IN THE FACE OF THE HIGH VARIABILITY IN THE COMPLETION OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS, THE FOLLOWING RESEARCH IS GENERATED. IN THE LITERATURE WE CAN FIND SEVERAL PROPOSALS TO PROGRAM PROJECTS, HOWEVER, THE VARIABILITY OF THE ACTIVITIES CAUSES HIGH VARIABILITY IN THE COMPLETION DATE OF THE PROJECTS. WE HOPE THAT THE PROPOSED METHOD, BY CONTROLLING THE START OF ACTIVITIES, WILL ENSURE THE COMPLETION DATE OF THE PROJECTS, BY FIXING THE START OF EVERY ACTIVITY WITH A HIGH LEVEL OF PROBABILISTIC CONFIDENCE FOR THE PLANNED PROJECT DURATION. THE PROPOSED FIXED START METHOD (FSM) WAS TESTED IN TWO CASE STUDIES BY USING DISCRETE EVENT SIMULATION. PROJECT COMPLETION DURATION RESULTS WERE COMPARED WITH THE CRITICAL PATH METHOD (CPM) AND THE PROGRAM EVALUATION AND REVIEW TECHNIQUE (PERT). PROJECT COMPLETION WAS EVALUATED IN THE CASE STUDIES BY THE COEFFICIENT OF VARIANCE (COV), MEAN, AND VARIANCE. THE NEW METHOD DECREASED THE SCHEDULED DURATION VARIABILITY WHILE MEETING PROJECT COMPLETION TIMES.

BUFFERS ARE USED TO DEAL WITH THE DETRIMENTAL IMPACTS OF UNCERTAINTY ON PROJECTS. HOWEVER, METHODS FOR THE ALLOCATION OF BUFFERS OFTEN PROVIDE SINGLE UNIQUE SOLUTIONS, WHICH ARE INEFFICIENT IN THE MULTIOBJECTIVE DECISION-MAKING ENVIRONMENT OF CONSTRUCTION. THIS PAPER DISCUSSES A PROBABILISTIC-BASED BUFFER ALLOCATION METHOD (PBAL), WHICH ENABLES THE FINAL DECISION ON BUFFER SIZE TO BE MADE BY THE PROJECT PLANNERS BASED ON THEIR PREFERENCES ABOUT PROJECT COMPLETION TIME. IT INVESTIGATES THE CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS WHERE EACH ACTIVITY STARTS AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE. ACCORDINGLY, THE DECISION INVOLVES DETERMINING THE SIZE OF TIME BUFFER AT THE END OF THE PROJECT NETWORK. THE ACCURACY OF THE RESULTS IS SUBJECTED TO APPROXIMATION AND NUMERICAL ERRORS IN THE MATHEMATICAL MODELS AMONG OTHERS. MOST BUFFER ALLOCATION HEURISTICS FOR PROJECTS HAVE APPROXIMATION ERRORS AND SIMULATION-BASED TECHNIQUES INTRODUCE NUMERICAL ERRORS BY THEIR ITERATIVE SAMPLING CALCULATION APPROACH. PBAL CAN MINIMIZE THESE ERRORS BY SUPPORTING IMPORTANT DETAILS OF MODELING THE PRODUCTION IN ACTIVITIES, AND PRESERVING THESE DETAILS WHEN MODELING AT THE PROJECT LEVEL. THE PBAL CAPABILITY TO MINIMIZE MATHEMATICAL MODELING ERRORS AND ITS ACCURACY HAS BEEN SUCCESSFULLY TESTED USING THE RECORDS FROM TEN CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.

