Annual Report Year 2004 - Civil and Environmental Engineering

Vecellio Construction Engineeringand Management ProgramPROGRAM AREAS: VCEMPCEM students analyzed the productivity of the constructioneffort on the new Alumni Center at Virginia Tech.The Vecellio Construction Engineering andManagement Program (VCEMP) is supported bythe Vecellio family, American Infrastructure, Inc.,the Construction Affiliates, and the many otherfriends of VCEMP. The strong support helps theVCEMP faculty develop state-of-the-art educational, research,and outreach efforts.Students analyze productivity factorsduring construction of Alumni CenterThanks to tools developed by the Field OperationsAnalysis Laboratory (FOAL), students in Mike Vorster’sEquipment Means and Methods class had the opportunity toperform real-time measurement and analysis of factors thataffect construction productivity in the field.Using GPS-position recording devices and digital timelapsephotography, the class observed the construction ofVirginia Tech’s new Alumni Center. Students attached shortintervalposition recording devices to equipment at the siteand obtained data showing the position of each machine atone-second intervals throughout the day. The data were usedto produce plots showing the production cycles performedand determine cycle times.The exercise gave students an opportunity to use the verylatest technology to study field operations and showed howindustrial support, research and teaching work together toimprove engineering education at Virginia Tech. FOAL, headedby Vorster, is developing the tools, technologies andexpertise needed for improving performance in constructionoperations. The laboratory is supported by partners in theconstruction industry and the Construction Affiliates.14Courses expose studentsto current practices, technologyVCEMP courses are well enrolled at both the undergraduateand graduate level. Jesus de la Garza, CEE’s VecellioProfessor, taught Construction Control Techniques duringthe 2003 fall semester. Spring semester found de la Garzabeginning his appointment at the National Science Foundation(NSF).Tony Songer taught Introduction to Construction Managementand Construction Research Presentation/Topics duringfall 2003 and Information Technology in Construction in thespring.Mike Vorster, who continues to serve as the David Burrowsprofessor in VCEMP, taught Estimating, Production and CostControl to large classes during both semesters, as well asEquipment Means and Methods in the fall and ContractAdministration during the spring.Jim Lefter is spending a year with VCEMP while de la Garzais at the NSF. Lerter taught Case Studies in ConstructionManagement and the CEE Construction Graduate Seminar inthe spring and is teaching two courses during fall 2004. Lefterhas many years of experience in design and construction in privatepractice, industry, and government. Most of his experiencewas designing and building hospitals for the U.S. VeteransAdministration. As a senior executive he served in many positions:chief structural engineer; project director and contractingofficer for all major VA construction projects in the southernUnited States; and director of architecture and engineering.After retiring, in1987, he taught construction engineering andmanagement for 11 years as a visiting professor at the Universityof Illinois. Lefter taught at Virginia Tech’s Northern VirginiaCenter until 2002 and recently served on a National Academyof Engineering Committee reviewing Boston’s “Big Dig.”Stanford CEE chair servesas first affiliates visiting scholarRobert Tatum, chair of Stanford University’s Civil andEnvironmental Engineering Department, served as thefirst VCEMP affiliates distinguished visiting scholar. Theprogram was established by the Construction Affiliates to invitea distinguished scholar of construction engineering and managementto visit Virginia Tech, spend time with the VCEMP studentsand faculty, and work closely with affiliate organizations.In addition to presenting a seminar, Tatum’s visit resulted ina report on Construction Innovation in Using GlobalPositioning Systems for Earthmoving and a technical researchpaper co-authored with Mike Vorster, “A Systems Analysis ofTechnical Advancement in Earthmoving Equipment.”