Oluwole Alfred Olatunji

Modelling the costs of corporate implementation of building information modelling

Purpose – The popularity of Building Information Modelling (BIM) has improved tremendously in recent years. The business sense it makes to construction small to medium‐sized (SME) organizations has also become vitally important, especially when the deliverables of BIM potentials are becoming more explicit than they were several years ago. Moreover, there is adequate evidence to suggest that an early adoption of BIM by construction SME organizations could mean marked sustainable business advantage to them. The purpose of this paper is to initiate a long‐term study on how BIM triggers market improvements in the Australian construction industry, to establish the specific impact of these on construction industrys contribution to Australian economy, also to develop a simple model on the cost of implementing BIM in a typical construction SME.Design/methodology/approach – This research relies on evidence from literature to identify different operational models of construction organizations, namely; matrix, divi...

Cost Overruns in Hydrocarbon Megaprojects: A Critical Review and Implications for Research

Cost overruns are prevalent in hydrocarbon (oil and gas) megaprojects. A recent report indicates that 64% of ongoing megaprojects globally are facing cost overruns. Despite their increasing occurrence, there has been limited published research in the mainstream literature that has specifically examined why and how they occur. Consequently, suggestions regarding how to constructively address cost overruns in hydrocarbon megaprojects are scant. To better understand the causal nature of cost overruns in hydrocarbon mega-projects, this article provides a critical review of the extant literature. Findings from the research indicate that complex interactions between project characteristics, people, technology, and structure and culture contribute to cost overruns occurring. As a result, it is suggested that chaos theory can be used to explain how cost overruns arise in hydrocarbon megaprojects. This article provides a reference point for engendering future research in this pervasive and fertile area.

Understanding the Landscape of Overruns in Transport Infrastructure Projects

Cost and schedule overruns are endemic features of transport infrastructure projects. Despite the considerable amount of research within the field of transport and planning in the past thirty years, limited progress has been made to improving the performance of projects. We contend that this will continue to be an issue as long as research efforts focus on the ‘outside view’ with emphasis being placed upon strategic misrepresentation and optimism bias. Understanding ‘why’ and ‘how’ projects overrun, particularly from both ‘outside’ and ‘inside’ perspectives, is pivotal to reducing their impact and occurrence. Thus, in conjunction with the transport and planning literature, references to cost-overrun studies undertaken within the field of construction and engineering are examined. Our objective is to provide policy makers, industry, voluntary organizations, and the public at large with an ameliorated understanding about time-overrun and cost-overrun phenomena. Suggestions to mitigate overruns based upon recent process and technological innovations are identified and discussed.

The impact of oil price regimes on construction cost in Nigeria

Construction costs in Nigeria are often high and unpredictable. The pattern of variability is not explained by inflationary indices of common goods and services, but rather it is reactive to boom‐and‐burst shocks that are triggered by oil price regimes. Pearson’s correlation analysis is deployed to examine the relationships between the dynamics of crude oil price regimes (volume of crude oil export and price), selected indices of macrovariability—lending rate (prime), inflation rate and aggregate GDP growth, and supply deficit (demand–output gap) of local cement production. Analysis shows that construction cost is high because of high cost of finance and wild volatility that are stimulated by frictions in oil price regimes. Moreover, while the Nigerian construction industry shows positive growth and significant contribution to aggregate GDP growth in the past decade, the oil industry has persistently failed to trigger positive GDP growth. Furthermore, the variables under examination (as listed above) are also subjected to regression analysis to develop a mathematical model for predicting construction costs, relative to crude oil shock and defined macrovariability indices. Recommendations are made on how to avoid multicollinearity in similar studies and for areas of further studies.

