Explicit and tacit knowledge in construction of passive housing, knowledge models in Lithuania / Išreikštinės ir neišreikštinės žinios pasyviųjų namų statyboje, žinių modeliai pasaulyje ir Lietuvoje

Optimization of building maintenance expenditure becomes really an urgent issue in Lithuania. People prefer a warmer housing and show interest in recent decisions of engineering systems. They are looking for the best decision of heating costs optimization to price down heating costs not 10-20%, but a number of times. The results of passive houses scientific research as well as models of passive housing are discussed in the article. They ascertain and compare features of passive housing construction in different countries which depends on climatic conditions. Most countries support traditional housing. Remarkable thermal resistance and cost efficient maintenance of passive housing may be reached through an integrated approach of using proper architectural, constructional and engineering resolution, as well as applying the most relevant material usage and elaborating and accumulating practical knowledge. Lithuania, as well as other countries in the world, reveals that the concept of tacit knowledge still lacks sufficient attention within the construction industry, despite the fact that proper understanding and management of this resource is of immense importance for the achievement of better organizational performance. As the initial step towards the management of tacit knowledge, this paper examines the factors affecting tacit knowledge generation and utilization in the construction industry. Santrauka Lietuvoje ypač aktualus tampa pastato eksploatacinių išlaidų optimizavimas. Žmonės renkasi šiltesnį būstą, domisi naujausiais inžinerinių sistemų sprendimais. Išlaidų šildymui sumažinti ne 10–20 %, bet bent kelis kartus, ieškomas geriausias šildymo išlaidų optimizavimo būdas. Straipsnyje aptarti pasaulyje atlikti pasyvaus būsto moksliniai tyrimai, bei pasyvaus namo modeliai. Išaiškinti ir palyginti įvairių šalių pasyvių namų statybos ypatumai, priklausomai nuo klimato sąlygų. Daugelyje šalių yra palaikomos ankstesnės statybų tradicijos. Puikių pasyviojo namo šiluminės varžos ir ekonomiškumo rezultatų galima pasiekti kompleksiškai taikant optimalius architektūrinius, statybinius ir inžinerinius sprendimus, siekti geresnių medžiagų panaudojimo, tobulinti ir kaupti praktikos įgūdžius statyboje. Jei rinkos sąlygos leidžia, turimas žinias reikia struktūrinti. Pastebima, kad Lietuvoje ir pasaulyje statybos pramonės viduje išreikštinių ir neišreikštinių žinių sąvokos vis dar stokoja pakankamo dėmesio, neatsižvelgiant į tai, kad tinkamas supratimas ir turimų išteklių vadyba turi didžiulę reikšmę siekiant geresnių tendencijų projektavime, o taip pat neišreikštų žinių generavime ir panaudojime statyboje. Raktiniai žodžiai: pasyvusis būstas, išreikštinės žinios, neišreikštinės žinios, energijos taupyma

Are we catering to the construction industry KM requirements?: A literature synthesis

The concept of Knowledge Management is now familiar to the construction industry and various attempts are being made for the effective management of knowledge in the industry. This paper addresses the importance of people factor and tacit knowledge in construction and examines the current focus of knowledge management initiatives to find out the alignment with the industry requirements. Labour and knowledge intensive nature of industry is revealed with challenging aspects of construction performance. Dominant hard model of human resource management is uncovered and finally the mismatch between the current focus and industry KM requirements is unearthe

The role of tacit knowledge in the construction industry: towards a definition

The construction industry is perceived as one of the knowledge-based value creating sectors of the economy; however, it faces many challenges, especially in terms of performance, due to its intrinsic nature. Different knowledge-based solutions have been proposed in the past to overcome this problem. However, the process-based solutions, enhancing personalisation strategies and interactions between construction workers to generate and share tacit knowledge, would be much more relevant to overcome KM problems in construction organisations. As the initial step towards the management of tacit knowledge, this paper examines the nature and importance of tacit knowledge in the construction industry. Based on research findings a definition for tacit knowledge is synthesised to: understanding, capabilities, skills and the experiences of individuals; often expressed in human actions in the form of thoughts, points of view, evaluation and advice; generated and acquired through past experiences, individuals, and repositories; utilised for the benefit of individual and organisational development

