Bargaining Power Of Supplier Essay Example for Free

Bargaining Power Of Supplier Essay Suppliers barely make any difference to companies involved in shipping line business, especially who are leading players like â€Å"Maersk† in this business. While it may affect to certain extent to small players like Five star shipping company, Varun Shipping company etc. who are struggling to establish within the industry. Many suppliers are such which are borne directly by customers but arranged by shipping lines like pesticide, wooden pallets, container repairs and truck transportation due to corporate contract or link ups of companies with service providers. While there are cases when these same services are borne by shipping lines but then these charges are included in freight rate which would be higher if the suppliers were not arranged by company. â€Å"Maersk† supply service expects a lower result than in 2010 due to lower contract coverage and weaker spot market rates than at the beginning of 2010. Another supply which is related to loading of containers on third party vessels is very important here because this is the only supply where shipping lines have to face the bargaining of suppliers. Not all shipping lines own the vessel and therefore they hire the service of other companies, to load their containers for different destinations. â€Å"Maersk† is the largest container operator in Kandla port. But its own vessels are not operating from Kandla due to drift problem and therefore they hire the services of third party feeder vessels to load its containers till JNPT [Jawaharlal Nehru] port in Mumbai, from where â€Å"Maersk† mother vessels are operating across continents. In this case â€Å"Maersk† may have to pay extra money if demanded by ship operators. While this is not the case with MSC [Mediterranean Shipping Company] which has its own small vessels operating from Kandla to different gulf locations. But if we move to location like JNPT port in Mumbai, the situation is totally different. â€Å"Maersk† vessels are the biggest here operating among other carriers and those small carriers are using slot on â€Å"Maersk† vessels for transporting their cargo. There are other supplies like loading/ unloading of containers from vessel ie, movement of containers to CFS (container freight station) and vessel towing which are provided by port authorized suppliers and companies. Port authority charges fixed amount towards these handling from shipping lines and shipping company charges the same from customers after  adding their profit margin. Bargaining Power of Buyer Buyer is one of the strongest factors in shipping line business. Buyers may be in form of importer or exporter, clearing agent, freight forwarder or manufacturer of goods. Sometimes manufacturer himself acts as an exporter or importer if not, then trader acts on behalf of manufacturer of goods. Container line business is based on two main core factors price and quality of service. Price refers to freight rate at which one container is decided by shipping company to transport from one place to another. Due to much competition in this sector and limited number of operators, bargaining power of buyer has increased in relation to freight price. Almost all shipping lines have service to Jebel Ali (an important transit hub in Dubai) from India, and customer is sure to get very competitive rate for this location from market. For such locations customer are virtually like king but when it comes to transporting cargo to far Europe or America, then this power is transferred to companies operat ing in those regions. Therefore â€Å"Maersk† has strategized the businesses in such a way to get maximum profits from service to odd or far reaching areas and make normal profits from operation to common areas like Jebel Ali. Another factor Service refers to fast processing of documents, bill of lading and prompt loading and movement of containers etc. It is rather difficult for customers to get better quality  of service than getting competitive freight rates. In this world of technology every company is trying to adapt to new technology in their day to day businesses like e-processing of documents and fastest data entry to name a few. â€Å"Maersk† is so technologically advanced in this field, that all its data processing is being done electronically by back office and customers are able to access all information relevant to shipment though dedicated space available on company website. Electronic processes are shipping bills, vessel certificates, freight invoices and bill of lading in encrypted format, once the payment is done by customer either electronically or at â€Å"Maersk† local office. Companies like APL and MSC do have electronic processing systems but are not fully fledged and as a result much of the work is still being done manually. Other sections of buyers which may affect container line business are freight forwarders or clearing agents, with rapid expansion of shipping industry and import/export businesses. Many agents acting as freight forwarders have came up in market to share the profit in form of commission. These agents earn commission by way of collecting excess freight from exporter than charged by shipping lines. It is relatively easy for shipping lines to entertain these agents, so there is no difficulty of approaching different small exporters.

Tourist Beach Resort For Extreme Sports Tourism Essay

Tourist Beach Resort For Extreme Sports Tourism Essay Architecture now days have become very utility oriented due to constraints of the current times. Practicing and producing functional architecture is not at all wrong but the word function itself is very involuntary. Just like machines which are proficient to do and achieve tasks for which they are programmed for but those performed tasks are impassive. One cannot develop any sense of belonging to a space or architecture unless there is something more than function involved into it which provokes the human senses and is capable of fluctuating human emotions and feelings. This thesis is conscious attempts to create functional architecture while keeping in mind the human emotions and sensory intensification. The basic objective is to create spaces which are not categorized by its volume and magnitude rather they should be acknowledged by their spatial experience. These types of experiences are critical particularly for such kind of building program involving leisure of tourism and extre mity of action sports. Incorporating human sensorial characteristic will not only augment the user experience but it will also increase the architectural character of spaces. INTRODUCTION http://2bawards.us/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/extreme-sports.jpg Man is a social animal. This is a clichà © but explains most of the social requirements and demands of human race. Socializing is not just about human interaction with each other but it is also about how a person interacts with and relates to his or her environment. For most of the people an environments starts to become suffocating if they happen to experience the same thing over and over again. Man needs change. It may not be a unvarying or permanent change but the human psychology demands change for some time at least. This type of design project and building typology is most suitable to explore the impacts of architecture on human emotions and moods and then apply it on spaces and over all architecture. As a tourist resort is a kind of a place where people actually come to relax, rehabilitate their energy, enjoy and experience something different. On the other hand extreme games also involve a lot of human emotions like anger, anxiety, fear etc. So for application of the respective research, in my opinion, this building typology is one of the most suitable. Man has managed to come up with many ways to cater to his needs of changing and environment. He called it recreation and leisure. There are two types of leisure: Passive leisure (minimal physical involvement) Active leisure ( optimal physical involvement) Both type of leisure facilities will be a part of program. The facility will incorporate the following: Water sports Extreme games Beach resort Others 1.1-Architecture and psychology: In day to day life we experience different type of situation causing different types of mood swings in us. These experiences come as a surprise to us most of the time. When we get out of our routine and go to an exhilarating activity like some excursion or some stimulating sports we tend to pre determine our moods. We try to be happy and feel happy along with many other positive emotions like thrill, excitement, positive anxiety etc. This can be translated into architecture by incorporating an over lapping field of neurology and studying impact of architecture on human beings. In my understanding architecture and building can be perceived in two ways: Interactive architecture. Interactive architecture is very much program dependant. The practical aspects of the buildings are fulfilled and users movement and functions are catered then its an interactive building. At the most five human senses are considered while designing. Active architecture Every form, space, color, space quality has certain impact on human brain when it interacts with 5 senses.-this is where interactive architecture ends. So we can say every space , form, color has an action on a user . A person reacts to it and hence EXPERIENCES THE TRUE SPIRIT OF THE SPACE. 1.2-Objectives and aims: To enhance architectural experience through sensory fluctuations (Anxiety, Calmness etc) in user using spaces, space formation, colors, textures, heights and other architectural elements. To translate the dynamics of extreme sports in the building form. To provide a platform to people to enjoy and experience such activities for the first time in Pakistan. 1.3-Need Of the project: Help in catering and improving the tourism infrastructure of the country. Studies show that if such spaces and activities are not provided to the youngsters they can indulge themselves in negative activities.(explained further in the next heading) Required in the urban fabric infrastructure of the second only city of Pakistan which is being master planned and this type of activity place has already been marked by the development authorities. Why do people play extreme sports? To get the answer to this question two qualified psychiatrists from CMH were interviewed namely D.Sana Naimat and Dr.Imtiaz Mubasshir.According to them people who are bored of life usually need a kick though everybody has a different genetic structure. They tend to have a reckless behavior if they require a change and they dont get it. Endorphins (hormones which actually makes a person feel good about his own self) are released at a certain heart rate after a person gets a kick according to his or her own genetic structure but usually the kick is in the form of an extreme behavior ,be it ecstasy, suicidal behavior or extreme sports. People tend to deal stress in different patterns usually by changing their environment. Sometimes these patterns are adaptive and sometimes these are maladaptive. So it can be concluded that extreme activities on the whole are a part of human nature and many human beings have the urge to do it in order to act normal and stay calm in daily life. Clients brief: For this project the client is The Ministry of Sports and Culture , Government of Pakistan along with a multinational company. At present Red bull in collaboration with Yamaha and Caterpillar showed interest in the project and presented a feasibility report to TIE. Project Supervision: This project is to be executed in the 3rd phase development of Gwadar which will take place around year 2030. Currently the first phase is almost complete in which the road and other infrastructure of the city is laid out. In 2nd phase utility oriented facilities are to be planned and constructed and in 3rd phase recreation and large scale institutional projects are to be developed and constructed. The client is Ministry of Sports and Culture and it wishes to create a platform for action sports in Pakistan where main and major extreme sports can be played and experienced on one platform under one roof. The project would be under the supervision of GDA(Gwadar development authority). The client wants to execute this project in Gwadar because multinational companies find the projects adequate for the city because of its thriving and hopeful future prospects. USER: The target user for this project is the youth and tourist of the country who enjoys scenic views, nature, and adventure, and likes to deal with challenging situations. Social Objectives: The intent of this project is not only to promote this new form of sports but also to promote and facilitate the tourism of the country. Gwadar has deep sea port and when it will be properly and fully functional it will eventually attract tourist from all over the world and this type of project fits and compliments the urban fabric of the city. It will also become a social spot for the city and the locality. The site falls in the tourism zone (according to the master plan of Gwadar) of the city and this area will become a focal point of tourism and recreational attraction not only for the citizens of Gwadar but also for people coming from other areas and countries. The main aim is to summon the youth under a roof to experience thrilling sporting activities in safe and monitored environment under proper supervision. By providing safe environment accidents can be avoided which happen because of the reckless behavior of youngsters seeking thrill on roads. Different level zones are provided for amateurs and professioals so that every adult and child can enjoy the facility according to his or her potential. The thrill seekers will not have travel to different places to enjoy the thrills of rock climbing on mountains