Construction Project Schedule

This paper describes the methodology and results obtained after productivity improvement work conducted on two consecutive building construction jobs.  The first one was used to evaluate production rates and productivity, current construction methods, potentials and lacks of construction equipment, current construction planning methodology, and existing tools to asses productivity.  These are briefly discussed in this paper. The second job was preplanned based on the experience and detailed documentation obtained in the first one. Work was conducted in order to “design” construction methods in detail, develop a detailed production planning based on the construction methods developed, select crew components and select their specific tasks, and design communication and control tools. Although the second job’s schedule and budget were originally calculated using standard methods (i.e. historical production rates), new schedule and budget were calculated based on the preplanning effort. Construction performance was measured against these values.

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Project delays often occur due to the dynamic and complex nature of the construction industry and would lead to claims and disputes between contracting parties. Once a project exceeds the period contractually required to complete a project, there is bound to be an effect on expenditure or income of the contractor as well as the project owner. This study therefore determines the reasons for unsuccessful contractors' delay claims in Sri Lanka. The study administered a questionnaire survey to construction practitioners, contractors and consultants. A total of 55 respondents from both contracting companies (n = 40, with C1-C3 grading) and consultants (n = 15) were selected using stratified random and snowballing sampling methods respectively. The data obtained were analysed using descriptive statistics and Relative Importance Index (RII). The study found that time overrun occurs in 90% of projects in Sri Lanka and was indicative of the delays to settlement of contractors' claims. On average 60% of contractors submitted delay claims with only 40% success rate. The top most frequent reasons for unsuccessful claims include: inadequate documentation to substantiate claims, delayed submission of claim details, failure to establish link between cause and effect of claims and failure to use appropriate delay analysis method. Sri Lankan contractors explained that failure to use appropriate delay analysis method and contractors failing to mitigate the effects of the delays are also contributory factors to failures. In order to mitigate these issues, the study recommends that contractors adopt innovative strategies such as providing a contingency for the amount of claim failures under preliminaries or mark up at bidding stage and includes a measure of over valuation as a negotiating margin when preparing the claim first time. Also contractors would need to maintain up to date records of site transactions, while training of their staff to increase their knowledge of contract procedures are a necessity in Sri Lanka.

A construction schedule must satisfy multiple project objectives that often conflict with each other. While several earlier approaches attempted to generate optimal schedules in terms of several criteria, most of their optimization processes were segmented into multiple steps. Owing to such a lack of simultaneous optimization, limited alternative solutions could be searched and some trade-offs between goals could not be identified. This paper presents an optimization approach that enables a simultaneous search for an optimal construction schedule in terms of three objectives: minimization of construction duration, cost, and resource fluctuation. A multiobjective optimization (MOO) approach was adopted to generate scheduling solutions considering all those objectives. To enable a simultaneous optimization, we propose a new data structure that can compute the performances of solutions in terms of all the objectives at the same time. A Niched Pareto Genetic Algorithm (NPGA) is modified to facilitate the optimization procedure. Then the proposed optimization approach is implemented in an existing case study. The result indicates that the proposed approach has the capability to explore and generate a greater range of solutions compared to existing models. Trade-offs between all three objectives are identified, limitations and further research needs are discussed.

Many projects suffers time and cost overruns due to improper planning, scheduling and execution works that results in several issues like delay in providing facilities, development, reduction in quality of construction and making the project more expensive. A little consideration shows that the time required to complete the project is inversely proportional to the supply of resources. As the resources are increased, the completion time of the project is decreased and on the other hand if the resources are decreased, the completion time of the project is increased. This study deal with the planning, estimating and scheduling of Baglinga Minor Irrigation Project situated at Baglinga Village of Chikhaldara tehsil in Amravati District.

