Qiming Li

Selection of performance objectives and key performance indicators in public–private partnership projects to achieve value for money

Public–private partnerships (PPPs) have been applied widely in the global construction market. During the life cycle of PPP projects, their performance could be affected by a number of factors and their interactions, which might cause the inefficiency and ineffectiveness of the projects. Previous researches on PPPs mainly concentrated on the procurement, success measurement and risk management of PPPs, but paid little attention to the process factors that can strongly influence the performance of PPPs. In order to improve process and performance management in PPPs, the performance objectives and key performance indicators (KPIs) are identified to improve the partnership outcomes. Based on the goal‐setting theory, 15 performance objectives are selected. The relative significance and difference of performance objectives for different stakeholders are presented based on a structured questionnaire survey. The survey results show that all identified objectives are important. In spite of stakeholders common opinions on the objectives of quality, costs, time and the services provided by PPPs, there are evident differences in the objectives of budget constraints of the public sector, risks, revenue and guarantees. According to the survey results, a conceptual KPIs framework is established. Furthermore, the KPIs are identified to assess PPP projects performance. The performance objectives and the KPIs, which can be used to identify the strengths and weaknesses of PPP projects, are useful tools for effective project performance management in PPPs.

Performance Objectives Selection Model in Public-Private Partnership Projects Based on the Perspective of Stakeholders

Over the years, public-private partnership (PPP) has been acknowledged by many as an innovative approach to the procurement of public projects. The desire for more efficient and effective PPP projects renders the performance management to be increasingly important, in which the influence of the stakeholders must be considered. To implement complete and effective performance management in PPP projects, 15 performance objective attributes are proposed based on the perspectives of different stakeholders. A structured questionnaire survey was conducted to investigate the relative significance of each attribute in four stakeholder groups. According to the survey results, the objective attributes are all important. Integrating all stakeholders’ benefits and selecting the appropriate qualitative level of performance objective in the process of decision making are two particularly important problems because of stakeholders’ different preferences. To resolve these problems, a fuzzy entropy method and a fuzzy TOPSI...

Developing Key Performance Indicators for Public-Private Partnership Projects: Questionnaire Survey and Analysis

AbstractPublic-private partnerships (PPPs) are increasing in popularity. Major challenges in the development of PPPs have resulted from the global financial crisis. However, with respect to their monetary value, PPPs are still an attractive option for public sector projects. Performance management and measurement, in which Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are the core elements, viewed as effective methods to help PPPs deliver value for money. This article describes in greater detail a KPI conceptual model composed of 5 performance packages and 48 indicators developed by the authors in previous studies. A structured questionnaire survey explored PPP stakeholders perceptions of 48 project performance indicators (PIs) to identify actual KPIs for performance management and measurement in PPPs. Although the survey results show that all PIs are important, performance packages contribute differently to the overall project performance. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to test whether the proposed co...

Applying advanced technology to improve safety management in the construction industry: a literature review

Technology application is deemed an effective way to further construction safety management. Various technologies have been adopted for construction safety, including information communication technology (ICT), sensor-based technology, 3S (GIS/GPS/RS) technology, radio frequency identification (RFID) and virtual reality. A review of previous studies in the area of technology applications for construction safety would be indispensable for the main stakeholders in this field to share innovative research findings and gain access to future research trends. A three-step method was used to obtain relevant publications (119 papers met the ultimate selection criteria) and compile a database of the findings. The results present a general review of technology application for construction safety from the aspects of number of papers published annually, publication type, publication name, country/region of distribution, research level, project phase and project type. Corresponding analysis was performed with the collected data and the radar chart was used for analysing the trend of technology application for construction safety and the trend of research topics. Five research gaps were identified in the review process. The trends and gaps can serve as motivation for researchers and practitioners to work on the next generation of studies and the development of future effective measures, which can ensure a safe construction environment.

Developing a Versatile Subway Construction Incident Database for Safety Management

AbstractIt is very difficult to implement quantitative risk assessment (QRA) for safety management in subway construction because of to the shortage of sufficient information about accidents happening in subway construction. QRA contains, for example, the statistical analysis of incidents, the calculation of safety precursors, and a foundation of precursor early warning systems. To enhance the possibility of QRA and further the safety management in subway construction, a versatile subway construction incident database (SCID) was developed. SCID is composed of three kinds of incidents—inclusive of accidents, near-misses, and unsafe behaviors/conditions. First, this paper researched in-depth on the relationship and differentiation among incident, accident, near-miss, and unsafe behavior/condition, and the methodology of data collection about subway construction incident was represented. Second, Microsoft Access 2007 was employed as the software platform and each part of SCID was devised. Then, the organizat...