or to the sea shores to enjoy water sports, people no more need to go to urban centers to enjoy the street sports like skate boarding and bmx stunts. This facility has it all under one emblem. Other than generating tourism and sports activities it will also help in strengthening local economy. These sporting events bring all sorts of people together and hence it helps developing some cultural trends and it also helps in promoting a countrys image in this age where world is now a global village. Site Location: Site is location on the Shore of Gwadar Sea in the tourism development zone. Site is towards the west of Koh-e-Batil and on the south of Pishukan road which leads towards the pishukan town towards padi zar. Feasibility: In the current scenario the trend in the world and specifically in Pakistan is to develop lavish real estates. A project like this are part of overall development and compliments the current trends of real estate development. In the pursuit of profitable development, leisure and entertainment has to be catered for. There is a high need of development of places for healthy communal activities for the public, specifically the youth of Pakistan to bring out their full potential. Scope of work: Developing a master plan. Experimenting with different type of spaces in order to facilitate different emotional and sensory experiences of a person. Other than the feasibility of the project according to the social context, this project is also a live project and is a part of the master plan of Gwadar developed under the supervision of GDA (Gwadar development authority) . Gawadr , A broader perspective Gawadar is said to be the next mega polis of Asia .Its warm waters and other potentials are reason for its hardcore progress. Gwadar is spread over an area of aprox.1.52 million hectares or 15,216 square kilometers. Gwadar is surrounded on the north by Kech and Awaran districts, on the east by Awaran and Lasbela districts, on the south by the Arabian Sea, and on the west by Iran. Geographical position of Gwadar has major standing in the global trade routes. Sea routes leading to Gulf estates and eastern hemisphere of the world passes along Gwadar. Gwadar has all the distinct elements required for this project. It has a very massive water front which is a fatal requirement of this project. It also has scenic views all around it which can be very nicely incorporated into a tourist resort. 8.3-Land Use, Master Plan Phase-I GDA Description Land Allocation Land for Residential Projects 90,500 Acres(Extendable) Land for Commercial Projects 2100 Acres (Extendable) Land for Recreational Projects 13,500 Acres(Extendable) Land for Industrial, desalination plants, Airport, Railway Linkages, and Urban facilities.45,000Acres(Extendable) *Source: GDA As it can be seen in the master plan that the area selected for the project is near to the area allocated for tourism development. It is an advantage which will be fruitful for the facility. In their report about Gadar SMEDA (Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority) states: District Gwadar as a coastal area has rich marine life and present viable opportunity for ecotourism. The district has untouched clear beaches which can be an attractive place for tourism. Kund Malir, Daraan, Asthola Island, beaches of Jewani, Guns and Ormara are some of the most beautiful tourist beaches. Asthola Island is located at a distance of 150 kilometer from Gwadar tehsil. It is an internationally recognized wetland and has numerous species of aquatic creatures. Hingol National Park is the largest natural forest of Asia, coastal highway run for 55 kilometers in the scenic mountains of this natural forest. Hingol National Park is also one beautiful tourist sight Wild life creatures like tigers, Ibex, goats and monkeys are found in this sight. At present, 6 hotels and resorts are operating in Gwadar, a major break through in hotel and tourism industry is the construction of a 5 start Zaver Pearl Continental Hotel at Koh-e- Batill, opposite to Singhar Housing Scheme in Gwadar. Potential exists for development of tourist resort and motels, seafood restaurants, country parks and beach sports recreation facilities. Ecotourism sector can be developed to its potential in Gwadar district as the number of tourist from Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore has remarkably increased due to the construction of coastal highway. There exist a very good opportunity for setting up country parks and other recreational facilities at Gwadar, there is great gap of amusement facilities in Gwadar, and the population requires recreational facilities, easy to mobilize large number of visitors to the facility and spending capability of people of the area. 8.4-Road Network: The creation of the Gwadar deep-sea port is now one part of a larger growth plan which includes construction of a system of road and rail network linking Gwadar with the rest of Pakistan, like the 650 km Coastal Highway to Karachi and the Gwadar-Turbat road (188 km). This system of roads links with China via the Indus Highway. 8.5-Development Projects Oman Oman has proposed $100 million support for the growth of community and infrastructure amenities in Balochistan. From that $100 million, Oman has given $7 million for the runway at Gwadar Airport, building of jetties, constructionof Gwadar Hospital, stipulation of 100 engines to fishermen and for building a power house. Oman is also sponsoring infrastructure of Gwadar-Hoshab Road. 8.6-Air Port: Gwadar has a huge airport for commercial airlines. There is a need for the extension of the airport and improvement of its landing strip to accommodate the landing of larger commercial aircrafts. 8.8-Strategic Importance of Gwadar: C:UsersAdministrator.Admin-PC.001Desktopthesissite1.JPG

Relationship Between Personality, Intelligence and Academia

Relationship Between Personality, Intelligence and Academia Alexandra Lamb The Relationship between Conscientiousness, Intellectual Ability, and Academic Performance in an Undergraduate Psychology Cohort Abstract This report examines the relationship between intellectual ability, conscientiousness and academic achievement. Psychology Students studying at the University of Adelaide (N=50) completed online versions of the OCEANIC (Schulze Roberts, 2006) and Advanced Progressive Matrices (APM; Bors Stokes, 1998). Results showed that there was a slight positive association between intellectual ability and academic performance, a slight positive association between conscientiousness and academic achievement and effectively no relationship between conscientiousness and intellectual ability. The study shows that personality traits can be promising predictors of academic achievement and thus may be useful in student development and admission systems. Introduction The relationships between personality traits, intellectual ability and academic performance have long been explored. These relationships were first used, in ancient times, for selecting civil servants in the Middle East, India and China to its current role as the driver of advanced economics (Poropat, 2011). Much of the research done in the past has been linked to theoretical and statistical reviews of the role of personality. One of the earliest applications of personality trait assessment was the prediction of academic performance (Poropat, 2009). This report attempts to further examine the relationship between personality traits, intellectual ability and academic performance in particular, conscientiousness and intellectual ability and their relationship with academic performance. Intelligence is one of the most effective empirical predictors of academic performance (Poropat, 2009). Nothing has changed since the thirties when it was suggested that one of the most important factors in academic achievement is intelligence. Intelligence is the most documented variable as a predictor of cognitive performance and in past research has shown a positive association with academic success (Busato Prins Elshout, Hamaker, 2000). In 2000 Busato conducted a study in which intellectual ability was compared to academic performance over three years. Intellectual ability was positively associated with academic achievement after one year and after three year, which is consistent with earlier studies. However, intelligence is not the only predictor of academic performance. In later research, Kappe and Flier (2012) suggested that conscientiousness, a personality trait that describes impulse control and self-regulation of behaviour (Ivcevic Brackett, 2014), is the best predicto r of academic achievement explaining five times as much variance in GPA (used to measure academic performance) as does intelligence. Earlier studies by Conard (2006) also showed positive bivariate correlations between conscientiousness and academic achievement. Whilst both intellectual ability and consciousness can predict academic performance, Poropat (2009) suggested that conscientiousness is largely independent of general intelligence. Chamorro-Remuzic, Furnham and Moutafi conducted a study in 2004 as a precursor to Poropat’s research in which they found a significant negative association between conscientiousness and two intelligence tests. They suggested that this was consistent with the idea that conscientiousness might partly develop as a compensation for low intellectual level and that high intelligent individuals may not need to engage in systematic, organised and dutiful study or work habits (Chamorro-Remuzic, Furnham, Moutafi, 2004). The goals presented above guided this study, thus this report will further examine the relationships between intellectual ability, personality traits and academic achievement as explored above, focussing on three hypotheses: Hypothesis 1, there will be a significant positive relationship between intellectual ability and academic performance; Hypothesis 2, there will be a significant positive relationship between the personality trait conscientiousness and academic performance and; Hypothesis 3, there will be a significant negative relationship between conscientiousness and intellectual ability. Method Participants The participants were 50 first-year Psychology students studying at the University of Adelaide. The participants took part in the study as part of an assessment task. Materials The OCEANIC (Schulze Roberts, 2006) was employed to measure the Big Five personality traits. Intellectual ability was measured as performance on the short form of the Raven’s Advanced Progressive Matrices (APM; Bors Stokes, 1998). Academic performance was operationalized as the participants’ final grade for the previous semester’s Psychology course. Procedure The participants were instructed to complete online versions of the OCEANIC and Advanced Progressive Matrices. They were free to perform the tasks wherever they chose, but were advised to try to complete the tasks in a quiet, distraction-free environment. The participants were instructed not to collaborate with anyone else on the tasks. There was no time limit placed upon the tasks, but it was stipulated that they had to be completed within a single test session. Results In Table 1, the means and standard deviations for the Big Five Personality traits (Openness, Conscientiousness. Extraversion, Agreeableness and Neuroticism), Intellectual ability (Raven’s APM), and Academic Performance are displayed. In Table 2, the Correlation Coefficients for the variables associated with the three hypotheses are shown (Raven’s APM and Final Grade, Conscientiousness and Final Grade, Conscientiousness and Raven’s APM). In Table 3, the r2-values for the variables associated with the three hypotheses are shown (Raven’s APM and Final Grade, Conscientiousness and Final Grade, Conscientiousness and Raven’s APM). Table 1. Means and standard deviations for the Big Five personality traits, Intellectual Ability (Raven’s APM), and Academic Performance Table 2. Correlation Coefficients for Raven’s APM, Conscientiousness and Final Grade. Table 3. r2 values for Raven’s APM, Conscientiousness and Final Grade. Hypothesis 1: There will be a significant positive relationship between intellectual ability and academic performance. Figure 1. The relationship between Raven’s APM and Final grade. According to Hypothesis 1, a significant positive relationship was expected between intellectual ability and academic performance. As shown in Figure 1, a quantitative analysis (Pearson’s correlation coefficient) indicated that there was a weak-moderate, positive relationship between Raven’s APM and final grade (r = 0.32), and that this relationship was statistically significant (p=0.02). Those who scored high in the Raven’s APM (M=7.8, SD=2.96), which operationalised intellectual ability, tended to score high in their final grade (M=69.66, SD=14.05), which operationalised academic performance. This provided qualitative support for the hypothesis. Hypothesis 2: there will be a significant positive relationship between the personality trait conscientiousness and academic performance. Figure 2. The relationship between conscientiousness and final grade. According to Hypothesis 2, a significant positive relationship was expected between the personality trait conscientiousness (M=36.58, SD=6.98) and academic performance (M=69.66, SD=14.05). As shown in Figure 2, a quantitative analysis (Pearson’s correlation coefficient) there was a weak-moderate, positive relationship between conscientiousness and final grade (r=0.39), and that this relationship was statistically significant (p=0.01). Those with high conscientiousness (M=36.58, SD=6.98) tended to score high in their final grade (M=69.66, SD=14.05), which operationalised academic performance. This provided qualitative support for the hypothesis. Hypothesis 3: there will be a significant negative relationship between conscientiousness and intellectual ability. Figure 3. The