Quality Control “A Necessity Not an Option”

Quality control is a means by which project design engineers may help eliminate some construction-related problems and address the issue of an engineer's obligation to the general public. Ignoring quality control or relying on sporadic inspections are fundamentally inadequate approaches since they do not obtain basic construction data for the engineer, fully monitor the quality of materials and workmanship critical to structural integrity, or ensure that the owner gets what he has paid for. The project engineer has an obligation to treat quality control the same way he treats quality design. Project owners must be made aware of the risks involved and how quality control can address some of these risks. The main ingredient of a soundly engineered approach to quality control during construction is the assurance that the engineer's ``standard of care' will not change after the design phase. A qualified resident inspector—an extension of the design engineer—will determine how effective quality control will be. Not only can expectations of design performance be met, but the construction phase can be become less demanding and the whole project more cost-effective if early attention is given to quality control.     

Here Comes the Judge—Duties and Responsibilities of Design Professionals When Deciding Disputes

Frequently during the progression of a construction project, the design professional is forced into the role of a judge of project disputes between the owner and contractor. These disputes generally involve substantial claims for extra compensation or extra time and have significant impact on the owner and contractor’s financial position on the project. The architect or engineer will be pressured by the owner, who controls whether the design professional gets paid. The contractor, however, may threaten to pursue legal claims against design professionals if they make the contractor’s job more expensive or fail to give it the appropriate time extension. In many cases, design professionals must admit or deny whether their services were defective in some nature. In addition to these pressures, the design professional is not necessarily trained or comfortable with acting as a judge and interpreting the meaning of contract terms. Generally, when an architect or engineer performs this judicial function, they are immune from any liability for the results of decisions. However, the design professional must make the decision in good faith and with impartiality. In addition, design professionals must only decide those matters that their contract obligates design professionals to decide. This paper will address the nature of the designer’s role as judge and the limits of the designer’s immunity with respect to the designer’s contract obligations and good faith and impartiality requirements.     

工程监理中设计和施工阶段的质量与安全控制

工程质量主要取决于设计质量、设备的质量和施工质量,设计、施工质量的好坏直接关系到工程竣工投产后的使用。设计质量总的目标是:在经济性好的前提下,建筑造型、使用功能及设计标准满足业主的要求;结构安全可靠,符合城规、公用设施等部门的规定。因此,在工程监理的设计阶段采用比较合理的、科学的质量控制方法,可以缩短工程的施工时间,减少工程投资,充分利用新技术提高工程的施工及竣工后的使用效率。     

Contractual Incentives

Contract incentives are the means by which an owner intends to secure certain project goals through the contracting process. Incentive contracting is designed primarily to reduce cost in negotiated contracts through profit sharing ratios, which should improve on the efficiency of cost reimbursable contracts. In the process, financial risk and control are shared by the owner and contractor, according to a ratio which is established in the early stages of project design. Contractual incentives are used frequently in construction to reduce overall project time. However, there is a lack of published research on the theory and consequences of the use of incentives in construction. Studies in government research and development contracts using incentives shows that contractors may not always behave in the fashion intended by owners designing such contracts. The apparent reason is that the risk a contractor assumes under conditions of limited scope and design information biases the setting of targets, so that overruns∕underruns are more dependent on where targets are set, rather than on sharing ratios. In the construction industry this is apparently recognized, and targets are not fixed until design is approximately 40%–60% complete. Moreover, as the contractor and owner attain more knowledge of the project, both parties should attempt to reduce owner risk and control.     

Analysis of Owner’s Design and Construction Quality Management Approaches in Design/Build Projects

This paper explores and classifies current approaches to evaluating quality in design/build (DB) proposals. It does so by a thorough content analysis of 78 requests for proposal (RFPs) for public DB projects with an aggregate contract value of over $3.0 billion advertised between 1997 and 2002. In most DB projects, the owner requires the DB contractor to establish a firm-fixed price on a project that has not yet been designed. Usually, the owner also fixes the project delivery period. In the traditional design/bid/build (DBB) system, quality is fixed through the plans and specifications. Thus, in DBB, with schedule and quality fixed, the cost of construction is the factor in which the owner seeks competition. Conversely, in DB, with cost and schedule fixed, the scope and hence the level of quality is the main element of competition. This paper identifies the six owner approaches to articulating DB quality requirements in their RFPs. The six approaches are quality by qualifications, evaluated program, specified program, performance criteria, specification, and warranty. These are important for DB contractors to understand so that they can craft their proposal in a manner that is both responsive to the owners’ requirements and consistent with the owner’s system to make the best value contract award decision.     

