Shararah, H H (1981) Evaluation of wall construction techniques based upon economical factors influencing labor and materials. PhD thesis, Oklahoma State University, USA.
Abstract
Scope of Study. The scope of this investigation was to develop a method of sandwich construction for exterior nonload-bearing wall panels with efficient utilization of building materials. Also, the panels can be assembled on site by common labor without the use of specialized or heavy equipment. A detailed economic comparison between the proposed wall and eight selected conventional wall systems was performed. The proposed construction technique is developed to optimize building materials, labor, and equipment. The cost comparison is performed using prices obtained from three locations: Stillwater, Oklahoma, and Houston, Texas, were chosen to represent local and Gulf Coast areas in the United States; Saudi Arabia was selected as an example of a developing country, Findings and Conclusions. From the experimental investigation in the laboratory, the feasibility of constructing a sandwich wall panel with thin concrete facings has been established. A method of wall construction has been developed that achieves an efficient use of lightweight materials. The system can be constructed by labor with minimal experience in construction. In addition, the developed wall system does not require the use of special equipment for on-site construction. The analytical analysis showed a moderate first-cost economic advantage of the proposed wall system compared to the eight conventional wall systems selected for the study. However, the 30-year life cycle cost analysis showed the proposed system to be substantially superior to the selected traditional wall system due to a higher insulating R value. The developed wall systems shows the most advantage can be obtained for locations in isolated areas where equipment and skilled labor is not readily available. Thus, the proposed construction method provides a realistic approach for solving labor and material problems in developing countries.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | equipment; construction method; developing country; life cycle; Saudi Arabia; United States; cost analysis; life cycle cost |
| Index terms: | developing country, United States, laboratory, skilled labour, cost analysis, life cycle cost, construction method, investigation, building material, Saudi Arabia, life cycle cost analysis, life cycle, lightweight material |
| Subjects: | Geography, development economics, management, economics, research methods, research management, building construction, materials science, value management, data collection methods, financial and cost management, building materials |
| Topics: | Cost Management, Project Management, Geographical Context, Research Practice, Construction Materials, Site Management, Design Practice, Human Resources, International Construction |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here