Defect Costs in Residential Construction

The residential construction industry is an important contributor to the Australian economy; the industry employs a very large component of the national workforce, and yet the industry is plagued by defective work and poor quality. Previous research has revealed that defects and rework are endemic in the residential sector. In an attempt to quantify the degree of defects being experienced in new residential construction this paper provides an analysis of defects that were recorded by a government-owned housing insurance organization, the Housing Guarantee Fund. This research represents one of the most comprehensive research studies of building defects undertaken to date in Australia. The data used were not based on a sample like previous studies but instead represent all new houses constructed in Victoria, Australia between 1982 and 1997. An analysis of the data revealed that one house in eight reported defects, and that the cost of rectification was 4% of the construction contract value. The paper discusses the nature of the most important defects and investigates the impact of contractor type and building type.     

滚切式定尺剪机架分析研究

滚切式定尺剪目前广泛应用于中厚板生产线上,是中厚板生产线不可缺少的关键设备。针对目前定尺剪较通用的两种机架结构形式,"D口"形式和"C口"形式进行对比分析,通过有限元分析可知:两种结构机架均满足工况需要,但"D口"机架比"C口"机架抵抗变形能力有很大提高,实际剪切时机架应力最大平均值前者比后者降低了21%,剪切力方向上机架位移变形量前者比后者降低了40%。实践证明,定尺剪机架采用"D口"形式后增加了机架的刚度,更有利于剪刃间隙的稳定和剪切质量的提高。     

An Open and Flexible Tradition

There is a rich tradition of Rationalist architecture in Spain, dating back to the years immediately after the Spanish Civil War and then the period of postwar recovery in the 1950s. Josep Maria Montaner explains how this has developed across time into a contemporary interpretation of Rationalism that is versatile and inclusive, often combining Functionalist ideas with a stripped-back repertoire of materials and elements. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Islington Square,Manchester

With its bold gables, Islington Square is a conspicuous presence in New Islington, the area of east Manchester that is currently being developed to take the place of the dilapidated Cardroom Estate. Bruce Stewart explains how, rather than being an exercise in wilful pattern-making, the form of the facade and the interior planning of this unique scheme have come about as the result of FAT's lengthy consultation process with the housing residents. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of outdoor shared spaces on social interaction in a housing estate in Algeria

This study aims to identify how the characteristics of shared outdoor spaces in housing estates influence residents to interact with one another. The study specifically focuses on a housing project called la cité des 1000 logts, which is situated in a zone d'habitat urbaine nouvelle in Biskra, a city in South Algeria. The investigation draws on two sources of information, observations of the ways in which the residents use their neighborhood spaces and a questionnaire survey with residents about the perceived adequacy of these spaces for social interaction. Data for the survey was collected from the owners of flats in the apartment blocks surrounding the open spaces. Housing samples were taken from a total of 1000 housing units identified within the study area. Twenty five percent (25%) of the total housing units were selected. Out of the 250 questionnaires administered to household-heads who were the respondents, only 230 were subsequently retrieved for data analysis. Results showed that the high degree of “openness” of la cité des 1000 logts and the poor quality of communal outdoor spaces in the area discourage all forms of spatial use and reduce these outdoor spaces to transit areas. Furthermore, findings indicated that the layout of buildings and the quality of common outdoor spaces in residential neighborhoods substantially affect the use of these spaces and the social interaction among residents.     

Indoor air pollution in old people's homes related to some health problems: a survey study

The present research reports on a survey of 96 subjects between the ages of 60 and 95 years, living close to Paris in a social collective habitat. The aim was to show, using goodness-of-fit statistical tests (P < 0.1), how old people lifestyles can subject them to generated chemical or bacteriological indoor pollutants. Risk factors due to lifestyles were analyzed in relation to complaints and to health condition. There are many ways that old people are exposed to pollutants: difficulty in maintaining the residence, preference for staying in the kitchens, substantial use of cleaning chemicals. However, the principal risk for health problems is arguably inadequate ventilation (unclean screens, blocked air vents, etc.), which increases the concentration of indoor pollutants. These risks are amplified by ignorance about the hazards of inadequate ventilation. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The present investigation suggests that the lifestyle and the behavior of old people could be the cause of an interior air pollution of their housing. Measures realized in representative dwellings selected in relation to results must confirm that these risks would require the installation of an automatic monitoring system of the indoor air near these people.     

控制建房成本 降低住房造价

住房成本关系到亿万人民群众的切身利益，关系到党和人民群众的血肉联系。严格控制住房成本，降低住房造价是各级人民政府、住房设计单位、建设单位、房产开发单位、社会监理单位义不容辞的责任。本文针对近几年住房成本直线上升的问题，剖析了影响住房成本的各种因素，提出了控制住房成本的五项措施，在分析了社会各收入层次对住房的需求以后，提出了解决住房问题的三种方案，以加快住房建设步伐，控制住房成本，造福亿万人民。     

Net benefits of energy conservation in housing

The computer program FREDOCAN allows one to assess the impact of energy conservation policies on the household sector due to thermal insulation measures and to various options concerning domestic heating plants. the insulation policy must be specified, giving in input to the program the housing stock and the fraction of dwellings to be insulated as a function of time. the different insulation measures are evaluated both separately and in a combined way. the evaluations are performed both from financial and energy analysis point of view, determining the internal rates of return of the investments, financial and energy pay-back times under static and dynamic conditions. The space heat savings evaluated in the first part of the program allow one to calculate, in the second part, additional savings due to the reduction of the investments required for the heating plants. It is also possible to assess the variation with time of the heating plant mix, taking into account of improved efficiencies and different energy sources. A test case for the North of Italy is described. It shows that a very simple insulation of both existing and new houses limits the growth of energy demand to only 18 per cent above the 1977 consumption levels, although the combined effects of new constructions and of an extensive upgrading of heating systems would require a 75 per cent energy demand increase.     

关于住房公积金管理的思考

本文通过介绍中国住房公积金的发展以及新加坡公积金可资借鉴的经验,阐述了我国住房公积金制度在发展中存在的管理体制、利率政策等方面的问题,并就完善住房公积金管理提出了相应的建议。