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A Case Study: Impacts of a Building Retrofit on Employee Efficiency and Productivity
Get PDFThis case study explores the effects of retrofitting building systems on operational efficiency and employee productivity in the contemporary office environment. As concerns over sustainability and the well-being of employees are now at the forefront of modern workplace design, the retrofitting of outmoded building systems has been seen as an option to enhance energy efficiency and occupant satisfaction. This research paper focuses on the recently retrofitted Performance Contracting office building in Benicia, California. As heating and ventilation systems, and lighting are two big contributors to energy consumption in buildings and comfort, analyzing these systems provided insight into its building performance. This paper applies a qualitative and quantitative analysis looking at key metrics such as system performance, indoor air quality, and employee feedback on their productivity and comfort post-retrofit. Research findings indicated that the building retrofit improved employee efficiency, productivity, and comfort
Exploring Mass Timber and MiTek POSI-Strut System in Modern Construction
Get PDFThis study evaluates the performance, cost-effectiveness, and constructability of two different truss systems by constructing identically sized mockup models. The comparison focuses on the top chord POSI-Strut Metal Web System and the bottom chord truss system, both utilizing Boise Cascade LVL engineered lumber. Our findings reveal that the top chord POSI structure truss system is more cost-effective and time-efficient compared to the bottom chord truss system. The top chord system\u27s design reduces material costs and speeds up construction time, making it an attractive option for projects with tight budgets and schedules. However, the top chord POSI-Strut Metal Web System has a significant drawback: it lacks symmetry in framing. This asymmetry introduces complications in the constructability, posing challenges for builders during the assembly process. In contrast, the bottom chord truss system, although less economical and more time-consuming, offers better symmetry in framing. This symmetry simplifies the construction process, making it easier and more straightforward for builders to execute the framing, yet forces more labor on the overall installation of the truss. While the top chord POSI-Strut Metal Web System provides economic and time-saving advantages, its complexity in framing can lead to potential constructability issues
Feasibility of Implementing a Construction Project in an International Country
Get PDFThis paper examines the execution of an international service project involving the construction of a complex system. It explores three distinct approaches assuming a fully designed system: building the system in the U.S. and shipping it internationally, having system pieces constructed entirely in the destination country prior to arrival for assembly, and developing a prototype in the U.S. followed by the construction of a full-scale system in the international country. Each method presents unique advantages and challenges. Building in the U.S. ensures high quality, advanced technology, and meeting tolerances, however, leads to significant fees, shipping costs, and logistical complications. Constructing in the host country can be cost-effective and foster local engagement but may face quality control and resource availability issues. The hybrid approach of prototyping in the U.S. and scaling up internationally combines the strengths of both methods but requires extensive coordination and may encounter compatibility problems. Depending on the relationship with your international contact and the complexity of the system, any method can be the best choice for your project. This analysis aims to guide decision-making in international project execution, emphasizing efficiency, cost, and community impact
Operation WEBS - Tiny Home on Wheels: Quantity Take-off, Estimate, and Site Logistics
Get PDFThe objective of this paper is to highlight and discuss the process of performing quantity take-offs, completing an estimate, and creating a site logistics plan for the Operation WEBS (Women Empowered Build Strong) Tiny Home on Wheels project performed at the Paso Robles State Fair. This project is a part of the interdisciplinary project based senior project completed by California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, College of Architecture and Environmental Design students Brendan Moynahan and Jake Torres. Brendan Moynahan performed the deliverables covered in this paper while Jake Torres completed his own deliverables for another paper. Our individual responsibilities came together to create a full preconstruction package for the tiny home on wheels project. This project has been completed with the help of Hunter Smith Architecture, Wethington Engineering Inc., Union Electrician Lloyd Taylor, and Union Plumber Paolo Sena. The goal of the overall project being to provide a place of housing for a displaced female veteran through Sandy Blair’s nonprofit Operation WEBS. Our team intended to design and construct a home that will change the life of a displaced female veteran while also displaying Cal Poly CM students’ ability to provide construction management services on a small-scale residential project. This paper will show the preconstruction process that our team went through to deliver a full preconstruction package and will highlight the details of the quantity take-offs, estimate, and site logistics that were created by Brendan Moynahan
Design And Analysis Of Zero Voltage Switching Hybrid Voltage Divider
No full textThis work explores the design, construction, and analysis of a novel DC-DC converter which incorporates combinations of switching capacitors and inductors to achieve an integer voltage divider function, without the need for a feedback loop controller to achieve the desired output voltage. The proposed Hybrid Voltage Divider additionally provides zero voltage switching (ZVS) at turn on transitions which yields improved overall efficiency of the converter. Besides a proof-of-concept via computer simulations, another primary goal of this thesis is to demonstrate the functionalities of the proposed Zero Voltage Switching Hybrid Voltage Divider (ZVS-HVD) through hardware prototyping. The proposed ZVS-HVD was designed and constructed to provide a 2:1 division with 24V input voltage at 120W maximum output power utilizing 500kHz switching frequency. Findings from simulations and hardware tests verify that the converter effectively provides the desired 12V output at varying loads with less than 5% voltage ripple. The efficiency of the converter reaches 95.02% at full load and peak efficiency of 96.33% at 55% load. Moreover, the converter consistently maintains the ZVS operations across all switches under varying loads. Overall, results verify the feasibility of the proposed ZVS HVD converter as an alternative solution in providing high efficiency DC voltage division without the need for complex feedback circuitry