Relating Cost Growth from the Initial Estimate to Design Fee for Transportation Projects

Intuitively, there should be a relationship between the size of the design fee for a transportation project and the quality of the resulting design. This study sought that relationship by looking at the fee expressed as a percentage of the construction cost and the final construction cost growth from the engineer’s initial estimate of the construction cost at the time the design contract was awarded. The research team analyzed 31 projects from the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority with a total construction value of $90 million. The projects were divided into road and bridge projects. Based on the results of the analysis, it seems that as the design fee decreases, the absolute percentage of construction cost growth from the engineer’s early estimate increases. The relationship is strongest for bridge projects, which tend to be more technically complex to design than roadway projects. This confirms for U.S. projects the result of an earlier study in Saudi Arabia. This paper concludes that the design fee should be viewed as an investment at a point in time where the ability to impact the project is the highest and can accrue the benefit of reduced cost growth.     

Models for Predicting Project Performance in China Using Project Management Practices Adopted by Foreign AEC Firms

China is a new market to many international architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) firms and it is not known what would be the likely project outcomes, based on different project management (PM) practices adopted. This research developed and tested five models to predict the likely project success levels, based on PM practices adopted by foreign AEC firms in China. Based on data obtained from 33 projects, multiple linear regression (MLR) models for predicting the performance of foreign managed projects in China were constructed. The models were tested against 13 new cases, and the results show that they are able to predict project outcomes with some level of accuracy. The models show that certain scope management practices can be used to predict owner satisfaction, profit margin, and cost and quality performance of the project. Construction industry practitioners who are managing projects in China may benefit from the findings by focusing more on upstream management, like managing project scope, in order to ensure project success. It is recommended that construction industry practitioners use the MLR models to make preliminary assessment of the possibility of project success based on the type of PM practices they intend to adopt in China. From the results, they can then decide if they should change their practices or abort the project.     

Construction Materials Engineer, a Perspective

Construction materials engineering is a long-time discipline of civil engineering which has gained definition and recognition in recent decades due to increased demands placed on the construction materials engineer. This discipline of civil engineering involves the evaluation of construction materials, processes and products. It is a professional practice most often included as part of the project quality assurance. The role of the construction materials engineer in the design phase, the bidding phase, the construction phase and the post-construction phase of projects is examined.     

Impact of Change Orders on Small Labor-Intensive Projects

In today’s construction, small projects can be just as important if not more important than the larger projects. However, small projects are usually fast track projects, which often involve overlapping design and construction time. Subsequent modifications may be required for the sections that are already under construction. These disruptions to the ongoing project are labeled as change orders. The impact due to changes has been described as the adverse effect upon the unchanged work due to changes in the contract. For this study, 34 projects were selected to develop a statistical model that estimates the amount of labor efficiency lost due to change orders for small projects. The variables in the final model are percent design related changes, percent owner initiated changes, the ratio of actual peak labor to estimated peak labor, the ratio of actual project duration to estimated project duration, and project manager’s percent time on the project. The results of this paper are of value to owners, electrical and mechanical contractors, and construction managers. The model quantifies the impact of change orders by introducing the most important variables that bring the largest disruptions.     

Constructability Concepts in Kuala Selangor Cable-Stayed Bridge in Malaysia

The writers formulated a case study of the Kuala Selangor Cable Stayed Bridge to examine the application of the constructability concepts particularly during the conceptual planning and the design phases of the project. This paper presents the advantages of implementing the constructability concepts and the barriers that were encountered when applying these concepts during the planning and design phases of the cable stayed bridge project of Kuala Selangor in Malaysia. The writers concluded that barriers to constructability implementation that are related to the owner were the major impediments in the application of constructability concepts during the early conceptual planning phase. The opinion of the engineer was another factor behind nonapplication of some other concepts. At the same time, many others were implemented due to the awareness and opinion of the engineer and his ability to control their application.     

