基于委托代理模型的建筑工程激励合同机制研究

在工程项目建设中,为解决由于业主与承包商之间信息的不对称而引发的道德风险问题,运用信息经济学中的委托代理理论,在考虑使用CPIF 合同的同时,通过建立业主与承包商之间的激励合同模型,从承包商的努力程度方面构建了成本函数和生产函数,求出了业主的最优激励标准以及相应承包商的最优努力程度,阐明了业主方在签订合同时的最优激励机制,为业主通过在合同中设置激励措施更好地管理承包商提供参考,并通过具体算例说明该机制的正确性以及与实际情况之间的吻合性。     

Impact of crude oil market behaviour on unit bid prices: the evidence from the highway construction sector

It is well known that the cost of highway construction is affected by the cost of crude oil. While this relationship is highly visible for construction items such as asphalt cement (a by‐product in the process of refining oil), the effects of the crude oil prices on the cost of other construction items, such as concrete cement or construction operations are less direct, but equally important. For unit‐based contracts without price adjustment clauses, this relationship is of a particular significance. In fact, an increase in price of fuel could result in substantial losses, as contractors are not protected. Hence, to hedge against this risk, contractors are likely to incorporate a premium in bid prices to manage project risks. The objective of this paper is to investigate the evidence of this behaviour. New evidence shows that the expected change in oil prices (the difference between future and spot price) and the implied volatility in the oil market affect the price of bid items for contracts without price adjustment clauses. Such results allow for more effective implementation of risk management on project‐ and programme‐level basis.     

Collaborative incentive contracts: stimulating competitive behaviour without competition

One of the major and recurring problems in designing cost incentive contracts is related to setting target cost and a risk-sharing ratio. With the standard sharing formula, contractors or alliance partners are incentivized to artificially inflate their target cost in order to maximize profit and minimize risk. Knowing that, owners attempt to pressure contractors by using various mechanisms, which are time-consuming and may jeopardize collaborative relationships afterwards. A fair risk-sharing formula is suggested that incentivizes the contractors or alliance partners to truthfully submit their target cost. The main tangible benefit is in removing suspicion and fostering trust and collaborative relationships between the contracting parties.     

我国工程款优先受偿权与美国建设者留置权的对比研究

工程款层层拖欠,严重侵犯了承包企业的合法权利.为了保障承包商得到工程款支付,我国合同法确立了工程款优先受偿权制度,美国财产法规定了建设者的留置权制度.本文在介绍美国建设者留置权制度的同时,从法律视角对两种权利的行使和放弃两大方面进行深入对比分析,得出结论:我国工程款优先受偿权并不能有效保障承包商,尤其是分包商和劳务工人的利益,应当大力借鉴美国建设者留置权制度,从而使工程款拖欠这一市场顽疾得到有效遏制.     

Project contract management and a theory of organization

This paper attempts to develop concepts of project and contract organization to predict the selection of contract type on infrastructure projects. Conventional wisdom is that at low-risk fixed price contracts are best, moving to remeasurement and then cost plus as risk increases. We started trying to predict this from a transaction cost perspective, and such an analysis confirmed conventional wisdom. However, it does not fit with current practice. Further, the differences in transaction costs are small compared to differences in contract out-turn cost that occur under the different motivational effects of different contract types. We therefore take a different perspective. We assume the purpose behind a project contract is to create a cooperative project organization, in which all participants, clients and contractors, are motivated to achieve common objectives, their goals are aligned. This analysis confirms modern practice, and shows selection of contract type is related to uncertainty in the project's deliverables, and uncertainty in the process of their delivery. Build-only remeasurement contracts are used where uncertainty of both product and process is low. Design and build fixed price contracts are used where uncertainty of the product is low, but the uncertainty in the process of delivery is high. Fixed price contracts should be used where both are high. We extend the analysis to show when the client should be involved in the project organization in an alliance contract, and when they should not, as in a traditional project contract.     

市政公用工程招标阶段造价控制要点分析

招标阶段是选择工程施工与安装承包商的关键阶段,其招标文件确定了工程合同的核心条款,确定了工程施工阶段工程造价管理的基本框架和制度流程,对工程实施造价控制有关键性影响。本文通过对招标阶段影响工程造价的主要因素进行分析,从而提出在招标阶段造价控制的主要措施。     

施工合同中价格风险和结算难原因分析与防范措施

在建筑工程市场上,施工合同中价格风险和结算难普遍存在,已严重影响施工方的发展和生存.因此,分析研究各种价格风险和结算难的因素,在签订合同时尽量避免存在价格风险的条款,在施工过程中采取有效措施防范和化解价格风险和结算难十分重要.在对建筑工程施工合同价格条款和结算难原因分析后,提出防范和化解的对策措施.     

