Othman Alshamrani - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Othman Alshamrani

Research paper thumbnail of A Review of Solar Energy Exploration and Utilization in Saudi Buildings

International Journal of Advanced Thermofluid Research, 2018

The building construction sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the largest and fastest in the... more The building construction sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the largest and fastest in the Middle East. It is estimated that 2.32 million new homes are to be built by 2020 in order to meet the demand of growing population. Despite possessing ample potential, the realization of solar energy technology in Saudi Buildings has a long way to go. This article sheds light into the progress in exploring the utilization of solar energy in the Saudi Arabian building sector. Starting with a background of energy scenario, the article covers the policy-level measures and research and development activities reported so far. This review reveals the Kingdom has wide scope for further developments to ensure that all the viable state-of-the-art solar technologies are implemented in buildings.

Research paper thumbnail of Factors affecting construction productivity: Newfoundland versus rest of Canada

Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, 1994

The decline in construction productivity across North America since the mid 1970s has been report... more The decline in construction productivity across North America since the mid 1970s has been reported by many researchers. The potential exists to achieve major cost savings if the factors underlying this decline can be identified and quantified and solutions are found. The issue is complex, but it is generally acknowledged as an axiom that it is a management problem and within the control of management to rectify. This paper describes the results of a survey of the attitudes of construction professionals across Canada toward factors affecting construction productivity. Special emphasis is made to the differences between Newfoundland and the rest of Canada. Findings for different regions of the country are presented and contrasted. For the purpose of this study, the factors have been classified into six groups: (i) contract environment, (ii) planning, (iii) site management, (iv) working conditions, (v) working hours, and (vi) motivation. Major factors affecting productivity are identi...

Research paper thumbnail of Identifying and Ranking the Root Causes of Schedule Delays in Oil and Gas Pipeline Construction Projects

Energies

Delays in completing the construction of oil and gas projects impact the production, sustainabili... more Delays in completing the construction of oil and gas projects impact the production, sustainability, reliability, and revenues of the company, which result in market share losses in the long term. This research aimed to determine, evaluate, and rank the root causes of schedule delays in oil and gas pipeline projects in Saudi Arabia. Forty-seven different causes were identified firstly from a wide-ranging literature review and then finalized through conducting interviews with two local experts. These causes were ranked by distributing and analyzing questionnaires on the topic. Client-related materials, delays in materials and equipment delivery, permit approval, delays in subcontractor work, and delays in preparing and approving engineering drawings were found to be the top five major causes affecting oil and gas pipeline construction projects. From the initial analyses, it was observed that an adversarial relationship was apparent as the results indicated that the parties tended to ...

Research paper thumbnail of Integrated LCA-LCC assessment model of offsite, onsite, and conventional construction systems

Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering

Research paper thumbnail of Development of a pre-qualification and selection framework for construction projects’ contractors in Saudi Arabia

Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering

Research paper thumbnail of Maintenance Budget Allocation Assessment Model Based on Integrated Post-occupancy Evaluation of Hospital Buildings

Journal of The Institution of Engineers (India): Series A, 2021

Post-occupancy evaluation (POE) is a crucial assessment method for ongoing and future projects. T... more Post-occupancy evaluation (POE) is a crucial assessment method for ongoing and future projects. This method provides a systematic, comprehensive, and efficient assessment of building operations across the building’s life span. POE can also serve as an important feedback cycle for lessons learned, which can be applied for future maintenance or new construction projects. The effectiveness of POE is clearly reflected in occupant satisfaction levels and in the budget allocation for maintenance. Hence, this study aims to develop a maintenance budget allocation assessment model that integrates the feedback of both occupants and maintenance personnel by utilizing the POE method for hospitals in Saudi Arabia. The aim is to achieve an acceptable level of occupant satisfaction and to develop a sophisticated maintenance strategy, in order to best allocate budget and resources for hospitals in Saudi Arabia. An integrated POE survey was administered to identify common issues faced by occupants and operators in hospitals, followed by a structured focus group with multiple stakeholders to assess the developed POE. To validate and verify the developed model, three case studies are considered. Based on the collected data, a list of recommended improvements to better utilize the budget and resources was generated. This study provides recommendations to serve as feedback and feedforward, to improve the operation and maintenance of hospitals. Thus, this research has practical value for potential stakeholders in the design, construction, and management of these buildings. This study also demonstrates the shortcomings of traditional maintenance approaches in terms of occupant satisfaction, showing that by utilizing the developed assessment model and accommodating the recommended improvements, a better satisfaction level can be achieved in addition to best budget allocation for maintenance.

