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  • About
  • The Global ETD Search service is a free service for researchers to find electronic theses and dissertations. This service is provided by the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations.
    Our metadata is collected from universities around the world. If you manage a university/consortium/country archive and want to be added, details can be found on the NDLTD website.
101

Project implementation profile tool applied to upgrading informal settlements programme projects

Shaboodien, Azher 06 May 2020 (has links)
Purpose: This research reviews the Project Implementation Profile (PIP) and explores its relevance to Upgrading Informal Settlements Programme (UISP) type projects in Cape Town. The research aims to: • Identify the most common PIP Critical Success Factors (CSF) for UISP projects, • Compare the common PIP Critical Success Factors (CSF) for UISP projects to the Construction Sector CSF • Evaluate if the PIP tool is applicable to UISP projects. • Determine if there any other critical success factors that need to be added to the CSF list that is critical to the UISP Project success Approach: A literature review was conducted to assist in identifying the common CSF in the Constructions Sector. A survey questionnaire was sent out to relevant UISP Project Managers. The survey questionnaire was based on the PIP questionnaire with additional questions regarding to the effectiveness of the PIP tool on UISP projects. The intent of the survey questionnaire is firstly to establish the common CSF for UISP projects and then evaluate the PIP effectiveness on UISP projects. Findings: Based on the research results, it was found that the high scoring CSF for UISP projects were Project Mission, Client Consultation, Technical Tasks, Monitoring and Feedback, Personal. When the high scoring CSF was compared to the Literature Based Construction Sector CSF, the following common CSF was established: Monitoring and Feedback, Client Consultation and Technical Tasks. Practical Implications: This research will give an indication of the high and low scoring CSF relevant to UISP projects, which project managers and Managers in the Human Settlements industry can use to evaluate their UISP or Breaking New Ground (BNG) housing projects. Furthermore, the PIP tool may be utilised more frequently as a project quality success assurance tool in the organisation. The PIP tool has been tested and verified in a number of different industries in previous studies but never in its application to UISP or BNG projects.
102

Att hantera hållbarhet i byggprojekt : En kvalitativ studie från ett projektledarperspektiv / Managing sustainability in construction projects : A quality study from the perspective of project managers

Roxner, Disa January 2020 (has links)
Det har blivit allt viktigare för organisationer och deras projekt att hantera hållbarhet. Tidigare studier har till störst del fokuserat på hållbarhet och projektledning som separata forskningsområden, vilket medför att det krävs mer förståelse relationen mellan områdena. Med hänsyn till byggbranschens omfattande miljöpåverkan studeras byggprojekt som en specifik kontext i den aktuella studien och syftet är att ta reda på hur hållbarhet i byggprojekt hanteras. Studien är av kvalitativ art där 11 projektledare från bygg- och fastighetsbranschen har intervjuats. Resultatet presenteras i fyra teman: (1) Vem bär ansvaret?, (2) Kunskap i centrum, (3) Kostnad, tid och hållbarhet i målkonflikt och, (4) Prioriteringar. Studien visar att projektledare har en upplevelse av att det är många hållbarhetskrav som ska hanteras och att det medför många aspekter att ta hänsyn till. Arbetet med att hantera hållbarhetskraven påverkas av kunskap, ekonomi och tid samt tendensen av att hålla andra parter i och kring projekten ansvariga för att förbättra hållbarheten i byggprojekt. Av studien framkommer det att projektledarens roll, ansvar och kunskap om projektledning är faktorer som genomsyrar hur hållbarhetskrav i byggprojekt hanteras. För att främja och förbättra byggprojektens hållbarhet behöver projektledare ta större ansvar för hållbarhetsarbetet samt fördjupa sina projektledningskunskaper, för att bättre kunna styra arbetet och prioritera mellan olika krav. / The importance for organizations and projects to adopt sustainability has increased. Previous research has so far mainly treated sustainability and project management as separate research areas, resulting in a lack of understanding in the merged field of sustainable project management. Therefore, is sustainable project management a research area of interest and the context of this study is construction projects, considering the significant environmental impact of the construction industry. The aim of this thesis is research how sustainability is manged in construction projects This qualitive study includes interviews with 11 project managers in the construction- and real estate sector. The result consists in four themes: (1) Who´s responsible?, (2) The power of knowledge, (3) Conflict between time, money and sustainability, and (4) Priorities. The study shows that the project managers have numerous sustainable requirements to acknowledge, which lead to managers having many different aspects in consideration during the project. Four factors were identified to impact the sustainable work in construction projects; economics and time, knowledge, and a tendency to hold other stakeholders responsible for the sustainability outcomes. The results establish the importance of project managers’ responsibility of projects’ sustainability, as well as knowledge of project management. Therefore, in order to improve the sustainability of construction projects, project managers need to take more responsibility of the sustainability work and deepen their knowledge of project management to manage the projects better and prioritize between different requirements.
103

