Journal of Construction Engineering and Management

The construction industry's endemically poor accident record and accelerating rate increases in workers' compensation insurance are warnings that the industry needs stronger safety control measures. Safety checklists, training methods, safety awards, and other motivational approaches are insufficient. The writers propose developing a computerized safety management information system (MIS) based on the same universal management control principles used to achieve schedule, cost, production, and quality objectives. The safety MIS would furnish project managers and supervisors with the timely and complete information they need to respond to safety and health problems and hazards as they occur. This paper is concerned with the first step in the development of such a control system—the establishment of a conceptual framework consisting of fundamental safety and health, management controlling, and management‐information‐system concepts. The framework serves as the analytical basis for determining what to measure in the safety control system and how to adapt the control system to the computer.

The construction process involves the interaction of equipment, manpower, and material. Each construction project begins with performance goals for cost, schedule, safety, etc. When actual performance differs from exected performance, the cause of the deviation must be determined. The analysis of construction performance has typically been performed in a shotgun fashion. The paper presents a framework for the rationalization of the analysis of construction performance that will improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the analysis. The framework provides a decision tree that will guide construction engineers as they analyze performance. Five major issues are addressed in the framework: adequacy of actual performance; presence of organizationally imposed constraints; worker possession of required knowledge, skills, and ability; worker possession of necessary motivation; and whether the estimate is realistic. Use of the framework requires answering a series of questions. Data are suggested to allow the questions to be answered.

The use of bar‐code technology continues to grow in construction‐related industries in the United States. This growth provides an opportunity for construction owners, contractors, and vendors to take advantage of an inexpensive, easily accessible technology of considerable importance, particularly in materials management. A key to this growth is the development of standards. Industry‐wide bar‐code standards are needed to simplify and facilitate communication between companies. Various approaches have been used by other industries to develop bar‐code standards and these are applicable for developing construction‐industry‐wide materials‐management bar‐code standards. To develop such standards, it is first necessary to survey the current industrial‐construction use of bar codes for materials management. This industry includes users, suppliers, and manufacturers. It is necessary to know whether construction‐industry suppliers are developing their own applications or are furnishing bar codes for other users. Research findings to date indicate minimal use of bar codes among construction‐related companies and considerable interest in developing bar‐code standards for materials‐management applications.

Modern timber bridges are being considered by several states as a cost‐effective alternative to steel and concrete bridges for municipal and rural use. Before full‐scale adoption of stress‐laminated timber bridges can occur, a U.S. bridge specification needs to be developed incorporating research findings from experimental structures that have recently been built in this country. Although much attention has been focused on defining structural behavior and modeling prestress forces, little has been written about construction methods, engineering development, and the transfer of construction technology. This paper presents the results of an analysis of the construction process for a prototype stress‐laminated timber‐deck bridge. The constructibility, material specifications, projected maintenance, and life‐cycle costs are addressed and compared to conventional bridge construction. This case study in Connecticut documents that a relatively short project duration was achieved (three months), along with significant cost savings, despite the experimental nature of the study.

The application of robotic equipment to the execution of construction tasks is gaining the attention of researchers and practitioners around the world. Numerous working prototype systems have been developed by construction companies or system manufacturers and implemented on construction job sites. Several Japanese construction firms have already developed a fleet of construction robots. As a response to the need to manage effectively diverse robots on future construction sites, this paper describes the architecture for the construction robotic equipment management system (CREMS). A generic decision logic for comparison of conventional work methods and available robotics for the performance of construction tasks is outlined. Modules comprising the system and the interrelationships between the system modules are presented. A logic for comparison of use of one robot on concurrent, mutually exclusive projects is discussed. An example application of CREMS to a concrete floor finishing robot evaluation is presented.

Technical specifications constitute that portion of the contract documents that control the performance of the construction project. The technical specifications impact all parts of the construction project. Clear specifications and a consistent understanding of the intent of the specifications by all parties leads to a project of higher quality. The specifications also protect the right of the contractor to choose methods of construction and provide assurance that the owner will receive the required performance from the finished product. Specifications that fulfill these demands often lead to better relations through consistent decision making and proper delegation of responsibility. The prompt clarification of ambiguities and the fair resolution of discrepancies concerning technical specifications leads to projects with fewer disputes, resulting in a reduced need for arbitration and litigation and thus lower overhead costs for both owners and contractors.