Research paper thumbnail of Operational Energy and Carbon Cost Assessment Model for Family Houses in Saudi Arabia

Sustainability, 2022

In Saudi Arabia, housing projects account for almost half of the total electricity consumed by th... more In Saudi Arabia, housing projects account for almost half of the total electricity consumed by the construction industry because of the large number of housing projects compared to other types of buildings. This paper proposes a quantitative approach using a multiple linear regression assessment model to predict the energy cost and environmental cost of housing building in Saudi Arabia. It was developed to assist house owners in Saudi Arabia in estimating the monthly energy cost and associated operational carbon cost according to several predictor parameters. Based on related literature, these parameters were reviewed and discussed by experts from the Ministry of Housing. They included building location, wall type, number of occupants, window type, envelope insulation, building age, building area, number of air-conditioning units and their systems, and lighting system. The model development process included five main stages: collecting the energy and carbon cost data from completed ...

Research paper thumbnail of Selection of structural systems and materials: minimizing lateral drift and cost of tall buildings in Saudi Arabia

Unrestricted This thesis proposes procedures and guidelines for selection of optimum structural s... more Unrestricted This thesis proposes procedures and guidelines for selection of optimum structural systems and materials in two stages. Stage one is based on a list of criteria, including architectural considerations. Stage two evaluates selected systems and materials for optimum performance of criteria considered critical for a given project. A tall office building in Dammam Saudi Arabia is used as case study to compare three structural systems: moment frame, braced frame, and shear wall; as well as two materials: concrete and steel. The case study considers four building heights: 10, 20, 30, and 40 stories. The STAAD Pro 2005 software is used to analyze these systems according to allowable stress requirements for an objective function to minimize drift, at minimal cost for wind speed of 90 miles per hour. Shear wall is the optimum structural system and concrete the optimum material to minimize lateral drift at minimum material and labor costs.

Research paper thumbnail of Significance of Life Cycle Costing for Selection of Building Construction Materials

Second International Conference on Advances in Civil, Structural and Construction Engineering - CSCE 2015, 2015

The construction industry is one of the ever growing and leading sectors, which contributes to th... more The construction industry is one of the ever growing and leading sectors, which contributes to the economic growth of any nation. One of the current challenges in this industry is to ensure compliance with the norms and standards pertaining to the construction process, building quality, performance, and most remarkably, the environmental impact. The materials used in construction have a crucial role in meeting the above requirements, and in line with this, substantial researches are in progress, in implementing scientific techniques for the selection of construction materials. Material selection is often influenced by budget constraints, local availability, and lack of technical expertise/advice. Some materials that are attractive in terms of initial cost, can have adverse effects on quality, reliability and performance, and even a catastrophic impact on the environment, during the life span of the building. So the present article tries to convince the importance of selecting material based on Life Cycle Costing (LCC), which performs the cradle-to-grave assessment of a building, at the design stage itself. The existing methods of material selection, and the introduction of LCC with details of each steps involved, and concluding remarks, are presented on the basis of review of the related literature.

Research paper thumbnail of Initial cost assessment stochastic model for green buildings based on LEED score

Energy and Buildings, 2021

Abstract Statistics show that the United States is the largest energy consumer. One of the reason... more Abstract Statistics show that the United States is the largest energy consumer. One of the reasons behind this is the lack of long-term sustainability concepts in the fields of design and construction. Many studies have documented reports from developers, builders, and owners showing that the cost of green buildings has increased to as much as three times the real cost. In this study, a stochastic assessment model was developed applying a Monte Carlo simulation to measure the initial cost and green cost premium of different types of buildings. Furthermore, a risk assessment model was developed using the efficient frontier method to aid building owners and decision makers to balance between risk (cost) and reward (sustainability) and to select the best economical and sustainable alternatives. 200 buildings are investigated by converting their leadership in educational and environmental design (LEED) scores into monetary value, based on the attained certification level, building area, and building type. The output of the study shows that the highest cost premium is recorded at 38.6/LS.m2forplatinumeducationalbuildings,whilethelowestcostisassessedat38.6/LS.m2 for platinum educational buildings, while the lowest cost is assessed at 38.6/LS.m2forplatinumeducationalbuildings,whilethelowestcostisassessedat10.6/LS.m2 for platinum residential certification at a 95th percentile confidence level. The residential buildings are found to minimize the cost premium by 70% for educational buildings as compared to 60% for commercial buildings.

Research paper thumbnail of Life Cycle Assessment for Modular Roof Systems of Large-Span Building

Material extraction, production, transportation, construction, operation, and maintenance consume... more Material extraction, production, transportation, construction, operation, and maintenance consume huge amounts of energy that contribute to environmental pollution and contribute to climate change. In 2017, the building sector was found to be responsible for 39% of energy consumption and associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions [1]. In Canada, the industry and building sectors are the highest contributors to total energy consumption. Hence, the embodied and operating energy and their associated GHGs in the building materials, and the operational primary energy over the whole life cycle of buildings, must be assessed [2]. This paper thus presents a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach to evaluating the environmental impact of different modular roof systems, including precast hollow-core concrete, composite roof system, steel roof system, and wood roof system. A case study of a large-span industrial building in Calgary, Alberta, is selected and then analyzed to assess the associated ...

