Jennifer S. Shane

Construction Manager-at-Risk Project Delivery for Highway Programs

This report explores current methods in which state departments of transportation and other public engineering agencies are applying construction manager-at-risk (CMR) project delivery to their construction projects. CMR project delivery is an integrated team approach to the planning, design, and construction of a highway project, to help control schedule and budget, and to help ensure quality for the project owner. The team consists of the owner; the designer, who might be an in-house engineer; and the at-risk construction manager. The goal of this project delivery method is to engage at-risk construction expertise early in the design process to enhance constructability, manage risk, and facilitate concurrent execution of design and construction without the owner relinquishing control over the details of design as it would in a design-build project.

Defining Complex Project Management of Large U.S. Transportation Projects: A Comparative Case Study Analysis

The management of complex transportation projects requires a fundamental change in how they are approached. The traditional methodology for managing cost, schedule, and design, on transportation projects is not adequate for complex projects. A five-dimensional model has been developed adding context and finance, which have previously been regarded merely as external risks. The five-dimensional model has been developed from an extensive literature search pertaining to the management of complex transportation projects and provides a framework for mapping the complexity of projects. The main purpose of this research is to present results found on complex transportation projects that illustrate a new type of management approach for project managers. The information gathered from these case studies can be used to examine similarities to infer common sources of complexity, and mapping of each project facilitates resource allocation decisions based on these commonalities.

Contract Payment Provisions and Project Performance: An Analysis of Municipal Water and Wastewater Facilities

In a continued effort to provide water and wastewater facilities, owners have been using a variety of contract pricing methods for the construction of new facilities. Increasing use of cost-plus-fee with a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) contract payment provisions along with the more traditional lump sum contract payment provisions has created a need to measure the effectiveness of these contract pricing methods. Through a detailed survey of public water and wastewater facility owners, performance data were collected to compare project performance based on schedule and cost growth measures. The results of this study indicate that contracts using cost-plus-fee with a GMP contract pricing provisions are more likely to have no schedule or cost growth as compared to projects with lump-sum provisions. Overall, the results of this study provide new data for water and wastewater projects that can be used by owners to improve future project performance.

Analytical Framework for the Choice of Dispute Resolution Methods in International Construction Projects Based on Risk Factors

International construction projects provide opportunities for developing countries to advance in the global economy and for international construction and design firms to increase their profit and market share. Despite the attractive opportunities that international construction offers, international contractors are faced with many challenges and difficulties when moving into international markets. Many risks are associated with international construction, whether external or project-specific risks. Those risks affect how contract clauses are written, including the dispute resolution clause. This paper discusses the different dispute resolution methods employed in international construction contracts and develops an analytical framework (DRM-Risk matrix) suggesting the use of specific dispute resolution methods depending on the risks expected in the project. The matrix may eventually help international contractors in the selection of the appropriate dispute resolution method during contract formation depe...

Municipal Water/Wastewater Project Delivery Performance Comparison

AbstractOwners of water/wastewater facilities can choose from several project delivery methods, including the traditional design-bid-build method or an alternative design-build method. When choosing a project delivery method, the owner should consider both the project goals as well as the performance of different project delivery methods. Detailed data on project delivery performance allow owners to match project goals, such as time savings, with project delivery methods. Detailed data on project delivery performance do not currently exist for the water/wastewater sector. Through a survey of water/wastewater facility owners, data were collected on 31 design-build projects and sixty-nine design-bid-build projects. A statistical analysis of the data determined that schedule growth for design-build projects was half that of design-bid-build projects; more design-build projects finished at or below budget; and both project delivery methods produced projects of comparable quality. Although this is the first st...

