THE STRATEGIC USE OF AN INFORMATION SYSTEM
IN SUPPORTING ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN DECISIONS
FOR A DESIGN FIRM
by
LIU, LU
Bachelor of Architecture
Tunghai University, Taichung, Taiwan
1977
Master of Architecture
University of Houston, Houston, Texas
1980
SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE
IN PARTIAL FULLFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE DEGREE
MASTER OF SCIENCE IN ARCHITECTURE STUDIES AT THE
MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
JUNE,,1985
ELIU, LU 1985
The author hereby grants to MIT
permission to reproduce and to distribute publicly
copies of this thesis document in whole or in part
Signature of the author_
_
___
_
_
Liu,Lu
Department of Architecture
February 7, 1985
Certified biy
Associate Professor
of
Eric Dluhosch
Building Technology
Thesis Supervisor
Accepted by
Julian Beinart
Chairman
Departmental Committee for Graduate Students
MA SSACHUSE TTS INSTITUTE
OF TECHNOLOGY
'JUN 0 3 1985
Rotgo
THE STRATEGIC USE
OF
AN
INFORMATION
SYSTEM
IN
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN DECISION FOR A DESIGN FIRM
SUPPORTING
by
LIU,LU
Submitted to the Department of Architecture on February, 7,
1985,
in
partial
fulfillment
of
the
requirements for the
Degree of Master of Architecture.
ABSTRACT
This thesis is to illustrate how a computer-based
information
system
for
supporting decision making, that is a Decision
Support System (DSS), can be utilized as a strategic tool
in
architectural design for a firm. The products of information
technology have been designed around a wide spectrum of needs.
Architects can immediately adopt the technology and use it as
design
tools. These tools are not
just a productional
convenience, but also bring about strategic
advantages to a
firm.
In this study, through the
investigations
on the current
computer
use in professional architectural design , a need is
called out for DSS planning.
Derived
from the
field .of
Management
Information Systems, a method
of strategic DSS
planning is set forth, which is a top-down planning process
from office
strategy to data base requirements, with the
emphasis
on the most
critical applications
to the
top
management .
This method is applied through a three-phase planning process
to a hypothetical office which represents a typical design
firm. It is found in this study that the construction
cost
analysis for schematic design phase is the key operation for a
DSS.
This DSS can forge strong links between architectural
design,
project
management,
and
office
strategy
in
establishing a firm's competence in
the cost and quality
control for a building.
Thesis supervisor: Eric Dluhosch
Title: Associate Professor of Building Technology
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
5
.........................................
I CONTEXT FOR DSS DEVELOPMENT IN PROFESSIONAL
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
13
. . .....
......
1 Computer-based Tools in Architectural Design
2 Current Computer Applications
.....................
..........
3 Strategic Impacts on Architectural Firms
II
IDENTIFICATION OF DSS PLANNING PROCESS
26
...........
.. a . . ..
1 Issues of Computer Applications in
Professional Architectural Design
2 Need for Strategic DSS Planning
...................
3 Concepts in DSS Design and Planning
...............
4 Method of Strategic DSS Planning
..................
14
17
21
.
.
.
26
30
31
33
A Case of Strategic DSS planning
III
IDENTIFICATION OF OPERATIONAL GOAL OF DSS
1
2
3
4
Office Strategy
Goal and CSFs of
Goal and CSFs of
Operational Goal
...................................
...............
Project Management
.............
Architectural Design
...........................
of DSS
IV IDENTIFICATION OF PROTOTYPE SYSTEM
1
2
3
4
...............
38
47
53
60
62
Architectural Design Theory
.......................
Critical Measures
.................................
Critical Decision Set
.............................
Opportunity for Prototype System
..................
V DATA BASE IDENTIFICATION
..........................
63
65
69
71
73
1 Building Space Analysis
...........................
2 Building Systems Estimates
........................
3 Total Building Estimate
...........................
CONCLUSION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
......................
........................................
74
75
80
83
84
3
LIST OF FIGURES
I.1 Percentage of Equipment Owners . ....................... 16
1.2 Percentage of Applications . ........................... 16
..
34
..................
35
II.1 The Extended CSF: A Strategic Planning Methodology
11.2 A method of Strategic DSS Planning
III.1 Five Competitive Forces . ............................ 40
111.2 Organization as a Cybernetic System
................
49
111.3 Model of Project Management .......................... 51
III.4 The Cost "Lock-In" Profile
......................... 56
111.5 Model of Architectural Design and Control
..........
58
IV.1 Schematic Cost Estimates .............................
68
V.1 Costs Distribution by Building Systems ...............
76
4
INTRODUCTION
computer-based
The goal of this study is to investigate how a
system
information
can
be
utilized
as a strategic tool in
medium-sized
a
supporting architectural design decisions for
architectural firm.
DEFINITIONS
AN INFORMATION SYSTEM FOR SUPPORTING DECISION MAKING, that
a
a DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMS (DSS) is defined here as
which
links
system
man, computer, and information together, for the
purpose
of
through
information
display.
is,
supporting
the
human-decision
primary
process
analysis
manipulation,
retrieval,
We will examine three
making
aspects
of
such
and
a
system:
1) Application.
A DSS can provide decision-making support for
users at all levels of
planning,
managerial
activity
(i.e.
strategic
management control and operational control) and for
various office functions
such
as
marketing,
financing
and
production.
5
2) Function.
A
DSS
with
processes
assists
some
or
all
end
of
interaction and display,
decision
manipulation,
base
and
data
users
the
in
their
following
modeling,
management.
decision
functions:
statistics
and
The functions are
independent of each other and can be selectively used.
3) Technical
requires
configuration.
technological
Typically,
a
full
blown
DSS
building blocks organized into a data
base management system, model
management
(*)
system
,
and
dialogue management system. Several technological developments
have
the
made
DSS approach practicable.
user friendly computer environment allows
to- work
Along
at
with
terminals,
data-base
application
a- terminal
the
without
advances
in
micro-computers,
management
languages,
systems,
An interactive and
nontechnical
users
needing specialized skill.
the
development
of
telecommunication
specialized
graphic
networks,
modeling
and
and application packages, information
technology has offered a set of building blocks
that
can
be
combined to provide a particular system.
THE STRATEGIC USE OF A DSS FOR A FIRM.
DSS can be used
as
a
technological lever to build up a firm's strategic advantages.
(*)
1980
,"Building Effective Decision
Spraque, Ralph H. Jr.
In his book, DSS software is comprised of
Support Systems".
three sets of capabilities: managing data base, managing a
models, and managing the interface between the
of
collection
user and the system.
6
Strategy
is the pattern of missions, objectives, policies and
significant resource utilization plans stated in such a way as
to define what business the company is in or is to be
the kind of company it is.
and
in
(*)
Recognizing that information has a strategic impact implies
clear
need
a
to link DSS to business strategy and, especially,
to ensure that business strategy is developed in
the
context
of the new information technology environment.
GOALS
The primary goal of this study is to understand how a DSS
be
used
as
strategic
a
can
tool in architectural design for a
firm.
During the past three decades, innumerable systems
computerized
to
improve
operational activities.
efficiency
in
have
accounting
In the past few years, DSS have
into their own and flourished in many companies.
been
and
come
Now with the
advent of the personal computer, computer-based assistance for
all
functions
of
the
business
is becoming widespread in a
number of companies.
(Jm)
Rockart, John J. 1981, "A Primer on Critical Success Factors"
7
In
the
field
proliferation
of
of
architectural
of
presently,
a
analytical models, graphic tools and design
aids is occuring. Architects
variety
design,
technical
are
concerned
how
this
large
building blocks can be utilized into a
DSS for assisting architectural design decision.
Furthermore,
the use of DSS should not be viewed basically as a
production
convenience, rather it should be seen as a top-level strategic
concern. The study emphasizes the following goals :
1)
To
understand
the
context
for
DSS
development
in
professional architectural design. Apparently, DSS development
is still in the beginnTng stages for the profession. Yet, with
numerous hardware and software tools in information technology
for
architectural
design,
the
building
blocks
for
DSS
development have been prepared.
2) Based on the
professional
nature
and
architectural
issues
design,
of
to
DSS
development
identify
the
in
most
appropriate method of strategic DSS planning.
3) Based on the method identified, to demonstrate step-by-step
how to plan strategically for a DSS in an architectural firm.
SCOPE
The emphasis of this study is on systems
analysis,
that
is,
8
bridging
the
analyzing
user's
requirements.
gap
between
needs,
The
architects
and
actual
and
identifying
system
DSS
builders,
major
development
detailed design and implementation issues is not
systems
concerning
included
in
this study.
Architectural design is viewed here as a function carried
by
a
design
team
of a firm, among other functions, such as
accounting, personnel and marketing.
for
architectural
linked to
direct
design
business
users
are
out
in
strategy
a
and
In order to
use
a
DSS
firm, the system should be
management
control.
The
members in architectural project team, and
the indirect users include members of
top
management
in
an
architectural design office of a medium-sized firm.
APPROACH & OVERVIEW
This study has three major parts corresponding
to
the
three
major goals emphasized in the following chapters.
Chapter I: Understanding the context for
architectural
tools.
design
by
DSS
development
in
examining the use of computer-based
The investigation can be divided into three parts:
1)
investigating the hardware/software building blocks of DSS for
architectural
design. 2) examining how they have been used in
9
architectural design. 3) understanding their strategic
impact
on architectural firms.
Chapter II: Identifying
process
the
most
appropriate
DSS
planning
in response to the requirements of DSS development in
architectural design.
profession
are
issues
identified,
strategic DSS planning.
concepts
Six
of
which
In response
computer
reflect
to
use
the
this
need,
in
the
need
for
several
in the field of a Management Information System have
been reviewed:
Critical Success Factors (CSF) (*)
attention
and
ensure
that
to
-
engage
management's
the Information Systems meet the
most critical business needs. CSF is the critical
means
that
can successfully achieve the ends.
Prototype Design Strategy(*) - an adaptive design process,
allow
management
to
quickly receive system results, to have
something concrete for testing and refining
development
precess.
to
as
part
of
the
Prototype system, taking the essential
features of a full blown systems, are built
with
an
initial
fundamental, yet not complete, set of functions.