Procedimiento de evaluación de riesgos enfocado a identificar y mitigar desviaciones que impacten la utilidad en proyectos de construcción empleando la técnica de Simulación Monte Carlo (SMC)

Hernández García, Elimay Gabriela, Saldaña Ayala, Daniel Alonso 16 August 2020 (has links)
De acuerdo con Gordillo (2014), la mayoría de los proyectos de construcción en el Perú no desarrollan una adecuada gestión de sus riesgos desde la etapa de licitación lo que conlleva a importantes falencias durante la elaboración de estimaciones de costo y a una toma de decisiones carentes de una visión integral del proyecto ocasionando el incumplimiento de los objetivos de costo. Como consecuencia, se presenta una afectación directa de la utilidad planteada e importantes fondos para las empresas que, a su vez, afectan su reputación en el mercado y desincentivan a los stakeholders a invertir en nuevos proyectos. La presente investigación propone un procedimiento de evaluación de riesgos enfocado a identificar y mitigar desviaciones que impacten la utilidad en proyectos de construcción empleando la técnica de Simulación Monte Carlo (SMC), elegida por su alta capacidad de procesamiento de datos y practicidad de aplicación. El procedimiento se compone de cinco procesos: la Identificación de Riesgos, para identificar y documentar los riesgos; Análisis Cuantitativo, para la modelación empleando la técnica SMC; Planificar la respuesta a los riesgos; Controlar los riesgos durante la ejecución; y Actualizar los activos de la organización propuestos como la Estructura de Control de Costos (ECC), el Registro de Ratios de Costos (RRC), el Registro de Lecciones Aprendidas (LLAA) y un Risk Breakdown Structure (RBS), los cuales permiten un manejo adecuado de la información histórica de costos y riesgos. El procedimiento elaborado fue validado a través de juicio de expertos por profesionales especializados para aumentar la base de conocimientos de un área poco desarrollada como es la gestión de riesgos en el país. / According to Gordillo (2014), most construction projects in Peru does not apply an adequate risk management since its bidding phase which leads to important deficiencies during the cost estimating and decision-making processes impacting the achievement of the project cost objectives. As a result, expected profits and funding for the contractor company are affected which, at the same time, detriments its reputation and discourages stakeholders to invest in new projects. This investigation proposes a risk evaluation procedure focused on identifying and mitigating cost variances that can impact construction project profits by using the Monte Carlo Simulation technique, selected by its high capacity data processing and application practicality. The procedure is composed by five main steps: Identify risks; Quantitative Risk Analysis, modeling risks by using the Monte Carlo Simulation technique; Plan Risk Responses; Control Risks during construction; and Update proposed organizational assets such as the Cost Control Structure, Cost Ratio Register, Learned Lessons Register and Risk Breakdown Structure (RBS). These assets allow to perform an adequate cost and risk information management. This procedure was validated through expert judgement by professionals specialized in risk evaluation and computerized tools. The proposal contributes to expand the knowledge of an area as risk management in the country. / Tesis
104

