UEBQ3443_CM_Lec_2_Notes
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4 basic stages or phases of a construction project
 Concept and feasibility studies
 Engineering and design
 Procurement and construction
 Start up, implementation and operation or utilization
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Simple and short explanation
(a) Conceptual stage
 Client identifies the need for the item of construction
 Client appoints and briefs consultants
 Consultants study the client’s requirement, propose an outline of the design and assess the
feasibility of the project
(b) Design stage
 Concept of the project is further developed
 Prepare the production information and contract document
 Call tenders
(c) Construction stage
 Prepare production programmes
 Construction carried out on the site
(d) Operation & maintenance stage
 The completed building or works is maintained, repaired or altered as required, over the course
of its life
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Life cycle of a project or stage of development of a project – Other Classification
Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB)
Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA)
1. Inception
1. Preparation
2. Feasibility
2. Concept design
3. Strategy
3. Developed design
4. Pre-construction
4. Production
5. Construction
5. Specialist design
6. Engineering services commissioning
6. Construction (on and off-site)
7. Completion handover and occupation
7. Use and aftercare
8. Post-completion review/project close-out
report
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Concept and feasibility studies
 Conceptual analyses
 Technical and economic feasibility studies
 Environmental impact report
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Engineering and Design
(a) Preliminary engineering & design
 Stresses on architectural concept
 Evaluation of technological process alternatives
 Size and capacity decision
 Comparative economic studies (choice whether IBS or conventional) types of construction
method
 Eg, in a high rise building:
 Determines number and spacing of the stories
 General layout of services and occupied floor spaces
 General functional allocations
 Steel or reinforced concrete structure
(b) Detailed Engineering & Design
 Process of breaking down, analyzing and designing the structure and elements to comply with
recognized standards of safety and performance
 Designs will be in the form of a set of explicit drawings and specifications that will tell the
constructors exactly how to build the structure at site
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Types of Construction Method
(a) Cast In-situ Method
 construction on site
 formwork is used as mould where wet concrete is poured into a temporary system
(b) Composite Method
 Partially pre-fabricated
 Eg: steel roof truss, wall frames
(c) Fully Pre-Fabricated method
 all elements pre-fabricated in the factory
 can involve the assembly of precast elements such as floor slabs, in-filled walls, bathrooms,
staircases, etc
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Procurement
 Contracting and sub-contracting.
 Obtaining materials and equipment required to construct the project.
* Both dependent on the contractual approach taken for the particular project
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Construction
 Designer’s plans and specifications are converted into physical structures.
 Involves the organization & coordination of all the resources for the project. Ex. Labor, construction
equipment, money, etc to complete the project within time, cost & quality specified by the designer
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Start up and implementation
 To make sure all components function well together as a total system.
 May involve testing, adjusting and correcting the major electrical and mechanical systems so that
they perform at their optimum level
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Operation and Utilization
 Utilisation of structure
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Management in construction can be divided into two distinct levels:
1. Management at the company (corporate) level – [Project Manager]
2. Management at project level – [Construction Manager]
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Management of construction projects differs from that in other industries due to the unique nature of
the construction industry:
1. Heterogeneous and fragmented firms
2. Size of firms
3. Size of the industry
4. Regulator of the economy
5. Characteristics of projects and workforce
6. Ease of entry to the industry
7. Separation of design and production
8. Speculative demand
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Heterogeneous and fragmented firms
 Construction industry comprises of a group of heterogeneous and fragmented firms, meaning;
 there are large differences between firms in terms of size and scope of work, and
 within firms there is often diversity in activities
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Size of firms
 The construction industry is made up of mostly small firms.
 The small and medium sized firms however accounts for only around 20-30 % of the total
construction works
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Size of the industry
 The size of the construction industry is large: 3 to 14 % of a nation’s GDP and employs between 512 % of the total workforce
 These figures for GDP and labour employed would be much higher if other closely related
industries, especially construction material manufacturers, are considered
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Regulator of the economy
 Due to its large size and its wide influence over other related industry, the government has very
often used the construction industry as a regulator of the national economy.
 This done in the following ways:
 Direct intervention as a major client for the industry
 Indirectly through the manipulation of interest rates to control private sector building demand
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Ease of entry to the industry
 There are few constraints to setting up a contracting or property/housing development business.