The Extended CSFs Methodology (*)
together
()
in
a
planning
-
Tying the
context
is
above
found
concepts
particularly
see chapter 11.3 concepts in DSS planning and design
10
appropriate for this study.
A method, adapted from the extended CSF, is established to fit
the particular purpose of
viewed
as
a
this
three-phase
study.
process:
The
method
linking
a
strategic needs of a firm, identifying prototype
identifying
be
to the
system,
and
Full explanations are in chapter II.
base.
data
DSS
can
(see Fig II.1)
Chapter III, IV and V: Demonstrating strategic DSS planning in
architectural design for a hypothetical office that represents
a typical mid-sized design firm in this country.
method is based on the three phase
process.
The planning
Information
is
collected through interviews as well as literature surveys and
observations.
Chapter III: Linking DSS to
technique
linking
planning process.
firms
is
the
firm's
in
cost,
time
clients investment return.
goal
and
have
been
and
qual'ity
design
In this study
up
the
firm's
control to maximize
In response to this strategy,
the
related CSFs of management and architectural design
determined
relationship.
operational
where
By analyzing the environment
office strategy have been defined as building
competence
key
the CSF approach which uses a top-down
the office strategy is shaped.
compete,
The
strategy.
respectively,
as
well
as
their
Among all the CSFs of architectural design, the
goal
of
the
DSS is identified as evaluation of
11
and
quality
impacts across all subdivided tasks of a design team.
The DSS
schematic design options to understand the
goal
only
not
concern,
management
top
reflects
cost
but also
represents operational needs at the implementation level.
Chapter IV: Identifying prototype system.
number
In reference
to
a
of measures concerning the DSS goal, a set of critical
decisions for schematic
decision
design
formed.
Three
distinct
processes in cost evaluation during schematic design
have been identified in this
analysis
is
study.
And
construction
cost
by building systems is chosen as the opportunity for
a prototype system.
Chapter- V:
analysis,
Identifying
three
data
distinctive
They are space analysis,
building
estimate.
base.
In
construction
cost
decision events are identified.
building
systems
estimates,
total
The required data base of each event has
been defined respectively.
12
CHAPTER I:
CONTEXTS
FOR
DSS
DEVELOPMENT
IN
PROFESSIONAL
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
there
In the field of professional architectural design,
only
be
a
few
systems which are built according to the DSS
concept; yet the computer-based tools
utilized
software
elements
in
Computer-based tools,
those
DSSare
for
police
hardware
information technology, which can
facilitate the development of a specific DSS.
DSS
intensively
been
have
through various applications.
the technological building blocks of
and
may
dispatching
was
built
For example,
a
using technological
elements such as a graphics routine package and a
raster-scan
color monitor.
This chapter aims at understanding the use of these
professional
in
architectural design, which will serve as a base
for identifying issues in the
chapter.
tools
DSS
development
in
the
next
The investigation focuses on answering the following
questions: 1) what are the computer- based tools, the building
blocks of DSS, in architectural design?
used in
architectural
design?
3)what
2)how are these tools
are
their
potential
13
impact on the strategic level for a firm?
The sources for this part of the study have been
surveys
by
the
Sweet's
McGraw-Hill Information Company, and a series of
articles from architectural journals.
The topics
dealt
with
in this chapter are:
I.1 Computer-based tools in architectural design.
1.2 Current computer applications
1.3 strategic impact on architectural firms
I.1 COMPUTER-BASED TOOLS IN
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
The advancement of computer technology have not meant that DSS
development has become an easy exercise. However, it now seems
more useful to think of technology as a set of building blocks
that can be combined to provide a
system.
particular
These
building blocks include hardware and software elements , which
have the greatest amount of recent development
blocks
mentioned
below
.
The building
are by no means exhaustive, but they
indicate fairly clearly that architects now
have
many
tools
tailored to their needs and convenience.
HARDWARE.
General
purpose
time-sharing
computer
systems
14
permit
nontechnical
users
to
work
at
a
terminal without
Users can have easy
specialized knowledge and skills.
to substantial computer power in an interactive mode.
access
Graphic
terminals provide effective means for presenting large volumes
of
data
a
in
personalized,
graphic
inexpansive,
Telecommunication
networks
format.
and
a
as
result,
provide
transported
tools.
easily
computer from number
extend
the
to
message
sending
they
provide
mutual
crunching and data processing
sharing,
Micro-computers
data
and
access
to
information among decentralized organizational units. Computer
Aided Design
combined
(CAD)
hardware
systems,
normally
available
are
as
a
and software package, based on either mini
or micro computer technology.
This systems
allow
architects
to create, store, retrieval and manipulate graphic data files.
Some
offer
the
ability to associate non-graphic information
with graphic elements.
The systems automate the production of
drawings with desirable productivity gains.
According to Sweet's survey,1981, (*) (Fig I.1) there were 49%
of design firms owning a mini or micro
availability
of
inexpensive
With
Whereas , the
percentage
firms having CAD is very low, due to its high price.
with the advent of micro-CAD
the
micro computer, this figure has
been predicted to grow rapidly.
the
computers.
,
of
Now
the situation may be changed.
(W)
There are two surveys,1981 and 1982, done by Sweet's Devision,
McGraw-Hill Information System Company.
15
WORD PROCESSORS
Source: Mileaf M."Computer use in Architecture"
Architectural Record,1982,June, pp.20
Figure I.1 Percentage of Equipment owners
Application
Percent of Use
1981
1982
Design analysis
46
66
Accounting
41
70
Spec writing
31
62
Cost estimating
21
51
Construction management reporting
12
23
Computer-aided design
8
32
Automated drawing
5
27
Product/equipment selection
2
15
Figure 1.2 Percentage of Applications
16
SOFTWARE.
Database management systems
information
that
can
be
collected,
extend
Application
installation of
types
of
packages
systems
specially
application,
such
evaluation,
and
performance
as
range
of
allow better access to
existing data files, and allow answers to
queries.
the
relatively
permit
off-the-shelf
designed
cost
specs
complex
for
particular
estimation,
writing
energy
packages.
Application languages reduce development time particularly for
complex models, such as spread sheet modeling languages.
Commercially available software packages are
for business applications.
major
marketing
effort
of
architectural
designed
Seldom did computer vendors make a
to
develop
spec-ifically directed towards architects.
lot
mostly
software
that
This is what led
is
a
firms to develop their own application
software.
I.2 CURRENT COMPUTER APPLICATIONS
The major area of
Sweet's
survey
(see Fig
computer
of
1.2).
1981,
This
engineering analysis.
major
application;
Computer-aided
relatively
according
to
the
is at the level of design analysis
due
to
the
heavy
influence
of
Figure 1.2 shows that accounting is the
spec
design
small
is
applications,
and
writing and cost estimating follow.
automated
application
drawing
represent
a
involvement in 1981, but major
17
In the process of architectural design
growth is expected.
the major computer applications are as follows:
CONCEPTUAL MODELING.
Application programs are available which
permit architects to create a
block
of
model
three
simplified
dimensional,
a building within a graphic computer system.
Perspective and isometric views of the building can be
and
computation of shadow patterns produced by buildings
the
This calculation
can be incorporated.
a
involves
great
is
as
an
These programs
tool.
marketing
effective
but
complex,
not
deal of data manipulation.
are valuable particularly
Clients
shown,
be presented with alternative designs with views
can
a
from various angles, at different hours of
day,
and
with
different color schemes.
COMPUTER DRAFTING.
obtained
through
elements.
to
work
to
associate
non-graphic
two-dimension;
some
offer
the
with graphic
information
currently, micro systems only have
in
is
a CAD system. Most mini-based systems offer
three -dimensional modeling capabilities and
ability
normally
Computer drafting capability
the
capability
and with smaller computer memory.
Through CAD systems, a library of standard details and symbols
can be easily developed to the standard of a firm.
Hence, the
efficiency in producing architectural drawings can be
greatly
improved.
SPEC WRITING.
There are several
options
for
architects
to
18
automate their spec
easily
edit
a
writing.
text,
is
Word processing, the ability to
the
most elementary way for spec
writing.
Original versions can be easily modified to
finished
copies.
This
method
can
be
improved
by adding
database management capability, which allows users
their
own
master
spec
files
and
produce
to
create
to manipulate them.
By
searching and retrievaling specifications from a master file ,
architects may compile the desirable specs
for
a
particular
job.
DOOR AND ROOM FINISH SCHEDULES. Programs
allow
available
that
to enter, store , update and print out information
one
on room types, finishes, furnishing,
reports
are
are
and
accessories.
Thus
produced that can be continually updated through
the course of a project.
DESIGN ANALYSIS. Energy
that
performance
programs
are
available
allow users to receive an estimate of energy consumption
due to heating and cooling loads, lighting and other
services.
In
addition, lighting analysis is used to predict
the natural and artificial light with an output of
of
intensity
building
at
particular
points
or
the
value
surfaces in a room.
Acoustic analysis can give reverberation times in a room,
for
various ceiling height and size of a room.
PREDESIGN ANALYSIS.
financial
impact
Programs
of
a
are
project.
written
for
calculating
This is very useful in the
19
predesign stage .
Programs in space projection are useful for
For example, based
architectural programming.
of
meeting
on
regularity
times, programs can predict the number
scheduled
and size of conference room required.
By
COST ESTIMATION.
materials
and
computer,
building
Estimation
entering
the
cost
the
in
Therefore
required.
develop
Many
their
purchasing one.
methods
own
,
can
estimates
be
design
become
several levels of
and
architectural
cost' estimating
Often, firms have
calculated.
stages of a project and is
early
continually refined as schematics
are
and
components
their quantities of a building proposal into a
occurs
drawings.
building
computer programs
construction
programs
their
development
own
firms
rather
than
practices
and
of cost estimating that they wish to preserve, rather
than adopting other's methods.
SPACE PLANNING.
functional
floor plans.
and
Computer programs take
the
requirements
in
spatial relationships and create diagrammatic
The major purpose is to achieve space efficiency
with minimal amount of circulation area.
Computerized
space
planning can be also applied in the contexts of site planning.
20
1.3 STRATEGIC IMPACT ON ARCHITECTURAL FIRMS
The impact of information technology on
and services is far beyond
is
for
utilized
execution.
the
different
common expectation.
industries
Initially, it
effectiveness and efficiency of a task
Yet through the proper leverage of the technology,
its potential impact has reached organizational and industrial
levels.
section
This
computer-based
will
examine
tools
on
the
strategic
architectural
impact
firms.