Daily Control System for the Construction of Multi-family Building Projects

Fernandez, Diego, Zamora, Yeffry, Rodriguez, Sandra, Vilcapoma, Jorge 01 January 2021 (has links)
El texto completo de este trabajo no está disponible en el Repositorio Académico UPC por restricciones de la casa editorial donde ha sido publicado. / Construction projects for buildings, in the execution stage, show a variation of the real with respect to what is planned in the budget. The consequence of this lag presented usually causes large economic losses. Given this situation, in the construction industry, various control systems have been developed that have as a final deliverable a frequent management report, which serves to make decisions regarding the analyzed, whose results are applied and evaluated after a specific period of time. These management reports have good results at the time of their application; however, data processing, analysis execution, and decision making take approximately 30 days. In this sense, the present investigation proposes to develop a control system focused in real time, generated by the daily control in the execution stage. The results show a reduction of waste in the main resources of multi-family building projects, and this is in labor and materials, identifying the causes that originate them and suggesting generic solutions, at the end of the workday. / Revisión por pares
105

Lean in Construction Projects : Is lean suitable for all construction projects?

Tomas, Lindholm January 2014 (has links)
Due to the low productivity growth in the construction industry, there are discussions about theories and tools that could support an increased productivity in construction projects. One such ‘theory’ or package of tools is lean. Lean has been used successfully for decades in the car manufacturing industry, Toyota for example, and in other industries as the shipbuilding industry. In the construction industry, the use of the word lean is not frequently used and construction projects could might implement lean concepts and tools in a greater extent than today. The purpose of this thesis is to increase the productivity in construction projects by evaluating if and in which types of construction projects different lean concepts and tools could be used and when it is worth to implement different lean concepts and tools. The research questions are about if there are any obstacles to implement lean and which lean concepts and tools that are most suitable for different types of construction projects. The findings, that will answer the research questions, are based on a theoretical view from an extensive literature review including prior case studies about lean in general as well as about lean in construction projects. The findings are also based on interviews, about the construction process and lean in construction projects, with managers at different types of projects, constructed by Skanska. Even though lean is already used in some extent in construction projects, the finding is that lean concepts and tools could be used in a greater extent in construction projects without obstacles. In addition to concepts and tools used in the car manufacturing industry, e.g. just-in-time, other concepts and tools have to be added. For example production control and planning are important to support lean in construction projects. In general, lean concepts and tools could be used in all types of construction projects. Some concepts or tools are more preferable in certain types of projects. Lean could be used only by the main contractor, however, to optimize the process by lean concepts and tool, it is preferable if the whole chain is adopting lean thinking. As a final comment, construction projects are not like car manufacturing facilities with repetitive work and products. But the construction industry has to take impact from it and the future will be more like the car industry, if the quality and the architectural creativity could retained in the projects.
106

