Browsing by Subject "Construction management"
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Item Challenges with managing projects in third world countries(2016-05) Bhatia, Vaibhav; O'Connor, James Thomas; Faust, KaseyRecently, there has been a focus on development of some of the most underdeveloped countries, six of the world’s ten fastest growing economies of the past decade are in sub-Saharan Africa. As a result, lot of new construction projects opportunities have come up is some of the most remote locations of the world. Construction projects in these regions face a multitude of problems which stem from basic sociopolitical difficulties these undeveloped countries have been facing for the past few decades. This report aims at highlighting some of the major challenges associated with execution of these construction projects. The report also analyzes some of the root causes behind these challenges and provides some recommendation that might prove effective in managing these challenges.Item Development of a decision-support tool for TxDOT delivery methods selection(2015-05) Martinez, Mayra Soledad; O'Brien, William J.; O'Connor, James TAlternative delivery methods for transportation infrastructure projects, besides the traditional Design-Bid-Build (DBB) approach, have been implemented by private and public sectors since the last decades. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is not the exception, and the fact that TxDOT has available alternatives for delivering its projects lead to the need of a formal decision process. This work presents the existent approaches made by different owner entities to formalize the delivery method decision. This research provides with decision procedures, criteria and principles to develop a quantitative decision-support tool; thus serving any entity seeking for a formalized and documentable Delivery Method decision procedure. A complete decision process was developed specifically for TxDOT, based on the literature review findings, but also on the agency's needs, experience and legal authority. This work intends to help the agency's staff make an informed choice between their available delivery methods: Design-Bid-Build and Design-Build. The decision method was formalized in the way of a Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) process, and organized as a MS Excel decision-support tool. The process incorporates knowledge --in the shape of performance scores-- from TxDOT experts as well as from other organizations that work closely with the agency. This input allows for the creation of a tool fully customized for TxDOT goals and projects' characteristics. The decision-support tool developed incorporates quantitative measures, but is transparent and flexible. It constitutes a rigorous, repeatable and documentable decision process, evaluating characteristics and goals of each project to determine each delivery method’s suitability degree. Overall, the present works provides with guidelines for the development of a decision-support tool regarding the delivery methods decisions for any entity needing to formalize the process. It also specifically contributes to TxDOT, producing a formalized decision process that may be taken as an example for any other entity willing to modify and quantify their current Delivery Method selection procedure. .Item Finding leading indicators to prevent premature starts, assuring uninterrupted construction(2016-05) Griego, Ryan Patrick; Leite, Fernanda; Liljestrand, Howard M. (Howard Michael); Borcherding, JohnNearly every project in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry has at least one stakeholder who perceives a benefit from an early start to construction. As a result, project teams face pressure to begin construction, whether or not they are in fact ready. In order to begin early mobilization, engineering design drawings are then rushed and assumptions left unmitigated, resulting in inaccurate plans and, often, unrealistic schedules. The construction phase of the project is then impeded by costly interruptions and holds. When these interruptions occur, project teams often react by spending more money and crashing schedules even further in order to make up for the interruptions, causing additional strain on all project stakeholders. This research sets out to investigate premature starts to construction and to document drivers, leading indicators, and impacts that can occur as a result. To prevent these impacts and interruptions, the Construction Industry Institute (CII) commissioned Research Team (RT) 323 to gain a better understanding of what constitutes a premature start to construction and what factors drive a premature start. The main objective of RT 323 was to first define what a premature start is, determine what drives a premature start, understand what impacts occur as a result, and lastly, to investigate if there are any leading indicators, or red flags, that could serve as early warning signs that the construction phase of a project is mobilizing prematurely. Two research thrusts were carried out in order to develop both a qualitative and quantitative understanding of premature starts to construction. The secondary objective was to utilize this knowledge to develop a tool, known as the Premature Start Impact Analysis (PSIA), which can be used in the industry to prevent premature starts to construction. RT 323 envisions that such a tool will be incorporated into project risk assessment and overall planning, and will facilitate communication between stakeholders.Item Optimal jobsite staffing as a function of project sector and project characteristics(2009-12) Goldin, Daren Tal; O'Connor, James Thomas; Borcherding, John D.Jobsite management functions and organization structure play an integral role in achieving project goals of safety, quality, target budget and target schedule. Over the past several decades there has been a dramatic change in trends in the construction industry regarding the growth of project size and project complexity. In order to accommodate these changes, jobsite management staffs have had to increase in size of staff, and in the complexity of the organization structure. Varying contracting strategies are believed to influence the size and structure of the site project management team. Traditionally, project staffs have been formed based on staffing experience on previous projects, rather than systematically customizing the staffing process to respond uniquely to the conditions of the project at hand. With larger, more complex, and more expensive projects, there is more at stake, and therefore greater need for an effective jobsite organization that is appropriate for the project characteristics. This thesis will reflect the research of CII Research Team 261: “Optimizing Jobsite Organizations”, addressing the question of how to best staff and structure the organization of the jobsite team in order to effectively respond to the unique project characteristics.Item Successful delivery of mega-projects(2015-05) Gupta, Ashish, Ph. D.; Caldas, Carlos H.; Borcherding, JohnThe term "mega-projects" is generally used to describe those projects whose capital budgets exceed one billion dollars. Many recent studies assessing the performance of mega-projects have concluded that cost and schedule overruns are common in all industry segments and world regions. Mega-projects are of importance not only to the stakeholders involved in development and construction, but also to the societies, economies, and environments impacted by these projects. There are very few studies that provide guidance on the effective planning and execution of megaprojects. Given the enormous amount of capital dollars at stake and the prevailing trend towards poor performance, the Construction Industry Institute initiated Research Team 315 (RT 315), Successful Delivery of Mega-projects, to attempt to identify why these failures happen and what can be done to prevent or reduce mega-project performance failures. The primary research question the team was tasked to find answer was: "What sorts of changes in project development and execution are needed to increase the likelihood of success on mega-projects?" After conducting a thorough literature review the RT finalized the following two hypothesis to validate (1) there are factors that have higher occurrence and performance impacts on mega-projects. (2) These factors require changes in mega-project planning and execution to improve the chances of successful outcomes. Through preliminary interviews, surveys, follow up interviews and case studies, the research identified 34 impact factors with high occurrence and high negative performance impact on mega-projects. The research also prioritized the most impactful factors that should be avoided or mitigated to increase the likelihood of successful mega-project outcomes. The research went deeper by identifying specific case examples of how the negative impacts might manifest. Furthermore, for each of the factors, the research identified specific mitigation strategies and recommendations that should be adopted during front-end-planning and execution. All of these results have been compiled into an Excel-based Implementation Resource, IR 315-2 Mega-Project Assessment of Criticality Tool (MPACT). MPACT provides project teams the means to a structured assessment process of critical factors on mega-projects, enabling more accurate and thorough mitigation planning on these impact factors, in order to improve mega-project performance.