According to
Sweet's survey, 1981, 75 percent of designers using
thought
to
not
now,
computers
that computers gave them a competitive edge and
looking for deeper involvement and broader
of
applications.
were
Up
the impact of these tools on architectural firms has
become
experiences
Yet,
explicitlyevident.
in
the
from
pioneer
the field, a picture can be drawn on the ways
that information technology (IT)
influences
firm
a
at
the
strategic level.
In this section, the framework of strategic impact analysis is
based on "the three-level impact
(*)
of
information
technology"
(iY) (
Parson, 1983).According to Parson, IT could change the
firm's
execution
of
strategy
in
terms
of
the
Parson, Gregory 1. "Information Technology: a New
Weapon"
following
Competitive
21
considerations:
1)
adding
features
unique
to
product and
service, 2)reducing overall cost, 3) identifying and
creating
market niches.
about
Information
strategic
the
impact
has
been
mainly
collected from two symposia (4) sponsored by the Architectural
Record.
Each symposium invited over twenty panelists most of
whom were architects experienced in computer use from firms of
varied size and a few of whom were computer consultants.
Architectural
1.3.1 Adding Features to Product and Service in
Design.
By using IT, architect's service to
improved.
may
clients
be
Reliability of the services can be enhanced through
Besides,
computerized project control and automated drafting.
a
greatly
computer's
extremely
fast
computational power allows the
architect to use more sophisticated quantitative analysis than
he would consider in doing by
provided
with
hand.
Hence,
architects
better insights and faster feedback in making
design decisions. Due to this prompt feedback, architects
explore
more
are
design
may
alternatives, of which the consequences
can be compared on a quantifiable
basis.
Since
IT
allows
(Z)
Recorded in the two articles: "Round Table on Computers in
Architecture" and "Round Table:Coputer Use in the Small
Architectural Firm". All the remarks of the architects in this
section are from these two symposia.
22
architects to come up with more design alternatives and design
analyses,
their
services
tend
to
be
more
responsive and
flexible to client's needs.
1.3.2 Reducing Overall Cost
Significant gains have been made in the areas of specs writing
and schedule report generating, where
well
accomplish
a
micro
computer
can
the job. For CAD systems, in the experiences
of most architects, productivity comes in at a different level
of repetition of a project, such as
in
hotel
and
apartment
designs, where CAD systems can be used very efficiently. Other
areas
of
high productivity are
'in interior design and space
planning.
Initially, a lot of firms expected that the
Aided
their
and
operating
One
firm
that they were promised enormous productivity gains
and very fast pay-offs by using
that
costs.
surprise, they found that they seem to be operating
on the same fee level as they would have manually.
expressed
Computer
of
(CAD) will result in three to five times return
Design
on their annual costs - carrying costs
To
use
those
figures
percent of the time.
the cost of CAD
productivity
by
gain
were
true
CAD,
but
later
discovered
only by using the system 100
Another firm with 25 employees justified
aiming
by
at
using
a
minimum
CAD,
and
a
two-to-one
indeed
eventually
of
23
realizing
this performance level.
Yet the firm found it
hard to maintain such a level of work load at all
1.3.3 Identifying and Creating
IT can be used as a lever
areas,
such
as
to
times.
Market Niches
extend
services
into
space
interesting
example
maintenance.
Since architects may store the complete
on
planning,
a
is
and
that
interior
of
custodians
design.
building
An
facilities
set
of
building in the computer, they come to the
realization that "We end up taking care of a
as
related
project financial projections, architectural
programming,
information
was
managing
everything
,
building
almost
when the building life
cycle is completed".
A computer system can have a great
efforts of a firm.
the
reasons
for
impact
on
the
marketing
A 25-person firm in Chicago expressed that
them to have a sophisticated CAD system was
because "The firm that beat us out had a computer which
transmit
information
office".
After that the firm started taking a
what
a
CAD
system
directly
could
do,
back
to
the
could
client's
hard
look
home
at
not only in terms production
savings, but also due to its competitive advantages.
It has been the experience of a few firms that clients started
to request computer drafting
services
since
they
knew
the
24
drawings
would
be
technically
prone
controlled in terms of cost and time.
the
near
future
computer-literate
based
products
architects
clients,
who
to
error
It is
may
will
and better
likely
face
a
demand
that
in
market
of
electronically
and services, as a matter of routine and as a
normal process of professional service.
Furthermore,
architectural
in
future,
near
market
segmentation
in
services may be less dependent on the size of a
firm, but rather
information
the
on
the
technology.
technological
As
level
of
utilizing
predicted by the principle of a
large firm (*) " small architect is, in the long run, going to
be the bigger winner - with computers, he will be able
more
work with fewer people.
do
If good data bases and standard
details becomes available as software, he is going to be
to
to
tackle very large projects".
able
Yet, people from small firms
are much more cautious on the competition issue.
( )
"Round Table on Computer in Architecture",pp 50.
25
CHAPTER II:
IDENTIFICATION OF DSS PLANNING PROCESS
This chapter aims at identifying the most
of
strategic
DSS
planning
in
response
appropriate
to
the
issues of
computer use in professional architectural design. Six
are
presented,
which
call
out
a
need
for
method
issues
strategic DSS
planning. From the field of Management Information Systems,
a
few concepts in DSS planning and design are reviewed. Based on
these concepts, a method of DSS planning is formed. The topics
discussed in this chapter are:
II.1
Issues
architectural
of
computer
application
in
professional
IN
PROFESSIONAL
design.
11.2 Need for strategic DSS planning.
11.3 Concepts in DSS planning and design.
II.4 A method of strategic DSS planning.
II.1
ISSUES
OF
COMPUTER
APPLICATION
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
Although a great
number
of
innovative
applications
occurs
26
throughout
all architectural design phases, clear information
about the kind of softwares that architects need has
been
established.
need,
profession
that
one
of
the
major
problems
for
the
the software does not really exist after
those elementary applications
specifications"
yet
"No one really has any good idea what sort
of software we
is
not
(*)
,
such
as
word
processing
as expressed by one architect.
the numerous software developments in the field, a
and
Among
number
of
issues can be observed.
PROGRAM VERSUS SYSTEM.
system
of
The full strength
an
information
ha's not yet been utilized by most of the architectural
firms. A lot of ad hoc application programs have been created.
In general, each program-owns its own input
without
sharing
and
transfering
and
among
data
output
data
programs.
In
addition, programs are seldom functionally correlated in order
to tackle a large task.
Application programs
which
are
not
linked together into an overall coordinated information system
are common phenomena for the firms.
STATIC VERSUS DYNAMIC.
problems
of
In
dealing
with
complex,
changing
architectural design, the process of information
system design should be adaptive and evolving by coping with a
fluid task situation.
techniques
(A)
for
The
information
quoted from "Round
architectural firm"
conventional
system
table:computer
which
use
,structured
emphasize
in
the
design
on
an
small
27
exhaustive search so that
blown
system
development
required,
change.
to fit
may
time
make
complete
be determined.
and
the
the
of
a
full
In this approach, the long
major
process
requirements
data
gathering
efforts
expensive and not responsive to
Common result is that problems have to be compromised
the
off-the-shelf
programs,
rather
than
make
the
models
are
program adapt to a specific problem situation.
BIG VERSUS SMALL.
difficult
for
Big
architects
manipulate ,
therefore
response
this
to
complex
,
to
understand
they
problem
computerized
are
is
not
series
of
difficult
trusted.
A
problems.
a
time
rather
Thus,it
is
left
decision-maker to integrate the modeling steps and
as
to
growing
to utilize a library of small
models, which deal with a problem at
pre-packaged
and
a mental or manual process.
than
a
to the
activities
Furthermore, models should be
easy to be manipulated so that a user can make them behave the
way he wants them to .
with
twenty
input
For instance,
parameters
a
makes
large
the
energy
model
situation
overly
complicated for end user to understand in terms of the
impact
of each input parameter on the whole.
OPERATIONAL VERSUS STRATEGIC.
of
focus
required
and
to
minimization
carry
out
a
Efficiency involves a narrowing
of
the
given
time,cost
activity.
,and
effort
Effectiveness
involves identifying what should be done and ensuring that the
defined performance criterion is the
relevant
one.
In
the
28
architectural profession, computer applications start from the
direction of efficiency in automating labor-intensive work and
the
desire
to
reduce
applications extend
in
manual
the
errors.
direction
of
Gradually,the
effectiveness
in
supporting human decision-making,ie, as judgemental tools.
Furthermore, computers and information technology
strategic
influence
on design firms.
routine
affect
work
the
flow,
direction
information
technology
but
of
as
their
Information technology
can acts not only as a productive tool to
of
have
improve
efficiency
also as a competitive weapon to
business
operations.
Yet
,
a strategic tool is overlooked by
the majority of design firms.
ALL-INCLUSIVE VERSUS CRITICAL. To many architects , a complete
integrated database is thought to be the
profession
into
the
era
of
key
to
information
uplift
the
technology. This
integration can be viewed both vertically and horizontally. In
vertical integration, the computer's database is used in every
step of the job from marketing to final working
horizontal integration , the computer is used
in
each
not
yet
phase
been
drawings.
In
all disciplines
of the design process. Both integrations have
fully
,
realized
but
present
a
research
taskwhich will require enormous capital investment.
Nevertheless
all-inclusive
,by
learning
integration
from
often
business
is
applications,
unnecessary
and
29
uneconomical. The best policy is to focus on the most critical
application
rather
than
including
all.
Innumerable
opportunities of computer applications in architectural design
have
been identified. Yet usually, only a few are critical to
the needs of a firm.
These critical
applications
should
be
the investment focus of the firm.
TECHNICAL VERSUS PLANNING.
and
design
firms,
applications
To the most interest of architects
the
questions
computer
have been how to effectively utilize information
technology , and where to start with.
planning
concerning
issues
rather
than
Basically,
technical
these
issues.
are
Often, the
emphasis in information system development has been placed
on
the technical side of selecting hardware and writing programs,
and
without
careful
investigations
on
related decision processes of architects.
is
often
a
good
the
needs
and the
As a result,
there
chance that computer involvement may bring
about more expense than profit.
