Literature Review on Sustainable Construction

Literature Review on Sustainable Construction Literature Review Literature review consists of providing the author knowledge about the research area that is being undertaken. It shows what authors have to say about the research area and to criticise works done previously, this is to be related to the topic area and to identify the central issues as part of the study. According to Dr S.G. Naoum (2007) there are five main activities involved in undertaking a literature review: Knowing the sources of information. Understanding how the library works. Collecting existing knowledge on the subject, reading and note-taking. Systematically organising the literature. Appraising and writing up the literature review. The literature review is conducted through primary and secondary research. Research can be conducted by using textbooks, journals, newspapers, magazines and websites and also on-line databases. Following structured and extensive literature reviews, key issues to sustainable construction and construction SMEs studied which result in identification of barriers associated with implementing sustainable construction by SME contractors. Such barriers are divided into six categories. These are cost, time, people, technology, market and law. The literature review is two separate topics of sustainable construction and construction SMEs. Both topics provide the author with in depth knowledge about development and issues concerning sustainable construction, as well as the nature and characteristics of construction SMEs and their approaches to construction innovations. Combining the understanding and knowledge from both perspectives, the author carry out deeper exploration into the barriers faced by the construction SMEs in implementing sustainable construction techniques and practices. The barriers found in the literature are categorized under 6 key barriers of cost, time, people, technology, market and law. These will form main questions in primary research. Sustainable Construction Within the UK construction industry, the concept of sustainable construction has emerged as a result of growing concerns on the environmental and social impacts created by the construction activities. By definition, sustainable construction is (Khalfan, M.M.A, 2002: 15): The creation and responsible management of healthy built environment based on resources efficient and ecological principles. In general, sustainable construction is used to describe the application of sustainable development within the context of the built environment. The discussion and practise around sustainable construction often focus on the efficient processes of construction, use of materials, availability of technology and other technical side, which does not compromise the health of the environment or the associated health of the building occupants, builders, the general public or future generations (Rhydin, Y. Vandergert, P, 2006: 5) The Triple Bottom Line of Sustainable Construction It is important to acknowledge and identify the other aspects of sustainable construction. As a whole, sustainable construction comprises of three broad themes of people, planet and profit often known as the triple bottom line. The objectives of these three themes are (Constructing Excellence, 2004): People To recognise the needs of everyone impacted by construction, from inception of a project to demolition. The list includes construction site workers, local communities, the supply chain and people that will use the finished product. Planet To protect the planet from the impact of emissions and waste matter and where possible, to enhance it and use natural resources, carefully. Profit To increase profitability by making more efficient use of resources including labour, materials, energy and water. (Source: http://www.gcbl.org/economy) Sustainable construction takes account of these objectives in a balanced way at all stages of a construction project. However, within the context of this research, emphasis will be given the environmental aspect of sustainable construction, at production/construction phase. Strategies and Drivers for Sustainable Construction Strategies for sustainable Construction There are many compulsory strategies as well as voluntary. These are aimed to encourage and enforce sustainable construction practices in the construction industry. One of the earliest strategies for changes in the construction industry has started with the publication of Rethinking Construction in July 1998, which is famously known as The Egan Report. This report has criticised the under-achievement of the construction industry and hence, has urged for changes and improvements in delivering construction projects. Following the Egan Report, the UK Government has ten an initiative in promoting sustainable construction through the publication of Building A Better Quality of Life publish by DETR in 2000. Within the publication, the government has suggested the following key themes for action on sustainable construction strategies by the construction industry: Re-use existing building assets. Design for minimum waste. Aim for lean construction. Minimise energy in construction. Minimise energy in use. Do not pollute. Preserve and enhance biodiversity. Conserve water resources. Respect