Investigating Adoption of Digital Technologies in Construction Projects

Gholami, Yashar January 2023 (has links)
This thesis investigates the adoption of digital technologies to improve logistics processes in construction projects. The focus is on the main contractor firms and construction projects, but first-tier suppliers, transportation firms, and technology vendors are also considered. The logistics processes that are studied are order-to-delivery processes and on-site logistics. Order-to-delivery processes and on-site logistics play a critical role in ensuring the availability of goods for the construction process, in the right amount and time, at the right location, and without damage. Inefficient logistics processes that do not support construction projects with the right resources (materials, tools, and machinery) are one reason for low construction project performance. Inefficient logistics processes cause disruptions to construction projects, such as material stockouts, material surpluses, unavailability, idle waiting and searching time, and waste (e.g., damages). On a larger scale, inefficient logistics processes cause significant project delays and cost overruns. Therefore, improving logistics processes can improve construction project performance. To address the inefficiencies of logistics processes, main contractor firms face increased pressure to adopt digital technologies. It is known that adopting digital technologies can improve communication between project stakeholders, construction automation, and data acquisition, visualization, and analytics. The adoption of digital technologies has also been reported to improve the construction process, such as design, production, logistics, and procurement of materials and services. However, the adoption of digital technologies is a complex and inter-organizational process, and the industry's decentralized, project-driven nature makes many efforts ad hoc and one-of-a-kind endeavors. Moreover, there needs to be more clarity in the path of digital technology adoption for increasing construction project performance. A knowledge gap in this context has been a lack of actionable recommendations to practitioners, such as main contractor firms. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to formulate recommendations for the adoption of digital technologies that enable the main contractor firms to improve logistics processes. Based on this, the following research questions guide the research: RQ1: What are the drivers and barriers for the adoption of digital technologies at the project level from a main contractor perspective? RQ2: What are the effects on logistics processes when adopting digital technologies in construction projects? RQ3: What are the lessons learnt from the adoption of digital technologies in construction projects? The findings identify drivers and barriers to adopting digital technologies at the project level from a main contractor perspective, the effects of adopting digital technologies, and lessons learnt from adopting digital technologies in construction projects. Furthermore, a successful technology adoption process is driven by identifying the drivers and needs of the project and the stakeholders/individuals involved. It is also found that the effects of adopting digital technologies are: (a) re-designing the order-to-delivery processes and on-site logistics and (b) accessibility and monitorability of information. Moreover, this thesis proposes an enhanced understanding of the process undertaken by the main construction firms in adopting digital technologies. The thesis complements the knowledge of digital technology adoption by focusing on construction projects. The thesis fills in a knowledge gap by formulating actionable recommendations to main contractor firms and bringing clarity to the path of digital technology adoption for increasing construction project performance. / Denna avhandling studerar införandet av digital teknik för att förbättra logistikprocesser i byggprojekt. Avhandlingens fokus ligger på byggentreprenören och dess byggprojekt, men även leverantörer, transportföretag och teknikleverantörer beaktas. De logistikprocesser som studeras är order-till-leveransprocessen och arbetsplatslogistiken. Order-till-leveransprocesser och arbetsplatslogistiken spelar en avgörande roll för att säkerställa tillgången på resurser i produktionsskedet där de behöver levereras i rätt mängd och tid, på rätt plats och utan skador. Produktiviteten i byggprojekt är låg. En orsak till den låga produktiviteten är ineffektiva logistikprocesser som inte förser byggarbetsplatsen med rätt resurser (material, verktyg och maskiner). Ineffektiva logistikprocesser orsakar störningar i byggprojekt till följd av materialbrist, materialöverskott, otillgänglighet, outnyttjad tid (t.ex. vänte- och söktid), samt andra former av slöseri (t.ex. skador på material). Ineffektiva logistikprocesser leder också till betydande förseningar och kostnadsöverskridningar i byggprojekt. Därmed kan förbättrade logistikprocesser bidra till att öka produktivitet i byggprojekt. Samtidigt som att byggentreprenörer behöver ta itu med ineffektiva logistikprocesser står de även inför ett ökat tryck att ta till sig digital teknik. Användning av digital teknik kan förbättra kommunikationen mellan projektintressenter, automatisera byggprocesser samt underlätta datainsamling och visualisering och analys av denna data. Användandet av digital teknik har även rapporterats förbättra hela byggprocessen i termer av projektering, produktion, logistik och upphandling av material och tjänster. Att ta till sig digital teknik är däremot en komplex process som spänner över organisationsgränser. Branschens decentraliserade, projektdrivna karaktär försvårar för byggentreprenörer att ta till sig ny teknik, vilket leder till att insatserna är fragmenterade och görs ad hoc. Dessutom saknas en tydlig bild av för hur byggentreprenörer bör ta till sig ny digital teknik för att öka produktiviteten i byggprojekt. En kunskapslucka i detta sammanhang har varit bristen på praktiska rekommendationer för branschaktörer, till exempel byggentreprenörer. Syftet med denna avhandling att formulera rekommendationer för att ta till sig digital teknik som gör det möjligt för byggentreprenörer att förbättra sina logistikprocesser. Följande forskningsfrågor ska besvaras för att uppfylla avhandlingens syfte: RQ1: Vilka är drivkrafterna och hindren för att införa av digital teknik på projektnivå utifrån byggentreprenörens perspektiv? RQ2: Vilka effekter har införandet av digital teknik på logistikprocesser i byggprojekt? RQ3: Vilka är lärdomarna från att ta till sig av digital teknik i byggprojekt? Resultaten visar på drivkrafter och hinder för att ta till sig digital teknik på i byggprojekt ur ett byggentreprenörsperspektiv, effekterna av att ta till sig digital teknik och lärdomar från att ta till sig digital teknik i byggprojekt. Resultatet visar på att en framgångsrik process för att ta till sig digital teknik kan främjas av att identifiera drivkrafterna och behoven för projektet och de involverade aktörerna/individerna. Det har också visat sig att effekterna av att anta digital teknik är: (a) förändringar av order-till-leveransprocessen och arbetsplatslogistiken och (b) en förbättrad tillgänglighet och översikt av information. Dessutom bidrar denna avhandling till en ökad förståelse av hur en byggentreprenör tar till sig digital teknik med ett speciellt fokus på kunskap om att ta till sig digital teknik på byggprojekt. Avhandlingen bidrar även genom de praktiska rekommendationer som formulerats för byggentreprenörer och genom att tydliggöra tillvägagångssättet för digital teknikanvändning i syfte att öka byggprojektens produktivitet.
107

