The fourth construction industry revolution (i.e., Construction 4.0), driven by the fourth industrial revolution, introduces technological novelties to the construction industry in the direction of utilizing automation and digitalization potential. Various levels of maturity and adoption of these technologies have been identified separately in previous studies. In this study, a state-of-the art literature review is presented with the aim of determining the genesis and current levels of digitalization and automation, as well as their interoperability, among the main construction projects’ life-cycle phases. The results revealed that the construction project life-cycle phases are indeed at significantly different digitalization and automation levels. The initiation phase was found to be at a low level of digitalization and automation, the design and planning phase at a high level of digitalization with a low level of automation, and the execution phase at low-level digitalization with a higher level of automation. Since the topic is continuously developing, this research could be conducted in the near future to determine the advancements in comparison to the current conclusions.

E-Zbornik : Elektronički zbornik radova Građevinskog fakulteta Sveučilišta u Mostaru / e-ZBORNIK : Electronic Collection of Papers of the Faculty of Civil Engineering

Construction 4.0 is propelling the construction sector towards a digital, automated, and sustainable framework. This paper reviews advancements in automation and digitalization within the steel construction industry, framed by the principles of Construction 4.0. An analysis of the existing literature indicates that previous review studies have explored the technologies and concepts associated with Construction 4.0. However, none have consolidated these technologies and concepts (T&C) specifically within the context of the steel construction industry to evaluate their impact on steel manufacturing and assembly processes which was the main criterion for article selection. Therefore, this paper aims to consolidate various Construction 4.0 technologies and concepts to explore their integration into the steel construction industry. Based on data from the Web of Science and Scopus, a thorough screening process identified 56 out of 161 articles for analysis regarding their applicability to the steel construction industry. The evolution of various technologies in the steel construction industry has been examined over the years, starting with the initial references to each technology. In addition to discussing the advancements of these technologies and their influence on contemporary digitalization and automation within the steel sector, the authors seek to identify which T&C are most commonly utilized in manufacturing and assembly processes. The graphical results of this review indicate that each type of T&C can serve as a tool for quality control throughout the manufacturing and assembly processes. However, it is noteworthy that most research remains concentrated on enhancing material tracking and identification during these stages of production.

Production of construction material is energy demanding and connected with present environmental issues. Hot-mix asphalt production is no exception. For many years, asphalt industry has been trying to find the balance between dynamic...

In this study, a continuation of the research on the influence of the bearing capacity proof on the fire resistance of an element’s cross-section is presented; however, in this particular case, we focus on elements made of homogeneous glued laminated timber. This influence is assessed by considering the variations in the cross-section’s area and the strength class, which are at the end of this paper, expressed through the actual material price. In order to obtain numerical results, similarly to the case of softwood, the limit states method and reduced cross-section method were used. The main aim of this research was to determine the actual price of homogeneous glued laminated timber if the limit state of load-bearing capacity is met and a certain fire resistance is required. By reviewing the available literature, a certain lack of practical solutions that might provide an appropriate answer to this question is evident. Namely, it is a common practice in the engineering community that when a certain limit state of load-bearing capacity is met in the case of homogeneous glued laminated timber material, an acceptable assumption of 30 min (R30) fire resistance class is automatically fulfilled when fire acts on three sides of the cross-section. However, it was shown that this is not entirely correct and always applicable. The main results of this study are precisely related to the above notion and clearly indicate the importance of the bearing capacity proofing procedure in the determination of the GLT fire resistance. Following the numerical results makes it possible to make decisions about the optimal selection of the element’s cross-section and its influence on the required fire resistance, even in the early design phase. The correlation of the load limit state capacity proof with the corresponding fire resistance functions makes it possible, for any stress state case, to obtain the optimal price for timber material as their intersection point.

The increasingly stringent environmental requirements, as well as the tendency to achieve significant savings of energy products in HMA production processes, prompted researchers to investigate the possibility of reducing the moisture of the stone aggregate which is used in production of hot asphalt mixtures. The goal of this paper is to determine the effect of various drying parameters on the aggregate moisture loss. The parameters which were analyzed and observed in various combinations were selected on the basis of the production process of an asphalt plant, and they are as follows: the air flow speed (3.86 m/s, 4.53 m/s and 5.94 m/s), the drying temperature (basic temperatures 33.1 °C, 50.4 °C and 71.7 °C) and the time of exposure of the aggregate to drying (30, 45 and 60 s). In order to research the effect of reduction in moisture of the stone material, a laboratory model of a belt dryer (chamber with a cover) was conceived and made with a drying device that can control the air flow speed from 3.86 m/s to 6.32 m/s and the temperature, ranging from 33 °C to 110 °C. Tests were carried out in order to determine the moisture loss of different aggregate fractions, namely 0/2, 2/4, 4/8, 8/11, from the total (natural) moisture of fractions that are used as aggregate in the production of hot mix asphalt (HMA). In all, there were 162 samples of aggregate prepared and tested. Results showed that for different aggregate fractions, the ranges of the value of the moisture loss are considerably different and that they depend on the parameters of drying and the natural moisture of the aggregate. It was noticed that there was less moisture loss in fractions at a lower air flow speed (3.86 m/s) than there was at higher speeds, while the highest aggregate moisture loss was noticed at an air flow speed of 5.94 m/s. For all duration times of drying, regardless of the drying temperature or speed, it is noticed that, with the prolongation of the drying time, the aggregate moisture loss becomes more intense. The drying temperature directly affects the reduction in the aggregate moisture; the higher the air flow temperature is, the more significant the moisture loss is during drying of the aggregate. The results of the linear regression and the coefficient of determination R² indicate a very firm connection between the loss of the aggregate moisture and the duration of the drying time. From the obtained equations, it is possible to calculate the reduction in the aggregate moisture for different lengths of drying duration and different drying temperatures.