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Article
Publication date: 1 March 2002

GODFRIED AUGENBROE, HANS VERHEIJ and GERHARD SCHWARZMÜLLER

Web hosted project spaces offer dedicated collaboration and information sharing functions to dispersed members of design, engineering and manufacturing teams. During the recent…

221

Abstract

Web hosted project spaces offer dedicated collaboration and information sharing functions to dispersed members of design, engineering and manufacturing teams. During the recent dot.com boom these so‐called ‘e‐Project’ services became increasingly popular in the A/E/C (Architecture, Engineering and Construction) industry. This industry has started to refer to these products as ‘project web sites’. Their basic service component is a web enabled ‘information space’ for building teams offered through an Application Service Provider (ASP) business model, and accessible via an Extranet requiring only a standard web browser. An expanding set of web hosted applications is meanwhile included in most products, e.g. for messaging and calendaring, data and document management, design reviews and project management. This paper shows how the functionality of project web sites can be enriched by adding advanced task coordination features. Such features are especially relevant for design management. In particular, the paper deals with the need to support the formation and coordination of spontaneous short‐lived sub‐teams in the course of a project. A crucial element of these ‘self‐appointed’ teams is the need to establish rapid agreement on a shared coordination template for the execution of the task at hand. It will be demonstrated how task templates for that purpose can be defined and managed. The chosen solution serves as a task sensitive filter to the overwhelming amount of documents stored typically on a project web site. The approach will be demonstrated on a daily exercise in academic environments: the abstract and paper review process in the preparation of a conference.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 9 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

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Article
Publication date: 1 March 2002

J.M. Kamara, G. Augenbroe, C.J. Anumba and P.M. Carrillo

Knowledge management (KM) is now recognized as a core business concern and intellectual assets play a vital role in gaining competitive advantage. Within the architecture…

5053

Abstract

Knowledge management (KM) is now recognized as a core business concern and intellectual assets play a vital role in gaining competitive advantage. Within the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry, where the need for innovation and improved business performance requires the effective deployment and utilization of project knowledge, the need for strategic knowledge management is also being acknowledged. This paper reviews various initiatives for KM in order to assess the extent to which it is being implemented in the AEC sector. Contextual issues are identi. ed, and the findings from two research projects are used to assess current strategies for KM in AEC firms. These studies show that effective knowledge management requires a combination of both mechanistic and organic approaches in an integrated approach that incorporates both technological and organizational/cultural issues. The paper concludes with recommendations on how this could be achieved in practice.

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Construction Innovation, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1471-4175

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Article
Publication date: 1 March 2002

PIETER DE WILDE, GODFRIED AUGENBROE and MARINUS VAN DER VOORDEN

This paper discusses how project management styles and methods impact on energy conscious design decisions by building design teams. Within the broad field of energy conscious…

497

Abstract

This paper discusses how project management styles and methods impact on energy conscious design decisions by building design teams. Within the broad field of energy conscious design the emphasis of this paper is on the selection of energy saving technologies in appropriately configured building components. The premise of the research is that these selections are not well rationalized. Choices of energy saving features in current practice are discussed against the background of available computational tools and the way these tools are used (or not) to enhance the decision‐making process. Through empirical data gathering based on case studies, improved project management techniques that enable a more timely and rational selection of energy saving technologies will be identified. A follow‐up research project that implements the findings in an operational design system is briefly presented to sketch the practical implications of the reported research.

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Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 9 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

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Article
Publication date: 1 April 2014

Sarel Lavy, John A. Garcia and Manish K. Dixit

The purpose of this paper is to synthesize the previously established list of key performance indicators (KPIs), to identify and categorize the core performance indicators that…

2955

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to synthesize the previously established list of key performance indicators (KPIs), to identify and categorize the core performance indicators that are measurable and quantifiable.

Design/methodology/approach

A literature-based qualitative approach is adopted for accumulating desired information on identifying and categorizing the core indicators. The list of KPIs established in an earlier paper is narrowed down considering the future research needs suggested by the literature.

Findings

The quantifiable and measurable core indicators are identified and categorized in the form of a list. The core indicators are defined and the variables required to quantify them are described by citing peer-reviewed literature.

Research limitations/implications

This paper represents the first step toward establishing a relevant list of quantifiable and measurable core KPIs. Future research papers could emphasize derivation of mathematical expressions for determining the identified core KPIs and validating these KPIs using simulation of real building data.