relationship between conscientiousness and Raven’s APM. According to Hypothesis 3, a significant negative relationship was expected between conscientiousness and intellectual ability. As shown in Figure 3, a quantitative analysis (Pearson’s correlation coefficient) indicated that there was an extremely weak, but effectively no negative relationship between conscientiousness and Raven’s RPM (r=-0.02), and that this relationship was not statistically significant (p>0.89). Those with high conscientiousness (M=36.58, SD= 6.98) did not consistently score high or low in Raven’s APM (M=7.8, SD=2.96), which operationalised intellectual ability. This did not provide support for the hypothesis. Discussion The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between personality traits, intellectual ability and academic performance. Adding information, specifically relating to the relationships between intellectual ability and academic performance; Conscientiousness and academic achievement and; Conscientiousness and intellectual ability. According to the correlational analysis, intellectual ability was positively associated with academic performance. This is in accordance with the literature cited in the introduction (Poropat 2009, Busato et al. 2000). However this correlation was smaller than the correlation between personality trait conscientiousness and academic ability, reiterating research by Conard (2006) in the introduction. The r2 values for both these relationships, academic achievement and intellectual ability (r2 =0.10) and conscientiousness and academic ability (r2 =0.15), suggest that only 1% of the variability in academic achievement can be explained by intellectual ability and only 1.5% of the variation in academic achievement can be explained by conscientiousness. This suggests that there are other factors that play an important role in the variation of academic achievement. The association between conscientiousness and academic performance was also positive, suggesting that conscientiousness might have a bigger impact on academic performance than intellectual ability, which is consistent with the cited researchers Kappe and Flier (2012). The correlational research presented a very slightly negative, but effectively no association between conscientiousness and intellectual ability this does not support the relationship suggested by Chamorro-Remuzic, Furnham and Moutafi (2004) whose research highlighted a significant negative relationship between conscientiousness and intellectual ability. The r2 value for this relationship (r2 =0) suggests that 0% of the variance in intellectual ability can be explained by conscientiousness. A lesson that may be taken from this study is that whilst intellectual ability is a positive predictor of academic performance, students are also able to perform well academically if they are willing to work hard and conscientiously. Another practical perspective of the research is that intelligence is probably the most used selection criteria for entrance to tertiary education. However the findings within this study suggesting that Conscientiousness is just as good or potentially a better predictor of academic performance suggests another practical selection tool, provided it can be accurately and validly assessed. (Poropat, 2009) However, conscientiousness creates a greater chance of faking over an intelligence test. There are a number of limitations to this study. Firstly, there is a restriction of range, given it was only first year psychology students surveyed. A bivariate normal relationship may exist for the entire population whereas this relationship may not be evident for all sub-populations (i.e. Psychology students). Or otherwise, what appears to be a linear relationship for a sub-population could actually be a curvilinear relationship for the entire population (Haslam McGarty, 2014). This means the relationships found by doing the quantitative analysis may not be a representation of the wider population. It would be beneficial to conduct a meta-analysis on students of different disciplines and potentially international students to find out how generalisable the results are. The sample size of 50 participants is also small. It is unlikely to reflect the population adequately. Whilst surveys are easy to develop, cost-effective and relatively easy to administer, there are a number of limi tations associated with survey-based research. Researcher’s personal bias and idiosyncrasies are more influential in qualitative research; the knowledge of the study might also influence the participants’ responses. That is, respondents may feel encouraged to provide inaccurate and dishonest answers. Participants may interpret the survey questions and answer options differently and data errors caused by non-responses (i.e the number of participants who chose to respond to the survey as opposed to those that chose not to) may also affect the results. References Bors, D. A. Stokes, T. L. (1998). Raven’s advanced progressive matrices: Norms for first-year university students and the development of a short form. Education and Psychological Measurement, 58, 382-398 Schulze, R. Roberts, R. D. (2006). Assessing the Big Five: Development and validation of the Openness Conscientiousness Extraversion Agreeableness Neuroticism Index Condensed (OCEANIC). Zeitschrift fur Psychologie, 214, 133-14 Chamorro-Remuzic, T. Furnham, A. Moutafi, J. (2004). The relationship between estimated and psychometric personality and intelligence scores. Journal of Research in Personality, 38, 505-513. Conard, M. A. (2006). Aptitude is not enough: How personality and behaviour predict academic performance. Journal of Research in Personality, 40, 339-346. Ivcevic, Z. Brackett, M. (2014). Predicting school success: Comparing Conscientiousness, Grit, and Emotion Regulation Ability. Journal of Research in Personality, 52, 29-36. Kappe, R. Flier, H. (2012). Predicting academic success in higher education: what’s more important than being smart? European Journal of Psychology of Education, 27, 605-619. Busato, V. V. Prins, F. J. Elshout, J. J. Hamaker, C. (2000). Intellectual ability, learning style, personality, achievement motivation and academic success of psychology students in higher education. Personality and Individual Differences, 29, 1057-1068. Poropat, A. E. (2009). A Meta-Analysis of the Five-Factor Model of Personality and Academic Performance. Psychological Bulletin, 135, 322-338. Poropat, A. E. (2011). The Eysenckian personality factors and their correlations with academic performance. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 81, 41-58. Haslam, S. A. McGarty, C. (2014). Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology. Great Britain: SAGE Productions Inc.

To Kill A Mocking Bird :: To Kill a Mockingbird Essays

To Kill a Mockingbird is set in Maycomb County, an imaginary district in southern Alabama. The time is the years of the Great Depression in the United States. The mood of the novel is mostly light and humorous, especially when talking about the children’s antics. However, another mood throughout the novel is somber and calm, because come important issues are being valued and dealt with. Atticus’ dealings with the blacks, the negative attitudes of some other members of the community, the trial of Tom Robinson and his gruesome end, depicts a seriousness and a grave reconsideration of accepted beliefs, which is expected of the readers by the author. Atticus Finch, the father of Scout and Jem, is a highly respected and responsible citizen of Maycomb County. An attorney by profession, he has always tried to instill good values and a sense of moral in his children. Jem is a true brother to Scout, helping her out of scrapes, escorting her to school and back, guiding her at times and comforting her in general. When he is given money to buy something for himself, he buys a gift for Scout too. When he finds out that Scout has eaten the gum found in the knothole of the oak tree, he insists that she gargle her throat. When she muddles up her role in the pageant and is mortified, Jem is the one to console her. He displays much genuine concern and consideration in dealing with his unruly sister. Scout, because of her age, and being the youngest in the family, is impulsive by nature and extremely emotional too. She unthinkingly rushes into fights and scrapes, cries when her ego is hurt and is generally is rash in her actions. Conflict- The protagonist of the novel is Atticus Finch, who is the prime initiator and coordinator of various events in the novel. In his involvement with the poor whites of the community, like Walter Cunningham, as well as the deprived blacks, like Tom Robinson, he is portrayed as a just, sincere and a greatly considerate human being. He has clear-cut values and beliefs, and it is his sincere wish that his children too grow up with a broad outlook and an unprejudiced way of thinking. He is indifferent to what others have to say or think about his actions, and he is steadfast in his beliefs of equality and liberty. Bob Ewell serves as the antagonist villain in the novel, with his laid-back way of living and the utter disregard he has for other human beings.

Subliminal Perception Essay -- Biology Essays Research Papers

Subliminal Perception Many people have heard of "subliminal" messages that are not consciously perceived by a subject but nonetheless influence his or her behavior. The concept first became publicized in the 1950s, when the advertiser James Vicary claimed that flashing the words "Drink Popcorn" and "Drink Coke" between frames in a movie theater increased Coke sales by 18.1% and popcorn sales by 57.7%. This caused a storm of controversy, although Vicary later admitted that this "study" was a hoax.(1)Many studies carried out in laboratory conditions do show that "subliminal" inputs can be perceived by the nervous system without the awareness of the conscious "I-function". Inputs perceived "subliminally" have also been shown to influence behavior to some extent, in some instances more than supraliminal inputs. These effects, however, are for the most part limited in magnitude and duration. The literal meaning of the word "subliminal" is rather misleading since it implies that there is an absolute "limen", or threshold, above which inputs are detected by the "I-function" and below which they are not.(2) However, while there are some "supraliminal" inputs of high intensity where perception is always self-reported by experimental subjects, as well as inputs of low intensity that are never reported, there is also a range of input intensities where subjects report only a fraction of the time.(3) The actual experimental definition of the "liminal" or threshold value of an input is the value where conscious perception occurs 50% of the time. The "limen" can also fluctuate with different prevailing conditions.(4) Therefore, an input could be classified as "subliminal" and still be accessible to the I-function. Some experiments tha... ...udies of "self-help" tapes billed as containing subliminal messages have not shown to be effective beyond an illusory placebo effect. (9) While subliminal perception definitely exists and subliminal inputs can affect behavior, so far no evidence exists that subliminal inputs can be used to exert any "mind control" on unwilling subjects. Internet Sources: 1. http:///www.actwin.com/nlp/random/sublm02.htm 2.http://atrey.karlin.mff.cuni.cz/magic/sublimin.txt.CP852 3.http://trevor.butler.edu/~woodruff/Courses/Subliminal/Bourbon.html 4. SUBLIMINAL PERCEPTION 5. Unconscious Perception 6. http://www.weber.u.washington.edu/~agg/release.html 7. Subliminal Mere Exposure 8. The Subliminal Mere Exposure Effect 9. CJBS: Subliminal Self-Help Sources not cited directly: Reinventing Subliminal Again 10)http://www.hunter.holowww.com/sublim.html Subliminal Perception Essay -- Biology Essays Research Papers Subliminal Perception Many people have heard of "subliminal" messages that are not consciously perceived by a subject but nonetheless influence his or her behavior. The concept first became publicized in the 1950s, when the advertiser James Vicary claimed that flashing the words "Drink Popcorn" and "Drink Coke" between frames in a movie theater increased Coke sales by 18.1% and popcorn sales by 57.7%. This caused a storm of controversy, although Vicary later admitted that this "study" was a hoax.(1)Many studies carried out in laboratory conditions do show that "subliminal" inputs can be perceived by the nervous system without the awareness of the conscious "I-function". Inputs perceived "subliminally" have also been shown to influence behavior to some extent, in some instances more than supraliminal inputs. These effects, however, are for the most part limited in magnitude and duration. The literal meaning of the word "subliminal" is rather misleading since it implies that there is an absolute "limen", or threshold, above which inputs are detected by the "I-function" and below which they are not.(2) However, while there are some "supraliminal" inputs of high intensity where perception is always self-reported by experimental subjects, as well as inputs of low intensity that are never reported, there is also a range of input intensities where subjects report only a fraction of the time.(3) The actual experimental definition of the "liminal" or threshold value of an input is the value where conscious perception occurs 50% of the time. The "limen" can also fluctuate with different prevailing conditions.(4) Therefore, an input could be classified as "subliminal" and still be accessible to the I-function. Some experiments tha... ...udies of "self-help" tapes billed as containing subliminal messages have not shown to be effective beyond an illusory placebo effect. (9) While subliminal perception definitely exists and subliminal inputs can affect behavior, so far no evidence exists that subliminal inputs can be used to exert any "mind control" on unwilling subjects. Internet Sources: 1. http:///www.actwin.com/nlp/random/sublm02.htm 2.http://atrey.karlin.mff.cuni.cz/magic/sublimin.txt.CP852 3.http://trevor.butler.edu/~woodruff/Courses/Subliminal/Bourbon.html 4. SUBLIMINAL PERCEPTION 5. Unconscious Perception 6. http://www.weber.u.washington.edu/~agg/release.html 7. Subliminal Mere Exposure 8. The Subliminal Mere Exposure Effect 9. CJBS: Subliminal Self-Help Sources not cited directly: Reinventing Subliminal Again 10)http://www.hunter.holowww.com/sublim.html

