ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF PLANNING CONTROL ON RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY VALUE IN NASARAWA STATE

ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF PLANNING CONTROL ON RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY VALUE IN NASARAWA STATE

(A CASE STUDY OF NASARAWA TOWN)

ABSTRACT

This project analyze the impact of planning control on residential property value in Nasarawa state with the aim to identify possible problem and find possible solution. In the course of carrying this research the primary data was collected through questionnaire and oral interview with the Nasarawa State Urban Development Board and some real estate property developer in the Nasarawa town. 100 Questionnaire was administered which 80 was collected back upon which the data presentation and analysis depends on. The instrument used in analyzing the data was purposive and tabular form. The research shows that developer and the development control officials tend to accused each other of complicity in development of residential property process in Nasarawa. the researcher therefore recommend that there is urgent need for effective force and good communication skill and rapid awareness aiming at creating adequate effectiveness on physical environmental issues in Nasarawa town and Nasarawa State at large.

CHAPTER ONE

1.0       INTRODUCTION

1.1       BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Planning control forms an integral part of the planning practice. It is the basic means by which the state intervenes to regulate the use and development of land in order to implement local and national planning policies. Most significantly it is the part of the planning process in which members of the public come into contact with local planning authorities (Ogunsesan, 2018).

Today, planning control comes under considerable criticism about the nature of decisions taken, and the ways in which they are taken. One hears complaints that sluggishness discourages development; that its complexity is excessively costly; And that its nature stifles initiative. (Okpala, 2018). Development control is not appreciated by the general public mainly because of the restrictions it imposes on the aims and aspiration of the developers.

Originally, the rationale for the introduction of state control on private development was to achieve objectives of safety and better health in order to create an improved environment for the benefit of the community. However, as the role of the state expanded and the extent of its intervention increased the definition of the ‘environment’ subject to planning control has changed. From being wholly concerned with the physical form and content of development it now embraces the social and economic consequences of development. As a result, development control has been used to implement planning strategies for different purposes; for example to minimize the negative effect of urban growth, to check the menace of market forces and ensure social equity, as well as to support economic growth (Uthman, 2019).

Therefore, planning control is a tool, sometimes used to achieve its original objectives of safety and better health; Sometimes to implement planning strategies; and in some cases to do both. Although it continues to regulate the use of land, while planning strategies have widened in scope, development control has proved incapable of meeting additional demands. Since development control is used to implement planning policies, which are normally reflected in planning legislation, physical development plans and other associated planning documents, the failure to achieve development planning objectives may be due to the pursuit of inappropriate policies, to the application of inflexible standards and regulations, or both, which is why Olayiwola  et al (2016), comment that development control practices are inappropriate, ineffective and inequitable in their operation in most Third World cities.They argue that developing countries stand to benefit little from the transplanting of regulations that have evolved in different social soils with differing political and economic climates. Another criticism is that planning agencies in developing countries lack the power and resources to perform efficient and effective development control (Ogundele, Ayo and Aigbe, 2021).

Planning control is seen as a mechanism to maintain standards. It is process laid down by legislation, which regulates the development of land and building. It is the professional activity carried out by town planners in order to ensure compliance with the approved master plan thereby ensuring orderliness(Ogundele, Ayo and Aigbe, 2021)..

In line with the above definition, planning control actually regulates any building or rebuilding operations in, on and under the land. It also ensures an orderly growth of settlements by stipulating adequate standards for all aspects of land-use through the provision of adequate lighting, ventilation, open spaces and other socio-cultural facilities that make life worth living. The power to grant or refuse as well as attach conditions to permissions for development to take place gives the public agencies the big teeth.

Ogunsesan (2004) opined that planning control is the “front line‟ of planning and the part, which affects the general public most. There is a direction in the exercise of development control on developers. The direction according to Ogunsesan (2004) is the objectives of development control, which include: the protection and enhancement of the built environment; the coordination of both public and private investments in land and property to ensure that land is efficiently used; and the control of pollution.  In development control process, time is a very important factor. There are two types of time factors in the development control process as pointed out by Faludi (2019): “internal and external time lag”. The internal time lag as he explained is the time it takes to act upon information received, while the external time lag, he explains as the time it takes for the action to be effected.

Planning control is carried out by planning authorities that have legal powers conferred on them to ensure that development is secured. The authorities according to Faludi (2019) are empowered to: plan, promote and secure the physical development and environmental improvement by economic; as financial developers they can initiate planning schemes and develop the area wholly or partly‟. Fagbohun(2017) is of the view that „though the planning authorities are empowered legally to carry out their duties, it may still be restricted. Its effectiveness reduced by lack of political backing and support from the top echelon of government functionaries‟.

Furthermore, planning control is seen as a powerful implementation weapon in the planning armory. Positive encouragement is given to developers to compel them to willingly develop their land with due respect to the requirement of the planning authorities. Public enlightenment is usually embarked upon which tend to encourage the public to want some sort of control over physical development.  Communication is a vital tool necessary for development control to succeed. An effective and efficient communication ensures control development with people and not for people‟; for if people are carried along in development control process, the authority will be able to guide development with ease and achieve their set objectives of a well-planned built-up area with good road network, building set-backs, ventilation, lighting and pollution free environment. On the other hand, if the members of the public are not informed, they may not accept the idea of control, with feelings that since they owned the land, they can as well carry out development the way they want and at their own time without due consideration.

1.2       Statement of Research Problem 

Rural- urban migration has caused congestion in the urban areas and left the towns and cities sprawling endlessly into the countryside with dire consequences for the provision of essential urban infrastructure. That is, the rate of expansion of each of old and  newly emerging town led to the emergence of uncoordinated land-uses, winding road network, traffic congestion, uncoordinated provision and distribution of socio-physical infrastructure, uncollected waste and the like, amongst others with great impact on the socio-economic well being of the inhabitants (Aluko, 2020). All these are resultant effects of uncontrolled development in both rural and urban settlements in Nigeria.

The rapid growth of our settlements, particularly urban areas need to be controlled to prevent chaotic and haphazard physical growth and development, which certainly takes place in the absence of any development control measure. However, some of the rationales for effective development control are the achievement of balanced, coordinated and good development of the environment; it ensures structural soundness and the adequate provision of necessary utilities, services and facilities for the proposed buildings; protection and the development of the environment so that the activities of men do not have adverse effects on it. This uncontrolled development has led to the environmental situation as presently witnessed in some squatter settlements of Nasarawa and other big town and cities in Nigeria. It is against this background that this study seek to analyze the impact of planning control on residential property value in Nasarawa state with particular reference to Nasarawa town.

1.3       Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of this project is to analyze the impact of planning control on residential property value in Nasarawa State

To achieve the aim above the following objectives were pursued

1. To examine the effectiveness of planning control in Nasarawa town
2. To identify the functions of planning control
3. To evaluate the impact of the planning control on residential property value in Nasarawa
4. To identify the possible problems militating the effective and efficient planning control in the study area.

1.4       Research Questions

1. How effective is planning control in Nasarawa town?
2. What are the functions of planning control?
3. What impact has planning control made to residential property value in Nasarawa?
4. What are the possible problems militating the effective and efficient planning control in the study area?

1.5       Significance of the Study

This project will help to overcome the challenges that are currently facing in planning and development authority in Nasarawa state by the time this project is completed as it will serve as an eye opener on relevance of planning control towards effective and efficient development of urban and rural areas in Nigeria.

The result of this study will enlighten property developers and investors on the need to comply with development control authority as development control generally impact positively on residential property value.

Students and other researchers will find this research useful as it will serve as reference to the department of estate management and valuation.

1.6       Scope and Limitations of the Study

There are different types of property development, this project mainly concern on the impact of development control on residential property development in Abuja.

The following are the limitations of the study

• Lack of proper response from the developer’s point of view.
• The financial aspect was a bit difficult.
• There was no previous work available to reference with.
• And the absence of the group leader makes the data analysis slow.

