Automatic identification and data collection provides an ideal basis for Industry 4.0 Smart Manufacturing. The manufacturing sectors, involving a wide spectrum of physical and digital world, are functioning in extremely challenging environment. To optimize production efficiency, the incorporation of automated data collection technologies such as Bar Code and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is essential. Both these technologies have a great overlap in terms of industrial applications and no study reviews the existing literature in this regard. Therefore to cope up this matter, a systematic literature review has been conducted in which the technologies have been studied and compared, followed by the detailed discussion under various contexts of Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) Framework. It has been observed that both these technologies have been employed in various manufacturing domains such as lean manufacturing, inventory management and production planning. However, it has been observed that RFID technology carried technological superiority over Bar Code technology. The systems utilizing the former are highly reliable, exquisitely capable and perform excellent in case of automation. However, issues such as high capital costs and increased level of technical complexity are few dilemmas in case of adopting RFID based systems. In addition to that, the implementation of RFID systems is complemented by certain essential features of TOE framework, which can help to elevate competitiveness and efficiency of an organization regarding tracking and identification of assets and inventory.

Keywords : Radio Frequency Identification (RFID); Barcode Technology; Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) Framework

With the staggering concerns in environmental pollution caused by the transportation industry, researchers have ventured their studies to identify the primary factors that may affect an individuals’ propensity to choose public transportation as more sustainable transportation. Numerous research studies are surrounding this subject; however, no effort has been made to systematically review them for a synthesized analysis. There is also a lack of study in identifying contributing factors that may potentially affect each other to determine the propensity to take public transportation and identify their relationships to each other to provide a guide for future researchers to analyse and consider for future work. With the motivation to tackle the existing research inadequacies, we conducted a study that focuses on using a systematic literature review methodology with validated analyses on existing studies. This study found that demographic factors are the most analysed aspect, followed by transportation, trip-related and environmental. Secondly, our study provides new insight into several contributing factors affecting each other in predicting public transportation ridership. Thirdly, our findings also demonstrate the trends and gaps that occur in different geographical areas. The outcomes of our research present a consolidated view for relevant authorities to cater their strategies tactically according to each geographical area and identify potential opportunities for future research.

Keywords: Public Transportation; systematic literature review; user preferences; influential factors; user behaviour

In this modern age, use of technology combined lean implementation framework seems beneficial which not only helps in lean implementation but also contributes to speed up the process with the availability of proper planning scheme. However, based on previous literature available, a gap has been observed regarding the availability of “Systematic Planning Scheme” which is essential for the deployment of technology combined lean implementation frameworks. Based on this, the aim of this study is to propose “Systematic Planning Scheme” for such frameworks and since, lean has its stakes in a wide range of sectors but carries the maximum stake in the automotive industry (based on literature review utilized) so it is feasible to develop planning scheme for automotive sectors. With the help of data collection methods that have been utilized were field observations, on-site plant visits, and organizational documents in case study, a Systematic Planning Scheme has been developed. The designed systematic planning scheme critically required three steps which were team selection, phase wise distributions of work, and access to lean tools for lean implementation (by the team to implement framework. The contribution and significance of this study is the provisions of new planning strategy which carried originality in its structure by following three goal steps and visions to implement modern frameworks in a systemized way.

Keywords: Planning scheme; lean manufacturing; planning implementation; Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)

The growing number of industries is a threat to our environment, as they expose the polluted water directly into the natural water sources. Various processes have been expanded to evacuate these hazardous organic pollutants from water. Among them, advance oxidation process (AOP) is very popular, as the method is cost efficient and highly effective in the similar field. In this process ultrasound is exercised for the deterioration of these pollutants and occasionally some additives are also added to enhance the degradation. In this article, the author has reported the degradation of two azo dyes, named methyl orange (MO) and congo red (CR), in presence of some additives like, inorganic salts, charcoal, H₂O₂, CCl₄, tert-butyl alcohol (TBA), glucose and sucrose. The total experiment was conducted at room temperature and the power of the sonication machine was fixed to 40 kHz-120W. For both of the dyes, it was found that charcoal was most effective additive, which highly enhanced the degradation rate, which was mainly due to its high adsorption capability. TBA found to be the least enhancer for MO, on the contrary, pure CR showed the lowest degradation rate. The effectiveness of additives for MO can be shown as 0.01g charcoal > 20 ml glucose > 20 ml NaCl > 100 μL CCl₄ > 10 ml Na₂SO₄ > 400 μL H₂O₂ > 10 ml sucrose > pure MO > TBA, while for CR is 0.01g charcoal > combined additives > TBA > 100 μL CCl₄ > pure CR, after sonication for 15 minutes in a sonicator.