Define The Phrase Organizational Politics Commerce Essay

Bearing in head the theories you have read so far, and with particular mention to theories of individuality, you are asked to utilize your hunt accomplishments to happen out what research workers are stating about the nature and intent of organisational political relations. For 30 % of your concluding class, you are required to compose an essay of about 3,000 words, to be submitted via Turnitin.com ( category ID is 3177884 and the watchword is unity ) . Do non subject until after 20 April, 2010In the context of an organisation with which you are familiar, depict the function and extent of organisational political relations. Describe the intent for which you perceive political action to be used in your organisation, and whether the effects are good or otherwise for the organisation. Explain what the deductions are for effectual communications within the organisation.Extra note: It should be clear that as the class coordinator, I perceive there to be a strong connexion between â€Å" theories of individuality † and â€Å" organisational political relations † You may non hold, and I am really happy either manner, every bit long as you take the clip to analyze the grounds for and against such a connexion, and do your instance consequently. Your essay will be marked in conformity with the undermentioned scheme: Standard Mark Essay demonstrates the ability to critically measure anterior literature on the subject 30 Essay demonstrates a good apprehension of the theories relevant to issues of individuality and organisational political relations 30 Essay demonstrates the ability to concept and pass on logical and persuasive statements backed up with approriate commendations from literature. 30 Essay is good structured, grammatical and proof read. Citations are decently formatted to APA manner. 10 Entire 100 % Start reading now! Do non get down composing until you have gained sufficient scholarly cognition to warrant that action. Punishments will use ( as per the class lineation ) for lateness or important going ( over or under ) from the suggested word count Pursuit ofA individualA agendasA and opportunism in an organisation without respect to their consequence on theA organization'sA attempts toA achieveA itsA ends.ORGANIZATIONAL POLITICSWhen we heard about the word political relations, most people find the negative intension. Its really rare when word political relations use in a positive mode. Political accomplishments can be leveraged to pull strings others and can be used to act upon them to accomplish more than they thought possible. When we struggle to happen out the right manner and non able to win in our several watercourses, we ever criticize others for being excessively political and and playing dirty fast ones. Different people have different perceptual experiences about organisational political relations, it may be positive or negative, good or bad depends upon the individual to whom you ask. Organizationa political relations sometimes taken as a informal manner to do attempts to act upon different people and organisation to accomplish single ends and aims. In organisation point of position, if single is holding power he/she must be careful to do usage of power to act upon the manner which is good for the organisation to accomplish awaited ends or aims and besides their personal growing. For the success of any organisation and to accomplish high public presentation moving politically or political behavior is slightly indispensable. When we think about our workplace where we work, there are tonss of people to whom we have to interact or we have the relationship in one sense. By coordination of everybody in the relationship, we are able to carry through our work. When there is a soothing relationship among all people, more likely you are acquire along and travel in front. When everybody tries to work seriously in the relationships, everything will be given to work good. But unluckily few people ever try to work excessively difficult to acquire in front by ruling in their on the job relationships instead than their work. Sometimes people involved in making duties and all kinds of political plotting in work that leads to a politically charged work environment. Its erstwhile rather thwarting to work in an environment where political relations supersede over competency and accomplishments. It sometimes hard for the employee who is new to an organisation or holding less experiences in covering with these sort of polit ically filled state of affairss. To acquire rid of political state of affairss in an organisations, we need togo through a proper channel to avoid compromising farther. We need to speak to the people straight to decide the affairs and if direct conversation with the people non doing adequate advancement in resoving the things so its better to intensify it to the supervisor or managerial degree. Sometimes it happens that directors besides involves in the political state of affairs so in thi instance you need to take the advice of the human resource director for farther actions. Politicss and Organizational power plays an of import function in an organisation. In some of the organisations it does n't count at all but insome of the organisations its like a blood athletics. There are certain factors which can be used to cognize how of import is political relations for an organisation — Quality of coommunciation between theworking squad and the higher-ups in the undertaking and in the section — How freely people can pass on within their squad members or with the section caputs — By larning different organisational civilization — Notice employees are blandishing their directors or foreman and affecting in otiose things for self publicity instead than difficult work, you will come to cognize the organisational manner of honoring people on their behavior Its better to unattached with political relations in an organisational and maintain your relationship unfastened and friendly and accrue web with assortment of people. After a considerable sum of clip you spend in the organisation, you will come to cognize the organisational civilization and how much you want to affect in organisational political relations maintaining in head to accomplish your personal aims. Organizational political relations is seemingly have a negative image in an organisation but it non so inherently bad. Its better to aware about different potentially rough facets of organisational political relations in order to minimise the negative consequence. Sometimes new employee to an organisation without cognizing the civilization and political accomplishment and consciousness, there would be a opportunities of acquiring immersed in narrow minded political relations and destructive power battles. I think workplace Politics is an indispensable and natural portion of an organisation and employees with different involvement and mentality are their assets. To be successful in the organisation, one should ever be engaged in political relations merely in positive sense. Its non like people are ever positively involved in political relations, some of the employees in a negative sense usage political relations by affecting in use, hidden planning for personal additions. Peoples affecting in these types of behavior are non considered as sanctioned by the organisation. Sometimes these types of behavior involved put excess attempts informely to acquire blessing for a particular undertaking, utilize improper channels to take attending during all the official events to foreground ourself in forepart of senior directors during the clip of publicities. Sometimes people who are non affect in any sort of such behaviour feel themselves on a trench because of the unjust determinations of the se nior directors of the organisation in footings of publicity, wagess and grasp. This is sometimes I feel is a loophole in the direction of an organisation by non acknowledging the valuable work done by an employee who did n't be a portion of political behavior or ego functioning behavior. If the company is over driven by these sort of political behavior, so employees start experiencing frustrated in the company, there will be less occupation satisfaction and he/she start executing worst in the organisation. This sometimes become an alarming issue for the Human resource people, if employees start go forthing occupations often merely because of negative political relations been played in their undertakings. Organization demands to believe about the solutions related to minimise the negative side of the political behavior which is good for maintaining their assets satisfy who are non really involved in the organisational political relations. There should be an equal and unfastened system to garner information about the undertakings for each and every employee, leaders can promote project members to organize a theoretical account demoing collaborative behavior in all facets of work and besides its should be informed ab initio that doing political schemes will non be remunerated or tolerated in the organisation. The Prominent ground what I understand of utilizing political relations in an organisation is because of the competition among the employees to derive power and leading. Political power sometimes use to understand what people really desire or fear and use that understanding to act upon their behavior. This help them to understanding organisation civilization, visualise the the ends and aims of company every bit good as personal. There surely a negative side of the organisational political relations with backstabbing, use, flattering, corrupting but the key to a succesfful calling is to keep a healthy relationship and repute among all the employees in a company. You want to act in an organisation as a nice participant and attempt to do win- win state of affairs in different stages profiting the company every bit good. You need to keep unity while constructing relationships. Organizational political relations is closely related to Leadership properties and it can be understood by the fact that leading ever occurs in the context of bulk or a group where members are ever influenced by leader to guarantee they are focused towards accomplishing awaited ends or results of the workdone. Political environment in an organisation is really much impacted by a leader through authorization, influence and power under different fortunes and its clearly seeable during nonsubjective scene, determination devising, promoting people in a group, interaction in a squad with members to accrue relationships etc. Leadership qualities which developed internally in the organisation in the person have advantage of apprehension of general political relations bing in the several organisation. While leaders join the organisation subsequently or new joiners will hold to put some clip ab initio to larn and understand the prevailing political relations through interaction between the gr oups and senior employees in the organisation. They must be focussed while interaction and assorted organisational activities to understand the flow of information that initiates political clime in the organisation. From organisational point of position, it ‘s really indispensable for the leaders to take the advantage of the political accomplishments and the environment to maximize the organisational productiveness in footings of result and satisfaction degree of the employees. Individual and organisational ancestors can boh take to political behavior: Individual Ancestors: There are figure of latent political ancestors of political behavior in an organisation. Employees holding effectual political accomplishments are more successful at their occupations or atleast in act uponing different people, co-workers, higher-ups etc and besides they can do a difference in doing schemes for accomplishing organisational ends and aims. If single are more profoundly involved in assorted activities in an organisation or extremely invested in an organisation either financially or emotionally so there are more opportunities for them to affect in political behavior. Besides there is one more strong ground to attach politically with the company, if persons anticipate they will be successful in altering the result of the company, more likely they will hold a considerable part in making a political clime. If they think they can act upon an result so they might pass more clip and resources to consequence the result. Organizational Ancestors: Any sort of uncertainness in an organisation can associate to organisational political relations. For illustration When employees are in the province where they can non experience comfy with their occupation duties, they observe the organisation as more political. This function based uncertainness allows employees to negociate and redefine their responsibilities and functions in the given fortunes. Uncertainty besides prevails during publicities and rating of the public presentation, sometimes it leads to a extremely political behavior like feeling direction throughout the organisation. Actually employees at the lower degree of organisations assume their organisation excessively driven by political relations, who are non satisfied with their occupations and misanthropic about future success in their organisations..

