Journal of Construction Engineering and Management

The cost of industrial building construction has risen dramatically in recent years. Excessive construction costs have eroded the competitive position of the U.S. construction industry and are having a similar impact on the manufacturing industry by preventing it from building new plants and modernizing existing ones. An effective solution to these problems is the introduction of new technologies that enhance the quality of the building product, increase construction efficiency, and decrease costs. This paper presents the ABT Matrix system, an information system for describing and documenting advanced building technologies (ABTs) and lists the names of the 151 ABTs that have been documented using this system. The advanced Building Technologies Matrix is a database system that relates building systems to specific technologies and vice versa. In its present implementation, the ABT Matrix can be used as: (1) A direct source of initial information about the documented ABTs; (2) a pilot implementation and an example of the ABT database system; and (3) a basis for developing similar, in‐house, ABT documentation systems.

Geologic uncertainty in underground construction promotes design and construction conservatism and has a significant effect on project cost. Site investigation can reduce this uncertainty and decrease costs by reducing the contingency amounts included in bids. This paper presents research findings that provide a better understanding of how subsurface exploration and improved contractual risk sharing can decrease the cost of underground projects. Issues discussed include: the methodology used by tunneling contractors to estimate geologic profiles given a set of available geologic information; the geologic classification methods used to associate the expected profile with acceptable construction alternatives; the spatial prediction of ground classes and the extents over which different excavation and support methods will be necessary; the factors involved in selecting the initial support, the excavation round length and the estimation of the advance rate; the relationship between exploration, risk allocation, and bidding behavior; the impact of changed conditions clauses in underground construction contracts; the merits of using well‐defined geologic conditions as a basis in unit price contracts; and the magnitude of bid contingencies that are actually used in practice.

Constructability issues still exist during field operations and once in the field, constructors can still reap constructability benefits from their actions alone. The objective of this paper is to explore the ways in which construction knowledge and experience can enhance constructability during field operations. While previous constructability research efforts have been primarily directed toward owners and designers, this research is primarily directed toward constructor organizations. The employed research method was an iterative process of issue identification, literature search, site interviews, and analysis. Ultimately, a single prime concept for field operations constructability was concluded: Constructability is enhanced when innovative construction methods are utilized. Innovative construction methods may involve innovations related to sequencing of field tasks, temporary construction materials/systems, hand tools, construction equipment, constructor‐optional preassembly, temporary facilities directly supportive of field methods, or post‐bid constructor preferences. Beyond addressing each of these in detail, in this document “innovative” construction is also analyzed in terms of related prompters or drivers. The linkage between field operations constructability and construction technology is also addressed.

This paper examines broad trends in the tools and techniques affecting the engineering/construction business over a 10‐year time horizon. As a synthesis of various public and private assessments, it is divided into three sections: trends in design and information handling; trends in the construction process; and trends in the modularization of materials handling. Each section includes a description of basic trends and also their overall implications for the industry at large. Conclusions include the need for more data to properly assess the real impact of the noted trends; the relevance of low‐tech as well as high‐tech trends; and some observations concerning the necessity of adapting corporate culture to emphasize innovation and rapid exploitation of emerging technologies. More aggressive leadership in the R&D (research and development) aspects of engineering/construction is required if our industry is to capitalize on the value perceived from incorporating technical trends into current practice.

Rolling fours is a work scheduling scheme that will shorten the duration of the construction phase of a project by approximately 30–45%. It calls for working every calendar day, but avoids personnel fatigue by cycling two different groups of employees every four days. The history, application, terminology, work‐hours, scheduling, wage and salary rates, and pertinent statutes related to rolling fours are discussed. Organization and management of an actual project are presented. Actual progress employing two ten‐hour shifts per day under a rolling fours schedule is compared to the originally planned two ten‐hour shifts, five days per week schedule. 46% more work was performed using rolling fours than would have been performed under the original schedule.

Geologic uncertainty in underground construction promotes design and construction conservatism and has a significant impact on project cost. Site investigation can reduce this uncertainty and decrease the contingency amounts included in bids. Pilot tunnels are one of the best geologic exploration methods, but they are also one of the most expensive. This paper presents the contractor's view concerning the usefulness of constructing a pilot tunnel as part of the site investigation program and offers guidelines for evaluating its benefits. These benefits can be realized both prior to and during construction. They include furnishing information about the geology and its behavior, and facilitating design development and construction operations. Pilot tunnels are generally most useful in large projects with limited surface access, and where the geologic conditions are unfavorable. Depending on project conditions, the construction of a pilot tunnel can reduce bid contingencies up to 20% of the project cost.

A survey was conducted on contractors, labor union officials, owners, and designers to gather data on the extent and cost of substance abuse in the engineering and construction industry. Approximately 10% of the persons in this industry are perceived as having substance abuse problems with a resulting cost to the industry of approximately $10 billion. Alcohol is the primary problem followed by marijuana and cocaine. The respondents perceive the substance abuse problem to be greater in the industry as a whole than it is in their particular firms. Drug testing is becoming more prevalent, particularly for pre‐employment situations. Employee assistance programs are being developed to help workers get help to overcome their problem. Many employers still have the attitude of identify the abusers and terminate them.

This paper presents a case study where cost and time savings were realized by improving the constructability of a water injection facilities project. The project included a 4.2 mile long causeway providing a 30 foot wide roadway for maintenance rigs, and a 4.6 mile water injection pipeline to support 24 offshore water injection wells. The constructability improvement program was implemented a few months after the start of the construction phase. The net savings realized outweighed the cost and time needed for implementing the constructability improvement program. The late implementation of the program necessitated the redesign of one of the project's major elements. However, the extra costs and delays that were forecasted for the original design made the application advantageous to the overall project objectives.

This paper presents a quadratic programming model of earthwork allocations that accommodates linear unit cost functions of purchase and excavation for borrow pits. The unit costs of haul and compaction for borrow pits and the various unit costs for earthwork from cut to fill sections and disposal sites are assumed to be constant (based on an earlier investigation). The solution of the model is explored and it is found that the global minimum cost is guaranteed only when the linear unit cost functions are nondecreasing. Extension of the model to accommodate setup costs for borrow pits and landfills is made and an efficient solution method is devised. This model, which complements existing optimization models of earthwork allocations, provides several capabilities over the commonly used mass‐haul diagram. Application of the model to a numerical example is presented.

A set of application curves is developed that facilitates quick field decisions on matchup of centrifugal pump model, output volume, suction height, and adverse head.