Construction Practices (CE-211)

Construction Projects and Methodologies

Engr. Dr. Muhammad Haseeb Alvi

UNIVERSITY OF MANAGEMENT
AND TECHNOLOGY LAHORE
 Construction Industry
• The construction industry is one of the largest industries,
historically accounting for about 10% of the nation’s
gross national product (GDP) and employing some 10
million workers.
• It is widely recognized that construction as a discipline is
a combination of art and science.
• Understanding the technical aspects of construction is
extremely important, it is also essential that construction
professionals have knowledge of the business and
management aspects of the profession. Close observation
and participation in actual construction projects is very
valuable in obtaining an understanding of the construction
process as well. 2
 Construction Industry
Construction Contractors:
• Companies and individuals engaged in the business of
construction are commonly referred to as construction
contractors (or simply contractors) because they operate
under a contract arrangement with the owner.
Construction contractors may be classified as general
contractors or specialty contractors.
• General contractors engage in a wide range of
construction activities and execute most major
construction projects. When they enter a contract with an
owner to provide complete construction services, they are
called prime contractors.
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 Construction Industry
Construction Contractors:
• Specialty contractors limit their activities to one or more
construction specialties, such as electrical work,
plumbing, heating and ventilating, or earthmoving.
• Specialty contractors are often employed by a prime
contractor to accomplish some specific phase of a
construction project. Since the specialty contractors are
operating under subcontracts between themselves and the
prime contractor, the specialty contractors are referred to
as subcontractors.

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 Construction Industry Divisions
• The major divisions of the
construction industry consist of
building construction (also called
“vertical construction”) and heavy
construction (also called “horizontal
construction”).
• Building construction, as the name
implies, involves the construction of
buildings. This category may be
subdivided into public and private,
residential and non-residential building
construction. FIGURE 1-2. Distribution of U.S.
• Heavy construction includes new construction volume.
highways, airports, railroads, bridges,
canals, harbors, dams, and other major
public works. 5
 Construction Process
Project Development and Contract Procedures
• The major steps in the construction contracting process
include bid solicitation, bid preparation, bid submission,
contract award, and contract administration.
• However, before the bidding process can take place, the
owner must determine the requirements for the project and
have the necessary plans, specifications, and other
documents prepared. These activities make up the project
development phase of construction.
• For major projects, steps in the project development
process include:

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 Construction Process
Project Development and Contract Procedures
I. Recognizing the need for the project.
II. Determining the technical and financial feasibility of the
project.
III. Preparing detailed plans, specifications, and cost estimates
for the project.
IV. Obtaining approval from regulatory agencies. This involves
ascertaining compliance with zoning regulations, building
codes, and environmental and other regulations.
• For small projects, many of these steps may be accomplished
on a very informal basis. However, for large or complex
projects this process may require years to complete.
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 Construction Process
How Construction is Accomplished
• The principal methods by which facilities are constructed
are illustrated in Figures 1–5 to 1–9. These include:
 Construction employing an owner construction force.
 Owner management of construction.
 Construction by a general contractor.
 Construction using a design/build (turnkey) contract.
 Construction utilizing a construction management
contract.

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 Construction Process
• Many large industrial organizations, as well as a number of
governmental agencies, possess their own construction forces.
Although these forces are utilized primarily for performing repair,
maintenance, and alteration work, they are often capable of
undertaking new construction projects (Figure 1–5).

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 Construction Process
• More frequently, owners utilize their construction staffs to manage
their new construction (Figure 1–6). The work may be carried out
by workers hired directly by the owner (force account), by specialty
contractors, or by a combination of these two methods.

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 Construction Process
• Construction by a general contractor operating under a
prime contract is probably the most common method of
having a facility constructed (Figure 1–7).

