In 2015, private sector Department of Defense (DoD) contractors experienced decreasing profit margins by approximately 8% and an increase in estimated costs of approximately 250%. The purpose of this multicase study was to explore strategies used by business leaders of private sector contractors for DoD capacity-building projects to accurately estimate program costs to improve profitability. The target population for this study was business leaders of DoD capacity-building program contractors with successful experience improving cost-estimation processes and strategies in Southeast Asia and the former Soviet Union. The conceptual framework for this study was business process quality management with a supporting framework of game theory. The data collection process comprised semistructured virtual interviews and a review of government and corporate documents. The data analysis process consisted of compiling data, disassembling data, reassembling data into groups and themes, and interpreting data, including methodological triangulation. Through data analysis, 5 themes were identified: enhanced customer relationships, increasing ability to innovate, improved project awareness, acquisition policy and political environments, and identification of labor rates and pricing. The implications for social change include the potential for DoD private industry business leaders to develop business strategies that result in improved profitability, creating opportunities to increase local economic impact and wage scales for local employees, higher levels of employment, and increased local technical knowledge.

Escalation of right-of-way (ROW) costs have been shown to be a prime contributor to project cost escalation in the highway industry. Two problems contribute to ROW cost escalation: 1) the ROW cost estimation and cost estimate management process generally lacks structure and definition as compared to other areas of cost estimation; and 2) there is a lack of integration and communication between those responsible for ROW cost estimating and those responsible for general project cost estimating. The research for this thesis was preceded by a literature review to establish the basis for the study. Data collection was completed through interviews of seven state highway agencies (SHAs) and two local public agencies (LPAs). The findings of the research are presented in a set of ROW flowcharts which document the steps, inputs, and outputs of the ROW cost estimation and cost estimate management process. Three ROW cost estimates and a cost management process take place throughout project development. An effort was made from the onset of the research to relate the ROW cost estimating and cost estimate management process to the first four project development phases (planning, programming. preliminary design, and final design). There are five flowcharts produced as a result of this research: 1) an agency-level flowchart showing all cost estimates and the interaction of ROW with the project development process; 2) a conceptual ROW cost estimating flowchart which depicts the required steps during planning; 3) a baseline ROW cost estimating flowchart which depicts the required steps during programming; 4) an update ROW cost estimating flowchart which depicts the required steps during preliminary design to include a cost estimate management loop; and 5) a ROW cost management flowchart which depicts the required steps during final design. Although selected SHA contacts provided input following the development of the flowcharts, the flowcharts were only validated to a limited extent due to time and budget constraints. These flowcharts attempt to address the two contributing problems to ROW cost escalation by providing structure to the ROW cost estimation process and by developing the ROW process flowcharts linked to the project development process. Based on the input provided by SHA contacts, the flowcharts appear to have the potential to provide guidance to SHAs in improving the accuracy of ROW cost estimates through addressing these two problems.

MBA Professional Report / The purpose of this MBA Project is to review existing policy of the Federal Energy Management Program under the purview of National Renewal Energy Laboratory (NREL) for Energy Savings Performance Contracts (ESPCs). This project will assess the ability for the Department of Defense to incorporate emerging technologies in alternative energy to supplement or replace existing power sources for DoD installations within the current Energy Savings Performance Contract policy. To do this the project will review previous and existing Energy Savings Performance Contracts. Further, this project will conduct a cost-benefit analysis of conventional power versus emerging photovoltaic energy for the Army’s Fort Bliss in El Paso, TX. The project will also analyze energy demands based on a new force alignment at Fort Bliss in accordance with the recent Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) findings. The project will review current Energy Performance Contract Policy and recommend changes to allow for the use of emerging alternative energy technologies.

