Arturas Kaklauskas

A multiple criteria decision support on-line system for construction

Technological innovations through changes in the availability of information technology inclusive information systems, neural networks, decision support and expert systems, e-commerce that have been provided by a variety of new services were developed by the construction sector. Most of all construction on-line systems seek to find how to make the most economic decisions. Construction alternatives have to be evaluated not only from the economic position, but also take into consideration qualitative, technical, technological and other characteristics. Based on an analysis of the construction on-line systems the authors of paper developed multiple criteria decision support on-line system for construction.

Housing credit access model: The case for Lithuania

Abstract The research described in this paper aimed at achieving two major goals. First, to identify and describe rational credit access development in advanced industrial economies as well as providing recommendations for Lithuania. The multiple criteria quantitative and conceptual analysis of rational credit access in developed countries and in Lithuania allowed for the identification of areas where the Lithuania situation is comparable, partly comparable or quite different from levels attained by advanced industrial economies. The data of this quantitative and conceptual analysis was used to identify rational credit access development trends in Western Europe and the USA as well as providing some recommendations for Lithuania. The determination and realization of efficient housing credit access in Lithuania would create better conditions for the functioning of the housing system. Second, the paper contains a description of a suggested method in choosing efficient housing investment instruments and lenders. The quantitative and conceptual databases that are being developed at present, give an exhaustive description of housing investment instruments and allow for their multiple criteria analysis. This helps to determine efficient investment instruments for the countries in question. The databases and multiple criteria analysis offered could also be used in searching for efficient lenders. The methods suggested in this paper can also be applied to solving similar problems in other countries.

Integrated knowledge management model and system for construction projects

In the past there has been no structured approach to learning from construction projects once they are completed. Now, however, the construction industry is adapting concepts of tacit and explicit knowledge management to improve the situation. Top managers generally assume that professionals in enterprises already possess tacit knowledge and experience for specific types of projects. Such knowledge is extremely important to organisations because, once a project is completed, professionals tend to forget it and start something new. Therefore, knowledge multifold utilisation is a key factor in productively executing a construction project. This paper discusses the benefits of knowledge management to construction industry organisations and projects and emphasises the significance of tacit knowledge. The main purpose of this paper is to present the integrated knowledge management model for the construction industry as well as system architecture and system of the Knowledge Based Decision Support System for Construction Projects Management (KDSS-CPM) which the authors of this paper have developed. Different knowledge management models that are presented in scientific literature are discussed and compared, and the proposed new, KDSS-CPM model, as developed by this papers authors, is introduced.

Conceptual modelling of sustainable Vilnius development

Abstract This research consists of 5 stages: comparative description of the sustainable urban development in developed countries and in Vilnius; a comparison and contrast of sustainable urban development in developed countries and Vilnius; a development of some of the general recommendations as how to improve the efficiency levels for a sustainable Vilnius; submission of particular recommendations for the city of Vilnius; a multiple criteria analysis of sustainable urban developments components and a selection of the most efficient version of sustainable urban development life cycle. The obtained results have partially confirmed the available data, and interesting trends of the development of established cities have been noted. In order to demonstrate the application of the above research, concrete examples of Vilnius will be considered in this paper.

Method and system for Multi-Attribute Market Value Assessment in analysis of construction and retrofit projects

Abstract Multi-Attribute Decision-Making (MADM) methods prioritize the alternatives of comparative projects quite accurately. Problems arise when there is a need to determine the utility degrees and market values of the project alternatives. This becomes especially important for establishing the market value of real estate property in tender offers. However, the available MADM methods cannot accomplish this. Thus the authors of this article developed the MAMVA method, which permits determining the utility degrees and market values of project alternatives, and also developed a system on the basis of this developed method. This article presents the proposed Multi-Attribute Market Value Assessment (MAMVA) Method and the Decision Support System for Construction and Retrofit Projects (DSS-CRP). It also presents a case study to demonstrate the effectiveness of this method and system. The application of the MAMVA Method and DSS-CRP System for prioritizing and for determining the utility degrees and market values of construction and retrofit projects under consideration for financing by the European Economic Area (EEA) and Norway Financial Mechanism Grant made it possible to decrease the amount of requested support. This article also presents the analysis and comprehensive assessment of the noted construction and retrofit projects. These were performed in consideration of the entire life cycle of a project and of needs satisfaction relevant to all the groups interested in a project. The developed MAMVA Method and DSS-CRP System permit assessing the appropriateness of projects under analysis in conceptual and qualitative forms. This method and system automatically submit the values of the project alternatives.

An approach to multi‐attribute assessment of indoor environment before and after refurbishment of dwellings

Abstract The paper analyses the correspondence between the present state of indoor environment and needs of habitants and the Lithuanian Hygienic Norm. To investigate the correspondence the authors (a) distinguish measures (attributes) of evaluating dwelling houses and their importance, (b) choose a method of processing the values of attributes, (c) choose a method of evaluating the efficiency of refurbishment and/or renovation of a building and (d) investigate dwelling houses in Naujoji Vilnia and evaluate the efficiency of refurbishment and/or renovation. As a result of the analysis the authors propose an approach to multi‐attribute assessment of dwelling houses before and after refurbishment and/or renovation and evaluation of its efficiency. The experiment results, obtained by measuring five dwellings in Naujoji Vilnia, show that the renovation process was the most efficient for the second dwelling.

