University of Twente Student Theses
Constructing of biogas digesters in South Africa : planning and risks in building biogas digesters
Pasman, Roy (2014) Constructing of biogas digesters in South Africa : planning and risks in building biogas digesters.
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| Abstract: | This research is done for Mpfuneko Community Support (MpfunekoCS) in South Africa. MpfunekoCS is a South African NGO based in Giyani. MpfunekoCS focuses on constructing and operating biogas digester in rural areas. This reports describes the activities of MpfunekoCS regarding the construction process of the digester. First a description of the ongoing projects and the organizations is given. This is needed because this has an influence on the construction and planning process. Also the use of information within MpfunekoCS plays an important part of the research because the information within MpfunekoCS forms the data for optimizing the construction process. To understand the organisational structure and responsibilities that go with different positions within MpfunekoCS an OBS (Organizational Breakdown Structure) is made. After carrying out the analysis of the construction process, the work starts with mapping all activities related to the construction process. Also a WBS (Work Breakdown Structure) is made. The layers of the WBS show different tasks and responsibilities for the construction process. Following the description of the current situation two variations are made based on two different approaches. The first approach is a team approach where specialization of different tasks is used. The second approach is called the single approach. With this approach the responsibility for constructing the digester lies with a single construction team that completes all the activities. Information about the duration of the activities was collected and a risk analysis is made. This risk analysis procedure consists of different steps. Risk awareness, risk identification risk evaluation and risk management. In this report different planning techniques are introduces. The techniques used are Network planning, PERT (Program Evaluation and Review Technique), Monte Carlo simulations, LOB (Line of Balance) and a bar chart. For the different techniques different kinds of data is needed and not all techniques will fit for the organization. Therefore a preferred technique for future planning will be selected. For all the techniques the two different approaches from the WBS will be compered. After identifying the various risks an AON (Activity On Node) network for the construction process is constructed. This network describes an ideal situation. From this network two variations where made, one based on the team and a second based on single approach from the WBS. The networks are based on the fact that MpfunekoCS works with teams of 2 people on the construction site. An important addition to the network diagram is the critical path. The critical path shows the order of activities whereby any delay cause a delay in the total construction process. The AON network forms the basis for the PERT analysis in which delays are taken into account. Using PERT it is possible to calculate the change of obtaining a certain construction time. The last analysis that is made is using LOB. After the complete analysis a bar chart is made for MpfunekoCS. The team approach is more difficult to plan and makes the organization more complex than the single approaches. The circumstances in the rural areas of South Africa play an important role in making the final decisions regarding to planning for project of MpfunekoCS. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Bachelor) |
| Faculty: | ET: Engineering Technology |
| Subject: | 56 civil engineering |
| Programme: | Civil Engineering BSc (56952) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/66596 |
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