Presently, owners are interested in evaluating the feasibility of investing in the construction of new building projects based on cost and time constraints. They need to therefore have an idea about the project construction costs, the time required to finish construction of a project in its conceptual phase, and about the implementation of feasibility study. Because due to associated risks, construction cost estimates and schedules are vital to any project. The research’s objective is to develop a methodology that can be used to create an integrated computer model that helps owners and designers generate construction cost estimates, and derive the baseline schedule for any proposed building project at its feasibility stage. All the relevant data used within the model is collected from the literature and is stored in comprehensive databases designed for this purpose. The data is based on 2011 RSMeans publications and consist of around 4,000 previously constructed projects. The model is developed in a Microsoft environment using Microsoft Excel 2007 and Microsoft Project 2007. This model uses deterministic and stochastic approaches to execute all necessary calculations for the conceptual cost estimate and baseline schedule. A deterministic approach relies on realistic data while a stochastic one relies on incorporating the uncertainty and risk available in calculating the cost and duration of any construction building project. The model is user friendly, flexible and executes all the necessary calculations quickly. The successful development of the model would help owners and investors identify the cost and baseline schedule of proposed projects at the early stages of the project life, so that they have an idea of the budget required for construction and the time needed to recover their investment.

"The fragmented environment in the construction industry has a big influence on production. The multi-disciplinary nature of the project development process imposes the need for clear communications and team effort coordination. Information Technology (IT) has been playing a tremendous role in facilitating this process. The most recent contribution of IT in this regard is the Building Information Model (BIM). It is clear that BIM technology improves the design drawings productivity; drawings are automatically coordinated in all views from plans, to sections, to elevations, to details and to perspectives. It also provides an innovative way of scheduling through by allowing a 3D visualization of the construction progress. But, there are still many technical issues that still need to be addressed before this technology is fully adopted by the industry. For example, what are the files formats that BIM supports? What is the needed knowledge for best use of BIM? How does BIM integrate with the estimating discipline? Where does BIM store the building data? What are the codes that are shown in the automatically generated “quantity take-offs” schedules? This research attempts to provide answers to these questions and explores possible ways to link different coding systems within the BIM platform itself. After reviewing the basic design concepts from the conceptual to the construction stages and how it is related to the different project delivery ways, this work illustrates the role of different work breakdown structures (WBS) in the life cycle of estimating discipline from the preliminary to the detailed stage. The research reviewed the different database designs and structures, the database management systems (DBMS), as well as the database organization systems. This review draws a picture on how information system (IS) and its tools support the different needs of the multiple players involved in a construction project. The focus was on the object oriented database and building information model (BIM) software, and how it integrates with other estimating and project planning software. The findings seem promising, but before BIM technology can reshape the construction industry, it is still necessary to conduct additional experimental work as the software continues to evolve and becomes mature."

Presently, owners are interested in evaluating the feasibility of investing in the construction of new building projects based on cost and time constraints. They need to therefore have an idea about the project construction costs, the time required to finish construction of a project in its conceptual phase, and about the implementation of feasibility study. Because due to associated risks, construction cost estimates and schedules are vital to any project. The research’s objective is to develop a methodology that can be used to create an integrated computer model that helps owners and designers generate construction cost estimates, and derive the baseline schedule for any proposed building project at its feasibility stage. All the relevant data used within the model is collected from the literature and is stored in comprehensive databases designed for this purpose. The data is based on 2011 RSMeans publications and consist of around 4,000 previously constructed projects. The model is developed in a Microsoft environment using Microsoft Excel 2007 and Microsoft Project 2007. This model uses deterministic and stochastic approaches to execute all necessary calculations for the conceptual cost estimate and baseline schedule. A deterministic approach relies on realistic data while a stochastic one relies on incorporating the uncertainty and risk available in calculating the cost and duration of any construction building project. The model is user friendly, flexible and executes all the necessary calculations quickly. The successful development of the model would help owners and investors identify the cost and baseline schedule of proposed projects at the early stages of the project life, so that they have an idea of the budget required for construction and the time needed to recover their investment.

