Construction Management


Book Description

With a fresh approach that addresses the unique features of construction management for the 21st century, this book provides an overview of the construction industry and the management of construction projects. Construction Management: Emerging Trends and Technologies offers solid, foundational concepts in "traditional" areas, including construction contracts, cash flow, estimating and scheduling. Setting it apart from traditional books on the subject, it breaks away from these traditional areas to explore emerging areas of interest, such as "mega-projects," design-build construction, public private partnerships, the application of information technology to construction, configuration management, and sustainable construction. With thorough, up-to-date information and detailed explanations, this is an indispensable resource for anyone seeking a better understanding of the up-and-coming state of the construction management industry.




Recent Trends in Construction Technology and Management


Book Description

This book presents the select proceedings of the International Conference on Advances in Construction Technology and Management (ACTM 2021) and explores recent and innovative developments in all aspects of civil engineering. Advanced construction technologies such as 3D printing, intelligently built environment, use of artificial intelligence, smart structures, green buildings, advanced and engineered materials for producing green concrete, and many more such topics are covered in this book. The advanced management tools such as building information modeling, augmented reality, advanced task management software, and one of the most recent technological advancements are drones, which are changing the face of surveying and security are also explored. This book will be useful for researchers, academicians, and practitioners working in the area of civil engineering and allied fields.




Artificial Intelligence in Construction Engineering and Management


Book Description

This book highlights the latest technologies and applications of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the domain of construction engineering and management. The construction industry worldwide has been a late bloomer to adopting digital technology, where construction projects are predominantly managed with a heavy reliance on the knowledge and experience of construction professionals. AI works by combining large amounts of data with fast, iterative processing, and intelligent algorithms (e.g., neural networks, process mining, and deep learning), allowing the computer to learn automatically from patterns or features in the data. It provides a wide range of solutions to address many challenging construction problems, such as knowledge discovery, risk estimates, root cause analysis, damage assessment and prediction, and defect detection. A tremendous transformation has taken place in the past years with the emerging applications of AI. This enables industrial participants to operate projects more efficiently and safely, not only increasing the automation and productivity in construction but also enhancing the competitiveness globally.




Handbook of Research on Unemployment and Labor Market Sustainability in the Era of Globalization


Book Description

The effective utilization of available resources is a pivotal factor for production levels in modern business environments. However, when resources are limited or in excess, this effects organizational success, as well as the labor market. The Handbook of Research on Unemployment and Labor Market Sustainability in the Era of Globalization is a comprehensive reference source for the latest scholarly research on the socio-economic dynamics of unemployment and the development of new policies to assist in regulating the global labor market. Highlighting innovative approaches and relevant perspectives, such as outsourcing, trade openness, and employment protection, this publication is ideally designed for policy makers, professionals, practitioners, graduate students, and academics interested in emerging trends for labor market development.




Project Management for Construction


Book Description




Innovative Project Management with FIDIC Contracts


Book Description

This book provides comprehensive guidance for the implementation of the legal requirements of FIDIC contracts with a detailed application of modern project management principles. It demonstrates that the FIDIC suites for works and services contain many tools for good project management, which can complement the innovation needed today to guide sustainable development. The author’s experience in construction management, construction law, and the application of FIDIC contracts as a FIDIC engineer, a procurement/claims consultant, and a FIDIC accredited/certified adjudicator and trainer underpins this unique and much-needed book linking FIDIC contract management with project management practices and concepts. It is structured around project management knowledge areas, and details not only the FIDIC works contracts (Red/Yellow/Silver 2017 Reprint 2022, Emerald 2019, Gold 2008, and Green Book 2021) but also the project management requirements of the contract between the Employer and Engineer (White Book 2017) and the FIDIC supply-chain contracts, and explains how these all interface in project governance. Linking the project management knowledge areas from the PMBOK® and its Construction Extension with the FIDIC Body of Knowledge (FBOK), the book provides recommendations for integration of best practice and innovations. It illustrates these processes with 54 flowcharts and 16 case studies, as well as a railway scenario demonstrating the application of the book’s recommended procedures. This will be an invaluable source of practical guidance for employers, contractors, and engineers responsible for procuring and managing construction projects. It provides useful insight for technical, legal, and financial experts on the management of processes, contracts, and digital tools, with recommendations on how to tailor and use the FIDIC contracts for project success.




