Journal of Construction Engineering and Management

This paper introduces a contractor quality performance (CQP) evaluation model that measures the quality performance of pavement contractors. The model uses a modified quality function deployment model to support the quality performance measurement that is involved in multiattribute and multiparticipant decision-making and the Delphi method to deal efficiently with the uncertainties in the input data. State DOTs that are in the process of selecting a pavement contractor for a project would benefit from the CQP evaluation model because the system allows a client to expeditiously assess the quality performance of potential pavement contractors in their bidding list. A test case is presented to illustrate the functioning of the model. The model contributes to improve the quality of the nation’s pavements because it enhances the contract administration procedures by reengineering the current contractor assessment, prequalification, and/or selection process within the owner organizations (state departments of transportation) by accentuating total client (both the road users’ and the owners’) satisfaction. The model helps to improve the state DOT’s pavement project bidding system.

Acceptance procedures are usually defined in terms of the fraction of elements that fall outside certain specification limits, such as the data dispersion around a central tendency. In contrast, design methods usually consider measures of a central tendency or location (i.e., mean) or, occasionally, of a central tendency together with measures of data dispersion. Price adjustments can be derived from data analysis using empirical models or algorithms based on life cycle cost analysis. As a consequence, there is no common logical framework for designing, analyzing, testing, and accepting road and airport pavements. This study analyzes the dependence of pay adjustment on hot mix asphalt air void characteristics using several acceptance procedures. The results demonstrate that the transition from location-based to dispersion-based systems depends on the probability density function describing a given quality characteristic. The drawbacks of several methods, brought to light in the analysis and discussion presented here, informed a new model in which both location and dispersion indicators are considered. The model was applied to a case study, and practical applications are outlined.

Ensuring a successful outcome in a construction project has always been the aim of the construction project manager, and project management is used as a tool to achieve this goal. On the basis of the assumption that the project success is repeatable, researchers have indicated certain attributes/factors, which, when present in a project, are likely to make it successful. Traditionally, schedule, cost, and quality compliances, commonly referred to as the iron triangle, have been accepted as the most widely used criteria to define success. In this study, it is hypothesized that project success is influenced by success traits. Success traits have been defined as second-order constructs composed of two latent constructs, human factors and management actions. This study finds that human factors play a decisive role in making a project successful. The observed variables under these constructs were taken from a past study. The structural equation modeling technique has been used to test the hypothesized positive interrelationships between success traits and project success. The approach used in this study could be a good value addition in the field of construction management. In addition, the results would enable practitioners to focus on fewer factors rather than attending to numerous factors without getting commensurate returns.

Cooperative cranes are widely used in modern construction projects and can reduce the cost and time of heavy lift. The safety of cooperative crane lift can be improved by using simulation method. This paper proposes a statics-based simulation approach for two cooperative cranes, which could accurately determine the slopes and the tensions of the lifting cables. The proposed approach utilizes the principle of minimum potential energy to transform the problem of determining the slopes and tensions of lifting cables to an optimization problem with geometric and physical constraints. The accuracy is verified by comparing with results of ADAMS simulation in different scenarios. Physical properties are taken into account in this approach to make sure that the two-crane cooperative lifting simulation is close to actual lift. The proposed method has been incorporated into a computer-aided system, which assists planners in developing reliable lifting plans more efficiently. The effectiveness and usability of the developed algorithm is shown using an actual case.

Rapid expansion of the construction industry in mainland China has currently rendered it increasingly common for Hong Kong construction professionals to work in mainland China as expatriates. Given that the unfamiliar working and living environment further escalates these professionals’ stress levels, the current study aims to explore and investigate (1) the experience with stress of Hong Kong expatriate construction professionals in mainland China, (2) the various individual coping strategies they adopt to cope with stress, and (3) the forms of organizational support that are effective in handling stress. Six focus groups (all Hong Kong construction professionals)—including four groups of expatriates working in various cities in mainland China (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Macau), a repatriate group from mainland China, and a group without expatriate experience—were analyzed in the study. Hong Kong expatriate construction professionals in mainland China from all groups had experienced stress in their expatriate assignments. In group discussions, the participants identified six individual coping strategies and three forms of organizational support. To critically explore the coping strategies and organizational support for expatriate professionals, items addressed by the expatriate and nonexpatriate groups were compared. Various recommendations are made for both individual expatriates and related construction organizations.

To better manage and forecast the demand for labor in the construction industry, a mathematical model is developed using a distributed lag model and labor multiplier approach. The model is tested using economic statistics and manpower data derived from Hong Kong construction projects. The model can be used by public and private sectors to forecast future labor demand so that an optimal workforce can be attained.

It is very difficult to implement quantitative risk assessment (QRA) for safety management in subway construction because of to the shortage of sufficient information about accidents happening in subway construction. QRA contains, for example, the statistical analysis of incidents, the calculation of safety precursors, and a foundation of precursor early warning systems. To enhance the possibility of QRA and further the safety management in subway construction, a versatile subway construction incident database (SCID) was developed. SCID is composed of three kinds of incidents—inclusive of accidents, near-misses, and unsafe behaviors/conditions. First, this paper researched in-depth on the relationship and differentiation among incident, accident, near-miss, and unsafe behavior/condition, and the methodology of data collection about subway construction incident was represented. Second, Microsoft Access 2007 was employed as the software platform and each part of SCID was devised. Then, the organization structure of SCID implementation was constructed from three aspects of surveillance, research, and implementation, for the sake of a better effect. Finally, a case example of the use of the SCID for safety management in subway construction was expatiated. This study can fill a gap in the safety management of subway construction and will contribute to safety risk analysis as a qualitative tool in identifying relevant precursor scenarios or as a quantitative tool in estimating safety management.