Historically, military installations are managing their maintenance and repair and minor equipment fleets using manual records. Because of too many errors and difficulties in managing inventories, the Department of Defense (DOD) is adapting bar coding to its special needs and achieving substantial benefits in the application of this technology in a broad array of worldwide functions and responsibilities. Fortunately for engineers in construction management, DOD has adopted Code 39, a standard symbology that is being used in construction and most construction‐related industries. Within the Army, Directorates of Engineering and Housing are among the first to implement the use of bar codes at their installations, beginning with management of maintenance vehicles. Preliminary productivity tests and evaluations of these uses confirm surveys conducted by the construction management industry. Implementation of bar codes in a variety of manufacturing, distributing, and scheduling functions, as well as others that are typically associated with construction management and engineering maintenance, have been shown to result in significant improvements in accuracy, efficiency, and resultant cost savings.

This paper investigates the integration of simulation with expert systems. Several recent engineering research projects in this field are described. Relevant research in construction is discussed and potential benefits of integrated systems are explored. Integrating simulation with expert systems can produce powerful analytical tools with immediate potential use in construction. A prototype system is developed by integrating an expert‐system shell with a popular construction simulation software. The system developed allows the user to choose suitable earth‐moving equipment (scraper versus truck, shovel versus bulldozer) under a given set of job conditions, select an appropriate simulation file, perform simulation analysis, and output cost and production rates. The expert system acts as an interface between the user and the simulation software. The user can benefit from the power of simulation analysis without having to be a simulation expert. Several issues are identified in the course of system development and described in the paper. An example is presented to demonstrate the system's application. Possible future enhancements and extensions are suggested.

In this paper the concept of organizational effectiveness based on the productivity/PERT/LOB methodology has been elaborated. Using illustrative examples it was demonstrated that the introduction of the concept of resource or factor effectiveness into the management of construction engineering projects can be of immense value in dealing with cost overruns, which have become a critical problem in the construction industry. Particularly of great significance in this approach the two types of analyses: partial effect analysis (PEA) and the total effect analysis (TEA), which provide pertinent information about the current status of the project, for detecting the proximate and remote causes of changes in the effectiveness of the resources used in the project execution. The usefulness of this technique in determining the efficiency of the supervisors, foremen, and management in the use of the various resources; in ensuring that disbursements are consistent with management's expectations on the actual work to be done; in indicating when a portion of a project should be subcontracted; and in establishing cost overrun bounds, is also discussed.

The work described in this paper attempts to review briefly the field of construction equipment replacement with the intent of highlighting the gradual development in the last six decades of quantitative models and associated terms and concepts. Various features as well as shortcomings of the models presented in the literature are outlined. The work also incorporates a realistic economic model developed by the writers and programmed on a standard microcomputer for ease of application. This model is described in some detail. Although it reflects realistically the taxation situation that currently prevails in Australia, the writers feel that owing to the similarities of economic systems in many free‐trading countries, the model would be of interest to managers and planners around the world. Finally, a sample problem is included to illustrate the application of this model.

Risk is inherently present in all construction projects. Quite often, construction projects fail to achieve their time, quality, and budget goals. A risk model entitled construction risk management system (CRMS) is introduced to help contractors identify project risks and systematically to analyze and manage them. The CRMS model is a logical substitute for the traditional intuitive unsystematic approach currently used by most contractors. The influence diagramming technique and Monte Carlo simulation are used as tools to analyze and evaluate project risks. Alternative risk management strategies are suggested. Such strategies include: risk avoidance, risk transfer, risk retention, loss reduction, and risk prevention and insurance.

An investigation was conducted concerning the influence of the following items on construction project cost-overrun rates: project size, construction type, number of bidders, and the percent difference between the government estimate and the award amount. The cost-overrun rate is defined as the total dollar amount of change orders and claims divided by the award amount. The analysis was conducted on 1,576 Navy construction projects that were in progress from 1984 to 1987. It was found that the shape of the frequency distribution for the cost-overrun rate changed with the size of the project. Cost overruns occurred more frequently for larger projects. The cost-overrun rate was also influenced by the percent difference between the government estimate and the award amount. Cost overruns were more likely when the award amount was less than the government estimate.