Managing Performance in Construction

Construction is the country's single largest manufacturing industry. However, it is a sector that lacks benchmarks against which to gauge performance. This modern thinking intends to provide insight to construction productivity improvement. Taking cues from manufacturing sectors such as computer, automobile and chemical companies, this book will apply the lessons learned to building construction. Supported with a range of pedagogical devices, the book will be of equal value to construction managers and civil engineers, and students with different learning methods.

Table of Contents:
Preface xiii Chapter 1 Indicators of an Industry in Transition 1 1.1 Breaking Interoperability Barriers 1 1.2 Construction Becomes Sustainable 2 1.3 E-Construction Management 3 1.4 Linking Up to Smart Construction Equipment 5 1.5 Highly Successful Engineering Managers 5 Chapter Review 8 Bibliography 9 Chapter 2 Productivity in the Spotlight 13 2.1 Measuring National Productivity 13 2.2 Basic Relationships Affecting Productivity 15 2.3 Factors Related to Process Productivity 17 2.3.1 Necessary Work Resources 17 2.3.2 Job Fitness 19 2.3.3 Where the Rubber Meets the Road: The Process 19 2.3.4 Value-Added and No-Value-Added Outputs 24 2.3.5 Control Mechanisms for Keeping Processes on Target 26 2.4 Taxonomy of Work Time 32 2.5 Gauging Construction Process Efficiency 37 2.5.1 Scientific Measurements of Individuals at Work 38 2.5.2 Measuring Value-Added Work 41 2.5.3 The Continuous Time Study 43 2.5.4 Work Sampling 47 2.5.5 Sensor-Based Work Measurement 51 2.6 Identifying Critical Impact Factors 53 2.6.1 Understanding the Cause of Inefficiency 53 2.6.2 Functions for Corrective Interventions 57 2.6.3 Critical Success Factors 58 2.6.4 Bipolar Success Factor Analysis 62 Summary 62 Chapter Review 66 Bibliography 70 Chapter 3 Cornerstones of Efficient Site Operation 75 3.1 Return of the Master-Builder 75 3.1.1 Separating Design from Construction Expertise 76 3.1.2 The Rise of Constructability Expertise 77 3.1.3 The Emergence of Intelligent Building Data Models 79 3.2 Planning the Supply, and Resupply, of the Construction Process 79 3.2.1 Modeling the Construction Input Supply Chain 80 3.3 Top-Down Frameworks for Managing Projects 83 3.3.1 Organizational Structures That Facilitate Integration 84 3.3.2 Sequencing the Plan, Start to Finish 86 3.4 Bottom-Up Quantitative Planning 87 3.4.1 Defining the Process Model 88 3.4.2 Computing Process Production 88 3.4.3 Optimizing the Process 97 3.5 Process Synchronization in the Supply Chain 101 3.5.1 Costly Two-Way Ripples in the Supply Chain 101 3.5.2 Just-in-Sequence Material Supply 103 Chapter Review 114 Bibliography 117 Chapter 4 Introduction to Simulation and Its Use in Modeling Production Systems 121 4.1 Building Simulation Models 127 Chapter Review 139 Chapter 5 A Case Study: Applying Simulation to Tunnel Construction 143 5.1 Project Background 143 5.2 Preparation Work: Understanding the Construction Process 145 5.2.1 Shaft Construction 146 5.2.2 Tunnel Construction 147 5.3 Developing the Simulation Model 153 5.3.1 Assumptions and Input 153 5.3.2 Simulation Model 156 5.4 Running the Model and Deriving Results 164 5.5 Analyzing the Operation 165 Chapter Review 168 Chapter 6 Competencies That Drive the Company 173 6.1 Generic Work Competencies for the Twenty-First Century 174 6.2 Managerial Competencies of Productive Organizations 175 6.2.1 Hierarchical Structure of Construction Companies 175 6.2.2 Diverse Expectations of a Precast Plant Manager 178 6.2.3 Core Competencies of a Precast Plant Manager 182 6.3 Gaining Competency through Learning and Training 187 6.3.1 The Learning Organization (LO) 188 6.3.2 Taxonomies for Learning and Training 189 6.3.3 Teaching and Learning around the Circle 194 6.3.4 The Learning Curve 196 6.3.5 The Relearning Curve 200 6.4 Job-Oriented Training and Competency Development 204 6.4.1 Personal Learning Strengths Dictate Progress 204 6.4.2 Designing a Confidence-Building Process 206 6.5 Becoming a Learning Organization (LO) 209 Chapter Review 214 Bibliography 216 Chapter 7 Productivity in a Healthy and Safe Work Environment 223 7.1 Two Health Stresses that Affect Productivity 223 7.2 The Engine That Drives—and Limits—Human Work 225 7.2.1 A Look Into the ‘‘Boiler Room’’ 225 7.2.2 Calculating Sustainable Energy Use 227 7.3 Ergonomics in Construction 230 7.3.1 Biomechanics 231 7.3.2 The Endangered Human Spine 233 7.3.3 Hand-Arm and Whole-Body Vibrations 236 7.3.4 Factors Leading to Hearing Loss 239 7.3.5 Impact of Heat and Cold Stress on Productivity 243 7.4 A Modern Debilitating Disease: Job Stress 247 7.4.1 Modeling Stressors 248 7.4.2 The Coping Mechanism 249 7.5 The Silent Epidemic: Workplace Harassment 250 7.5.1 What Are Mobbing and Bullying? 