The effect of client and type and size of construction work on a contractor’s bidding strategy

This paper offers a bidding strategy model for use by contractors as part of a more informed approach in selecting which contracts to bid for, and as a basis for determining the most appropriate mark-up level for various types and sizes of construction work and client types. Regression analysis is used in measuring a contractor’s competitiveness between bids (by using the lowest bid/own bid ratio) and within bids (by using the lowest bid/cost estimate ratio) according to type and size of construction work and client type. The model was tested on a large and reputable Hong Kong contractor. This particular contractor’s bidding behaviour was found to be largely unaffected by the type of construction work, but significantly affected by the client type and the size of the construction work. Three quadratic models (regressing lowest bid/cost estimate on the size of the construction work) are also successfully developed for projects from the private sector, the Hong Kong Government and the Hong Kong Housing Authority, respectively.     

Optimal contracting strategies for public-lighting asset management:A case study from Iran

Public-lighting is a prominent subsector of the electricity distribution network. Removing upcoming challenges of the public-lighting system is an important necessity in network expansion planning. The public-lighting management structure is composed of three main participants: the regulatory unit, lighting managers, and private contractors. Each participant faces challenges in achieving its aims. This study investigates challenges in the areas of human resource management, cost estimation, price assignment, and time scheduling for private-sector contracting. Applying the reliability model of public-lighting lamps, the health status of lamps during the system operation is forecasted. In addition, to give a comprehensive solution for the mentioned challenges, the proposed strategies are optimized in terms of cost and risk. The results of this case study of the public-lighting system demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed method in alleviating the challenges of public-lighting managers, including optimal assignment of price and duration of contracts. In addition, the operating cost of the public-lighting system, an important challenge for lighting contractors, is minimized via a human resource management scheme.     

Contractors’ perception of risk factors affecting cost overrun in building projects in Palestine

This study aims at identifying the risk factors affecting cost overrun in building construction projects in the West Bank in Palestine from contractors’ viewpoint. To do so, 31 contractors working on building construction completed a structured questionnaire survey. Forty factors were identified through a literature review. These factors were grouped into five groups: cost estimating, construction items, construction parties, environmental, and financing. The results indicated that the top five affecting factors are fluctuation in currency exchange rate, project financing, contract management, level of competitors, and cost of materials. The findings can support the government in improving the regulations to meet the construction market needs, owners in planning and designing and evaluating policy, contractors and managers in planning and taking external and internal risks when costing and scheduling contracts, consultants in applying comprehensive contract information, and workers in conducting their day-to-day activities. The results will fill an important research and practice gap.     

On using a communication-mapping model for environmental management (CMEM) to improve environmental performance in project development processes

This paper examines the existing environmental management communications practice among project participants in project development processes. There is a growing pressure for all project participants to extend their traditional business objectives of only lowering cost and shortening project duration to improve environmental performance. In achieving better environmental performance, it is essential to collect responses from project participants including project clients, consultants, contractors and various sub-contractors to build up collaboration. As this collaboration is based largely on communications among various parties, the validity and effectiveness of the communications are essential to enable effective collaboration. By investigating practical applications, this paper identifies gaps of communications among project participants, and shows that these gaps present barriers to the improvement of environmental performance in construction. Possible solutions to communication gaps are investigated, leading to the proposal of a communication-mapping model for environmental management (CMEM). The CMEM is proposed as a method aimed at effectively implementing environmental management in construction practice. Data used for this study are collected from six construction projects in Hong Kong. A free-flow mapping approach is also employed to assist the investigations. It is believed that this study can help improving communications among project participants and environmental performance in the construction industry.     

Risk‐minimizing approach to bid‐cutting limit determination

Intense price competition is quite common in the construction industry. In many markets, contractors have to cut their bids to compete, giving priority to winning enough contracts to sustain normal operation, and it is common to see a winning bid close to the expected project cost. While cutting bids not only gives up profits but also undoubtedly increases the risk of making a loss, the behaviour of contractors in intense competition is difficult to explain by existing academic bidding models. An approach to determining the lower limit of the bid for a project is proposed based on minimization of the overall loss risk defined by a probabilistic model. The approach can be used to prevent arbitrary over‐cuts in final bid decision where price competition is intense. Factors influencing the suggested bid‐cutting limit for a project are analysed. An illustrative example using real case data is provided.     

