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Project Managers do IT better?
Get PDFProbably the single biggest agent of change in business processes over the past fifteen years has been the introduction, use and development of Information Technology (IT). This is also likely to be true for the construction industry, but many observers suggest that our industry has not introduced, used or developed IT to anything like the extent to which it could or should.
This article considers how individual Project Managers, and firms that act in a Project Management capacity, can encourage the exploitation of IT on their construction projects. The benefits of doing so may not just accrue to the client (e.g. improved quality/performance, lower total costs, faster completion times) and the general economy; there are also potential benefits (e.g. increased profits, less stress, greater job satisfaction) for all participants in the construction project process, including the Project Manager
In Florence Nitingale's Footsteps: A Biography of Mary O'Connell Bianconi with Particular Reference to her Nursing Career
Get PDFThe influence of the leading firms on the exploitation of IT in the Irish construction industry
No full textThe problem of how construction industries around the world can exploit the potential of Information Technology (IT) for the benefit of participants has been the focus of attention for various individuals, enterprises, institutions and governments in recent years. Consideration of how the Irish construction industry should approach this problem has been limited to date. Although it is recognised that there are a number of existing and potential influences, this paper considers the role that the current leading firms in the Irish construction industry can and should play in order that the industry as a whole exploits IT over the next five years. It is proposed that if the Irish construction industry is to progress quickly in relation to exploiting IT, these leading firms need to develop their own appropriate IT strategies. They should subsequently use their considerable influence on the many firms that they do business with to develop complementary IT strategies. The rate at which the current leading firms can exploit IT and persuade others to do so is considered. Reference is also made to the results of a 1998 survey of the leading architectural, consulting engineering, quantity surveying and contracting firms in the Irish construction industry
Stories of Male Suicide and Other Misadventures in Masochism: the challenge for therapy
Get PDFThis paper is concerned with the dramatic increase in the number of men's suicide in Ireland. The paper offers an analysis for a social constructive perspective as to why so many men might be choosing to kill themselves and also why many of these men are not using the types of therapeutic services which are currently on offer
Series expansions for the magnetisation of a solid superparamagnetic system of non-interacting particleswith anisotropy
Get PDFThe calculation of the magnetisation curve of an assembly of non-interacting fine superparamagnetic particles, with uniaxial anisotropy and easy axes fixed in a solid non-magnetic matrix is considered. The presence of anisotropy complicates the calculation which otherwise would result in the Langevin function. The calculation for particles with anisotropy and easy axes fixed at arbitrary angles to the external field, requires the calculation of the partition function, which has previously been expressed exactly as a double integral or as a sum of single integrals. We have recently shown how the partition function can be reduced to a single integral and here we show how this can be expressed as a double infinite series containing known functions. Special cases are considered, some existing analytic formulae are reobtained, and some new analytic formulae are presented. For identical particles the deviation from the Langevin function is known to be considerable. The formulae presented should facilitate the incorporation of the effects of anisotropy
A STUDY OF THE USE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (IT) IN THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND CONSTRUCTION SECTOR
Get PDFThe current use of Information Technology (IT) by the leading Architectural, Consulting Engineering, Quantity Surveying and Contracting firms in the Republic of Ireland is assessed. Estimates of the future use of IT by these firms and the Irish construction sector in general are also included. The results are based on a wide ranging questionnaire survey conducted amongst the top 50 in each of the four sub-sectors. These results are presented under the headings ‘Computer Hardware and Software’, ‘Communications’, ‘Management of IT’, ‘Difficulties with IT’, ‘Strategy and IT’ and ‘General influence of IT on the Irish construction sector’. Some comparisons with the results from other similar surveys in other countries are made. The survey reveals that although there are some similarities in the extent to which each of the sub-sectors are currently using IT and how they intend to use IT in the future, there are also some significant differences
The influence of the leading firms on the exploitation of IT in the Irish construction industry
Get PDFThe problem of how construction industries around the world can exploit the potential of Information Technology (IT) for the benefit of participants has been the focus of attention for various individuals, enterprises, institutions and governments in recent years.
Consideration of how the Irish construction industry should approach this problem has been limited to date. Although it is recognised that there are a number of existing and potential influences, this paper considers the role that the current leading firms in the Irish construction industry can and should play in order that the industry as a whole exploits IT over the next five years.
It is proposed that if the Irish construction industry is to progress quickly in relation to exploiting IT, these leading firms need to develop their own appropriate IT strategies. They should subsequently use their considerable influence on the many firms that they do business with to develop complementary IT strategies.
The rate at which the current leading firms can exploit IT and persuade others to do so is considered. Reference is also made to the results of a 1998 survey of the leading architectural, consulting engineering, quantity surveying and contracting firms in the Irish construction industry
A single integral expression for the magnetisation of a textured superparamagnetic system
Get PDFA superparamagnetic system consists of many single domain particles with relaxation times smaller than the time of measurement (t=100 s), with the result that thermal agitation leads to zero magnetisation in zero field,M(H=0)=0 for t>100 s. For particles in a fluid, an external field will result in a magnetisation given by the Langevin function as inparamagnetism. However, particles fixed into position in the presence of a field, obtain an orientational texture. We still find M(H=0)=0, but the magnetisation is not given by the Langevin function. The model of Chantrell et al. can yield an expression for M capable of including texture. This requires the calculation of the partition function of the system which is a double integral in the coordinate system used. Here we reduce this double integral to a single integral
Plagues in Classical Literature
Get PDFAn account of the theme of plagues in Greek literature (Sophocles, Thucydides) and Roman literature (Lucretius, Virgil, Ovid
Information Systems Development (ISD) in Complex Settings as Interlocking Spirals of Sense-making
Get PDFThis paper assesses a research framework against the findings of a field research study. The framework employs the metaphor of a triple spiral as a means by which Weick’s sense-making concepts can be applied to ISD activities. The study examines the experiences of members of a large manufacturing organisation in a multinational company. Study participants included project teams members, consultants and senior management. This research is ongoing and other organisations are being engaged in the study. Results suggest that the framework is applicable to the ISD activity and could be used to encourage broad-based research in ISD i.e. research that brings together and understands the relationship between the IS as a social artefact and its complex organisational context. The results support the notion that the framework aids the understanding and management of change at micro- and macro- levels within organisations