Echoes of Nature: Using Biodata Sonification to Model Electrical Communication in Plants
Get PDFThe use of biodata sonification as a tool to visualize biological data is a response to recent developments in the intersection of art and technology. This project explores the intersection by converting the electrical impulses given off by plants into audio signals. By processing and amplifying the voltage difference between two electrodes on a plant, its communication is quantified. The goal is to use this communication model as a tool to increase ecological awareness as well as improve machine learning models. A deeper understanding of non-human communication systems, specifically those that employ superposition decision matrices, could help to drastically increase the power of computing
A Novel Concussion Detection System Utilizing Pressure Transducers
No full textThe goal of this study was to build and test a concussion detection device using fluid pressure. The study was an investigation on the efficacy of a pressure device, as well as attempting to compare the pressure metric to well documented acceleration metrics. An impact delivery system, head model, and data recording system was developed to simulate concussive impacts and record pressure and acceleration data. The study’s results were all under the operating pressure range of 15 psi, which resulted in impacts significantly below acceleration concussive thresholds set in literature. Because of that, this study’s findings do not prove or disprove the effectiveness of a pressure based model, further investigation is required to understand the relationship between pressure and impact
Practical Model of a LabVIEW Controlled Active Magnetic Bearing on a Bently Rotor Kit Validated with Matlab and MSC ADAMS
Get PDFThis thesis aimed to model a rotor supported by an active magnetic bearing (AMB). The magnetic force equation due to a single electromagnet was first derived which served as the basis of AMB modeling. The finalized model utilized Matlab, Simulink, and MSC Adams to simulate a rotor supported by an AMB. Matlab and Simulink were used to model the AMB control system and actuator output. MSC Adams was used to capture the dynamics of a flexible rotor. This model was verified by comparing the model’s simulated vibration to real vibration data measured from a modified Bently Nevada rotor kit equipped with an AMB system in Cal Poly’s Vibrations Lab. This AMB system was designed and manufactured by a Cal Poly Senior Project team in 2016. The AMB system was enhanced to include a newly designed current sensing PCB to directly measure the current running through the AMB coils. To make full use of the AMB system, a new fully customized LabVIEW program was created capable of controlling the shaft and producing high resolution rotor monitoring data such as orbit, amplitude bode, and full spectrum plots. Use of the LabVIEW program with correct controller gains resulted in vibration reduction. Through controller tuning it was found that derivative gain has the highest impact on the controller’s ability to reduce vibration
Hypoxic Incubator: Improving Robustness/Reliability and Demonstrating Physiological Efficacy
Get PDFThe Microphysiological Systems Laboratory aims to develop colorectal cancer tumor models under a hypoxic environment to assess model response to pharmaceutical compounds in vitro. To perform relevant studies, researchers have attempted to use different hypoxic inducing strategies such as a nitrogen pod and hypoxic incubator to recreate in vivo physiological responses to hypoxia. However, studies would be interrupted due to incubator functionality failure. To ensure successful and physiologically relevant studies, I improved and verified the robustness and reliability of a hypoxic incubator previously designed and manufactured in the lab. Through the testing and iterating design processes, I engineered and implemented solutions for the problems identified and validated these solutions through a series of functionality and reliability tests. PCB design on EAGLE software, outsourced manufacturing, and integration through component soldering and wire reconfiguration ensured permanent, robust, and reliable device electrical circuity. Sensor component replacement allowed for a more accurate hypoxic environment. Functionality and reliability tests were conducted to ensure the device was able to meet threshold values in startup phase, maintain these values throughout chronic hypoxia experiments, and sufficiently recover threshold conditions from interferences caused by chamber door opening. Improvements in user experience, device usability, and operator repeatability and reproducibility were made through the design and implementation of a simple and effective user interface. To assess the physiological efficacy of a hypoxic incubator an experiment was conducted using the designed incubator. The goal of the study was to observe the Warburg effect, a physiological phenomenon in cancer cells under hypoxia. 3T3 mouse fibroblast and SW620 colorectal cancer cells were cultured under three environmental conditions: nitrogen induced hypoxia pod, hypoxia with CO2 control, and normoxia incubation. Cell count was analyzed through inverted microscope fluorescent imaging and ImageJ processing to quantify cell proliferation activity. Data was analyzed using JMP to determine statistical significance in study results. The incubator maintained hypoxic conditions throughout the 7-day testing period as well as passed all functionality tests. The hypoxic incubator efficacy study resulted in a successful recreation of the Warburg effect observing the maintained proliferation ability of cancer cells under hypoxia which negatively impacted 3T3 cell proliferation. These results verified a robust, reliable, and effective hypoxic incubator for use in the MPS Lab to develop accurate tumor models and conduct relevant cancer research
Craving a New Look: Rebrand of Cafe Crepes
Get PDFCafe Crepes, located in the heart of downtown San Luis Obispo, is an established business that has been serving customers for over 10 years. However, despite their prime location and experience, Cafe Crepes often goes unnoticed and struggles to attract attention from the community due to their poor brand image and visibility. Cafe Crepes\u27 current brand image is outdated and visually uninviting, primarily due to their existing logo, color scheme, and typeface. Additionally, Cafe Crepes suffers from low brand visibility due to minimal and inconsistent advertising efforts. The goal of this senior project is to transform Cafe Crepes\u27 brand image to become modern, professional, and visually inviting for new customers through the redesign of their logo and brand guideline. The new logo and brand guideline will be applied to create and design business cards, mockups, menu template, and social media templates