من قديم الأزل و الحضارات يقوم الإنسان بالإبداع و إنشاء المشروعات الضخمة و الفريدة من نوعها ، والتي من الممكن أن يقضي بها السنوات بل القرون لينتج مشروعاً فريداً من نوعه ، وبالإضافة إلى الوقت الذي استهلك في القيام بالمشروع ، فإن المعضلة والتي شغلت كثيراً من المهندسين بالعصر الحديث هي إبداع المهندسين في التصميم و الإشراف و إدارة المشاريع بهذه الضخامة و متابعته و الانتهاء منه بالصورة البديعة التي وصلتنا بالعصر الحديث .
وعلى سبيل المثال فإن الأهرامات تمثل نتاجاً فريداً من تنفيذ و إدارة المشروع بهذه الجودة و الكيفية ، رغم الصعوبات و التي تزيد آنذاك لبساطة الموارد ، ولكنها أنتجت شيئاً فريداً يبهر العالم الحديث حتى حينه.
ومع تتابع العصور و تطور العلوم الهندسية ووضع أسس للتصميم و التنفيذ و إدارة المشروع ، بدأ ظهور أهمية المكتب الفني وإدارته لكافة المشاريع الهندسية .
ومما لا شك فيه أن المكتب الفني هو اختصار للعديد من التخصصات و المهام الهامة في إدارة المشروع ويندرج تحت المسمى العديد من الخطوات و هو بمثابة عصب و أساس المشروع ولا ينجز مشروع بالصورة المثلى إلا بإدارة جيدة للمكتب الفني بجميع تخصصاته.
ولك أن تعلم عزيزي القارئ أن المكتب الفني لا يقتصر على إعداد الرسومات التنفيذية و المستخلصات فقط ، بل يتناول المشروع من بداية الفكرة المولدة ،وحساب التكلفة الفعلية للمشروع  ثم اعداد المواصفات الفنية للمشروع و إعداد رسوماته الابتدائية ثم الطرح وكيفية القيام بالعطاءات و المناقصات و كيفية الموافقة الفنية على العرض المقدم ، مروراً بإعداد البرنامج الزمني التفصيلي للمشروع ، و إعداد مستندات المشروع و التعامل مع الجهة المشرفة ، وإعداد الرسومات التنفيذية و المتابعة الجيدة لسير العمل بالمشروع من خلال البرنامج الزمني و إعداد التقارير ، وترجمة الأعمال المنجزة من خلال المستخلصات التي يتم إعدادها بإشراف طاقم العمل بالمكتب الفني بالمشروع ، وإعداد الرسومات النهائية وتسليم المشروع .
وعليه وبفضل من الله و توفيقه ، قمت بتأليف هذه الموسوعة ( أنا العبد الفقير إلى الله ) ، والتي بعنوان
(( موسوعة المكتب الفني وإدارة المشاريع )) ، لتكون عوناً و دليلاً و مرجعاً لكل طالب و مهندس مدني و معماري ، ليصبح بها مهندس مكتب فني محترف و مدير مشروع ناجح ، وأرجو من الله عزوجل أن أكون وفقت في إعداد و تأليف هذه الموسوعة.

Construction target monitoring became one of the key concerns of the construction field. Computer vision based monitoring methods like 2D image, video and 3D laser scan methods have difficulties in meeting
real-time and data objectivity requirements. This paper points out the applicability of high resolution remote sensing image (HRRSI) in this task.

Reworks due to activities overlapping have both direct and indirect effects on the performance of construction projects. To reduce the impact of reworks there is a need to understand their basic reason for their existence. This paper aims to identify the top changes that af ecting upstream production rate and causing reworks in downstream activities. These changes were identified through three stages. The first stage 23 changes were collected from a past literature review and were divided into three major categories: designer, contractor, and owner changes. 100 effective interviews were conducted and their results are employed. In the second stage, the 23 changes were then ranked from the most significant to the less significant. The third stage, the 80/20 rule applied to the changes identified to get the eight top important changes. The result shows the top important eight factors are Lack of coordination and poor communication, The contractor instruction to modify a design, Non-compliance with the specification, The owner instruction to modify a design, Incomplete design at the time of tender, Poor planning and coordination of resources, Errors made in the contract documentation and Lack of experience and knowledge of the design and construction process.

