Simplification of HDM-4 Economic Models for Network-Level Gravel Road Management Systems

2003 ◽  
Vol 1819 (1) ◽  
pp. 318-328 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. F. Burger ◽  
A. van der Gryp ◽  
G. D. van Zyl ◽  
H. G. Fourie
Keyword(s):  
Management System ◽  
Operating Cost ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Maintenance Strategies ◽  
Road Management ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
Calculation Results ◽  
African Context ◽  
Maintenance Personnel ◽  
Gravel Road

A description is provided of the procedure followed in the gravel road management system (GRMS) of the Provincial Administration: Western Cape (PAWC) for determining scheduled maintenance priorities and upgrade to paved standard priorities for gravel roads. An algorithm was developed that takes account of a number of factors to determine the costs and benefits of PAWC’s two maintenance strategies. Cost and benefit streams are further used in the calculation of the internal rate of return (IRR) for the different maintenance strategies. Prioritization in the GRMS is based on the calculated IRR, and the priority lists are further refined through a consultative process involving maintenance personnel, the community, and head-office decision makers. As part of the implementation of the algorithm, Highway Development and Management System version 4 (HDM-4) equations for the calculation of vehicle-operating cost (VOC) were simplified for application in the southern African context. Results are presented of a comparison between the output of the simplified HDM-4 equations with the output of HDM-4. Conclusions reached show that implementing the procedure described had a number of positive consequences. They include that the prioritization of projects is based on sound principles that result in the effective and responsible use of available funds. It was also concluded that the simplified HDM-4 VOC calculation results compare well with HDM-4 results.

Optimizing Low-Volume Road Network Performance Through Improved Management, Design, and Construction

2003 ◽  
Vol 1819 (1) ◽  
pp. 299-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. D. Van Zyl ◽  
M. G. Henderson ◽  
H. G. Fourie
Keyword(s):  
Management System ◽  
Road Network ◽  
Performance Monitoring ◽  
Systems Design ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Road Management ◽  
Gravel Roads ◽  
Low Volume ◽  
Gravel Road ◽  
Design And Construction

The Provincial Administration of the Western Cape in South Africa is responsible for 18,900 km of proclaimed roads, of which 10,500 km are unsurfaced. A formal gravel road management system has been in operation since 1989 that assists in prioritizing projects for regraveling and upgrading gravel roads to surfaced standards. Because of fund limitations for upgrading gravel roads to surfaced roads, there is a need to optimize performance of the gravel road network and maximize use of knowledge and latest research results for southern Africa. Staff shortages and loss of in-house expertise made external assistance necessary to improve service to road users. Processes formalized, implemented, and planned for this purpose included ( a) upgrading the gravel road management system to quantify benefits, prioritize activities, and select maintenance and improvement measures; ( b) appointing consulting engineers in each district to help manage borrow pits, materials design, training, construction supervision and quality control, maintenance planning and control, and performance monitoring; ( c) communication about project priorities, construction programs, work methods, construction team performance, and activity costs; and ( d) development of an operational web-enabled system to manage all activities related to unsurfaced roads. Within 1 year, a remarkable difference in gravel road performance was observed without a significant reduction in productivity. Total transportation costs were lowered with only a marginal increase in agency costs. Continuous communication among system operators, design engineers, project managers, and construction teams is considered one of the most important aspects in optimizing performance of the Western Cape low-volume road network. This study highlights the most important changes in management, systems, design, and construction and the practical innovations responsible for the successes achieved as a potentially valuable aid to those involved with providing and maintaining low-volume roads.

scholarly journals Spiritual care practices in hospices in the Western cape, South Africa: the challenge of diversity

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronita Mahilall ◽  
Leslie Swartz
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Spiritual Care ◽  
Resource Constraints ◽  
Care Service ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Care Services ◽  
African Context ◽  
Care Practices

