Quality cost of material procurement in construction projectsSawan, Rema; Low, Jwen Fai; Schiffauerova, Andrea
2018 Engineering Construction & Architectural Management
doi: 10.1108/ecam-04-2017-0068
Material procurement constitutes a large share of the overall cost of construction projects. Understanding the factors influencing the cost of quality (COQ) in the procurement process could help identify opportunities for lowering quality cost without compromising quality. The paper aims to discuss these issues.Design/methodology/approachIn this paper, a COQ model for the construction material procurement process is developed using the traditional prevention–appraisal–failure (PAF) approach. Using data from a $4bn aluminum smelter construction project, the authors conducted a simulation of the COQ model to evaluate various quality assurance policies.FindingsThis paper confirms that raising the prevention cost leads to a drop in failure cost as well as COQ for the project studied. While the authors are unable to provide blanket recommendations as the results are derived from a single project case study, it does suggest that construction material procurement processes would benefit from a higher prevention expenditure. And for certain cases where the authors observe a deviation from the traditional Juran’s model of COQ – the high appraisal cost in the procurement process – reduction of appraisal expenditure may in fact be more beneficial than its increase.Originality/valueThe research results suggest that appraisal expenditure should be tailored to each purchase order in order to maximize the total benefits. Additionally, this paper presents the first COQ model developed for the construction material procurement process. Another unique feature of the model is its inclusion of supplier-side costs, which are excluded in the conventional COQ analysis.
BIM coordinators: a reviewJacobsson, Mattias; Merschbrock, Christoph
2018 Engineering Construction & Architectural Management
doi: 10.1108/ecam-03-2017-0050
The purpose of this paper is to explore the role, practices and responsibilities of building information modeling (BIM) coordinators (BCs).Design/methodology/approachThe aim is achieved through a review of existing publications (n=183) in which the term “BIM coordinators” has been described and discussed (n=78), complemented by interviews with four Norwegian BIM experts.FindingsThe findings from the review indicate that the core responsibilities of BCs involve clash detection, managing information flows and communication flows, monitoring and coordinating design changes, supporting new working procedures and technical development and acting as a boundary spanner. The complementary interview study extends these findings with two additional practices and a reflection on the experienced challenges, obstacles and potential future development of the role. In essence, the authors propose that the role of BCs can be defined as being responsible for external/internal alignment and coordination of actor needs, and engaged in product-, process- and system-oriented practices of BIM.Research limitations/implicationsGiven that this study is primarily an integrative literature review of BCs, it has the limitations common with such an approach. Therefore, future studies should preferably extend presented findings through either a survey, further in-depth interviews with BCs or reviews of closely related BIM specialist roles such as BIM managers or BIM technicians.Practical implicationsWith BCs seemingly being central to information management and knowledge domain integration within the architecture, engineering and construction industry, an understanding of their importance and role should be of interest to anyone seeking to tap into the potential of BIM. This paper outlines specific implications for construction manager, educators and BCs.Originality/valueThe value of this study lies primarily in the fact that it is the first thorough investigation of the role, practices and responsibilities of BCs.
Phase-based analysis of key cost and schedule performance causes and preventive strategiesHabibi, Mohammadreza; Kermanshachi, Sharareh
2018 Engineering Construction & Architectural Management
doi: 10.1108/ecam-10-2017-0219
It is estimated that more than half of the construction industry’s projects encounter significant cost overruns and major delays, resulting in the industry having a tarnished reputation. Therefore, it is crucial to identify key project cost and schedule performance factors. However, despite the attempts of numerous researchers, their results have been inconsistent. Most of the literature has focused solely on the construction phase budget and time overruns; the engineering/design and procurement phase costs and schedule performances have been rarely studied. The paper aims to discuss these issues.Design/methodology/approachThe objective of this study was primarily to identify and prioritize engineering, procurement and construction key performance factors (KPFs) and to strategize ways to prevent performance delays and cost overruns. To achieve these objectives, more than 200 peer-reviewed journal papers, conference proceedings and other scholarly publications were studied and categorized based on industry type, physical location, data collection and analysis methods.FindingsIt was concluded that both the time required to complete engineering/construction phases and the cost of completing them can be significantly affected by design changes. The two main causes of delays and cost overruns in the procurement phase are construction material shortages and price fluctuations. Other factors affecting all phases of the project are poor economic condition, equipment and labor shortages, delays in owners’ timely decision making, poor communication between stakeholders, poor site management and supervision, clients’ financial issues and severe weather conditions. A list of phase-based strategies which address the issue of time/cost overruns is presented herein.Originality/valueThe findings of this study address the potential confusion of the industry’s practitioners related to the inconsistent list of potential KPFs and their preventive measurements, and pave the way for the construction research community to conduct future performance-related studies.