NATURAL DISASTERS SUCH AS EARTHQUAKES AND TSUNAMIS FOSTER THE CREATION OF EFFECTIVE EVACUATION STRATEGIES TO PREVENT THE LOSS OF HUMAN LIVES. THIS ARTICLE PROPOSES A SIMULATION MODEL TO FIND OUT OPTIMUM EVACUATION ROUTES, DURING A TSUNAMI USING ANT COLONY OPTIMIZATION (ACO) ALGORITHMS. ACO IS A DISCRETE OPTIMIZATION ALGORITHM INSPIRED BY THE ABILITY OF ANTS TO ESTABLISH THE SHORTEST PATH FROM THEIR NEST TO A FOOD SOURCE, AND VICE VERSA, USING PHEROMONES. THE VALIDATION OF THE MODEL WAS CARRIED OUT THROUGH TWO DRILLS, WHICH WERE CONDUCTED IN THE COASTAL TOWN OF PENCO, CHILE. THIS TOWN WAS STRONGLY AFFECTED BY AN 8.8 MW EARTHQUAKE AND TSUNAMI OVER FEBRUARY 2010. THE FIRST DRILL WAS HELD WITH MINIMUM INFORMATION, LEAVING THE POPULATION TO ACT RANDOMLY AND INTUITIVELY. THE SECOND DRILL WAS CARRIED OUT WITH INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE MODEL, INDUCING PEOPLE TO USE THE OPTIMIZED ROUTES GENERATED BY THE ACO ALGORITHM. THE RESULTS SHOWED THAT, IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY, CONVENTIONAL EVACUATION ROUTES SHOWED LONGER ESCAPE TIMES COMPARED TO THOSE PRODUCED BY THE MODEL DEVELOPED IN THIS RESEARCH.

THIS PAPER INVESTIGATES THE APPLICATION OF A PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING (PBL) TEACHING METHODOLOGY TO A COURSE ON ENGINEERING PROJECT SCHEDULING, WHICH INTRODUCES THE CRITICAL PATH METHOD (CPM). DURING THIS COURSE, STUDENTS SOLVED REAL-LIFE CIVIL ENGINEERING PROBLEMS USING PBL TO COMPARE PBL WITH TRADITIONAL PROBLEM-SOLVING METHODS. IN THE EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN, THE STUDENTS WERE RANDOMLY DIVIDED INTO TWO GROUPS. TRADITIONAL TEACHING SESSIONS WERE IMPARTED TO THE FIRST GROUP, WHICH WAS DESIGNATED AS THE CONTROL GROUP, WHEREAS THE CPM WAS TAUGHT TO THE SECOND GROUP VIA THE PBL TEACHING METHODOLOGY. AFTER THE CLASSROOM SESSIONS, AN EVALUATION TOOL WAS APPLIED: RESPONSES WERE ANALYZED USING WILCOXON AND FISHER STATISTICS, AND A SET OF OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS WERE QUALITATIVELY ANALYZED VIA A PATTERN-MATCHING TECHNIQUE. THE RESULTS FOR THE GROUP THAT UTILIZED PBL WERE FAVORABLE; THIS FINDING DEMONSTRATED THE EFFICIENCY OF THIS TOOL FOR TEACHING CPM. IN ADDITION, THE RESULTS FOR THE STUDENTS THAT APPLIED PBL METHODOLOGY DEMONSTRATED A HIGH DEGREE OF ACCEPTANCE OF THE CPM METHODOLOGY, WHICH MOTIVATES ITS IMPLEMENTATION INTO TEACHING OTHER SUBJECTS RELATED TO PROJECT SCHEDULING IN CIVIL ENGINEERING.

PRIMARY CARE CENTERS ARE ESTABLISHMENTS WITH ELEVATED SOCIAL RELEVANCE AND HIGH OPERATIONAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION. IN CHILE, THERE MORE THAN 628 FAMILY HEALTHCARE CENTERS (CESFAM) HAVE BEEN BUILT IN THE LAST TWO DECADES AND WITH PLANS FOR HUNDREDS MORE IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS. WE REVISED THE ARCHITECTURE, CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT AND ENERGY PERFORMANCE OF FIVE CESFAM CENTERS TO DETERMINE POSSIBLE INSTANCES OF OVERALL IMPROVEMENT. STAFF WAS INTERVIEWED, AND STATE DOCUMENTS REVIEWED, WHICH ALLOWED THE CONCEPTUALIZATION OF THE ARCHITECTONIC AND ENERGY STRUCTURE OF THE CENTERS, AS WELL AS THE PROCESS OF IMPLEMENTATION. AT THE SAME TIME, ENERGY SIMULATIONS WERE DONE FOR EACH ONE OF THE CENTERS, CONTROLLING FOR DIFFERENT CLIMATES, CONSTRUCTION SOLUTIONS AND ORIENTATIONS. OUR STUDY REVEALED THAT STRATEGIES EMPLOYED BY THE PRIMARY HEALTHCARE CENTERS IN CHILE HAVE AIDED A PROGRESSIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF ESTABLISHMENTS WITH ELEVATED COSTS AND MATERIALIZATION TIMES, AS WELL AS NEGLECT FOR CLIMATIC CONDITIONS. THESE ENERGY EVALUATIONS SHOW RELEVANT AND CONSISTENT IMPACTS OF THE ARCHITECTURAL FORM AND MATERIAL CONDITIONS, ESPECIALLY IN SOUTHERN ZONES, DEMONSTRATING THE NEED TO WORK WITH SHARED KNOWLEDGE RESOURCES SUCH AS BIM. THERE IS A CLEAR NECESSITY TO DEFINE TECHNOLOGICAL, MORPHOLOGICAL AND CONSTRUCTION STRATEGIES SPECIFIC TO EACH CLIMATE ZONE IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE ENERGETICALLY EFFICIENT AND INTELLIGENT HEALTHCARE ESTABLISHMENTS.