Confidential Construction Project : An Explorative-Comparative Study Between Conventional and Confidential Construction Projects / Konfidentiella byggprojekt : En explorativ-komparativ studie mellan konventionella och konfidentiella bygg

Khalaf, Soran, Bjerkensjö, Jonathan January 2021 (has links)
The definition of a project is that an individual or group of individuals carries out a work that results in a unique product or service. What is usually discussed in both the media and in the construction industry is the type of project that you can talk about. In this study, this is called conventional construction projects. There are also projects that you are not allowed to talk about and that must be kept secret for various reasons. These can, for example, be based on protecting national interests. In these projects, integrity is one of the most important parameters to keep track of from a management perspective. This study examines the work methodology in this area of the Swedish construction industry. The study is based on traditional project management theory and begins with a review of concepts such as critical success factors (CSF), the distinction between confidentiality and conventionality, key performance indicators (KPI) and the classic iron triangle. The study's question is whether these concepts appear and are applied differently in confidential construction projects compared to conventional ones. Are there any activities that are of utmost importance that they are carried out for a confidential project to be considered successful? The study was conducted as a qualitative, abductive study where information was obtained through semi-structured interviews. In total, eleven interviews were conducted with individuals who participated in some form of confidential construction project. All respondents have represented construction contractors during their time in confidential construction projects. The conclusion after the completed analysis of the interviews shows that confidential projects do not differ significantly in terms of project structure. On the other hand, this type of project is characterized by a much higher degree of accuracy regarding planning and implementation than a comparable conventional construction project. / Definitionen av ett projekt är att en enskild eller grupp av individer genomför ett arbete som resulterar i en, på något sätt, unik produkt eller tjänst. Vad som vanligtvis diskuteras i både media och i byggbranschen är den typ av projekt som du faktiskt får prata om. I denna studie kallas detta för konventionella byggprojekt. Det finns även projekt som du inte får prata om och som måste hållas hemliga av olika anledningar. Dessa kan exempelvis vara grundade i nationella skyddsintressen. I dessa projekt är integritet en av de viktigaste parametrarna att hålla koll på ur ett ledningsperspektiv. Denna studie undersöker arbetsmetodiken inom detta område i byggbranschen. Studien tar avstamp från traditionell projektledningsteori, och inleds med en genomgång av koncept såsom kritiska framgångsfaktorer (CSF), distinktionen mellan konfidentialitet och konventionalitet, nyckeltal (KPI) samt den klassiska järntriangeln. Studiens frågeställning är om dessa begrepp ter sig och tillämpas annorlunda i konfidentiella byggprojekt jämfört med konventionella. Är det några aktiviteter som är av yttersta vikt att de genomförs för att ett konfidentiellt projekt ska anses vara framgångsrikt? Studien har genomförts som en kvalitativ, abduktiv studie där informationsinhämtningen har skett genom semistrukturerade intervjuer. Totalt har ett antal om elva intervjuer genomförts med individer som deltagit inom någon form av konfidentiellt byggprojekt. Samtliga respondenter har representerat byggentreprenörer under deras tid i konfidentiella byggprojekt. Slutsatsen efter den genomförda analysen av intervjuerna visar att konfidentiella projekt inte skiljer sig avsevärt mycket sett till struktur på projektet. Däremot karakteriseras denna typ av projekt av en mycket högre grad av noggrannhet avseende planering och genomförande än ett jämförbart konventionellt byggprojekt.
108

