Advancing The Competitiveness And Efficiency Of The U S Construction Industry

Construction productivity-how well, how quickly, and at what cost buildings and infrastructure can be constructed-directly affects prices for homes and consumer goods and the robustness of the national economy. Industry analysts differ on whether construction industry productivity is improving or declining. Still, advances in available and emerging technologies offer significant opportunities to improve construction efficiency substantially in the 21st century and to help meet other national challenges, such as environmental sustainability. Advancing the Competitiveness and Efficiency of the U.S. Construction Industry identifies five interrelated activities that could significantly improve the quality, timeliness, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability of construction projects. These activities include widespread deployment and use of interoperable technology applications; improved job-site efficiency through more effective interfacing of people, processes, materials, equipment, and information; greater use of prefabrication, preassembly, modularization, and off-site fabrication techniques and processes; innovative, widespread use of demonstration installations; and effective performance measurement to drive efficiency and support innovation. The book recommends that the National Institute of Standards and Technology work with industry leaders to develop a collaborative strategy to fully implement and deploy the five activities

Modularization A practical, hands-on guide to offsite preassembly, beginning with the project as just a concept gleam in the CEO’s eye and winding all the way through implementation at the construction site. Modularization is a philosophy change! And along with that change, comes the need to understand the implementation requirements and project mindset adjustments that impact and influence all aspects of the modular project. To accomplish this, the book provides a complete (from beginning to end) identification and evaluation of the differences that make a modular project unique, starting with the very basics in terms of definitions and setting the groundwork of expectations by identifying benefits and challenges. Then, because the journey is as important as the destination, the reader is guided through the various project phases in a manner that reflects how they would be addressed in the workplace. From the very earliest identification of concepts, through early assessment and selection of the optimal choice to be finally carried into detailed design, the reader is acquainted with each phase of the development process, including explanations and relevant suggestions for many of the questions and issues that typically come up. A perfect reference for professional and technical leaders when developing the early, critical planning phases of modular projects, this guide offers useful examples and details on the fundamentals required to get a modular project started correctly and keep it on track. And, for those whom this is not their first foray into modular project management, this guide includes suggestions, examples, and/or lessons learned to make the subsequent module projects easier to implement. Recognized industry experts Michael Kluck and Dr. Jin Ouk Choi have authored this guide to modularization that is ideal for owners, contractors, project management, engineers, project controls, and procurement—in fact, anyone interested in improving current construction project management practices. In addition, its thought-provoking examples and project case studies provide the perfect platform for its instructional use in teaching modular concepts. Written from the perspective of both the Client/Owner and the EPC Contractor, this guide provides useful information needed for initial project management setup and technical details useful to working functional groups within the project. As such, it is truly a universal guide that can provide personnel at all levels within the project with the information needed to make project implementation more seamless. This book is written in terms of the large-scale industrial modularization project, but the steps and process are equally applicable to small-scale projects and projects outside the industrial construction realm. Some of the topics covered in this guide include: The basics (to set a basis for major topic presentations) Module configurations (“good, bad, and ugly”) A deep dive into modularization business case Module team and project interactions Module execution planning and timing Success factors, pitfalls and avoidance A walk through the “module project” A modular project case exercise – tying it all together Standardization – the next step What the future holds

It’s often said that the construction professional has to be a “jack of all trades, and master of all.” This text covers a wide range of subjects, reflecting the breadth of knowledge needed to understand the dynamics of this large and complex industry. This edition includes updated chapters on planning and scheduling, a new chapter addressing linear scheduling methods, material regarding the historical background of construction as a profession, and includes an Instructor Resource of solutions to the end-of-chapter review exercises. This text has become a standard course text at many universities. The first four editions have enjoyed wide success as an introductory treatment of the subjects which are critical to success in the construction industry. This fifth edition preserves the features that have been most appreciated by its users throughout the years, and adds suggestions provided by instructors and students through formal surveys and informal feedback to the authors.

A panel of experts appointed by the National Research Council assessed the scientific and technical work of the Building and Fire Research Laboratory (BFRL) of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The scope of the assessment included the following criteria: (1) the technical merit of the current laboratory programs relative to the current state of the art worldwide; (2) the adequacy of the laboratory facilities, equipment, and human resources, as they affect the quality of the laboratory technical programs; and (3) the degree to which the laboratory programs in measurement science and standards achieve their stated objectives and desired impact.

The offsite and modular market is continuing to grow. This book builds on the success of a number of initiatives, including formative findings from literature, research and development and practice-based evidence (success stories). It presents new thinking and direction from leading experts in the fields of: design, process, construction, engineering, manufacturing, logistics, robotics, delivery platforms, business and transformational strategies, change management, legislation, organisational learning, software design, innovation and biomimetics. This book is particularly novel and timely, as it brings together a number of cogent subjects under one collective ‘umbrella’. Each of these chapters contain original findings, all of which culminate in three 'Key Learning Points' which provide new insight into the cross-cutting themes, interrelationships and symbiotic forces that exist between each of these chapters. This approach also provides readers with new contextualised understanding of the wider issues affecting the offsite market, from the need to embrace societal challenges, through to the development of rich value-laden solutions required for creating sector resilience. Content includes a balance between case studies and practice-based work, through to technical topics, theoretical propositions, pioneering research and future offsite opportunities ready for exploitation. This work includes: stakeholder integration, skills acquisition, new business models and processes, circularity and sustainable business strategies, robotics and automation, innovation and change, lean production methodologies and new construction methods, Design for Manufacturing and Assembly, scaled portfolio platforms and customisability, new legal regulatory standards and conformance issues and offsite feasibility scenario development/integration.

The construction industry is one of the key economic sectors in Europe, but it was hit hard by the financial crisis. In the euro zone, employment in construction declined by a quarter since 2008. These difficult times raise important questions about the future path of the construction industry. The Briefing describes the various aspects of renovation and maintenance activities in the EU, and explores their potential to become the main growth driver for the European construction market.

The design, construction, operation, and retrofit of buildings is evolving in response to ever-increasing knowledge about the impact of indoor environments on people and the impact of buildings on the environment. Research has shown that the quality of indoor environments can affect the health, safety, and productivity of the people who occupy them. Buildings are also resource intensive, accounting for 40 percent of primary energy use in the United States, 12 percent of water consumption, and 60 percent of all non-industrial waste. The processes for producing electricity at power plants and delivering it for use in buildings account for 40 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. The U.S. federal government manages approximately 429,000 buildings of many types with a total square footage of 3.34 billion worldwide, of which about 80 percent is owned space. More than 30 individual departments and agencies are responsible for managing these buildings. The characteristics of each agency's portfolio of facilities are determined by its mission and its programs. In 2010, GSA's Office of Federal High-Performance Green Buildings asked the National Academies to appoint an ad hoc committee of experts to conduct a public workshop and prepare a report that identified strategies and approaches for achieving a range of objectives associated with high-performance green federal buildings. Achieving High-Performance Federal Facilities identifies examples of important initiatives taking place and available resources. The report explores how these examples could be used to help make sustainability the preferred choice at all levels of decision making. Achieving High-Performance Federal Facilities can serve as a valuable guide federal agencies with differing missions, types of facilities, and operating procedures.