THIS WORK PRESENTS AN EXPERIMENT WHERE A CONSTRUCTIVE SYSTEM WITH HOLLOW BLOCKS IS ASSEMBLED USING A ROBOT. THESE BLOCKS FORM A STAY-IN-PLACE SUPPORT TO RECEIVE A MIXTURE ONSITE, GENERATING A MONOLITHIC CONCRETE WALL WITH VERTICAL STEEL REINFORCEMENTS, AS WELL AS PROVIDING THERMAL AND ACOUSTIC INSULATION CAPABILITIES. THE ASSEMBLY SYSTEM IS TESTED WITH AN INDUSTRIAL ROBOTIC ARM, PROGRAMMED TO ASSEMBLE THE BLOCKS FOLLOWING THE LAYOUT OF A BUILDING. THE TESTS DEMONSTRATE THE TECHNICAL FEASIBILITY FOR EXECUTION ONSITE, WITH PRODUCTIVITY ADVANTAGES AND SUITABLE FINISHES. THERMAL AND ACOUSTIC PERFORMANCE TESTS HAVE ALSO BEEN CARRIED OUT TO DETERMINE THE FILLINGS AND STRUCTURAL STUDIES FOR THE COMPLETE BUILDING LAYOUT, ALONG WITH DIGITAL MODELLING OF THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT. THE ASSEMBLY TESTS HAVE SHOWN THE SPEED AND VERSATILITY OF THE ROBOTIC SYSTEM, ALTHOUGH THE PLANNING AND INSTALLATION OF THE EQUIPMENT CONSIDERING THE BUILDING AS A WHOLE MUST BE DEVELOPED FURTHER.

THE PURPOSE OF THIS RESEARCH WAS TO FIND THE BARRIERS THAT HINDER THE IMPLEMENTATION OF BIM IN BRIDGE PROJECTS (BRIM). THIS WAS DONE BY A BIBLIOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS AND THE APPLICATION OF AN EVALUATION TOOL TO A CASE STUDY, CORRESPONDING TO A CHILEAN ROAD PROJECT WITH AN IMPORTANT NUMBER OF BRIDGES. BASED ON THE LITERATURE, TWENTY-THREE BARRIERS WERE FOUND, WHICH WERE THEN VALIDATED THROUGH THE APPLICATION OF THE SURVEY TO THE CASE STUDY, RESULTING THE MAIN BARRIERS: INTEROPERABILITY PROBLEMS BETWEEN DIFFERENT BIM SOFTWARE?, AND ?DIFFERENCES BETWEEN BIM FOR BUILDINGS AND BIM FOR BRIDGES?. THEN, A RISK ANALYSIS WAS RUN, CONCLUDING THAT THE BARRIERS IN BRIDGE PROJECTS CAUSE HIGH LEVELS OF IMPACT WHEN IMPLEMENTING BIM. THUS, THIS RESEARCH MAY HELP PROJECT AND ENGINEERING MANAGERS TO HAVE A FIRST APPROXIMATION TO THE MOST RECURRING BARRIERS IN BRIM AND HOW TO RANK THEM ACCORDING TO THEIR IMPACT. FINALLY, FOR FUTURE RESEARCH, THE FINDINGS OF THIS STUDY CAN BE EXTENDED TO OTHER COMPLEX PROJECTS ?SUCH AS BRIDGES? BUT WITH DIFFERENT LEVELS OF UNCERTAINTY, THAT ALLOW FINDING NEW BARRIERS OR CONFIRM THOSE FOUND HERE.