Mega project analysis : a case study of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project

Parrock, Philip 04 1900 (has links)
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Mega projects have fascinated human beings for as long as history can remember. The urge to build something bigger and better than has ever been done before has always been a driving force behind the human race’s relentless pursuit of technological advancement. It is in this vein that mega projects have evolved over time, as methods of construction improved, so did the scale on which people could attempt new projects. The Channel Tunnel between England and France, the Hoover Dam in America and the Millau Viaduct in the French countryside are some of the biggest examples of infrastructure projects in the world and these are all unequivocally, mega projects. Costing at least $ 250 million and incorporating major technological challenges, mega projects continue to inspire and motivate artists and engineers alike. This thesis seeks to expand people’s understanding of the analysis of these mega projects. Mega project analysis is a field that has struggled to differentiate itself ordinary project analysis. The Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) and the associated e-tolling mega project will be analysed in this thesis. The framework for analysis will be provided by the work of Flyvbjerg, Bruzelius and Rothengatter (2003), who seek to analyse mega project success or failure based on three key indicators of economic sustainability, environmental concerns and the effect of public support. This thesis will use the indicators of economic sustainability and the effect of public support to determine whether the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) can be viewed as a failed mega project or not. After an in-depth study of the data and material available, this descriptive and explanatory study shows that the GFIP and associated e-tolling mega project is indeed a failed mega project. This is because it has failed the analysis in both categories of economic sustainability and the effect of public support. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Megaprojekte het al eeue lank die mens gefasineer. Die neiging van die mens om iets groter en beter te maak as wat al ooit gemaak was het nog altyd baie dryfkrag verskaf vir die mens se strewe na tegnologiese verbetering. Dit is met hierdie idee in gedagte dat megaprojekte met tyd verander het, soos wat boumetodes verbeter het, so ook het die grootte van projekte verander wat mense kon aanpak. Die Channel Tonnel tussen Engeland en Frankryk, die Hoover Dam in Amerika en die Millau Brug in die Franse platteland is voorbeelde van die grootste infrastruktuur projekte ter wêreld en hierdie is al drie, sonder enige twyfel, megaprojekte. Teen ‘n koste van ten minste $ 250 miljoen en met grootskaalse tegnologiese uitdaging, hou megaprojekte aan om vir beide kunstenaars en ingenieurs te motiveer en uit te daag. Hierdie tesis poog om mense se kennis van die analise van megaprojekte te verbreed. Megaprojek analise is ‘n veld wat al jare lank sukkel om verskille te bewerkstellig tussen homself en gewone projek analise. Die “Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project” (GFIP) en die verwante e-toll megaprojek sal geanaliseer word in hierdie tesis. Die raamwerk vir analise sal deur Flyvbjerg, Bruzelius en Rothengatter (2003) verskaf word, waar die outeurs poog om megaprojekte se sukses of mislukking te bepaal gebaseer op die sleutel aanwysers van ekonomiese volhoubaarheid, omgewingskwessies en die effek van openbare ondersteuning. Hierdie tesis sal gebruik maak van die ekonomiese volhoubaarheid en openbare ondersteuning aanwysers om te bepaal of die GFIP beskou kan word as a mislukte megaprojek of nie. Na ‘n in-diepte study van die data en materiaal beskikbaar, sal hierdie beskrywende en verduidelikende studie wys dat die GFIP en verwante e-toll megaprojek inderdaad ‘n mislukte megaprojek is, as gevolg daarvan dat die GFIP megaprojek analise aandui dat die megaprojek misluk het in beide die ekonomiese volhoubaarheid en publieke ondersteunings aanwysers.
109