Research paper thumbnail of Environmental impacts cost assessment model of residential building using an artificial neural network

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 2020

PurposeBuildings are major contributors to greenhouse gases (GHG) along the various stages of the... more PurposeBuildings are major contributors to greenhouse gases (GHG) along the various stages of the building life cycle. A range of tools have been utilised for estimating building energy use and environmental impacts; these are time-consuming and require massive data that are not necessarily available during early design stages. Therefore, this study aimed to develop an Environmental Impacts Cost Assessment Model (EICAM) that quantifies both energy and environmental costs for residential buildings.Design/methodology/approachAn Artificial Neural Network (ANN) was employed to develop the EICAM. The model consists of six input parameters, including wall type, roof type, glazing type, window to wall ratio (WWR), shading device and building orientation. In addition, the model calculates four measures: annual energy cost, operational carbon over 20 years, envelope embodied carbon and total carbon per square metre. The ANN architecture is 6:13:4:4, where the conjugate gradient algorithm was...

Research paper thumbnail of A regression-based model for estimating the energy consumption of school facilities in Saudi Arabia

Energy and Buildings, 2021

Abstract A considerable amount of the oil used in Saudi Arabia is consumed to generate power. In ... more Abstract A considerable amount of the oil used in Saudi Arabia is consumed to generate power. In an effort to minimize such consumption, the government of Saudi Arabia has established an ambitious part of the 2030 Vision that includes 96 strategic objectives. In recent years, the advancement in information technology has made it possible to develop accurate prediction models of energy consumption for constructed facilities, which can assist with establishing plans to reduce future energy consumption. This research proposes a regression-based model for predicting the energy consumption of one of the most significant energy-consuming types of facilities in Saudi Arabia: schools. The model was developed utilizing 350 actual data points of energy consumption gathered from schools operating in the eastern province of Saudi Arabia. The factors affecting consumption of energy were identified from two sources. The first was a review of the literature, and the second was interviews with local experts. A sensitivity analysis indicated that the most important factors (i.e., inputs/independent variables) affecting energy consumption (i.e., output) were AC capacity and building age. An investigation of the correlations among the independent variables revealed that the highest correlation of 0.864 was found between the total built area and total roof area. The developed model was validated using 35 new data points of school buildings across the eastern province of Saudi Arabia. The results show that the model predicted the energy consumption of school buildings with an accuracy higher than 90%. The findings of this study will assist schools and maintenance managers in effectively managing such facilities by allowing them to allocate the required budget in advance. Also, the predictions can be used economic lifecycle analysis.

Research paper thumbnail of Advanced BIM Platform Based on the Spoken Dialogue for End-User

Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, 2020

Since the advent of automatic speech recognition-based virtual assistants (e.g., Google Assistant... more Since the advent of automatic speech recognition-based virtual assistants (e.g., Google Assistant and iOS Siri), it has become more common to use voice-based information retrieval systems in search engines. In addition, recently, such search engines have served not only to accept keyword-based commands from the human voice but also have evolved to recognize and understand more natural human language. As a result, various industries including the Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Operations (AECO) have been exploring the application of Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) systems to their processes in order to improve work efficiency/productivity. While other areas have somewhat succeeded in interacting with machines (computers) using natural language, the AECO field is still utilizing keyword-based speech recognition. and lags behind the research of other industries trying to apply natural language-based ASR systems. Thus, this paper aims to apply natural language-based voice recognition system to building information modeling (BIM) and be used to manipulate the building model. In order for the BIM software to understand natural language queries and show the appropriate results in response to it, connecting natural language with BIM data is the key effort. This is because, in general, the words and sentences people use on a daily basis (i.e., natural language) are not highly correlated with the BIM data. With natural language processing (NLP) and structured querying language (SQL), therefore, this paper tries to propose not only a way to connect natural language and BIM data but also a way to manipulate BIM itself.

Research paper thumbnail of Initial cost forecasting model of mid-rise green office buildings

Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering, 2020

Green building has witnessed significant growth in the North American market in recent years. Sin... more Green building has witnessed significant growth in the North American market in recent years. Since the construction cost of green office buildings represents a significant impact on the life cycle costs in office buildings in North America, and since green building costs are still not well understood by building owners, a linear regression model is developed in this study to enable office building owners to predict the initial cost based on the structural and envelope materials used. A multi-regression model is then developed to forecast the initial construction cost based on the use of different combinations of materials, such as concrete and steel, for the envelope and structural systems. This model estimates the cost per square foot of mid-rise office buildings according to specified predictor parameters such as building structural system, number of floors, total floor area, and floor height. The process followed modal development consists of three main phases: preliminary quality diagnostics of gathered data, model development, and model testing and validation. This model can assist office building owners in estimating the initial cost of new buildings using green structural and envelope systems, and to provide decision support in the selection among alternatives from the economic point of view.

