Light emitting diode with multifaceted reflector to increase coupling efficiency and alignment tolerance

A light source, such as an LED, is provided with a multifaceted reflector to facilitate coupling of emitted light into an optical waveguide such as an optical fiber. In a preferred embodiment, a conventional LED fabricated on one side of a transparent substrate is provided with a series of integral concentric reflecting rings on the opposite side of the substrate. The rings reflect light diverging from the LED toward the central axis of an optical fiber light.Published versio

Advanced Space Suit PLSS 2.0 Cooling Loop Evaluation and PLSS 2.5 Recommendations

From 2012 to 2015 The NASA/JSC AdvSS (Advanced Space Suit) PLSS (Primary Life Support Subsystem) team, with support from UTC Aerospace Systems, performed the build-up, packaging and testing of PLSS 2.0. A key aspect of that testing was the evaluation of the long-term health of the water cooling circuit and the interfacing components. Intermittent and end-of-test water, residue and hardware analyses provided valuable information on the status of the water cooling circuit, and the approaches that would be necessary to enhance water cooling circuit health in the future. The evaluated data has been consolidated, interpreted and woven into an action plan for the maintenance of water cooling circuit health for the planned FY (fiscal year) 2016 through FY 2018 PLSS 2.5 testing. This paper provides an overview of the PLSS 2.0 water cooling circuit findings and the associated steps to be taken in that regard for the PLSS 2.5 testing

Advanced Space Suit PLSS 2.0 Cooling Loop Evaluation and PLSS 2.5 Recommendations

From 2012 to 2015 The NASA/JSC AdvSS (Advanced Space Suit) PLSS (Portable Life Support Subsystem) team, with support from UTC Aerospace Systems, performed the build-up, packaging and testing of PLSS 2.0. One aspect of that testing was the evaluation of the long-term health of the water cooling circuit and the interfacing components. Periodic and end-of-test water, residue and hardware analyses provided valuable information on the status of the water cooling circuit, and the approaches that would be necessary to enhance water cooling circuit health in the future. The evaluated data has been consolidated, interpreted and woven into an action plan for the maintenance of water cooling circuit health for the planned FY (fiscal year) 2016 through FY 2018 PLSS 2.5 testing. This paper provides an overview of the PLSS 2.0 water cooling circuit findings and the associated steps to be taken in that regard for the PLSS 2.5

Noise and disturbance caused by vehicles crossing cattle grids: comparison of installations

Cattle grids are used on roads and tracks to prevent grazing animals from leaving an open space without fencing onto a more controlled area where access to the road from surrounded land is more limited. They are widely used in the UK at the entrances to common and moorland areas where animals are free to roam, but also on private drive entrances. Typically, they consist of a series of metal bars across the road that are spaced so that an animal’s legs would fall through the gaps if it attempted to cross. Below the grid is a shallow pit that is intended to further deter livestock from using that particular crossing point. The sound produced as vehicles cross these devices is a characteristic low frequency “brrrr” where the dominant frequencies relates to the bar passage frequency under the tyres. The sound can be disturbing to riders and their horses and walkers and residents living close by as evidenced by press reports and the need to consider noise aspects in planning for new installations. For this reason and due to the lack of available information on the size and nature of the problem measurements and recordings have been made at a number of sites in Yorkshire in the UK. In addition, questionnaire surveys of residents living close by and façade measurements have also been used to gauge impact. Results show that there is a wide variation in the maximum noise level produced by cattle grids of apparently similar design. This can be related to impact noise produced by the movement of all or part of the grid as the frame comes under impulsive loading as the vehicle crosses. It was further established that some residents living close to the cattle grids were disturbed by the noise, and in some cases vibration, and wanted them removed or suitably modified

Measuring and managing the social value created by a diverse construction business