1.8     DEFINITION & OPERATIONAL OF TERMS

• Development:  used here means an event constituting a new stage in a changing situation i.e. process development or being developed.
  • Control:  implies the power to influence or checking direct result of a survey or experiment of an intelligence of organization.
  • Impact: these means to have a strong effect on something either positive or negative.
  • Residential: means involving living at the place where you are working, studying or being looked after.
  • Property: a thing or things belonging to someone or possessions collectively i.e. an attribute, quality or characteristics of something.

1.9       HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Nasarawa state was created 1^st October 1996 by the general Abacha government regime, it is a state in north central Nigeria, Lafia is the state capital, the was created out of the following neighboring state of plateau, located in north-central region of Nigeria, it is bordered on the west by the federal capital territory, then north by Kaduna, then south by Benue and Kogi and also the east Plateau and Taraba states.

Nasarawa state has diverse range of ethnic group indigenous to the state.

According to 2006 census a little less than 2million populated people reside in the state.

The state has 13 local governments namely:

1. Toto,
2. Obi,
3. NasarawaEggon
4. Nasarawa,
5. Lafia,
6. Kokona,
7. Keffi,
8. Doma,
9. Keana,
10. Karu,
11.  Awe
12. Akwanga
13. Wamba.

And 29 languages spoken, Nasarawa is home to many tertiary institutions namely:

Federal University Lafia

 Federal Polytechnic Nasarawa

Nasarawa State University Keffi

State federal college of education.

Nasarawa state polytechnic etc

Economic activities: of the state are mainly Agriculture, cash crops such as yam, cassava, Andegusi(melon). Production of mineral such as salt is also another major economic activity in the state; Nasarawa produces a large proportion of the salt and bauxite consumed in the country.

Geography issue:  Nasarawa state is bounded in the north Kaduna state, in the west by the proximity Abuja Federal Capital Territory in the south by Kogi and Benue states and in the east by Taraba and Plateau states. A network of roads exist within the state linking all the rural areas and major town the Nigeria Rail ways Corporation (NRC) operate train service from kuru, Gombe, and Maiduguri.

QUALITIES OF A COUNSELLOR

QUALITIES OF A COUNSELLOR

A Counsellor being one who offer helping services to people in expected to poses certain a typical characteristics of enhance hi/her effectiveness / success in the helping profession. These characteristics which are classified into two major groups personnel and professional qualities are made available by Anagbogu (1992:75) Unachukwu and Igborgbor (1991:44) Kochhar (1999:68) and Okoye etal (1990:9).

PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS

There are inherent characteristics in the counselor which through training are modified or developed. These are

INTELLIGENT

The counselor must be intelligent to be able to understand the client feelings, behaviours and motives so as to manipulate situation especially where the client find it difficult to alter certain impression.

DEPENDABILITY

A counselor must be trust worthy, dependable and consistent if he/she is to earn the trust of the student.

WARM AND CARING

The counsellor must show positive attitude and regard to the client by being worm, caring comforting and respecting the worth of the clients He/She should possess tin conditional positive regards for the client not being bias or judgmental, irrespective of their past negative behaviours.

SELF- CONFIDENCE

The counselor must give an unconditional acceptance to the client considering individual difference and also accepting the right of the client in personal matters.

ACCEPTANCE OF CLIENT

A counselor must give an un conditional acceptance to the client considering individual difference and also accepting the right of the client in personal matters

SENSITIVITY

The counsellor should be able to sensor that over and over behaviour of the client, feeling, needs, thought and action. This the counsellor does though his/her verbal non-verbal activities, perceiving and responding to the feeling, needs and conflict of the client without becoming threatening, disrupting or alarming the client

EMPATHETIC

The counsellor should be empathetic in nature being able to place him or her self in the position of the client to understand the feelings, belief, attitude, needs, though and actions he or she should also be able to communicate this understanding the client so that they (clients) sense it.

GENIUSES

A counsellor must be his or her real self at any point in time, being nature in behaviours, honest and should not fake situations.

SENSE OF HONOUR

A counselor is more directed to people rather than things, therefore he or she should live a good sense of honour, which help ion making client to relax and be open to him or her.

COMMITMENT

The counsellor must demonstrate a deep sense of commitment to the job which reflect his or her personal moral standard and the code of conduct and norms of the counseling profession.

SELF CONTROL

A counsellor must be able to control his or her biases and the defenses so that he or she does not interferes with the progress of any person with does not interferes with the progress of any person with whom he or she is working. He or she should have good control of both his or her intellectual abilities and emotion.

PATIENCE

The counsellor should be highly patient with the client during counseling encounters. He or she should exercise patience and listen attentively to what ever the client have to say not minding how they are said. Acknowledging the fact by nodding facial expressions. Postural, positions, eye contact and putting a word or two from time to time.

COMMUNICATION ABILITY

The ability to communicate well with client makes it possible for them to establish positive objectives toward “self”. A counsellor should be able to communicate clearly verbal or non-verbal he / she should be able to communicate his or her feeling well without expression being audible enough without a necessary shouting and the messages not being ambiguous.

SOCIAL ACTIVE AND FRIENDLY

The counsellor should be friendly and interact freely with different categories of people-young and old, male and females rich and poor e.t.c. Through this he or she should be able to know the need of the people.

FLEXIBILITY

A counsellor should not hold a view and stick dogmatically to it he or she should be imaginative and have open mind, craving fore improvement in his or her relationship with others. He or she should be very abreast with change that occur around him or her and adapt to them

CONCEPT OF GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING

CONCEPT OF GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING

It is deducted that guidance is preventive in nature, guiding against possible future problems while counseling is curative in nature, proffering solution to an already existing problems.

In spite of the fact that counselling is one of the services render by guidance programme, the two concepts are not separated. Thus Okeye etal (1990) says that “the most professional way of looking at the term is to se them as a married couple, it take two of them to produce”.

This is to say that both guidance and counselling are concerned with the totality of the client as a regards his or her need and problems, personal social educational vocational e.t.c.

As a result of this analysis the concept of guidance and counselling in this study are being consider and separable but discussed as one term. Its major focus is the students with aim of making them happy and effective function individual.

OBJECTIVES AND GOAL OF GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING

Guidance and counselling focuses on the need of the individual and how to better his life in future. According to Angbogu (1978:29). Guidance and counselling is designed to:

1. Assist the individual through the use of appropriate tools and technique to develop the ability necessary for self direction, personal understanding, self-confidence and mental maturity necessary for a healthy growth and proper adjustment.
2. Assist the individual to have a clearer understanding of himself, his personal trait, social values, habits, attitudes and believe which go to maker a won disciplined and adjusted being.

iii.  Assist the individual to identify his motivation, ambition, resources and limitations.

1. Assist the individual to acquire a better knowledge of available education facilities and learn how to study effectively to achieve academic aspiration.
2. Assist the individual to develop positive self concept and the awareness of self with the changing complex society such as Nigeria.

 

All these are toward the enhancement of positive attitude and well- adjusted life of the individual in the society.

 

CLASSIFICATION OF EARTHWORM (LUMBRICUS TERRESTRIS)

 CLASSIFICATION OF EARTHWORM (LUMBRICUS TERRESTRIS)

Earthworm is a tube-shaped, segmented worm found in the phylum annelida. They are common found living in soil, feeding on live and dead organic matter.

SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION

Kingdom – Animalia

Phylum – Annelida

Class – Oligochaeta

Sub-class – Haplotaxida

Order – Megadrilacea

Sub-order – Lumbricina + maniligastrida

Family – Lumbricidae

Species – Lumbricina

Earthworm is a tube-shaped, segmented worm found in the phylum annelida. They are common found living in soil, feeding on live and dead organic matter. Its digestive system runs respiration through its skin. An earthworm has a double transport system composed of coelomic fluid that moves within the fluid-filled coelom and a simple closed blood circulatory system. They have a central and a peripheral nervous system. The central nervous consist of two ganglia above the mouth, one on either side, connected to a nervous cord running back along its length to motor nervous and sensory cells in each segment. Large numbers of chemoreceptors are concentrated near it mouth circumferential and longitudinal muscles on the periphery of each segment enable the worm to move.

