Browsing by Subject "cost"
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Item Animating a cost effective character for an educational production(Texas A&M University, 2004-11-15) Carnevale, Luke AnthonyAnimation is a powerful teaching tool. Ideas can be expressed through animation using only a fraction of the time needed with conventional teaching methods [John Halas 1987]. In short, a picture is worth a thousand words. However, educational budgets rarely allow for the expensive time-consuming task that animation entails. This thesis tackles the challenge of creating substantial quality educational animation using limited time, labor and money resources. A National Science Foundation sponsored planetarium show on lightning will be used as a demonstration project to document the techniques employed and results achieved. Anyone interested in reducing costs can reference this thesis for insight on what or what not to implement in their own production process.Item Cost Estimation and Production Evaluation for Hopper Dredges(2010-07-14) Hollinberger, Thomas E.Dredging projects are expensive government funded projects that are contracted out and competitively bid upon. When planning a trailing suction hopper dredge project or bidding on the request for proposal for such a project, having an accurate cost prediction is essential. This thesis presents a method using fluid transport fundamentals and pump power characteristics to determine a production rate for hopper dredges. With a production rate established, a number of financial inputs are used to determine the cost and duration of a project. The estimating program is a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet provided with reasonable values for a wide arrange of hopper dredging projects. The spreadsheet allows easy customization for any user with specific knowledge to improve the accuracy of his estimate. Results from the spreadsheet were found to be satisfactory using the default values and inputs of 8 projects from 1998 to 2009,: The spreadsheet produced an estimate that was an average of a 15.9% difference from the actual contract cost, versus a 15.7% difference for government estimates of the same projects.Item Electrolytic Methods as a Cost and Energy Effective Alternative of Harvesting Algae for Biofuel(2012-08-30) Morrison, Taylor 1986-Process variables of electrolytic technology to reduce the energy consumption of harvesting Nonnocloropsis salina were investigated including electro-coagulation, electro-floatation, and electro-flocculation. Electro-coagulation and electro-flocculation showed significant cost savings, however electro-floatation did not. The objectives were to determine the effects of electrode material, pH adjustment and electro-polymer addition for electro-coagulation and determine the performance characteristics for electro-coagulation and electro-flocculation. Both treatments proved to be competitive with the energy consumption of a centrifuge. The best electrolytic treatments were electro-coagulation with aluminum and nickel electrodes. Energy requirements at optimum conditions were 239 and 344 kWh/ton. The best treatment combination using electro-flocculation was 432 kWh/ton with no electrode consumption, which could lead to potential cost savings.Item Enhancing Quantification of a Landscape Project?s Environmental, Economic and Social Benefits: A Study of Landscape Architecture Foundation?s Landscape Performance Series(2014-11-26) Luo, YiLandscape performance is a newly initiated effort to evaluate the outcomes of landscape solutions in constructed projects. Built upon the sustainability triad, the outcomes landscape performance attempts to measure consists of environmental, economic and social aspects. These outcomes are collected and used to guide future design. The primary purpose of this study is to enhance landscape performance measurement to better inform future decision making. To achieve this goal, I took a four step approach: 1) reviewing performance measurement in four design disciplines to learn experiences from other disciplines and provide recommendations for landscape performance measurement, 2) studying current published case studies to identify gaps in the current landscape performance quantification practices, 3) analyzing the currently used landscape metrics and methods to identify gaps, and providing recommendations for future improvement, and 4) integrating costs into the framework of landscape performance quantification and exploring economic evaluation methods to valuing non-market landscape performance benefits to facilitate cost-benefit analysis of sustainable solutions. The results show that compared to previous performance measurements and rating systems, landscape performance is the only one with a framework that addresses the three aspects of sustainability. Its framework uses practices to guide research and simultaneously uses research results to inform practices. It has a good potential of collecting evidence for sustainable solutions and promoting measureable sustainable landscape practices. However, since landscape performance research is still new, it has a number of gaps, such as insufficient social and economic benefit quantification, insufficient cost consideration, and a lack of core prototype measuring methods and explicitly defined performance benchmarks. These gaps undermine credibility of landscape performance results and restrict its contribution to future decision making. This study helps fill these gaps by providing a number of recommendations, such as developing performance benchmarks for typical landscape solutions, developing robust core measuring systems to facilitate efficient data collection and quantification, and developing sample questionnaires to help with social benefits quantification. The significance of this study is that it will enhance the framework of landscape performance quantification, clarify cost embedded benefits of sustainable solutions, and promote sustainable landscape design practices.