Keywords: Methyl orange; congo red; sonolytic degradation; additives; inorganic salts; charcoal; degradation efficiency

Modification of asphalt cement with additives is a sustainable issue. An attempt was made in the present assessment to detect the influence of modification of the asphalt binder by 2 % silica fumes and 4 % fly ash additives on the durability in terms of fatigue life of asphalt concrete mixture under short-term and long-term ageing processes and moisture damage. Asphalt concrete slab samples of wearing course was prepared and compacted by roller. The beam specimens of 400 mm length and 50 mm height and 63 mm width were extracted from the slab samples. The beam specimens had practiced the four-point repeated flexural bending beam test. The fatigue life was monitored as the number of load repetitions to reach the failure under three constant micro strain levels of (250, 400, and 750). The reduction in fatigue life after long-term ageing for control, silica fumes modified, and fly ash modified mixtures was (74.7, 38.4, and 60) %, (66.2, 52.4, and 64.3) %, (63.9, 63.1, and 57.5) % under 250, 400, and 750 microstrain levels respectively. However, the reduction in fatigue life after practicing moisture damage for control, silica fumes modified, and fly ash modified mixtures was (71.2, 59.6, and 37.2) %, (37.1, 64.9, and 11.2) %, (71, 84.8, and 32.2) % under (250, 400, and 750) microstrain levels respectively. It was concluded that Fly ash exhibit lower susceptibility to long-term ageing process as compared to other mixtures, while silica fumes exhibit lower susceptibility to moisture damage as compared to other mixtures.

Keywords: Modified Asphalt, Fatigue Life, Flexural Bending, Ageing, Asphalt Concrete

The main objective of this study is to compare the structural members capacity between different types of bridges structures under seismic load. The results of seismic modal analysis showed that the models of box girder bridge, precast T girder bridge, and U steel girder bridge had the higher values of natural frequency comparing with others bridges structures under seismic load. Pushover analysis in transvers direction showed that bent No. 2 of bridges structures which was located in the middle of bridges superstructure was displaced in transvers direction more than bent No. 1 and bent No. 3. In longitudinal direction, Precast I girder bridge had higher value of longitudinal displacement comparing with others bridges structures, and it was more than the maximum value of transvers displacement. The results of demand and capacity ratio showed that bent No. 2 was the critical structural member which had values of demand/capacity ratio more than 1.0 or near from it especially precast I girder bridge, precast T girder bridge, and U steel bridge, indicating that these types of bridges will be subjected to failure in bent No. 2. Therefore, there was needing to redesign the bents of these types of bridges by increasing the numbers of piers, using high strength materials in construction of bents, and increasing of dimensions of piers and pier caps. The results of internal forces showed that bent No. 2 was subjected to the maximum values of axial force, horizontal shear, and bending moment for all types of bridges structures. Also, it can be seen that the models of precast I girder bridge, precast T girder bridge, and U steel bridge had the higher values of forces comparing to others models, indicating that these results agree with results of demand/capacity ratio and pushover analysis method.

Keywords: Seismic load; bridges; pushover analysis; demand; capacity; displacement