Construction industry is a one of the most risky sectors due to high level of uncertainties included in the nature of the construction projects. Although there are many reasons, the deficiency of cash is one of the main factors threatening the success of the construction projects and causing business failures. Therefore, an appropriate cash planning technique is necessary for adequate cost control and efficient cash management while considering the risks and uncertainties of the construction projects. The main objective of this thesis is to develop a realistic, reliable and cost-schedule integrated cash flow modeling technique by using fuzzy set theory for including the uncertainties in project cost and schedule resulting from complex and ambiguous nature of construction works. The linguistic expressions are used for utilizing from human judgment and approximate reasoning ability of users for reflecting their experience into the model to create cash flow scenarios. The uncertain cost and duration estimates gathered from experts are inserted in the model as fuzzy numbers. The model provides the user different net cash flow scenarios with fuzzy formats that are beneficial for foreseeing possible cost and schedule threats to the project during the tender stage. The model is generated in Microsoft Excel 2007 using Visual Basic for applications and the model is applied to a case example.

Presently, owners are interested in evaluating the feasibility of investing in the construction of new building projects based on cost and time constraints. They need to therefore have an idea about the project construction costs, the time required to finish construction of a project in its conceptual phase, and about the implementation of feasibility study. Because due to associated risks, construction cost estimates and schedules are vital to any project. The research’s objective is to develop a methodology that can be used to create an integrated computer model that helps owners and designers generate construction cost estimates, and derive the baseline schedule for any proposed building project at its feasibility stage. All the relevant data used within the model is collected from the literature and is stored in comprehensive databases designed for this purpose. The data is based on 2011 RSMeans publications and consist of around 4,000 previously constructed projects. The model is developed in a Microsoft environment using Microsoft Excel 2007 and Microsoft Project 2007. This model uses deterministic and stochastic approaches to execute all necessary calculations for the conceptual cost estimate and baseline schedule. A deterministic approach relies on realistic data while a stochastic one relies on incorporating the uncertainty and risk available in calculating the cost and duration of any construction building project. The model is user friendly, flexible and executes all the necessary calculations quickly. The successful development of the model would help owners and investors identify the cost and baseline schedule of proposed projects at the early stages of the project life, so that they have an idea of the budget required for construction and the time needed to recover their investment.