 The authorities have imposed mandatory registration for contractors as well as developers, but the
conditions for registration are relatively easy compared to the consultants
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Separation of design and production (For traditional procurement)
 Traditionally design is separated from production, making the management of the construction
process difficult and complicated; reasons being:
 conflict of interests between the designers and constructors
 poor communication and coordination
 The above difficulties can be overcome by using Design & Build method of procurement
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Speculative demand
 The demand for construction projects is called ‘derived’ demand; meaning it is derived from the
need for buildings or infrastructure in which to live, play, work and to manufacture, store and
transport goods, etc
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Characteristics of projects and workforce
 projects are large discrete units,
 works are carried out over relatively long duration and having variety of work force,
 projects are constructed away from where the firms are located,
 projects undertaken by any one firm are geographically dispersed and need many specialist input,
 majority of projects are designed and tailor-made to a client’s requirements
 there is wide variability in the types of construction projects and man power requirements,
 prices for projects are established through competitive tendering; meaning the products are sold
before they are produced,
 each individual project frequently constitutes a significant proportion of a firm’s workload, and
 projects are built based on speculative demand
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The contractual relationships among parties
 The contractual relationships among the parties involved in a project depend on the procurement
method used for the project
 Procurement methods can be broadly classified under the following:
 Traditional approach
 Design-and-Build – Turnkey, BOOT and PFI (PPP)
 Management Type – (i) Construction management and (ii) Management contracting
 Partnering
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Traditional Method
 This is based upon rigid separation of design and construction
 The promoter, usually after undertaking a feasibility study, appoint a team of consultant (led by
architect/engineer) to undertake the detail design.
 The design team prepares detailed drawing, specifications and often Bill of Quantities. The tender
documents are prepared and the contract awarded, usually to the contractor with the lowest bid.
 Traditionally, field construction does not begin until the architect‐engineer has completed and
finalized the design. This sequence is still predominant in the industry and is referred to as the
design‐bid‐construct procedure.
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Contractual and Function Relationship – Traditional Method
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Design and Built
 Usually one building contractor or a construction company to take full responsibility and carry
sole liability for the design and construction of a building.
 The contractor has its own design section with architects and engineers as company employees.
 In other cases, however, the (a) architect‐engineer can be a contractor’s corporate affiliate or (b)
subsidiary, or (c) the contractor can enter into a joint venture arrangement with an independent
architect‐engineer firm for a given project or contract.
 The contractor provides substantial input into the design process on matters pertaining to materials,
construction methods, cost estimates, and construction time schedules. These lead to cheaper and
faster completion.
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When to use D & B?
 Early delivery of project is required
 Project is of technical complexity
 There is the need for early start on site
 Price certainty (usually fixed lump sum) is required prior to production
 Construction project is prestigious and hence single point responsibility is required
 Economy (time, cost, function, quality, value for money) is required.
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Contractual and Function Relationship – D & B Method
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Turnkey
 The Turnkey contractor is made fully and totally responsible for the planning, design, construction
and supervision.
 A turnkey contract is similar to a design & Built method.
 The difference lies in the greater range of responsibilities that the contractor undertakes on behalf
of the owner under a turnkey arrangement.
 For example, a turnkey contract often includes such services as land selection and acquisition,
project financing, project equipage procurement, and leasing of the completed facility.
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Management Type
 The term construction management is applied to the provision of professional management
services to the owner of a construction project with the objective of achieving high quality at
minimum cost.
 Construction management does not include design or construction services per se but involves
management direction and control over defined design and construction activities.
 Construction management services can be performed for the owner for a stipulated fee by a range
of firms, including design firms, contractors, and professional construction managers.
 The Construction Management approach is practiced in two distinct variations
 With Agency Construction Management (Construction Management), the construction manager
operates throughout the project as the agent of the owner to manage the entire project in the best
interest of the owner and does not perform any of the construction work.
 With Construction Management At Risk (Management Contracting), the construction manager
will, at some relatively early stage of design, provide cost and schedule commitments to the owner
and take on the responsibility of completing the job within the time frame and cost stated.
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Partnering
 Partnering is not a procurement choice per se; rather it is an enacted philosophy that can be applied
to other procurement forms.
 It is a concept based on co-operative efforts for mutual benefits.
 Its use is widely in other countries and in other economic sectors.
 The application of partnering as an approach in construction procurement may lead to improved
performance in the construction industry
 In partnering, efforts are made to design for each project a problem-finding and problem-solving
team comprising of members from both parties and recognises and honours the objectives of all
parties, thus creating synergy for project success
 Eg, BRT-Sunway Line is public-private partnership (PPP) between Prasarana Malaysia Berhad
(Prasarana) and Sunway Berhad