Russell Walters

Sino-American Opinions and Perceptions of Counterfeiting in the Construction Supply Chain

AbstractIncidents of counterfeit products harming humans have been widely reported in the western press. Counterfeit handbags and jeans are easily obtainable at several well-known locations around the world, including many in the United States. The construction industry is not immune from the worldwide problems of counterfeiting. Research reported on by this paper identified the center of the problem as the People’s Republic of China (PRC). In addition, the research concluded that there are significant differences in the attitudes toward counterfeiting exhibited by people living and working in North America and those living and working in the PRC. The research, based on almost 200 interviews, revealed that most Chinese manufacturers believe that “close enough is good enough” and many Chinese have a hard time understanding why that is not acceptable to the U.S. market. Of course, many U.S. and Canadian companies have had great success procuring quality material and products from China, but most have achiev...

Using Scanning Lasers for Real-Time Pavement Thickness Measurement

This paper examines a system that could determine the thickness of the pavement in real time by laser scanning the surface of the subgrade prior to paving, and then scanning the surface after paving. By having this data, the pavement can be evaluated for conformance to project requirements for thickness. This paper also examines existing nondestructive methods of measuring pavement thickness including impact echo and high frequency ultrasound, and presents the advantages of each in relation to a scanning laser based system. Existing 3D imaging techniques are discussed such as shadow moire, ground penetrating radar, stereo vision, and airborne radar. Laser scanning provides a thorough coverage of the pavement that will assure transportation authorities that the entire pavement surface meets thickness requirements. Other benefits from this technique involve being able to determine concrete yield quantities and possibly smoothness. This sensor will be able to provide real time depth measurements as a profile of the concrete will be generated. Volume of concrete in place will be easily determined using this approach. The system would fit on any pav er that can provide position coordinates and may be retrofitted onto a paver by using relative position control.

Stringless Portland Cement Concrete Paving

This paper describes results from a study evaluating stringless paving using a combination of global positioning and laser technologies. A concrete paver manufacturer and a machine guidance solution provider developed this technology and successfully implemented it on construction earthmoving and grading projects. Concrete paving is a new area for considering this technology. A concrete paving contractor in Iowa agreed to test the stringless paving technology on two challenging concrete paving projects located in Washington County, Iowa during the summer of 2003. The research team from Iowa State University monitored the guidance and elevation conformance to the original design. They employed a combination of physical depth checks, surface location and elevation surveys, concrete yield checks, and physical survey of the control stakes and string line elevations. A final check on profile of the pavement surface was accomplished by the use of the Iowa Department of Transportation Light Weight Surface Analyzer. Due to the speed of paving and the rapid changes in terrain, the laser technology was abandoned for this project. Total control of the guidance and elevation controls on the slip form paver were moved from string line to a global positioning system (GPS). Results indicate that GPS control is a feasible approach to controlling a concrete paver. Further enhancements are needed in the physical features of the slip form paver hydraulic system controls and in the computer program for controlling elevation.

Maintenance of hypertext-based specifications for state highway projects

The performance of construction projects heavily depends on how well information is managed. In Iowa the management of this information means locating details and tracking changes in several printed volumes that define design details, material specifications, construction methods, and testing procedures. The details of the development of an electronic reference library (ERL) that provides a virtual library for construction design and management of state highway projects in Iowa are provided. ERL is a large document containing more than 25,000 hyperlinks and is updated and distributed twice a year. The details described include the development of the initial prototype, training of existing staff to maintain an electronic document, and issues related to the production of biannual updates. The major challenges for the development of an ERL include determination of the user interface, document selection, reproduction of accurate content, and maintenance of the electronic version.

Chinese Organizations’ Actions, Attitudes, and Motivations When Faced with Counterfeit Items in Their Construction Supply Chains

AbstractThe construction industry, like so many other industries, has been affected by counterfeiting. In fact, research has found that counterfeiting has become a significant and growing problem w...

A Usability Study of an Object-Oriented Design and Specification System for Transportation Projects

Currently, individuals learn about the project requirements by studying a combination of paper and electronic copies of various construction documents. This can be a tedious process since one needs to go back and forth between documents to obtain information about the entire project. This study utilizes the object-oriented computer-aided design (OO-CAD) technology to turn paper-based design standards and construction specifications into an object-oriented design and specification (OODAS) system. Individuals can use the system through a handheld wireless book-size laptop that includes all of the necessary software for operating in a 3D environment. All parties involved in transportation projects can access all of the standards and requirements simultaneously using a 3D graphical interface. An OODAS prototype model was created and demonstrated to potential users representing counties, cities, and the state. Findings suggest that a system like this could improve productivity to find information by as much as 75% and provide a greater sense of confidence that all relevant information had been identified. It was also apparent that this system would be used by more people in construction than in design. There was also concern related to the cost to develop and maintain the complete system. The future direction should focus on a project-based system that can help the contractors and DOT inspectors find information more rapidly as it pertains to a specific project.