This thesis report presents the process which has been followed to develop a large real estate project in São Paulo, Brazil where the buildings remaining on the site are landmarks. The report includes an extensive case study the Matarazzo Project about which I performed the analysis of the procedure of development during my internship at SCPM – a French Project Management company. The ultimate goal of the thesis is to provide investors with brief recommendations to develop similar project in Brazil with respect of the cultural values. A French Investor intends to develop the Matarazzo Project – a large and complex real estate project in São Paulo, Brazil – on a site defined as a national and municipal landmark by public authorities, respectively CONDEPHAAT and CONPRESP, due to the remaining buildings erected from 1904 which are witnesses of the well-organized institutions of Italian immigrants. The protection of the existing buildings involved a particular procedure to apply for permits. Indeed, it implies the presentation of the project to several organs such as IPHAN, CONDEPHAAT , CONPRESP, SEHAB, SMT, DEPAVE, etc. with a list of required documents – TAC , Projeto de Restauro, Relatorió de Impacto de Vicinhenza, plans, layout, renderings, etc. Thus, to apply for building permits such a situation implies a selected numbers of particular consultants as a Legal Authorization Specialist, Retrofit Specialist, DEPAVE Specialist, Cultural Centre Specialist , lawyers, added to the stakeholders normally present during the development of a real estate project – architects, engineers, land surveyor, quantity surveyor , insurance companies, etc. The case study involved, at this stage, more than 23 entities (2 from the Direction, 3 from the Supervision, and 18 from the Executive Stakeholders) The combination of actors was such because I realized my internship at an early stage of the project – maybe the earliest. Indeed, when I started, the Master Plan had not been defined yet and the Work Cost Estimate had not been performed, even though the Project Manager already had an idea about the overall schedule and was hiring the appropriate stakeholders. By now, the Master Plan has been fixed and shares both green and brown field areas. The existing buildings will host a Retail Centre (18.000m²) surrounded by glazed roof, a Palace Hotel (10.000m²), the Chapel remains a religious place, the Paediatric will be replaced by a Village Hall (500m²). Underground constructions will be located all above the site with a Cultural Centre (18.500m²) and a Parking Lot (55.000m²). Plus, depending on the Right-to- Built, a Tower (21.000m²) will be erected near the Ponta. Consequently, in terms of time, the Project Manager forecasts the whole project to last no less than five years – including legal documents approvals and works execution. In terms of budget, a Work Cost Estimate – more or less accurate depending on the level of completion of the plans of each specific area – has been done so that the Client can start to set up the Business Plan and develop the strategy to finance the project – finding financers, operators, tenants, etc. Having work more than five months on the Matarazzo Project enables to make an analysis of what the situation had been and what it should be. It is crystal clear that mentalities and ways of proceeding between France and Brazil are different. Nothing is said but that is the role of the consultants to establish what strategy to choose, or to state things such as what is allowed to build, how to build, etc. Nothing is written either, indeed there is no code of construction, barely a Código de Obras e Edificações which define for which permit to apply depending on the work to perform. So, the spirit is ‘ do as best as you can and let’s see if will be accepted by legal authorities’. And conflict is avoided – problems are not pointed directly, they last and they became bigger putting the whole project on hold. The solution to all this has been to hire a Project Manager Assistant to work directly from there, increasing communication between France and Brazil, making researches about similar projects, and trying to keep everyone on the right track cause – due to the size of the project – minor points are often forgotten and became major points. For the future, the Project Manager starts to forecast the whole organization of the project, in particular for the detailed conception and execution phases. Regarding the work breakdown structure, to simplify communication proceeding having one representative for the architectural team and one general contractor is the favourite option despite the disadvantages it implies (information retention, increased fees for management of sub-contractor, etc.). The analysis of the procedure of development of a large real estate project in São Paulo, Brazil has resulted in future recommendations on what attention should be focused on. In short, the recommendations include the following: Being aware of local culture and local way of proceeding (steps of development, local institutions, subsequent required documents); Having a good intern organization (being aware of what is due and by who); For more details on the future recommendations, cf. chapter 6.

4D- and 5D BIM are used in the design phase of construction projects and mean that a 3D-model of a project is provided with two additional dimensions. 4D is a 3D-model that has a time aspect, while 5D is a 3D-model with both a time aspect and a cost estimate. The 3D-model contains numerous different objects which are given specific device times and material- and work costs. Then a video simulation can be made where the project is constructed as the time ticks on and depending on the software, it can also display the cost of different objects and activities as the simulation is played. The purpose of the study is to find out if the use of 4D- and 5D-BIM before the contracting phase of contractors could be beneficial to the client and the consultant. In which kinds of projects is it useful? Does the usefulness differ from a building project to a facility project? Does the size and complexity of a project affect the usefulness of the technology? Which softwares are currently used and are they sufficiently developed for the projects today? These are the questions that are going to be answered. In order to answer the questions, a survey is sent to employees at Sweco and interviews are made with people both from Sweco and Trafikverket (Swedish Transport Administration) who have good knowledge and experience in the field. This is done to gain a perspective from both the consultant and the client side. A case study is done in the 4D software “Vico Office” in order to compare its usefulness in a building project versus a facility project and at the same time assess the user friendliness of the software. The result of the studies showed that 4D- and 5D BIM can improve visualization and create good communication between all parties, which can lead to possible profitability for both the clients, the contractors and even the consultants. Important factors that have been taken from the studies in order to make the use of 4D and 5D profitable are education and knowledge about the technology. The project should also be reasonably complex. This makes 4D and 5D BIM more useful in facility projects as they are generally more complex. At present, however, the technology is not so common in projects, as only 17% of the 229 respondents in the survey have been included in projects where the technology has been used. Even though there a flaws in the softwares and that they need more features, the knowledge that the users possess in 4D and 5D BIM needs to be better.