OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to identify high-risk industry groups for effective allocation of occupational safety and health prevention and research resources. METHODS We used all compensable Washington state workers' compensation claims to rank North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) industry groups by a "prevention index" (PI). The PI is the average of the rank o...

Malaysia is rich with historic buildings, particularly in Penang and Malacca states. Restoration activities are increasingly important as these states are recognized under UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Restoration activities help to maintain the uniqueness and value of a heritage building. However, increasing in restoration activities has resulted in large quantities of waste. To cope with this ...

OBJECTIVES To investigate the work-related musculoskeletal symptoms among building construction workers. METHODS Total 389 apparently healthy, male volunteers were selected with mean age 34.56±8.33 years and a mean working duration in building construction as 5.76±2.68 years. Musculoskeletal complaints were recorded through a detailed clinical interview and comprehensive questionnaire. RESU...

During the 1970s the building industry witnessed a focus on energy-conserving building materials sparked by oil-price increases; during the 1980s attention to building materials that reduced or omitted pollutants became important as a result of the "Sick Building Syndrome" or indoor air pollution. Now, in the 1990s, we are engaged with a more comprehensive definition of environmental materials ...

1. Background The building industry agrees upon the fact that the construction process is fragmentary, this being probably the main reason for problems with the profitability and the quality of the products. The adoption of Information Technology (IT) has changed the building industry in more than one way. The need of information sharing during the different stages: building design, constructio...

An integrated object framework, called BCOF (Building Construction Object Framework), for realization of ISO Building Construction Core Model (ISO BCCM or ISO Part106 ) is proposed in this paper to address the multidisciplinary problems of information integration in the AEC (Architecture, Engineering, and Construction ) industry. Discussions are given first on both the issues related to informa...

Advances in technology infrastructure such as communications, processing power, and data storage over the past several years have created new opportunities for the application of control and automation to many types of systems including those in buildings. This paper describes the state of the art for control in the building automation industry, and reviews new and emerging technologies. Issues...