EPJ0040 Project Management in Construction
Spring 2013
Logical Framework Exercise – Solar Decathlon Project
Objectives of this exercise:

to develop a good project

to stimulate thought about the relationships between project elements (goal, purpose,
outputs, activities, inputs, assumptions, indicators, etc.)

to demonstrate the logical framework as a structured project initiation tool
Background:
The Solar Decathlon is an international competition organized by the US Department of Energy
among universities to design, construct and operate the most energy efficient, solar powered
houses. It began in the USA in 2002 and has since spread to Europe and, most recently to China.
The next competitions will be held in Datong, China in August 2013, in California, USA in
October 2013, and in Versailles, France in June / July 2014. Entries to all these events are already
closed. (Entry proposals for France 2014 closed in December 2012).
You can find out more about these events at:
http://www.solardecathlon.gov/index.html
http://www.solardecathlon2014.fr/en
and the website for a project by the Czech Technical University which will compete in California in
October 2013 is here: http://www.airhouse.cz/en/
What you must do:
Form a group with 3-6 members and use the Logical Framework tool (below) to develop your
project.
When you have completed your logical framework, please upload it to the Moodle site for our
EPJ0040 course.
We will then all collaborate to derive a single, really good project outline (to take further?)
Emlyn Witt
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EPJ0040 Project Management in Construction
Spring 2013
Logical Frameworks – Quick Reference
The Logical Framework approach was developed by the United States Agency for International
Development in the 1960s and is a widely used project management tool within the
international aid community. It can help designers of projects think logically about:
 what the project is trying to achieve (the purpose),
 what things the project needs to do to bring that about (the outputs)
 what needs to be done to produce these outputs (the activities), and
 how the achievement of the purpose will feed into the wider strategies of the funding
organisation (the goal).
Objectives
Measurable
indicators
Means of
verification
Quantitative ways of
measuring or
qualitative ways of
judging timed
achievement of goal
Cost-effective
methods and
sources to
quantify
or assess
indicators
PURPOSE:
The immediate
impact
on the project area or
target group i.e. the
change or benefit to
be achieved by the
project
Quantitative ways of
measuring or
qualitative ways of
judging timed
achievement of
purpose
Cost-effective
methods and
sources to
quantify
or assess
indicators
OUTPUTS:
These are the
specifically
deliverable
results expected from
the project to attain
the purpose
Quantitative ways of
measuring or
qualitative ways of
judging timed
production of outputs
Cost-effective
methods and
sources to
quantify
or assess
indicators
GOAL:
Wider problem the
project will help to
resolve
ACTIVITIES:
These are the tasks
to
be done to produce
the outputs
Emlyn Witt
INPUTS:
This is a summary of
the project budget
Financial out-turn
report as agreed in
grant agreement
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Important
assumptions
(Purpose to Goal)
External conditions
necessary if achieved
project purpose is to
contribute to reaching
project goal
(Outputs to purpose)
Factors out of project
control which, if
present,
could restrict progress
from outputs to
achieving project
purpose
(Activity to output)
Factors out of project
control which, if
present,
could restrict progress
from activities to
achieving outputs
EPJ0040 Project Management in Construction
Spring 2013
Blank Framework
Objectives
Measurable
indicators
Means of
verification
Important
assumptions
GOAL:
PURPOSE:
(Purpose to Goal)
OUTPUTS:
(Outputs to purpose)
ACTIVITIES:
Emlyn Witt
INPUTS:
Page 3 of 3
(Activity to output)