11.2 NEED FOR STRATEGIC DSS PLANNING
All the above issues point to the need
planning
method
to
meet
professional
architectural
identified,
the
method
the
design.
should
for
a
strategic
particular
contexts
Based
the
address
on
to
the
DSS
in
issues
following
30
requirements as strategic DSS should be:
1) Able to meet the organizational
architectural
contexts
of
professional
design, so as to provide a link to the business
strategy and management of a firm.
2) Able to be responsive to the nature of decision
making
in
architectural design, which is semi-structured and volatile.
3)
Able
to
focus
on
the
most
critical
for
area
DSS
development.
strategic
planning
5) Able to subdivide a decision task into a group of
decision
4) Able to provide a pragmatic link
from
to the major database requirements.
components.
6) Able to insure-DSS as an effective
means
to
achieve
the
desired ends.
11.3 CONCEPTS IN DSS PLANNING AND DESIGN
Before identifying the appropriate DSS planning method
,
let
us firstly review a few concepts related to information system
planning
and
design
in
the field of Management Information
Systems.
PROTOTYPING DESIGN STRATEGY.
It is
most
appropriate
to
an
31
adaptive
must be
design
process, which assumes that the final system
evolved
through
usage
and
learning
.Rather
than
focuses on functional specifications, the designer relies on a
prototype
system to find out quickly what is important to the
user as opposed to what the designer thinks to
be
important.
In other words, the method provides something concrete for the
user
to
react
to
and
test
with, and further to allow the
system to be easily modified and evolved.
real
system,
base
for
strategy
not
a
learning
The prototype is
mock-up or experiment.
by
using.
Hence,
a
It provides the
prototyping
design
can cope with the fluid situation of particular task
environment.
CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTOR (CSF) APPROACH.
developed the CSF approach as a means to
the
information
John F.Rockart ,1979,
understand
directly
requirements of the chief executive officer.
He defines CSF's as "those few key areas where things must
right
in
order to successfully achieve goals or objectives".
Since the goals of key decision makers form the basis for
CSF
analysis
goal-strategy
,
the
methodology
linkage
,from
will
decision
based
on
intensive
interviewing
the
directly
strengthen
maker's
needs
operational requirement for information systems.
is
go
process
to
The approach
and
workshop
sessions, in order to ellicite individual CSFs and consolidate
them on the
organizational level.
EXTENDED CSF METHODOLOGY.
A
strategic
planning
framework.
32
from
Derived
extended CSF.
CSF approach, John Henderson developed the
the
There are
providing
methodology:1)
evaluation
through
decision-makers,
2)
of
two
a
the
key
the
approach,
a
of
requirement
from
the
Building
upon
the
set,
provide
an
decision
critical
Each of the set requires
various levels of information systems.
sets
link
method provides the context for
and critical assumption set.
,
key
needs
pragmatic
three products: critical information
set
of
and
positions
providing
proposed
this
context for the planning process
conceptual design to the detailed design.
CSF
for
characteristics
three
these
Finally,
into a
insight
important
strategic data model (see Fig II.1)
II.4 A METHOD OF STRATEGIC DSS PLANNING
Based on the extended CSF methodology, the method of strategic
DSS planning in this study is formed. The
on
the
stream
of
DSS development, aiming at extracting the
opportunity for prototyping a DSS and the
required.
concentrats
method
related
data
base
The method is comprised of three phases: 1) linking
to the office strategy, 2) identifying
prototype
system,
3)
defining database requirements.
1) Linking to the office strategy. The key
approach
in
order
technique
is
CSF
to identify the most critical operational
goal of DSS in response to office strategy.
In
dealing
with
3 3
Business
strategy
NI
Goals of
management
Critical
Success
factors
Critical
Assumption
Set
ESS
t
Critical
Information
Set
MIS
Critical
Decision
Set
DSS
Strategic Data Model
Figure II.1 A Strategic Planning Methodology
34
CASE INTERVIEW
& OBSERVATION
OFFICE STRATEGY
RELATED TO ARCH. DESIGN
TOP MANAGEMENI
MIDDLE
MANAGEMENT
GENERAL BACKGROUND
INYESTIGATION & ANALYSIS
major competitive forces in
architectural service
GOALS OF
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
model of management
CSFs
PRIMARY GOAL
PROJECT TEAM
OF
ARCH. DESIGN
major tasks in three
primarg arch. design phases
CSFs
major responsibilities of
MKOKW
VU
PR
N
I
OPERATIONAL GOAL OF DSS
CRITICAL MEASURES
project architect and
project designer
architectural design theorg
I
CRITICAL DECISION SET
OPPORTUNITY FOR PROTOTYPE SYSTEM
DECISION SCENARIOS
X E
INREQUIRED
DECISION MAKER'S YIEW:
consolodate goals of keg decision makers.
DATABASE
DECISION TASK'S YIEW:
based upon general heuristic:
in the profession, in
conjunction with arch. design
Figure 11.2, Strategic DSS Planning Method for Supporting Arch. Design
35
design
architectural
the
decisions,
involves three groups of participants:
organizational context
top
management(office
strategy); middle management (project management); and project
team( architectural design). Their relationship is illustrated
in Fig 11.2.
2)
critical
First,
system.
prototype
Identifying
by
identifying
measures, the measures in monitoring the performance
of an operational
goal
a
of
DSS,
may
architects
have
a
concrete reference in listing the critical decision set, which
is
key decisions that greatly impact the successful execution
distinct
from
Then, derived
of a task.
opportunities
identified .
for
the
DSS
decision
critical
set,
and their priorities can be
The first priority will be the opportunity for a
prototype system.
3) Identifying
scenarios.
decision
data base
.
The
key
technique
is
decision
Each decision scenario (T) represents a particular
event
and the questions which are recurringly asked
by architects in formulating a decision. In answering ,
these
specific questions, a required data base can be defined.
($)
used by Rockart in "Engaging top
systems planning and development"
management
in
information
36
CHAPTER III
IDENTIFICATION OF OPERATIONAL GOAL OF DSS
The purpose of this chapter is
goals
a
of
to
DSS in assisting architectural design activities
divided into four steps (see Fig 11.2)
approach
CSF
The process which utilizes the
for a firm.
operational
the
identify
:
business
1) Office strategy. This step is to define the basic
of
direction
a
is
firm and focus on the most crucial aspect to
architectural design.
and
2) Goal
operational
CSFs
of
project
transformation
of
a
in
which
successful
performance
the
achievement of the desired ends. Major concern
in
goals,
will
lead
of
is
an
Critical
general mission.
Success Factors (CSFs) are the means to
areas
goal
A
management.
the
key
to
the
management
relation to architectural design is on project management,
which emphasizes the efficient and
resources
among
all
projects.
effective
use
of
office
This step is to identify the
CSFs necessary to achieve the management goal.
37
is
design
CSFs
of
architectural
viewed
as
operations
and
3) Goal
broken down into schematic
documents.
design, design development, and construction
is
step
supporting
4)
define
to
This
critical design activities in
most
the
Architectural
design.
the office strategy.
Operational
architectural
goal
design
their
and
examining
By
DSS.
of
the
CSFs
of
relationship to the CSFs of
project management, the DSS goal is identified.
In this study,
to
owing
suggested
by
the
CSF
interview
as
feasible.
Therefore the study relies
investigations,
instead
time,
the
intensive
method
has
not
limited
the
on
general
been
background
of case interview-s and observations.
The topics discussed in this chapter are :
1) Office strategy related to architectural design
2) Goals and CSFs of project management.
3) Goals and CSFs of architectural design.
4) operational goal of the DSS.
III-1 OFFICE STRATEGY RELATED TO ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
This
section
will
be
investigating
the
general
business
strategies which directly relate to architectural design for a
38
This top management view will form a planning
mid-sized firm.
context to further extract lower level goals in management and
architectural design.
the
relating
to
company
its
a
of
strategy
formulating
of
The essence
company
well
as
the
forces,
economic
firm
environment is the industry in which a
the
analysis
social
of a firm's
competes.
the state of competition in an industry depends on five
competitive
forces
(see Fig.
III-1).
basic
Of those five forces,
in
forces
competitive
the most powerful
From
Porter (1972, Competitive Strategy ),
M.E.
of
aspect
key
the
Although
environment.
relevant environment may be very broad, due to various
as
by
is
architectural
the
se-rvice industry are rivalry between suppliers of construction
related
consultant
(engineering
services
service
substitution for architectural
strategy
of
firm
a
,
and
and
contractor),
The
client.
will be based on a determination of the
effects of these.
THE
DESIGN
architectural
FIRM
AND
services,
THE
CLIENT:
stated
by
The
of
definition
a successful design firm
that
principle, is nonprofessional and to the point "Anything
is
necessary
to
get
a building up." This firm has put this
awareness into practice, being able to provide a
of
services
from
project
financing
through
broad
range
construction.
Similarly, many firms have experienced that for architects
be
to
successful, they must be prepared to enter into many areas
39
POTENTIAL
ENTRANTS
Threat of new
entrants
SUPPLIERS
,
Bargaining
power of
suppliers
INDUSTRY
COMPETITORS
rivalry among
existing firms
Bargaining Power
BUYERS
of buyer
Threat of substitute
products of service
SUBSTITUTES
source: Porter,"Competitive Strategy" ,
Forces Driving Industry Competition.
FIGURE III.1 Five Competitive Forces
40
This top management view will form a planning
mid-sized firm.
context to further extract lower level goals in management and
architectural design.
to
company
the
relating
its
a
of
strategy
formulating
of
The essence
company
well
as
the
forces,
economic
environment is the industry in which a
the
analysis
firm
social
of a firm's
competes.
the state of competition in an industry depends on five
competitive
III-1).
(see Fig.
forces
basic
Of those five forces,
in
forces
competitive
the most powerful
From
Porter (1972, Competitive Strategy ),
M.E.
of
aspect
key
the
Although
environment.
relevant environment may be very broad, due to various
as
by
is
architectural
the
service industry are rivalry between suppliers of construction
related
consultant
(engineering
services
service
substitution for architectural
strategy
of
firm
a
,
and
contractor),
The
client.
and
will be based on a determination of the
effects of these.