COLLABORATIVE WORK IN BUILDING INFORMATION MODELING (BIM) PROJECTS IS FREQUENTLY UNDERSTOOD AS THE INTERACTION OF MODELERS IN AN ASYNCHRONOUS WAY THROUGH MODIFICATION REQUESTS OR VIA E-MAIL/TELEPHONE. HOWEVER, ALTERNATIVE WORK METHODOLOGIES BASED ON CREATING A COMMON AND SYNCHRONOUS ENVIRONMENT ALLOW SOLVING ISSUES INSTANTANEOUSLY DURING THE DESIGN PROCESS. THIS STUDY AIMED TO ANALYZE THE BEHAVIOR AND PERFORMANCE OF BIM USERS WITH DIFFERENT SPECIALTIES WHO WERE SUBJECTED TO AN EXPERIMENTAL EXERCISE IN A COLLABORATIVE ENVIRONMENT. FOR THIS PURPOSE, A PROCESS WAS DEVISED TO COLLECT, SORT, AND SELECT THE DATA FROM THE LOG FILES GENERATED BY THE BIM SOFTWARE. A TIMELINE OF THE EXPERIMENT WAS POPULATED WITH DATA ON THE INTENSITY AND TYPES OF COMMANDS USED BY EACH SPECIALIST, WHICH ALLOWED DETERMINING BEHAVIORAL PATTERNS, PREFERRED COMMANDS, INDICATORS OF THEIR EXPERIENCE, FURTHER TRAINING NEEDS, AND POSSIBLE STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVING THE TEAM?S PERFORMANCE. IN THE EXPERIMENT, THE MECHANICAL DESIGNER?S PERFORMANCE WAS 49% AND THE REST APPROXIMATELY 64%, WITH RESPECT TO THAT OF THE ARCHITECT. AN AVERAGE RATE OF 1.66 NECESSARY OR AUXILIARY COMMANDS FOR EACH CONTRIBUTORY COMMAND WAS DETECTED. THE AVERAGE PERFORMANCE WAS 200?400 COMMANDS PER HOUR, WHICH INTENSIFIED BY THE END OF THE EXPERIMENT. FURTHER TRAINING NEEDS WERE DETECTED FOR THE PLUMBING DESIGNER TO REDUCE THE USE OF BACKWARDS COMMANDS. CONVERSELY, THE ELECTRICAL DESIGNER SHOWED A POSITIVE EVOLUTION REGARDING THIS ASPECT DURING THE EXPERIMENT. THE ANALYSIS METHODS HERE DESCRIBED BECOME USEFUL FOR THE AFOREMENTIONED PURPOSES. NEVERTHELESS, COMBINATIONS WITH METHODS FROM EXISTING RESEARCH MIGHT IMPROVE THE OUTCOMES AND THEREFORE THE SPECIFICITY OF RECOMMENDATIONS.

THIS ARTICLE STUDIES THE FORT LA PLANCHADA, LOCATED IN SOUTHERN CHILE. CONSIDERING THE NATURE OF THIS NATIONAL MONUMENT, THE STUDY FOCUSES ON THE ANALYSIS AND CHARACTERIZATION OF ITS CONSTRUCTION ASPECTS: DESIGN, GEOMETRY, MATERIALITY AND CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES; ASPECTS THAT ARE PART OF THE POLIORCETICS (OR MILITARY ART) PERSPECTIVE. FROM A METHODOLOGICAL POINT OF VIEW, USING TECHNICAL HISTORICAL RESOURCES, RECONSTRUCTION OF THE FORT UNDER STUDY CULMINATED THROUGH A COMPREHENSIVE LITERATURE REVIEW AND ASSOCIATED FIELDWORK. THE ART OF POLIORCETICS AND CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES, AS USED BY MAJOR WRITERS OF THE 17TH CENTURY ABOUT FORTIFICATIONS AND THEIR PRINCIPLES, WERE APPLIED TO THE ORIGINAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE FORT, CONSIDERING THE DIFFICULTIES AND SOLUTIONS OF ITS TIME. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ORIGINAL FORT AND THE ANALYSIS OF SUCCESSIVE REPARATIONS REVEALED THE EXISTENCE OF THREE DIFFERENT DESIGNS THROUGHOUT ITS HISTORY.