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 Construction Process
• However, two newer methods of obtaining construction
services are finding increasing use: design/build (or
turnkey) construction and construction utilizing a
construction management contract.
• Under the design/build or turnkey construction concept
(Figure 1–8), an owner contracts with a firm to both
design and build a facility meeting certain specified
(usually, performance oriented) requirements. Such
contracts are frequently utilized by construction firms that
specialize in a particular type of construction and possess
standard designs which they modify to suit the owner’s
needs.
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Construction Process

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 Construction Process
• Since the same organization is both designing and
building the facility, coordination problems are minimized
and construction can begin before completion of final
design. (Under conventional construction procedures it is
also possible to begin construction before design has been
completed. In this case, the construction contract is
normally on a cost-reimbursement basis. This type of
construction is referred to as fast-track construction.)
• The major disadvantages of the design/build concept are
the difficulty of obtaining competition between suppliers
and the complexity of evaluating their proposals.

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 Construction Process
• Construction of a facility utilizing a construction
management contract (Figure 1–9) is also somewhat
different from the conventional construction procedure.
Under the usual arrangement, also known as Agency
Construction Management, a professional construction
manager (CM) acts as the owner’s agent to direct both the
design and construction of a facility.
• Three separate contracts are awarded by the owner for
design, construction, and construction management of the
project. This arrangement offers potential savings in both
time and cost compared to conventional procedures, as a
result of the close coordination between design and
construction.
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 Construction Process
• However, opponents of the method point out that the
construction manager (CM) typically assumes little or no
financial responsibility for the project and that the cost of
his/her services may outweigh any savings resulting from
improved coordination between design and construction.
• There is another, less common form of construction
management contract known as Guaranteed Maximum
Price Construction Management. Under this arrangement,
the construction manager guarantees that the project cost
will not exceed a specified amount. Under this procedure,
which entails a certain amount of contractor risk, the
construction contract is also normally held by the
construction manager.
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Construction Process

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 Codes and Regulations
• Projects constructed in most areas of the United States must comply
with a number of governmental regulations. These include building
codes, zoning regulations, environmental regulations, and contractor
licensing laws, among others.
• Building codes, which are concerned primarily with public safety,
provide minimum design and construction standards for structural
and fire safety. As the name implies, such codes apply only to the
construction of buildings.
• In the United States, the Board of Fire Underwriters in 1905
published a Recommended National Building Code, which
provided minimum standards for fire protection and structural
safety. This code, later known as the Basic/National Building Code,
published by the Building Officials and Code Administrators
International, was the only nationally recognized building code for a
number of years.
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 Codes and Regulations
• Other major building codes later published include the
Uniform Building Code published by the International
Conference of Building Officials and the Standard
Building Code published by the Southern Building Code
Congress International.
• In 1994 these three model code groups jointly formed the
International Code Council (ICC) to publish a single set of
model construction codes. Some of the International
Codes since published include the International Building
Code and the International Residential Code (which
governs the construction of one- and two-family
dwellings).
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 Codes and Regulations
• The International Code Council has also published a number of
other International Codes, including a plumbing code, a mechanical
code, and an electrical code. However, most U.S. electrical
construction is commonly governed by NFPA 70: National
Electrical Code, published by the National Fire Protection
Association under the auspices of the American National
Standards Institute (ANSI).
• In most cases, a building permit must be obtained before
construction of a building can begin. After a permit is issued, the
local building department will inspect the project at designated
points during construction. The scheduling of these inspections may
pose problems for the contractor and often results in construction
delays. When utilities are not available at the construction site,
additional permits may be required for power plants, water wells,
water treatment plants, sewage treatment plants or septic tanks, and
similar facilities. 20
 Zoning, Environmental, and Other Regulations
• Zoning regulations, which control land use, limit the size,
type, and density of structures that may be erected at a
particular location. Some typical zoning classifications
include commercial, residential (with specified density),
industrial, office, recreational, and agricultural.
• Zoning classifications are normally designated by a
combination of letters and numbers. As an example, the R-
4 zoning classification might represent residential housing
with a maximum density of 4 units per acre. In order to
construct a facility not conforming to the current zoning, it
would be necessary to obtain a change in zoning or an
administrative exception.
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 Zoning, Environmental, and Other Regulations
• Environmental regulations protect the public and environment by
controlling such factors as water usage, vehicular traffic,
precipitation runoff, waste disposal, and preservation of beaches and
wetlands.
• Large projects, such as new highways and airports, waste disposal
facilities, major shopping centers, large industrial plants, large
housing developments, and athletic centers, may require preparation
and approval of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
describing and quantifying the effect the project will have on the
environment.
• The preparation of an EIS is a complex, time-consuming, and
expensive task which should be undertaken only with the assistance
of a professional experienced in such matters. If municipal utility
services are not available at the project site, additional permits may
be required for water treatment plants, wells, sewage treatment, and
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similar facilities.
 Zoning, Environmental, and Other Regulations
• Safety regulations are designed to protect both
construction workers and the public. In the United States,
almost all industries, including construction, are governed
by the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970
administered by the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA). However, states are permitted to
adopt more stringent safety regulations if desired.