Research paper thumbnail of Analytic Hierarchy Process & Multi Attribute Utility Theory Based Approach for the Selection of Lighting Systems in Residential Buildings: A Case Study

Buildings, 2018

This paper presents an approach developed for selecting lighting systems in residential buildings... more This paper presents an approach developed for selecting lighting systems in residential buildings using an Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and the Multi Criteria Decision Making Technique (MCDMT). The developed approach considers four selection criteria of lighting systems: life-cycle cost, illumination, environmental performance, and lifespan. The criteria of selection, along with the most widely used lighting systems in residential buildings, were determined through questionnaire surveys with suppliers, maintenance managers, and lighting experts. The Analytic Hierarchy Process and Multi Attribute Utility Theory were utilized to assess the significant influence of the identified main and sub-criteria on the selection process, from the design point of view. The developed approach was tested on a real case project in selecting the lighting system for aresidential building in Saudi Arabia. The obtained results show that the life-cycle cost and illumination proprieties, followed by the service life were found to be the most influential measures in the selection process. The results also show that Light-Emitting Diode(LED) lighting systems prove to bear the highest initial cost while sustaining the best overall performance.

Research paper thumbnail of Fundamental investigation of solid waste generation and disposal behaviour in higher education institute in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Indoor and Built Environment, 2018

Waste characterization is a fundamental step for the development of solid waste management plan. ... more Waste characterization is a fundamental step for the development of solid waste management plan. In this regard, understanding the waste generation and disposal patterns plays a crucial role in developing realistic waste reduction strategies. Presently, there exists no solid waste management plan for higher education institutes in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Hence, this article details the fundamental study related to the waste generation and disposal behaviour. The study also dwells into the existing practices of solid waste management and sheds light on the new polices that can be adopted for waste reduction, along with highlighting barriers to optimization of solid waste management. Through investigation, it was found that by adopting E-learning system for examination and replacing paper towels with air dryers in washroom and by revising policy related to printing, considerable reduction in paper waste could be achieved. Furthermore, the adoption of the proposed sustainable drinking water solution led to 90% reduction in plastic pet bottle waste. The recommendations made by the presented investigation can be employed by other similar sized institutes in developing countries for the development of sustainable green campuses.

Research paper thumbnail of ANN/BIM-based model for predicting the energy cost of residential buildings in Saudi Arabia

Journal of Taibah University for Science, 2017

This paper introduces a novel conceptual system to predict the energy cost of residential buildin... more This paper introduces a novel conceptual system to predict the energy cost of residential buildings in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The paper briefly describes the main models of the developed system to maintain continuity and focuses on the energy cost prediction model. The developed system aims to assist architects in designing residential buildings to minimise energy costs under Saudi Arabian environmental conditions. The system was built based on data collected from house owners in six cities in the eastern province of KSA. The initial results of validating the model demonstrate the system's capabilities in assisting architects in the selection of the optimum architectural design.

Research paper thumbnail of Construction cost prediction model for conventional and sustainable college buildings in North America

Journal of Taibah University for Science, 2017

The literature lacks in initial cost prediction models for college buildings, especially comparin... more The literature lacks in initial cost prediction models for college buildings, especially comparing costs of sustainable and conventional buildings. A multi-regression model was developed for conceptual initial cost estimation of conventional and sustainable college buildings in North America. RS Means was used to estimate the national average of construction costs for 2014, which was subsequently utilized to develop the model. The model could predict the initial cost per square feet with two structure types made of steel and concrete. The other predictor variables were building area, number of floors and floor height. The model was developed in three major stages, such as preliminary diagnostics on data quality, model development and validation. The developed model was successfully tested and validated with real-time data.

Research paper thumbnail of Prospects of energy conservation and management in buildings – The Saudi Arabian scenario versus global trends

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2016

The volume of construction work in the GCC countries is dramatically increasing, which poses chal... more The volume of construction work in the GCC countries is dramatically increasing, which poses challenges on energy demand and the environment. The building construction sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the largest and fastest in the GCC states. It is estimated that 2.32 million new homes are to be built by 2020 in order to meet the demand of growing population. This article provides a comprehensive picture of the initiatives and research progress in energy conservation and management in the Saudi Arabian building sector. Starting with a background of energy scenario, the article covers the policy-level measures and research and development activities reported so far, and compares the current situation with the global trends. This review reveals that even though there are promising research activities, policy supports and growing public awareness, the Kingdom has wide scope for further developments in order to ensure (through the utilization of its resources at their fullest potential) that all the viable state-of-the-art technologies for energy conservation and management in buildings are implemented. Accordingly, a consolidated outline of the key areas in the domain is presented, and many potential new research directions are proposed.