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) broadly describes the environmental, social and ethical business practices of an organisation, and has evolved from the superfluous extravagance of wealthy businessmen to a societal expectation of all organisations. Within the UK construction industry CSR is a public sector procurement criterion of such importance that how a contractor engages with CSR could ultimately be the difference between success and failure. Despite this, agreements on defining CSR are still heavily debated, resulting in both conflicting definitions, and conflicting approaches as to how CSR should be interpreted, which has arguably held back development of this important concept. Against the backdrop of these ongoing debates, contractors are now expected to communicate their CSR strategy and practices as well as measure the resulting social value. To help meet this expectation a variety of different social value measurement tools have been introduced with each offering a different interpretation of social value. This subjectivity however, adds further conflict and tension to existing CSR debates and potentially restricts the wide adoption of any single measurement tool, hindering meaningful benchmarking between organisations. The tools that have gained the most stakeholder awareness, and traction within the industry, have tended to reduce social value to monetary variables in an effort to be widely adopted. However, by doing so the wider, nuanced, and difficult to measure aspects of social value can be missed. The increasing CSR demands placed upon contractors include the need to develop strategies, practices, and effective communication techniques to satisfy disparate stakeholders, often simultaneously, in order to remain competitive and even survive as an organisation. However, such demands are not easy to meet, especially when each client has their own interpretation and expectation of CSR. The problem therefore exists that contractors with finite resources may be unsure which CSR practices to pursue, how to measure the resulting social value, and how to effectively communicate such practices to satisfy often-competing stakeholder demands. This problem manifests itself in both unsuccessful procurement attempts resulting from contractors not fully understanding client specific CSR needs, and CSR practices being undertaken that result in little social value generated. This is a specific problem in the construction industry identified by Willmott Dixon (WD), the sponsoring organisation. As part of a tender process for a high value public sector framework WD are expected to have in place a tool to effectively measure and communicate social value. The role of the researcher is to find a workable solution for WD to engage with the ambiguous and nebulous concept of CSR in a tangible and practical way. WD s social value needs to be measured and evidenced to ensure their practices are effective and to increase the likelihood of a successful public sector framework tender. The aim of this research is to explore how the concept of CSR can be operationalised and the resulting social value be measured and communicated to multiple stakeholders. The objectives include exploring the conceptualisation and measurement of CSR, establishing how CSR is communicated and understood, examining how different stakeholder interpretations can be made to align, and operationalising a tool to measure and communicate social value. Due to both the subjective nature of CSR amongst stakeholders and the objective nature in the way CSR is expected to be measured and communicated this research project is split into two main research packages. The first of which consists of an extensive literature review that informs the use of qualitative semi-structured interviews conducted with both clients and contractors, as well as a Qualitative Content Analysis (QCA) of contractor CSR reports. The second research package is focussed upon how CSR can be practically engaged with, and building upon the findings and understandings of the first research package, concentrates on the development, piloting and implementation of a social value measurement tool. The findings of the first research package include understanding how CSR is communicated internally and externally, and how it is understood, practiced and measured by multiple stakeholders. The first research package successfully led to the publication of four research papers (appendices 1.0 - 4.0) and informed the second research package in the development and operationalisation of a social value measurement tool, named mi|career. Mi|career is now rolled out across WD s multiple business units and played a small but positive role in the successful procurement of the £2billion public sector framework. The main contributions of this research are twofold. The first, the development of an effective social value measurement tool to fulfil WD needs. The second, a contribution to contemporary debates on CSR and social value, including an understanding of how contractors and clients make sense of CSR differently, why public sector bodies are increasingly using CSR and social value criterion in procurement, and the unanticipated negative ramifications of the introduction of the Social Value Act. Additionally. The research also contributed to the understanding of how ambiguous language use by contractors to communicate CSR with disparate stakeholders simultaneously sustains CSR (as a corporate metric and driver) and undermines it (in being viewed as a rhetorical device). This allows contractors who only symbolically engage with CSR to masquerade as those who substantially engage, and forces those who substantively engage to obfuscate the additional benefits they bring in order to be understood by clients. The EngD attended to this theoretical issue by helping to inform WD s CSR strategies, with social value measurement viewed as a method of evidencing substantial CSR engagement without the need to obfuscate their CSR communications. The research has also helped understand how the theoretical lenses of sensemaking, stakeholder theory and legitimacy theory can be successfully mobilised to develop further understandings within the field of construction management

I-64 New Albany Emergency Pipe Repair

In 2015 a 13-foot diameter corrugated metal pip collapsed under 50+ feet of fill adjacent to I-64 in New Albany, Indiana. INDOT contracted Parsons to design an emergency geotechnical, structural, and environmental solution. Substantial flow through the pipe was reestablished just 5 weeks after the collapse, mitigating the risk of additional flooding or possible damage to the Interstate. Join us to learn about this project, which is an excellent example of teamwork between owner, engineer, permitting agencies, and contractor

Making sense of CSR in construction: Do contractor and client perceptions align?