EL PRESENTE LIBRO REVISA Y ANALIZA LAS ESTRATEGIAS Y TÉCNICAS DIDÁCTICAS QUE SE PUEDEN APLICAR EN LA FORMACIÓN EN INGENIERÍA, TANTO EN EL AULA COMO FUERA DE ELLA, EN FUNCIÓN DE LOS PARADIGMAS EDUCATIVOS HISTÓRICAMENTE MÁS RELEVANTES Y LAS TENDENCIAS RECIENTES. SEGÚN LAS DISTINTAS ESTRATÉGICAS Y TÉCNICAS, Y EN FUNCIÓN DEL CONTEXTO, DE LOS RECURSOS DISPONIBLES Y DE LOS OBJETIVOS EDUCATIVOS Y COMPETENCIAS QUE SE DESEEN PROMOVER, EL PROFESORADO ASUME ROLES CADA VEZ MÁS VARIADOS Y CAMBIANTES, CON MAYOR O MENOR PROTAGONISMO, EN OCASIONES, ACTUANDO COMO TRANSMISORES DE CONOCIMIENTO, EN OTRAS COMO MEDIADORES Y FACILITADORES, EXPLICANDO, CONTROLANDO, COMPRENDIENDO, INTERPRETANDO, EMANCIPANDO, CRITICANDO O PROMOVIENDO EL DIÁLOGO PARA LA CONSTRUCCIÓN DEL CONOCIMIENTO JUNTO CON LOS ESTUDIANTES. NO CABE DUDA DE QUE LA MISIÓN DEL PROFESORADO UNIVERSITARIO EN INGENIERÍA ES CRECIENTEMENTE COMPLEJA Y ESTÁ SUJETA A CONDICIONES DE CONTORNO CAMBIANTES, FRUTO DE UN RITMO DE PROGRESO TECNOLÓGICO SIN PRECEDENTES Y DE RETOS GLOBALES EXTREMADAMENTE DIFÍCILES DE RESOLVER Y EN LOS QUE LOS INGENIEROS DEL FUTURO DEBEN JUGAR UN PAPEL PROTAGONISTA. POR OTRO LADO, LOS PROFESORES DE INGENIERÍA ESTÁN CADA VEZ MÁS PREOCUPADOS POR LOS MECANISMOS DE ADQUISICIÓN Y COMPRENSIÓN DE LOS CONCEPTOS Y CONTENIDOS POR PARTE DE SUS ESTUDIANTES: INVESTIGACIONES RECIENTES INDICAN QUE, SI BIEN LAS TASAS DE APROBADOS EN LA MAYORÍA DE LAS UNIVERSIDADES SON ELEVADAS, UN NÚMERO IMPORTANTE DE ESTUDIANTES PARECE NO TERMINAR DE ENTENDER PROFUNDAMENTE LOS CONTENIDOS DE DIVERSOS CURSOS. POR CONSIGUIENTE, ESTE TEXTO PRETENDE APORTAR UN CONJUNTO DE HERRAMIENTAS Y EXPERIENCIAS, ILUSTRADAS A TRAVÉS DE MULTITUD DE EJEMPLOS, QUE AYUDEN EN LA FORMACIÓN, TANTO INICIAL COMO CONTINUADA, DE PROFESORES UNIVERSITARIOS DE INGENIERÍA Y CONTRIBUYAN A FACILITAR LA MISIÓN EDUCATIVA Y A RESOLVER, EN LA MEDIDA DE LO POSIBLE, ALGUNAS DE LAS PREOCUPACIONES CITADAS.