Research paper thumbnail of A Review of Solar Energy Exploration and Utilization in Saudi Buildings

International Journal of Advanced Thermofluid Research, 2018

The building construction sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the largest and fastest in the... more The building construction sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the largest and fastest in the Middle East. It is estimated that 2.32 million new homes are to be built by 2020 in order to meet the demand of growing population. Despite possessing ample potential, the realization of solar energy technology in Saudi Buildings has a long way to go. This article sheds light into the progress in exploring the utilization of solar energy in the Saudi Arabian building sector. Starting with a background of energy scenario, the article covers the policy-level measures and research and development activities reported so far. This review reveals the Kingdom has wide scope for further developments to ensure that all the viable state-of-the-art solar technologies are implemented in buildings.

Research paper thumbnail of Factors affecting construction productivity: Newfoundland versus rest of Canada

Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, 1994

The decline in construction productivity across North America since the mid 1970s has been report... more The decline in construction productivity across North America since the mid 1970s has been reported by many researchers. The potential exists to achieve major cost savings if the factors underlying this decline can be identified and quantified and solutions are found. The issue is complex, but it is generally acknowledged as an axiom that it is a management problem and within the control of management to rectify. This paper describes the results of a survey of the attitudes of construction professionals across Canada toward factors affecting construction productivity. Special emphasis is made to the differences between Newfoundland and the rest of Canada. Findings for different regions of the country are presented and contrasted. For the purpose of this study, the factors have been classified into six groups: (i) contract environment, (ii) planning, (iii) site management, (iv) working conditions, (v) working hours, and (vi) motivation. Major factors affecting productivity are identi...

Research paper thumbnail of Identifying and Ranking the Root Causes of Schedule Delays in Oil and Gas Pipeline Construction Projects

Energies

Delays in completing the construction of oil and gas projects impact the production, sustainabili... more Delays in completing the construction of oil and gas projects impact the production, sustainability, reliability, and revenues of the company, which result in market share losses in the long term. This research aimed to determine, evaluate, and rank the root causes of schedule delays in oil and gas pipeline projects in Saudi Arabia. Forty-seven different causes were identified firstly from a wide-ranging literature review and then finalized through conducting interviews with two local experts. These causes were ranked by distributing and analyzing questionnaires on the topic. Client-related materials, delays in materials and equipment delivery, permit approval, delays in subcontractor work, and delays in preparing and approving engineering drawings were found to be the top five major causes affecting oil and gas pipeline construction projects. From the initial analyses, it was observed that an adversarial relationship was apparent as the results indicated that the parties tended to ...

Research paper thumbnail of Integrated LCA-LCC assessment model of offsite, onsite, and conventional construction systems

Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering

Research paper thumbnail of Development of a pre-qualification and selection framework for construction projects’ contractors in Saudi Arabia

Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering

Research paper thumbnail of Maintenance Budget Allocation Assessment Model Based on Integrated Post-occupancy Evaluation of Hospital Buildings

Journal of The Institution of Engineers (India): Series A, 2021

Post-occupancy evaluation (POE) is a crucial assessment method for ongoing and future projects. T... more Post-occupancy evaluation (POE) is a crucial assessment method for ongoing and future projects. This method provides a systematic, comprehensive, and efficient assessment of building operations across the building’s life span. POE can also serve as an important feedback cycle for lessons learned, which can be applied for future maintenance or new construction projects. The effectiveness of POE is clearly reflected in occupant satisfaction levels and in the budget allocation for maintenance. Hence, this study aims to develop a maintenance budget allocation assessment model that integrates the feedback of both occupants and maintenance personnel by utilizing the POE method for hospitals in Saudi Arabia. The aim is to achieve an acceptable level of occupant satisfaction and to develop a sophisticated maintenance strategy, in order to best allocate budget and resources for hospitals in Saudi Arabia. An integrated POE survey was administered to identify common issues faced by occupants and operators in hospitals, followed by a structured focus group with multiple stakeholders to assess the developed POE. To validate and verify the developed model, three case studies are considered. Based on the collected data, a list of recommended improvements to better utilize the budget and resources was generated. This study provides recommendations to serve as feedback and feedforward, to improve the operation and maintenance of hospitals. Thus, this research has practical value for potential stakeholders in the design, construction, and management of these buildings. This study also demonstrates the shortcomings of traditional maintenance approaches in terms of occupant satisfaction, showing that by utilizing the developed assessment model and accommodating the recommended improvements, a better satisfaction level can be achieved in addition to best budget allocation for maintenance.