THE
DESIGN
architectural
FIRM
AND
services,
THE
CLIENT:
stated
by
The
of
definition
a successful design firm
that
principle, is nonprofessional and to the point "Anything
is
necessary
to
get
a building up." This firm has put this
awareness into practice, being able to provide a
of
services
from
project
financing
through
broad
range
construction.
Similarly, many firms have experienced that for architects
be
to
successful, they must be prepared to enter into many areas
41
beyond design - feasibility, economics, financing,
process,
community
program
involvement,
regulatory
contract
and
management etc, in order to make a project work.
As a result, an architect should be actively involved in those
"areas
design,"
beyond
or
he
or
she
find
will
himself
relegated to a relatively minor role, or worse - an irrelevant
the
when
factor
owner
considers a building project.
upon this awareness, the critical strategy of
broaden
firm
is
to
services to make a project financially viable in
its
order to gain a client's trust and to ensure
This
a
Based
can
consideration
taken
be
usually
his
commitment.
of
care
in the
predesign phase.
THE DESIGN FIRM AND ITS SUBSTITUTES:
Today,
almost every new
facility must be rigorously budgeted and fitted into a
Frequently,
schedule.
designers
insist that the
date
completion
corporate
and
cost.
give
an
or
governmental
early
guarantee
firm's
clients
as
to
Besides, invariably all clients
need someone who is accountable for cost and budgeting control
of capital expenditures in a project.
the
real
to
the
They
have
acted
as
artistic
construction industry, incapable of dealing
with various factors such as the cost of building supplies
the
of
world, unfortunately many architects have failed to
assume their responsibility.
advisors
In this hard school
contexts
of a fluctuating economy.
in
And because of this,
42
many owners have turned to construction consultants or package
builders for the guarantee of
performance
in
project
time,
cost and quality.
These burgeoning outside entrepreneurs
architectural
the
to
threat
this
tool
all
As
stages.
a
result,
counter
design
with
is needed in cost control disciplines for coping
in
to
Yet, improvement
that is ,their design skills.
threat,
a
Nevertheless,
profession.
advantageous
architects have held the most
been
have
clearly
a new look is needed at the
and
design process itself, so that costly excursions in trial
error are not excused in the name of art.
established
many
As a result,
firms
architectural
require
their design services to have a leadership role in controlling
building
cost
and
quality,
with
services can easily incorporate their
benefit
the
input
into
that
these
phases
of
construction, administration and management.
THE
FIRM
DESIGN
CONSULTANTS.
twentieth
architecture.
THE
Buildings
century
engineering
,
and
CONTRACTOR
AND
THE
ENGINEERING
have become much more complex in the
now
require
large-scale
use
of
services , never needed in the historic styles of
And, architects, once the versatile renaissance
men, are now losing ground as the professionals who
head
the
building process.
43
Architects
are
has
supply
become
over
building systems which only they could design.
Thus
architects saw the need to
elements
for
needed
Gradually, specialists have taken
information overload.
specific
information
information
buildings;
designing
with
overwhelmed
the
of
design
certain
to others and thus lost the total
building
the
of
delegate
Today
personal control of the design process.
about
60%
of
the construction dollar is spent on building systems which are
designed
not
engineers,
by
architects.
Since the fifties,
have
engineers and other consultants and technicians
as
an integral part of the design team.
play a singular role;
the
building.
Architects no longer
nevertheless, as a prime contractor
architects
owner,
responsibility for
emerged
on
players
all
should
the
carry
and
team
to
complete
for
the
promised performance of building.
THE DESIGN FIRM AND RIVALRY
which
(;t)
architectural
many
, that is
market share
:The
structural
environment
in
firms compete is an fragmented one
, an environment where no firm has a significant
and thus would be able to strongly influence the
outcome of
its
service
industries
are
populated
In
industry.
by
a
large
general,
number
fragmented
of small and
medium-sized companies, privately held, with no power to shape
industry-wide events.
(%)
Architectural service fits
Strategy"
M.E."Competitive
Poter
strategy in fragmented industries.
chapter
right
into
9,competitive
44
this category.
The critical strategy for a firm to cope with this
architectural
service
is overall differentiation of products
and services. The purpose of
create
a
high
fragmented
margin
such
a
differentiation
is
to
of production that could otherwise be
easily achieved on basic products by normal
design
firms
or
new entrants into the architectural service industry.
CONCLUSION:
In
OFFICE STRATEGY RELATED TO
ARCHITECTURAL
DESIGN.
general, for an established mid-sized firm specializing in
commercial residential jobs, the typical strategy to
itself
in
the
products and
industry
services.
is
an
overall
Nevertheless,
position
differentiation of
this
differentiation
does not imply narrowing
down services and products to one
and
project
particular
building
type
size, rather, it means broadening service areas,
so as to add extra services
or
directly
contribute
to
client's
commitment
to- and
the
product
features
which
can
initiation and enhancement of a
trust
in
the
architect.
As
identified previously, these value-added services are:
1) Feasibility study for the clients.
and
sustain
a
client's
analyze the market place,
analyses,
investigate
In
order
to
initiate
investment plan, the architect must
prepare
financing
economic
and
alternatives,
investment
evaluate
45
ownership
characteristics,
determine
building
parameters
Most
requirements.
establish
of
these
site
and
alternatives,
investigate
occur
activities
code
in
the
predesign phase, which is beyond the scope of this study.
2) Control of building cost, quality and time, for
owner's. investment return.
The general concern of a building
owner is to maximize his investment.
in
construction
does
Besides,
consideration.
capital costs and future costs.
are
land
cost,
Often, a cost
necessarily
not
increase, when future rent and
into
construction
result
of
the
taken
are
cost
The elements of capital
cost,
design
fees and so on.
real
estate
These definitions are, in fact, simple
and financing.
concept
a profit
the concept of cost comprises
enough, but calculating total cost needs also
the
reduction
in
costs
operational
Future costs, in turn, contain operational cost,
taxes,
maximizing
on
As a result, the
value of money.
time
to be based
essence of cost control involves dynamic tradeoffs among cost,
quality
and
time,
with
the
ultimate
intention
being
to
maximize an owner's return on investment.
This strategy addresses each of the
discussed
above:
3)strengthen
and bargaining power for architects.
to common competitors or
office
strategies
competitive
1)enhance the trust of clients.
to the threat from substitutes.
role
four
new
related
entrants.
to
the
forces
2)respond
leadership
4)create a barrier
As
a
architectural
result,
design
the
is
46
identified as:
to build up a firm's competence in controlling
building costs,
investment
quality
return
in
and
time
to
maximize
a
client's
order to gain a leadership role in the
building process.
111.2 GOALS AND CSFs OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT
This section examines goals of project
CSFs
necessary
to
achieve
them.
management
The
project management is to assure efficient
and
overriding
and
their
goal of
effective
use
office resources for all projects in order to achieve the cost
,quality and time controls identified in the chapter on office
strategy.
For the purpose of
process
of
project
investigated.
cybernetic
achieving
this
management
management
in
an
Based on the concept of an
system (Swinth, 1974) (K)
,
goal
office
the
,
must
organization
as
be
a
project management can
be analyzed as three levels activities: policy level,
control
(t,)
Scott, Organizations, chapter 5 pp. 102-120. "Organizations as
open systems".
47
level and operation level.
In reference to these three levels
, the required CSFs can be identified accordingly.
discussed
to
in this section are: 1) management goal in response
office strategy, 2) a model of
system,
The topics
3)
a
model
of
control
project
as
a
management,
cybernetic
4)
CSFs
of
management.
111.2.1 Management Goals in Response to the Office Strategy
In supporting office strategy
is
to
effectively
and
,
efficiently
mainly staff personnel of all the
design
firms
are
management's primary
managed
in
use
project
concern
office resources teams.
Normally,
a decentralized manner, where
individual operations are small and autonomous.
In
order
to
coordinate and manage all these relatively independent project
teams, a strong central supervision and performance - oriented
compensation for personnel staff is needed.
Middle management represents this
central
supervision
which
links the strategic planning office with the project team.
means
of
obtained
this
and
supervision
used
managers
effectively
and
assure
By
resources are
efficiently
in
the
accomplishment of an organization's objective.
48
111.2.2 A Model of Control as a Cybernetic System
According to Swinth,1974, an organization can be viewed
a
the relationship among
emphasizes
which
system,
cybernetic
as
policy, control and operations centers(see Fig 111.2).
to
response
office
responsible for
designs
of
center
The policy
a
an
organization
at
center
them into output.
the
the
middle-management
operations
receives
prescribed
the
by
the
in
level,
directions.
The
goals.
raw materials and transform
The control center monitors the
output
of
center and compares it with the stated goals.
This process may result in a modification of a
of
goals
set of instructions or directions to the operation
units, based upon standards
operations
its
The control center, which is
strategy.
decisions
sets
This
feedback-controlled
set
previous
arrangement
is
goal-directed, that is, the behavior of the system is directed
by the deviations of the current state from the
Such
a
stated
control system relies heavily on mechanisms which can
quickly measure performance, and detect problems in
fashion
goal.
by
identifying
deviations
of
the
a
timely
actual from the
planned, so that incentives and corrections can be created
111.2.3 A Model of Project Management
49
environmental
demands
order
POLICY
CONTROL
source
OPERATIONI.
feedback
) final product
FigureIII.2 Organization as a Cybernetic System
50
Within the organizational context of the architectural
and
based
on
the
Cybernetic
office
System, the management of all
project teams can be illustrated (see Fig 111.3) .Managers
the
policy
center
translate
the contract stipulations into
specific tasks to be accomplished and decide
of
the
what
percentage
compensation defined by the contract will be realized
as income when the work has been performed.
In addition, they
have to devise rules for assigning resources to each task.
the control level, each task is scheduled and
made
provisions
At
are
for allocation of resources in accordance with budgeting
limitations and required
this
at
technical
expertise.
Furthermore,
control plan should be constantly adapted in coping with
the performance of the operation
units.
At
the
operations
leve-1, where the actual architectural design activities occur,
the
project
progress
should
be
recorded,
periodically
evaluated and fedback to the control center.