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 Reducing Construction Costs
• Some of the best opportunities for construction cost
savings occur in the design process even before
construction begins.
• Some design factors that can reduce construction costs
include the use of modular dimensions, grouping
plumbing and other equipment to minimize piping and
conduit runs, incorporating prefabricated components and
assemblies, utilizing economical materials (eliminating
“gold plating”), and employing new technology.
• Injecting constructability considerations into the design
process is one of the advantages claimed for the use of the
construction management contract arrangement.
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 Reducing Construction Costs
• Some ways in which productivity can be increased and
costs minimized during construction include:
 Good work planning.
 Carefully selecting and training workers and managers.
 Efficiently scheduling labor, materials, and equipment.
 Properly organizing work.
 Using laborsaving techniques, such as prefabrication
and preassembly.
 Minimizing rework through timely quality control.
 Preventing accidents through good safety procedures.

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 Quality Management
• It has long been recognized that in all construction projects steps
must be taken to ensure that the constructed project meets the
requirements established by the designer in the project plans and
specifications.
• More recently, the terms quality management (QM) and quality
assurance (QA) have been adopted to include all aspects of
producing and accepting a construction project which meets all
required quality standards. Quality management includes such
activities as specification development, process control, product
acceptance, laboratory and technician certification, training, and
communication.
• Quality control (QC), which is a part of the quality management
process, is primarily concerned with the process control function.
Since the contractor has the greatest control over the construction
process, it has been found that quality control is most effective when
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performed by the contractor.
 Quality Management
• Since the results of virtually all construction processes are
products which vary over some statistical distribution,
statistical methods can be used for such purposes as:
 Ensuring that all elements of the work have an equal chance
of being included in test samples.
 Verifying that test samples taken by the contractor and by
other parties come from the same population.
 Analyzing the variations in the test results of material and
processes sampled.
 Establishing acceptable levels of variation in sample results.
 Developing a payment schedule which rewards or penalizes
the contractor depending on the level of quality attained in the
constructed product.
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 Safety and Health
• Construction is inherently a dangerous process. Historically,
the construction industry has had one of the highest accident
rates among all industries.
• In the United States, concern over the frequency and extent
of industrial accidents and health hazards led to the passage
of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, which
established specific safety and health requirements for
virtually all industries, including construction. This act is
administered by the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA).
• As a result, management concern has tended to focus on
OSHA regulations and penalties. However, the financial
impact of a poor safety record is often more serious than are
OSHA penalties. 28
 Safety and Health
• The following construction operations have been found to
account for the majority of serious construction injuries:
 Concrete construction, especially construction of
formwork, placing concrete into formwork, and failure of
formwork during construction.
 The erection of prefabricated trusses, precast concrete
elements, and structural steel.
 The construction and operation of temporary facilities
including scaffolding, construction plants, lifts, and
storage facilities.
 Working from elevated positions resulting in falls.
 Construction equipment operations.
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