Similar sets of muscles line the gut, and their actions move the digesting food toward the worm anus (Hickman et al;1984)

Earthworms are hermaphrodites each individual carried both male and female sex organs. They lack either an internal skeleton or exoskeleton but maintain their structure with fluid filled coelem chambers that function as a hydrostatic skeleton. Earthworm is the common name for the largest number of oligochaeta (which is either a class or a sub-class depending on the author). In classical system, they were placed in the order opisthopora, on the basis of the male pores opening posterior to the female pores trough the internal male segments are anterior to the female. Theoretical cladistics studies have places them, instead in the suborder lumbricina of the order Haplotaxida, but this may again soon change folk names for the earthworm include “dew-worm”, “rain-worm”, “night crawler”, and angle worm (due to its use as fishing balt). Larger terrestrial earthworms are also called magadriles (or big worms) as opposed to the microdiles (or small worms) in the semi aquatic familiesTubificidae, bumbriculidae, and enchytracidae among others. The magadriles are characterized by having a distinct clitellum (which is more extensive than that of microdriles) and a vascular system with true capillaries.

Earthworms are farless abundant indisturbed environment and are typically active only if water is present (Bandy et al ; 2009).earthworms do not called “light cells of Hess. Those photo receptor cells have a central intracellular cavity (Phoasome) filled with microvilli. As well as the microvilli, these are several sensory cilia in the phaosome which are structurally independent of the microvilli (Rohlich, 1970) the photoreceptors are distributed in most parts of the epidermis but are more concentrated on the back and sides of the worm. A relatively small number occur on the ventral surface of the first segment. They are most numerous in the prostomium and reduce in density in the first three segments; they are very few in number past the third segment.

DEPRECIATION

DEPRECIATION

Depreciation can be defined as the gradual reduction in the value of a fixed asset as a result of wear and tear, passage of time and obsolescence.

TERMINOLOGIES

1. Depreciable Asset: This is an asset which has the following qualities
2. Useful life of over one years
3. Acquired primarily for use in production of goods and services
4. Limited useful life
5. Not intended for sale in the ordinary course of the business
6. Residual Value: This is also known as the scrap value. It is the estimated amount recoverable from the disposal of a fixed asset after its expected  useful economic life.
7. Depreciable Value: This refers to the net book value of a depreciable asset that could be allocated to future operations through depreciation.
8. Useful Life: The estimated number of years through which an asset can be cost.

The causes of depreciation may be classified into physical deterioration, economic factors, time factors and depletion.

1. Physical Deterioration 
2. Wear and Tear: This is physical deterioration or loss of value suffered by a fixed asset as a result of usage.
3. Erosion, rust, rot and decay: These are physical deterioration or loss of value suffered by fixed assets as a result of exposure to wind, sun, rain and other elements of nature

 

Economic Factor:

1.  Obsolescence: This is the process of becoming obsolete or out-of-date. It is the loss of value suffered by a fixed asset as a result of advancement in technology. E.g. Black and white TV as a result of development of colour TV, Nokia 3310 as a result of Java phones, coal engine as a result of diesel engine.
2.       Inadequacy: This is the loss of value suffered by an asset as a result of growth and changes in size of a firm. E.g. computers with less capacity will be inadequate to a larger firm.

In both inadequacy and obsolescence the asset may not necessary be scrapped but may be used by other smaller firm who may need them.

3. Time Factor: although the other causes of depreciation may be connected to time, there are fixed assets whose values are specially connected to time. These are assets with fixed period of legal life such as leases, patents, copyright. Instead of using the term depreciation, the term amortization is often used for the provision for the consumption of these assets.
4. Depletion: This is the loss of value suffered by assets of wasting nature as a result of exploitation. Examples include natural resources such as mines, quarries, oil wells and forest reserve.

To provide for the consumption of assets of wasting nature is called provision for depletion.

ZONING SYSTEM AND REGULATION

    ZONING SYSTEM

Zoning system is a process through which a community divides itself into two or more district or zones allowing only designated land uses in each district and imposing certain development activity. Adopting a zoning ordinance is an exercise of regulating powers and ordinance provision must be reasonable, based on a comprehensive plan and related to health, safety, morals and general welfare of the community. Zoning is one of the many measures of government to guise the use and development of privately owned real estate.

Rural zoning is not nearly as wide spread as urban zoning, it early use was to reduce public service costs and prevent personal hardship in land cleared areas.

In Nigeria, especially the Federal Capital City (FCC) zoning is considered a useful tool for combating problems such as:

1. Protecting public health and safety by preventing development that could lead to ground and surface water pollution, keeping flammable structures at distance apart.
2. Preservation and developing the economic base. This is of particular significance in areas where economic existence is based on natural resources, such as agriculture, recreation or running.

iii.              Improving the quality of the physical environment by screening or eliminating unsightly uses of land use as junk poles and damps, prevent lake pollution etc

1. Protecting properly values from being undermined by the development of incompatible uses on adjacent or nearly properties.

ZONING REGULATION

There are three ways to categorized regulation contained in zoning ordinance.

1. The first distinguished between regulating provisions that seek to control the location of different kinds of land uses and those intended to influence characteristics controlling provisions concerning physical aspects within the boundaries of the plot, or tract of land involved as such as the relative position of improvement and the amount of open space.
2. Zoning regulations can also be categorized according to the geographic area of application.

iii.              The third classification separates zoning restriction according to the physical characterized that are affected such as:

1. Those intended to determine population density such as lot size and coverage and type of dwelling.
2. Those concerning land structure relationships minimum set back distance, frontage, and side yard and backyard requirements for residence are almost universal.
3. Those directly controlling land use list of permitted, conditionally permitted, and prohibited uses are set-aside in certain land areas.

PROJECT SUCCESS AND FAILURE IMPLEMENTATION FACTORS

PROJECT SUCCESS AND FAILURE

Project Success and Failure: According to (Fubara 1975) the process of building project implementation involving the successful development and introduction of projects on the environment, presents ongoing challenge for managers. The building implementation process is complex, usually requiring simultaneous attention to a wide variety of human, budgetary and technical variables. A project manager is often faced with difficult job characterized by role overload, frenetic activity, fragmentation and superficiality. A project manager in spite of all these has the responsibility for successful project outcomes without sufficient power, budget or people to handle all of the elements essential for project success. In addition, projects are often initiated in the context of a turbulent, unpredictable, and dynamic environment. A project manager would be well served by more information about those specific factors critical to project success. The project manager requires the necessary tools for him to focus attention on important areas and send different priorities across different project elements. It can be demonstrated that a set of factors under the project manager’s control can have a significant impact on project implementation success. The project manager should be better able to efficiently and effectively deal with many demands created by his job, channeling his energy more efficiently in attempting to successfully implement the project under development.

PROJECT SUCCESS AND FAILURE IMPLEMENTATION FACTORS

Fubara (1975).studied many projects in their bid to evaluate factors that constraint success in project management; they articulated many factors but narrowed them down to what they christened ten key factors of project implementation profile as reflected below:

Communication: The need for adequate communication channel is extremely important in creating an atmosphere for successful implementation of a building project. Communication could best be described as the life wire of any project implementation success. There should be prompt communication to the building or project mission, good information flow with the top management, the building or project scheduled plan, always consulting the client, adequate communication to personnel issues like recruitment, motivation and training etc, good understanding of the technical task and staff, sequential monitoring of all work and processes given feedback to the stakeholders, always active in communication with trouble shooting indicators, communicating with the client at all times sensitizing him with every issue that will enable him to accept the product after execution.

 

Project mission: Project mission is the same as clearly defined goals and objectives. Project mission has been found to refer to the condition where the goals of the building project are clear and understood not only by the project team involved but by the other departments in the organization.