A Delphi Study on the Effects of Culture on the Choice of Dispute Resolution Methods in International Construction Contracts

Although international construction projects offer new markets for construction services, there are still many challenges to moving into international markets. Contractors should be aware that though the international contracts they will sign may be similar to their own local contracts, they will still include some major additional/modified clauses that address international issues. Because disputes in construction projects are inevitable, one of the very critical contract clauses in an international contract is the dispute resolution clause. The objectives of this paper are to use the Delphi method to identify factors that have an effect on the choice of dispute resolution methods (DRM) in international construction contracts and to recommend specific DRM(s) to contractors based in English-speaking countries who operate in the Middle East or Asia. A panel of 11 international DRM experts participated in this study. Although all experts agreed that culture affects the choice of DRMs in international contracts, the most recommended DRMs to use in both cultures were arbitration followed by negotiations then mediation. The least recommended DRM in the Middle East was summary jury trial and in Asia was litigation. This study can be developed further by conducting interviews with the experts participating in the study to investigate why they chose similar DRMs for both cultures. More culture clusters can be included in the study to compare the variability in the results between cultures.

Defining Best Value for Construction Manager/General Contractor Projects: The CMGC Learning Curve

AbstractConstruction manager/general contractor (CMGC) project delivery is rapidly being implemented to deliver the full gamut of highway projects across the United States. One issue that must be resolved before a public transportation agency can advertise a CMGC contract is whether or not to include price in the selection scheme, and if so, how much weight the price component will carry versus all other evaluation criteria. This paper discusses the results of research into this topic based on an analysis of the experience of 26 public transportation agencies on 36 CMGC projects in 14 U.S. states. The paper finds that there is a learning curve that can be mapped as the change in price factor weight over time as an agency gains experience with CMGC, and details that finding via a case study of the Utah Department of Transportation’s CMGC program. The paper concludes that non–price factors, such as the CMGC contractor’s approach to the preconstruction phase, are more important than price factors and should ...

Keys to Success in Megaproject Management in Mexico and the United States: Case Study

AbstractThe transportation industry is continually developing larger complex projects in an effort to keep the traveling public and goods moving. Investigating successful projects enables practitioners to apply and refine successful practices in order to manage future projects more effectively. This paper investigates the Transportation Expansion (T-REX) project in the United States and the Highway Durango Mazatlan project in Mexico to discover practices that supported the success of these two large, complex projects. Both projects have historic significance. T-REX was the first design-build project in the United States that included both major highway and transit elements and the Highway Durango Mazatlan project is the largest construction project to date in Mexico. The Highway Durango Mazatlan project was designated by Mexico’s president as the project to commemorate the bicentennial anniversary of Mexico’s independence. This mega-project was designed and is being built to highlight Mexico’s capability ...

Trust in the Construction Industry: A Literature Review

While tremendous focus in management research is placed on new construction technologies, the social and human factors through which these technologies are implemented are often neglected. An increasing trend in construction management research is seen in soft management aspects such as trust. This basically developed from the fact that construction projects involve individuals and their beliefs. Construction projects are based on collaboration among contracting parties to accomplish project goals. Thus, it is crucial to quickly build teams and establish good communications between team members. Trust has been determined by many studies as an excellent determinant to successful projects and crucial to build integrated project teams. The aim of this paper is to present a literature review of research on trust in construction, identify knowledge gaps, and suggest recommendations for future research. More than 50 peer-reviewed publications were reviewed through which six main lines of research were identified. Research in trust in construction seems to primarily focus on four main areas; trust types, factors affecting trust development, trust effect on project success, and relational contracting, yet there still exists knowledge gap in areas of non-relational agreements, North American construction markets, and project cost, risk, and contracts’ relations to trust.

Retaining Women Students in a Construction Engineering Undergraduate Program by Balancing Integration and Identity in Student Communities

A key to student retention and satisfaction is to provide mechanisms that integrate the students into a program or profession yet still preserve and develop key identity factors important to the students. Integration involves common values, shared goals, uniform curricula, and linkages to upperclass students, alumni, and industry partners. Identity is generally developed through involvement with extracurricular student groups, such as Women In Construction, Emerging Green Builders, and Society of Women Engineers. Providing a student experience that offers a balance between integration and identity will be effective in recruiting and retaining women students while maintaining rigorous academic and professional standards required by accrediting agencies and industry advisory boards. This article presents the results of a structured system of both curricular and extracurricular activities implemented at a large Midwestern university to retain women undergraduate students in a construction engineering program. Implementing a first year learning community, hiring women faculty and staff, and creating student groups and functions tailored specifically to women have all contributed to significant increases in women student enrollments.