Multivariant Design and Multiple Criteria Analysis of a Building Life Cycle

A lot of data had to be processed and evaluated in carrying out multivariant design and multiple criteria analysis of a building life cycle. The number of feasible alternatives can be as large as 100 000. Each of the alternatives may be described from various perspectives (economic, technical, qualitative, technological, social, legislative, infrastructural, etc.). The problem arises how to perform multivariant design and multiple criteria analysis of the alternative variants based on this enormous amount of information. To solve this problem the methods of multivariant design and multiple criteria building life cycle analysis were developed. In order to demonstrate the theory an example is given in this paper.

COPRAS based Comparative Analysis of the European Country Management Capabilities within the Construction Sector in the Time of Crisis

Construction industry and its impact on the national economy in different countries had been investigated. In general, it can be noted that development trends of the construction industry is almost the same as the development trends of the whole country economy itself. Efficiency level of the construction and real estate industries depends on the specific quantities of the variables within micro, meso and macro context. Although factors of the macro level influence the efficiency level of the whole economy this investigation analyses its influence on the efficiency of the construction industry. Efficiency of the construction industry operation depends on the complex impact of the macro level variable factors such as economic, political and cultural level of development, construction industry are effected by the regulating documents, market, taxation system, drawing possibilities and conditions, inflation, local resources etc. (Kaklauskas et al. 2011). Construction industry development possibilities vary according to the effect of macro level factors. Crisis, spin up in 2008--2009, had differently affected the construction industry markets of the European Union countries. The general part of countries had faced the decrease of outputs, real estate transactions, and predictable reduction in employment of population and quantity of construction companies. Adverse conditions and huge deviations that had arisen due to the crisis encourage analysing the situation of the construction sector not only in the particular country but in other ones, it happens because of possibility to analyse the international experience and get the broader view of the construction sector issues and solve them correctly. Procedure, presented in the issue, provide the possibility to detect the one of 23 European countries which possesses the most effective construction sector market development according to the criteria set. Countries undergo the multi-criteria evaluation applying COPRAS methods (Zavadskas and Kaklauskas 1996), evaluation criteria relevance is determined via entropy method. The first time using the entropy concept (Shannon and Weaver 1947; Shannon 1948) for maximizing the quantity of information contained in the dataset. The entropy is described as the casual value of the uncertainty which makes it more valuable in comparison with other factors. Thus, the main goal of the work is to group investigated European countries applying the COPRAS method and evaluating six criteria, describing the construction sector. In order to implement this goal, economy of the European Union countries, construction sectors, statistical economic data, valuables set according to the entropy method and priority of the European country construction sectors set by COPRAS method will be evaluated.

Passive House Model for Quantitative and Qualitative Analyses and Its Intelligent System

The Passive House, along with models of its composite parts, has been developed globally. Simulation tools analyze its energy use, comfort, micro-climate, quality of life and esthetics as well as its technical, economic, legal/regulatory, educational and innovative aspects. Meanwhile the social, cultural, ethical, psychological, emotional, religious and ethnic aspects operating over the course of the existence of a Passive House are given minimal attention or are ignored entirely. However, all the aspects mentioned must be analyzed in an integrated manner during the time a Passive House is in existence. The author of this chapter along with colleagues implemented this goal while they participated in two Intelligent Energy Europe programs, the NorthPass and the IDES-EDU projects. The Passive House model for quantitative and qualitative analyses and its intelligent system was developed during the time of these projects. The model and intelligent system are briefly described in this chapter, which ends with a case study.

Biometric and Intelligent Self-Assessment of Student Progress system

All distance learning participants (students, professors, instructors, mentors, tutors and the rest) would like to know how well the students have assimilated the study materials being taught. The analysis and assessment of the knowledge students have acquired over a semester are an integral part of the independent studies process at the most advanced universities worldwide. A formal test or exam during the semester would cause needless stress for students. To resolve this problem, the authors of this article have developed a Biometric and Intelligent Self-Assessment of Student Progress (BISASP) System. The obtained research results are comparable with the results from other similar studies. This article ends with two case studies to demonstrate practical operation of the BISASP System. The first case study analyses the interdependencies between microtremors, stress and student marks. The second case study compares the marks assigned to students during the e-self-assessment, prior to the e-test and during the e-test. The dependence, determined in the second case study, between the student marks scored for the real examination and the marks based on their self-evaluation is statistically significant (the significance >0.99%). The original contribution of this article, compared to the research results published earlier, is as follows: the BISASP System developed by the authors is superior to the traditional self-assessment systems due to the use of voice stress analysis and a special algorithm, which permits a more detailed analysis of the knowledge attained by a student.