Communication Management Challenges in Construction Project Execution

Go Up to Table of Contents| | Go To Chapter 2 (Organizing for Project Management)| The Owners' Perspective Introduction The Project Life Cycle Major Types of Construction Selection of Professional Services Construction Contractors Financing of Constructed Facilities Legal and Regulatory Requirements The Changing Environment of the Construction Industry   Ã‚  Ã‚   The Role of Project Managers References Footnotes| | | 1. The Owners' Perspective 1. 1 Introduction Like the five blind men encountering different parts of an elephant, each of the numerous participants in the process of planning, designing, financing, constructing and operating physical facilities has a different perspective on project management for construction. Specialized knowledge can be very beneficial, particularly in large and complicated projects, since experts in various specialties can provide valuable services. However, it is advantageous to understand how the different parts of the process fit together. Waste, excessive cost and delays can result from poor coordination and communication among specialists. It is particularly in the interest of owners to insure that such problems do not occur. And it behooves all participants in the process to heed the interests of owners because, in the end, it is the owners who provide the resources and call the shots. By adopting the viewpoint of the owners, we can focus our attention on the complete process of project management for constructed facilities rather than the historical roles of various specialists such as planners, architects, engineering designers, constructors, fabricators, material suppliers, financial analysts and others. To be sure, each specialty has made important advances in developing new techniques and tools for efficient implementation of construction projects. However, it is through the understanding of the entire process of project management that these specialists can respond more effectively to the owner's desires for their services, in marketing their specialties, and in improving the productivity and quality of their work. The introduction of innovative and more effective project management for construction is not an academic exercise. As reported by the â€Å"Construction Industry Cost Effectiveness Project† of the Business Roundtable: [1] By common consensus and every available measure, the United States no longer gets it's money's worth in construction, the nation's largest industry †¦ The creeping erosion of construction efficiency and productivity is bad news for the entire U. S. economy. Construction is a particularly seminal industry. The price of every factory, office building, hotel or power plant that is built affects the price that must be charged for the goods or services produced in it or by it. And that effect generally persists for decades †¦ Too much of the industry remains tethered to the past, partly by inertia and partly by historic divisions†¦ Improvement of project management not only can aid the construction industry, but may also be the engine for the national and world economy. However, if we are to make meaningful improvements, we must first understand the construction industry, its operating environment and the institutional constraints affecting its activities as well as the nature of project management. Back to top 1. 2 The Project Life Cycle The acquisition of a constructed facility usually represents a major capital investment, whether its owner happens to be an individual, a private corporation or a public agency. Since the commitment of resources for such an investment is motivated by market demands or perceived needs, the facility is expected to satisfy certain objectives within the constraints specified by the owner and relevant regulations. With the exception of the speculative housing market, where the residential units may be sold as built by the real estate developer, most constructed facilities are custom made in consultation with the owners. A real estate developer may be regarded as the sponsor of building projects, as much as a government agency may be the sponsor of a public project and turns it over to another government unit upon its completion. From the viewpoint of project management, the terms â€Å"owner† and â€Å"sponsor† are synonymous because both have the ultimate authority to make all important decisions. Since an owner is essentially acquiring a facility on a promise in some form of agreement, it will be wise for any owner to have a clear understanding of the acquisition process in order to maintain firm control of the quality, timeliness and cost of the completed facility. From the perspective of an owner, the project life cycle for a constructed facility may be illustrated schematically in Figure 1-1. Essentially, a project is conceived to meet market demands or needs in a timely fashion. Various possibilities may be considered in the conceptual planning stage, and the technological and economic feasibility of each alternative will be assessed and compared in order to select the best possible project. The financing schemes for the proposed alternatives must also be examined, and the project will be programmed with respect to the timing for its completion and for available cash flows. After the scope of the project is clearly defined, detailed engineering design will provide the blueprint for construction, and the definitive cost estimate will serve as the baseline for cost control. In the procurement and construction stage, the delivery of materials and the erection of the project on site must be carefully planned and controlled. After the construction is completed, there is usually a brief period of start-up or shake-down of the constructed facility when it is first occupied. Finally, the management of the facility is turned over to the owner for full occupancy until the facility lives out its useful life and is designated for demolition or conversion. Figure 1-1:   The Project Life Cycle of a Constructed Facility Of course, the stages of development in Figure 1-1 may not be strictly sequential. Some of the stages require iteration, and others may be carried out in parallel or with overlapping time frames, depending on the nature, size and urgency of the project. Furthermore, an owner may have in-house capacities to handle the work in every stage of the entire process, or it may seek professional advice and services for the work in all stages. Understandably, most owners choose to handle some of the work in-house and to contract outside professional services for other components of the work as needed. By examining the project life cycle from an owner's perspective we can focus on the proper roles of various activities and participants in all stages regardless of the contractual arrangements for different types of work. In the United States, for example, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers has in-house capabilities to deal with planning, budgeting, design, construction and operation of waterway and flood control structures. Other public agencies, such as state transportation departments, are also deeply involved in all phases of a construction project. In the private sector, many large firms such as DuPont, Exxon, and IBM are adequately staffed to carry out most activities for plant expansion. All these owners, both public and private, use outside agents to a greater or lesser degree when it becomes more advantageous to do so. The project life cycle may be viewed as a process through which a project is implemented from cradle to grave. This process is often very complex; however, it can be decomposed into several stages as indicated by the general outline in Figure 1-1. The solutions at various stages are then integrated to obtain the final outcome. Although each stage requires different expertise, it usually includes both technical and managerial activities in the knowledge domain of the specialist. The owner may choose to decompose the entire process into more or less stages based on the size and nature of the project, and thus obtain the most efficient result in implementation. Very often, the owner retains direct control of work in the planning and programming stages, but increasingly outside planners and financial experts are used as consultants because of the complexities of projects. Since operation and maintenance of a facility will go on long after the completion and acceptance of a project, it is usually treated as a separate problem except in the consideration of the life cycle cost of a facility. All stages from conceptual planning and feasibility studies to the acceptance of a facility for occupancy may be broadly lumped together and referred to as the Design/Construct process, while the procurement and construction alone are traditionally regarded as the province of the construction industry. Owners must recognize that there is no single best approach in organizing project management throughout a project's life cycle. All organizational approaches have advantages and disadvantages, depending on the knowledge of the owner in construction management as well as the type, size and location of the project. It is important for the owner to be aware of the approach which is most appropriate and beneficial for a particular project. In making choices, owners should be concerned with the life cycle costs of constructed facilities rather than simply the initial construction costs. Saving small amounts of money during construction may not be worthwhile if the result is much larger operating costs or not meeting the functional requirements for the new facility satisfactorily. Thus, owners must be very concerned with the quality of the finished product as well as the cost of construction itself. Since facility operation and maintenance is a part of the project life cycle, the owners' expectation to satisfy investment objectives during the project life cycle will require consideration of the cost of operation and maintenance. Therefore, the facility's operating management should also be considered as early as possible, just as the construction process should be kept in mind at the early stages of planning and programming. Back to top 1. 3 Major Types of Construction Since most owners are generally interested in acquiring only a specific type of constructed facility, they should be aware of the common industrial practices for the type of construction pertinent to them. Likewise, the construction industry is a conglomeration of quite diverse segments and products. Some owners may procure a constructed facility only once in a long while and tend to look for short term advantages. However, many owners require periodic acquisition of new facilities and/or rehabilitation of existing facilities. It is to their advantage to keep the construction industry healthy and productive. Collectively, the owners have more power to influence the construction industry than they realize because, by their individual actions, they can provide incentives or disincentives for innovation, efficiency and quality in construction. It is to the interest of all parties that the owners take an active interest in the construction and exercise beneficial influence on the performance of the industry. In planning for various types of construction, the methods of procuring professional services, awarding construction contracts, and financing the constructed facility can be quite different. For the purpose of discussion, the broad spectrum of constructed facilities may be classified into four major categories, each with its own characteristics. Residential Housing Construction Residential housing construction includes single-family houses, multi-family dwellings, and high-rise apartments. During the development and construction of such projects, the developers or sponsors who are familiar with the construction industry usually serve as surrogate owners and take charge, making necessary contractual agreements for design and construction, and arranging the financing and sale of the completed structures. Residential housing designs are usually performed by architects and engineers, and the construction executed by builders who hire subcontractors for the structural, mechanical, electrical and other specialty work. An exception to this pattern is for single-family houses which may be designed by the builders as well. The residential housing market is heavily affected by general economic conditions, tax laws, and the monetary and fiscal policies of the government. Often, a slight increase in total demand will cause a substantial investment in construction, since many housing projects can be started at different locations by different individuals and developers at the same time. Because of the relative ease of entry, at least at the lower end of the market, many new builders are attracted to the residential housing construction. Hence, this market is highly competitive, with potentially high risks as well as high rewards. Figure 1-2:   Residential Housing Construction (courtesy of Caterpillar, Inc. ) Institutional and Commercial Building Construction Institutional and commercial building construction encompasses a great variety of project types and sizes, such as schools and universities, medical clinics and hospitals, recreational facilities and sports stadiums, retail chain stores and large shopping centers, warehouses and light manufacturing plants, and skyscrapers for offices and hotels. The owners of such buildings may or may not be familiar with construction industry practices, but they usually are able to select competent professional consultants and arrange the financing of the constructed facilities themselves. Specialty architects and engineers are often engaged for designing a specific type of building, while the builders or general contractors undertaking such projects may also be specialized in only that type of building. Because of the higher costs and greater sophistication of institutional and commercial buildings in comparison with residential housing, this market segment is shared by fewer competitors. Since the construction of some of these buildings is a long process which once started will take some time to proceed until completion, the demand is less sensitive to general economic conditions than that for speculative housing. Consequently, the owners may confront an oligopoly of general contractors who compete in the same market. In an oligopoly situation, only a limited number of competitors exist, and a firm's price for services may be based in part on its competitive strategies in the local market. Figure 1-3:   Construction of the PPG Building in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (courtesy of PPG Industries, Inc. Specialized Industrial Construction Specialized industrial construction usually involves very large scale projects with a high degree of technological complexity, such as oil refineries, steel mills, chemical processing plants and coal-fired or nuclear power plants. The owners usually are deeply involved in the development of a project, and prefer to work with designers-bu ilders such that the total time for the completion of the project can be shortened. They also want to pick a team of designers and builders with whom the owner has developed good working relations over the years. Although the initiation of such projects is also affected by the state of the economy, long range demand forecasting is the most important factor since such projects are capital intensive and require considerable amount of planning and construction time. Governmental regulation such as the rulings of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in the United States can also profoundly influence decisions on these projects. Figure 1-4:   Construction of a Benzene Plant in Lima, Ohio (courtesy of Manitowoc Company, Inc. ) Infrastructure and Heavy Construction Infrastructure and heavy construction includes projects such as highways, mass transit systems, tunnels, bridges, pipelines, drainage systems and sewage treatment plants. Most of these projects are publicly owned and therefore financed either through bonds or taxes. This category of construction is characterized by a high degree of mechanization, which has gradually replaced some labor intensive operations. The engineers and builders engaged in infrastructure construction are usually highly specialized since each segment of the market requires different types of skills. However, demands for different segments of infrastructure and heavy construction may shift with saturation in some segments. For example, as the available highway construction projects are declining, some heavy construction contractors quickly move their work force and equipment into the field of mining where jobs are available. Figure 1-5:   Construction of the Dame Point Bridge in Jacksonville, Florida (courtesy of Mary Lou Maher) Back to top 1. 