INNOVATION DIFFUSION IN DIGITAL AGE AT THE IMPLEMENTATION STAGE OF A CONSTRUCTION PROJECT IN NIGERIA

¹W.A. Kareem, ¹O.A. Asa, ²L.O. Babatunde, ³M.O. Lawal and ⁴B.O. Olabode

1. Department of Architectural Technology, The Federal Polytechnic, Ede
2. Department of Architectural Technology, The Oke-Ogun Polytechnic, Saki
3. Department of Leisure and Tourism Management, Federal College of Wildlife Management, New Bussa, Niger State
4. Department of General Studies, The Oke-Ogun Polytechnic, Saki

ABSTRACT

With the significant advancement in communication technologies in the last two decades, there has been a renewed interest in information and communication technologies (ICTs) as a sign for modern development. There is a strong belief in the potential of ICTs to bring social and economic development to developing countries. This paper therefore focuses on construction industry (CI) innovation, particularly with the rate at which Information Communication Technology (ICT), has been growing steadily with the advent and widespread use of the Internet. However, despite its potential for delivering competitive advantage, many companies have failed to effectively realize promised benefits from ICT due to misunderstanding relationship between factors and processes influencing ICT implementation. Results from recent in-depth quantitative ICT implementation research on three construction contractors provides useful insights and practical experience of lessons learned that can be more broadly disseminated. These research results about how it may be applied to improve ICT adoption at different implementation stages for the CI. They suggest that strategic ICT implementation planning needs to consider issues of critical management support, technical support, supportive workplace, environment and ICT user’s individual-characteristics so that the framework processes offered can be effectively applied.

Keywords: Innovation, Diffusion, Digital Age, Construction Project.

A DAILY JAPANESE YEN – NIGERIAN NAIRA EXCHANGE RATES SIMULATION MODEL

  Ette Harrison Etuk & Pius Sibeate

Department of Mathematics, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Rivers State Ministry of Education, Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Email: ettetuk@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

Daily Japanese Yen / Nigerian Naira exchange rates are modelled as a time series. A time plot of a realization of the series, which begins from 15^th October 2015 to 8^th April 2016, shows that relatively the Nigerian currency is depreciating. The exchange rates are adjudged to be non-stationary by the Augmented Dickey Fuller Test. A seven-point differencing of the series is not enough to render the series stationary according to the same unit-root test.  Differencing of the seasonally differenced series finally renders the series stationary. The autocorrelation structure of this stationary series makes some seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average models suggestive. Such models include three  with orders (0,1,1)x(0,1,1)₇, (0,1,0)x(0,1,1)₇ and (1,1,1)x(1,1,1)₇. The model selection criteria AIC, Schwarz criterion and Hannan-Quinn criterion unanimously adjudge the second model as the most adequate. Seven later values of the series from 9^th to 15^th April 2016 are used to compare with the forecasts. It is observed that this out-of-sample comparison shows the forecasts to be very close to the observations; in fact, they are not significantly different from them. Therefore forecasting and simulation of the series may be done using the proposed model.

THE EFFECT OF MATHEMATICS ABILITY ON PERFORMANCE IN PRINCIPLES OF ACCOUNTING

Omotosho, Gabriel Akinlolu    

Department of Natural Science,

Nasarawa State Polytechnic, Lafia

Email: jogbodoakinlolu@gmail.com

ABSTRACT

The study of mathematics provides an excellent basis for the applied techniques of accountancy and finance although most accounting educators readily acknowledge that mathematical ability has a significant impact on student performance in accounting courses, to date no statistical research has appeared that numerically quantifies the effect. The present research estimates the incremental effect of mathematics ability on student performance in principles of accounting by means of regressing student performance in a principles course on the student’s score on 24-question mathematics pre-test, as well as on other determinants of performance such as Grade Point Average. The overall effect of mathematic ability is estimated, and also the effect of mathematic ability in specific areas of mathematics such as proportions and percentages. It is found that while each one of the mathematic score variables is highly significant according to the standard t-statistic test, the overall explanatory power of the regression equation, as measured by its R-squared, is not increased very much in a numerical sense by the addition of any one of them to a regression equation that already includes as an explanatory variable Grade Point Average. This finding does not imply that mathematics is unimportant to student performance in accounting, but rather that mathematics ability is so highly correlated with other academic ability indicators that disentangling the effect of math ability from the effect of other ability indicators is statistically problematic. Nevertheless, the pre-test itself can be utilized to conveniently identify at-risk students in principles of accounting courses, especially for those with measured low arithmetical and percentages and proportions skills.