111.2.4 CSFs of Management
Based on
provide
the above analysis, the goal
a
of
and
is
to
central supervision of all projects to ensure that
office resources are effectively utilized
,cost
management
quality
control.
for
building
time
The CSFs in achieving this goal
are:
51
Business strategy: building cost,quility,
and time control
Management goal: effective and efficient use
of office resources to meet
the strategy
1100
internal
POLICY: fee structure,
coordination i
)
strategy in project
income and resources
allocation
of firm's
function units
CONTROL: resource budget and
schedule.
performance standard
staff personnel
and other
resources
1*
I,
ARCHITECTURAL
1 DESIGN AND PRODUCTION
feedback
final
product
Figure 111.3 Model of Project Management
52
1)
Fee
To
Negotiation.
be
should
negotiation
construction cost is the most common method
but
not
does
give
incentives
firm the incentive to spend the
2) Project Income Assignment.
tasks,project
of
method
this
of
compensation,
practitioners
for
responsive to a client's needs. Rather
percentage
The
restructured.
fee
design
of
policy
clients,
to
gives
be
a
full budget.
design
To various
phases
and
income assignment should be adjusted to reflect
an architect's efforts at building cost control.
3) Project Budgeting
should
reflect
and
Scheduling.
Budget
and
schedule
the best utilization of office resoureces and
be refined progressively according to the performance
of
the
project
4)
Evaluation
evaluation
of
Project
Team.
Periodic
performance
of project team should be done to ensure a project
will finish on time, within the budget and
with
the
desired
qualities.
111-3 GOALS AND CSFs OF ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
53
Here, architectural design is viewed as a function
operations
of
office
and is broken into three phases: schematic design,
design development and
construction
documents.
First,
the
goal of architectural design is identified on the basis of the
experience
of
practicing architects.
Then ,by analyzing the
control process in coping with architectural design ,the
can
are:
CSFs
be further defined. The topics dealt with in this section
1)
architect's
strategically,
2)
goals
control
in
response
process
to
the
office
and schematic design, 3)
identification of CSFs of architectural design.
111.3.1 Architect's Goals in Response to the Office Strategy
As stated by one architect, "the economic success of a project
is generally determined in the first few weeks of
design.
After
costing delay."
percent
that,
It
not
changes
always
increase
realized
that
cost by
about
90
of design man-hours are spent on work that can affect
cost only about 7
percent
is
conceptual
preliminary
of
design
percent
hours
plus
are
or
spent
minus,
on
while
about
10
preliminary design
54
decisions, which can affect costs 30 percent
(*)
sophisticated
Often,
by
reducing
steel,
while
save pennies
structural
computer
the
plus
or
minus.
programs can be used to
number
of
bolts
used
with
outdated rules of thumb on building
economy establish big line items,
such
as
overall
building
form and costs.
As stated by another architect, "You may be very surprised
realize
that
during
to
a typical schematic phase of the design
process, you are locking in somewhere between 60 and 70
%
of
the cost of the typical project. By the time you are done with
your design development, you have locked in roughly another 20
%."
cost
(*i')
(see Fig III.4) As a result, schematic design is more
critical,
and
requires
more
analytic
methods.
With
project architects the major concern in schematic design are:
1)Project scheduling.
project.Set
up
Prepare
coordination
a
control
procedures
schedule
that
for
the
will keep all
design professionals on a concurrent basis or will
alert
the
design team when they are not.
2) Quality design.
for
Investigate design
alternatives.
Search
best building configurations and determine major building
systems.
Because this study is concerned
with
architectural
Swinburne, Herbert, "Design Cost Analysis"
Nielsen, Kris R. "Construction Cost Management"
55
101
/
4
z
P4
DESIGN
BID
CONSTRUCTION
PROJECT DURATION
Source:Nelsen,K.R. "Construction Cost Management,"Exhibit no.2
Figure III.4
The Cost "Lock-In" profile
56
design
activities,
quality
and
cost
control
during
the
schematic design phase wi.ll be the focus.
111.3.2 Control Process and Schematic Design
Control is an integral part of architectural
early
schematic
design
phase
an
,
design.
owner's
objectives have been formulated into
specific
can
.These
be
attained
through
building
In
the
investment
targets
targets
which
include
expected revenue, total budget, date of completion , level
building
quality and space requirements.
of design proceeds by
evaluating
options
desired
against
the
satisfying solution
.The
a
process
The typical process
limited
state
and
will
of
set
of
design
then by choosing a
gain
efficiency
by
Architects should constantly refine their control program,
as
adding a control program, as in (Fig 111-5).
a
goal
oriented
restriction.
process
Therefore,
for
better
during
the
design, rather than a
schematic
phase,
architects should explicitly transform their conceptual design
into
specific itemized targets for all disciplinary groups in
the team.Mean while ,constant refinement
and
evaluation
are
necessary to utilize the control mechanism as a design tool.
57
owner's investment objectives
r--
GOALS: desired revenue,
building cot,time
and quality
4-
owner's financial
capability &
money market
buildin.9
market
local construction
market
CONTROL POLICY:
itemized budget,
schedule,and
performance
standards
design
solution
(
resources
DESIGN OPTIONS
Figure 111.5
Architectural Design and Control Process
58
111.3.3 CSFs of Architectural design
The goal of architectural design as
exercise
cost
identified
above
is
to
and quality control over all discipline groups
and integrate it with the schematic design process to maximize
an owner's investment return. The following is a list of
,critical
for
the
project
architect
to
achieve
CSFs
primary
architectural design goal:
1) Budget and quality planning should be
goals
investment
based on an
owner's
should indicate realistic and itemized
and
guidelines concerning cost and quality for various groups of a
design team.
2)
Evaluation
architect's
deal with
of
design
guidelines
potential
on
an
to identify the best plan,
to
options
so as
problems,
and
should
to
be
further
based
refine
the
original guidelines.
3) A construction market profile
information
base
should
define
an
accurate
on the local construction market, which can
effectively direct the budget planning.
4) A design team should be well coordinated and mechanism
for
communication should be clearly defined.
59
III.4 THE OPERATIONAL GOAL OF THE DSS
In this section some of the most important links
between
the
CSFs of management and architectural design are mentioned.
each
of
the
cases
In
below, a CSF for architectural design is
useful to management:
1) Market profile and policy for contract
knowledge
base
about
local
negotiation.
Good
construction industry and other
design professionals can greatly enhance the bargaining
power
in fee and contract negotiations.
2) Budget
budget
planning
for
a
and
manpower
scheduling.
A
realistic
project forms a sound base for office manpower
scheduling.
3)
Evaluation
performance
of
of
a
choices
design
and
options
and
evaluation
of
the
design team. The evaluation of design options
should be based an
both
design
objective
tool
also
measures.
This
evaluation
is
for selecting among various alternative
is
a
monitoring
tool
for
performance-oriented compensation of a design team.
s0
The operational goal of the DSS is to evaluate design
to
understand
sub-divided tasks
their
cost
and
quality
impacts
for
This goal was selected for the
.
options
all
following
reasons:
1) It reflects the design behaviors of architects
during
the
schematic phase.
2) It corresponds to the strengths of a
computer system.
3) The process will gradually force architects to formulate
set
of
guidelines,
a
as evaluation criteria. As a result ,the
coordination among design professionals can be built on a more
explicit basis.
4) The evaluation is set to
return
,thereby
gaining
maximize
more
an
trust
owner's
and
investment
commitment
from
clients.
5) The process will have a
direct impact on design activities
and also be useful to the project
team evaluation.
6) Evaluation , used as a monitoring tool to constantly refine
the
planned
budget,
will
assist
the
process
of
budget
planning.
7) In the long run it will
have
its
full
strategic
impact
61
CHAPTER IV:
IDENTIFICATION OF PROTOTYPE SYSTEM
The purpose of this chapter is to identify the opportunity for
a
prototype
system,
which
supports
the
operational
goal
defined above.A prototype system has the essential features of
set
of
functions. A prototype system is tested to illustrate what
it
a
finished
can
do
with
system,yet
does
not
a
have
complete
the expectation of adding more functions later.
Such-a-system can be identified using the following steps:
1) Establish critical measures. The measures are the hard
soft
and
data that decision makers use to monitor the performance
of the operational goal for the DSS.
2) Generate a critical
critical
decision
set.
In
reference
to
the
measures , the critical decision set, generated from
an architect's viewpoint is a list of important decisions that
most impact the successful execution of the operational goal.
3) Identify
grouped
prototype
system.
Critical
decisions
can
be
and transformed into a series of distinctive decision
62
processes, which designate types of opportunities for DSS. The
prototype system
is
identified
through
prioritizing
these
used
for
decision-making
were
investigations
and
interviews, and also,
opportunities.
In this chapter, data
collected
through
through
being
interviewing
architects.
Thus
established.In
project
the
designers
priorities
addition,
in
of
order
and
a
to
the
project
decision
set were
understand
the
way
architects exercise cost and quality analysis , an examination
of architectural design theory is very helpful.
The pieces of
information
daily
that
architects
use
in
their
activities can thus be organized into a meaningful
design
framework.
The topics dealt with in this chapter are:
IV.1) Architectural design theory
IV.2) Critical measures of the operational goal
IV.3) Critical decision set
IV.4) opportunity for prototype system
IV.1 ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN THEORY -Thematic Design Approach
The
Thematic
methodology
of rules
Design
approach
is
an
architectural
design
that regulates a formal system according to a set
.This
formal
system
is
not
arrived
at
through
63
personal
intuition
or
speculation.
Instead, it is derived
from a 'theme',which is something basic
and
in
peoples'
beliefs
values about living environments, i.e. governed by social
conventions.
through
Part of the process of formulating
the
material.
alternating
In
the
social-cultural
realm
interaction
of
convention,
space,
the
their relationship are defined.
by
,bounded
technological
In
on
theme
is
space
and
use
and
spatial elements and
the
realm
of
material
constraints,
economic
and
technical systems for buildings
between
based
major
a
the
are determined. Thus, a theme
is formulated through the interaction between
spatial
system
and its bounding technical system. (*)
The thematic approach is
architectural
goal of
offices,
an
design.
reaily
to
professional
The pursuit of a theme may not be the
architectural
architects
applicable
office,
yet
certainly,
Beyond
that
basically a process of
choices
and
most
have their own set of proven formulae or
conventions, which result in a fixed set of spatial
elements.
in
technical
architectural design in an office is
selecting
the
best
matching space and material.
candidate
among
Technical building
systems conventionally can be subdivided into the following:
(i:)
Based on John Habraken's theory of Thematic Design, Amine
Klam, in his thesis, examines the relationship between space
and material.
