Effective decision-making process is the basis for successfully solving any engineering problem. Many decisions taken in the construction projects differ in their nature due to the complex nature of the construction projects. One of the most crucial decisions that might result in numerous issues over the course of a construction project is the selection of the contractor. This study aims to use the ordinal priority approach (OPA) for the contractor selection process in the construction industry. The proposed model involves two computer programs; the first of these will be used to evaluate the decision-makers/experts in the construction projects, while the second will be used to formulate the OPA mathematical model. The experts’ interview was used to identify the criteria of evaluation process of the decision-makers/experts, while Delphi survey with principal component analysis (PCA) was conducted to identify the required selection criteria of the construction projects contractors. The results illustrate that there are 20 criteria for selecting the construction contractor, and 7 criteria for evaluating the decision-makers/experts in the construction projects. Finally, the proposed model has been applied in a real construction project, and showed good results.
The aim of this research is to assess the validity of Detailed Micro-Modeling (DMM) as a numerical model for masonry analysis. To achieve this aim, a set of load-displacement curves obtained based on both numerical simulation and experimental results of clay masonry prisms loaded by a vertical load. The finite element method was implemented in DMM for analysis of the experimental clay masonry prism. The finite element software ABAQUS with implicit solver was used to model and analyze the clay masonry prism subjected to a vertical load. The load-displacement relationship of numerical model was found in good agreement with those drawn from experimental results. Evidence shows that load-displacement curvefound from the finite element m
... Show MoreRecently, the internet has made the users able to transmit the digital media in the easiest manner. In spite of this facility of the internet, this may lead to several threats that are concerned with confidentiality of transferred media contents such as media authentication and integrity verification. For these reasons, data hiding methods and cryptography are used to protect the contents of digital media. In this paper, an enhanced method of image steganography combined with visual cryptography has been proposed. A secret logo (binary image) of size (128x128) is encrypted by applying (2 out 2 share) visual cryptography on it to generate two secret share. During the embedding process, a cover red, green, and blue (RGB) image of size (512
... Show MoreThe complexity and variety of language included in policy and academic documents make the automatic classification of research papers based on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) somewhat difficult. Using both pre-trained and contextual word embeddings to increase semantic understanding, this study presents a complete deep learning pipeline combining Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory (BiLSTM) and Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) architectures which aims primarily to improve the comprehensibility and accuracy of SDG text classification, thereby enabling more effective policy monitoring and research evaluation. Successful document representation via Global Vector (GloVe), Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Tra
... Show MoreTo obtain the approximate solution to Riccati matrix differential equations, a new variational iteration approach was proposed, which is suggested to improve the accuracy and increase the convergence rate of the approximate solutons to the exact solution. This technique was found to give very accurate results in a few number of iterations. In this paper, the modified approaches were derived to give modified solutions of proposed and used and the convergence analysis to the exact solution of the derived sequence of approximate solutions is also stated and proved. Two examples were also solved, which shows the reliability and applicability of the proposed approach.
In this study, the optimum conditions for COD removal from petroleum refinery wastewater by using a combined electrocoagulation- electro-oxidation system were attained by Taguchi method. An orthogonal array experimental design (L18) which is of four controllable parameters including NaCl concentration, C.D. (current density), PH, and time (time of electrolysis) was employed. Chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal percentage was considered as the quality characteristics to be enhanced. Also, the value of turbidity and TDS (total dissolved solid) were estimated. The optimum levels of the studied parameters were determined precisely by implementing S/N analysis and analysis of variance (ANOVA). The optimum conditions were found to be NaCl = 2.5
... Show MoreThis study aims to answer a significant problem of social sciences and philosophy: How do we construct an institutional reality such as diplomacy with an objective recognizable existence? The study assumes that the ability to build institutional reality is based on our biological capacity, as it takes different forms in all the institutions we construct. The study takes the theory of the American philosopher John Searle as an approach to examining the assumption. The study sums up important findings; cultures, although they share the biological capacity on which they produce institutional realities, differ in the form of the value standards on which the institutional realities are based. The study recommends the need of Arab social resea
... Show MoreThis paper studies the investment project evaluation under the condition of uncertainty. Evaluation of investment project under risk and uncertainty is possible to be carried out through application of various methods and techniques. The best known methods are : Risk-adjusted discount rate , certainty equivalent method , Sensitivity analysis and Simulation method The objective of this study is using the sensitivity analysis in evaluation Glass Bottles project in Anbar province under the condition of risk and uncertainty.
After applying sensitivity analysis we found that the glass bottles project sensitive to the following factors (cash flow, the cost of investment, and the pro
... Show MoreThe current research aims to identify the contributions of small income-generating projects in theempowerment of rural women in Nineveh Governorate ,Al-Hamdaniya district, as a simplerandom sample was drawn from the research community of 280 respondents , according to theRobert Mason equation at the level of significance 0.05, so the sample size was 162 respondents,i.e. a percentage 58% collected the necessary data using a questionnaire prepared as a basic toolfor data collection consisting of 20 items distributed on two axes ,and the results of the researchwere analyzed and presented using the spss statistical program, as well as manual analysis usingrepetitions, the weighted mean, the standard deviation, and the percentage weight. And the
... Show MoreThe origin of this technique lies in the analysis of François Kenai (1694-1774), the leader of the School of Naturalists, presented in Tableau Economique. This method was developed by Karl Marx in his analysis of the Departmental Relationships and the nature of these relations in the models of " "He said. The current picture of this type of economic analysis is credited to the Russian economist Vasily Leontif. This analytical model is commonly used in developing economic plans in developing countries (p. 1, p. 86). There are several types of input and output models, such as static model, mobile model, regional models, and so on. However, this research will be confined to the open-ended model, which found areas in practical application.
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