people and local environment. Set targets (i.e. monitor and report, in order to benchmark performance) Later in March 2005, the government has further emphasised its commitment towards sustainable construction through the publication of Sustainable Development Strategy, Securing the Future. As a substitute to the previous strategy, this publication has proposed four key themes for action, as follows: Sustainable communities. Natural resources protection and environmental enhancement. Climate change and energy. Sustainable consumption and production. Drivers for Sustainable Construction In promoting and encouraging the take up of sustainable construction, the UK Government has introduced more tough legislation and economic policies such as Revision to Building Regulation Part L, Landfill Tax, Quarry Tax, Aggregate Levy and Climate Change Levy. It has been acknowledged that legislation is the main driver for change towards sustainable construction. However, there are also other drivers, which play significant roles as well. These other drivers include (Vetter, A et al, 2006; DBA, 2002) Improved technology The new technology and innovation such as Modern Method of Construction and Lean Construction could offer a lot of benefits such as increase speed of construction, costs savings and better delivery of products and services. Requirements from funding bodies Funding bodies are laying more stress on the risks associated with unsustainable development. The risks will affect future profitability and shareholder value. Business advantage In highly competitive field, sustainability is becoming a potent differentiator, capable of providing a vital competitive edge. On-site Practices for Sustainable Construction With regards to the activities on construction site, there are five main practices of environmental sustainable construction that need to be addressed carefully. The construction team must understand and implement these practices throughout the construction phase in order to achieve the objectives and benefits of sustainable construction. These practices are waste management, energy consumption efficiency, water consumption/efficiency, use and procurement of materials, and protection of natural environment (biodiversity/ecosystem). Waste Management In 2001, construction site and demolition waste in Britain was 94 million tonnes (24% of all waste generated). Each year there are around 13 million tonnes of materials that are delivered to site but never used. (Constructing Excellence, 2004: 2). Considering these facts, waste management on-site is extremely important to minimising the waste produced on the construction site. The first step required is to segregate or separate the waste, as it is being produced. The next step is to recycle or reuse the waste or alternatively, the waste can be sent or sold to waste management centre to be recycled ore reused for other applications. At the same time, waste due to materials that arent being used and packaging can be returned to the suppliers through purchasing policy. Waste Segregation An effective way to deal with waste is to separate it at the point it is generated. This eases separation for recycling and is therefore more valuable to the merchants of recycled materials. Waste can be segregated into different skips under categories of plasterboard, plastic, timber, cardboard stones bricks and slates can be recycled for use in construction. Wood materials such as off-cuts can be reused as woodchip for landscaping or in stud walls. Similarly, substances such as debris, rubble and earth can be reused for land reclamation and site formation. Perry (2003) argues that waste segregation helps to make sure that percentage is high of recycled materials and saves money, also provides a greater return. The increased rate of return virtually always offsets the higher costs of training and labour involved in on-site waste segregation. Waste Recycling and Reusing Construction waste can be minimised by avoiding making waste, reusing waste without reprocessing and recycling materials. (WRAP) Waste and Resources Action Programme advises that up to 30% recycling and reusing can be achieved in construction, at no additional cost for some projects. (Kent Design Guide, 2006). Re-used and recycled materials during construction include aggregates, insulation, plasterboards bricks, concrete roof tiles, particleboard blocks and reclaim timber. The most effective recycling opportunity of materials can be derived from the re-use of the existing site infrastructure element where possible. These include materials that are salvaged from existing construction or demolition job such as steel and concrete. Meanwhile, other waste such as timber, cardboard, paper and also green waste can be composed within a recycling area on-site. The compost produced can be used to enhance topsoil suitability for use within the landscaping. Wood chipping mulch produced from timber pallets. Also off-cuts and topsoil can also be re-used when possible within the landscaping to further minimise waste. Purchasing Policy with Suppliers Integration collaboration with suppliers can help to minimise waste through purchasing policy. Unused materials and waste from packaging can be returned to the suppliers to be reused or recycled. The adoption of (JIT) Just-in-Time delivery will also contribute to minimise waste this is because so materials are ordered and delivered to demand. This will avoid waste resulting from unused materials and improper handling/storage. Energy Reduction/Efficiency Energy consumed on construction site is mainly for site services such as the site office and site lightings, use of plain, machineries and equipment also transportation mainly for materials delivery to and from the site. Reduce Energy Consumption for Site Services In order to reduce the energy bills for site services especially for site office and site lighting, more energy efficient approach methods are encouraged. This includes using energy efficient lighting and heating equipments, as well as the monitoring and controlling the energy use according to requirements. Maximise Efficiency of Plant, Equipments and Machineries Plant, equipment and machineries used on-site should be chosen for their high energy efficiency. Through good site management and construction planning, sharing of plant, machineries and equipment among subcontractors and site workers can be achieved. This will help to reduce energy as well as construction costs. Reduce Transportation for Materials Delivery Transportation accounts for 25% of UK CO2 emissions and about 10% of national energy consumption us used in the production and transport of construction products and materials. Two ways of reducing transportation used in construction is through local sourcing for materials with other suppliers and efficient deliveries. Number of materials delivered to site should be reduced by making sure that full vehicle loads are achieved through sharing deliveries. Sourcing materials and labour locally will also help to reduce transportation and bring cost and time savings as well. (Constructing Excellence, 2004). At the same time, reusing demolition waste and materials can help to reduce transportation and hence reduce costs and pollution. Water Conservation/minimisation Use of water on-site can be reduced through application of water conservation techniques and Dry Construction methods. Water Conservation According to Kibert (2005), techniques such as the use of low-flow plumbing fixtures, water recycling, rain water harvesting and potable water can help to minimise the use of water. Water used for workers hygiene and sanitary can also be reduced efficiently through systems such as cistern misers which is boiler collecting water and water board Hippo for urinal flushes. These techniques have been used successfully during the construction of Princess Margaret Hospital in Swindon. Dry Construction The most effective method for dry construction is to use Modern Method of Construction such as pre-fabricated cladding systems and pre-manufactured units (e.g. bathroom and kitchen pods). Innovative techniques under Lean construction such as using ready mix cement/concrete and dry plaster linings can also contribute to minimising water used on-site. Use and Procurement of Construction Materials and Components Materials in construction make up over half of all resource use by weight. A sustainability issue gaining momentum in construction industry therefore, is the use of reclaimed and recycled materials. Pressures on landfill also mean it is becoming increasingly costly to dispose of excess material acquire in construction.

Of Mice and Men Commentary

â€Å"Of Mice and Men† is a novel written by the 1962 Nobel Prize winner, John Steinbeck. It is an emotional tale of the extraordinary friendship between George and Lennie, who are traveling workers in the harsh depression years of the 1930s. George is a caring person whose love to Lennie is just like a father-son relationship, where Lennie, a mentally challenged man whose strength lies in body rather than brain, appears to be very dependent on George. â€Å"Of Mice and Men† teaches a universal theme about the nature of human beings that a person whose power exists over another turns corrupt.Steinbeck exploits the theme of power and control in his novel through the extensive use of sexism, racial discrimination, and the power of the strong over the weak. Sexism is the belief that one sex is superior over the other. In â€Å"Of Mice and Men†, Steinbeck undoubtedly shows that the power is centered on the majority sex, which is the males, against the minority, the f emales, where in this novel is â€Å"Curley's wife†. By simply keeping the character nameless and using the expression â€Å"Curley's wife† to identify her is a clear example of referring to her as an object without any respect rather than a person. Curley's wife† shows how women during the early 1900s were inferior under the men. She is merely the spouse of Curley as far as all the men in the ranch are concerned. â€Å"They are only forced to relate to her through Curley; if they fear him or want no trouble, the men will stay away from her. George, for example, has set goals in his mind that he is committed to, thus he will stay away from her in order not to get into any trouble. On the other hand, if they do not fear anyone, they can enjoy their time with the intention of forming a physical relationship with her.Lennie, whose childish mind cannot comprehend why he should stay away from Curley's wife, falls into the trap and gets severe consequences for