The Lean Builder: A Builder's Guide to Applying Lean Tools in the Field


Book Description

Sam Brooks, a young superintendent with ProCon Builders, has been given responsibility for the largest and most complicated project of his career. He struggles with all of the common difficulties in construction -- lack of communication, coordination issues, and other kinds of wasteful occurrences that rob his project of time and money, while leaving him and his team frustrated and overworked. Luckily, his friend, mentor, and co-worker, Alan Phillips, brings the benefit of his experience and his knowledge of Lean Construction tools and processes to help Sam learn valuable skills for improving the operation of his project. Together, Sam and Alan discuss the merits and explore the practical applications of: Daily Huddles Visual Communication The "Eight Wastes" Managing Constraints Pull Planning The Last Planner System(TM) Percent Plan Complete




Knowledge Management in Construction


Book Description

A key problem facing the construction industry is that all work is done by transient project teams, and in the past there has been no structured approach to learning from projects once they are completed. Now, though, the industry is adapting concepts of knowledge management to improve the situation. This book brings together 13 contributors from research and industry to show how managing construction knowledge can bring real benefits to organisations and projects. It covers a wide range of issues, from basic definitions and fundamental concepts, to the role of information technology, and engendering a knowledge sharing culture. Practical examples from construction and other industry sectors are used throughout to illustrate the various dimensions of knowledge management. The challenges of implementing knowledge management are outlined and the ensuing benefits highlighted.




Construction Innovation


Book Description

Construction innovation is an important but contested concept, both in industry practice and academic reflection and research. A fundamental reason for this is the nature of the construction industry itself: the industry and the value creation activities taking place there are multi-disciplinary, heterogeneous, distributed and often fragmented. This book takes a new approach to construction innovation, revealing different perspectives, set in a broader context. It coalesces multiple theoretical and practice-based views in order to stimulate reflection and to prepare the ground for further synthesis. By being clear, cogent and unambiguous on the most basic definitions, it can mobilise a plurality of perspectives on innovation to promote fresh thinking on how it can be studied, enabled, measured, and propagated across the industry. This book does not gloss over the real-life complexity of construction innovation. Instead, its authors look explicitly at the challenges that conceptual issues entail and by making their own position clear, they open up fresh intellectual space for reflection. Construction Innovation examines innovation from different positions and through different conceptual lenses to reveal the richness that the theoretical perspectives offer to our understanding of the way that the construction sector actors innovate at both project and organizational levels. The editors have brought together here leading scholars to deconstruct the concept of innovation and to discuss the merits of different perspectives, their commonalities and their diversity. The result is an invaluable sourcebook for those studying and leading innovation in the design, the building and the maintenance of our built environment.




Construction 4.0


Book Description

Modelled on the concept of Industry 4.0, the idea of Construction 4.0 is based on a confluence of trends and technologies that promise to reshape the way built environment assets are designed, constructed, and operated. With the pervasive use of Building Information Modelling (BIM), lean principles, digital technologies, and offsite construction, the industry is at the cusp of this transformation. The critical challenge is the fragmented state of teaching, research, and professional practice in the built environment sector. This handbook aims to overcome this fragmentation by describing Construction 4.0 in the context of its current state, emerging trends and technologies, and the people and process issues that surround the coming transformation. Construction 4.0 is a framework that is a confluence and convergence of the following broad themes discussed in this book: Industrial production (prefabrication, 3D printing and assembly, offsite manufacture) Cyber-physical systems (actuators, sensors, IoT, robots, cobots, drones) Digital and computing technologies (BIM, video and laser scanning, AI and cloud computing, big data and data analytics, reality capture, Blockchain, simulation, augmented reality, data standards and interoperability, and vertical and horizontal integration) The aim of this handbook is to describe the Construction 4.0 framework and consequently highlight the resultant processes and practices that allow us to plan, design, deliver, and operate built environment assets more effectively and efficiently by focusing on the physical-to-digital transformation and then digital-to-physical transformation. This book is essential reading for all built environment and AEC stakeholders who need to get to grips with the technological transformations currently shaping their industry, research, and teaching.