Problem Statement. The issue of bridges operation with defects of the structure in the condition of limited funding of the road industry become particularly relevant at the present stage, as the age of bridges is constantly increasing, and the resource of their elements is being expiring.Due to limited funding, the economic and time components of the designed models have a significant impact on the quality of performed calculations and the determination of the optimal strategy for performing of repairing work in specified conditions. The choice of planned works is determined during repairing plans development, both for evaluation of the current state of bridges and for determination of predicted bridge repairing terms.Purpose. the purpose of the work is the development of further optimization of the mode of repairs plan development to eliminate existing defects of bridges.Materials and methods. During the determination of repairs cost in the Analytical Expert Bridge Management System (AESUM), the average norms of the work volume were used. This method was limited by the fact that cost calculations were constant and did not consider actual defects of the bridges. The experience of the constructed bridges operation over 40–50 years revealed a significant number of various defects of structure, mainly of spans and piers. The causes of defects are long-term operation without proper maintenance, as well as a number of shortcomings during the design and construction of bridges. In order to further mode optimization of repair plans development, the existing defects on the bridges were studied from the point of view of their impact on the further destruction of certain elements of the bridge, or the facility as a whole, on the acceleration of this process. Such defects have been identified as high risk defects.Results. Scientists of «DerzhdorNDI» SE have developed and applied the technique of repair cost determination by formation of works complex to eliminate existing defects at the inspected facilities. A module for bridge repair planning has been developed considering the need for priority elimination of high risk defects.Conclusions. The technique of repairs cost determination was developed, as well as the module for bridge repair planning considering the need for priority elimination of high risk defects.Keywords: highway bridge, Analytical Expert Bridge Management System (AESUM), repairs cost determination, defect on bridges.

Ensuring the reliable operation of tanks using leakage control systems: innovation and economics

Представлены результаты исследования, целью которого являлась оценка целесообразности разработки и внедрения автоматизированной системы контроля утечек из резервуаров для хранения нефти и нефтепродуктов - в дополнение или в качестве альтернативы техническим решениям, реализованным на объектах российской системы магистральных трубопроводов. Проведен анализ отечественных и зарубежных нормативных документов в области проектирования и эксплуатации резервуаров и резервуарных парков, а также мирового опыта практического применения систем и технологий обнаружения утечек из резервуаров. Установлено, что технические решения, реализованные на объектах ПАО «Транснефть» с целью оперативного выявления утечек и защиты от их распространения, обеспечивают требуемый уровень контроля. По расчетам прогнозной стоимости определена экономическая эффективность разработки опытного образца автоматизированной системы контроля герметичности резервуаров и дистанционного выявления утечек, основанной на регистрации источников акустической эмиссии и применении волоконно-оптических датчиков. Сделан вывод об отсутствии оснований для выполнения ОКР по разработке данной системы. The article presents results of a study, the purpose of which was to assess the feasibility of developing an automated system for monitoring leaks from oil and oil product storage tanks - additional or alternative technical solutions implemented at the facilities of Russian trunk pipeline system. Domestic and foreign regulatory documents in the field of tank and tank-farm design and operation were analysed, as well as world experience in practical application of systems and technologies for detecting leaks from tanks. It was found that technical solutions implemented at the facilities of PJSC Transneft for the purpose of prompt leak detection and protection from their spread, provide the required level of control. According to predicted cost calculations, the economic efficiency of the development of an automated system prototype for monitoring tank integrity and remote detection of leaks based on the registration of acoustic emission sources and the use of fiber-optic sensors was determined. The conclusion is made that there are no grounds for carrying out the design work on the development of this system.