Delay Factor Analysis for Indian HAM Highway Construction Projects

Government has approved the hybrid annuity model (HAM) for building National Highways (NH) to speed up the construction of roads in the country by renewing interest of private developers in highway projects. 40% the Project Cost is to be provided by the Government as Construction Support during the construction period and the balance 60% as annuity payments over the operations period along with interest thereon to the concessionaire. Execution of hybrid annuity model (HAM) projects, which is the preferred mode of awarding by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), is largely on schedule with about 60% of projects, covering 3,200 km of roads, completed on time. The rest of the projects, however, are delayed largely due to various reasons. In order to identify and analysis of delay causes in highway projects of HAM model, this study provides a questionnaire survey-based study. Land acquisition delay is found as the most severe delay cause of highway projects of HAM model. Waste of time in controlling the traffic is found as the least severe delay cause of highway projects of HAM model. The study is supposed as useful to HAM construction managers for delay analysis of highway projects. Keywords: Hybrid annuity model, Highway projects, Delay analysis, Questionnaire survey.

For a Discussion About Epigraphic Evidence of the Activities of Byzantium in the Mountainous Crimea in the 6th Century

Introduction. In the basilicas discovered on the Mangup plateau (fig. 3), in the Karalez valley (fig. 1) that begins at its foot and on Eski-Kermen (fig. 2, 1), inscriptions were found, the interpretation and dating of which caused many years of discussion. Some scientists considered them as evidence of the activities of the Eastern Roman Empire in the region in the 6th century, while other specialists doubted both such an interpretation of the inscriptions and their dating. Methods. To substantiate the chronology of the mentioned inscriptions, it is important to consider the formulas and linguistic features contained in them, as well as the stratigraphy recorded during the excavation of temples and the revealed dated closed ceramics complexes. Analysis. The text of the inscription with the name of Justinian I is correlated with the information of Procopius about the construction of the “Long Walls” in the Dory region at the behest of the emperor. Most likely, the inscription reported the construction of one of the “Long Walls” in the Karalez valley at the foot of Doros. It is possible that the stone (fig. 1) with the typical Byzantine graffiti with the formulas ΦΩС ΖΩΗ and κ(ύρι)ε βοήθ(ει...) was inserted into a wall of an apse of the basilica right after its construction in the Karalez valley in the second half of the 6th century. On a stone over the graffiti ΦΩС ΖΩΗ letters of the second graffiti “Ἰς νικᾷ” are cut out which means Ἰ(ησοῦ)ς (Χριστὸς) νικᾷ – “Jesus Christ wins”. In Byzantium the images of a cross with the formula IC XC NI ΚΑ (Ἰ(ησοῦ)C Χ(ριστὸ)C Ν(ικ)Α) appeared at the iconoclast emperor Leo III (717–741) and were distributed in later time. Results. Undisputed evidence of Byzantium’s activity in the region in the 6th century is only the fragment of a plate with a building inscription that means the emperor Justinian I found in a late slab grave at the basilica on Mangup. According to the stratigraphy, revealed in 1938 during the excavations of the Baptistry on Mangup, the graffiti (fig. 3) that caused a long discussion was carved on the back of the cornice in the second construction period not earlier than in the 9th century.

Wood analyses helped to determine the location and approximate construction period of the Roman bridge over the Drava River in ancient Poetovio (Ptuj, Slovenia)

We present the results of a dendrochronological study and radiocarbon dating of the wooden piles of the bridge over the Drava River in Ptuj. The piles, together with stone elements (a fragment of an imperial building inscription and parts of the architectural decoration) were retrieved from the riverbed in 1913 and are now in the Regional Museum Ptuj - Ormož. Using dendrochronology, radiocarbon dating of carefully selected annual rings in the wood and calibration with the wiggle-matching method, the date of the last (outermost) annual ring on the pile was determined to be 161 ± 27 cal AD (1σ) or 160 ± 32 cal AD (2σ). Since the pile contained no sapwood, the dating approximately agrees with the date of the building inscription on the stone slab, which attributes the commission for the reconstruction or construction of the bridge to Emperor Hadrian in the last years of his reign (117-138 AD). The dating of the wood has thus confirmed that the remains examined do indeed belong to a Roman bridge, probably built or renovated during the reconstruction of the road network in the area of the colony of Poetovio under Hadrian or one of his successors.

Material Culture of the Horizon of the 10th Century at the Hillfort near Spitsino Village

The article presents the results of research in 2019-2020 of the 10th century settlement on a multi-layered hillfort near the village of Spitsino (4th -5th, 10th centuries). The monument is located at a considerable distance from the main river routes in the region, which excludes its relationship with the Upper Oka section of the Don trade route in the 9th -10th centuries. A significant part of the finds discovered during exploration 2019, are of Northern European origin and date back to the mid. - 2nd half 10th century. There are also a few finds related to steppe antiquities. According to the materials of the excavations, the buildings of two construction periods are identified. The ceramic complex of buildings of the early construction period is represented by fragments of stucco vessels of the Romaine type and redeposited fragments of vessels of the 4th - 5th century. Fragments of early vessels made on a potter's wheel dating from the second half of the 10th century are found in the ceramic complex of the late construction period. Thus, the monument can be attributed to the period of the middle - second half of the 10th century. This period until recently represented a chronological lacuna in the period of Slavic colonization of the region.