The achievement of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) objectives is increasingly being viewed as of key importance in the procurement process of public sector construction projects. As such, main contractors and public sector clients are increasingly interested in and keen to espouse the benefits of CSR strategies and their measurement. However, it cannot be assumed that both sets of broad stakeholders share a common understanding of what CSR means, what it constitutes and how it can be used to serve vested interests. This research aims to provide a deeper understanding of the motivations for stakeholders across the public procurement divide to participate and engage in CSR related to the procurement and delivery of construction projects. In-depth semi-structured interviews with practitioners from main contractors and various public sector client organisations were conducted. These formed the basis of analysis in order to explore how each constituency made sense of CSR. The theoretical frame used to analyse the data drew from Weick's (1995) sensemaking approach and revealed similarities and differences in the understanding of CSR between the constituencies on either side of the contractual divide. The importance of, and motivation for, CSR participation is shared by constituencies, but an agreed definition couldn't be reached, and what 'counts' as CSR in one geographical location for one client, may not count for another. These findings challenge simplistic assumptions about CSR and highlight significant limitations on what CSR can deliver via public sector procurement processes

Making sense of CSR: translation between setters, enforcers and enactors

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategies are mobilised by organisations as a way of rectifying negative impacts of their business activity, improving reputation and making positive differences to society, the economy and the environment. Arguably, CSR strategies are set by Strategic management which are then interpreted, enforced and diffused by middle management. Such enforcement and diffusion is then further interpreted and enacted by operational staff. It cannot be assumed that strategic management (setters), middle management (enforcers) and operational staff (enactors) interpret and make sense of CSR in the same way, nor can it be assumed what is enacted, matches what was envisaged by the setters. Sensemaking is a continuous process of understanding individuals experience when faced with new information. In order to explore the on-going hierarchal process of interpretation when enacting a CSR strategy, a sensemaking lens is adopted to investigate the understandings, motivations and behaviours within a national construction organisation. Qualitative interviews were conducted with various practitioners in an attempt to discover how different levels of the organisational hierarchy made sense of a CSR strategy. Drawing from Weick’s (1995) seven principles of sensemaking, analysis of the qualitative data revealed sensemaking to differ across those who set, enforce and enact CSR strategies. The research confirms arguments about the way strategies are typically assumed to diffuse and also draws in arguments regarding the separation between formulation and implementation of strategies

Guest editorial: The impacts of the construction industry’s increasing focus on disaster resilience

Both disaster resilience and the wider social responsibility of construction organisations are increasingly important and increasingly under stakeholder scrutiny. This is not limited to a single country or geographical region with all nations experiencing the negative impacts of increasing prevalent disasters. Knowledge of the resilience of the built environment, including preparedness, response and recovery, has advanced significantly over recent years. We are now in an era where resilience is seen as a key constituent of the built environment. But the recurring and devastating impacts of disasters constantly challenge us to improve our practices and seek ways of reaching greater heights in the quest of achieving a resilient built environment. Many of the initiatives to enhance resilience in the built environment carry financial implications. The increasing need for built environment organisations to focus on, and be seen to focus on, creating social value also carries financial implications. Such implications must be balanced with the need to make a profit or often to simply ensure business survival. This Special Issue serves to capitalise on the growing importance of the twin contemporary demands placed upon construction finance – creating a positive impact in society and ensuring both built assets and the construction companies themselves are disaster resilient. These demands need to be better understood and explored in the context of construction finance so benefits can be maximised for all stakeholders. This timely special issue is intended to reinforce the increasing importance of disaster resilience and its prominent place in construction management research and practice. Focusing on a wide range of interconnected topics, from a wide range of countries, this special issue, brings together new knowledge, theories and practice related to disaster resilience from a truly global perspective. The topic of disaster resilience spans countries, professions and technologies. It permeates its way onto the agenda of all construction industry stakeholders and impacts nearly all aspects of the industry itself, from how assets are designed, constructed, maintained and ultimately demolished. As guest editors, our overall aim is to advance the emerging body of knowledge in the disaster management practices of the built environment, especially by shedding light on the multi-faceted challenge of enhancing disaster resilience in the built environment. The papers selected for this special issue each serve to enhance our understanding of the impacts disasters can have upon communities and the built environment. However, more than simply identifying and articulating these disaster impacts, the selected papers identify rays of hope, ideas of innovation and best practices. These can be, and are, currently adopted by built environment practitioners to enhance disaster resilience around the globe, from Indonesia to Iran, India to Sri Lanka, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Spark Plasma Sintering Of (Zr,Nb)C Ceramics

A range of (Zr,Nb)C ceramics containing 20–50 vol% NbC were spark plasma sintered at 2000°C. The ceramics had relative densities greater than 97 %, and all compositions formed a complete solid solution. The average grain size was ∼7.1 µm over all compositions. Elastic moduli values ranged from 436 to 445 GPa, and the fracture toughness ranged from 0.8 to 2.8 MPa·m1/2 over the compositional range, both increasing with increasing NbC content. The hardnesses of the (Zr,Nb)C ceramics ranged from 19.1 to 20.2 GPa at a load of 9.81 N. The flexural strength increased from 352 to 395 MPa as the NbC content decreased from 50 to 20 vol%. The successful solid solution formation and densification of the (Zr,Nb)C ceramics provide a surrogate framework for substituting UC for the NbC to produce (Zr,U)C ceramics for nuclear applications