Development of an expert system modelling the construction process

The construction industry in the UK needs to improve its performance and provide clients with an improved level of satisfaction. The inefficient design and construction process is usually criticised as one of the main causes of poor performance.

A new construction process system, CONstruction Best Practice System (CONBPS), has been developed based on the use of an expert system. CONBPS is based on the traditional procurement strategy as it is probably the most popular procurement method in the UK and yet it is subject to most criticism. This model clearly identifies the roles and responsibilities of the major parties within the building team and identifies the activities and the key issues within the project cycle. The completed model reflects the full project cycle from inception to completion.

The prototype of this system has been demonstrated to the construction participants for their comments. The practitioners included architects, quantity surveyors, planning supervisors, private and public clients. The method of collecting data was through the use of semi-structured interviews.

Following feedback from practitioners, the CONBPS has been updated. This version is more robust; besides, it is more practical and user-friendly as it incorporates the comments from practitioners, who are also the potential users.

The primary aim of this paper is to discuss the development of the updated CONBPS. The improvement of the updated CONBPS includes the information for constructing the system, the computerised functions, system structure, knowledge representation structure and the system operation.

Australian construction SME : management implication of TQM implementation

SME play a major role in the economies and TQM is important in construction industry. The aim of this paper is to investigate, via extensive literature reviews, the management implication of Australian construction SME implementing TQM. In summary, there are four management perspectives: construction management, knowledge management, supply chain management and marketing management to enhance competitive advantage that may favour commercial viability. One can reasonably conclude that the quality improvements will greatly help to create long term commercial advantages.

Concurrent undergraduate study and industry employment - the Australian experience

Undergraduate education in Quantity Surveying (QS) and Construction Management (CM) in Australia has traditionally incorporated concurrent industry experience as an important requisite prior to graduation. This has been primarily driven by accrediting professional associations but most universities have also recognized the value of this cooperative approach to education with industry. However, in recent years many universities have become concerned about the amount of time that students are spending in industry employment to the point where, for some students, their employment takes precedence over their academic studies. Past research has shown that working long hours has a negative effect on the study patterns of undergraduate students. This paper presents the results of research undertaken to examine the amount of time that Quantity Surveying and Construction Management students actually spend engaged in paid work during semester time and the impact on their studies. The methodology for the research was based on two separate questionnaire surveys distributed to undergraduate Quantity Surveying and Construction Management students at 7 universities across Australia. The questionnaires focused on the nature and extent of their paid work while enrolled in full-time study. The results indicate that students in the early stages of their program tend to undertake casual work that is not related to their degree but move to construction industry employment in the later stages of their program. The research found that students were spending an average of 18 hours per week in industry employment with this average increasing to over 23 hours in their final year. A number of students were spending well over 30 hours per week in industry employment. The implications of the extent of this concurrent industry employment are discussed.

Factors impeding the offsite production of housing construction in China: an investigation of current practice

The promotion of offsite production is a possible future strategic direction for the construction industry as it provides economic, environmental and social benefits. However, in China, the uptake of offsite production, particularly in the housing sector, is relatively low and few studies have identified and examined the reasons behind this trend. This research gap is addressed and factors that inhibit the wider use of offsite production in China’s housing construction industry are investigated. A questionnaire survey was carried out, examining the views of 110 construction professionals in China including developers, designers, contractors, manufacturers and suppliers. Factor analysis of 21 separate variables was undertaken which extracted six principal factors, namely: ‘constructability implementation’, ‘social climate and attitudes’, ‘architectural performance’, ‘costing’, ‘supply chain’ and ‘preparatory stage’. The findings identify both barriers and challenges to increasing the uptake of offsite production in China. This provides a rare insight about the housing construction industry in China with possible implications for other developing countries that are seeking to identify and overcome barriers to the wider uptake of offsite production.

