Risk Factors Assessment Considering Change Degree for Mega-projects

AbstractRecently, techniques in the construction industry have rapidly developed, and alongside these changes there have been demands for the complexification, advancement and enlargement of the technical level and size. Thus, the risks are becoming increasingly diverse in the process of progress on construction projects. It is necessary to minimize the impacts of negative factors on the projects through the investigation and management of risk factors before they occur. But, the investigation and analysis of impacts are difficult due to the interdependent relationships among risk factors, and mega projects, in terms of project units, are on the rise. It is necessary to investigate risk factors considering the relationship among many changes. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate risk factors and to evaluate the importance among the risk factors of a construction project while simultaneously considering the risk impact and change impact. If, prior to the beginning of construction work, risk factors with great impacts are managed based on the analysis results, they are expectedly applied as index to support the successful execution of a construction project

Determining the Construction Costs for Basic Type to Estimate the Sale Prices of New Multi-Family Housing Projects

Over the past two decades, the South Korean government has been regulating the supply and prices of multi-family housing (MFH) projects to stabilize the national population. Recently, active research has been conducted on the construction costs for basic type (CCBT) calculation to formulate appropriate policies. However, related previous studies have focused on improving the predictability of the construction cost in early stages based on existing house sale prices. In contrast, the CCBT calculation approach mainly requires policy implementation in practical fields, without considering the requirements of academics. Therefore, it is necessary to academically discuss a different approach for the estimation of sale prices of new MFH in the construction stage. This study aimed to calculate the CCBT to determine the appropriate sale price for new MFH. We selected four sample projects to calculate the CCBT, and a weighted average method was applied to correct regional deviations. Case application, which is a comparison between the CCBT-based sale price and actual case-based sale price, produced cost values in the range of 98–104%, and they included additional expenses. The results of this study demonstrate an extremely high level of cost estimation accuracy according to the Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering study. Furthermore, this study can facilitate the stabilization of national housing by determining an appropriate sale price and can contribute to cost management research conducted during the construction phase

Application of Association Rule Mining and Social Network Analysis for Understanding Causality of Construction Defects

A construction defect can cause schedule delay, cost overrun and quality deterioration. In order to minimize these negative impacts of construction defects, this paper aims to analyze the causality of construction defects. Specifically, association rule mining (ARM) is used to quantify the interrelationships between defect causes, and social network analysis (SNA) is utilized to find out the most influential causes triggering generation of construction defects. The suggested approach was applied to 2949 defect instances in finishing work. Through this application, it was confirmed that the proposed approach can systematically identify and quantify causality among defect causes

Development of a Program Definition Rating Index for the Performance Prediction of Construction Programs

Program management is the structured and strategic process of managing multiple projects at a high level to maximize benefits. The essentials of programs include high costs and long implementation periods, and thus, the negative impacts caused by the failure of program management are more significant and greater than that of a project. Therefore, to achieve high program performance, it is essential for program management to be well defined during the early stages. However, the existing research is mainly focused on the performance prediction methodologies for projects, while the research pertaining to programs has concentrated on identifying the qualitative critical success factors (CSFs). Thus, this study developed a methodology for predicting the program performance. Forty-five CSFs were identified herein from literature review and expert interviews, then grouped through factor analysis. In addition, the Program Definition Rating Index (PgDRI) was developed by calculating the weights of the proposed CSFs through structured equation modeling in order to evaluate the quantitative program performance. For validation, the PgDRI was applied to three in-progress cases, and the PgDRI scores were compared with the actual performance of each case. The PgDRI developed in this study can contribute to the body of knowledge pertaining to program management by quantifying the performance management of a program. In addition, the PgDRI can be utilized in the performance management of a program in terms of the cost and schedule by allowing practitioners to apply the PgDRI repeatedly to the major decision-making processes during the early stages of a program