High-risk sectors emphasize teamwork as a key strategy for systematic error management and accident prevention. In the construction sector, however—a sector that accounts for 6% of the employment and 20% of the occupational fatalities in the United States—current theories and practices of accident prevention ignore the important role of team processes. This study investigates the team processes that influence construction workers’ safety, and discusses the challenges in developing effective teamwork in construction crews. The paper first summarizes the literature on team performance with a focus on construction work groups. The review identifies the key cognitive, affective, and behavioral components of teamwork affecting workers, safety. These teamwork components provide the criteria for evaluating the attributes of construction operations and context that create challenges to effective teamwork at the production level. This discussion also reviews practices that construction supervisors use to improve teamwork. Research directions are identified for systematic evaluation and improvement of teamwork processes in construction crews. The identification of key teamwork constructs provides practitioners with a framework that can guide efforts to improve teamwork at the crew level.

Construction project managers are often faced with the challenge of managing a complex construction process consisting of multiple trades working on a large number of interdependent tasks. A social network is a pattern of ties that exist between different entities (i.e., people, organizations, countries). There is an underlying social network of trades that exists with a construction project and recognizing it can help a management team succeed in this challenging environment. A $50 million project involving 43 trades was studied over a 28-week period. Pajek, a social network analysis program, was used to generate a series of 14 social networks for the trades involved. Both degree and eigenvector centrality were analyzed to reflect the distribution of relationships through the network and to identify the key trades. This research is useful to project managers and is significant as it outlines and illustrates a method of identifying the underlying network and associated key trades of a construction project based on spatial proximity. While this research is based upon an individual case study, the apsects of this research are repeatable. The methods presented in this paper will enable others to develop a social network that is tailored for a specific aspect of a project, ranging from contract development teams to the individual trades using a critical path method (CPM) schedule.

Organizational learning (OL) is recognized as crucial in construction organizations’ performance. Nevertheless, scholars have argued that construction organizations do not seem to learn in a manner that fosters resilience in coping with changes in developers’ demands. Skeptics argue that OL should be facilitated by unlearning (UL)—a process of discarding obsolete beliefs and routines. While OL has emerged as a popular construction management research topic, it is a concept that has yet to be investigated empirically from an unlearning perspective. This paper reports a study that aims to (1) investigate the effect of OL and UL on the performance of construction organizations, and (2) investigate the role turbulence (TU) plays on triggering OL and UL. Data were collected from a questionnaire survey conducted in Hong Kong, and the structural equation modeling (SEM) technique was employed for data analysis. The results indicate that (1) TU triggers the process of UL and (2) UL significantly contributes to the practice of OL in construction organizations. These results imply that if construction organizations unlearn, they could be more capable of learning to enhance performance. Furthermore, turbulence is found to be a motivation for unlearning. This study contributes to the research of OL in construction by providing possible reasons leading to construction organizations being incapable of learning. Furthermore, additional research is recommended on ways to facilitate construction organizations’ unlearning.

Organization-based self-esteem has been a key construct in organizational management research since it was proposed in 1989. However, this paper proposes that organization-based self-esteem should be further refined as team-based self-esteem and company-based self-esteem, particularly in the construction industry. The construct of team-based self-esteem is defined and distinguished from company-based self-esteem. On the basis of survey data and results of exploratory, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling, the convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity of team-based self-esteem and company-based self-esteem is tested and verified. The results show that team-based self-esteem is more salient than company-based self-esteem and has better predictive power in the construction project team context. The significant implication is that research of self-esteem in the construction industry should measure self-esteem depending on the research context, for example, team-based instead of company-based self-esteem, in project management research.

Site visits are necessary and important for construction projects. Construction engineers spend much time on site visits, but visit effectiveness has not been explored and its effect on project performance is unclear. In this study, a checklist to improve the effectiveness of site visits was developed, based on site visit deficiencies and construction productivity factors found in the recent literature and the most frequently occurring defects from 338 construction projects. The checklist was then used on eight ongoing road and bridge projects to test its applicability and effectiveness. Results show that proper use of the checklist by contractors indicated a high level of project quality. Time spent on site visits was also reduced through using the checklist. This research links site visit practices with management knowledge, such as work planning, quality management, and coordination. The checklist developed in this research incorporates management knowledge as a systematic tool that complements technical checklists to guide and improve the effectiveness of site visits.

Negotiation is the most cost-effective way to resolve a construction dispute. The success or failure of a negotiation depends on the commitment of the negotiators for a settlement. Withdrawal refers to a situation in which a construction negotiator loses the interest to continue with a negotiation. A withdrawing negotiator has the propensity to abandon a negotiation. It is proposed that withdrawal and commitment in negotiation are linked. The higher the commitment of the negotiators, the greater the chance a negotiated settlement can be achieved. This withdrawal-commitment relationship is further influenced by tension that the negotiators face. Feeling tense or relaxed has a bearing on the cognitive reasoning of a negotiator. The roles and impact of tension on the withdrawal-commitment relationship are investigated in this study. Two hypotheses have been developed: (1) tension mediates the withdrawal-commitment relationship, and (2) tension moderates the withdrawal-commitment relationship. A certain level of tension helps negotiators stay focused on the disputing issues and engenders commitment. With data collected from experienced construction dispute negotiators, regression analyses were conducted to test the hypotheses. Tensioned negotiators are generally more committed to a negotiated settlement than their low-tensioned counterparts. However, if the withdrawing tendency reaches its threshold value, the loss of commitment of high-tensioned negotiators is much quicker than their low-tensioned counterparts. This reminds managers that tension can mobilize human resources to the betterment of a negotiated settlement, but too much tension can raise the state of withdrawal of the negotiators and lower commitment. In this regard, management may adjust the tension level by varying the settlement targets and by changing the memberships of the negotiation team.