Construction cost performance of structural frames in Australia

This research is concerned with the comparative cost of building structural frames in Australia. The research has been undertaken to evaluate the cost performance of a number of technologies that are typically used in medium-rise commercial buildings of ten storeys. The research methodology is based on pricing a number of standard building frame designs in five Australian cities. The results represent the cost of producing the same building using different building construction designs. By utilising a standard model, project variables like building quality, ground conditions and access were eradicated, thereby facilitating an unbiased comparison of cost performance. The second stage of the research invoiced a focus group of industry experts who were asked to validate the results of the cost study. In addition, participants of the focus group were asked to comment on the preferred construction practice for each of the typical building designs. Results suggest that post-tensioned in situ concrete frames have the best cost performance for most buildings. However, other designs can have good cost performance under some circumstances. Findings suggest that the Australian construction industry has long cultural preference for the use of in situ concrete in structural frames.

Development of construction best practice expert system

The performance level of construction industry in the UK is generally considered to be low. The reasons for this situation are twofold, firstly due to the temporary organisational structure of construction team and secondly the inefficient construction process. Previous research in this area has focused on developing a generic model to represent the construction process. It is necessary to develop a process model, which clearly identifies the roles and responsibilities of the major parties on the building team and identifies the key issues within the project cycle. The method for presenting this model is by using an expert system. The primary aim of this paper is to discuss the development of the CONstruction Best Practice System (CONBPS). The theoretical framework of CONBPS and the development and evaluation of the system will be described. The future research will also be discussed. Finally, the advantage of this model will be identified.

Contemporary service theories integrated into construction project management

Project management plays an important role in successful completion of construction projects. One trend in the construction sector is a growing emphasis on project management. Ineffective integration of project management of project-based enterprises and operational processes of project owners, contractors and consultants prevents synergistic effects and causes resource waste and management inefficiency. Contemporary service theories, specifically service science and service-dominant logic, elucidate the involvement of clients in the creation of value and reinforce the nested relationship between project management service providers and clients. This study expands understanding of service theories by complementing service systems from project management and proposes a new framework for project management service systems, embedding service exchange and value co-creation in the construction processes. Research outcomes represent the importance of project management embedded with service theories in the construction industry and suggestions of research questions for future work.

Integrated construction supply chain design and delivery solutions

This study describes the development of a decision framework to support multi-disciplinary information and knowledge management model which focuses on integrated design and delivery solutions for all construction supply chain actors. The framework was developed within the context of two national information technology research projects in Australia. The first study used diffusion theory to explain the barriers and enablers to future adoption of advanced information technology solutions such as building information modelling (BIM). A grounded theory methodology was deployed and a pathways model for innovative information technology diffusion accommodating diverse patterns of adoption and different levels of expertize was developed. The second study built on the findings of the first study but specifically focussed on innovators, early and late adopters of BIM and the development of a decision framework towards advanced collaborative platform solutions. This study summarizes the empirical results of the previous studies. The core of the decision framework is the creation, use and ownership of building information sub-models and integrated models. The decision framework relies on holistic collaborative design management. Design expertise is diffused and can be found in various locations along the construction supply chain within project teams. A wide definition of design is considered from conceptual to developed to detailed design. The recent development to the decision model offers much potential as the early upstream decisions are often made in a creative, collaborative and uncertain environment. However, decision making needs to balance both a reductionist and exploratory creative empowerment approach. Shared team expertise and competency and team mental models are explored as a fundamental requirement to collaborative BIM. New skills in interdisciplinarity are discussed as an implication of future construction industry collaborative platforms.

