Technical Papers
Jan 4, 2021

Relationship between Commissioning and Start-Up Success Factors Achievement and Performance in Capital Projects

Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 147, Issue 3

Abstract

Many industrial projects have experienced significant operability problems and failed to achieve capital project investment objectives during the commissioning and start-up (CSU) phase. To accomplish capital project investment objectives and achieve overall project success, thorough CSU planning, as well as execution of the CSU plan, are critical. However, the importance of CSU planning and execution is often treated lightly. To ensure more effective and successful CSUs for capital facilities, this study examined the correlation between CSU success factor achievement and CSU performance in capital projects, with the empirical data from 26 sample industrial capital projects. To accomplish this research goal, this study (1) developed CSU success factor achievement indicators that can recognize and assess projects’ CSU achievement, and (2) examined the correlation between these CSU success factor achievement indicators and actual CSU performance in capital projects. This study contributes to the body of knowledge in project planning, particularly CSU planning, by (1) identifying 46 CSU success factor achievement indicators, and (2) identifying the relationship between CSU success factor achievement indicators and CSU performance in capital projects. This study contributes to practice by showing how project CSU performance can be improved through the implementation of CSU success factor achievement indicators. Project teams (and their clients) can benefit substantially by paying attention to these CSU success factor achievement indicators.

Get full access to this article

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

Data Availability Statement

Data generated or analyzed during the study are available from the corresponding author by request. Information about the Journal’s data-sharing policy can be found here: http://ascelibrary.org/doi/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0001263.

Acknowledgments

The results and information in this paper are based on research funded by the Construction Industry Institute (CII) through the Research Team for CII 312: Best Practices for Commissioning and Start-up. The researchers thank the Construction Industry Institute for their support. The researchers also express their gratitude to the research team members and the case study participants, as well as to the External Validation Committee, who donated their valuable time and effort for this study.