Contractor’s Opportunistic Bidding Behavior and Equilibrium Price Level in the Construction Market

The competitive bidding system has been to blame for abnormally low bids, which are considered as one of the main causes of poor project quality. Previous studies have regarded the pricing of bidders as an optimum decision based on contractor’s cost and market competition level. However, the sell to produce characteristic of construction projects may induce contractors to offer a low bid and then make up the amount initially sacrificed from beyond-contractual reward (BCR) gained through cutting corners and claims. System dynamics was adopted in this study to develop a contractor’s pricing model with consideration of the dimensions of cost, market competition, and BCR. The model was then examined by statistical analysis of data collected from 44 highway projects in Taiwan. It was found that the equilibrium market price is significantly associated with BCR, which is assumed to be determined by the strictness of the owner’s construction management, including both soundness of contract and tightness in construction supervision. Research results suggest that contractors divide the market into different segments according to the owner’s strictness of construction management and the equilibrium price level of each market segment varies. The price level for projects with a strict owner is remarkably higher than for those with relatively less strict owners. Improvement in the construction management system of projects is crucial to lower the possibility that contractors gain BCR and do opportunistic bidding, and to further enhance project quality.     

Engineering in the Service of Law

The professional duty of the civil engineer is not limited exclusively to the scope of project design and execution; it often embraces other very different fields of activity as well. In this article, we will tackle a very specific task of the civil engineer, which is the collaboration with the Administration of Justice by means of expert opinions or testimonies that relate to specific and specialized scientific contents and subjects of the academic and professional training of the civil engineer. In Spain, incorporating civil engineers into the field of the Administration of Justice poses some questions that need to be resolved and that range from the need to authorize a regulated process that allows for the homogeneous access of professionals to the opportunity to develop additional training programs (university based or not) that train engineers in specific subjects in this field of activity; from the review and improvement of administrative matters that currently make the tasks of the engineer expert more difficult to the definition of the minimum content that the expert study should cover. In this article, we describe current Spanish legislative regulations relevant to this particular field of activity of civil engineering, and we offer some thoughts and suggestions that we feel would help improve the quality of the studies that engineers do for the judicial bodies and, consequently, the quality of service of engineers to society.     

危险废物填埋场施工组织探讨

危险废物填埋场的施工要求很高,通过对江西危险废物填埋场的施工过程的分析,指出施工中容易出现的问题和各工序施工需要特别注意的事项。建设项目业主和监理须对各工序严格控制,才能确保危险废物填埋场的施工质量。     

Practical Multifactor Approach to Evaluating Risk of Investment in Engineering Projects

Risk analysis is crucial in enabling management to make informed decisions regarding the economic viability of engineering projects. In most building construction projects, sophisticated risk assessment methods are not used because the detailed input information they require is unavailable to the average project owner or manager. As a result, risk assessment is often limited to simple sensitivity analyses. This paper presents a practical yet thorough method in which the economic risk inherent in a construction project can be calculated with input information of varying levels of detail. The proposed “multifactor” method includes consideration of interdependence between a project’s risk factors. The principles of the method are explained, its application to a large construction project is illustrated, and the findings are discussed.     

Integrated Methodology for Project Risk Management

This article presents a generic project risk management process that has been particularized for construction projects from the point of view of the owner and the consultant who may be assisting the owner. The process could also be adapted to the needs of other project participants, and many points referred to in the article can be directly applied to them. Any project risk management process must be tailored to the particular circumstances of the project and of the organization undertaking it. First, the article explains a complete or generic project risk management process to be undertaken by organizations with the highest level of risk management maturity in the largest and most complex construction projects. After that, factors influencing possible simplifications of the generic process are identified, and simplifications are proposed for some cases. Then the application to a real project is summarized. As a final validation, a Delphi analysis has been developed to assess the project risk management methodology explained here, and the results are presented.     

