Statistical Model for Predicting Salinity of Water at Doho 1 Irrigation Scheme in Busia.

The concentration of salts in water or salt affects crop yields to a good extent. Irrigation salinity can be controlled by various methods including modelling. Therefore, this study aimed at designing a model for predicting the salinity of the water at the Doho Irrigation Scheme in Butaleja district, eastern Uganda for better rice growing. This study used the different water chemical parameters from the different sites of the scheme, where water samples were collected and measured in the laboratory. A multivariate regression method was used to model water salinity through the Electrical Conductivity as the dependent variable and other water chemical parameters like potassium (K), Sodium (Na), pH and Calcium (Ca) were used as independent variables. A non-linear statistical model was derived from the chemical results of the irrigation scheme, presented and validated by applying it on the water samples that were not used during the design of the model. The model measured salinity levels and can be used to determine which water chemical levels are good for rice growing in Doho and other similar situations. Hence, the model can be used to improve food quality and quantity as required in the food production goal

Assessing Strength of Plastic Paving Blocks for Construction of Non-Motorised Transport Facilities.

Walking remains the oldest and most common mode of transport making up a portion if not most or all our daily commute. However, infrastructure developments in our urban areas have a bias towards motorised transport leading to pedestrians and cyclists being the most affected in road incidents. Increasing non-motorised transport facilities in our urban centres would increase levels of walkability, reduce the number of crashes involving non-motorised transport users, reduce traffic congestion, noise and air pollution making them sustainable and more liveable. Three hundred million tonnes of plastic waste are produced annually in the world with Kenya contributing 407,506 tonnes. The waste produced shall continue to increase with increasing population, urbanisation and development. The non-biodegradability of plastic makes proper disposal of plastic waste a menace and due to widespread littering, plastic waste has become a common sight in our urban and rural areas. The conventional materials used for the construction of walkways and cycle lanes, asphalt and concrete are most ideal for the motorised transport pavements. Plastic paving blocks can be affordable, readily available and environmentally friendly making a suitable alternate construction material if adopted. This study assessed the strength of plastic paving blocks for use in the construction of walkways and cycle lanes; by undertaking a tensile strength test according to SANS 1058:2021 on samples provided by Corec Kenya. The samples satisfied all of the strength specifications and from this it can be recommended that the plastic paving blocks can be used on low traffic pavements such as walkways and cycle lanes.

A Mathematical Model on Linkage Leakage in Sewage Pipes Laid in a Porous Ground Using Computation Fluid Dynamics.

This study describes the linkage leakage in sewage pipes through a porous media using computational fluid dynamics with the presence of one leak through fluid simulations using the Ansys fluent 17.2 commercial software based on standard k-ε model under steady-state condition. The pipe section is three-dimensional with a pipe length of 40 mm, a pipe diameter of 20 mm, and leak orifice diameter of 2 mm with a porous media of length 25 mm and width 30 mm. The interest of this study was to reduce the rate of sewage leakage in pipes laid underground by use computational fluid dynamics. The simulation results obtained shows that when the flow is subjected to an outlet pressure between 100000 Pa to 275000 Pa the sewage leaks at pressures of 99499 Pa to 278799.8 Pa indicating that increase of outlet pressures increases the pressure at the leak point and also an increase in the inlet velocity resulted into an increase of velocity at the leak point and no significant change in sewage flow rate with increased inlet velocities. Therefore, monitoring of the pressure and velocity fields along the pipeline is an extremely important tool to identify leaks since these fields are affected by perturbations both before the leak point and after the leak point.

Effect of Firing Temperature on some Mechanical Properties of Osun State Ceramic Tiles

The work evaluates the effect of firing temperature on the mechanical properties of ceramic tiles. This was with the view to determine the optimum processing condition for Osun State ceramic tiles. Ceramic raw materials collected from Osun State were batched using clay-feldspar-silica sand blending ratio of 5:4:1, 5:3:2, 5:2:3, 5:1:4, 6:3:1, 6:2:2, 6:1:3, 7:2:1, 7:1:2 and 8:1:1 by weight; and homogeneously mixed. Three replica samples were moulded by the method of dry forming, fired at 1200, 1300 and 1400 oC and subjected to breaking and flexural strength tests using the Universal Testing Machine while the hardness test was carried out on a Moh’s scale. The results showed that breaking strength, flexural strength and Moh’s hardness fell within the range 199.43 to 325 N, 11.97 to 19.50 N/mm2 and 2.5 to 4 MH respectively, while Figures revealed that samples with 60% clay, 10% feldspar and 30% silica sand fired at 1320 oC will process the best mechanical properties. In conclusion, ceramic raw materials collected from Osun State are viable for ceramic tile production.

A Comparison Between The (Design-Build DB) and (Design-Bid-Build DBB) Approaches Used in the Jordanian Construction Sector and Clarify the Risks Associated with Each Approach

The continual need for building in developing economies and countries such as Jordan increases the obstacles and problems faced by Project Management Units in completing projects on time, with quality assurance, and at lower prices. However, as more and more new types of project management approaches such as (Design-Bid DB) are introduced, the binding conditions of contracts are growing tougher in order to reduce risks during project execution. In this paper, the researcher tries to provide a fair comparison between (Design-Bid-Build DBB) and (Design-Build DB) approaches which are already used in the construction project in Jordan and offering a good vision for both owners and contractors equally

Investigation of the Effectiveness of Construction Works Programming: A Case of Kiambu County Projects.