64
Architectural building
partitions,wall
systems:
finishes
roofing,
exterior
walls
,
, floor finishes, ceiling finishes,
specialties, fixed equipment , conveying systems.
Structural building
systems:
foundations,
floor
on
grade,
superstructure.
Mechanical/electrical systems: HVAC,plumbing electrical.
IV.2 CRITICAL MEASURES FOR THE OPERATIONAL GOAL
The operational goal of a DSS
has
evaluation
design
for
satisfactory
schematic
investment
return
been
for
identified
options
an
to
owner.
as
cost
achieve
Critical
measures should be determined to indicate the performance of a
design in relation to an owner's investment goals.
an
owner's
investment
goal
can
Typically,
be expressed as maximizing
potential revenue and minimizing cost.
In
this
study,
the
focus has been primarily on the building itself rather than on
land and other indirect costs.
REVENUE.
The revenue generated by a building can be
analyzed
in terms of rentable space and rent. The conventional measures
of these items used by architects are as follows:
1)Rentable Space:
65
i) Areas
by
room
functions.
Areas
assigned
to
the
various room functions and any excessive space allocation
should be recorded.
This
ii) Ratio of square feet net to square feet gross.
ratio is compared with ratios typical for that particular
building
type
and
if
it
found excessive, further
is
design studies are called for.
2) Future Rent:The potential rent of a building is
by
a
number
the
criteria
as
immeasurable factors
Assessing
Yet
of factors other than the building itself.
does
the perceived quality of the building
rentand
determined
these
for
real
factors
study,which is concerned
quality
building
use,
are
with
image,
beyond
the
future
influence
and
the
such
include
aesthetics.
scope
measurable
of
this
qualities
of
space and building systems in a design:
Space quality:
i)
Room size, from generous to economical.
ii) Quality of room
iii)
Special
finishes and equipment.
design
features,
such
as
atrium,
green-house, or energy saving features.
Building
systems
quality:
Including
exterior
wall,
roofing , etc.
66
i) Dollars
ranging
per
from
square-foot
of
each
austere to luxury.
proportion to quality and
building
system,
Often, unit cost is in
complexity
of
an
individual
building system.
ii) Performance criteria: such
as
fire
proofing,
damp
proofing, thermal resistance, etc.
COST: The components of cost are construction cost, life-cycle
cost,
and financing cost.
1) Construction Cost: initial cost by building systems.
i) Construction
system.
cost
and
total
cost
each
of
detail
(see Fig IV.1 )
ii) Total cost
per square-foot(SF) and system
cost
per
SF.
iii) Percentage
of
system
with
systems
Usually
each
cost
to
cost
cost
relative
high
total.
are
superstructure, exterior walls and mechanical systems.
2) Life-Cycle Cost:
annual cost
i) Operating cost:
Typically,
forms,
roofing,
building
electrical
system
exterior
orientation,
are
all
of
energy
walls,
consumption.
glazing, building
mechanical
interrelated
system,
in
and
affecting
operating cost.
67
SCHEMATIC COST ESTIMATE NO. 1
Description
Foundations
Floors on grade
Superstructure
Roofing
Exterior walls
Partitions
Wall finishes
Floor finishes
Ceiling finishes
Conveying systems
Specialties
Fixed equipment
HVAC
Plumbing
Electrical
.
Construction total
Labor, $
Material, $
Total, $
$/sq ft
75,161
24,901
1,065,591
25,747
832,462
430,888
190,126
186,469
170,138
267,796
115,942
208,833
1,080,842
303,622
772,800
5,751,318
47,227
25,521
2,025,629
29,627
1,487,491
859,356
344,770
448,754
154,211
610,512
244,279
490,882
930,545
342,785
748,160
8,789,749
122,388
50,422
3.091,220
55,374
2,319,953
1,290,244
534,896
-635.223
324,349
878,308
360,221
699,715
2,011,387
646,407
1,520,960
14,541,067
0.50
0.21
12.67
0.23
9.51
5.29
2.19
2.60
1.33
3.60
1.48
2.87
8.24
2.65
6.23
59.60
*
e
.
e
9
o
e
e
*
*
Source:Dodge Building Cost Services (McGraw-Hill Information
Systems Company) with Wood & Tower Inc.,1979 Dodge
Comsturction System Costs.
SCHEMATIC COST ESTIMATE NO. 1 WITH COST DETAILS OF BUILDING
SYSTEMS
Description
Quantity
Unit
Labor, $
Material, $
Total, $
Floor finishes
Ceramic tile
Vinyl asbesto tile
Computer floor
Carpeting
Painting
Marble flooring
Total
Ceiling finishes
Plaster
Paint ceiling
Acoustical tile
11000
66000
10000
12710
sq ft
31610
11000
22000
26000
198000
sq ft
sq ft
23,989
31,151
27,830
sq yd
52,953
sq ft
sq ft
14,920
35,626
186,469
sq ft
sq ft
sq ft
Total
Conveying systems
Cab allowance
Doors, guides, controls, etc.
Elevator, medium speed
Freight elevator, electric
Total
7
1
6
1
Specialties
Toilet partitions
Toilet accessories
Misc specialties
1
1
Total
each
LP SM
each
each
LP SM
LP SM
LP SM
20,691
103,919
186,504
3,373
73,517
44,680
91,901
131,749
239,457
18,293
109,143
448,754
635,223
46,189
14,387
109,562
14,087
2,775
137,349
60,276
17,162
246,911
170,138
154,211
324,349
12,193
82,921
153,692
18,990
32,139
201,482
338,701
38,190
267,796
610,512
44,332
284,403
492,393
57,180
878,308
13,342
2,600
100,000
60,379
3,900
180,000
244,279
73,721
6,500
280,000
360,221
115,942
60,750
Figure IV.1 Sample of Schematic Cost Estimates
68
value
present
cost:
Maintenance
ii)
sum.
future
of
roofing, exterior walls require highest amount
Normally,
of maintenance cost.
The
construction.
and
labor
working
should
hours
design
and
the
higher
the
system,
building
each
For
project.
building
span
time
the
longer
financing cost of the
for
hours
Working
3) Financing Cost:
noted, so that a total
be
base
This provides the
man-hour requirement can be obtained.
for scheduling the progress of a project.
IV.3 CRITICAL DECISION SET
The
operational
achieving
goal
perform
cost
investment goals.
owner's
the
to
is
architects,
this
phase
an
is
concern is transformed into maximizing
utilize
effectively
a
budget
desirable building performance for the owner.
above
critical
measures
of
list sets forth the critical
constantly
confronted
In
other
major responsibility at the schematic
architects'
to
owner.
building
building performance and minimizing building cost.
words,
for
Maximizing revenue
and minimizing cost is the major concern for
For
monitoring
for
creating
Refering to the
revenue and cost, the following
decisions
that
architects
are
with during the schematic design phase
of a project:
69
1) Can the area of rentable space be increased with a
minimun
of construction costs?
2) Does the cost distribution of building systems reflect
best
utilization
of
budget?
the
How can the problems in budget
utilization be identified and corrections be made?
3) Can space and material quality be maintained by
costly
alternatives?
consistent
with
an
Is
the
owner's
some
less
quality of space and material
expectation?
Is
there
any
over-design of a particular building subsystems, unnecessarily
complex details or specifications which are unfeasible for the
existing budget?
4) Can
systems and material selection take
better
advantage
of the local construction market?
5) Will the chosen design option cause
significant
delay
in
design and construction?
6) How can the annual cost of energy consumption
For
example
,
by
be
reduced.
changing the configuration, orientation ,
fenestration, or the material used for exterior enclosure
and
glazing?
7) Because the improvement of energy
higher
initial
performance
results
in
cost, will this cost be justified in the long
run?
70
8) In order to maintain the same rate
how
much
rent
be
must
raised
of
to
investment
cover
the
return,
increased
construction cost?
IV.4 THE OPPORTUNITY FOR PROTOTYPE SYSTEM
Construction cost analysis: In current architectural
,
cost
construction
three processes.
to
related
decision set
is
analysis
(2),
items
(1),
: the
macro
the most important of the
levels
two
are
There
(3),
of
cost
analysis
(4) in the critical
and
which
level
practice
is
the
estimate
by
building systems; the micro level which is a detailed estimate
for each building system.
Operating cost analysis: This process is related to
in
list
the
of
critical
a
design
option.
(6)
decisions above.The purpose of an
performance
energy
operating cost analysis is to analyze the
of
item
This process allows users to determine
building orientation and material, and to receive in return an
estimate of energy consumption
loads,
lighting,
consumption
addition,
and
estimates,
due
building
operating
to
heating
Based
services.
costs
and
can
cooling
on energy
defined.
In
maintanence costs should be considered for material
71
selection for all building systems.
Total cost analysis: This process is
(7),
and
(8)
in
related
the critical decision set.
to
items
The purpose of
this process is to evaluate construction cost, operating
and
financing
cost
construction cost.
is not enough.
total
cost
on the basis of the time value of money.
Architects know that the improvement of operating
raise
(5),
costs
will
But knowing the direction of change
One must also know
how
much
change
is
the
cost; furthermore, in order to maintain a certain level
of rate of investment return, how much must the rent be raised
to cover the cost increase?
With such quantitative
knowledge
an intelligent decision can be made.
72
CHAPTER V:
DATA BASE IDENTIFICATION
The purpose of this chapter
is
to
identify
the
data
base
required for the prototype system mentioned above, so that the
may be more formally defined. A data base is generally
system
defined
as
a
organization
collection
maintains
will
called
be
operation
as
the
of
that
internal
organizations also use external data, that
and maintained by another organization.
data
bases
data.
Every
a collection of data that is used for
the planning, control, and
This
computer-stored
of
organization.
Most
database.
is
data
gathered
Internal and external
are important prerequisites for DSS because these
data bases will contain some
of
the
data
relevant
to
the
is- based
on
the
decisions supported by the DSS.
The process of defining required data base
technique
decision
of
a
"
scenario
decision scenario" (Rockard,1981 ).
concerns
a
particular
event
and
Each
the
which might be asked in formulating a decision.
In
decision scenarios, it becomes clear which questions would
be
questions
answered by the new system and which would be left unanswered.