 

Top management support: Fubara (1975). noted that management support of projects especially building construction has long been considered of great importance in distinguishing between their ultimate success and failure. Beck (1979), sees project management as not only dependent on top management for authority, direction, and support, but as ultimately the conduct of implementing top managements plan as goal for the entire project organization. The degree of ultimate acceptance or resistance to the project shows the degree of management support of the project.

 

Project scheduled plan: According to Pinto et al (1989) this refers to the importance of developing a detailed plan of the required stages of the implementation process. This is the origin of life cycle concept in building construction projects.

 

Client consultation: The need for client consultation has been found to be increasingly important in attempting to successfully implement a building project. The degree to which clients are personally involved in the implementation process will cause great variation in their support for the project.

 

Personnel issues: Personnel issues include recruitment, selection and staff training for the building project. An important, but often overlooked aspect of the building implementation process concerns the nature of the personnel involved. In many situations, personnel for the building team are chosen by the client especially in the public sector building construction with less than full regard for the skills necessary to actively contribute to the implementation success.

 

Technical tasks: This is very important in that the people who understand the project must manage the implementation. Stevin (1977) writing on implementation risk analysis identifies two of the eight risk factors as being caused by technical incompatibility which are monitoring and feedback: Monitoring and feedback refer to building project control system or processes by which at each stage of the implementation, key personnel receive feedback on how the project is comparing or conforming to initial projections in time management, cost, quality and materials.

 

Trouble shooting: Problem always exists in almost every project especially building construction, they could be seen as conflicts which lead to the success or failure based on how it is being managed by the stakeholders, in fact, conflict according to Nwachukwu, (2010).” Is seen as an indispensable force that propels the wheel of subproject implementation process.”

 

Client acceptance: This is the final stage in building project implementation process at which time the ultimate efficiency of the project is determined. For there to be a successful handover of the developmental product, there is need to carry the client along by prompt communication and feedback throughout the stages of the building project life cycle.

 

Project management tools: Project management tools are mainly planning and implementation tools at various stages of the project life cycle which is expected to foster success in the implementation process. At the conception stage, an effective and efficient appraisal is a very strategic and significant tool used in establishing the feasibility and viability of a project proposal. It helps us to determine investment alternatives, how much to invest, and how to go about it. Management tool ensures the project servers it uses to the fullest via apt maintenance culture.

RETAILERS MARKETING DECISIONS

RETAILERS MARKETING DECISIONS

The basic framework for deciding retail marketing strategy cannot be over emphasized. We will examine retailers marketing decisions in the areas of retail positioning, store location, product assortment and services, price, communication and store atmosphere.

RETAIL POSITIONING

Retail positioning involves the choice of target market and differential advantage. Targeting allows retailers to tailor their marketing mix, which includes product assortment, service levels, store location, prices and promotion, to the needs of their chosen customer segment. Differentiation provides a reason to shop at one store rather than another. A useful framework for creating a differential advantage has been proposed by Davies, who suggests that innovation in retailing can come only when novelty in the process offered to the shoppers, or from novelty in the product or product assortment offered to the shopper.

STORE LOCATION

Convenience is an important issue for many shoppers, and so store location can have a major bearing on sales performance. Retailers have to decide on regional coverage, the town and cities to target within regions and the precise location within a give town or city. Many retailers begin life as regional suppliers, and grow by expanding geographically. In the UK, for example, the Asda supermarket chain expanded from the north of England, while Sainsbury’s original base was in the South of England.

The choice of town or city will depend upon such factors as correspondence with the retailer’s chosen target market, the level of disposable income in the catchments area, the availability of suitable site, and the level of competition. The choice of a particular site may depend on the level of existing traffic (Pedestrian and / or vehicular) passing the site, parking provision, access to the outlet for delivery vehicles, the presence of competition, planning restrictions, and the opportunity to form new retailing centers with other outlets.

PRODUCT ASSORTMENT AND SERVICES

Retailers have to decide upon the breadth of their product assortment and its depth. A supermarket, for example, may decide to widen its product assortment from food, drink and toiletries to include clothes and toys, this is called scrambled merchandising. Within each product line it can choose to stock a deep or shallow product range. Department stores, however, offer a much broader range of products including toys, cosmetics, jewelry, clothes, electrical goods and household accessories. Some retailers begin with one product line and gradually broaden their product assortment to maximize revenue for customers.

The choice of product assortment will be dependent on the positioning strategy of the retailer, customer expectations, and ultimately on the profitability of each product line. Slow moving unprofitable lines should be dropped unless they are necessary to conform with the range of products expected by customers. For example, customers expect a full range of food products in a supermarket.

Another product decision concerns own-label branding. Large retailers may decide to sell a range of own-label products to complement national brands. Often the purchasing power of large retail chains means that prices can be lower and yet profit margins higher than for competing national brands. This makes the activity an attractive proposition for many retailers.

Finally, retailers need to consider the nature and degree of customer service. Discount stores traditionally provided little services but as price differentials have narrowed some have sought differentiation through service. For example many electrical goods retailers provide a comprehensive after-sales service package for their customers. Superior customer service may make customers more tolerant of higher prices and even where the product is standardized (as in fast food restaurants) training employees to give individual attention to each customer can arise loyalty to the outlet.

PRICE

Price is a key positioning factor and must be decided in relation to the target market, the product – and – service assortment mix, and the competition. All retailers would like to achieve high volumes and high gross margins. They would like high turns x Earns, but the two usually do not go together. Most retailers fall into the high-markup, lower-volume group (fine specialty stores) or the low-markup – volume group (mass merchandisers and discount stores).

Retailers must also pay attention to pricing tactics. Most retailers will put low prices on some items to serve as traffic builders or loss leaders. They will run storewide sales. They will plan markdowns on slower-moving merchandise.

COMMUNICATION

Retailers use a wide range of communication tools to generate traffic and purchases. They place ads, run special sales, issue money-saving coupons, and run frequent shopper-reward programs. in-store food sampling, and coupons on shelves or at checkout points. Each retailer must use communications that support and reinforce its image positioning. Fine stores will place tasteful, full-page ads in magazines such as vogue, Vanity Fair or Esquire. They will carefully train sales people to greet customers, interpret their needs, and handle complaints. Off-price retailers will arrange their merchandise to promote the idea of bargains and large savings, while conserving on service and sales assistance.

STORE ATMOSPHERE

This is created by the design, colour and layout of a store. Both exterior and interior design affect atmosphere. External factors include architectural design, signs, window display and use of colour that create an identity for a welcoming rather than an intimidating mood. The image which is projected should be consonant with the ethos of the shop.

Interior design also has a major impact on atmosphere. Store lighting, fixtures and fittings, and layout are important considerations. Supermarkets that have narrow aisles that contribute to congestion can project a negative image, and poorly lit showrooms can feel intimidating. Colour, sound and smell can affect mood. Colour has meaning and can be used to create the desired atmosphere in a store. Supermarkets often use music to create a relaxed atmosphere, whereas some boutiques use pop music to attract their target customers. Departmental stores often plan perfume counters near the entrance, and supermarkets may use the smell of baking bread to attract their customers.

FUNCTIONS OF RETAILERS

INTRODUCTION –  RETAILERS

A retailer buys a wide variety of goods from different wholesalers after estimat­ing customer demand. He selects the best merchandise from each wholesaler and brings all the goods under one roof. In this way, he performs the twin functions of buying and assembling of goods.