Research paper thumbnail of Operational Energy and Carbon Cost Assessment Model for Family Houses in Saudi Arabia

Sustainability, 2022

In Saudi Arabia, housing projects account for almost half of the total electricity consumed by th... more In Saudi Arabia, housing projects account for almost half of the total electricity consumed by the construction industry because of the large number of housing projects compared to other types of buildings. This paper proposes a quantitative approach using a multiple linear regression assessment model to predict the energy cost and environmental cost of housing building in Saudi Arabia. It was developed to assist house owners in Saudi Arabia in estimating the monthly energy cost and associated operational carbon cost according to several predictor parameters. Based on related literature, these parameters were reviewed and discussed by experts from the Ministry of Housing. They included building location, wall type, number of occupants, window type, envelope insulation, building age, building area, number of air-conditioning units and their systems, and lighting system. The model development process included five main stages: collecting the energy and carbon cost data from completed ...

Research paper thumbnail of Selection of structural systems and materials: minimizing lateral drift and cost of tall buildings in Saudi Arabia

Unrestricted This thesis proposes procedures and guidelines for selection of optimum structural s... more Unrestricted This thesis proposes procedures and guidelines for selection of optimum structural systems and materials in two stages. Stage one is based on a list of criteria, including architectural considerations. Stage two evaluates selected systems and materials for optimum performance of criteria considered critical for a given project. A tall office building in Dammam Saudi Arabia is used as case study to compare three structural systems: moment frame, braced frame, and shear wall; as well as two materials: concrete and steel. The case study considers four building heights: 10, 20, 30, and 40 stories. The STAAD Pro 2005 software is used to analyze these systems according to allowable stress requirements for an objective function to minimize drift, at minimal cost for wind speed of 90 miles per hour. Shear wall is the optimum structural system and concrete the optimum material to minimize lateral drift at minimum material and labor costs.

Research paper thumbnail of Significance of Life Cycle Costing for Selection of Building Construction Materials

Second International Conference on Advances in Civil, Structural and Construction Engineering - CSCE 2015, 2015

The construction industry is one of the ever growing and leading sectors, which contributes to th... more The construction industry is one of the ever growing and leading sectors, which contributes to the economic growth of any nation. One of the current challenges in this industry is to ensure compliance with the norms and standards pertaining to the construction process, building quality, performance, and most remarkably, the environmental impact. The materials used in construction have a crucial role in meeting the above requirements, and in line with this, substantial researches are in progress, in implementing scientific techniques for the selection of construction materials. Material selection is often influenced by budget constraints, local availability, and lack of technical expertise/advice. Some materials that are attractive in terms of initial cost, can have adverse effects on quality, reliability and performance, and even a catastrophic impact on the environment, during the life span of the building. So the present article tries to convince the importance of selecting material based on Life Cycle Costing (LCC), which performs the cradle-to-grave assessment of a building, at the design stage itself. The existing methods of material selection, and the introduction of LCC with details of each steps involved, and concluding remarks, are presented on the basis of review of the related literature.

Research paper thumbnail of Initial cost assessment stochastic model for green buildings based on LEED score

Energy and Buildings, 2021

Abstract Statistics show that the United States is the largest energy consumer. One of the reason... more Abstract Statistics show that the United States is the largest energy consumer. One of the reasons behind this is the lack of long-term sustainability concepts in the fields of design and construction. Many studies have documented reports from developers, builders, and owners showing that the cost of green buildings has increased to as much as three times the real cost. In this study, a stochastic assessment model was developed applying a Monte Carlo simulation to measure the initial cost and green cost premium of different types of buildings. Furthermore, a risk assessment model was developed using the efficient frontier method to aid building owners and decision makers to balance between risk (cost) and reward (sustainability) and to select the best economical and sustainable alternatives. 200 buildings are investigated by converting their leadership in educational and environmental design (LEED) scores into monetary value, based on the attained certification level, building area, and building type. The output of the study shows that the highest cost premium is recorded at 38.6/LS.m2forplatinumeducationalbuildings,whilethelowestcostisassessedat38.6/LS.m2 for platinum educational buildings, while the lowest cost is assessed at 38.6/LS.m2forplatinumeducationalbuildings,whilethelowestcostisassessedat10.6/LS.m2 for platinum residential certification at a 95th percentile confidence level. The residential buildings are found to minimize the cost premium by 70% for educational buildings as compared to 60% for commercial buildings.

Research paper thumbnail of Life Cycle Assessment for Modular Roof Systems of Large-Span Building

Material extraction, production, transportation, construction, operation, and maintenance consume... more Material extraction, production, transportation, construction, operation, and maintenance consume huge amounts of energy that contribute to environmental pollution and contribute to climate change. In 2017, the building sector was found to be responsible for 39% of energy consumption and associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions [1]. In Canada, the industry and building sectors are the highest contributors to total energy consumption. Hence, the embodied and operating energy and their associated GHGs in the building materials, and the operational primary energy over the whole life cycle of buildings, must be assessed [2]. This paper thus presents a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach to evaluating the environmental impact of different modular roof systems, including precast hollow-core concrete, composite roof system, steel roof system, and wood roof system. A case study of a large-span industrial building in Calgary, Alberta, is selected and then analyzed to assess the associated ...