VARIATION OF VHF/UHF TELEVISION FIELD STRENGTH AND TELEVISION HORIZON DISTRIBUTION OVER TELEVISION STATION IN OSUN STATE, NIGERIA

¹Ojo, O.A.  Oluwafisoye ²P.A.and ³ Omoyeni T.M.

^{1, 2, 3} Department of Physics with Electronics,

Osun State University Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria

E-mail: dotun4realoj@gmail.com

ABSTRACT

Many Researchers have continued to carry-out work to determine the actual coverage area of some broadcasting stations. The level of signal strength variation with distance from the transmitter and their horizon distribution, which is also useful for radio transmission designs also remain a major area of research. in Nigeria, little has been documented in this regard for the television stations recorded is quite a number to evaluate broadcasts. The selected television broadcast station is in Osun State, Nigeria. The method used is such that requires the physical presence of the investigator in all the towns and villages within the state with the necessary instrument to carry out the electric field strength measurements in all the locations. The variation of signal level with distance (i.e. propagation curve) was analyzed, to reveal areas of optimum coverage and areas that are poorly serviced. .Drive test measurement was conducted on transmitted signal for the entire broadcast television transmitter in Osun State. Various path loss models were selected to predict the variation at each of the measurement point and they are the Eglimodel, the Cost 231 Hatamodel, the Okumura-Hata model, the Lee model and the Stanford University Model for different terrain. Results indicate that the Cost 231Hata model was found to be the best prediction for the variation.

THE STRUCTURE OF THE PERMUTATION MODULES FOR TRANSITIVE ABELIAN GROUPS FOR PRIME-POWER-ORDER

Mohammed A., Ngulde, S.G. & Mandara A.V.

Department of Mathematics and Statistics,

University of Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria

                      Email: abdullahi1960@gmail.com

ABSTRACT

In this paper, we gave the well-known classification of transitive abelian groups of prime-power order before analyzing the structure of their permutation modules over fields of characteristic p. For a given prime number p, we have analysed the structure of the permutation module on characteristic p associated with transitive abelian p-groups of degree p^m (m ≥1).

PROCESS HEAT INTEGRATION AND PINCH ANALYSIS OF A VEGETABLE OIL EXTRACTION PLANT

Seigha I. Fetepigi, Zekieni R. Yelebe* and Revelation J. Samuel

Department of Chemical/Petroleum Engineering,

Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, Bayelsa State, Nigeria.

E-mail: yelebezr@gmail.com

ABSTRACT

The pinch analysis of a vegetable oil extraction plant was conducted to establish a better energy saving methodology. This methodology identified energy-cost reduction, based on the thermodynamic characteristics of the process. The location of the pinch point and design of a Heat Exchanger Network (HEN) which satisfies minimum utility requirement were also analysed. The results obtained by improving the HEN design for the Vegetable Oil Extraction Plant using pinch analysis identified huge reduction in capital investment thus, lowering annual energy consumption by 764.8 kW with an associated annual cost reduction from $1.617 million to $1.263 million, an equivalent 22% annual cost savings. Hence, the developed procedure is a better heat integration mechanism and capable of reducing overall energy consumption of the plant.

POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS IN ARCHIVAL SOIL SAMPLES FROM THE ROTHAMSTED EXPERIMENTAL STATION, HERTFORDSHIRE

Ivwurie W., Emelife S.C., Sun C. and Snape C.

Department of Chemistry,

Federal University of Petroleum Resources Effurun

ABSTRACT

Seven selected archival soil samples collected from the Rothamsted experimental station, Hertfordshire in the years 1881, 1927, 1937, 1956, 1966, 1980 and 1986 were collected and analyzed for Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons using GC-MS. The individual PAH concentrations ranged from 0.1-29 µgg^-1 with a mean concentration of 89.55 µgg^-1 ± 37.15 µgg^-1. The PAH concentration showed a greater percentage of the HMW PAHs, indicating high carcinogenicity especially in the 1986 soil sample. The PAH diagnostic ratio (Flu/(Flu + Py)) showed a predominant contribution from wood and coal combustion.