4 Selection of Professional Services When an owner decides to seek professional services for the design and construction of a facility, he is confronted with a broad variety of choices. The type of services selected depends to a large degree on the type of construction and the experience of the owner in dealing with various professionals in the previous projects undertaken by the firm. Generally, several common types of professional services may be engaged either separately or in some combination by the owners. Financial Planning Consultants At the early stage of strategic planning for a capital project, an owner often seeks the services of financial planning consultants such as certified public accounting (CPA) firms to evaluate the economic and financial feasibility of the constructed facility, particularly with respect to arious provisions of federal, state and local tax laws which may affect the investment decision. Investment banks may also be consulted on various options for financing the facility in order to analyze their long-term effects on the financial health of the owner organization. Architectural and Engineering Firms Traditionally, the owner engages a n architectural and engineering (A/E) firm or consortium as technical consultant in developing a preliminary design. After the engineering design and financing arrangements for the project are completed, the owner will enter into a construction contract with a general contractor either through competitive bidding or negotiation. The general contractor will act as a constructor and/or a coordinator of a large number of subcontractors who perform various specialties for the completion of the project. The A/E firm completes the design and may also provide on site quality inspection during construction. Thus, the A/E firm acts as the prime professional on behalf of the owner and supervises the construction to insure satisfactory results. This practice is most common in building construction. In the past two decades, this traditional approach has become less popular for a number of reasons, particularly for large scale projects. The A/E firms, which are engaged by the owner as the prime professionals for design and inspection, have become more isolated from the construction process. This has occurred because of pressures to reduce fees to A/E firms, the threat of litigation regarding construction defects, and lack of knowledge of new construction techniques on the part of architect and engineering professionals. Instead of preparing a construction plan along with the design, many A/E firms are no longer responsible for the details of construction nor do they provide periodic field inspection in many cases. As a matter of fact, such firms will place a prominent disclaimer of responsibilities on any shop drawings they may check, and they will often regard their representatives in the field as observers instead of inspectors. Thus, the A/E firm and the general contractor on a project often become antagonists who are looking after their own competing interests. As a result, even the constructibility of some engineering designs may become an issue of contention. To carry this protective attitude to the extreme, the specifications prepared by an A/E firm for the general contractor often protects the interest of the A/E firm at the expense of the interests of the owner and the contractor. In order to reduce the cost of construction, some owners introduce value engineering, which seeks to reduce the cost of construction by soliciting a second design that might cost less than the original design produced by the A/E firm. In practice, the second design is submitted by the contractor after receiving a construction contract at a stipulated sum, and the saving in cost resulting from the redesign is shared by the contractor and the owner. The contractor is able to absorb the cost of redesign from the profit in construction or to reduce the construction cost as a result of the re-design. If the owner had been willing to pay a higher fee to the A/E firm or to better direct the design process, the A/E firm might have produced an improved design which would cost less in the first place. Regardless of the merit of value engineering, this practice has undermined the role of the A/E firm as the prime professional acting on behalf of the owner to supervise the contractor. Design/Construct Firms A common trend in industrial construction, particularly for large projects, is to engage the services of a design/construct firm. By integrating design and construction management in a single organization, many of the conflicts between designers and constructors might be avoided. In particular, designs will be closely scrutinized for their constructibility. However, an owner engaging a design/construct firm must insure that the quality of the constructed facility is not sacrificed by the desire to reduce the time or the cost for completing the project. Also, it is difficult to make use of competitive bidding in this type of design/construct process. As a result, owners must be relatively sophisticated in negotiating realistic and cost-effective construction contracts. One of the most obvious advantages of the integrated design/construct process is the use of phased construction for a large project. In this process, the project is divided up into several phases, each of which can be designed and constructed in a staggered manner. After the completion of the design of the first phase, construction can begin without waiting for the completion of the design of the second phase, etc. If proper coordination is exercised. the total project duration can be greatly reduced. Another advantage is to exploit the possibility of using the turnkey approach whereby an owner can delegate all responsibility to the esign/construct firm which will deliver to the owner a completed facility that meets the performance specifications at the specified price. Professional Construction Managers In recent years, a new breed of construction managers (CM) offers professional services from the inception to the completion of a construction project. These construction managers mostly come from the ranks of A/E firms or general contractors who may or may not retain dual roles in the service of the owners. In any case, the owner can rely on the service of a single prime professional to manage the entire process of a construction project. However, like the A/E firms of several decades ago, the construction managers are appreciated by some owners but not by others. Before long, some owners find that the construction managers too may try to protect their own interest instead of that of the owners when the stakes are high. It should be obvious to all involved in the construction process that the party which is required to take higher risk demands larger rewards. If an owner wants to engage an A/E firm on the basis of low fees instead of established qualifications, it often gets what it deserves; or if the owner wants the general contractor to bear the cost of uncertainties in construction such as foundation conditions, the contract price will be higher even if competitive bidding is used in reaching a contractual agreement. Without mutual respect and trust, an owner cannot expect that construction managers can produce better results than other professionals. Hence, an owner must understand its own responsibility and the risk it wishes to assign to itself and to other participants in the process. Operation and Maintenance Managers Although many owners keep a permanent staff for the operation and maintenance of constructed facilities, others may prefer to contract such tasks to professional managers. Understandably, it is common to find in-house staff for operation and maintenance in specialized industrial plants and infrastructure facilities, and the use of outside managers under contracts for the operation and maintenance of rental properties such as apartments and office buildings. However, there are exceptions to these common practices. For example, maintenance of public roadways can be contracted to private firms. In any case, managers can provide a spectrum of operation and maintenance services for a specified time period in accordance to the terms of contractual agreements. Thus, the owners can be spared the provision of in-house expertise to operate and maintain the facilities. Facilities Management As a logical extension for obtaining the best services throughout the project life cycle of a constructed facility, some owners and developers are receptive to adding strategic planning at the beginning and facility maintenance as a follow-up to reduce space-related costs in their real estate holdings. Consequently, some architectural/engineering firms and construction management firms with computer-based expertise, together with interior design firms, are offering such front-end and follow-up services in addition to the more traditional services in design and construction. This spectrum of services is described in Engineering News-Record (now ENR) as follows: [2] Facilities management is the discipline of planning, designing, constructing and managing space — in every type of structure from office buildings to process plants. It involves developing corporate facilities policy, long-range forecasts, real estate, space inventories, projects (through design, construction and renovation), building operation and maintenance plans and furniture and equipment inventories. A common denominator of all firms entering into these new services is that they all have strong computer capabilities and heavy computer investments. In addition to the use of computers for aiding design and monitoring construction, the service includes the compilation of a computer record of building plans that can be turned over at the end of construction to the facilities management group of the owner. A computer data base of facilities information makes it possible for planners in the owner's organization to obtain overview information for long range space forecasts, while the line managers can use as-built information such as lease/tenant records, utility costs, etc. for day-to-day operations. Back to top 1. 5 Construction Contractors Builders who supervise the execution of construction projects are traditionally referred to as contractors, or more appropriately called constructors. The general contractor coordinates various tasks for a project while the specialty contractors such as mechanical or electrical contractors perform the work in their specialties. Material and equipment suppliers often act as installation contractors; they play a significant role in a construction project since the conditions of delivery of materials and equipment affect the quality, cost, and timely completion of the project. It is essential to understand the operation of these contractors in order to deal with them effectively. General Contractors The function of a general contractor is to coordinate all tasks in a construction project. Unless the owner performs this function or engages a professional construction manager to do so, a good general contractor who has worked with a team of superintendents, specialty contractors or subcontractors together for a number of projects in the past can be most effective in inspiring loyalty and cooperation. The general contractor is also knowledgeable about the labor force employed in construction. The labor force may or may not be unionized depending on the size and location of the projects. In some projects, no member of the work force belongs to a labor union; in other cases, both union and non-union craftsmen work together in what is called an open shop, or all craftsmen must be affiliated with labor unions in a closed shop. Since labor unions provide hiring halls staffed with skilled journeyman who have gone through apprentice programs for the projects as well as serving as collective bargain units, an experienced general contractor will make good use of the benefits and avoid the pitfalls in dealing with organized labor. Specialty Contractors Specialty contractors include mechanical, electrical, foundation, excavation, and demolition contractors among others. They usually serve as subcontractors to the general contractor of a project. In some cases, legal statutes may require an owner to deal with various specialty contractors directly. In the State of New York, for example, specialty contractors, such as mechanical and electrical contractors, are not subjected to the supervision of the general contractor of a construction project and must be given separate prime contracts on public works. With the exception of such special cases, an owner will hold the general contractor responsible for negotiating and fulfilling the contractual agreements with the subcontractors. Material and Equipment Suppliers Major material suppliers include specialty contractors in structural steel fabrication and erection, sheet metal, ready mixed concrete delivery, reinforcing steel bar detailers, roofing, glazing etc. Major equipment suppliers for industrial construction include manufacturers of generators, boilers and piping and other equipment. Many suppliers handle on-site installation to insure that the requirements and contractual specifications are met. As more and larger structural units are prefabricated off-site, the distribution between specialty contractors and material suppliers becomes even less obvious. Back to top 1. 