STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: Each month, or every other month, a student will provide a 1-page illustrated abstract of the research they are currently conducting. This is a wonderful opportunity for the student, for our International Society for Concrete Pavements (ISCP) Members, and for the transferring and sharing technology/research through our concrete paving industry.
The ISCP “STUDENT RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT” for November 2023 is Mason Smetana, a Ph.D. student at the University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, USA).
BIO:
Mason Smetana graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in April 2022 with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and a Structural Concentration. During his undergraduate career, he accumulated approximately three years of work experience through co-ops and part-time internships with American Bridge Company. Through this opportunity, he was able to enhance his skill set and knowledge in temporary structures and bridge erection engineering, while also refining his expertise in structural modeling through the use of finite element programs.
Currently, Mason is a Ph.D. student in Pavement Engineering working under Dr. Lev Khazanovich at the University of Pittsburgh. His research focuses on applying Large Language Models (LLMs) in various civil engineering tasks, including analyzing safety databases and assisting field personnel with their daily work activities. In addition to this research, he is also investigating the expansion of an existing crack propagation finite element model for integration into other existing models.
TITLE:
Leveraging State-of-the-Art Large Language Models for Accident Analysis in the Highway Construction Industry
Safety within the construction industry is a matter of paramount importance, and opportunities for improvement are continually sought. This study, conducted under the guidance of Dr. Lev Khazanovich at the University of Pittsburgh’s Swanson School of Engineering, focuses on enhancing accident analysis and prevention within the highway construction sector, with a particular emphasis on concrete pavements and equipment safety. It recognizes the challenges associated with utilizing textual accident report databases which abound in accident narratives and event descriptions. Conventional methods, especially descriptive statistics, often prove insufficient in harnessing the wealth of information contained within these textual accounts, resulting in a limited understanding of accidents and an inability to extract essential details and identify overarching trends and root causes.
The study capitalizes on the recent emergence of large language models (LLMs), such as OpenAI’s GPT-3.5 model, which have transformative potential in automating textual analysis tasks across domains. In the construction industry, natural language processing (NLP) powered by LLMs can streamline inspections, extract information from unstructured data, and classify textual data. This research proposes using LLMs, in conjunction with other machine learning techniques such as K-Means clustering, for a comprehensive analysis of textual narratives in injury reports from the highway construction industry, specifically focusing on concrete pavements and equipment safety, aiming to enhance data-driven accident analysis and improve safety measures.
The approach was applied to the OSHA Severe Injury Reports database, identified for its rich textual information. Unlike traditional descriptive analysis, which may limit insights to specific niche situations, this approach broadens the scope of accident analysis by identifying general trends in major accident categories and their causes. The use of LLMs for summarization, cause identification, and classification enriches safety-related insights, avoiding the need for labor-intensive manual analysis.
Additionally, LLM classification brings out crucial details from narratives that were not evident in previous field entries, highlighting the model’s capacity to reevaluate incidents based on narrative context. This optimized approach to data clustering provides datasets that illuminate accident causes, such as environmental heat or specific body part involvement, offering a more holistic perspective on highway construction safety with a specific focus on concrete pavements and equipment.
ISCP would like to feature a “STUDENT RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT” each month, or every other month. If you would like to nominate a student, or if you are a student and would like to nominate yourself or a colleague, please send ISCP an email to: newsletter@concretepavements.org
ALL SPOTLIGHTS:
DECEMBER 2021—Inaugural: Katelyn Kosar, Phd Student-Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Pittsburgh (Pitt): www.concretepavements.org/2021/12/14/new-at-iscp-student-research-spotlight/
JANUARY 2022: Aniruddha Baral, Ph.D. Candidate-Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign: www.concretepavements.org/2022/01/15/student-research-spotlight-jan-2022/
FEBRUARY 2022: Jordan Ouellet, Tech, BEng, MASc, PhD Candidate, Teaching and Research Assistant, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: www.concretepavements.org/2022/02/26/student-research-spotlight-february-2022/
MARCH 2022: Sampath Kumar Pasupunuri, Ph.D. candidate, Pavement Engineering-School of Civil Engineering, University of Nottingham, UK: https://www.concretepavements.org/2022/03/31/student-research-spotlight-march-2022/
APRIL 2022: Anupam B R, Pursuing his doctorate-Indian Institute of Technology Bhubaneswar, India: https://www.concretepavements.org/2022/04/15/student-research-spotlight-april-2022
MAY 2022: Andréia Posser Cargnin, Ph.D. Candidate, Polytechnic School, University of São Paulo (São Paulo, Brazil): https://www.concretepavements.org/2022/05/09/student-research-spotlight-may-2022/
JUNE 2022: Charles Donnelly, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2022/06/24/student-research-spotlight-june-2022/
JULY 2022: Amir Malakooti, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Iowa State University (Ames, Iowa, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2022/07/30/student-research-spotlight-july-2022/
AUGUST 2022: Haoran Li, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2022/08/24/student-research-spotlight-august-2022/
SEPTEMBER 2022: Sumit Nandi, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (Roorkee, India): https://www.concretepavements.org/2022/09/18/student-research-spotlight-september-2022/
OCTOBER 2022: Eric Ribeiro da Silva, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil Engineering, Polytechnic School of the University of São Paulo (São Paulo, Brazil): https://www.concretepavements.org/2022/10/20/student-research-spotlight-october-2022/
NOVEMBER 2022: Zachary Brody, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2022/11/18/student-research-spotlight-november-2022/
DECEMBER 2022: Jesús Castro Pérez, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (Urbana, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2022/12/17/student-research-spotlight-december-2022/
JANUARY 2023: Dan King, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Iowa State University (Ames, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2023/01/26/student-research-spotlight-january-2023/
FEBRUARY 2023: Kathryn Kennebeck, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2023/02/28/student-research-spotlight-february-2023/
MARCH 2023: Sinan Kefeli, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Iowa State University (Ames, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2023/03/13/student-research-spotlight-march-2023/
APRIL 2023: Niwesh Koirala, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Texas Tech University (Lubbock, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2023/04/07/student-research-spotlight-april-2023/
MAY 2023: Christian A. Sabillon, Ph.D. Candidate, The University of Texas at Austin (Austin, Texas, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2023/05/05/student-research-spotlight-may-2023/
JUNE 2023: Saima Yaqoob, Ph.D. Candidate, KTH (the Royal Institutes of Technology) (Stockholm, Sweden): https://www.concretepavements.org/2023/06/15/student-research-spotlight-june-2023/
JULY 2023: Ricardo Hungria, Ph.D. Candidate, Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2023/07/11/student-research-spotlight-july-2023/
AUGUST 2023: Megan Darnell, Ph.D. Candidate, University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2023/08/07/student-research-spotlight-august-2023/
SEPTEMBER 2023: Jitendra Patel, Ph.D. Candidate, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna (Italy): https://www.concretepavements.org/2023/09/05/student-research-spotlight-september-2023/
OCTOBER 2023: Omar K. Omar, Ph.D. Candidate, Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge, USA): https://www.concretepavements.org/2023/10/05/student-research-spotlight-october-2023/