业主在工程建设项目前期阶段的投资控制

从决策、设计、招投标阶段分析了业主如何在工程建设项目实施前进行投资控制,以更合理、有效地利用投资,促进投资目标的实现。     

Engineer’s Study Notes for Understanding the Arbitration Process

Using arbitration to resolve commercial disputes has many advantages over court-based litigation. These include the use of “judges” who understand the relevant technical issues and industry practices and thus reduce the probability of unpredictable results can significantly reduce the cost and delay associated with document exchange and depositions and can reduce the amount of time spent on evidence presentation in hearings. Engineers can play an important role when determining whether their organizations and their clients arbitrate or litigate. The use of arbitration requires contractual agreement. Without the inclusion of predispute arbitration procedures in the project’s contracts, it is likely that disputes will be resolved through litigation and not arbitration. Engineers can influence the inclusion of arbitration because they often suggest the forms of project contracts as representatives of engineering, contracting, or owner organizations. Engineers may also find themselves in management roles where they will be involved in a dispute that will be resolved via arbitration. As a party to the arbitration, it is important for the engineer to understand what influence he or she has in making decisions regarding the arbitration process. This paper provides guidance to engineers who are in a position to influence the inclusion of arbitration in the project contracts. This paper also provides suggestions about how the engineer can work with the attorneys to influence the best and most cost- and time-efficient result in the event an arbitration has been commenced. This paper is not a theoretical research paper but rather is a practical guideline based on the experience of the writers, who are engineers and who have been in the arbitration field, both domestically and internationally for over 30?years, seeing the good, the bad, and the ugly. Together, they share their insights on why the arbitration process can be the better choice for dispute resolution.     

浅谈工程项目建设质量控制应把握的重点

"百年大计,质量第一"的方针,对保障我国工程项目建设的施工质量,促进建筑行业的健康、稳定发展起了重要作用。工程项目建设质量的优劣,不但关系到工程项目建设建筑产品的适用性,而且还关系到人民生命财产的安全和社会安定,直接影响国家经济建设的速度,质量低劣带来的直接和间接经济损失大的无法估量。所以,在工程项目建设中,想要取得良好的建筑施工质量,应严格执行项目质量控制的原则,加强建筑施工质量控制和管理,把控建筑施工各个阶段的质量,实现建筑工程项目的有序开展和优质完成。尤其施工阶段的质量控制是工程项目建设质量控制的重点。     

合同管理在项目管理中的地位和作用

在现代建筑工程项目管理中合同管理具有十分重要的地位,已成为与进度管理、质量管理、成本(投资)管理、信息管理等并列的一大管理职能。合同管理对项目的进度控制、质量管理、成本管理有总控制和总协调作用,是工程项目管理的核心和灵魂,这是由合同在社会主义市场经济条件下以及现代建筑管理工程中的独特作用所决定的。在国标清单计价规范实施之际,作为一名造价工程师更应该熟悉和了解合同管理的地位和重要性。     

Cumulative Effect of Project Changes for Electrical and Mechanical Construction

Change is inevitable on construction projects, primarily because of the uniqueness of each project and the limited resources of time and money that can be spent on planning, executing, and delivering the project. Change clauses, which authorize the owner to alter work performed by the contractor, are included in most construction contracts and provide a mechanism for equitable adjustment to the contract price and duration. Even so, owners and contractors do not always agree on the adjusted contract price or the time it will take to incorporate the change. What is needed is a method to quantify the impact that the adjustments required by the change will have on the changed and unchanged work. Owners and our legal system recognize that contractors have a right to an adjustment in contract price for owner changes, including the cost associated with materials, labor, lost profit, and increased overhead due to changes. However, the actions of a contractor can impact a project just as easily as those of an owner. A more complex issue is that of determining the cumulative impact that single or multiple change orders may have over the life of a project. This paper presents a method to quantify the cumulative impact on labor productivity for mechanical and electrical construction resulting from changes in the project. Statistical hypothesis testing and correlation analysis were made to identify factors that affect productivity loss resulting from change orders. A multiple regression model was developed to estimate the cumulative impact of change orders. The model includes six significant factors, namely: Percent change, change order processing time, overmanning, percentage of time the project manager spent on the project, percentage of the changes initiated by the owner, and whether the contractor tracks productivity or not. Sensitivity analysis was performed on the model to study the impact of one factor on the productivity loss (%delta). The model can be used proactively to determine the impacts that management decisions will have on the overall project productivity. They may also be used at the conclusion of the project as a dispute resolution tool. It should be noted that every project is unique, so these tools need to be applied with caution.