Use of Foamed Cement Banking for Reducing Expressways Embankment Settlement

Expressways are often built on soft ground, the foundation of which is not processed adequately during the construction period. Consequently, the traffic safety and embankment stability will be seriously affected due to uneven settlement. The technology of holing the embankment and replacing foamed cement banking (FCB) could control the settlement of an embankment without road closure, thus reduce the impact of construction on normal operation of highways. In this paper, the principle of FCB is described. Additionally, a sedimentation ratio calculation method, through the analysis of the settlement load ratio, is proposed for calculating the roadbed replacement thickness. This paper takes the example of the test section EK0 + 323 on Shen-Jia-Hu expressway in Zhejiang Province and combines with site settlement monitoring data to confirm the effectiveness of the calculation method proposed.

Sustainable Restoration of Degraded Farm Land by the Sheet-Pipe System

For the sustainable restoration of wet farm land degraded by the climate change-induced rise of ground water level (GWL) and soil salinity etc., the sheet pipe system is one of the most useful technologies which reduces cultivation obstacles due to the poor drainage by controlling the rapid drainage function and enabling farmers to produce profitable crops. This system is characterized mainly as a perforated polyethylene rolled-band sheet 180 mm in width and 1 mm thick which is drawn into the subsurface layer while transforming a drainage pipe with φ = 50 mm. The major advantage of this system is that since the sheet pipe is installed without trenching, the disturbance of land is minimized and the construction period can be shortened to about 1/4 (which reduces the cost approximately by 50%). In this study, by using the sheet pipe installed miniature-type model soil box, the drainage capacity of the sheet pipe was confirmed as being the same as the pipe-shaped standard drainage pipes. Based on the observations of the saturated–unsaturated flow and the maximum lowering rate of GWL was predicted. Finally, at the farm land wherein the free board of the adjoining canal was limited, the effectiveness of the sheet-pipe system was confirmed.

Analysis of Foundation Pit Design of Metro Station in Complex Environment

The complex engineering geological conditions and the surrounding environmental conditions of the existing subway lines and adjacent buildings have significantly deepened the difficulty of metro station foundation pit design and construction. Based on the foundation pit project of Luboyuan Station of Nanjing Metro Line 9, this study chooses a reasonable foundation pit support design scheme to carry out related research by analyzing the site geological environmental conditions. Through the analysis and evaluation of the engineering geological conditions of the engineering site, the engineering geological problems that may occur in the process of construction are given. According to the lithologic characteristics of the site strata, the hydrogeological conditions, and the features of the underground engineering structure, the design of the foundation pit supporting system is optimized and analyzed. The results show that making full use of the geological features of strata and adopting effective support methods can ensure the safety of foundation pit construction, reduce the cost of engineering description, and shorten the construction period, which can be used as a reference for similar projects and construction.

Measuring Effectiveness of Project Communication Channels in Affected Communities in Nepal

This study is identifying the most appropriate communication medium to communicate with local people by Arun-3 Hydropower Project (AHPP) especially focusing on the project construction phase. Since, the study is focused on the construction period when chances of misunderstanding, miscommunication, and other conflicts between project-affected people and the project, will be high due to higher incidences of social and environmental issues. This study was completed by applying mix method of research where quantitative research was conducted through a survey among local people of Makalu Rural Municipality (MRM) of Sankhuwasabha and a case interview was done with the chairman of the same Rural Municipality. The study has revealed that local radios and public meetings are the most recommended mediums that participants expected to support the project in properly disseminating project-related information to local people. This article suggests that AHPP should disseminate information about project activities mainly through local radios and public meetings. This study also concludes that the project developer is not providing sufficient information about project activities to local people, which is also a source of misunderstanding between the two sides.

Estimation of Internal Maximum Thermal Stress of Tunnel Side Wall Lining Concrete During Construction Period

Thermal cracks in lining concrete of large section hydraulic tunnel usually occur in side walls during construction, and most of them are harmful penetrating cracks. In order to meet the needs of real-time rapid control for engineering design in construction period, nine influencing factors of maximum tensile of side wall lining concrete σmax during construction period are determined on the basis of comprehensive analysis of temperature stress effects and finite element simulations, and their influencing regularities are analyzed. Then the estimation formula of σmax and real-time control method of thermal crack are put forward. Through the application of real-time temperature control and crack prevention control of lining concrete in flood discharge tunnel, the estimation formula of σmax and the real-time thermal crack control method are proved to be correct and applicable.