A framework for ad hoc information management for the building design processJacob, Jeevan; Varghese, Koshy
2018 Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management
doi: 10.1108/ecam-06-2017-0097
The building design processes today are complex, involving many disciplines and issues like collaboration, concurrency and collocation. Several studies have focused on understanding and modeling formal information exchange in these processes. Few past studies have also identified the importance of informal information exchanges in the design process and proposed passive solutions for facilitating this exchange. The purpose of this paper is to term the informal information as ad hoc information and explores if components of ad hoc information exchanges can be actively managed.Design/methodology/approachAn MDM-based framework integrating product, process and people dependencies is proposed and a prototype platform to implement this framework is developed. The demonstration on the usage of this platform to identify information paths during collaboration and hence manage ad hoc information exchanges is presented through an example problem.FindingsBased on the effectiveness of the prototype platform in identifying information paths for design queries, it is concluded that the proposed framework is useful for actively managing some components of ad hoc information exchange.Originality/valueThis research enables the design manager/participants to make a more informed decision on requesting and releasing design information.
Strategy management of construction workspaces by conflict resolution algorithm and visualization modelRohani, Mohammad; Shafabakhsh, Gholamali; Haddad, Abdolhosein; Asnaashari, Ehsan
2018 Engineering Construction & Architectural Management
doi: 10.1108/ecam-08-2016-0183
The spatial conflicts and congestion of construction resources are challenges that lead to the reduction in efficiency. The purpose of this paper is to enable users to detect and resolve workspace conflicts by implementing four resolution strategies in a five-dimensional (5D) CAD model. In addition to resolving conflicts, the model should be able to optimize time and cost of the projects. In other words, three variables of spatial conflicts, time and cost of project are considered simultaneously in the proposed model to find the optimum solution.Design/methodology/approachIn the first step, a 5D simulation model is developed that includes time, cost and geometrical information of a project. Then, time-cost trade-off analysis was carried out to distinguish optimum schedule. The schedule was imported to the 5D CAD model to detect spatial conflicts. Finally, a novel algorithm was implemented to solve identified conflicts while imposing minimum project’s time and cost. Several iterations are performed to resolve all clashes using conflict resolution algorithm and visual simulation model.FindingsThe proposed methodology in this research was applied to a real case. Results showed that in comparison to the normal and initial schedule with 19 conflicts, the finalized schedule has no conflict, while time and cost of the project are both reduced.Research limitations/implicationsImplementing the proposed methodology in construction projects requires proper technical basis in this field. In this regard, the executive user should have a proper understanding of the principles, concepts and tools of building information modeling and have project management knowledge. Also, the implementation conditions of the basic model requires the determination of the construction methods, estimated volumes of working items, scheduling and technical specification. The designed methodology also has two limitations regarding to its implementation. The first is the fact that strategies should be applied manually to the schedule. The other one pertains to the number of strategies used in the research. Four strategies have been used in the conflict resolution algorithm directly and the two others (spatial divisibility and activities breakdown strategies) have been used as default strategies in the visual simulation model. Since the unused strategies including the changing of construction method and the activity resources are subjective and depend upon the planner and project manager’s personal opinion, the authors have avoided using them in this research.Practical implicationsThe method proposed in this research contributes the coordination of the working teams at the planning and execution phases of the project. In fact, the best location and work direction for each working team is presented as a schedule, so that the space conflict may not come about and the cost can be minimized. This visual simulation not only deepens the planners’ views about the executive barriers and the spatial conditions of the worksite, it also makes the construction engineers familiar on a daily basis with their executive scope. Therefore, it considerably improves the interactions and communication of the planning and construction teams. Another advantage and application of this methodology is the use of initial and available projects’ documents including the schedule and two-dimensional drawings. The integration of these basic documents in this methodology helps identify the spatial conflicts efficiently. To achieve this, the use of the existing and widely-used construction tools has facilitated the implementation of the methodology. Using this system, planners have applied the strategies in an order of priority and can observe the results of each strategy visually and numerically in terms of time, cost and conflicts. This methodology by providing the effective resolution strategies guides the practitioner to remove conflicts while optimum time and cost are imposed to project.Originality/valueContrary to the previous models that ignore cost, the proposed model is a 5D visual simulation model, which considers the variable of cost as a main factor for conflict identification and resolution. Moreover, a forward-pass approach is introduced to implement resolution strategies that are novel compared to other investigations.