In
answering
these
questions,
the
relevant
data
base is
73
identified.
In this
chapter,
through
the
decision
three
decision
critical
identified
set. They are building space
estimates
systems
are
scenarios
and
total
building
analysis,
building
estimate.
Each scenario presents the particular activities in
which
architects
perform
construction
cost
analysis,
and
specific questions they asked.
V.1 Building space analysis
V.2 Building systems estimates
V.3 Total building estimate
V.1 BUILDING SPACE ANALYSIS
events.
Description of decision
architects
tend
to
fix
During
the
design
phase,
the floor plan as soon as possible.
The building configuration needs to be examined for : 1) total
area needed to achieve essential functions and relations;
2) efficiency of the ratio of net to gross floor area.
ratio
is
determined
to
and
If the
be inefficient when compared to the
ratio for a similar building type , the architect must
revise
his plans.
74
Decision Scenario: Space analysis
Questions asked by architects
measure
1) Is there any excessive space
floor area by room
allocations related to the building program? function
2) Does space efficiency comply to
floor area net to
the owner's expectation?
floor area gross
Data Base Required: Floor plans, with attributes of each room,
such as size and function.
V.2 BUILDING SYSTEMS ESTIMATES
decision
Among
events:
the
all
building
Description
of
subsystems,
the superstructure and exterior walls are the two
systems that most impact the building
of
35%
about
the
construction
cost.
(see
result, these two systems are an architect's
represent
They
form.
Fig V.1) As a
concern
primary
during the schematic design phase.
1) Superstructure and Exterior
Wall
Analysis
:
During
the
process of exploring building configurations, architects study
form
in
conjunction
with
an appropriate structural system.
The superstructure is an inherent part of architectural
and
it
is
usually
the
architect
rather
than
engineer, who selects the type of structural system
form,
structural
and
sets
75
THE ENGINEERS' SHARE OF AVERAGE CONSTRUCTION COSTS
FOR A COLLEGE LIBRARY
(Site costs are excluded.)
100%
$ 63.88
100%
Roofing
Exterior walls
$1.22
8.58
1.9%
13.4
Partitions
2.96
4.6
Wall finishes
1.06
1.7
Floor finishes
1.48
2.3
Ceiling finishes
1.98
3.1
Specialties
2.26
3.5
Fixed equipment
6.42
10.1
Conveying systems
1.02
1.6
Foundations
2.26
3.5
8
Architectural
building
systems
a
4-I
$25.95
40.6%
Shared
-
---
-
1.6%-
-
Structural
building
systems
4
Floors on grade
0.90
Superstructure
13.54
21.2
HVAC
10.22
16.0
1.4
Plumbing
3.78
5.9
Electrical
6.20
9.7
Costs by Building Systems
$16.70
26.1%
3
Mechanical
electrical
building
systems
aI
$20.20
31.6%
Costs by Design Disciplines
Source: From "Design Cost Analysis",Swinburne,H.
FigureV.1 Cost Distribution by Building Systems
76
bay
size
and
height.
building
The
support
of
The
market.
per
cost
superstructure
floor area is a useful measure to check if the
square-foot of
When architects want
cost exceeds that of a similar building.
they
cost,
try
usually
to
simplify building form;
building height;
reduce bay size and
compare
and
their
other similar building .
solution with
Exterior walls
subsystems.
the
on
by building and should properly reflect the
construction
reduce
based
be
should
subsystems
set
requirements
to
assemblies,
and secondary framing assemblies and deck assemblies.
selection
local
superstructure system
vertical
consists of three subsystems:
primary
The
are
The
the
area
most
of
costly
of
all
architectural
the wall surface is a function of
Therefore,
building perimeter and floor height.
an
analysis
can be made of the ratio of the area of the perimeter walls to
the
gross floor area of the building.
excessive, further design studies are
If this ratio is found
suggested.
The
major
decision
concerning
the
superstructure is floor-to-floor-height,which
determines
the
factor
involved
in
making
area of the building skin.
-
superstructure
a
Thus, usually these two subsystems
and exterior wall- are considered together.
The exterior walls consists of wall assembly, finish material,
glazing, exterior door, backup material, and shading.
Other building
systems.
Other
building
systems,
such
as
77
foundations , electrical and mechanical systems only
roofing,
have a minor impact on building form.
usually
architects
are
materials
various
In addition,
be
should
measures
used
by
cost per SF, cost details of
system
each subsystem, and overall cost.
of
The
noted,
prices
unit
as an indicator of
overall material quality.
In the schematic phase,
architects
seldom
information
have
that is sufficiently detailed in the mechanical and electrical
areas,
other
than
mechanical engineer
building
and
broad
concepts.
'
you
If
Yet,
described
stated
as
the
type
of
known,
that
locks
the
basic
amount
of
that
cost into the
project, and there is very little that you can do
As
the
the basic functional arrangements of the space,
we could tell you within 3% what that load will be. Once
is
by a
about
it.'
a result, dealing with this type of estimate , appropriate
rules of thumb are very useful. (1)
Decision Scenario: Configuration, Superstructure, and exterior
walls
Measure
Question Asked
1) How can one make a more realistic estimation?
a) accurate information about the local
construction market at bidding time.
cost index
conversion factors
b) well predicted inflation rate.
inflation rate
2) Is the system cost higher than average?
system cost per SF
(1)
Nielsen,K.R. "Construction
Cost Management"
78
3) How can the cost be reduced without
degrading the building quality excessively?
a) Are the decisions about space reasonable?
and change of bay size or floor height,
or reduce complexity in form possible?
area of parameter
wall / floor area
b) Is the decision about building subsystems
reasonable?
i) Where can one start to cut down or
to add on the cost?
cost details of
each subsystem
ii) Is there over-design or excessive
complexity of detailing?
iii) Does system quality comply to the
performance criteria?
performance criteria
iv) Does material quality match the
owner's expectation?
unit cost
v) Does system selection take advantage
of the local construction market?
Data Base Required:
1) floor plans, building sections.
2) A profile of the
construction
market
by
building
may be the biggest problem, for the large size
This
systems.
local
of the data base and the needs for constant updating with
fast
construction
changing
prototype system,
frequently
used
the
items.
of
market
of
collection
today.
data
Yet, for the
begin
can
with
Beyond that, there are external data
sources, which provide effective computerized
several
the
cost
data
for
building types. By simple telephone-adapted Equipment
(modem), firms can access these data with reasonably low cost.
3) Library of
building
systems.
A
collection
of
building
T19
elements,
technical
of
elements
superstructure
vertical support, primary and
files
whereas,
of
walls
exterior
items
includes
secondary
a
such
and
framing,
deck;
wall assembly
include
These
finish material, glazing, exterior doors.
example,
For
building- systems.
useful for the selection of
files
used among projects, is very
frequently
should
data
link closely to that of the local construction market.
4) Cost Guidelines.
system
building
each
for
Records of cost distributions
and for various building types can be a good
these
Derived from
references for cost comparison.
records,
office standards may be developed over time.
Decision scenarios on the
can be much simpler in the initial development
is
Yet, it
the decision scenario illustrated above.
to
similar
This
system.
building
other
of
the
from
the
stage
prototype system.
V.3 TOTAL BUILDING ESTIMATE
Descriptions of decision
system
estimates
derived.
subsystem
above,
events.
a
final
Based
subsystem.
input
schematic estimate can be
The value of this estimate is
by
on
in
cost
comparison,
By comparing this estimate with the
cost distribution, typical for
a
particular
building
type,
architects may spot problems.
80
The strength of such a cost estimating
interplay
between
estimate.
For example, in the overall building
of
percentage
the
system
process
that of an average
and
in
the
the total building
estimate,
if
total for the superstructure exceeds
the
building,
this
condition
is
a
warning
uneconomical decisions in the superstructure
that
indication
estimates
lies
to
Therefore, by going back
may cause a problem.
check
the
cost details of superstructure, architects may realize that by
decreasing bay size and floor height, a substantial saving can
be
achieved.
Or,
by
the
examining
example, the marble flooring for all
may
discover
the
reason
floor
finishes,
they
lobbies,
elevator
for
a high dollar cost per square
for
Although marble floors may be desired by the owner, the
foot.
owner must be informed
is
flooring
too
that
such
One
high.
restricting marble flooring only to
level
a
possible
of
solution
first
the
quality
may
floor
for
be
lobby.
Therefore, such a cost analysis process must go back and forth
between
the
building cost
macro
and
and
micro levels, between the total
the
subsystems
costs.
Thus,
the
architect
should not be satisfied with only one design solution, even if
the
design seems aesthetically and functionally satisfactory.
Exploring alternatives is a typical way of
better,
but
also
more
economical
seeking
design
not
solution
noly
for
architects.
Decision Scenario: Total building estimate by building systems
81
Question Asked
measure
1) Doe5 the cost estimate exceed
cost total
the budget ?
2) Is there any economical imbalance
percentage of
in the building estimates?
subsystem cost to
total cost
3) Where might there be the problem?
Data Base Required
building
systems
Cost
should
distribution
be
collected
of
for
a
building
by
a wide range of
projects from luxury to modest and for various building types.
Thus, the comparison of identical cases can be made through
a
complete list of historical records.
82
CONCLUSION
The theme of the study is the
architectural
design
,
planning
the
cost analysis.
systems
not
architectural
only
for
DSS
in
linking office strategy with project
management emphasing on a specific
schematic
process
prototype
system
i.e.
,
This top-down approach ensures that
contains
the
relevant
data
for
design purposes, but also provides the material
for both project management and top strategic planning.
The future direction for the DSS
heading
toward
enhancing
its
development
should
completeness
,
not
by
be
adding
sophisticated life-cycle analysis, but rather establishing its
direct linkage to
management
example,in
regard
evaluation
mentioned
information
to
the
the
strategy
there
which
efficiency of the DSS: the local
are
will
three
greatly
construction
guidelines, and library of building systems.
the
emphasis
level.
sets
of
improve
the
profile,
developed.
should put on the cost guidelines and the local
Furthermore,
,
the DSS will
can
such budget planning can impact
fee negotiation and manpower scheduling.
manner
cost
Among the three,
construction profile, so that a system of budget planning
be
For
information requirements for cost
above,
requirements
on
eventually
grow
Folllowing in such a
and
expand
into
an
information system with real strategic impact.
83
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