CE-609

Handout # 1 Introduction

Important key terms used in management:

Direction: Instructions about how to do something.

Supervision: To be in charge of a piece of work/labor and making sure that
everything is done correctly, safely etc.
Resources: Something that is required in order to do work. They include:
money, equipment, materials, information, skills, knowledge or
any other item likely to be in limited supply.
Goal: A desired end. Something that you hope to achieve, e.g. quality
of the building work, time scale of project, etc.
Time scale: The period of time that it takes for a project to happen or be
completed
Planning: The act or process of setting out goals intended to be achieved,
and what course of action should be used in achieving the goals;
Setting targets/time limits/course limits
Controlling: Comparison of the actual performance of a process against the
original
It can also be defined as methods by which it is possible to
establish and determine if work is being carried out as planned. A
comparison is then made against the plans and variations are
noted and analyzed;
There are three possible outcomes for each operation in
construction work:
a. It either remains the same;
b. It is better; or
c. It is worse
Forecasting: Looking into the future to try and assess the possible trend of
events, which are likely to influence the conditions of the working
situation, so that steps may be taken to overcome any difficulties
before or as they arise.
Motivating: The reason why somebody does something that involves hard
work and effort or the reason somebody behaves in a particular
way;
An incentive or encouragement given to induce hard work, effort
and high productivity.

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Coordinating: The act of making parts of something, groups of people etc. work
in an eminent and organized way. (Integrating)
Communicating: Act of exchanging information, news, ideas, feelings thoughts etc.
with other people. Making known your ideas, feelings, and
thoughts etc., known to other people, so that they understand
them.
Organizing: Arranging for something to happen or to be provided.
Management: The direction and supervision of resources towards the
achievement of a defined goal within a time scale.
Controlling a business industry
Theory of Management: This can be defined as the general principles of controlling
a business-industry, tested and contrasted with practice.

What is Project?
A project involves a series of complex or interrelated activities and tasks that consume
to achieve some specific objectives. It has to be completed within a set of
specifications under a limited budget.
A project may involve a single unit of one organization or may extend across
organizational boundaries, as in case of joint ventures and partnering.
A project is regarded as key to accomplish the business strategy of any organization,
as it is the means by which strategy is implemented.
A project is, therefore, not an isolated event but a realization of objectives through
concerted efforts of different participants in various phases of the project life cycle.
What is Construction Project?
The project works associated with the civil works such as buildings, infrastructure and
industrial planning and construction, are termed as construction projects.
Phases of a Construction Project
The phases can be defined as the top-level breakdown of an entity, and a construction
project is characterized by a number of phases or stages during its life cycle, though
there are three broad categories; the pre-project phase, project phase and the post-
project phase.
Pre-Project phase
The three sub-phases under Pre-Project Phase are discussed in brief.
1. Initiation or idea phase or inception:
The pre-project phase aims to identify all possible projects based on the
examination of needs and the possible options. This stage is also sometimes referred

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to as initiation phase or idea phase. A possible example would be a municipal authority
concerned with the growing parking problems near a prominent city milestone. The
municipal authority may explore options to address the parking problem. The options
shall be evaluated against the mission and vision of the municipal authority and the
limits to which funding is available with the municipal agency.
2. Project concepts:
The initiation phase aims to sort out all the mentioned information to identify some
project concepts. As many project concepts as possible are identified, and using some
selection procedure (such as the benefits for the organization that intends to employ
them) in line with the objectives of the organization, several project concepts are
selected. The project concept phase of a new construction project is most important,
since decisions taken in this phase tend to have a significant impact on the final cost.
It is also the phase at which the greatest degree of uncertainty about the future is
encountered.
3. Feasibility:
This phase aims to analytically appraise project concepts in the context of the
organization, taking into consideration factors such as needs of the organization, the
strategic charter of the organization, and the capabilities and know-how of the
organization. With this information, the decision makers should be able to decide
whether or not to go ahead with the project concept proposed.
The feasibility phase can be broadly characterized as:
a) Conceptual
For the selected project concepts, the preliminary process diagrams and layouts are
prepared. Design basis or design briefs are also formulated.
b) Project strategy
The strategy in terms of selection of an in-house design team or the contractor's design
team is deliberated upon. The resources required and their availability is discussed.
Further' the number and type of contractors required for the execution of project is also
formulated. Besides all these, the project strategy also contains the overall project
schedule, the project scope and the overall project plan.
c) Estimate
A preliminary estimate is prepared with reasonable accuracy by first breaking down
the project into work packages/elements. The estimates may be prepared for each of
the work packages using the established historical database and the resources
estimated for each of the work packages.
d) Approval
Approval consists of financial evaluation, identifying details of funding and their timing,
capital/revenue, etc., besides evaluation of options.

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The feasibility phase has sub-phases such as:
Market feasibility analysis (to confirm the viability of the project concept from a
purely marketing point of view),
Technical analysis (to demonstrate whether the project is technically feasible and
to estimate the cost of project concept),
Environmental analysis (to ensure that the project does not go against eco-logical
issues and regulations),
Financial feasibility analysis (to establish whether the project once materialized
would generate profits the organization).
It is only after the first three sub-phases are found to be positive that a financial
feasibility analysis is performed. If the feasibility analysis is positive, one can go ahead,
but if it is negative, the project can be abandoned and eliminated from the 'project
concept' definition.
The feasibility phase is terminated when a decision maker decides to transform the
project concept into a project. At this point, in the case of a plant, the capacity is
decided, the locations are chosen, the financing is agreed upon, the overall budget
and schedule determined, and a preliminary organization is established.

