Construction Productivity A Practical Guide for Building and Electrical Contractors

by Rojas, Eddy

• ISBN13: 9781604270006
• ISBN10: 1604270004
• Edition: Illus.
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-11-01
• Publisher: J. Ross Publishing

Summary

Construction Productivity offers some of the best productivity studies commissioned by ELECTRI International: The Foundation for Electrical Construction, that were selected, coordinated, and monitored by a number of the most progressive contractors in the electrical industry and performed by outstanding scholars from top U.S. universities. Topics include measuring labor productivity, establishing a field benchmarking program, dealing with stacking of trades, understanding and managing schedule acceleration and compression, understanding the relationships between absenteeism, turnover and labor productivity, negotiating loss of labor efficiency, developing field incentive programs, diminishing job stress in construction supervisors, and recommended practices for productivity enhancement. All specialty and general contractors will find value in this practical book.

Author Biography

Dr. Eddy M. Rojas is Professor of Construction Management at the University of Washington, where he is the Graduate Program Coordinator and the Executive Director of the Pacific Northwest Center for Construction Research and Education. He is an internationally recognized scholar in construction engineering and management. Dr. Rojas has published numerous papers in professional journals and conference proceedings and is also the developer and facilitator of the Virtual Community of Construction Scholars. His research interests are modeling, simulation, and visualization of construction engineering and management processes; engineering education; and construction economics.
 

Table of Contents

Preface	p. ix
About the Editor	p. xi
Web Added Value	p. xiii
Measuring Labor Productivity	p. 1
Introduction	p. 1
Why Does Labor Productivity Matter?	p. 2
A Labor Productivity Model for Construction	p. 3
Measuring Labor Productivity at Different Levels	p. 8
Conclusions	p. 30
Benchmarking Field Operations	p. 33
Introduction	p. 33
Fundamental Concepts of Benchmarking	p. 34
Key Field Benchmarking Elements	p. 39
Field Benchmarking Process	p. 43
Implementing Field Benchmarking	p. 53
Field Benchmarking Procedure	p. 61
Learning through Field Benchmarking	p. 69
Conclusions	p. 73
Stacking of Trades	p. 75
Introduction	p. 75
Previous Studies on Overcrowding, Overmanning, and Site Density	p. 76
Understanding Stacking of Trades Issues	p. 79
Quantitative Analysis	p. 84
Model Validation	p. 94
Application of the Model	p. 104
Conclusions	p. 110
Understanding Schedule Acceleration and Compression	p. 111
Introduction	p. 111
The Effects of Schedule Acceleration	p. 113
Reducing the Economic Impact of Acceleration	p. 116
Calculating Inefficient Work Hours	p. 122
Conclusions	p. 134
Managing Schedule Acceleration and Compression	p. 137
Introduction	p. 137
Selecting the Least Disruptive Labor Option	p. 139
Negotiating with the Owner to Mitigate Constraints	p. 139
Maintaining Proper Documentation	p. 140
Strategies for Mitigating Planned Schedule Acceleration	p. 144
Strategies for Mitigating Unplanned Schedule Acceleration	p. 148
Conclusions	p. 157
Absenteeism and Turnover	p. 159
Introduction	p. 159
Previous Studies	p. 160
Understanding Absenteeism and Turnover	p. 166
Quantitative Analysis	p. 190
Recommendations	p. 197
Conclusions	p. 200
Negotiating Loss of Labor Efficiency	p. 201
Introduction	p. 201
Making the Case for Labor Inefficiencies	p. 202
Educating the Owner	p. 205
What to Document and When	p. 211
Pricing and Tracking Changes	p. 216
Owner and Designer Education	p. 219
Claim Presentation Principles	p. 221
Case Study	p. 224
Conclusions	p. 235
Field Incentive Systems	p. 237
Introduction	p. 237
Incentives across Industry Boundaries	p. 238
Characteristics of Change	p. 241
Designing an Incentive System	p. 242
Basics to Specifics: Designing an Incentive System for Field Labor	p. 248
Customization of the Incentive Program	p. 258
Implementing and Monitoring the Incentive Program	p. 261
Productivity and the Incentive Program	p. 266
Conclusions	p. 268
Job Stress in Construction Supervisors	p. 271
Introduction	p. 271
Demographic Questionnaire	p. 272
Job Content Questionnaire	p. 273
Occupational Stress Inventory	p. 274
Life Stressors and Social Resources Inventory	p. 276
Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator	p. 277
Personal Behavior Pattern	p. 278
Conclusions	p. 279
Recommended Practices for Productivity Enhancement	p. 281
Introduction	p. 281
Focus Groups	p. 282
Productivity Concepts	p. 283
Conclusions	p. 302
Bibliography	p. 305
Formulas	p. 309
Index	p. 315
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