Knowledge management and organisational performance: a literature review

Although knowledge management is considered as a very recent phenomenon, research in to knowledge and the management of the knowledge within the business context has grown dramatically over the last few years, in a number of different directions. As a result, a great deal about, what knowledge is and the ways in which knowledge is managed, have been addressed by many authors. However, despite the growing body of theory, there are relatively few knowledge management texts that make an explicit connection between knowledge and performance. Knowledge is not always utilised and that utilised knowledge does not always result in improved performance. Thereby measurement of performance is of utmost importance for an organisation to ensure the successful implementation of knowledge management exercise. This paper is aimed at reviewing literature on both knowledge management and organisational performance. Based on the review it was underlined knowledge management as a strategy which leads to performances. The paper highlighted the extreme importance of looking into the performance measures which can be deployed in knowledge organisations and recommends further research to be carried out on this regard

Importance of tacit knowledge towards company performance and its relevance to construction

Valuable human and knowledge resources will be wasted unless organisations make better use of these prime resources. Tacit knowledge in particular is still considered to be relatively unexplored and proper understanding and management of this resource is of immense importance for better organisational performance. The research addresses the importance of people factor and tacit knowledge in construction and examines the contribution towards the company performance and achievement of competitive advantage through a thorough literature review. Principle insights of dominant views on organisational resources are discussed to highlight the strategic nature of tacit knowledge. Labour and knowledge intensive nature of the construction industry is revealed and finally the importance and the significant role of people factor and tacit knowledge in construction are highlighted. This provides the basis for more empirical research on finding importance of tacit knowledge towards organisational performance in the construction industry

Improving quality and consistency of dissertation assessment

During the last decade, there has been increasing calls for Higher Education to improve standards, increase the quality of assessment, and for greater accountability of lecturers. It is recognised that consistency in assessment is even more important where assessment is through one large piece of work, such as a dissertation, and where the assessment outcome will have a significant impact on the final grade of students. In this context, this paper outlines the initial literature findings and results of an exercise associated with mechanism used in assessing undergraduate dissertations. This project aims to identify good practices for dissertation assessment, in an attempt to improve the quality and consistency of assessment. Several initiatives were undertaken to improve the quality and consistency of existing dissertation programme drawing from the outcomes of the study

Managing the construction worker in a knowledge environment

Valuable human and knowledge resources will be wasted unless organisations make better use of these prime resources. Construction knowledge workers and their tacit knowledge in particular is still considered to be relatively unexplored and proper understanding and management of this resource is of immense importance for better organisational performance. The paper stresses the importance of knowledge worker and tacit knowledge in construction and examines the contribution towards the company performance. Two dimensions in construction knowledge worker management are highlighted. This provides a valid basis to embrace the concept of knowledge worker and a knowledge culture at all levels within construction organisations

Knowledge management research within the built environment: Research methodological perspectives

As built environment is of major importance to all societies and economies, it is essential that the discipline advances as rapidly and rigorously as possible. Only by use of appropriate methodologies and methods of research, the body of knowledge for construction can be established and advanced with confidence. Research is always executed in context and it is vital to give careful consideration to the research methodology at the outset of the research. This paper discusses available research philosophies and methodologies, while highlighting the main facets of the arguments on their relative characteristics. Issues that need to be considered when selecting the most appropriate approach and research methods when undertaking research in built environment context are outlined. In highlighting above, the paper explains and justifies the selected research strategy for a performance oriented knowledge management research in built environment context. Social constructionism stance in terms of epistemological undertakings and idealistic approach under the ontological assumptions with value laden purposes are suggested together with the deployment of multiple exploratory case studies approach and triangulation techniques

Recognising the importance of "Tacit" skills of the construction worker in a knowledge environment

Construction knowledge workers and their tacit knowledge skills in particular are still considered to be relatively unexplored. Hence, proper understanding and management of this resource is of immense importance for better performance of the industry as a whole. The paper stresses the value of the knowledge worker and their tacit knowledge skills in construction and highlights the importance of skills, training and development of construction workers. Selecting right human resource policies and ensuring knowledge supportive culture are highlighted as two dimensions in construction knowledge worker development. This paper argues that this provides a valid basis to embrace the concept of knowledge worker and the importance of tacit knowledge skills at all levels within construction organisations