References

ACG (Associated Air Balance Council Commissioning Group). 2005. ACG commissioning guideline. Washington, DC: ACG.
Almasi, A. 2014. “Pre-commissioning, commissioning and start-up of industrial plants and machineries.” Aust. J. Mech. Eng. 12 (2): 257. https://doi.org/10.7158/M12-101.2014.12.2.
ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers). 2007. ASHRAE guideline 1.1. Atlanta: ASHRAE.
ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers). 2012. ASHRAE standard 202. Atlanta: ASHRAE.
Bayraktar, M. E., M. Hastak, S. Gokhale, and B. Safi. 2011. “Decision tool for selecting the optimal techniques for cost and schedule reduction in capital projects.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage. 137 (9): 645–655. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0000345.
Bell, L. C., and G. Stukhart. 1987. “Costs and benefits of materials management systems.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage. 113 (2): 222–234. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(1987)113:2(222).
Bingham, E., and G. E. Gibson Jr. 2017. “Infrastructure project scope definition using project definition rating index.” J. Manage. Eng. 33 (2): 04016037. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)ME.1943-5479.0000483.
Cagno, E., F. Caron, and M. Mancini. 2002. “Risk analysis in plant commissioning: The Multilevel Hazop.” Reliab. Eng. Syst. Saf. 77 (3): 309–323. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0951-8320(02)00064-9.
California Commissioning Collaborative. 2006. “California commissioning collaborative.” In California commissioning guide: New building. Sacramento, CA: California Commissioning Collaborative.
Cha, H. S., and J. T. O’Connor. 2005. “Optimizing implementation of value management processes for capital projects.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage. 131 (2): 239–251. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2005)131:2(239).
Cho, C. S., and G. E. Gibson Jr. 2001. “Building project scope definition using project definition rating index.” J. Archit. Eng. 7 (4): 115–125. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1076-0431(2001)7:4(115).
Choi, J. O., J. T. O’Connor, and M. Winkler. 2017. “Innovative commissioning and startup technologies for industrial projects.” J. Hydrocarbon Process. Bus. Trends 2017 (Jul): 3–8.
CII (Construction Industry Institute). 1990. Planning construction activity to support the startup process. Austin, TX: CII.
CII (Construction Industry Institute). 1998. Planning for startup. Austin, TX: CII.
CII (Construction Industry Institute). 2009. Front end planning process, version 2.0. Austin, TX: CII.
CII (Construction Industry Institute). 2010. CII value of best practices report. Austin, TX: CII.
CII (Construction Industry Institute). 2016a. “About CII.” Accessed December 12, 2020. https://www.construction-institute.org/about-cii.
CII (Construction Industry Institute). 2016b. Identification and implementation of critical success factors in the commission and startup of capital projects. Austin, TX: CII.
Deshpande, A. S., O. M. Salem, and R. A. Miller. 2012. “Analysis of the higher-order partial correlation between CII best practices and performance of the design phase in fast-track industrial projects.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage. 138 (6): 716–724. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0000487.
Dumont, P. R., G. E. Gibson Jr., and J. R. Fish. 1997. “Scope management using project definition rating index.” J. Manage. Eng. 13 (5): 54–60. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0742-597X(1997)13:5(54).
Elzarka, H. M. 2009. “Best practices for procuring commissioning services.” J. Manage. Eng. 25 (3): 155–164. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0742-597X(2009)25:3(155).
George, R., L. C. Bell, and W. E. Back. 2008. “Critical activities in the front-end planning process.” J. Manage. Eng. 24 (2): 66–74. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0742-597X(2008)24:2(66).
Kang, Y., W. J. O’Brien, J. Dai, S. P. Mulva, S. R. Thomas, R. E. Chapman, and D. Burty. 2012. “Interaction effects of information technologies and best practices on construction project performance.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage. 139 (Apr): 361–371. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0000627.
Killcross, M. 2012. Chemical and process plant commissioning handbook: A practical guide to plant system and equipment installation and commissioning. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier.
Lager, T. 2012. “Startup of new plants and process technology in the process industries: Organizing for an extreme event.” J. Bus. Chem. 9 (1): 3.
Leitch, J. 2004. “Effective new plant startup increases asset’s net present value.” Hydrocarbon Process. 9 (7): 95–98.
Leite, F. L., and R. Griego. 2019. “Premature start impact analysis tool: Preventing unintended construction interruptions and associated impacts.” J. Leg. Aff. Dispute Resolut. Eng. Constr. 11 (2): 04519005. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)LA.1943-4170.0000291.
Merrow, E. W. 2011. Industrial megaprojects: Concepts, strategies, and practices for success. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
Mock, B., and J. T. O’Connor. 2019a. “High-value, low-effort industrial plant commissioning solution strategies.” Constr. Innovation 19 (4): 653–671. https://doi.org/10.1108/CI-09-2018-0072.
Mock, B., and J. T. O’Connor. 2019b. “Owner and contractor solution strategies for industrial commissioning.” Constr. Innovation 19 (2): 256–279. https://doi.org/10.1108/CI-09-2018-0079.
O’Connor, J. T., J. O. Choi, and M. Winkler. 2016. “Critical success factors for commissioning and start-up of capital projects.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage. 142 (11): 04016060. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0001179.
O’Connor, J. T., and B. D. Mock. 2019. “Construction, commissioning, and startup execution: Problematic activities on capital projects.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage. 145 (4): 04019009. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0001621.
O’Connor, J. T., W. J. O’Brien, and J. O. Choi. 2014. “Critical success factors and enablers for optimum and maximum industrial modularization.” J. Constr. Eng. Manage. 140 (6): 04014012. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0000842.
Shrestha, B., J. Choi, Y. H. Kwak, and J. Shane. 2020. “How design standardization CSFs can impact project performance of capital projects.” J. Manage. Eng. 36 (4): 06020003. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)ME.1943-5479.0000792.
Tripathi, K. K., and K. N. Jha. 2017. “Determining success factors for a construction organization: A structural equation modeling approach.” J. Manage. Eng. 34 (1): 04017050. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)ME.1943-5479.0000569.
Wright, E. R., K. Cho, and M. Hastak. 2014. “Assessment of critical construction engineering and management aspects of nuclear power projects.” J. Manage. Eng. 30 (4): 04014016. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)ME.1943-5479.0000286.

Information & Authors

Information

Published In

Go to Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 147Issue 3March 2021

History

Received: Jun 5, 2020
Accepted: Sep 24, 2020
Published online: Jan 4, 2021
Published in print: Mar 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Jun 4, 2021

Permissions

Request permissions for this article.

Authors

Affiliations

James T. O’Connor, M.ASCE [email protected]
C. T. Wells Professor of Project Management, Dept. of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, Univ. of Texas at Austin, 1 University Station C1752, Austin, TX 78712. Email: [email protected]
Binit K. Shrestha, S.M.ASCE [email protected]
Ph.D. Student, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction, Univ. of Nevada, Las Vegas, 4505 S. Maryland Pkwy., Las Vegas, NV 89154. Email: [email protected]
Matthew Winkler [email protected]
Formerly, Graduate Research Assistant, Dept. of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, Univ. of Texas at Austin, 1 University Station C1752, Austin, TX 78712. Email: [email protected]
Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction, Univ. of Nevada, Las Vegas, 4505 S. Maryland Pkwy., Las Vegas, NV 89154 (corresponding author). ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3212-2304. Email: [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