FUNCTIONS OF RETAILERS

The functions of the retailer include:

1. The primary functions of a retailer are the assembling at convenient points a wide assortment of goods from numerous sources.
2. The retailer keeps ready stocks to meet the demands of consumer every day.
3. He brings new products and new varieties to the knowledge of consumers.
4. He offers expert advice to the consumers on the merits and suitability of the products.
5. He extends credit, undertakes door delivery and allows liberal exchange facilities.
6. The retailer saves the manufacturer from the expensive and time consuming process of direct marketing.
7. He undertakes also promotion activities through window-display and counter display
8. The retailer who buys in fairly large quantities from the wholesaler normally has to break the bulk further so that he can sell at appropriate quantities to the consumers.
9. Retailers with known “Goodwill” sometimes undertake local branding of not too well known manufacturers goods, to facilitate easy sales.
10. Some large retail outlets like departmental stores and supermarkets have facilities for delivery of purchased items such as furniture and other consumer durables to buyer’s premises.
11. The retailer opens at convenient hours for the benefit of the shopper. The large retail outlets have the opening and closing hours, which may be meet the requirements of both the working and non-working housewife.
12. They pass information from consumers about their complaints and preferences to wholesalers for onward transfer to the producer.
13. Completion of production process such as labeling
14. Providing after-sales services to customers such as installation and maintenance services.
15. Selling to consumers at convenient place and time.

FORCES INFLUENCING RETAIL STRUCTURE

FORCES INFLUENCING RETAIL STRUCTURE

The retail structure is highly dynamic and constantly changing in form. There are so many factors that affect retailing structure but we shall pay special attention to only the population density, population mobility, disposable income, social custom and competition.

THE DENSITY OF POPULATION

The density of population will determine the nature and size of retail organization. In a low density area, there are likely to be small retail outlets dealing in general lines of goods. But in high density areas, there will be large retail outlets with some of them specializing in few product lines.

POPULATION MOBILITY

Population mobility can be looked at from the people’s ability to move to other areas. Such movement may be temporary as when people travel to transact their business or permanent as when they leave their homes to live in other areas. In Nigeria, there is what can be called the rural-urban areas. This type of mobility is bound to affect the structure of retailing because it decrease population in the rural area and increases that of the urban areas.

DISPOSABLE INCOME

The levels of disposable income available to the people also affect the retail structure. Disposable income measures the standard of living of a people. Low disposable income will encourage small retail outlets while high disposable income will stimulate large scale retail outlets. Disposable income means that portion of one’s income which one can spend on oneself after paying for taxes and other essentials.

SOCIAL CUSTOM

The culture of a people also affects retail structure. Until recently, most Nigerians preferred to buy their needs from the open market or small retail outlets instead of large scale retail establishment. This had encouraged small retail outlets to the disadvantage of the big retail outlets. This has a linkage with both the disposable income and the standard of living.

COMPETITION

Competition in retailing institution is of two types, competition between retail institutions of different kinds and competition between institutions of the same kind. In general, competition stimulates growth within the institution and those retailing outlets that cannot cope may decline and eventually liquidate.

Types of Retailers

INTRODUCTION – TYPES OF RETAILERS

Consumers today can shop for goods and services in a wide variety of retail organizations. There are store retailers, nonstore retailers, and retail organization.

1. SUPERMARKETS – RETAILERS
   

These are large self-service stores traditionally selling food, drinks and toiletries, but range broadening by some supermarket chains means that such items as non-prescription pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and clothing are also being sold. While one attraction of supermarkets is their lower prices compared with small independent grocery shops, the extent to which price is a key competitive weapon depends upon the supermarket’s positioning strategy.

2. DEPARTMENT STORES – RETAILERS
   

So-called because related product lines are sold in separate departments such as men’s and women’s clothing, jewelry, cosmetics, toys, and home furnishings, in recent years department stores have been under increasing pressure from discount houses, specialty stores and the move to out-of-town shopping. Nevertheless, they are still surviving in this competitive arena.

3. SPECIALITY SHOP – RETAILERS
   

These outlets specialize in a narrow product line. For example, many town centers have shops selling confectionery, cigarettes and newspapers in the same outlet. May speciality outlets sell only one product line such as Tie Rack and Sock Shop. Specialization allows a deep product line to be sold in restricted shops space. Some speciality shops focus on quality and personal services such as butchers and greengrocers.

4. DISCOUNT HOUSES- RETAILERS
   

These sell products at low prices by bulk buying, accepting low margins and selling high volumes. Low prices, sometimes promoted as sale prices, are offered throughout the year. As an executive of Dixons, a UK discounter of electrical goods, commented we only have two sales each lasting six months. Many discounters operate from out-of-town retail warehouses with the capacity of stock a wide range of merchandize.

5. CATEGORY RETAILERS KILLERS

These are retail outlets with a narrow product focus but with an unusually wide width and depth to that product range. Category killers emerged in the USA in the early 1980s as a challenge to discount houses. They are distinct from speciality shops in that they are bigger and carry a wider and deeper range of products within their chosen product category, and are distinguished from discount houses in their focus on only one product category.

Two examples of the category killer are Toys “R” Us and Nevada Bob’s Discount Golf warehouses, e-marketing 20.1 discusses how Toys “R” Us operates and gains competitive advantage over traditional toy outlets, while facing a major threat from a new internet – based competitor eToys.

6. CONVENIENCE RETAILERS STORES

These stores offer customer the convenience of close location and long opening hours every day of the week. Because they are small they pay higher prices for their merchandise than supermarkets, and therefore have to charge higher prices to their customers. Some of these stores join buying groups such as spar or mace to gain some purchasing power and lower prices. But the main customer need that they fulfill is for top-up buying, for example when short of a carton of milk or loaf of bread. Although average purchase value is low, convenience stores prosper because of their higher prices and low staff costs, many are family businesses.

7. CATALOGUE STORES

These retail outlets promote their products through catalogues which are either posted or are available in the store for customers to take home. Purchase is in city center outlets where customers fill in order forms, pay for the goods and then collect them from a designated place in the store. In the UK, Argos is a successful catalogue retailer selling a wide range of discounted products such as electrical goods, jewelry, gardening tools, furniture, toys, car accessories, sports goods, luggage, and cutlery.

Entrepreneurship for Sustainable Economic in Nigeria

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Entrepreneurship is the process of designing, launching, and running a new business, i.e. a startup company offering a product, process or service. It has been defined as the “…capacity and willingness to develop, organize, and manage a business venture along with any of its risks in order to make a profit

The importance of entrepreneurship as a realistic mechanism for sustainable economic growth in Nigeria considering the experiences of developed nations like the United States and vibrant economies like China and India.

Entrepreneurship has been instrumental in economic growth, balanced regional development and job creation in most dynamic economies, where technology is changing at a faster rate and the product lifetime cycle is shrinking.

The right business environment for entrepreneurship is lacking in Nigeria on account of the challenges of frequent power outages, bad roads, multiple taxes extortion of money from SMEs by government officials, lack of genuine support service for SMEs and expensive transportation/telecommunications costs have all combined to inhibit entrepreneurship and economic growth. The paper therefore concludes that government should focus on capacity building, improving infrastructure, judicious utilisation of the oil wealth and enabling environment thereby leading to sustainable economic growth.

Entrepreneurship in Nigeria started when people in the villages and farming communities produced more products than they needed, as such; they had to exchange these surpluses with those who needed them within their immediate and neighbouring communities. The exchange of goods for goods or services was based on trade by barter initially, until commodity money was developed and used.

Exchange encouraged specialisation among producers, and the communities came to realize that they can concentrate on the areas of production they are best fitted.

Consequent on the above, the culture of entrepreneurship started in Nigeria (Nicks, 2008; Raimi and Towobola, 2011).

The socio-economic impact of entrepreneurship on the sustainable economic growth of the Nigerian economy is difficult to accurately measure or estimate, but it is believed to be highly dynamic and significant (Chu, Kara, Benzing, 2010).

However, a study estimated that between 45 and 60 percent of the urban labour force work for small private enterprises or what is otherwise called small businesses (Chu, Kara, Benzing, 2010 quoting Nwaka, 2005). Another study suggests that entrepreneurship has been beneficial because the Nigerian private sector comprising of small and medium enterprises provides diverse employment opportunities for 50 percent of the country’s population and 50 percent of the its industrial output (Ariyo (2005).