Research paper thumbnail of Environmental impacts cost assessment model of residential building using an artificial neural network

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 2020

PurposeBuildings are major contributors to greenhouse gases (GHG) along the various stages of the... more PurposeBuildings are major contributors to greenhouse gases (GHG) along the various stages of the building life cycle. A range of tools have been utilised for estimating building energy use and environmental impacts; these are time-consuming and require massive data that are not necessarily available during early design stages. Therefore, this study aimed to develop an Environmental Impacts Cost Assessment Model (EICAM) that quantifies both energy and environmental costs for residential buildings.Design/methodology/approachAn Artificial Neural Network (ANN) was employed to develop the EICAM. The model consists of six input parameters, including wall type, roof type, glazing type, window to wall ratio (WWR), shading device and building orientation. In addition, the model calculates four measures: annual energy cost, operational carbon over 20 years, envelope embodied carbon and total carbon per square metre. The ANN architecture is 6:13:4:4, where the conjugate gradient algorithm was...

Research paper thumbnail of A regression-based model for estimating the energy consumption of school facilities in Saudi Arabia

Energy and Buildings, 2021

Abstract A considerable amount of the oil used in Saudi Arabia is consumed to generate power. In ... more Abstract A considerable amount of the oil used in Saudi Arabia is consumed to generate power. In an effort to minimize such consumption, the government of Saudi Arabia has established an ambitious part of the 2030 Vision that includes 96 strategic objectives. In recent years, the advancement in information technology has made it possible to develop accurate prediction models of energy consumption for constructed facilities, which can assist with establishing plans to reduce future energy consumption. This research proposes a regression-based model for predicting the energy consumption of one of the most significant energy-consuming types of facilities in Saudi Arabia: schools. The model was developed utilizing 350 actual data points of energy consumption gathered from schools operating in the eastern province of Saudi Arabia. The factors affecting consumption of energy were identified from two sources. The first was a review of the literature, and the second was interviews with local experts. A sensitivity analysis indicated that the most important factors (i.e., inputs/independent variables) affecting energy consumption (i.e., output) were AC capacity and building age. An investigation of the correlations among the independent variables revealed that the highest correlation of 0.864 was found between the total built area and total roof area. The developed model was validated using 35 new data points of school buildings across the eastern province of Saudi Arabia. The results show that the model predicted the energy consumption of school buildings with an accuracy higher than 90%. The findings of this study will assist schools and maintenance managers in effectively managing such facilities by allowing them to allocate the required budget in advance. Also, the predictions can be used economic lifecycle analysis.

Research paper thumbnail of Advanced BIM Platform Based on the Spoken Dialogue for End-User

Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, 2020

Since the advent of automatic speech recognition-based virtual assistants (e.g., Google Assistant... more Since the advent of automatic speech recognition-based virtual assistants (e.g., Google Assistant and iOS Siri), it has become more common to use voice-based information retrieval systems in search engines. In addition, recently, such search engines have served not only to accept keyword-based commands from the human voice but also have evolved to recognize and understand more natural human language. As a result, various industries including the Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Operations (AECO) have been exploring the application of Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) systems to their processes in order to improve work efficiency/productivity. While other areas have somewhat succeeded in interacting with machines (computers) using natural language, the AECO field is still utilizing keyword-based speech recognition. and lags behind the research of other industries trying to apply natural language-based ASR systems. Thus, this paper aims to apply natural language-based voice recognition system to building information modeling (BIM) and be used to manipulate the building model. In order for the BIM software to understand natural language queries and show the appropriate results in response to it, connecting natural language with BIM data is the key effort. This is because, in general, the words and sentences people use on a daily basis (i.e., natural language) are not highly correlated with the BIM data. With natural language processing (NLP) and structured querying language (SQL), therefore, this paper tries to propose not only a way to connect natural language and BIM data but also a way to manipulate BIM itself.

Research paper thumbnail of Initial cost forecasting model of mid-rise green office buildings

Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering, 2020

Green building has witnessed significant growth in the North American market in recent years. Sin... more Green building has witnessed significant growth in the North American market in recent years. Since the construction cost of green office buildings represents a significant impact on the life cycle costs in office buildings in North America, and since green building costs are still not well understood by building owners, a linear regression model is developed in this study to enable office building owners to predict the initial cost based on the structural and envelope materials used. A multi-regression model is then developed to forecast the initial construction cost based on the use of different combinations of materials, such as concrete and steel, for the envelope and structural systems. This model estimates the cost per square foot of mid-rise office buildings according to specified predictor parameters such as building structural system, number of floors, total floor area, and floor height. The process followed modal development consists of three main phases: preliminary quality diagnostics of gathered data, model development, and model testing and validation. This model can assist office building owners in estimating the initial cost of new buildings using green structural and envelope systems, and to provide decision support in the selection among alternatives from the economic point of view.

