Gidado, K (1993) Numerical index of complexity in building construction with particular consideration to its effect on production time. PhD thesis, University of Brighton, UK.
Abstract
This thesis describes the study of the effect of project complexity on contract time with particular reference to programming of the building construction process. The building process is unique because of the continuous variation of the technological, organizational, psychological and environmental constraints that exist within the system of work flow. The variation of these constraints has led to a continual change of complexity within a project and also from project to project. Structured interviews with experts confirmed that there is a rapid increase in complexity of modern building construction, and this complexity has become a vital determinant that must be considered in many managerial decision making processes. In practice however, the level of complexity of a project is often measured subjectively, by simply assuming that the higher the cost of a package or project, the greater its complexity. The failure of this method to deliver a clear cut measure of complexity in practice, let alone an indication of its variation, has led to many uncertainties such as the requirement of a services coordinator during construction, direct effect of variations, contingency amount, etc. In this thesis, a method of determining the level of construction complexity that could be used for managerial decision making processes has been developed. Case studies of selected building projects in the South East of England and structured interviews with experts in the industry were used to collect raw data and information. A mathematical heuristic model was developed and a computer program has been written to calculate the numerical measure of complexity. Tests were conducted on real projects and the results indicated that it is possible to measure complexity in modern buildings. (DX177898).
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | England; building process; case studies; complexity; contingency; decision making; failure; heuristic; programming; variations |
| Index terms: | package, heuristic, case study, England, direct effect, decision-making process, computer program, determinant, interview, building construction, programming, variation, decision-making, project complexity, complexity, building process |
| Subjects: | building construction, Geography, organizational theory, factor and component analysis, contractual arrangements, programming, systems engineering, decision analysis, contractual condition, software systems, data collection methods, risk assessment |
| Topics: | Digital Applications, Site Management, Contract Administration, Research Practice, Construction Technology, Geographical Context, Project Management, Engineering Principles, Risk Management, Procurement |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCEA |
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