On account of encouraging entrepreneurial initiatives, the country has experienced exponential growth in the number of private firms. However, majority of these businesses are very small when their operations are measured in terms of capital, employment and revenues (Attahir and Minet, 2000).

Added to the above is difficulty confronted by small businesses in accessing bank credits, but the most serious and damaging problem threatening the state of entrepreneurship in Nigeria is a lack of government interest and support for micro, small enterprises (Ariyo, 2005; Chu et al., 2008).

Besides, entrepreneurship and small and medium enterprises development is hampered by plethora of challenges like bad roads, bribes by government officials, multiple taxes, epileptic power supply and rising overhead costs on transportation and communication. All these challenges and similar others have attracted global attention (Business Environment and Enterprise Performance Surveys, 2007).

More importantly, economic growth has eluded Nigeria on account poor utilisation of its numerous oil wealth for communal benefits, as current socio-economic indicators suggest that the nation’s mineral wealth has become worthless and a source of misery (Alan, 2007).

Conceptualization: Entrepreneurship and Economic Growth

Literature that explores entrepreneurship and economic growth in Nigeria is limited. The next option is to rely on materials from developed and developing countries for a deep insight into the impact of entrepreneurship on sustainable economic growth and development. Entrepreneurship is the creation and management of a new organization designed to pursue a unique, innovative opportunity and achieve rapid, profitable growth (Shane and Venkataraman, 2000). Kanothi (2009) quoting Binks and Vale (1990) defines entrepreneurship as “an unrehearsed combination of economic resources instigated by the uncertain prospect of temporary monopoly profit.. Entrepreneurship also entails the act of risk-taking, innovation, arbitrage and co-ordination of factors of production in the creation of new products or services for new and existing users in human society (Acs and Storey 2004, Minniti and Lévesque 2008, Naudé 2007, Kanothi, 2009).

The deliverable of entrepreneurship is making or doing things differently; making or providing innovative products or services; or organising how the products are made or supplied.

Economic growth on the other hand is the increase in the value of the goods and services produced by an economy. It is conventionally measured as the percent rate of increase in real gross domestic product, or GDP (Jones, 2002). Growth is usually calculated in real terms, i.e. inflation – adjusted terms, in order to net out the effect of inflation on the price of the goods and services produced. In economics “economic growth” or “economic growth theory” typically refers to growth of potential output, i.e., production at “full employment,” which is caused by growth in aggregate demand or observed output (Erbee and Hagemann, 2002).

The link between entrepreneurship as a catalyst of sustainable economic growth has been over flogged in the literature. Economics experts and various studies conducted across the globe envisage India and China to rule the world in the 21st century on account of their entrepreneurship and small business promotion feats.

For over a century, the United States has been the largest economy in the world but major developments have taken place in the world economy since then, leading to the shift of focus from the US and the rich countries of Europe to the two Asian giants – India and China (Economy Watch, 2007).

The United States Of America (USA) is the most technologically powerful economy of the world (Phoenix, 2006). The economy of the United States is the world’s largest national economy. Its nominal GDP was estimated to be $14.3 trillion in 2009, approximately a quarter of nominal global GDP. Its GDP at purchasing power parity was also the largest in the world, approximately a fifth of global GDP at purchasing power parity. The U.S. economy also maintains a very high level of output per capita. In 2009, it was estimated to have a per capita GDP (PPP) of $46,381, the 6th highest in the world (Wikipedia, 2010).

During the days of the British Empire, the UK economy was the largest in the world and the first to industrialise (ushering in the Industrial Revolution).

Although it has declined in significance, but the UK is still the sixth largest economy in the world by purchasing power parity. GDP growth was 1.1 per cent in 2008 but it is expected to contract in coming years, with GDP growth forecasts of -3.2 per cent in 2009 and – 1.1 per cent in 2010. The UK has a population of 61m and a GDP per capita is US$37.4k, which makes it the 30th richest country in the world, above the European Union average of US$33.8k (Economy Watch, 2010).

The smaller public sector is dominated by about 200 large state enterprises concentrated mostly in utilities, heavy industries and energy resources (China Daily, 2006).

Economic Growth In Nigeria

The Nigerian economy is one of the most developed economies in Africa. According to the UN classification, Nigeria is a middle-income nation with developed financial, communication and transport sectors. It has the second largest stock exchange in the continent. The petroleum industry is central to the Nigerian economic profile. It is the 12th largest producer of petroleum products in the world.

The industry accounts for almost 80% of the GDP share and above 90% of the total exports. Outside the petroleum sector, the Nigerian economy is highly amorphous and lacks basic infrastructure. Several failed efforts have been made after 1990 to develop other industrial sectors (Economy Watch, 2010).

Nigeria has great potentials for economic growth and development, given her vast natural resources in agricultural lands and minerals, as well as abundant manpower. In the last two decades, economic growth rate has been very low and in many years less than the population growth rate.

The general macroeconomic outcome has been poor, resulting to high poverty level (Wikipedia, 2010).

GDP per capita of Nigeria expanded 132% in the Sixties reaching a peak growth of 283% in the Seventies. But this proved unsustainable and it consequently shrank by 66% in the Eighties. In the Nineties, diversification initiatives finally took effect and decadal growth was restored to 10%. Due to inflation, per capita GDP today remains lower than in 1960 when Nigeria declared independence.

The low growth rate deals with downsizing of the industrial sector in Nigeria. One factor that impacted negatively on growth was high lending interest rates which promoted savings, but discouraged the flow of credit and investments to the real sector. Another economic phenomenon that affected growth was large budget deficits that were financed by the banking sector.

CONCLUSION / RECOMMENDATIONS

Economic growth is the key to higher living standards. According to Onipede (2003), economic theory suggests several key institutions and policy factors that are important for the achievement of maximum economic growth. It is therefore recommended that the following institutions and policies be enhanced in order to make way for sustainable economic and entrepreneurship development in Nigeria:

1. There is the need for security of property right and political stability in the country. A volatile political, religious and ethnic climate undermines security of property rights.
2. Stable money and prices are essential for development. A stable monetary environment provides the foundation for the efficient operation of a market economy. In contrast, monetary and price instability generate uncertainty and undermine the security of contracts.
3. The market and enabling environment must be competitive. In a competition, producers must woo consumers away from other suppliers. To do so, they must offer quality and cheaper alternatives. Sellers who cannot provide quality products at competitive prices have no place in a competitive market economy and thus would be driven from the market (Gwartney et al., 1999).
4. There must be in place policy and regulations that guarantee freedom of trade, within or without. Trade is very important for growth and prosperity. When the citizens are allowed unfettered right albeit within the permissible confines of the law to buy from suppliers offering the best deal and sell to purchasers willing to pay the most attractive prices, this way, they would be able to concentrate on the things they do well, while trading for those they do poorly (Gwartney et al., 1999).. Theoretically Nigeria is an open economy, which is on the face value; however, the opposite is the reality as there are many legal barriers in place, which make free trade next to impossible. These barriers should, as a matter of utmost importance be reviewed and where possible, expunged totally (Onipede, 2003).
5. Information communication technology (ICT) must be optimally utilised. ICT is a term that encompasses all forms of technology used to create, store, exchange and use information in its various forms (Business Data, Voice, Conversation, Still images, Motion Pictures, Multimedia presentations and other forms, including those not yet conceived). It is the technology that is driving–„information revolution.. It is an enabler as e- Business / e-Commerce and e- Service
6. Right-sizing of government: Government can meaningfully enhance economic growth by providing an infrastructure for the smooth operation of markets. A legal system that provides price stability is the central elements in this area (Gwartney et al., 1999). However, a government that grows too large as the case is in Nigeria, retards economic growth in a number of ways. First, as government grows, relative to the market sector, the returns to government activities diminish. The larger the government, the greater is its involvement in activities it does poorly. Second, more government means higher taxes, as the government fails to provide basic essential infrastructures for a better standard of living of its citizens. However, as taxes take more earnings from citizens, the incentive to invest declines.

