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Estimating Location-Adjustment Factors for Conceptual Cost Estimating Based on Nighttime Light Satellite Imagery

Zhang, Su; Bogus, Susan M.; Lippitt, Christopher D.; Migliaccio, Giovanni C. (2017). Estimating Location-Adjustment Factors for Conceptual Cost Estimating Based on Nighttime Light Satellite Imagery. Journal Of Construction Engineering And Management, 143(1).

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Abstract

A fundamental process in construction cost estimation is the appropriate adjustment of costs to reflect project location. Unfortunately, location adjustment factors are not available for all locations. To overcome this lack of data, cost estimators in the United States often use adjustment factors from adjacent locations, referred to as the nearest neighbor (NN) method. However, these adjacent locations may not have similar economic conditions, which limit the accuracy of the NN method. This research proposes a new method of using nighttime light satellite imagery (NLSI) to estimate location adjustment factors where they do not exist. The NLSI method for estimating location adjustment factors was evaluated against an established cost index database, and results show that NLSI can be used to effectively estimate location adjustment factors. When compared with NN and other alternative proximity-based location adjustment methods, the proposed NLSI method leads to a 25-40% reduction of the median absolute error. This work contributes to the body of knowledge by introducing a more accurate method for estimating location adjustment factors which can improve cost estimates for construction projects where location adjustment factors do not currently exist. (C) 2016 American Society of Civil Engineers.

Keywords

Construction Industry; Costing; Industrial Economics; Project Management; Remote Sensing; Location-adjustment Factors; Nighttime Light Satellite Imagery; Construction Cost Estimation; Project Location; United States; Economic Conditions; Nlsi Method; Cost Index Database; Median Absolute Error Reduction; Construction Projects; Nearest Neighbor Method; Urbanization Dynamics; Proxy; Construction Costs; Estimation; Construction Management; Pricing; Cost And Schedule

Project Risk Factors Facing Construction Management Firms

Park, Kyungmo; Lee, Hyun Woo; Choi, Kunhee; Lee, Seung-hyun. (2019). Project Risk Factors Facing Construction Management Firms. International Journal Of Civil Engineering, 17(3), 305 – 321.

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Abstract

Very little is known about the project risk factors that affect construction management (CM) firms, which often struggle due to a lack of effective risk management practices. This study investigates the risk factors critical to project execution in CM firms and ranks them using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) methods. Interviews with executives at the top 15 Korean CM firms are carried out to identify major risk factors in the CM sector, and a survey is used to develop priority ranking. We find that payment delays and project delays are the two most critical risk factors affecting CM firms because of (1) lack of communication between headquarters and field offices, (2) shift of responsibility from headquarters to a field office, (3) absence of regular monitoring of project progress, and (4) ex-post management practices. The findings presented in this study should assist CM firms in establishing more robust risk management practices, thereby improving firms' profitability, project performance, and customer satisfaction.

Keywords

Analytic Hierarchy Process; Customer Satisfaction; Factor Analysis; Risk Assessment; Risk Management; Analytic Hierarchy Process (ahp); Construction Management; Construction Management Firms; Failure Mode And Effects Analysis; Korea; Management Practices; Risk Factors; Risk Management Practices; Industry

Disruptive Information Exchange Requirements in Construction Projects: Perception and Response Patterns

Abdirad, Hamid; Dossick, Carrie S.; Johnson, Brian R.; Migliaccio, Giovanni. (2021). Disruptive Information Exchange Requirements in Construction Projects: Perception and Response Patterns. Building Research And Information, 49(2), 161 – 178.

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Abstract

The current proliferation of custom information exchange initiatives in projects disrupts information exchange routines of design and construction firms. This paper investigates how firms perceive, interpret, and act upon information exchange requirements that do not align with their existing routines. This case study examines a construction project for which the owner specified highly custom requirements for digital production and delivery of project submittals. Using ethnographic methods, the project parties' existing routines and their patterns of perceiving and responding to the requirements were identified. These patterns showed that the parties perceived disruptions to the existing dispositions and rules that guided their routines and shaped their performance across projects. The project parties used a combination of deductive, inductive, and abductive reasoning mechanisms to interpret the requirements, expose the inefficiencies associated with their workflows, and set new ground rules for action. The grounded propositions in this study hold that the limited opportunities for inductive reasoning and reflective assessment of workflows in projects can press project parties into identifying alternative workflows through cognitive search and abductive reasoning. This, in turn, results in highly situated, temporary, and fragmented workflows that are not durable and effective to contribute to refinement of existing information exchange routines.

Keywords

Construction Industry; Abductive Reasoning; Cognitive Searches; Construction Projects; Design And Construction; Ethnographic Methods; Inductive Reasoning; Information Exchange Requirements; Information Exchanges; Organizational Routines; Risk; Bim; Implementation; Innovation; Information Exchange; Disruptive Requirements; Routines; Construction Companies; Cognitive Ability; Project Engineering; Reasoning

College of Built Environments’ unique Inspire Fund aims to foster research momentum in underfunded pursuits college-wide. And it’s working.

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Fred Aguayo

Assistant Professor, Department of Construction Management 

Fred is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Construction Management (CM) at the University of Washington (UW). Prior to joining UW in September 2021, he was an Assistant Professor at Texas State University in San Marcos, TX where he taught and performed research in the areas of concrete materials, durability, and sustainable infrastructure construction. He received his PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin in 2016. 

Dr. Aguayo is interested in research application that contribute to facilitating the implementation of sustainable and novel cement-based systems in infrastructure and building applications such as alternative cement binders, supplementary cementing materials (SCMs), recycled aggregates, and high performing concretes. His research group focuses on evaluating and characterizing deterioration processes in new and existing cementitious materials, while also developing test methods to predict and enhance their performance and durability in the field. He primarily examines durability-related issues in cement-based materials such as corrosion, carbonation, ASR, sulfate attack, and early-age volume changes. 

Dr. Aguayo is a well-established researcher with over 13 years of experience and over $1.2M in funded research projects as either PI or Co-PI since 2016. His work has been supported by both private industry and public agencies including LarfargeHolcim, Texas DOT, Minnesota DOT, New Mexico DOT, National Research Road Alliance (NRRA), and the Portland Cement Association (PCA). He is an active member of the American Concrete Institute and ASTM International, and participates in several committees related to concrete durability (ACI 201) and material science of cementitious systems (ACI 236).

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