doing s o. â€Å"She is simply a person living in the ranch with the purpose of only to obey Curley with no voice to complain to. All the men including Curley may go to the â€Å"cathouse† and enjoy their time; Curley's wife on the other hand, may not dare to do the same, along with Crooks. During the 1900s, racial discrimination was widely used throughout America, a land that is filled with various ethnic groups. Steinbeck portrays the cruel racist manner that is used throughout on the stable buck, Crooks.He lives a separate, isolated life under everyone in the ranch, and is incapable to protest, merely because he is black. He is terribly labeled with the epithet of a â€Å"nigger† from everyone else. Steinbeck portrays him as an unfortunate man for being born black with no power at all and may not do anything about it. He is not allowed to enter any white man's room, and to slightly raise his own degraded dignity, does the same, not allowing any white man to his room; altho ugh he only says so, it is not necessarily true as we later on see that George and candy enter.Crooks is a person where all the sorrows and miseries of another can be thrown on him because he is powerless to object. As soon as Curley's wife feels insulted from him and Candy, she threatens him verbally, using her superior social status as a white woman, â€Å"Well you keep your place then, Nigger. I could get you strung out in a tree so easy it ain't even funny†. Although most people in the ranch appear to want friendship, they all live with hidden fear of each other.The years of the great depression left everyone trying to look stronger and better than the other, or otherwise the strong will get rid of them; the killing of Candy's dog is a great symbol for that which makes it clear. Candy's dog is ought to get shot and killed, even though it has spent its lifetime with Candy, because it is now old and useless. The stronger, in this case man (Carlson), mercilessly shoots Candy 's dog, who knew nothing of his grief fate. Candy then sees his reflection upon the killing of his dog, that he will soon get too old and therefore useless, which will then have him left alone.This pushes him into desperately asking George to permit him to join with him and Lennie for the pursuit of their own dream ranch, â€Å"Tha's three hundred an' fifty bucks I'd put in, I ain't much good, but I could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some†. On the contrary, Curley is a man who takes advantage of his authority and power to oppress and mock others to make himself seem stronger and even more powerful. He uses his power and gender to boss around with workers of his ranch and his wife, respectively. However, when he chose to do so towards Lennie, Lennie reacts angrily and smashes his hand.Through the intense use of sexism, racial discrimination, and the power of the strong over the weak, Steinbeck successfully exploits the theme of power and control. Whether it is mentally, physically, or money wise, power seems to be moving from one person to another depending on the situation. Perhaps it really is the roots of evil; that occurs as a result of someone realizing his power over others, and then uses it for his own personal desires, while taking advantage of others. In other words, as the Arabic proverb professes, a person's power and freedom is corrupt when it limits the power and freedom of another.

Narendra Modi Essay

Born in 1950. 1960-1970 Tea, Tea, Tea! A cup of Tea for 10 cents. Would you like to have some tea sir? 2001- Chief Minister of Gujarat, one of the biggest states of India and remained as the Chief Minister for four consecutive terms until he became the Prime Minister of India in 2014. Before Narendra Modi became the Prime minister of India, corruption was the only key to success in India. A couple years ago, my mom got her divers license in Muscat, where I stay and she wanted Indian driving license so that she could drive in India as well. She went to the department office, and to her surprise there was this guy standing at the entrance of the office gate who was ready to give her an original driver’s license without having to give a test for half the price in no time. My mom did that because she didn’t want to stand in a line for like hours to get her license. Last summer, I drove to the department office to get my license but I couldn’t dare to get one illegally. Modiâ€℠¢s new law says that any person reporting an instance of corruption will be rewarded and person engaging in corruption will be punished. So now, you’ve got more eyes watching you than before if you’re in India committing any kind of crime. A brilliant idea to stop corruption because he realizes that not many are willing to eradicate corruption until they have some personal gain. During his election campaign, Modi spoke about his plan to replace the whole legal system of India with fewer new laws. The opposition party and many business men argued that only a more rigorous legal system can help prevent corruption. More than 65% of the population was corrupt. According to India times, Modi responded, â€Å"My election campaign is totally based on what I will do as a Prime Minister and what a government should do is to create a positive climate that will bring investment. I don’t make false promises. This is what I will do and vote for me only if you want this.