6 Financing of Constructed Facilities A major construction project requires an enormous amount of capital that is often supplied by lenders who want to be assured that the project will offer a fair return on the investment. The direct costs associated with a major construction project may be broadly classified into two categories: (1) the construction expenses paid to the general contractor for erecting the facility on site and (2) the expenses for land acquisition, legal fees, architect/engineer fees, construction management fees, interest on construction loans and the opportunity cost of carrying empty space in the facility until it is fully occupied. The direct construction costs in the first category represent approximately 60 to 80 percent of the total costs in most construction projects. Since the costs of construction are ultimately borne by the owner, careful financial planning for the facility must be made prior to construction. Construction Financing Construction loans to contractors are usually provided by banks or savings and loan associations for construction financing. Upon the completion of the facility, construction loans will be terminated and the post-construction facility financing will be arranged by the owner. Construction loans provided for different types of construction vary. In the case of residential housing, construction loans and long-term mortgages can be obtained from savings and loans associations or commercial banks. For institutional and commercial buildings, construction loans are usually obtained from commercial banks. Since the value of specialized industrial buildings as collateral for loans is limited, construction loans in this domain are rare, and construction financing can be done from the pool of general corporate funds. For infrastructure construction owned by government, the property cannot be used as security for a private loan, but there are many possible ways to finance the construction, such as general appropriation from taxation or special bonds issued for the project. Traditionally, banks serve as construction lenders in a three-party agreement among the contractor, the owner and the bank. The stipulated loan will be paid to the contractor on an agreed schedule upon the verification of completion of various portions of the project. Generally, a payment request together with a standard progress report will be submitted each month by the contractor to the owner which in turn submits a draw request to the bank. Provided that the work to date has been performed satisfactorily, the disbursement is made on that basis during the construction period. Under such circumstances, the bank has been primarily concerned with the completion of the facility on time and within the budget. The economic life of the facility after its completion is not a concern because of the transfer of risk to the owner or an institutional lender. Facility Financing Many private corporations maintain a pool of general funds resulting from retained earnings and long-term borrowing on the strength of corporate assets, which can be used for facility financing. Similarly, for public agencies, the long-term funding may be obtained from the commitment of general tax revenues from the federal, state and/or local governments. Both private corporations and public agencies may issue special bonds for the constructed facilities which may obtain lower interest rates than other forms of borrowing. Short-term borrowing may also be used for bridging the gaps in long-term financing. Some corporate bonds are convertible to stocks under circumstances specified in the bond agreement. For public facilities, the assessment of user fees to repay the bond funds merits consideration for certain types of facilities such as toll roads and sewage treatment plants. [3] The use of mortgages is primarily confined to rental properties such as apartments and office buildings. Because of the sudden surge of interest rates in the late 1970's, many financial institutions offer, in addition to he traditional fixed rate long-term mortgage commitments, other arrangements such as a combination of debt and a percentage of ownership in exchange for a long-term mortgage or the use of adjustable rate mortgages. In some cases, the construction loan may be granted on an open-ended basis without a long-term financing commitment. For example, the plan might be issued for the construction period with an option to extend it for a period of up to three years in order to give the owner more time to seek alternative long-term financing on the completed facility. The bank will be drawn into situations involving financial risk if it chooses to be a lender without long-term guarantees. For international projects, the currency used for financing agreements becomes important. If financial agreements are written in terms of local currencies, then fluctuations in the currency exchange rate can significantly affect the cost and ultimately profit of a project. In some cases, payments might also be made in particular commodities such as petroleum or the output from the facility itself. Again, these arrangements result in greater uncertainty in the financing scheme because the price of these commodities may vary. Back to top 1. 7 Legal and Regulatory Requirements The owners of facilities naturally want legal protection for all the activities involved in the construction. It is equally obvious that they should seek competent legal advice. However, there are certain principles that should be recognized by owners in order to avoid unnecessary pitfalls. Legal Responsibilities Activities in construction often involve risks, both physical and financial. An owner generally tries to shift the risks to other parties to the degree possible when entering into contractual agreements with them. However, such action is not without cost or risk. For example, a contractor who is assigned the risks may either ask for a higher contract price to compensate for the higher risks, or end up in non-performance or bankruptcy as an act of desperation. Such consequences can be avoided if the owner is reasonable in risk allocation. When risks are allocated to different parties, the owner must understand the implications and spell them out clearly. Sometimes there are statutory limitations on the allocation of liabilities among various groups, such as prohibition against the allocation of negligence in design to the contractor. An owner must realize its superior power in bargaining and hence the responsibilities associated with this power in making contractual agreements. Mitigation of Conflicts It is important for the owner to use legal counselors as advisors to mitigate conflicts before they happen rather than to wield conflicts as weapons against other parties. There are enough problems in design and construction due to uncertainty rather than bad intentions. The owner should recognize the more enlightened approaches for mitigating conflicts, such as using owner-controlled wrap-up insurance which will provide protection for all parties involved in the construction process for unforeseen risks, or using arbitration, mediation and other extra-judicial solutions for disputes among various parties. However, these compromise solutions are not without pitfalls and should be adopted only on the merit of individual cases. Government Regulation To protect public safety and welfare, legislatures and various government agencies periodically issue regulations which influence the construction process, the operation of constructed facilities, and their ultimate disposal. For example, building codes promulgated by local authorities have provided guidelines for design and construction practices for a very long time. Since the 1970's, many federal regulations that are related directly or indirectly to construction have been established in the United States. Among them are safety standards for workers issued by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, environmental standards on pollutants and toxic wastes issued by the Environmental Protection Agency, and design and operation procedures for nuclear power plants issued by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Owners must be aware of the impacts of these regulations on the costs and durations of various types of construction projects as well as possibilities of litigation due to various contentions. For example, owners acquiring sites for new construction may be strictly liable for any hazardous wastes already on the site or removed from the site under the U. S. Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability (CERCL) Act of 1980. For large scale projects involving new technologies, the construction costs often escalate with the uncertainty associated with such restrictions. Back to top 1. 8 The Changing Environment of the Construction Industry The construction industry is a conglomeration of diverse fields and participants that have been loosely lumped together as a sector of the economy. The construction industry plays a central role in national welfare, including the development of residential housing, office buildings and industrial plants, and the restoration of the nation's infrastructure and other public facilities. The importance of the construction industry lies in the function of its products which provide the foundation for industrial production, and its impacts on the national economy cannot be measured by the value of its output or the number of persons employed in its activities alone. To be more specific, construction refers to all types of activities usually associated with the erection and repair of immobile facilities. Contract construction consists of a large number of firms that perform construction work for others, and is estimated to be approximately 85% of all construction activities. The remaining 15% of construction is performed by owners of the facilities, and is referred to as force-account construction. Although the number of contractors in the United States exceeds a million, over 60% of all contractor construction is performed by the top 400 contractors. The value of new construction in the United States (expressed in constant dollars) and the value of construction as a percentage of the gross national products from 1950 to 1985 are shown in Figures 1-6 and 1-7. It can be seen that construction is a significant factor in the Gross National Product although its importance has been declining in recent years. [4] Not to be ignored is the fact that as the nation's constructed facilities become older, the total expenditure on rehabilitation and maintenance may increase relative to the value of new construction. Figure 1-6:   Value of New Construction in the United States, 1975-1995 Figure 1-7:   Construction as Percentage of Gross Domestic Product in the United States, 1975-1995 Owners who pay close attention to the peculiar characteristics of the construction industry and its changing operating environment will be able to take advantage of the favorable conditions and to avoid the pitfalls. Several factors are particularly noteworthy because of their significant impacts on the quality, cost and time of construction. New Technologies In recent years, technological innovation in design, materials and construction methods have resulted in significant changes in construction costs. Computer-aids have improved capabilities for generating quality designs as well as reducing the time required to produce alternative designs. New materials not only have enhanced the quality of construction but also have shortened the time for shop fabrication and field erection. Construction methods have gone through various stages of mechanization and automation, including the latest development of construction robotics. The most dramatic new technology applied to construction has been the Internet and its private, corporate Intranet versions. The Internet is widely used as a means to foster collaboration among professionals on a project, to communicate for bids and results, and to procure necessary goods and services. Real time video from specific construction sites is widely used to illustrate construction progress to interested parties. The result has been more effective collaboration, communication and procurement. The effects of many new technologies on construction costs have been mixed because of the high development costs for new technologies. However, it is unmistakable that design professionals and construction contractors who have not adapted to changing technologies have been forced out of the mainstream of design and construction activities. Ultimately, construction quality and cost can be improved with the adoption of new technologies which are proved to be efficient from both the viewpoints of performance and economy. Labor Productivity The term productivity is generally defined as a ratio of the production output volume to the input volume of resources. Since both output and input can be quantified in a number of ways, there is no single measure of productivity that is universally applicable, particularly in the construction industry where the products are often unique and there is no standard for specifying the levels for aggregation of data. However, since labor constitutes a large part of the cost of construction, labor productivity in terms of output volume (constant dollar value or functional units) per person-hour is a useful measure. Labor productivity measured in this way does not necessarily indicate the efficiency of labor alone but rather measures the combined effects of labor, equipment and other factors contributing to the output. While aggregate construction industry productivity is important as a measure of national economy, owners are more concerned about the labor productivity of basic units of work produced by various crafts on site. Thus, an owner can compare the labor performance at different geographic locations, under different working conditions, and for different types and sizes of projects. Construction costs usually run parallel to material prices and labor wages. Actually, over the years, labor productivity has increased in some traditional types of construction and thus provides a leveling or compensating effect when hourly rates for labor increase faster than other costs in construction. However, labor productivity has been stagnant or even declined in unconventional or large scale projects. Public Scrutiny Under the present litigious climate in the United States, the public is increasingly vocal in the scrutiny of construction project activities. Sometimes it may result in considerable difficulty in siting new facilities as well as additional expenses during the construction process itself. Owners must be prepared to manage such crises before they get out of control. Figure 1-8 can serve to indicate public attitudes towards the siting of new facilities. It represents the cumulative percentage of individuals who would be willing to accept a new industrial facility at various distances from their homes. For example, over fifty percent of the people surveyed would accept a ten-story office building within five miles of their home, but only twenty-five percent would accept a large factory or coal fired power plant at a similar distance. An even lower percentage would accept a hazardous waste disposal site or a nuclear power plant. Even at a distance of one hundred miles, a significant fraction of the public would be unwilling to accept hazardous waste facilities or nuclear power plants. Figure 1-8:   Public Acceptance Towards New Facilities (Reprinted from Environmental Quality – 1980, the Eleventh Annual Report of the Council on Environmental Quality, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC, December 1980. ) This objection to new facilities is a widespread public attitude, representing considerable skepticism about the external benefits and costs which new facilities will impose. It is this public attitude which is likely to make public scrutiny and regulation a continuing concern for the construction industry. International Competition A final trend which deserves note is the increasing level of international competition in the construction industry. Owners are likely to find non-traditional firms bidding for construction work, particularly on large projects. Separate bids from numerous European, North American, and Asian construction firms are not unusual. In the United States, overseas firms are becoming increasingly visible and important. In this environment of heightened competition, good project management and improved productivity are more and more important. A bidding competition for a major new offshore drilling platform illustrates the competitive environment in construction. As described in the Wall Street Journal: [5] Through most of the postwar years, the nation's biggest builders of offshore oil platforms enjoyed an unusually cozy relationship with the Big Oil Companies they served. Their top officials developed personal friendships with oil executives, entertained them at opulent hunting camps- and won contracts to build nearly every major offshore oil platform in the world†¦. But this summer, the good-old boy network fell apart. Shell [Oil Co. awarded the main contract for [a new] platform – taller than Chicago's Sears Tower, four times heavier than the Brooklyn Bridge – to a tiny upstart. The winning bidder arranged overseas fabrication of the rig, kept overhead costs low, and proposed a novel assembly procedure by which construction equipment was mounted on completed sections of the platform in order to speed the completion of the entire structure. The result was lower costs than those estimated and bid by traditional firms. Of course, U. S. firms including A/E firms, contractors and construction managers are also competing in foreign countries. Their success or failure in the international arena may also affect their capacities and vitality to provide services in the domestic U. S. market. Contractor Financed Projects