Case Studies
Jul 30, 2011

Front-End Planning Implementation in Singapore: Status, Importance, and Impact

Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 138, Issue 4

Abstract

Front-end planning (FEP) is relatively new to the Singapore construction industry, and its importance is not yet well recognized or emphasized. Technological advancements and continuous fragmentation in the construction industry have resulted in a rapid increase in the complexity of projects, and yet this has not been matched by a concomitant increase in planning efforts. This study aims to identify the importance of FEP and its impact on project outcomes in order to encourage more organizations in Singapore to practice and benefit from it. To achieve this objective, a questionnaire was developed, and the responses from 27 companies were analyzed. The analysis revealed that only about 44% of the responding companies practiced FEP on their projects. In addition, the study quantified the amount of the budget allocated to FEP as well as the level of improvement in project performance achieved by implementing FEP. Once companies recognize their FEP implementation status, they will be at a starting point to understand its importance and impact and will be able to better manage their projects, ultimately allowing the Singapore construction industry to increase its opportunity for producing more successful projects overall.

Get full access to this article

View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.

References

Cho, C. S. (2000). “Development of the Project Definition Rating Index (PDRI) for building projects.” Ph.D. thesis, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Clarke, A. (1999). “A practical use of key success factors to improve the effectiveness of project management.” Int. J. Project Manage., 17(3), 139–145.IPMAEL
Cleland, D., and Ireland, L. (2002). Project management: Strategic design and implementation, 4th Ed., McGraw-Hill, New York.
Construction Industry Institute (CII). (2003). “Benchmarking and metrics value of best practices report.” Rep. BMM2003-4, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Construction Industry Institute (CII). (2006). “Front end planning: Break the rules, pay the price.” Rep. 213-1, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Construction Industry Institute (CII). (2010). “CII Best Practices Guide: Improving Project Performance, version 3.1.” Rep. IR166-3, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Gibson, G. E. (1994). “Pre-project planning: Beginning a project the right way.” Rep. 39-1, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Gibson, G. E. (1995). “Pre-project planning handbook.” Rep. 39-2, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Gibson, G. E., and Hamilton, M. H. (1994). “Analysis of pre-project planning effort and success variables for capital facility projects.” Rep. SD-105, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Gibson, G. E., Kaczmarowski, J. H., and Lore, H. E. (1993). “Modeling pre-project planning for the construction of capital facilities.” Rep. SD-94, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Gibson, G. E., Tortora, A. N., and Wilson, C. T. (1994). Perceptions representatives concerning project success and pre-project planning effort, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Gidado, K. (2004). “Enhancing the prime contractor’s pre-construction planning.” J. Constr. Res., 5(1), 87–106.
Gokhale, S., Hastak, M., and Oh, E. (2009). “Optimizing construction input in front end planning.” Rep. RR241-11, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Hartman, F. T., and Ashrafi, R. (2004). “Development of the SMART project planning framework.” Int. J. Project Manage., 22(6), 499–510.IPMAEL
Lee, S. H., Thomas, S. R., Macken, C. L., Champman, R. E., Tucker, R. L., and Kim, I. (2005). “Economic value of combined best practice use.” J. Manage. Eng.JMENEA, 21(3), 118–124.
Merrow, E. W., and Yarossi, M. E. (1994). “Managing capital projects: Where have we been–where are we going?.” Chem. Eng., October, 108–111.
Ray, M. P., Gibson, G. E., and Lyons, W. A. (2006). “Data analysis in support of front end planning implementation.” Rep. RR213-11, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Rosenau, M. D., and Githens, G. D. (2005). Successful project management, 4th Ed., Wiley, New York.
Sanvido, V., Grobler, F., Parfitt, K., Guvenis, M., and Coyle, M. (1992). “Critical success factors for construction projects.” J. Constr. Eng. Project Manage., 118(1), 94–111.
Smith, G. R., and Bohn, C.M. (1999). “Small to medium contractor contingency and assumption of risk.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage., 125(2), 101–108.JCEMD4
Statistics Singapore. (2009). “Performance of the Singapore economy, 2Q2009.” Statistics Singapore, Singapore. 〈http://www.singstat.gov.sg/news/news/gdp2q2009.pdf〉 (Sep. 3, 2009).
Whittington, D. A., Gibson, G. E., and Cui, Q. (2009). “Analysis supporting front end planning for renovation and revamp projects, part 2.” Rep. RR242-12, Construction Industry Institute, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.

Information & Authors

Information

Published In

Go to Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 138Issue 4April 2012
Pages: 567 - 573

History

Received: Feb 10, 2011
Accepted: Jul 29, 2011
Published online: Jul 30, 2011
Published in print: Apr 1, 2012

Permissions

Request permissions for this article.

Authors

Affiliations

Bon-Gang Hwang [email protected]
Assistant Professor, Dept. of Building, National Univ. of Singapore, S’117566, Singapore (corresponding author). E-mail: [email protected]
Cost Manager, EC Harris Singapore Pte. Ltd., S’089315, Singapore. E-mail: [email protected]

Metrics & Citations

Metrics

Citations

Download citation

If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.

Cited by

View Options

Get Access

Access content

Please select your options to get access

Log in/Register Log in via your institution (Shibboleth)
ASCE Members: Please log in to see member pricing

Purchase

Save for later Information on ASCE Library Cards
ASCE Library Cards let you download journal articles, proceedings papers, and available book chapters across the entire ASCE Library platform. ASCE Library Cards remain active for 24 months or until all downloads are used. Note: This content will be debited as one download at time of checkout.

Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
ASCE Library Card (5 downloads)
$105.00
Add to cart
ASCE Library Card (20 downloads)
$280.00
Add to cart
Buy Single Article
$35.00
Add to cart

Get Access

Access content

Please select your options to get access

Log in/Register Log in via your institution (Shibboleth)
ASCE Members: Please log in to see member pricing

Purchase

Save for later Information on ASCE Library Cards
ASCE Library Cards let you download journal articles, proceedings papers, and available book chapters across the entire ASCE Library platform. ASCE Library Cards remain active for 24 months or until all downloads are used. Note: This content will be debited as one download at time of checkout.

Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
ASCE Library Card (5 downloads)
$105.00
Add to cart
ASCE Library Card (20 downloads)
$280.00
Add to cart
Buy Single Article
$35.00
Add to cart

Media

Figures

Other

Tables

Share

Share

Copy the content Link

Share with email

Email a colleague

Share