UNCERTAINTY IS AN INHERENT PART OF PRODUCTION SYSTEMS. IN CONSTRUCTION PROCESSES, PRODUCTION VARIABILITY EMERGES ASONE OF THE MOST TYPICAL REPRESENTATION OF UNCERTAINTY. NEGATIVE VARIABILITY IMPACTS IN CONSTRUCTION DEMANDSEFFECTIVE SOLUTIONS TO MITIGATE ITS EFFECTS ON THE ACCOMPLISHMENT OF PROJECTS. THE INCORPORATION OF BUFFERSCONSTITUTES POWERFUL TOOLS TO RESOLVE UNCERTAINTY PROBLEMS IN CONSTRUCTION PROCESSES AND TO OPTIMIZE THECONSTRUCTION OPERATIONS SEQUENCING. DESPITE THE FACT THAT BUFFERING STRATEGIES HAVE BEEN IMPLEMENTED IN SEVERALTYPES OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS, THERE IS LIMITED EVIDENCE OF SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS OF THESE STRATEGIES TO HIGHWAY PROJECTS. BASED ON DISCRETE EVENT SIMULATION MODELING, A CONCEPTUAL METHODOLOGY OF BUFFERING STRATEGIES APPLIEDTO TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS IS PRESENTED.AFTER AN EXHAUSTIVE LITERATURE REVIEW, THE MOST RELEVANT BUFFERS IN TRANSPORTATION CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS ARE PRESENTED, FOLLOWED BY CONCEPTUALLY MODELING A TYPICAL CONSTRUCTION PROCESS WITHIN HIGHWAY PROJECTS. THROUGHTHIS METHODOLOGY, THE AUTHORS PRESENT AN ITERATIVE PROCESS WHICH ALLOWS DECISION-MAKERS TO PROPERLY SELECT BUFFERSTO BE CONSIDERED WHEN MODELING CONSTRUCTION PROCESSES IN TRANSPORTATION CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.

THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IS EXPERIENCING CHANGES IN ITS PROCESSES AND WORK METHODS, AND THE ADVANCEMENT OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES IN RECENT DECADES HAS LED TO A NEW CONCEPT KNOWN AS CONSTRUCTION 4.0, COINED IN 2016 IN GERMANY. SINCE ITS DEFINITION IS STILL DIFFUSE, IT WAS DEEMED NECESSARY TO CONDUCT A REVIEW ON THE PUBLICATIONS IN THIS FIELD TO GRASP HOW THIS CONCEPT IS BEING UNDERSTOOD. FOR THAT PURPOSE, A BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS WAS CONDUCTED AMONG 260 RESEARCH ARTICLES USING SEVEN KEYWORDS. THE RESULTS REVEAL THAT THE NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS IS GROWING EXPONENTIALLY, WITH THE USA, THE UK, AND CHINA BEING LEADERS IN THIS FIELD; BESIDES, FOUR TECHNOLOGIES ARE ESSENTIAL TO UNDERSTAND CONSTRUCTION 4.0 AT PRESENT TIME: 3D PRINTING, BIG DATA, VIRTUAL REALITY, AND INTERNET OF THINGS. THE RESULTS OF THIS REVIEW SUGGEST THAT FURTHER REVIEWS SHOULD BE CONDUCTED EVERY 3 YEARS TO GRASP THE RAPID EVOLUTION OF CONSTRUCTION 4.0.

ENGINEERING EDUCATION HAS EVOLVED OVER THE LAST DECADES WITH THE INCORPORATION OF INNOVATIVE PEDAGOGICAL METHODS, SUPPORTING TECHNOLOGIES, AND AN ORIENTATION TO SOCIETAL IMPACTS AND SUSTAINABILITY. SUCH EVOLUTION INCLUDES A RECENT SHIFT OF PROMINENCE, FROM THE OBSOLETE ROLE OF PROFESSORS AS UNIQUE AUTHORIZED SOURCES OF TRUTH AND WISDOM, TOWARDS MORE DEMOCRATIC CONTEXTS WITH STUDENTS AS KEY PLAYERS, PROFESSORS AS FACILITATORS, AND THE INVOLVEMENT OF SOCIETAL STAKEHOLDERS FOR ACHIEVING TRULY TRANSFORMATIVE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES. ALONG THIS PROCESS OF CHANGE DIFFERENT EDUCATIONAL PARADIGMS HAVE PREVAILED INCLUDING POSITIVISM, CONSTRUCTIVISM, AND THE SOCIO-CRITICAL AND COMMUNICATIVE CRITICAL PARADIGMS. FREQUENTLY, THESE MODELS HAVE BEEN PRESENTED AS OPPOSED OR INCOMPATIBLE. NOT ANYMORE, AS ACCORDING TO THE AUTHORS? PERSPECTIVE THESE PARADIGMS CONVERGE IN A """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""FLUID TRANSFORMATIVE"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" PARADIGM, PRESENTED HERE FOR THE FIRST TIME, WHICH IS ADAPTED FOR THE NEW HIGHLY DYNAMIC CONTEXT OF ENGINEERING EDUCATION 5.0.