Abstract Background South Africa is a very diverse middle-income country, still deeply divided by the legacy of its colonial and apartheid past. As part of a larger study, this article explored the experiences and views of representatives of hospices in the Western Cape province of South Africa on the provision of appropriate spiritual care, given local issues and constraints. Methods Two sets of focus group discussions, with 23 hospice participants, were conducted with 11 of the 12 Hospice Palliative Care Association registered hospices in the Western Cape, South Africa, to understand what spiritual care practices existed in their hospices against the backdrop of multifaceted diversities. The discussions were analysed using thematic analysis. Results Two prominent themes emerged: the challenges of providing relevant spiritual care services in a religiously, culturally, linguistically and racially diverse setting, and the organisational context impacting such a spiritual care service. Participants agreed that spiritual care is an important service and that it plays a significant role within the inter-disciplinary team. Participants recognised the need for spiritual care training and skills development, alongside the financial costs of employing dedicated spiritual care workers. In spite of the diversities and resource constraints, the approach of individual hospices to providing spiritual care remained robust. Discussion Given the diversities that are largely unique to South Africa, shaped essentially by past injustices, the hospices have to navigate considerable hurdles such as cultural differences, religious diversity, and language barriers to provide spiritual care services, within significant resource constraints. Conclusions While each of the hospices have established spiritual care services to varying degrees, there was an expressed need for training in spiritual care to develop a baseline guide that was bespoke to the complexities of the South African context. Part of this training needs to focus on the complexity of providing culturally appropriate services.

scholarly journals Optimal Scheduling of Distributed Energy Resources in Residential Building under the Demand Response Commitment Contract

Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (14) ◽  
pp. 2810 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keon Baek ◽  
Woong Ko ◽  
Jinho Kim
Keyword(s):  
Demand Response ◽  
Management System ◽  
Reference Model ◽  
Storage System ◽  
Operating Cost ◽  
Energy Resource ◽  
Residential Building ◽  
Mixed Integer ◽  
Distributed Energy ◽  
Proposed Model

This study proposes optimal day-ahead demand response (DR) participation strategies and distributed energy resource (DER) management in a residential building under an individual DR contract with a grid-system operator. First, this study introduces a DER management system in the residential building for participation to the day-ahead DR market. The distributed photovoltaic generation system (PV) and energy-storage system (ESS) are applied to reduce the electricity demand in the building and sell surplus energy on the grid. Among loads in the building, lighting (LTG) and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) loads are included in the DR program. In addition, it is assumed that a power management system of an electric vehicle (EV) charging station is integrated the DER management system. In order to describe stochastic behavior of EV owners, the uncertainty of EV is formulated based on their arrival and departure scenarios. For measuring the economic efficiency of the proposed model, we compare it with the DER self-consuming operation model without DR participation. The problem is solved using mixed integer linear programming to minimize the operating cost. The results in summer and winter are analyzed to evaluate the proposed algorithm’s validity. From these results, the proposed model can be confirmed as reducing operation cost compared to the reference model through optimal day-ahead DR capacity bidding and implementation.

scholarly journals Children with Speech Difficulties: A survey of clinical practice in the Western Cape

2010 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Pascoe ◽  
Zinhle Maphalala ◽  
Aeysha Ebrahim ◽  
Daneil Hime ◽  
Bathobile Mdladla ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Practice ◽  
Linguistic Diversity ◽  
Speech Development ◽  
Assessment Tools ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
School Aged Children ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Informal Assessment ◽  
African Context ◽  
Selection Of

This paper is based on a study by Joffe and Pring (2008) which investigated assessment and therapy methods used by Speech Language Therapists (SLTs) in the United Kingdom for children with phonological difficulties. Joffe and Pring reported SLTs’ most favoured assessments and therapy approaches in that context. Children with speech difficulties are likely to form a considerable part of SLT caseloads in South Africa, but the choice of assessments may not be so clearcut given the linguistic diversity of the region and the fact that few assessments have been developed specifically for the SA population. Linked to difficulties with assessment, selection of intervention approaches may also pose challenges. This study aimed to investigate the methods of assessment and intervention used by SLTs in the Western Cape when working with children with speech difficulties. A questionnaire was sent to SLTs working with pre and/ or primary school- aged children. Twenty-nine clinicians of varying experience responded. The majority of SLTs (89%) use informal assessment tools in combination with formal assessment. When using formal assessments, more than 50% of SLTs make modifications to better suit the population. Participants use a variety of intervention approaches, often in combination, and based on a child’s individual profile of difficulties and available resources. Forty-six percent of SLTs felt unsure about the selection of assessments and intervention for bi/multilingual children with speech difficulties. SLTs suggested that guidelines about accepted / typical speech development in the region would be helpful for their clinical practice. Clinical implications of the findings are discussed together with some suggestions for developing knowledge of children’s speech difficulties in the South African context.