An investigation of modern building equipment technology adoption in the Australian construction industrySepasgozar, Samad M.E.; Davis, Steven; Loosemore, Martin; Bernold, Leonhard
2018 Engineering Construction & Architectural Management
doi: 10.1108/ecam-03-2017-0052
Research into the construction industry’s adoption of modern equipment technologies, such as remote-controlled trucks, excavators and drones, has been neglected in comparison to the significant body of research into the adoption of information technology in construction. Construction research has also neglected to adequately consider the important role of vendors in the innovation diffusion process, focussing mostly on the role of the customer. Set within the context of Australia’s construction industry, the purpose of this paper is to address these gaps in knowledge by exploring the role of customers and vendors in the diffusion of modern equipment technologies into the construction industry.Design/methodology/approachUsing contemporary models of innovation diffusion which move beyond the simple dualistic problem of whether innovation is supply-pushed or demand-pulled, 19 semi-structured interviews were undertaken with customers and vendors involved in two major modern equipment technology trade exhibitions in Australia. This was followed by the collection of documentary data in the form of photos, directory books, marketing material, catalogues, websites and booth and exhibition layouts to validate the proposed model and provide insights into vendor marketing strategies. These data were analysed using both content analysis and principal component analysis (PCA).FindingsAccording to the PCA and content analysis, vendor’s engagement in the adoption of modern equipment technologies falls into three stages that correspond to three stages in the customer’s adoption process. In the first stage, customers identify possible solutions and recognise new technologies following a previous recognition of a need. Vendors provide facilities for attracting potential customers and letting customers know that their technology exists and can help solve the customer’s problem. The second stage involves customers gaining knowledge about the details of the new technology, and vendors focusing on detailed knowledge transfer through written materials and demonstrations of the functionality of the new technology. In the third stage, customers have specific questions that they want answered to assist them in comparing different vendors and solutions. By this stage, vendors have built a close relationship with the customer and in contrast to earlier stages engage in two-way communication to help the customer’s decision process by addressing specific technical and support-related questions.Originality/valueThe originality and value of this research is in addressing the lack of research in modern equipment technology adoption for building construction and the lack of data on the role of vendors in the process by developing a new empirical framework which describes the stages in the process and the ways that customers and vendors interact at each stage. The results indicate that conceptually, as the construction industry becomes more industrialised, current models of innovation adoption will need to develop to reflect this growing technological complexity and recognise that vendors and customers engage differently in the adoption process, according to the type of technology they wish to adopt.
Reducing construction material cost by optimizing buy-in decision that accounts the flexibility of non-critical activitiesMeng, Junna; Yan, Jinghong; Xue, Bin; Fu, Jing; He, Ning
2018 Engineering Construction & Architectural Management
doi: 10.1108/ecam-12-2016-0263
The goal of making buy-in decisions is to purchase materials at the right time with the required quantity and a minimum material cost (MC). To help achieve this goal, the purpose of this paper is to find a way of optimizing the buy-in decision with the consideration of flexible starting date of non-critical activities which makes daily demand adjustable.Design/methodology/approachFirst, a specific algorithm is developed to calculate a series of demand combinations modeling daily material demand for all the possible start dates. Second, future material prices are predicted by applying artificial neural network. Third, the demand combinations and predicted prices are used to generate an optimal buy-in decision.FindingsBy comparing MC in situation when non-critical activities always start at the earliest date to that in situations when the starting date is flexible, it is found that making material buy-in decision with the consideration of the flexibility usually helps reduce MC.Originality/valueIn this paper, a material buy-in decision-making method that accounts non-critical activities’ flexible starting date is proposed. A ternary cycle algorithm is developed to calculate demand combinations. The results that making material buy-in decision considering non-critical activities’ flexible starting date can reduce MC in most times indicates that contractors may consider non-critical activities’ flexibility a part of the buy-in decision-making process, so as to achieve an MC decrease and profit increase.