250 7.5.2 The Common Pattern of Mobbing 251 7.5.3 What Should Employers Do—and Not Do? 253 7.5.4 Sexual Harassment 254 Chapter Review 256 Bibliography 258 Chapter 8 The Complexity of Human Motivation 263 8.1 Background 263 8.2 Behavioral Aspects of the Human Mind 264 8.3 Intrinsic versus Extrinsic Motivation 266 8.4 Maslow's Needs-Based Motivators 266 8.5 Vroom's Expectancy Theory 267 8.6 Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory 274 8.7 Measuring Job Satisfaction 276 8.8 Job Enrichment 278 8.8.1 Enrichment Schemes 280 8.8.2 Designing a Job Enrichment Program 281 Chapter Review 282 Bibliography 283 Chapter 9 Performance Factors of Leaders and Teams 285 9.1 Is a Manager Also a Leader? 286 9.2 Theories about Effective Leadership 290 9.2.1 The Managerial Grid Model 290 9.2.2 Theory X and Theory Y 291 9.2.3 Fiedler's Contingency Model 292 9.2.4 Burns's Transactional and Transformational Leadership Models 295 9.2.5 Hersey-Blanchard Situational Theory 296 9.2.6 Managers with Emotional Intelligence 298 9.3 Power and Problems of Teamwork 302 9.3.1 Team Dynamics 302 9.3.2 Important Team Characteristics 304 9.3.3 Life Cycle of a Working Team 305 9.3.4 Group Dynamics 308 9.3.5 Team Building 311 9.3.6 Planning an Effective Team 313 9.3.7 Launching the Team 317 9.3.8 Tools Used by High-Performance Teams 319 9.4 Basics about Creativity 326 9.4.1 Convergent Thinking 326 9.4.2 Divergent Thinking 327 9.4.3 Left-Brain/Right-Brain Collaboration 328 9.4.4 Attributes of a Creative Individual 329 9.4.5 Exercises to Break-Down Blockers of Creative Thinking 330 Chapter Review 331 Bibliography 334 Chapter 10 Communication: The Nerve System of Construction 339 10.1 Engineering Drawings: The Ancient Communications Medium 340 10.1.1 The Evolution of Models and Blueprints 340 10.1.2 Will It Work? 345 10.1.3 The Internet Revolution 347 10.1.4 Costly Gaps in Electronic Communications 348 10.1.5 On the Communication Trail 351 10.2 Communication Strategies Employed by Organizations 356 10.2.1 Main Functions of Communication 356 10.2.2 Communication as the Enabler of Managerial Functions 356 10.2.3 Strengths and Weaknesses of Various Communication Media 359 10.2.4 The Effect of Distance on Media Selection 361 10.2.5 Matching Media to Meeting Objectives 361 10.2.6 Local Communication Patterns 365 10.3 Logistics of Project Information 369 10.3.1 Interorganizational Information Flow 370 10.3.2 Information Flow on the Project Net 373 10.3.3 Traditional Communication Patterns 374 10.3.4 Agent-Based, Ubiquitous On-Site Communications 377 10.3.5 Improvements in and Opportunities for Wireless Communication 381 Chapter Review 386 Bibliography 388 Chapter 11 Performance Management 395 11.1 Historical Recap of Key Management Concepts 395 11.2 From Measuring to Managing Performance 398 11.3 A Corporation's Balanced Scorecard 400 11.4 Performance Management of the Supply Chain 407 11.4.1 Defining Appropriate Performance Measures 408 11.4.2 Framework for Managing Supply Performance 412 11.5 Performance Management at the Task Level 414 11.5.1 Improvement through Motion Studies 414 11.5.2 Improvement through Intervention Ergonomics 420 Chapter Review 423 Bibliography 425 Appendix 427 Glossary 463 Index 483

About the Author :
Leonhard E. Bernold, Ph.D., Raleigh, North Carolina Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, North Carolina State University. Director of the Construction Automation and Robotics Laboratory, North Carolina State University. Simaan M. AbouRizk, PE, PhD, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; NSERC/Alberta Construction Industry Research Professor, University of Alberta. Executive Board member, Construction Research Institute of Canada.