This paper discusses the ultimate strength of composite plate girders with intermediate inclined stiffeners. The inclination angle of intermediate stiffener, web opening size and span length are the key factors influencing the performance of the composite plate girder. This study used the LUSAS software to develop 20 non-linear finite element models using intermediate stiffener different inclination angles, web opening sizes and span lengths. The intermediate stiffener have an inclination angle of 90°, 75°, 60°, 45° and 30°. The web plates were divided into six or eight sub-panel webs depending on the span length using the intermediate inclined stiffener. The ultimate strength and behaviour of the composite plates are influenced by the inclination angle of the intermediate stiffener, web opening size and span length. Generally, the ultimate strength of the composite plate girder increased when the inclination angle was reduced from 90° to 30° with a corresponding reduction in the web opening size and span length. The increase in the ultimate strength are 44.63% for the web plate with do = 100 mm and L = 3450 mm, 20.41% for the web plate with do = 200 mm and L = 4500 mm, 216.41% for the web plate with do = 100 mm and L = 3450 mm, and 58.89% for the web plate with do = 200 mm and L = 4500 mm due to the formation of tension field on the web panels. The width of the tension field in the plastic hinge increased and shifted depending on the top and bottom flange when using the intermediate inclined stiffener. The composite plate girder with a small web opening of do = 100 mm exhibited a high ultimate strength. The ultimate strength of the composite plate girder with a 60° inclined intermediate stiffener is higher than the intermediate stiffener with a 75° inclination angle. Therefore, the composite plate girder with an inclined intermediate stiffener has a higher ultimate strength.

Keywords: Composite plate girder; intermediate inclined stiffener; web opening size; shear and bending; finite element modelling

Productivity is one means to measure the efficiency of a construction project. Most of the problems that are always encountered in construction projects are problems related to labour productivity. Labour productivity has become part of the issues that significantly affect the construction project (CP) performance (cost, quality, and time). Labour turn into the most significant productive resource in achieving profitability and successful project. Based on previous investigations, the amount of costs spent on workers is above 30 % of the total cost of the overall project. So it is essential to pay attention to the increase in productivity of construction labour. Labour performance in the construction business remains an indicator of competitiveness and achievement in the construction company. Therefore, by focusing on the productivity of the construction labour, it is very likely that a construction company can achieve a higher level of project completion, more economical construction costs, and control the performance of the ongoing project. One way to increase the productivity of construction labour then requires an understanding of the factors that influence labour productivity. To achieve the increasing construction labour productivity (CLP), it needs a conceptual framework of variables in the form of affecting factors in the CLP. The conceptual framework is obtained by conducting a literature review of related articles from indexed journals and contributions from construction management practitioners in Indonesia. The concept of this framework was built for future research by making a model of CLP.

Keywords : Productivity; construction; project; labour; framework

One of the primary methods to determine water saturation is logging measurement which uses water saturation models. Archie`s interpretation model to estimate water saturation in clean formations has successfully been useful over the years. However, in shaly sand formation this model yields inaccurate water saturation estimates due to shaly sand effects. Many shaly sand interpretation models have been developed; unfortunately; there is no unique water saturation model which works best for all formations as subsurface information may be limited and formation shaly sands may vary. Nevertheless, some water saturation models provide more accurate water saturation values for a formation. Thus, this study aimed to determine the water saturation alternative by using Dual-Water, Waxman-Smits, Indonesian, and Modified Simandoux models. The results showed that the Indonesian Model and Modified Simandoux gave the closest water saturation values with more than 80% similarities compared with logging analysis and thus should be considered the best models. Therefore, it is hoped that the findings can help improve knowledge on the selection of water saturation models best suited to the nature of formation similar to the wells, especially to other hydrocarbon exploration in the Malay Basin.

Keywords: Water Saturation Models; Well Log; Reservoir Analysis; Shaly Sand

Investment casting is a well-known method for producing precise and finished products. The shell-making process takes a long time and consumes a large amount of coating sands. On the wax pattern tree, the ceramic coating sands are used as a primary coat and several backup coats. Zirconia sand is used for primary coating on a shell in this work. Backup coat sands are made up of fused silica and alumina silica. Colloidal silica is used as a binding material in the formation of all shells. In the work, the effect of fused silica and alumina-silica sand as a backup coat on casting properties was determined. The experimental work evaluated casing properties such as microstructures, grain size measurement, gas porosity, and shrinkages. On the dried, de-waxed, and fired shell, the porosity of the shell mold was determined for the permeability level. Alumina-silica sand has a porosity of 27 to 31 percent, whereas fused silica has a porosity of 22 to 25 percent. It produces better casting properties in alumina–silica casting products than fused silica. Casting grain sizes range from 22 to 38 microns. The grain size of alumina-silica casting is finer than that of fused silica shell casting. Gas porosity and shrinkage in the casting were found to be moderate in all castings.