The effects of the late 2000s global financial crisis on Australia's construction demand

An accurate measurement of the impacts of external shocks on construction demand will enable construction industry policymakers and developers to make allowances for future occurrences and advance the construction industry in a sustainable manner. This paper aims to measurethe dynamic effects of the late 2000s global financial crisis on the level of demand in the Australian construction industry. The vector error correction (VEC) model with intervention indicators is employed to estimate the external impact from the crisis on a macro-level construction economic indicator, namely construction demand. The methodology comprises six main stages to produce appropriate VEC models that describe the characteristics of the underlying process. Research findings suggestthat overall residential and non-residential construction demand were affected significantly by the recent crisis and seasonality. Non-residentialconstruction demand was disrupted more than residential construction demand at the crisis onset. The residential constructionindustry is more reactive and is able to recover faster following the crisis in comparison with the non-residential industry. The VEC model with intervention indicators developed in this study can be used as an experiment for an advanced econometric method. This can be used to analyse the effects of special eventsand factors not only on construction but also on other industries.

Encouraging more students into construction management

The construction industry is plagued by the persistent, long-term problem of skill shortages and skill gaps, especially in construction management. Evidence indicates that the industry will not have enough flexible, qualified professionals able to exercise skills to match changing work requirements especially in new technology, over the coming decade. Upskilling existing workers and individuals with vocational education qualifications into higher education could provide an important solution to skill gap problems. Currently less than 16% of all individuals with vocational qualifications in construction undertake upskilling into higher education. This project investigated the factors that supported upskilling and transfer from VET to higher education (HE) in the construction industry. Interviews were conducted with 36 students who were upskilling from vocational education into higher education in eight Australian universities to elicit “enablers” of upskilling. The results, which identify a number of key enablers as seen through the eyes of students who have made the transition, provides the industry with insights into solving current and future skill gaps. These insights will benefit both the construction industry and the wider national population.

When Australian construction SME implementing TQM

Statistics show that construction industry contributes steadily and significantly to the national economy and SME always plays a major role. In order to offer "value for money" to the client and lower the operating cost, practising quality program is crucial. The aim of this paper is to investigate, via extensive literature reviews, how Australian construction SME should manage when implementing TQM strategy in the business model. In summary, there are four management implications: construction management, knowledge management, supply chain management and marketing management, which can enhance competitive advantage and favor commercial viability. One can reasonably conclude that quality improvements will lead to long term commercial advantages.

Embracing off-site innovation in construction in China to enhance a sustainable built environment in urban housing

With the rapid rate of urbanization and pressing need for higher levels of sustainable development within the built environment in China, the housing construction industry presently is facing urgency of shaping a sustainable construction process. This paper examines several sustainability challenges from the large-scale urban housing construction, and explores the connection between off-site innovation and sustainability within a context of China's housing construction industry. The study also identifies four pillars of strategy agendas that could enhance an enabling innovation environment for the ultimate goal of sustainability: (1) institutional environment, (2) public housing market, (3) organisational actions and (4) technological capacity. The knowledge and research findings presented in this paper would provide a ground framework that helps evaluate and assess the significances of off-site innovation to assist with a sustainable built environment.

Did the late-2000s financial crisis influence construction labour productivity?

The late-2000s global financial crisis has wrought dramatic impacts on the construction industry. However, the issue of whether the crisis influenced the behaviours of the construction industry has not been addressed yet. This research presents an econometric approach to investigating the effects of the recent global financial crisis on construction labour productivity. By employing the error correction model and panel regression methods, the direct and indirect effects of the financial crisis on the changes in Australian construction labour productivity are explored at national and state levels. Neither the direct nor the indirect effects appear statistically significant. The results indicate that the direct effect of the financial crisis drives up construction labour productivity at the national level, while the indirect effect diminishes productivity. The effects of the financial crisis on the state construction labour productivity vary from state to state. The financial crisis influenced construction labour productivity directly and significantly in the northern and eastern regions, while the direct effects appear not significant in the other states and territories. The indirect effects of the financial crisis on productivity are statistically significant in three regions: the Australian Capital Territory, the Northern Territory and Western Australia. By comparison, the model with the financial effects fails to provide more accurate simulating results. As such, this research concludes that the influence of the late-2000s financial crisis on Australian national and state construction labour productivity is limited.