scholarly journals The manifestations of the practice of within-class homogeneous ability grouping

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucinda L. Du Plooy
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
Ability Grouping ◽  
Western Cape ◽  
Reading Levels ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Learner Achievement ◽  
African Context ◽  
Learner Agency ◽  
Achievement Levels

Background: This article casts the analytical spotlight on the practice of within-class homogeneous (same) ability grouping where learners are placed in small groups for instruction based on their perceived performances, reading levels and interest. Very few studies have focused on within-class ability grouping, especially in a South African context, where this homogeneous style within-class grouping is the dominant practice in Grade 1 classrooms, despite literature’s cautions against its continuous use.Aim: This article aims to address the following questions: what are the manifestations of the practice of within-class homogeneous ability grouping, and how does it account for learner achievement levels in Grade 1 classrooms?Setting: A total of 12 Grade 1 learners, in relation to their teachers and their principals, from three selected public schools in the Western Cape, were interviewed and observed within a classroom setting. Bourdieu’s work is used to explain the interiority and exteriority of social relations, how practice gets internalised and embodied on the inside, and manifested in various ways on the outside.Methods: This empirical exploration used the qualitative-interpretive paradigm and followed a multiple case study approach where 6-year-old Grade 1 learners were observed and analysed.Results: The results show differential treatment of groups and the labelling of learners, which gets internalised constituting particular learner dispositions and resulting in learner agency. Furthermore, it shows how learner agency is being informed and constituted in ways that affect their educational outcomes in profound ways.Conclusion: The author argues that by placing children in groups based on their perceived ability results in the children gaining differential learner experiences and ultimately attaining differential learner achievement levels. In other words, it creates differential environments within the same classroom enabling some to outshine while disabling others.

A Novel Urban Road Management System Based On Data Mining

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Min Jiang ◽  
Min Li ◽  
Jiapeng Shen ◽  
Guanlin Chen
Keyword(s):  
Data Mining ◽  
Management System ◽  
Urban Road ◽  
Road Management

Performance of Maintenance and Management for Roads in HsinChu County, Taiwan

2013 ◽  
Vol 723 ◽  
pp. 861-868
Author(s):  
Ho Szu Lin ◽  
Jyh Dong Lin ◽  
Jia Ruey Chang
Keyword(s):  
Management System ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Pavement Management ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
County Government ◽  
Control Procedure ◽  
Road Management ◽  
Inspection Systems ◽  
Road Inspection ◽  
The Government

The HsinChu County Government has placed great emphasis on the construction and maintenance of road infrastructure. It has exerted great efforts to enhance not only essential needs such as Roads should be smooth, drains should be unobstructed, and streetlamps should be illuminated, but also the performance of maintenance and management for roads by means of five aspects. These aspects include legislation, policies, systems, implementation, and techniques. From the point of view of legislation, the government has enacted regulation such as The Bylaw of Road Management in HsinChu County, and amended regulations such as The Bylaw of Road Excavation Management in HsinChu County and The Regulations of Urban Road Management in HsinChu County in the past two years. From the point of view of policies, the government has budgeted for the Smooth Roads Project every year regardless of any financial deficiencies in the government. From the point of view of systems, the government has drawn up preliminary maintenance plans for roads, created standard operating procedures (SOPs) of maintenance activities, and developed road inspection systems. From the point of view of implementation, the government has developed a Pavement Management System in HsinChu County, initiated a Road Excavation Management System, and created an excavation application and control procedure. From the point of view of technologies, the government has established geographic information for roads in HsinChu County so as to enhance the administrative and operational efficiency of inspections using the Application (APP) system. This study, which mainly focuses on county, rural and partial urban roads in the HsinChu County, presents the relevant legislation and systems drawn up by the government, that have a positive impact for governmental implementation to the public.

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