Keywords: Investment casting; shell mold; backup coat; porosity; shrinkage; permeability

A detailed design and analysis of the energy and exergy performance of a Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)-powered fish drying machine are presented in this paper. The system designed is a modification to the conventional fish dryer which uses charcoal, electric or solar energy as sources of heat. The major problems of the conventional machines are; dangers of global warming from the burning of charcoals. The emission of smoke during operation causes environmental pollution which could have adverse effects on our respiratory systems. Moreover, it is difficult to attain uniform heat distribution using charcoal as a source of heat; erratic power supply in developing countries using electricity and inadequate sunshine using solar energy are all major problems of the conventional dryer. The gas-powered fish dryer is a fish processing device, which uses natural gas as the source of heat energy to reduce the moisture content of the fish. In this work, thermal analysis was carried out on the system after the design. The conduction and convection energy equations were applied to the system main component as well as the fish sample within the system. Numerical computational software (Scilab 6.0.0) was used in solving and analyzing the discretized form of the derived transient differential equations. Appropriate initial and boundary conditions were as well applied during the implementation of fully explicit forward and central difference numerical solutions for solving the differential equations. After solving and arriving at the temporal temperature profile of the dryer and the fish samples, other dependable parameters (energy consumed, exergy consumed, expended gas energy and exergy, energy and exergy efficiencies, etc.) were computed and plotted against time. After the result evaluation and testing, the designed machine proved successful and was found to have peak drying energy and exergy efficiencies of 90 % and 10% respectively.

Keywords: gas powered, galvanized mesh, oil pan, insulation, and chimney

Timber has long been a popular building material, with benefits such as low energy consumption and the ability to create an in-built atmosphere that helps to mitigate the effects of global warming. Afara (Terminalia Superba) is a well-known timber species with high demand in Nigeria. The objective of this paper is to assess the physical and mechanical properties of Afara (Terminalia Superba) wood, as well as the flexural strength in flatwise bending of its glued laminated timber beam using polyurethane (PUR) adhesive, to determine its viability for structural construction. The research specimens were made using MS758:2001, EN408, and ASTM D198:2013 standards for the physical and mechanical properties tests. By MS758:2001, a shear test for glue line integrity was conducted to assess the bond performance of the glulam. In the laboratory, bending tests were performed on five glulam beams and five solid beams. Glulam beams were glued together with polyurethane (PUR) adhesive. The bending strength of solid wood was higher than that of glue-laminated wood. Solid Afara (Terminalia Superba) beams have a bending strength of 40.09 N/mm², whereas glued laminated timber has a bending strength of 19.18 N/mm². The preliminary investigation of the timber under BS 5268 (structural use of timber) revealed that glue-laminated beams can be used as structural members in a flatwise orientation, despite their strength being lesser than that of solid beams. Also, the polyurethane adhesive strength has an inverse relationship with the moisture content of the specimens at room temperature.

Keywords: Afara wood; Glulam beam; Polyurethane Adhesive; Bending Strength

Nowadays, the issue of efficient desalination and treatment of seawater for its further use in various domains of human activity is of much interest worldwide. There are plenty of known treatment techniques. This research paper discusses the method of hydrodynamic cavitation treatment in a heat generator in various modes and proves the performance efficiency of this method. The process of treating saline solutions of different concentrations and registration of electric conductivity of solutions are studied. The possibility of changing the concentration of salt in the solution by treating it in a vortex cavitation heat generator is undertaken. The efficiency of the cavitation process depends on the temperature of the working environment: with the temperature increase, the desalination intensity decreases. Two possible scenarios of the process are revealed, i.e., the decrease in the concentration of salt in the solution or its increase in the presence of a salt source. When working on depleted solutions with a salinity of 1÷5 ‰ at high temperatures, the reverse diffusion of previously adsorbed salts from the internal surfaces into the solution takes place. When working on solutions of elevated concentrations in the same high-temperature range, the reverse diffusion decreases and at a salinity of 67 ‰, its effect ceases, since the concentration of salts on the inner surfaces becomes comparable to the concentration of the solution. The hypothesis of centrifugal separation of salts from water is experimentally proved.