The emerging concept of lean construction is considered from an overtly critical perspective. It is contended that the current debate is based on a highly selective interpretation of the available literature. The extent to which methods of lean production are applicable beyond the Japanese context remains hotly debated. An extensive body of critical opinion argues that the application of lean methods depends upon the hegemony of management over labour. Whilst the lean rhetoric of flexibility, quality and teamwork is persuasive, critical observers claim that it translates in practice to control, exploitation and surveillance. The accepted research agenda for lean construction is primarily confined to the limited domain of instrumental rationality. Little attention has been directed at the externalities that lie beyond narrow definitions of technical efficiency. In this respect, the activities of construction researchers are seemingly shaped and controlled by the prevailing ideology of neoliberalism. The funding agencies continually exert an insidious pressure to generate outputs that are 'relevant' to the needs of industry. The result is an inevitable conservatism whereby the only research that is valued is that which preserves the status quo. This widespread failure to challenge the propaganda that shapes and controls the research community serves to dis-empower the workforce and erode the industry's intellectual capital. Industry and society at large are becoming increasingly impoverished as dogma triumphs over thoughtfulness.

This paper describes a system that combines a 2D digital board that shows dynamically in rows and columns arranged in a special layout, starting and finishing dates of subcontractors work linked to the fourth dimension, time, coming from construction schedules. The system is the result of a research project whose objective is to improve planning, scheduling, and controlling the work of subcontractors of finishings in building projects. The system will be tested on case studies projects for planning, scheduling and controlling the work of subcontractors. It is expected that the systems will act as a powerful real time Visualization, Planning, Analysis and Communication Tool in the case studies. Despite the 3D case studies models were very useful for constructability and other purposes, the traditional 4D approach that combines 3D + time was not very useful when dealing with construction works that remained mainly “hidden” within the project 3D model. Applied to the case studies, the digital board shall provide different ways to display, communicate and understand information about resources, costs, dates and relationships coming from a traditional CPM network using 4D in a new 2D + time conceptualization.

The construction industry is one of the most important activities that contribute towards the economic growth of any nation. However, the sector has been experiencing problems of cost and time overruns. Thus, the paper aims at developing an integrated scheduling approach for construction projects during the planning phase from a project owner's perspective. The study has shown that cost and time optimization model could yield impractical results unless double precedence relations are imposed between some activities such as excavation, Earthwork, Pitching and Concreting. It has also demonstrated that the cost and time budgeted during the planning phase would substantially deviate from actual if the planned construction start date slips from the plan, particularly for short period projects. The proposed approach demonstrated in the paper can sufficiently allow planning engineers to develop a comprehensive construction schedule so that the cost and time overruns in the lowest-bid awarded construction projects can be reduced. The paper provides empirical insights into how a robust construction schedule is developed from an owner's perspective. Cost-time optimization and risk analysis results obtained from manual computation might reduce the reasonable accuracy of the desired cost and schedule integration unless each activity is assigned its own calendar.

Reworks due to activities overlapping have both direct and indirect effects on the performance of construction projects. To reduce the impact of reworks there is a need to understand their basic reason for their existence. This paper aims to identify the top changes that affecting upstream production rate and causing reworks in downstream activities. These changes were identified through three stages. The first stage 23 changes were collected from a past literature review and were divided into three major categories: designer, contractor, and owner changes. 100 effective interviews were conducted and their results are employed. In the second stage, the 23 changes were then ranked from the most significant to the less significant. The third stage, the 80/20 rule applied to the changes identified to get the eight top important changes. The result shows the top important eight factors are Lack of coordination and poor communication, The contractor instruction to modify a design, Non-compliance with the specification, The owner instruction to modify a design, Incomplete design at the time of tender, Poor planning and coordination of resources, Errors made in the contract documentation and Lack of experience and knowledge of the design and construction process.