浅析建筑工程不同计价合同的风险分担

本文对工程建设合同的类型进行了简单的描述,阐述了工程合同进行风险管理的依据,通过合同类型的定义对固定总价合同、单价合同和成本加酬金合同进行了辨析,得出在三种不同的计价合同下业主和承包商的风险分担,并在风险承担者、对工程的管理、工程变更的可能性、对工程结算的难易等方面对固定总价和、单价合同和成本加酬金合同三种计价合同进行阐述并给出了各自的应用范围。     

A survey of current cost estimating practices in the UK

The results are documented of an investigation into current cost estimating practices of contractors for construction projects. A questionnaire survey of contractors was undertaken, in which the respondents are classified into four groups based on their turnover namely: very small, small, medium and large firms. The survey indicates that contractors, irrespective of size, continue to undertake cost estimating predominantly for construction planning purposes, including the preparation of tenders and cost control of projects during the execution stage and, to a lesser extent, for construction project evaluation. Recent developments in cost estimating methods and tools that consider risks and variability in cost estimates, such as the use of range estimating and parametric estimating techniques, have not been adopted by contractors. The practice of cost estimating does not differ from conventional techniques based on the use of labour and material constants to obtain prices for bills of quantities items on an item by item basis. The study shows that the major causes of inaccuracy in cost estimating continue to be the lack of practical knowledge of the construction process by those responsible for the estimating function, insufficient time to prepare cost estimates, poor tender documentation and the wide variability of subcontractors' prices.     

建材价格异动对固定价格合同履行影响的研究

固定价格合同是常见的施工承包合同形式,但是采用固定价格合同时承包方将承受较高的风险,特别是近年来建材价格异常变动加剧,使固定价格合同难以正常履行。《合同法》等相关法律为固定价格合同在难以履行的情况下进行调整提供了法律依据,2009年最高人民法院以司法解释的形式明确了情势变更原则,使得应用情势变更原则调整固定价格合同有法可依。文章对南京市施工企业的实地调研为固定价格合同的调整和情势变更原则的应用提供了现实依据。     

The guaranteed maximum price contract as call option

Due to increasing constraints on project duration and costs, together with the increasing implication of contractors in the design process, guaranteed maximum price (GMP) contracts are likely to become common in the future. This paper explores a new approach for evaluating the remuneration of the contractor. The GMP contract is considered as a hybrid arrangement consisting of a cost reimbursement contract and a call option on a fixed price contract. The option pricing theory is used as a conceptual framework to assess the GMP contract and the contractors' remuneration.     

Effects of high prequalification requirements

When designing a set of prequalification requirements, the first objective is to select the basic factors that are deemed appropriate to scrutinize, and the second objective is to establish the threshold for each of these factors to evaluate the capability and capacity of the bidders on a given project; together, these factors and the limits imposed on each constitute the basis for qualifying or disqualifying each of the bidders. To obtain the desired prequalification results and the consequent quality delivery of a project, both selecting the factors and determining the limits for each factor are crucial and must be given careful attention with due consideration of the prevailing environment (including market conditions, deadlines, need for technology transfer, etc.). In this study it was found that an improper design of prequalification requirements seriously affected the progress and cost of projects, provided opportunities for collusion, and encouraged the obtaining of contracts through improper practices. Based on an analysis of data from 30 Taipei Mass Rapid Transit projects, together with information gleaned from numerous interviews with contractors, consultants, and clients, it is shown that a risk-taking attitude by the Government and the establishment of relatively low prequalification requirements would be more conducive to achieving a desirable balance among (a) satisfying the schedule and sequence of contracting, (b) obtaining lower prices by an increase in competition, (c) procuring the timely delivery of a quality project, and (d) fostering the growth of local contractors.     

Fuzzy Logic Model for Determining Minimum Bid Markup

Abstract:   Many construction markets exhibit severe price competition where contractors have to cut their bids to compete, giving priority to winning enough contracts to sustain normal operation, and it is common to see a winning bid close to the expected project cost. While cutting bids not only gives up profits but also undoubtedly increases the risk of making a loss, the behavior of contractors in intense competition is difficult to explain by existing models. A fuzzy-logic-based model is proposed for determining the minimum bid markup with assessments of chance of winning and loss risk. The model incorporates the position of a decision maker in the fuzzy rules according to his/her attitude toward risk and degree of need for the job. Two illustrative examples, one hypothetical and one real, are provided, in which differences in priorities are simulated by four sets of fuzzy rules for a comparison of the effects. The results show that the model is sensitive enough to differentiate a decision maker's position on bidding and suggest bid-cutting limits consistently, thereby remedying some shortcomings of existing models.