The effective performance of any Construction Project to a large extent depends on how deliberate, well thought, planned and managed works programming is developed and implemented. Effective works programming helps those doing the project to make sure that it is done within scope, time and cost. This study adopted a case study design and simple random sampling technique to identify 102 respondents from a target population of 132 respondents. Descriptive and inferential statistical techniques were employed. The findings were; there was a strong correlation between the predictor variable on the dependent variable. The ANOVA analysis indicated a P-value of 0.000. Therefore, the prevalence of working program applicability, adherence to effective work programming and knowledge of work programming techniques had a significant impact on the effectiveness of construction projects delivery. The study rejected the null hypothesis that the prevalence of working program applicability did not affect the delivery of construction management projects and knowledge of work programming did not affect the delivery of construction management projects in Kiambu County. However, the study failed to reject the null hypothesis that adherence to work programming did not affect the delivery of construction management projects in Kiambu County. Therefore, the study concluded that the prevalence of working program applicability significantly affected the delivery of construction management projects in Kiambu County and knowledge of work programming significantly affected the delivery of construction management projects in Kiambu County. The primary focus of this study was injecting solutions through integrating technology to enhance efficiency in real-time monitoring and evaluation. With the model of planning, control, reporting and proactive remedial action for the performance of construction projects

Developing Workshop Safety Management Skills for Kyambogo University Mechanical Production Engineering Students in Uganda

Effective workshop management skills are vital for the occupational safety of the students, lecturers, instructors, support staff, or technicians who use mechanical production or manufacturing workshops at universities. The main purpose of the paper is to examine the status of the undergraduate university students’ skills practice in safety management in the engineering educational workshops assess the common occupational hazards and risks in the workshops, and explain the prospects of promoting occupational safety standards. The paper was informed by a recent study that was done in Kyambogo University, Uganda with a focus on employable skills outputs. The paper objectives were to identify the safety measures to be used in skills practice, design precautionary signs for skills practice, implement safety measures for skills practice in the department of mechanical production Engineering. In the study, a descriptive research design was used, where both qualitative and quantitative research methods were used. The total number of respondents who participated in the study was 30. The respondents included the head of the department, lecturers, students, technicians from the Mechanical Production Engineering Department of Kyambogo University. Data were collected from respondents through the use of questionnaires and interview guides. Data were analyzed and presented using tables and then descriptions were done using percentages. The findings revealed the following occupational hazards and risks, physical hazard, ergonomic hazards, chemical hazards, psychological hazards, and biological hazards. The study also revealed that accidents always occurred in the department of mechanical and production workshops. The major causes of the accidents were due to lack of knowledge or skills, safety policy gears, carelessness, safety protective wears, proper storage of materials, and instructions’ manuals or guidelines. In addition, there are problems of lack of modern tools, digital technology, good supervision, adequate space, and awareness of the ICT led safety systems. The cost-cutting strategies for workshop safety management were warning signs, alerts, and clear labels, use of protective gear, providing first aid kits, vocationalised training, and awareness campaigns on occupation safety. There is a need for routine monitoring, renovations, replacing obsolete machines, safety tags, fire drills, industry-university benchmarking, or industrial placements

Kenyan Government Involvement on BIM and its Effect on BIM Adoption amongst Building Contractors.

Building Information Modelling (BIM) has been touted as a new outstanding technology and governments who have noticed this is getting involved. This study investigated the current level of the Kenyan Government’s involvement and how this has influenced adoption amongst building contractors. This study also compares global trends in the context to Kenya. This study identified roles like initiation and regulation that governments could undertake to encourage adoption. A random sampling of registered contractors with active construction sites within Nairobi County was used to identify respondents. Using a one-sample t-test with a universal mean of 2 representing weak government involvement, with t (61) = 2.39, α > 0.05, M = 2.05 and S = 1.53, the Kenyan government’s involvement in BIM and its performance on the roles was weak. There was no relationship between the government roles and BIM except for BIM Initiation which had a weak positive relationship. This study makes recommendations like the creation of a legal BIM mandate and the establishment of a BIM implementation body This is the first in-depth study in Kenya that critically looks at the government’s role on issues relating to BIM amongst Building contractors and gives precedence for subsequent comparative studies locally or regionally.

Simulation of Green Building Materials Uses and its Environmental Impacts: Case of Jordan

Construction is one of the most important factors affecting the environment such as global warming and carbon dioxide emissions. In addition, it represents 40% of the consumption of energy resources around the world. Jordan is one of the countries that suffer greatly from this aspect. In this research, a simulation was conducted of a multi-use building located in a university in Jordan using the ArchiCAD program, which helps us to accurately determine the construction location and obtain the results of materials and strategies that were applied to the building. Thermal insulation materials were used to show the effectiveness of their impact on the temperature difference per unit of heat flux needed to sustain one unit of heat flux (R-value) for the building. Shading means were also applied to the building’s glass facades that reduce heat loads and help the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system inside the building. Finally, it was shown the difference in the environmental impact of a building that uses 100% solar energy and emits zero CO2 emissions. While a building that uses 50% solar energy and 50% oil energy emits a high amount of CO2. It becomes clear that the increasing use of green building tools helps greatly in facing the problems of the environment and the consumption of energy resources.

Behavioural Dumping and Drainage Channels

Dumping is one of the inevitable societal behaviours because waste can only be controlled but not eliminated completely. The rapidly growing developing countries have cities, towns and trading centres emerging daily coupled with increasing populations can be well related to poor drainage and irresponsible dumping in water channels. The aim of this study was to scrutinize drainage dumping behaviours in relation to water channels in some selected cities in Uganda. In this study, observational and analytical experiments on dumping were done in selected towns and cities, along some major highways connecting them. The findings showed that a lot of illegal dumping is happening at a rate of 63% on average on roads and even near the legal dumping places. Most of the refuse that is erroneously dumped ends up in drainage channels leading to serious flooding and other environmental consequences. The study recommends other better models in addition to improving drainage design, construction and maintenance patterns. Strict laws and sensitization are crucial in this regard and can help in saving and improving the lives of the people by at least 11%