THIS PROJECT IS PART OF THE INTERSTATE 75 ROAD EXPANSION, LOCATED IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA AND CONSISTED OF AN EXPANSION FROM FOUR TO SIX LANES ALONG A 30-MILE STRETCH. THE PAPER PRESENTS A DESIGN, BUILD AND FINANCE (DBF) APPROACH APPLIED TO A US HIGHWAY. THIS WORK FOCUSES ON THE FINANCIAL STRUCTURE OF THE PROJECT, WHICH DID NOT INCLUDE A CONCESSION (OPERATION); THE BIDDING PROCEDURE, WHICH TOOK INTO ACCOUNT AN INTERESTING BID EVALUATION CRITERION AND; PROJECT MANAGEMENT MATTERS. THE INFORMATION ON THE CASE STUDY WAS ACQUIRED BY EXHAUSTIVELY EXAMINING THE DOCUMENTATION OF THE PROJECT AND BY INTERVIEWING THE PROJECT CONTROLS MANAGER. THE FINANCIAL STRUCTURE USED IN THE PROJECT SHOWED THAT IT IS POSSIBLE TO EXTEND THE PAYMENT PERIOD BEYOND THE CONSTRUCTION DEADLINE WITHOUT RESORTING TO A TOLL SYSTEM. AS USUAL, THE BID EVALUATION CRITERIA OF THIS PROJECT INCLUDED PRICE, TIME AND TECHNICAL BACKGROUND; HOWEVER, THESE ASPECTS WERE EVALUATED THROUGH THE USE OF A COMPENSATED SCORE. FINALLY, SOME INTERESTING MANAGEMENT ASPECTS OF THE PROJECT ARE ADDRESSED, IN ORDER TO GENERATE SOME RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE DBF PROJECTS IN THE US AND THE WORLD.

HISTORICALLY, THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY HAS EXHIBITED SLOW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT WHEN COMPARED TO OTHER INDUSTRIES. HOWEVER, DURING THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, INVESTIGATIONS RELATED TO AUTOMATION IN CONSTRUCTION HAVE BEEN CONDUCTED, SUCH AS ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING IN CONCRETE. THIS STUDY AIMS TO DELVE INTO THIS TOPIC, PROVIDING EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION BETWEEN BIM-DESIGNED ELEMENTS AND ITS ADDITIVE CONCRETE MANUFACTURING, WITH THE HELP OF AN ARTICULATED ROBOTIC ARM. THEREFORE, THE PAPER ADDRESSES THE PREPARATION OF COMPUTER CODE THAT ALLOWS SUCH BIM?ROBOT COMMUNICATION, CHECKING THE PARAMETERS UTILIZED, AND ANALYZING THE RESULTS OF TESTS WITH THE EQUIPMENT INVOLVED.

BUILDING INFORMATION MODELING (BIM) HAS EMERGED AS A DIGITAL PLATFORM FOR BUILDING PROJECTS, WHICH FACILITATES COOPERATION BETWEEN SPECIALTIES. ON THE OTHER HAND, EXTREME COLLABORATION IS A METHODOLOGY, ARISING IN THE AEROSPACE INDUSTRY, FOR JOINT WORK AMONG PROFESSIONALS. THIS ARTICLE PRESENTS AN EXPERIMENTAL INITIATIVE WITH ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING STUDENTS TO EVALUATE THESE CAPABILITIES IN BUILDING PROJECTS. THIS WAS DONE BY MEANS OF AN INTENSIVE DEVELOPMENT OF A CAR EXHIBITION PAVILION; ELABORATING THE DESIGN AND PRESENTATION OF 1 UNIVERSIDAD DEL BÍO-BÍO

