Song, L and AbouRizk, S M (2005) Quantifying engineering project scope for productivity modeling. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 131(3), pp. 360-367. ISSN 0733-9364
Abstract
A poor scope definition in an engineering design project disrupts project rhythm, causes rework, increases project time and cost, and lowers the productivity and morale of the workforce. A quantitative measurement of the project scope is the basis for productivity modeling that involves the measurement, estimation, control, and evaluation of productivity. This paper proposes a conceptual model, the quantitative engineering project scope definition (QEPSD), to standardize the measurement of engineering project scope in construction projects, within a computer aided design environment. The QEPSD quantitatively measures engineering project scope, in terms of the complexity of design items by defining design categories and complexity functions appropriate to the particular discipline. The proposed method was originally verified and implemented specifically for steel drafting projects. Actual data was analyzed and used to demonstrate the benefits of historical data prepared using QEPSD for project scope definition. It was found that the new method led to increased utilization of previously untapped values in historical data, improving the accuracy of project scope definition, and productivity modeling. The paper concludes with a discussion of the potential benefits of adopting the QEPSD method, and its implications upon various project management functions.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | cost control; personnel management; productivity; project management |
| Index terms: | rework, project scope definition, accuracy, personnel, complexity, cost control, construction project, computer aided design, productivity, morale, estimation, modelling, project management, drafting, engineering design, project scope |
| Subjects: | management, professional development, project management theory and practice, design process, production management, systems engineering, leadership, computational design, scope management, operations management, technical documentation, financial and cost management, analytical methods |
| Topics: | Organizational Design, Human Resources, Digital Applications, Design Practice, Information Management, Engineering Principles, Project Management, Cost Management, Business Strategy |
| Descriptive scope: | 2 PC |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here