Practical implications

The need to establish a concise and relevant list of quantifiable and measurable KPIs that could express more than one type of information about a facility's performance is identified in this paper. This paper presents and describes a narrowed down list of core KPIs, which could be utilized by facility management industry professionals while performing a holistic performance assessment.

Originality/value

This paper provides a list of core KPIs that could express more than one aspect of a facility's performance and that is measurable and quantifiable.

Details

Facilities, vol. 32 no. 5/6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-2772

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Article
Publication date: 17 July 2017

Alireza Ahmadian F.F., Taha H. Rashidi, Ali Akbarnezhad and S. Travis Waller

Enhancing sustainability of the supply process of construction materials is challenging and requires accounting for a variety of environmental and social impacts on top of the…

2245

Abstract

Purpose

Enhancing sustainability of the supply process of construction materials is challenging and requires accounting for a variety of environmental and social impacts on top of the traditional, mostly economic, impacts associated with a particular decision involved in the management of the supply chain. The economic, environmental, and social impacts associated with various components of a typical supply chain are highly sensitive to project and market specific conditions. The purpose of this paper is to provide decision makers with a methodology to account for the systematic trade-offs between economic, environmental, and social impacts of supply decisions.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper proposes a novel framework for sustainability assessment of construction material supply chain decisions by taking advantage of the information made available by customized building information models (BIM) and a number of different databases required for assessment of life cycle impacts.

Findings

The framework addresses the hierarchy of decisions in the material supply process, which consists of four levels including material type, source of supply, supply chain structure, and mode of transport. The application is illustrated using a case study.

Practical implications

The proposed framework provides users with a decision-making method to select the most sustainable material alternative available for a building component and, thus, may be of great value to different parties involved in design and construction of a building. The multi-dimensional approach in selection process based on various economic, environmental, and social indicators as well as the life cycle perspective implemented through the proposed methodology advocates the life cycle thinking and the triple bottom line approach in sustainability. The familiarity of the new generation of engineers, architects, and contractors with this approach and its applications is essential to achieve sustainability in construction.

Originality/value

A decision-making model for supply of materials is proposed by integrating the BIM-enabled life cycle assessment into supply chain and project constraints management. The integration is achieved through addition of a series of attributes to typical BIM. The framework is supplemented by a multi-attribute decision-making module based on the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution to account for the trade-offs between different economic and environmental impacts associated with the supply decisions.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 24 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

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Article
Publication date: 1 September 2003

A.A. Owolabi, C.J. Anumba and A. El‐Hamalawi

Electronic product catalogues and brochures are gaining popularity, but there is little agreement on content, format, and searching methods. This limits their usability and…

324

Abstract

Electronic product catalogues and brochures are gaining popularity, but there is little agreement on content, format, and searching methods. This limits their usability and integration with existing construction software tools. This paper examines a product‐modelling approach to delivering building product information and describes a proposed multi‐tier client‐server environment. ISO/STEP and IAI/IFC building product models are considered to facilitate representation, exchange, and sharing of product information. The proposed architecture incorporates scalability with middleware components that would provide single or few points of entry to integrated product information. This paper is part of a research project that builds on the results of related projects including Construct IT Strategy, PROCAT‐GEN, Active Catalog, COMBINE, and ARROW, towards implementing the required software components.

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Article
Publication date: 1 August 2003

Alaattin Kanoglu

Overruns to planned schedules are common in civil construction projects worldwide. Yet, the construction industry fails to recognize the criticality of the problem, and while…

1705

Abstract

Overruns to planned schedules are common in civil construction projects worldwide. Yet, the construction industry fails to recognize the criticality of the problem, and while models have been developed, their lack of adequate sophistication fails to alleviate the problem. Additionally, there is resistance from construction professionals to use such models due to the lack of software integration models and modular functionality. This paper presents a performance‐based duration estimation model integrated with an automation system model, MITOS – multi‐phase integrated automation system, that was designed primarily for design/build firms. An experience‐based computational model is used for the estimation of the duration of construction projects and the performance results are discussed.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 10 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

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Article
Publication date: 1 March 2002

M. Alshawi and I. Faraj

There have been major efforts to develop the technology for integrated construction environments and the mechanisms needed to improve the collaboration between construction…

1274

Abstract

There have been major efforts to develop the technology for integrated construction environments and the mechanisms needed to improve the collaboration between construction professionals. Evidently, the development and usage of such an environment is a complicated task. The two issues that can be among the main contributors to this are: the development of the technology and its effective implementation. These two issues are addressed separately in this paper. The paper first explains the approaches of sharing project information, followed by a review of a recent project in this area, the result of which is a distributed integrated construction environment based on the industry foundation class (IFC), capable of supporting a number of construction applications. This environment is capable of supporting a construction team to work collaboratively over the internet. It then discusses the difficulties facing the successful implementation of such environments in construction organisations. This is addressed within the context of two management models for effective implementation of IT: the resource‐based model and the Nolan model.