Increasingly, some owners look to contractors or joint ventures as a resource to design, to build and to finance a constructed facility. For example, a utility company may seek a consortium consisting of a design/construct firm and a financial investment firm to assume total liability during construction and thereby eliminate the risks of cost escalation to ratepayers, stockholders and the management. On the other hand, a local sanitation district may seek such a consortium to provide private ownership for a proposed new sewage treatment plant. In the former case, the owner may take over the completed facility and service the debt on construction through long-term financing arrangements; in the latter case, the private owner may operate the completed facility and recover its investment through user fees. The activities of joint ventures among design, construction and investment firms are sometimes referred to as financial engineering. This type of joint venture has become more important in the international construction market where aggressive contractors often win contracts by offering a more attractive financing package rather than superior technology. With a deepening shadow of international debts in recent years, many developing countries are not in a position to undertake any new project without contractor-backed financing. Thus, the contractors or joint ventures in overseas projects are forced into very risky positions if they intend to stay in the competition. Lean Construction Lean manufacturing† had a revolutionary effect on many industries, especially automotive assembly companies. Characteristics of this approach include: * Improvement in quality and reduction of waste everywhere. Rather than increasing costs, reducing defects and waste proved to improve quality and reduce costs. * Empowering workers to be responsible for satisfying customer needs. In construction, for example, craftsman should ma ke sure their work satisfied the design intent. * Continuous improvement of processes involving the entire workforce. Lean construction s intended to spread these practices within the construction industry. Of course, well managed construction projects already have many aspects of lean construction. For example, just-in-time delivery of materials is commonplace to avoid the waste of large inventory stockpiles. Green building projects attempt to re-use or recycle all construction wastes. But the systematic attention to continuous improvement and zero accidents and defects is new. Back to top 1. 9 The Role of Project Managers In the project life cycle, the most influential factors affecting the outcome of the project often reside at the early stages. At this point, decisions should be based on competent economic evaluation with due consideration for adequate financing, the prevalent social and regulatory environment, and technological considerations. Architects and engineers might specialize in planning, in construction field management, or in operation, but as project managers, they must have some familiarity with all such aspects in order to understand properly their role and be able to make competent decisions. Since the 1970's, many large-scale projects have run into serious problems of management, such as cost overruns and long schedule delays. Actually, the management of megaprojects or superprojects is not a practice peculiar to our time. Witness the construction of transcontinental railroads in the Civil War era and the construction of the Panama Canal at the turn of this century. Although the megaprojects of this generation may appear in greater frequency and present a new set of challenge, the problems are organizational rather than technical. As noted by Hardy Cross: [6] It is customary to think of engineering as a part of a trilogy, pure science, applied science and engineering. It needs emphasis that this trilogy is only one of a triad of trilogies into which engineering fits. This first is pure science, applied science and engineering; the second is economic theory, finance and engineering; and the third is social relations, industrial relations and engineering. Many engineering problems are as closely allied to social problems as they are to pure science. As engineers advance professionally, they often spend as much or more time on planning, management and other economic or social problems as on the traditional engineering design and analysis problems which form the core of most educational programs. It is upon the ability of engineers to tackle all such problems that their performance will ultimately be judged. The greatest stumbling block to effective management in construction is the inertia and historic divisions among planners, designers and constructors. While technical competence in design and innovation remains the foundation of engineering practice, the social, economic and organizational factors that are pervasive in influencing the success and failure of construction projects must also be dealt with effectively by design and construction organizations. Of course, engineers are not expected to know every detail of management techniques, but they must be knowledgeable enough to anticipate the problems of management so that they can work harmoniously with professionals in related fields to overcome the inertia and historic divisions. Paradoxically, engineers who are creative in engineering design are often innovative in planning and management since both types of activities involve problem solving. In fact, they can reinforce each other if both are included in the education process, provided that creativity and innovation instead of routine practice are emphasized. A project manager who is well educated in the fundamental principles of engineering design and management can usefully apply such principles once he or she has acquired basic understanding of a new application area. A project manager who has been trained by rote learning for a specific type of project may merely gain one year of experience repeated twenty times even if he or she has been in the field for twenty years. A broadly educated project manager can reasonably hope to become a leader in the profession; a narrowly trained project manager is often relegated to the role of his or her first job level permanently. The owners have much at stake in selecting a competent project manager and in providing her or him with the authority to assume responsibility at various stages of the project regardless of the types of contractual agreements for implementing the project. Of course, the project manager must also possess the leadership quality and the ability to handle effectively intricate interpersonal relationships within an organization. The ultimate test of the education and experience of a project manager for construction lies in her or his ability to apply fundamental principles to solving problems in the new and unfamiliar situations which have become the hallmarks of the changing environment in the construction industry. Back to top 1. 10 References 1. Au, T. and C. Hendrickson, â€Å"Education in Engineering Planning and Management,† Proceedings of the ASCE Conference on Civil Engineering Education, Columbus, Ohio, 1985. 2. Barrie, D. S. editor), Directions in Managing Construction, John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1981. 3. Lean Construction Institute, http://www. leanconstruction. org/ 4. Bonny, J. B. and J. P. Frein, Handbook of Construction Management and Organization, 2nd Edition, Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. , New York, 1980. 5. Hasagawa, Fumio et. al. , â€Å"Built by Japan,† John Wiley ; Sons, 1988. 6. Lang, J. E. and D. Q. Mills, The Construction Industry, Lexington Books, Lexington, MA, 1979. 7. Walker, N. , E. N. Walker and T. K. Rohdenburg, Legal Pitfalls in Architecture, Engineering and Building Construction, 2nd Edition, McGraw-Hill Book Co. , New York, 1979. Back to top 1. 11 Footnotes 1. The Business Roundtable, More Construction for the Money, Summary Report of the Construction Industry Cost Effectiveness Project, January 1983, p. 11. Back 2. â€Å"Hot New Market Lures A-E Players to Cutting Edges,† Engineering News-Record, April 4, 1985, pp. 30-37. Back 3. See Hendrickson, C. , â€Å"Financing Civil Works with User Fees,† Civil Engineering, Vol. 53, No. , February 1983, pp. 71-72. Back 4. The graph is derived from data in â€Å"Value of New Construction Put in Place, 1960-1983†, Statistical Abstract of the United States, 105th Edition, U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census, 1985, pp. 722-723, as well as the information in earlier editions. Back 5. See Petzinger, Thomas Jr. , â€Å"Upstart's Winning Bid for Offshore Platform Stuns its Older Rivals,† Wall Street Journ al, p. 1, c. 6, Nov. 20, 1985. Back 6. See H. Cross, Engineers and Ivory Towers, McGraw-Hill Book Co. Inc. , New York, 1952. Back Table of Contents| || Next Chapter| Go Up to Table of Contents| | Go To Chapter 2 (Organizing for Project Management)| The Owners' Perspective Introduction The Project Life Cycle Major Types of Construction Selection of Professional Services Construction Contractors Financing of Constructed Facilities Legal and Regulatory Requirements The Changing Environment of the Construction Industry   Ã‚  Ã‚   The Role of Project Managers References Footnotes| | | 1. The Owners' Perspective 1. 1 Introduction Like the five blind men encountering different parts of an elephant, each of the numerous participants in the process of planning, designing, financing, constructing and operating physical facilities has a different perspective on project management for construction. Specialized knowledge can be very beneficial, particularly in large and complicated projects, since experts in various specialties can provide valuable services. However, it is advantageous to understand how the different parts of the process fit together. Waste, excessive cost and delays can result from poor coordination and communication among specialists. It is particularly in the interest of owners to insure that such problems do not occur. And it behooves all participants in the process to heed the interests of owners because, in the end, it is the owners who provide the resources and call the shots. By adopting the viewpoint of the owners, we can focus our attention on the complete process of project management for constructed facilities rather than the historical roles of various specialists such as planners, architects, engineering designers, constructors, fabricators, material suppliers, financial analysts and others. To be sure, each specialty has made important advances in developing new techniques and tools for efficient implementation of construction projects. However, it is through the understanding of the entire process of project management that these specialists can respond more effectively to the owner's desires for their services, in marketing their specialties, and in improving the productivity and quality of their work. The introduction of innovative and more effective project management for construction is not an academic exercise. As reported by the â€Å"Construction Industry Cost Effectiveness Project† of the Business Roundtable: [1] By common consensus and every available measure, the United States no longer gets it's money's worth in construction, the nation's largest industry †¦ The creeping erosion of construction efficiency and productivity is bad news for the entire U. S. economy. Construction is a particularly seminal industry. The price of every factory, office building, hotel or power plant that is built affects the price that must be charged for the goods or services produced in it or by it. And that effect generally persists for decades †¦ Too much of the industry remains tethered to the past, partly by inertia and partly by historic divisions†¦ Improvement of project management not only can aid the construction industry, but may also be the engine for the national and world economy. However, if we are to make meaningful improvements, we must first understand the construction industry, its operating environment and the institutional constraints affecting its activities as well as the nature of project management. Back to top 1. 2 The Project Life Cycle The acquisition of a constructed facility usually represents a major capital investment, whether its owner happens to be an individual, a private corporation or a public agency. Since the commitment of resources for such an investment is motivated by market demands or perceived needs, the facility is expected to satisfy certain objectives within the constraints specified by the owner and relevant regulations. With the exception of the speculative housing market, where the residential units may be sold as built by the real estate developer, most constructed facilities are custom made in consultation with the owners. A real estate developer may be regarded as the sponsor of building projects, as much as a government agency may be the sponsor of a public project and turns it over to another government unit upon its completion. From the viewpoint of project management, the terms â€Å"owner† and â€Å"sponsor† are synonymous because both have the ultimate authority to make all important decisions. Since an owner is essentially acquiring a facility on a promise in some form of agreement, it will be wise for any owner to have a clear understanding of the acquisition process in order to maintain firm control of the quality, timeliness and cost of the completed facility. From the perspective of an owner, the project life cycle for a constructed facility may be illustrated schematically in Figure 1-1. Essentially, a project is conceived to meet market demands or needs in a timely fashion. Various possibilities may be considered in the conceptual planning stage, and the technological and economic feasibility of each alternative will be assessed and compared in order to select the best possible project. The financing schemes for the proposed alternatives must also be examined, and the project will be programmed with respect to the timing for its completion and for available cash flows. After the scope of the project is clearly defined, detailed engineering design will provide the blueprint for construction, and the definitive cost estimate will serve as the baseline for cost control. In the procurement and construction stage, the delivery of materials and the erection of the project on site must be carefully planned and controlled. After the construction is completed, there is usually a brief period of start-up or shake-down of the constructed facility when it is first occupied. Finally, the management of the facility is turned over to the owner for full occupancy until the facility lives out its useful life and is designated for demolition or conversion. Figure 1-1:   The Project Life Cycle of a Constructed Facility Of course, the stages of development in Figure 1-1 may not be strictly sequential. Some of the stages require iteration, and others may be carried out in parallel or with overlapping time frames, depending on the nature, size and urgency of the project. Furthermore, an owner may have in-house capacities to handle the work in every stage of the entire process, or it may seek professional advice and services for the work in all stages. Understandably, most owners choose to handle some of the work in-house and to contract outside professional services for other components of the work as needed. By examining the project life cycle from an owner's perspective we can focus on the proper roles of various activities and participants in all stages regardless of the contractual arrangements for different types of work. In the United States, for example, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers has in-house capabilities to deal with planning, budgeting, design, construction and operation of waterway and flood control structures. Other public agencies, such as state transportation departments, are also deeply involved in all phases of a construction project. In the private sector, many large firms such as DuPont, Exxon, and IBM are adequately staffe