Some of the tasks related to pre-project phase are summarized below:

1. Assigning a task force to conduct preliminary studies for the proposed project
2. Studying the users' requirements
3. Defining the technical specifications and conditions that determine the quality
of the required work
4. Studying how to secure funds to finance the project
5. Estimation of the project cost and duration
6. Approval of the project cost
7. Studying and determining the technical specifications of the materials
8. Studying the impact of the project on the safety and health of the community
and environment
9. Establishing criteria for the selection of project location
10. Advising members of the task force (consultant, engineering, etc.) on the
approved funds for the project
11. Establishment of milestones for the review and approval
12. Describing the responsibilities and authority of project parties
13. Pre-establishing a system to prepare for 'change order' procedures
14. Establishment of design criteria for structural specifications
15. Conducting a feasibility study of the proposed project
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Project Phase
The project phase is also referred to as project implementation phase, project
realization or project materialization phase. It can be broken down into five sub-phases
as:
1. Basic design phase
The activities in this phase are carried out by an engineering organization or an
architect. During this phase, the documentation for tendering and contracting the
physical construction or procuring equipment is prepared. It involves performing basic
design calculation, preparing tender drawings, preparing design and material
specification, etc. The changes, if any, from the initial scope of work are recorded.
Regular design and specifications review meeting is one of the important features of
this stage of the project.
2. Detailed design phase
Detailed design may be carried out in-house or through contracting. In some cases,
such as 'item rate' contract, it may be required to carry out the detailed design before
starting the tendering process. However, in some cases, such as 'design build contract
or 'lump sum' contract, the tendering process can start immediately after the
completion of basic design and specifications.
3. Tendering phase
Tenders are issued if it is decided to execute the project through contracting. The
preparation of clear and precise documents is essential to eliminate any dispute about
scope of work at the contract stage. The tender preparation includes preparing the
specifications and agreement conditions, preparing bill of quantities and estimating the
contract value. It also includes issuing of tender document to the interested applicants,
holding meetings, receiving bids and evaluating them. After the bids are evaluated,
recommendations are made for the successful contractor and approvals sought to
place a contract, and finally the contract is awarded.
4. Execution or construction phase
Immediately after the contract is awarded, construction phase begins. In cases where
the detailed drawings and designs were not available as part tender document, the
contractor proceeds with the preparation of detailed design and drawings, and follows
it up with the construction. In some cases, the preparation of detailed design and
construction may proceed simultaneously with milestone-wise deliverables for both
design and construction. After the construction work has started, the progress is
closely monitored and regular meetings held with the contractor to asses cost and
schedule. The variations in cost, quality and schedule are noted and corrective
measures are taken to bring them to desired level.

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5. Closure or completion phase
In this phase, the major equipment are tested and commissioned, and the constructed
facility in totality is handed over to the client for use. Client issues approval of and a
completion certificate after all the work has been checked and found to be in order.
Some of the typical tasks performed in the project phase are listed below.
Design-related tasks:
a) Arranging the documents of the construction contract
b) Qualifying of design professionals
c) Performing technical and financial analysis of offers from competing contractors
d) Selecting the design team
e) Negotiating with the qualified design professionals
f) Providing the qualified design professionals with the needed information
g) Monitoring the design progress of the proposed project
h) Evaluating the design and making the necessary decisions
i) Updating design documents
j) Reviewing design documents
k) Conducting design peer review
l) Monitoring design quality
m) Updating drawings and specifications to reflect the requirements of location or
environment
n) Using technical standards (e.g., Indian standard, American standard, British
standard, etc.) to describe materials quality and construction methods

Tendering and Construction related tasks:

a) Pre-qualifying contractors
b) Holding a pre-bid conference and providing the necessary information
c) Negotiating contract price with qualified contractor
d) Reviewing at frequent intervals documents submitted by the contractor (e.g.,
work schedules, manpower qualifications, equipment)
e) Interpreting and clarifying ambiguities in the contract documents
f) Taking necessary precautions to prevent the loss of project data
g) Making necessary decisions against contractor claims during project
implementation

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 h) Monitoring and controlling implementation methods, cost, schedule and
contractor productivity
i) Enforcing quality and safety principles during project implementation
j) Assigning personnel to supervise, monitor and control the implementation of
quality
k) Quality control program
l) Establishing quality assurance program
m) Enforcing the quality assurance program
n) Conducting regular visits to project site
o) Establishing acceptance criteria
p) Receiving record (as-built) contract drawings and specifications

Post Project Phase

The post-project phase is also known as the turnover phase or the start-up phase.
During this phase, the responsibility of the materialized deliverable is transferred from
the engineers, architects and/or the general contractors to the owners.
The two general phases under post project phase are discussed below in brief.
1. Utilization phase
During this phase, the client or the end user makes use of the finished project. The
performance of the constructed facility is monitored at regular intervals, and
maintenance at regular intervals is performed.
2. Close down phase
Once the project has lived its intended life, it is dismantled and disposed of. The entire
cycle explained under different phases is repeated.
It is very difficult to have a clear-cut demarcation among the different phases. This is
truer in today's context when there is a tendency to cut down the project duration, thus
requiring considerable overlapping in different phases of a project.