Richard L. Tucker

Is construction project planning really doing its job? A critical examination of focus, role and process

There is growing concern over the failure of construction planning to achieve its goals in spite of the considerable resources allocated to it. Deficient planning techniques are commonly blamed for this state. This view is challenged here following analyses of observations and studies by researchers and practitioners. The paper discusses normative planning vis a vis a deficient reality, and its probable causes. Planning effectiveness can be expected only after management modifies planning policy and prevailing practices are fundamentally changed. Future research should address planning from a wider, holistic perspective to include organizational, human and information-handling aspects, in addition to planning techniques as such.

Competence and timing dilemma in construction planning

Who should be assigned the task of planning a construction project and within what time-frame poses serious problems. Choosing between the likely candidates — manager or staff specialist and their respective strengths and weaknesses — is fraught with pitfalls. The awards and penalties linked to long lead-time planning as against short-term planning befog the decision process. Many companies are vexed by the dilemmas resulting from any solution to the ‘who’ and ‘when’ questions but by sidestepping or overlooking them they invite deficiencies with dire consequences. After an analysis of these issues the article proposes a new approach for the design of the construction planning process.

The relative impacts of selected practices on project cost and schedule

Many studies reveal the positive impact of practices use on overall project performance, resulting in a consensus opinion in the industry that implementation of certain practices leads to improvement; yet there have been no definitive studies reporting in a quantitative manner, the relative impact of practices on different project objectives. This study develops models using multiple descriptive discriminant function analyses that divide project cost and schedule performance into four different performance groups. The study then examines the practices that discriminate among these four groups. Finally these results are summarized into a practice use index categorization for project cost and schedule performance. Critical practices indicating dominant impact on both cost and schedule performance are pre‐project planning, project change management and design/information technology practice. Team building practice is a cost‐beneficial practice and zero accident techniques practice is a schedule‐beneficial practice, while constructability practice has a balanced bottom line impact on both cost and schedule.

Compass: An Assessment Tool for Improving Project Team Communications

Research from the Construction Industry Institute (CII) confirms the importance of effective communications to project success. As part of its research into the potential for enhanced project success through improvement in team communications, a CII research team developed “Compass,” the Communications Project Assessment Tool. Compass is a Windows-compatible software application designed for project manager use in assessing team communications during the design and construction phases of engineering, procurement, and construction projects. The tool collects and analyzes team member responses, assesses the effectiveness of team communications, and provides benchmark results from 72 CII projects for comparison.

Maturity effects on concrete strength

Abstract Strength-matruity relationships for concrete subjected to curing at various combinations of 30°F (−1°C), 70°F (21°C), and 110°F (43°C) temperatures are compared. Maturity is calculated using a popular maturity equation that integrates temperature with respect to time. The maturity equation is shown to be inaccurate. The equation does not properly account for the effects of temperatures occurring within about seven hours after placement on later strengths.

Measurement of Construction Phase Success of Projects

This paper presents a metric for measuring the success of the construction phase of projects. This metric differs from other success metrics in that it is quantitatively derived, and secondly, it deals with a single project phase. The impetus of this research was the need for a quantitatively-based construction phase success metric on a simple and measurable scale. Data used in this research are from the Construction Industry Institute’s Benchmarking and Metrics (BM&M) database. Specifically investigated are 209 North American, fast-track, domestic, heavy and light industrial projects in excess of

A Revolutionary and Structured Approach to Construction Work Force Management: The Tier II Strategy

15 million from the data base. Scoring ranges based on statistical distributions for construction cost growth, construction schedule growth, lost workday case incident rates, and rework factor are presented. An empirical equation is presented for calculating the construction phase success metric on a scale of 0-10. Construction phase success scores are calculated for projects, and a relative frequency distribution for construction phase success is presented, against which owners and contractors can benchmark their performances.

Research Progress into Automated Piping Construction

Shortages of skilled construction workers and their consequent impact on project performance have been reported with increasing frequency over the last few years. Several diverse factors have contributed to the problem, including decreased real wages, transient nature of work, poor industry image, lack of training, and lack of a worker-oriented career path. Various studies to address individual issues have resulted in limited successes. However, none of these approaches has comprehensively addressed all the issues within a single framework. The Center for Construction Industry Studies (CCIS) at The University of Texas at Austin has proposed a work force management strategy, referred to as Tier II, to address the need for a comprehensive approach to the problem. Projects executed under the Tier II strategy would utilize fewer, better-educated and skilled workers who perform craft functions and some lower-management functions and receive higher compensation, while delivering improved or comparable project results. With the participation of industry leaders, labor organizations and experienced highly skilled craft workers, the strategy and its implementation metric have been developed. The metric has two broad categories: (1) project worker skills and (2) project execution. To date, baseline data has been gathered from 12 industrial construction projects located in seven states within the USA, including surveys from over 500 workers. An equivalent number of projects are scheduled for gathering additional data by the end of 2002. Preliminary findings suggest a strong potential for implementation of the Tier II strategy as a structured work force management strategy under which the technical and management skills of workers are recognized, utilized, and remunerated. Refining the Tier II strategy is an objective of gathering current baseline data. If proven successful, this strategy will mitigate the shortage of skilled workers while maintaining or improving project performance.

Construction Industry Institute

In its report, Construction Technology Needs and Priorities, the Business Roundtable identified piping as the most inefficient of major construction tasks and one of the three areas having the highest potential for technical advancement. [2] On average, piping work comprises 24% of heavy industrial projects, 16% of power plants, and 12% of light industrial projects. Even moderate technological advances in piping work should deliver sizable returns on investment. The economic results of automation in piping work could be very significant.