Topology Vulnerability Analysis and Measure of Urban Metro Network: The case of Nanjing

Urban metro network system is the most effective solution for relieving traffic congestion in large cities. With the development of metro, vulnerability analysis is a core process of metro safety management under the condition of network operation. In this paper, Nanjing planned metro network, in china, which was investigated and analyzed based on the graph theory complex network theory. The metro network topology characteristics and functional properties can be studied by Space L model. Several parameters were used to analyze and measure the topology vulnerability. The fraction of removed nodes is discussed and quantitatively compared in different protocols; meanwhile, the critical threshold of the fraction is 0.05-0.07. The study indicates that Nanjing planned metro network sharing some similar characteristics with those of scale-free network and small world network simultaneously; the metro network is robust against random attacks but vulnerable to malicious attacks; two parameters called global efficiency and average path length were proposed to measure the vulnerability of metro network. In the quantization of vulnerability, both betweens and degree need to be comprehensively considered, because parameter value and its influence are not absolutely positively correlated; In the end, a qualitative calculation method is proposed to calculate the node or vulnerability based on global efficiency and average path length.

Quantitative SWOT Analysis of Public Housing Delivery by Public–Private Partnerships in China Based on the Perspective of the Public Sector

AbstractFacing the challenges of the global financial crisis, the Chinese government planned to build far more public housing than can be provided by the government alone. Meanwhile, the capability of Chinese governments to provide quality public housing on their own is being questioned and reassessed at various levels and in different forms. Accordingly, the introduction of private sector into the development of public housing should be promoted by the Chinese public sector by adopting the public-private partnership (PPP) model. In order to help the Chinese government formulate an appropriate strategy to develop PPP housing in a complex political, financial, legal, and regulatory environment, 16 strength, weakness, opportunity, and threat (SWOT) factors are identified on the basis of an extensive literature review. A structured questionnaire survey from the perspective of the public sector is conducted to analyze and integrate its perceptions of the SWOT factors. On the basis of a survey on SWOT factors,...

Recent advances in modeling the vulnerability of transportation networks

It is well known that, for major infrastructure networks such as electricity, gas, railway, road, and urban water networks, disruptions at one point have a knock on effect throughout the network. There is an impressive amount of individual research projects examining the vulnerability of critical infrastructure network. However, there is little understanding of the totality of the contribution made by these projects and their interrelationships. This makes their review a difficult process for both new and existing researchers in the field. To address this issue, a two-step literature review process is used, to provide an overview of the vulnerability of the transportation network in terms of four main themes - research objective, transportation mode, disruption scenario and vulnerability indicator –involving the analysis of related articles from 2001 to 2013. Two limitations of existing research are identified: (1) the limited amount of studies relating to multi-layer transportation network vulnerability analysis, and (2) the lack of evaluation methods to explore the relationship between structure vulnerability and dynamical functional vulnerability. In addition to indicating that more attention needs to be paid to these two aspects in future, the analysis provides a new avenue for the discovery of knowledge, as well as an improved understanding of transportation network vulnerability.

Perception of Residual Value Risk in Public Private Partnership Projects: Critical Review

AbstractGiven the increased demand for public facilities and the lack of funds and skills to maintain, repair, and replenish the existing facilities, public private partnerships (PPPs) have been widely adopted and have significantly contributed to the development of new infrastructure built throughout the world. However, because many PPP projects will be transferred back to the host governments upon expiry of the concession period, problems related to the subsequent management of PPP projects have not yet been thoroughly studied. Residual value risk (RVR) is a critical concern when the projects revert back to the public sector. Through an extensive literature review and an open-ended questionnaire survey, the perception of RVR in PPP projects is elaborated in this paper, which aims to present a precise definition and meaning of RVR in PPP projects. The survey results indicate that RVR is viewed as an important concern by professionals and academics. The definition of RVR can be phrased as the risk that on...

Concentration Effect on Construction Firms: Tests of Resource Partitioning Theory in Jiangsu Province (China) from 1989 to 2007

Along with the economic acceleration and the consequent flourishing of urban infrastructure and real estate, there has been a tremendous development within the Chinese construction industry. However, the industry continues to suffer from excessive competition and low profit margins. Based on the resource partitioning process of organizational ecology theory, which predicts how market concentration relates to the survival of specialist and generalist organizations, this study analyzes the structure and the structural effect of the Jiangsu construction industry. Using the event history analysis method and data of all companies known to have operated during the period 1989–2007, the survival of both large and small construction companies within this low but increasing concentration industry has been investigated. It is concluded that the increasing concentration of the Jiangsu construction industry has a negative effect on the survival of construction companies. Nevertheless, no resource partitioning process...