Details

Construction Innovation, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1471-4175

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Article
Publication date: 27 March 2009

Godfried Augenbroe, Daniel Castro and Karthik Ramkrishnan

The purpose of this paper is to describe a tool that supports an investment strategy aimed at improving the energy performance of existing buildings. It is particularly aimed at…

1366

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe a tool that supports an investment strategy aimed at improving the energy performance of existing buildings. It is particularly aimed at large building portfolios, such as encountered on university and corporate campuses, where typically a plethora of potential refurbishment interventions are candidates for a greening effort.

Design/methodology/approach

The investment optimization strategy is implemented in a web‐based software tool. Under a chosen financial constraint and investment time horizon, the tool empowers campus facility management to make the difficult “greening” decisions as part of their continuous building commissioning. The tool calculates and accepts user data that reflect different types of risks, posed by uncertainties in investment costs, energy performance, and energy cost scenarios. In addition, decision makers (DMs) can set different investment priorities, reflecting their financial risk attitude and commitment to “greenness”.

Findings

The tool helps DMs determine the best investment options from a set of available energy efficiency improvement options in the light of expected long range energy costs. It will enable the choice of the optimal mix of technologies and buildings within a given budget limit and predict the long‐term monetary as well as “green” return on investment.

Research limitations/implications

The tool has been tested on a portfolio of campus buildings, but needs further validation with a larger set of buildings in a real life campus management setting. The tool can become a trusted instrument in the hands of portfolio managers faced with the problem to select the optimal mix of technologies, and buildings within the given budget. It should be noted that “investment returns (IRs)” and “commitment to greenness” are just two elements considered in the broader decision making framework of portfolio energy management.

Practical implications

The investment tool can provide an essential instrument for campus managers who are faced with the task to refurbish buildings in their portfolio to increase their energy performance. In the current business culture of campus management, the decision to investment in energy savings needs to be weighed against competing initiatives that target greener campuses. The target of the research was to develop an instrument that can help DMs to verify rapidly what can be achieved if a budget line item of, say $10 million would be added to the campus budget for energy performance improvements.

Originality/value

The research output from this paper is valuable for continued efforts in the development of indicators that measure “IRs” and “commitment to greenness”. Other elements that impact portfolio decision making can be identified in a common decision framework of which the investment tool will become an integral part over time.

Details

Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology, vol. 7 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1726-0531

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Article
Publication date: 3 May 2017

Visar Hoxha, Tore Haugen and Svein Bjorberg

The purpose of this paper is to develop the empirically tested framework about the knowledge and perception about sustainability of building materials in Prishtina, Kosovo from…

655

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop the empirically tested framework about the knowledge and perception about sustainability of building materials in Prishtina, Kosovo from the perspective of users, construction industry and facility managers.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey of representative sections of the population was designed and carried out in the capital city of Kosovo to determine the knowledge and perception of the population about the sustainability of building materials and to determine the main criteria of selection of sustainable building materials. The study may be used as guidelines for sustainable real estate developers in Prishtina during the materials selection process. Qualitative interviews were conducted with architects, consulting engineering companies, construction companies and facility managers from the region of Prishtina with open-ended questions also being used.

Findings

Results of quantitative research find that embodied energy, durability and low energy consumption are used as key criteria that influence the materials selection process on the part of users. The results of the cross-case analysis of qualitative measure the perceptions of construction industry and facility managers, according to which durability to a large degree is the main criterion for selection of sustainable building materials followed by embodied energy and low energy consumption.

Research limitations/implications

The study of measurement of level of knowledge and perception about sustainability of building materials in Kosovo focuses only on one pilot city; hence, further research is needed throughout Kosovo to validate the empirically tested tool within other geographical settings in Kosovo.

Originality/value

This survey represents the first quantification of knowledge and perception regarding the sustainability of building materials among users, construction sector and facility managers.

Details

Facilities, vol. 35 no. 7/8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-2772

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