Design and design management in building projects : a review

Design is that activity, largely executed by consultants and inhouse disciplines, which translates the aspirations of the Client, into a series of documents, both drawn and written, which in combination can be used to procure the manufacture, assembly, commissioning and operation of both building elements and the project as a whole. Management of the design process is planned to ensure that the project requirements have been correctly interpreted in an agreed brief, with a consistent format of technical verification reports and design analysis audit trail, as set out in the project plan. This paper, based on a literature review, examines traditional design management and design and construction as an integrated system. The paper is an introductory part of an ongoing project to map design and design management practices in architectural and civil engineering practices

Experiential learning from PFI road projects in the UK

Design is that activity, largely executed by consultants and inhouse disciplines, which translates the aspirations of the Client, into a series of documents, both drawn and written, which in combination can be used to procure the manufacture, assembly, commissioning and operation of both building elements and the project as a whole. Management of the design process is planned to ensure that the project requirements have been correctly interpreted in an agreed brief, with a consistent format of technical verification reports and design analysis audit trail, as set out in the project plan. This paper, based on a literature review, examines traditional design management and design and construction as an integrated system. The paper is an introductory part of an ongoing project to map design and design management practices in architectural and civil engineering practices

Project finance and the private finance initiative (PFI)

Private Finance is one method of financing large-scale, capital intensive projects, in which traditionally only the cash flows generated by the project serve as the source of loan repayment and only the project assets serve as collateral for a non-recourse loan. An important aspect of this form of project finance is that the risks are borne not only by the sponsors but are shared by different types of investors such as equity holders, debt providers, and quasi-equity investors. Therefore, because the risks are shared, the criterion of a project's suitability for financing is whether it is able to stand alone as a distinct legal and economic entity with project assets, project related contracts, and project cash flows separated from those of the sponsors. This form of project financing, since it relies on the security of cash flows, requires a detailed awareness, identification, assessment, and quantification of all the risks. Consequently, a comprehensive and heuristic risk management process is essential for the success of the project. The lenders and other providers of equity and debt play important roles in the implementation of the risk management plan and hence affect the likely overall project success. The structure of this financing and investment on a particular project enables all project stakeholders to take a long-term perspective on the project, thus permitting the various contractors and investors in the project to work together with a common financial interest in creating a whole-of-life, cost-effective project that achieves full client satisfaction and performance to requirements. This article is limited to an examination of the project finance issues in PFI Road Projects in the UK. It presents the conclusions from the detailed analysis of three major UK PFI Road Projects

Financing road projects by private finance initiative : current practice in the UK with a case study

The long term sustainable provision of new and high quality maintained road stock is vitally important, especially in times of economic constraint such as Europe is currently experiencing. The Private Finance Initiative (PFI) is one method of financing such large-scale, capital intensive projects. An important aspect of this form of financing projects is that the risks are borne not only by the sponsors but are shared by different types of investors such as equity holders, debt providers, and quasi-equity investors. Consequently a comprehensive and heuristic risk management process is essential for the success of the project. The proposition made within this paper is that the PFI mechanism provides a Value for Money and effective mechanism to achieve this. The structure of this PFI finance and investment on a particular road project therefore enables all project stakeholders to take a long-term perspective. This long term perspective is reflected in the mechanism of a case study of UK – Class A trunk roads which are examined in detail. This paper presents a novel solution to a modern dilemma

Insurance issues and design and build construction contracts

One of the primary functions of a construction contract is to allocate certain risks to one or other of the parties. One of the parties is liable to the other if a particular kind of loss or damage occurs placing all the risk of that loss or damage on the other party. Some risks have enormous size in financial terms and the party to whom a risk is allocated may want to cover it by means of insurance. According to many construction contracts the contractor shall upon and subject to the conditions carry out and complete the Works in compliance with the Contract Documents, using materials and workmanship of the quality and standards therein specified. The aim of this study is to examine the insurance issues in Design and Build (D & B) construction projects constructed in accordance with FIDIC Red Book, I.C.E. (Institution of Civil Engineers) Conditions of Contract and JCT (Joint Contracts Tribunal) 05 Design and Build Contract DB and explain what Force Majeure is within the context of Construction Contracts