THE EVALUATION OF CRACKS AND FISSURES IN BRIDGE STRUCTURES IS ESSENTIAL TO ENSURE THE LONG-TERM SAFETY, DURABILITY, AND FUNCTIONALITY OF THESE INFRASTRUCTURES. IN THIS SENSE, PROCESSING GRAYSCALE IMAGES AND ADJUSTING BRIGHTNESS AND CONTRAST LEVELS CAN IMPROVE THE VISIBILITY OF CRACKS AND FISSURES IN BRIDGE STRUCTURES. THESE TECHNIQUES, COMPLEMENTED BY PROFESSIONAL EXPERTISE AND EFFICIENT INSPECTION TOOLS SUCH AS UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES (UAVS), ALLOW FOR A COMPREHENSIVE AND ACCURATE STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY ASSESSMENT. THIS STUDY USED THE EDGE DETECTION TECHNIQUE TO ANALYZE PHOTOGRAPHS OBTAINED WITH A LOW-COST UAV AS A MEANS OF IMAGE CAPTURE. THIS TOOL WAS USED TO REACH HARD-TO-REACH AREAS WHERE THERE COULD BE DAMAGE, THUS MAKING IT EASIER TO DETECT FISSURES OR CRACKS. TO CAPTURE THE FAILURES, TWO CASE STUDIES, A SMALL BRIDGE AND A LARGE BRIDGE, WERE SELECTED, BOTH LOCATED IN CONCEPCION CITY IN SOUTHERN CHILE. DURING BOTH INSPECTIONS, CRACKS WERE DETECTED THAT COULD AFFECT THE STRUCTURE OF THE BRIDGES IN THE FUTURE. TO ANALYZE THESE FINDINGS, IMAGEJ SOFTWARE 1.54H WAS USED, WHICH ALLOWED THE LENGTH AND THICKNESS OF THE CRACKS TO BE MEASURED AND EVALUATED. IN ADDITION, TO VALIDATE THE PROCEDURE PROPOSED, REAL VALUES MANUALLY MEASURED ON-SITE WERE COMPARED WITH THOSE DELIVERED BY THE SOFTWARE ANALYSES, WHERE NO STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES WERE FOUND. WITH THE METHOD PRESENTED IN THIS STUDY, IT WAS POSSIBLE TO QUANTIFY THE DAMAGE, FOLLOWING THE BRIDGE MAINTENANCE STANDARDS ESTABLISHED BY THE MINISTRY OF PUBLIC WORKS OF CHILE, WHOSE INSPECTION CRITERIA CAN BE APPLIED TO OTHER PROJECTS WORLDWIDE.

HISTORICALLY, THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY HAS PRESENTED HIGH ACCIDENT RATES, AND IN ORDER TO GET A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING AND MAKING RIGHT DECISIONS, IT IS INTERESTING TO CONSIDER THE RISKS FROM A WORKER?S POINT OF VIEW. THIS RESEARCH DDRESSES THE PERCEPTION OF RISKS BY CONSTRUCTION WORKERS FROM A PSYCHOMETRIC PARADIGM AND CONSIDERING SOME OCIODEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES. THE STUDY CONSIDERED A SAMPLE CONSISTED OF A GROUP OF WORKERS WHO BELONG TO THE CHILEAN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY, PARTICULARLY FROM THE BUILDING CONSTRUCTION SECTOR. RELEVANT RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH A HIGH ACCIDENT RATE WERE IDENTIFIED THROUGH AN EXTENSIVE LITERATURE REVIEW. IN ADDITION, THE RELATIVE RISK RELATED TO PHYSICAL OVEREXERTION AND THAT RELATED TO THE EXPOSURE TO PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL AGENTS ARE CONSIDERED. BASED ON A PSYCHOMETRIC APPROACH FOR THE EVALUATION OF QUALITATIVE ATTRIBUTES, A MEASUREMENT INSTRUMENT WAS APPLIED; RESULTS WERE THEN STATISTICALLY ANALYZED. ADDITIONALLY, THE INCIDENCE OF SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES WAS EVALUATED: AGE, PROFESSION, EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATIONAL LEVEL IN RELATION TO THE PERCEIVED RISK LEVEL. STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES OF THE PERCEIVED RISK ASSOCIATED TO NOISE EXPOSURE, DEPENDING ON THE AGE OF THE WORKERS WERE OBTAINED. ON THE OTHER HAND, IT WAS DETERMINED THAT WORKERS WITH THE MOST EXPERIENCE CONSIDER THAT THOSE JOBS THAT INVOLVE UNCOMFORTABLE OR FORCED POSTURES CONSTITUTE A RELEVANT PHYSICAL RISK. MEANWHILE, JOBS SUCH AS: REBAR WORKERS, BRICKLAYERS AND CONCRETE WORKERS, PERCEIVE THE GRAVITY AND IMMEDIACY OF THE EFFECT ASSOCIATED TO RISK SIGNIFICANTLY MORE IN ACTIVITIES THAT INVOLVE REPETITIVE MOVEMENTS.