Development of entrepreneurial skills married with excellent knowledge of information and communication technology (ICT) as additional key to technological and entrepreneurial development is important.

Nigeria’s vision of achieving sustainable economic growth and social development will remain unrealized if the nation’s infrastructural needs are not addressed. The provision of infrastructure such as power, transport and water is vital. Without adequate, cheap, constant and reliable electric power supply, no technological development will be successively achieved.

New innovation is lacking in Nigeria, most entrepreneurs prefer to import goods and package for sales because of high cost of production. In order to reverse this trend, it is pertinent that government gives priority to capacity building for technological innovation, good infrastructure and provide environment conducive for business that will lead to sustainable economic growth.

Additionally, since entrepreneurs are vital to economic growth, legislators and other leaders who develop economic policies should strive to encourage the innovation and risk taking of entrepreneurs. Enforcing property rights through contract, patent and copyright laws; encouraging competition through free trade, deregulation and antitrust legislation and promoting a healthy economic climate.

Any country that lacks capacity for production of goods will become a consuming nation instead of an industrial nation.

Finally, the Nigerian government needs to shift from over-dependence on oil and place more attention on the development of small & medium sized enterprises for sustainable economic growth in Nigeria. Economic prosperity in Nigeria, as in the rest of the world, depends on strong and empowered private sector to lead MSEs to a higher level of growth which would significantly contribute to the country’s economic well-being.

REFERENCES

Abouzeedan, Adli and Leijon, Svante (2007). Critical review of the usage of narrative-textual case studies in social sciences and the connect to traditional research methods. Paper presented at the 10th

Uddevalla Symposium, 14 -16 June, Uddevalla, Sweden. Research Report, University West.

Acs, Z.J. and D.J. Storey (2004) ‘Introduction: Entrepreneurship and Economic Development’, Regional Studies 38(8): 871-877.

African Statistical Yearbook 2010 by African Development Bank

Alan, Beattie (2010). False Economy – A surprising economic history of the world. Penguin Books’. ISBN: 978

ATTERBERG LIMITS

ATTERBERG LIMITS

The Atterberg limits are a basic measure of the critical water contents of a fine-grained soil, such as its shrinkage limit, plastic limit, and liquid limit. As a dry, clayey soil takes on increasing amounts of water, it undergoes dramatic and distinct changes in behavior and consistency. Depending on the water content of the soil, it may appear in four states: solid, semi-solid, plastic and liquid. In each state, the consistency and behavior of a soil is different and consequently so are its engineering properties. Thus, the boundary between each state can be defined based on a change in the soil’s behavior. The Atterberg limits can be used to distinguish between silt and clay, and it can distinguish between different types of silts and clays.

PURPOSE
This lab test is performed to determine the plastic and liquid limits of a fine-grained soil. The liquid limits (LL) is arbitrarily defined as the water content in percent, at which a part of soil in a standard cup and cut by a groove of standard dimensions will flow together at the base of the groove for a distance of 13mm when subjected to 25 shocks from the cup being dropped 10mm in a standard liquid limit apparatus operated at a rate of two shock per second. The plastic limit (PL) is the water content, in percent at which a soil can no longer be deformed by rolling into 3.2mm diameter threads without crumbling.

STANDARD REFERENCE
ASTM D4318- standard test method for liquid limit, plastic limit and plasticity index of soils.

SIGNIFICANCE
The Swedish soil scientist Albert Atterberg originally defined seven ‘Limits of consistency’ to classify fine-grained soils, but in current engineering practice only two of the limits, the liquid and plastic limits are commonly used. (A third limit, called the shrinkage limit is used occasionally). The Atterberg limits are based on the moisture content of the soil.

The plastic limit is the moisture content that defines where the soil changes from a semi-solid to a plastic (flexible) state. The liquid limit is the moisture content that defines where the soil changes from a plastic to a viscous fluid state. The shrinkage limit is the moisture content that defines where the soil volume will not reduce further if the moisture content is reduced.

The original liquid limit test of Atterberg involved mixing a part of clay in a round-bottom porcelain bowl of 10-12cm diameter. A groove was cut through the pat of clay with a spatula and bowl then struck many times against the palm of one hand.

Casagrande subsequently standardized the apparatus and the procedures to make the measurement more repeatable. Soil is placed into the metal cup portion of the device and a groove is made down its centre with a standardized tool of 13.5mm (0.53in) width. The cup is repeatedly dropped 10mm onto a hard rubber base at a rate of 120 blows per minute during which the groove closes up gradually as a result of the impact. The number of blows for the groove to close is recorded. The moisture content at which it takes 25 drops of the cup to cause the groove to close over a distance of 13.5mm (0.53in) is defined as the Liquid Limit. The test is normally run at several moisture content which requires 25blows to close the groove is interpolated from the test results. The liquid limit test is defined by ASTM standard test method D4318. The test method also allow running the test at one moisture content where 20 to 30 blows are required to close the groove. Then a correction factor is applied to obtain the liquid from the moisture content.

The materials needed to do a liquid limit test are as follows;
• Casagrande cup (liquid limit device)
• Grooving tool
• Soil pat before test
• Soil pat after test

IMPORTANCE OF LIQUID LIMIT TEST
The importance of the liquid limit test is to classify soils. Different soils have varying liquid limits. Also, one must use the plastic limit to determine the plasticity index.

DERIVED LIMITS
The values of these limits are used in a number of ways. There is also a close relationship between the limits and properties of a soil such as compressibility, permeability and strength. This is thought to be very useful because as limit determination is relatively simple, it is more difficult to determine these other properties. Thus the Atterberg limits are not only used to identify the soils classification, but it allows for the use of empirical correlations for some other engineering properties.

PLASTICITY INDEX
Plasticity index is a measure of the plasticity of the soil. The plasticity index is the size of the range of water content where the soil exhibits plastic properties. The plasticity index is the difference between the liquid limit and the plastic limit (PI = LL – PL). Soils with high plasticity index tend to be clay, those with a lower plasticity index tend to be silt and those with a plasticity index of 0 (non-plastic) tend to have little or no silt or clay.

 

PLASTICITY INDEX AND THEIR MEANINGS
• 0 – 3 = Non-plastic
• 3 – 15 = Slightly plastic
• 15- 30 = Medium plastic
• > 30 = highly plastic.

LIQUIDITY INDEX
The liquidity index (L.I) is used for scaling the natural water content of a soil sample to the limits. It can be calculated as a ratio of difference between natural water content to plastic limit: L.I = (W – P.L)/ (L.L – P.L). Where W is the natural water content.

 

 

APPARATUS

1. Sand cone apparatus which consist of a one gallon plastic bottle with a metal cone attached to it.
2. Balance sensitive to 1 gram.

• One gallon plastic can with cap.

 

1. Tools for excavating a hole in the ground like chisel, hammer etc.
2. Metal tray with a hole in the centre
3. Plastic air tight bag for carrying wet excavated soil from field to the lab.

• Scale (weight balance).

 

PR0CEDURES

The following procedures were carried out;

1. Go to the field were the soil’s unit weight is to be measured, place the metal tray and fasten the four (4) screws. (See Fig A. below).
2. Dig up to 10 to 15 cm deep.

• As you are digging the hole, put the retrieved soil into the plastic bag in other that the soil does not loose moisture. All of the soil including the soil at the bottom of the hole is poured into the bag as well.(See Fig. B below)

1. Having the valve closed, turn the gallon + cone upside down and place the cone in the centre hole of tray and open the valve so that sand flows down to the hole.(See Fig. C below)
2. After the flow of sand stops, close the valve and pick the assembly up, the sand in the cone will be poured into the tray. This sand will be left there in the field.

NOTE; The plastic bag should be kept close while transferring it to the lab to avoid moisture loss and consequently weight of the soil.