Auto-generated site layout: an integrated approach to real-time sensing of temporary facilities in infrastructure projects

Abstract The use of computational algorithms is popular in method studies, especially in the aspects of knowledge that relates to construction site layout modelling. However, extant approaches in these seldom support automated tracking of construction resources and available spaces. As a result, it is often time-consuming and subjective to autogenerate site layouts. This paper describes the development and implementation of a component-level system that is capable of generating site layouts automatically. The system involves the integration of building information models, genetic algorithm and a radio frequency identification system that has the capability to report object locations in real time. System and software architectures are presented to illustrate the enabling technologies, subsystems and software that are required to facilitate the developed system. A case study is also presented to demonstrate the functionality of the developed system. The practical implication of this research is such that the reported findings builds on gaps in previous scholarly work to develop a system that models site layouts and the associated costs automatically. Findings from the study also facilitate both early signalling of pending delays and their immediate recovery protocols.

BIM-FM and consequential loss: how consequential can design models be?

Purpose – Building information modelling (BIM) offers a new direction of project implementation. It promotes integration of multiple lifecycle stages as well as multidisciplinary integration; whereas conventional approaches are primed on fragmentation. The purpose of this paper is to add to existing debates on the relationship between the rationality of the legal structures underlying fragmented project delivery and BIM’s ability to successfully foster integration across different lifecycle stages. A step further from extant arguments on whether BIM could be sufficiently serviced by the same legal provisions that had serviced fragmented relationships, the study opens up some new fronts regarding the consequences of shared trusts and reciprocity in an integrated project platform. Design/methodology/approach – In addition to a deep analysis of traditional literature on BIM and project management, the study draws its strength from two recent court cases on the limitations of disclaimers against breaches. It ...

Chaos Theory: Implications for Cost Overrun Research in Hydrocarbon Megaprojects

AbstractCost overruns are a recurrent problem in hydrocarbon (oil and gas) megaprojects. An understanding of why and how they occur is needed if they are to be mitigated; such knowledge can provide managers with the foundations to develop techniques to reduce and contain their negative impacts on a project’s performance. This paper examines the nature of cost overruns in hydrocarbon megaprojects using the theoretical lens of chaos theory. The underlying principles of chaos theory are reviewed and its research implications for examining cost overruns identified. By viewing megaprojects as chaotic or dynamic systems, the industry and research community may be better positioned to develop innovative solutions to mitigate cost overrun occurrence.

Determining Overpricing in Brazilian Infrastructure Projects: A Forensic Approach

AbstractCorruption has become an innate feature of Brazil’s construction industry, particularly the procurement of infrastructure projects. Consequently, the Brazilian Federal Police are actively pursuing individuals and companies who are engaged with corruptive practices, particularly overpricing. To address the issue of overpricing in infrastructure projects, this paper describes the current method used by the Brazilian Federal Police and presents a probabilistic approach that is deemed to be a more reliable approach for determining its occurrence. This paper provides legal fraternities in other developing countries facing similar problems with additional support to ensure convictions for overpricing are pursued. Limitations of the current method and future research toward the development of a probabilistic method are identified.

Constructing Dispute Scenarios in Building Information Modeling

AbstractSomehow, disputes are inevitable in the construction industry. Rather than being carried away by the psychological nuances that are associated with relational strains in disputes, construction literature contains a wealth of knowledge on how to make the best of adversarial relationships. Disputes may be undesirable, but having appropriate knowledge on how to manage disputes often leads to better outcomes for both the disputants and the project. To achieve this, contract parties have had to limit uncertain circumstances around project environments and dispute causatives. They must also be prepared to solve them before they occur or immediately after their occurrence. The aim of this study is to use chaos theory to explain the nature of interdependencies in building information modeling (BIM). From this, dispute scenarios are developed such that their resolution frameworks are made clearer. The scenarios were validated with a review of court decisions on cases that are similar to those illustrated i...

Latent Variables in Multidisciplinary Team Collaboration

Collaboration within multidisciplinary teams makes or mars project success. Empirical research findings have reinforced the need for project team partners to collaborate, particularly BIM projects. Without collaboration, it is impossible to foster project deliverables. This study explores the descriptors of collaboration through five frameworks: governance, administration, autonomy, mutuality and, trust norms and reciprocity. The descriptors of these variables are discussed, with lesson drawn on how to reinforce collaboration in multidisciplinary project environments.