Keywords: Seawater; Hydrodynamic cavitation; Diffusion; Desalination; Separation; Cavitation bubble; Cavity; Electric conductivity

The focus of this research is to investigate the effect of water content and sand grain size on the green compression strength of a greensand casting mould mixture. Grain size is a major determinant of mould and core green compression strength and surface finish of the greensand casting product. Water influences the efficiency of binder which is bentonite clay in bonding the sand grain particles thus improving the green compression strength. The objective of this study is to study the effect of grain size and water on the green compression strength. The specimen is prepared by mechanical size grading and graded into three sizes which are 425 μm, 300 μm and 150 μm. Experiments are carried out in accordance with American Foundrymen Society (AFS) guidelines. Three ramming blows of 6666 grammes with a Ridsdale-Dietert metric standard rammer compact cylindrical test pieces with dimensions of Ø50 mm×50 mm in height made from varied sand grain size–water ratios bound with 5% bentonite. The test pieces are tested for green compression strength with Ridsdale-Dietert Universal Sand Strength Machine. The sand grain size of 150 μm is found to have superiority in green compression strength compared to two other sizes, and 3% water content gives the maximum green compression strength for all three sand samples sizes.

Keywords: Sand casting, green compression strength, greensand casting mould

Traffic noise pollution is one of the problems in the urban environment as a result of rapid economic development which has led to an increase in the volume of diversified motor vehicle traffic flows. This condition may affect the well-being and human health as well as its surroundings if exposed to high noise levels for a long period of time or continuously. Therefore, this study was conducted to measure the level of traffic noise at 15 selected observation stations around Kulim city, Kedah. Next, the noise distribution coverage area is mapped by using Inverse Distance Weight (IDW) interpolation technique. Sound data was measured in the morning, noon, evening and night of working and non-working days by using the Sound Level Meter device. Sound observation data was analyzed to depict the concentration areas of traffic noise at the station involved in form of map visualization. Noise level comparisons were analyzed together with Department of Environment (DOE) and World Health Organization (WHO) standards. The results of the study found that all the sampling stations exceeded the standard limits allowed on working days as well as non -working days for urban and commercial land-use types. The mean values of the highest noise levels (Leq) on working days and non-working days at day times were 78.2 (S7) and 80.3 dBA (S5) respectively. Meanwhile, the highest noise level readings recorded on working days and not working at night were 76.6 and 76.9 dBA respectively, which involves observation stations 2 and 3. Several mitigation strategies were stated to overcome the problem of traffic noise in the city as a measure to curb noise pollution in the affected areas.

Keywords: GIS; interpolation techniques; traffic noise

The prediction of slope stability was performed using artificial neural networks (ANNs) in this work. The factor of safety determined by numerical analysis was used to develop ANN’s data sets. The inputs to the network are slope height, applied surcharge and slope angle. Correlation coefficients between numerical data and ANNs outputs showed the feasibility of ANNs for successfully modelling and predicting safety issues. The ANNs training phase is improved using a genetic algorithm (GA), and the results are compared to those obtained without GA trained ANNs. A sensitivity analysis is conducted to ascertain the relative contribution of different factors on slope stability. The slope angle and applied surcharge have a significant effect on slope stability.

Keywords: Prediction; Road embankment; Slope stability; Safety factor; Artificial neural networks

Micropiles are mostly employed to resist static and seismic stresses and as an in-situ stabilizing device for slopes and excavations. A micropiles testing facility was designed to support the Light Rail Transit 3 (LRT3) project. A borehole of 150mm in diameter was used to install three micropiles that ranged in length from 3, 5, and 7 meters. This article explores the more detailed techniques used to complete foundation retrofits, with a focus on micropiles as a ground improvement method. The comparative analysis discussed the data obtained with the static load test and piles driving analyzer (PDA). This study found that the bearing capacity of Ru 177 tonnes and 111 tonnes are more than the load, which is calculated at 60.9 tonnes. Finally, several recommendations for further research were presented after evaluation to prevent micropiles damage was performed.

Keywords: Micropiles; Ground improvement; Piles driving analyzer; Static load test; Bearing capacity