1. Measure the weight of soil (laterite).

• Measure the weight of sand in cone.
• Measure the weight of sand after pouring.

1. Measure the weight of sand before pouring.
2. Pour the soil (laterite) into the speedy moisture tester (SMT) and add SMT reagent to find the moisture content.

 

 

CALCULATIONS

The following parameters were obtained from an experiment carried out, a case study of Gilmor Engineering (Nigeria) Limited.

Location Layer Soil type Sand bottle No.   Wt. of wet soil from whole W gm Wt. of sand in cone w7 Wt. of sand before pouring w5gm Wt. of sand after pouring. W6 gm Wt. of sand in hole + cone. W5 – W6 gm Wt. of sand in hole. W8 = w5 – W6 ­­- W7gm Wet density Dw = WXS/W8 g/ cm3 Mean Moisture content % Dry density Dsg/cm3 Ds = 100 Dw 100 +m Laboratory compaction details O.M.C Compaction M.D.D % Compaction

Culvert 2nd Layer Bank filling Laterite CL 10   2711 420 3000 874 2126 1706 2.05 11.0 1.85     14.0 1.85 100%

 

 

SAFETY IN ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION

SAFETY IN ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION

Safety is the state of being “safe”, the condition of being protected from harm or other non-desirable outcomes. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk.

Construction is a high hazard industry that comprises a wide range of activities involving construction, alteration, and/or repair. Examples include residential construction, bridge erection, roadway paving, excavations, demolitions, and large scale painting jobs. Construction workers engage in many activities that may expose them to serious hazards, such as falling from rooftops, unguarded machinery, being struck by heavy construction equipment, electrocutions, silica dust, and asbestos.

Safety is of a paramount importance in engineering, both during its construction and when it is opened for use. To prevent and minimise and damages during construction relevant signs and warnings are used such as diversion, notice, flaggers and warning signs etc. Examples include flashlights, beacons, cones etc.

 

 Safety during construction

Construction work on the road or roadway can, in the absence of adequate planning. Organisations and implementation, lead to unsafe conditions for workers and all road users including pedestrian and cyclist. Highway construction and maintenance signs fall into the same three major categories as do other traffic signs, namely

• Regulatory signs e.g. stop sign, one way sign, yield sign etc.
• Warning signs e.g. construction approach warning signs, detour sign, road closed sign etc.
• Guide signs e.g. approaching barrier sign, barricades etc.

Safety within the work zone

• Restrict personal access points into work areas and define/designate ‘no backing zones’ and ‘pedestrian-free zones’.
• Design into the Temporary Traffic Control Plan flow paths for equipment and vehicle traffic to minimize backing manoeuvres where possible as well as buffer spaces to protect pedestrian workers from straying traffic vehicles and/or work zone equipment.
• Establish procedures for entering and exiting work zone.
• Train all employees on the Temporary Traffic Control Plan and its precautionary measures.

Safety requirements for workers

• Wear high-visibility safety apparel (vest & head gear in photos)
• Be alert for construction vehicles and equipment as well as general traffic.
• Check surroundings often for hazards.
• Know the plan for traffic flow.
• Keep a safe distance from traffic.
• Communicate with other workers, especially when there are changes in procedures, locations, or traffic flow pattern.

SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS

INTRODUCTION – SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS

Sensitivity analysis is the study of how the uncertainty in the output of a mathematical model or system (numerical or otherwise) can be apportioned to different sources of uncertainty in its inputs.

It is desirable to prove that the findings from a systematic review are not dependent on such arbitrary or unclear decisions. A sensitivity analysis is a repeat of the primary analysis or meta-analysis, substituting alternative decisions or ranges of values for decisions that were arbitrary or unclear. For example, if the eligibility of some studies in the meta-analysis is dubious because they do not contain full details, sensitivity analysis may involve undertaking the meta-analysis twice: first, including all studies and second, only including those that are definitely known to be eligible. A sensitivity analysis asks the question, “Are the findings robust to the decisions made in the process of obtaining them?”.

In models involving many input variables, sensitivity analysis is an essential ingredient of model building and quality assurance. National and international agencies involved in impact assessment studies have included sections devoted to sensitivity analysis in their guidelines. Examples are the European Commission, the White House Office of Management and Budget, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and US Environmental Protection Agency‘s modelling guidelines.

Models That Generate Need For Sensitivity Analysis

There are many decision nodes within the systematic review process which can generate a need for a sensitivity analysis. Examples include:

Searching for studies:

·         Should abstracts whose results cannot be confirmed in subsequent publications be included in the review?

 

Eligibility criteria:

·         Characteristics of participants: where a majority but not all people in a study meet an age range, should the study be included?

 

·         Characteristics of the intervention: what range of doses should be included in the meta-analysis?

 

·         Characteristics of the comparator: what criteria are required to define usual care to be used as a comparator group?

 

·         Characteristics of the outcome: what time-point or range of time-points are eligible for inclusion?

 

·         Study design: should blinded and unblinded outcome assessment be included, or should study inclusion be restricted by other aspects of methodological criteria?

 

 What data should be analysed?

·         Time-to-event data: what assumptions of the distribution of censored data should be made?

 

·         Continuous data: where standard deviations are missing, when and how should they be imputed? Should analyses be based on change scores or on final values?

 

         Ordinal scales: what cut-point should be used to dichotomize short ordinal scales into two groups?

 

·         Cluster-randomized trials: what values of the intraclass correlation coefficient should be used when trial analyses have not been adjusted for clustering?

 

·         Cross-over trials: what values of the within-subject correlation coefficient should be used when this is not available in primary reports?

 

·         All analyses: what assumptions should be made about missing outcomes to facilitate intention-to-treat analyses? Should adjusted or unadjusted estimates of treatment effects used?

 

 Analysis methods:

·         Should fixed-effect or random-effects methods be used for the analysis?

·         For dichotomous outcomes, should odds ratios, risk ratios or risk differences be used?

·         And for continuous outcomes, where several scales have assessed the same dimension, should results be analysed as a standardized mean difference across all scales or as mean differences individually for each scale?

CONCLUSION

Sensitivity analysis is closely related with uncertainty analysis; while the latter studies the overall uncertainty in the conclusions of the study, sensitivity analysis tries to identify what source of uncertainty weighs more on the study’s conclusions.

The problem setting in sensitivity analysis also has strong similarities with the field of design of experiments. In a design of experiments, one studies the effect of some process or intervention (the ‘treatment’) on some objects (the ‘experimental units’). In sensitivity analysis one looks at the effect of varying the inputs of a mathematical model on the output of the model itself. In both disciplines one strives to obtain information from the system with a minimum of physical or numerical experiments.

 

REFERENCES

Saltelli, A., Ratto, M., Andres, T., Campolongo, F., Cariboni, J., Gatelli, D. Saisana, M., and Tarantola, S., 2008, Global Sensitivity Analysis. The Primer, John Wiley & Sons.

Pannell, D.J. (1997). Sensitivity analysis of normative economic models: Theoretical framework and practical strategies, Agricultural Economics 16: 139-152.

Bahremand A., and De Smedt F. (2008). Distributed Hydrological Modeling and Sensitivity Analysis in Torysa Watershed, Slovakia, Water Resources Management, 22: 293-408.

Der Kiureghian, A., Ditlevsen, O. (2009) Aleatory or epistemic? Does it matter?, Structural Safety 31(2), 105-112.

J.C. Helton, J.D. Johnson, C.J. Salaberry, and C.B. Storlie, 2006, Survey of sampling based methods for uncertainty and sensitivity analysis. Reliability Engineering and System Safety, 91:1175–1209.

Tavakoli, Siamak; Alireza Mousavi (2013). “Event tracking for real-time unaware sensitivity analysis (EventTracker)”. IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering 25 (2): 348–359.

Sensitivity analyses retrieved from http://handbook.cochrane.org/chapter_ 9/9_7sensitivity_analyses.htm