† If I were him, then I would never dare to talk about such a plan that would invite criticism during the election campaign. Normally, a person would think that Modi just lost 65% of the votes that he had already won. But guess what, Modi not only had those 65% in his favor, but also the others supported him because he offered a brighter future for India. Previously, one would need to take multiple approvals for an action, running from this govt office to that govt office, etc. Today you need to go to one govt office where you only need to take a couple approvals to begin action. According to times of  India, Modi created history when he invited the prime ministers of the south Asian countries including that of Pakistan to his prime ministerial swearing ceremony after which they discussed their political issues. Getting over the ego, takes a lot of guts. In an important meeting with representatives of the neighboring countries, he asked the nations to be clear and declare immediately whether the countries were with India or against India, so that it isn’t like good face to face and later crossing borders and firing soldiers. The outcome of this meeting was a peace treaty signed by South Asian prime ministers (SO no more world war 3 between India and Pakistan), improved trade relations and took action for the better of collective south Asia. Here is a glass of water. Some people will say that the glass is half filled by water, some will say that the glass is half empty. He believes in the third view as explained in the Economic Times. According to him, the glass is half of water and half of air because only optimism can encourage courage. Here is a short video of what the Indian prime minister has accomplished in his 1st 100 working days which no other prime minister ever has. TO conclude,  Modi is a business man because he is a risk-taking, profit-minded person and I call him courageous because he has the courage to believe the unbelievable. Today, he is the inspiration of Indian youth. If you’re looking for Leadership, Governance and Decision Making, then vote for Modi. Thank you. Modi says, â€Å"people throw stones at me and I show courage by collecting those stones and making a temple out of them.† During his election campaign, he openly blamed the then chief minister of Delhi for corruption. The whole of india blindly trusted her that time because she was like this mother figure who would die for her country and blabla. Guess what, delhi chief minister was investigated and she was found guilty. Imagine, if she was not found guilty which was very much possible considering the power she had, then he would have not gained a single vote. He says that business lies in taking risks and higher the risks, higher the profits are. Modi had applied for visa to the United States and was rejected  3 times while he was the chief minister of Gujarat. But one day before the 2014 prime ministerial election results were out, Barak Obama sent an invitation to Narendra Modi requesting him to visit America. This doesn’t talk about Modi’s courage but indirectly speaks about his bold and aggressive nature which even forced Obama to invite Modi a day before he was announced as the Pri me Minister.

Nationalism and United States Policy in Latin America Essay

Dejaron ya los campos They left the fields los tanques y los pozos The tanks and the wells y el rico aceite negro And the rich black oil que es producto nacional That is a national product Magnates petroleros Oil magnates que alli se hicieron ricos, Who became rich in this place pelaron todos gallo Took off right away con la ley de la expropiacià ³n With the expropriation law - El corrido del petrà ³leo -Folk Song†¦show more content†¦Beginnings of Nationalism Beginning in the late 19th century, American capital and culture infiltrated Mexico. Thomas O’Brien’s thesis in The Revolutionary Mission is that American companies reworked Mexican society – they exported a rational and efficient culture which glorified hard work, sobriety, and timeliness; they snubbed Mexican workers who they deemed racially and culturally inferior; they industrialized Mexico; they established an infrastructure; and they repatriated their profits to the United States. Mexicans resented the ethnocentric American attitude and they loathed watching foreigners profit from their labor and their natural resources. The overt American influence in Mexico during the Porfiriato sparked the nationalistic belief that Mexicans should own and operate Mexico. Porfirio Dà ­az’s dictatorship, 1876-1910, promoted foreign investment to modernize Mexico. The Porfirian elites allowed American companies absolute freedom to conduct business, in exchange for loans and infrastructure. Under Dà ­az, American â€Å"direct investment in Mexico had soared to nearly $900 million† (O’Brien, 254). Americans primarily invested in petroleum and railroads. As a result of American capital, Mexicans received â€Å"higher wages, rudimentary consumer products, housing and basicShow MoreRelatedThe Politics Of The United States World Revolution923 Words   |  4 Pagesindependence of the United States in 1776, the new nation needed to establish and decide their global affairs. 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