Research paper thumbnail of Analytic Hierarchy Process & Multi Attribute Utility Theory Based Approach for the Selection of Lighting Systems in Residential Buildings: A Case Study

Buildings, 2018

This paper presents an approach developed for selecting lighting systems in residential buildings... more This paper presents an approach developed for selecting lighting systems in residential buildings using an Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and the Multi Criteria Decision Making Technique (MCDMT). The developed approach considers four selection criteria of lighting systems: life-cycle cost, illumination, environmental performance, and lifespan. The criteria of selection, along with the most widely used lighting systems in residential buildings, were determined through questionnaire surveys with suppliers, maintenance managers, and lighting experts. The Analytic Hierarchy Process and Multi Attribute Utility Theory were utilized to assess the significant influence of the identified main and sub-criteria on the selection process, from the design point of view. The developed approach was tested on a real case project in selecting the lighting system for aresidential building in Saudi Arabia. The obtained results show that the life-cycle cost and illumination proprieties, followed by the service life were found to be the most influential measures in the selection process. The results also show that Light-Emitting Diode(LED) lighting systems prove to bear the highest initial cost while sustaining the best overall performance.

Research paper thumbnail of Fundamental investigation of solid waste generation and disposal behaviour in higher education institute in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Indoor and Built Environment, 2018

Waste characterization is a fundamental step for the development of solid waste management plan. ... more Waste characterization is a fundamental step for the development of solid waste management plan. In this regard, understanding the waste generation and disposal patterns plays a crucial role in developing realistic waste reduction strategies. Presently, there exists no solid waste management plan for higher education institutes in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Hence, this article details the fundamental study related to the waste generation and disposal behaviour. The study also dwells into the existing practices of solid waste management and sheds light on the new polices that can be adopted for waste reduction, along with highlighting barriers to optimization of solid waste management. Through investigation, it was found that by adopting E-learning system for examination and replacing paper towels with air dryers in washroom and by revising policy related to printing, considerable reduction in paper waste could be achieved. Furthermore, the adoption of the proposed sustainable drinking water solution led to 90% reduction in plastic pet bottle waste. The recommendations made by the presented investigation can be employed by other similar sized institutes in developing countries for the development of sustainable green campuses.

Research paper thumbnail of ANN/BIM-based model for predicting the energy cost of residential buildings in Saudi Arabia

Journal of Taibah University for Science, 2017

This paper introduces a novel conceptual system to predict the energy cost of residential buildin... more This paper introduces a novel conceptual system to predict the energy cost of residential buildings in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The paper briefly describes the main models of the developed system to maintain continuity and focuses on the energy cost prediction model. The developed system aims to assist architects in designing residential buildings to minimise energy costs under Saudi Arabian environmental conditions. The system was built based on data collected from house owners in six cities in the eastern province of KSA. The initial results of validating the model demonstrate the system's capabilities in assisting architects in the selection of the optimum architectural design.

Research paper thumbnail of Construction cost prediction model for conventional and sustainable college buildings in North America

Journal of Taibah University for Science, 2017

The literature lacks in initial cost prediction models for college buildings, especially comparin... more The literature lacks in initial cost prediction models for college buildings, especially comparing costs of sustainable and conventional buildings. A multi-regression model was developed for conceptual initial cost estimation of conventional and sustainable college buildings in North America. RS Means was used to estimate the national average of construction costs for 2014, which was subsequently utilized to develop the model. The model could predict the initial cost per square feet with two structure types made of steel and concrete. The other predictor variables were building area, number of floors and floor height. The model was developed in three major stages, such as preliminary diagnostics on data quality, model development and validation. The developed model was successfully tested and validated with real-time data.

Research paper thumbnail of Prospects of energy conservation and management in buildings – The Saudi Arabian scenario versus global trends

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2016

The volume of construction work in the GCC countries is dramatically increasing, which poses chal... more The volume of construction work in the GCC countries is dramatically increasing, which poses challenges on energy demand and the environment. The building construction sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the largest and fastest in the GCC states. It is estimated that 2.32 million new homes are to be built by 2020 in order to meet the demand of growing population. This article provides a comprehensive picture of the initiatives and research progress in energy conservation and management in the Saudi Arabian building sector. Starting with a background of energy scenario, the article covers the policy-level measures and research and development activities reported so far, and compares the current situation with the global trends. This review reveals that even though there are promising research activities, policy supports and growing public awareness, the Kingdom has wide scope for further developments in order to ensure (through the utilization of its resources at their fullest potential) that all the viable state-of-the-art technologies for energy conservation and management in buildings are implemented. Accordingly, a consolidated outline of the key areas in the domain is presented, and many potential new research directions are proposed.