9415927 Kangari This proposal supports the collaboration of Dr. Roozbeh Kangari, Department of Civil Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology and Mr. Junichiro Maeda of the Advanced Technology Division of Shimizu Corporation. Project funding will enable Dr. Kangari and one of his graduate students to each spend a total of six months in Japan, resident at the Shimizu Corporation, in order to conduct cooperative research on the SMART project, a totally automated system for high-rise building construction. The researchers will focus their attention on: productivity improvement of the SMART project, statistical analysis of quality enhancement by SMART, safety improvement of the construction work environment, and comparison of the SMART project with similar systems in the U. S. It is expected that the collaboration will lead to new findings and recommendations that could assist the industry in the U. S. and Japan. This proposal brings together research scientists from two countries working in the area of robotics in the construction industry. The U. S. engineer and his graduate student will have the opportunity to become familiar with research techniques, data, equipment, and facilities at the Shimizu Corporation's Advanced Technology Division while contributing to the overall research effort. Therefore, this proposal fulfills the objectives of the Program in its exchange and transfer of scientific knowledge through an international collaboration. ***