Quantitative Modelling Methods for the Incorporation of Uncertainty into Construction Project Estimates

Adams, Russell John 12 1900 (has links)
Thesis (MEng (Civil Engineering))--University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / Most construction projects do not complete exactly as scheduled or exactly as priced. During the implementation of a project there is almost certainly some deviation from the original estimate. The implementation of a majority of projects has actually been shown to cost more and take longer than originally estimated. However, the duration and cost performance of a project’s implementation is measured against the initial estimate produced. Thus if a project is considered to have completed late or over budget then essentially the duration or cost estimated was insufficient. Due to the fact that estimates are produced in a present day environment for inherently unique projects that occur in uncertain future environments, the estimates produced will need to incorporate uncertainty to increase their likelihood of achievability. This study aims to derive methods to incorporate future uncertainty into project estimates. This uncertainty is incorporated, analysed and manipulated through the use of Probabilistic models and First Order Second Moment Reliability methods. The derived methods provide project management professionals with tools that enable them to design estimates that incorporate future uncertainty and are reliable to a specified degree. Further methods are then derived to probabilistically assess the commercial feasibility of a project in an uncertain future environment. These derived methods then provide project managers and decision makers with more reliable procedures and information which in turn should assist them in making correct, project orientated decisions and ultimately increase profit reliability and client satisfaction.
110

An investigation of the document bias between the GCC 2004 and the GCC 2010

Klingenberg, Wolfram Georg 04 1900 (has links)
Thesis (MEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / Construction projects have developed over several decades through the advancement of technology, increased scarcity of resources and the ever increasing pressure of time and cost constraints. Because of new technology and modern construction methods, construction projects have become increasingly complex. These complexities inherently bring new risks that must be dealt with accordingly. A contract is the primary method through which risks are allocated between the Employer and the Contractor. The conditions allocating the risks legally bind both parties to accept responsibility of those risks, therefore it is important to understand the aspects of law that has bearing on contracts. In this thesis the scope is restricted to construction contracts. Because of the role that a contract plays, especially in the construction industry context, it is important to know the requirements of a modern contract to ensure the successful completion of projects and the continued sustainability of Employer-Contractor relationships. In South Africa, the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) is a body that monitors developments in the construction industry. The CIDB has the authority to enforce legislation to ensure that contracts conform to a standard that protects the interests of both the Employer and the Contractor. One of the procurement documents endorsed by the CIDB is the General Conditions of Contract for Construction Works published by the South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE). The first edition of the GCC was published in 2004 (GCC 2004) and a revised second edition was published in 2010 (GCC 2010). In this study the GCC 2010 and the GCC 2004 are compared first through a content analysis, to establish the effect the revisions on the bias of the document (or favouring a particular party) and then by means of a survey. The objectives are: a. To test whether revisions to the GCC from the 2004 edition to the 2010 edition resulted in a change in bias (assuming it exists) and compliance with the requirements of the modern contract; b. To determine the extent and effect of alterations to standard clauses of the GCC 2010 on the way in which the contract favours a particular party; c. Providing recommendations for future revisions that would potentially improve project success, relationship building and reduce the need for significant alterations to the standard clauses. Although a construction contract is undertaken between the Employer and the Contractor, the Consultant (who is not party to the contract) commonly drafts the contract on behalf of the Employer. The findings of the study show that the revision had a significant impact on improving the clarity of the roles of the Employer and the Contractor. A marginal improvement was found in the area of payment operating mechanisms. The perceived fairness of the document neither increased nor decreased. Clauses on claims and disputes and risk and related matters were the two areas that respondents identified as having the most bias that may be detrimental to the success of a construction project. Despite survey respondents finding the GCC 2010 procurement document to be fair, clauses are still altered by Employers (probably through Consultants) resulting in a biased contract favouring the Employer. Employers and Consultants should thus be educated more on bias and fairness in contracts and on the implications of shifting more risk to Contractors by altering clauses. Ultimately, the success of any construction project is dependent on the attitudes of the participants. Even the most fair procurement document is not a substitute for a relationship built on honesty and trust.

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