CHAPETR III

CONSTRUCTION MANAGMENT

In this chapter the basics of project/project management and construction management and
their relation will discussed. Additionally one aspect of construction management namely
Resources Management focused on Human Resource management will be viewed.

3.1. Project and Project Management

A project is a unique process, consisting of a set of co-ordinated and controlled activities with
an assumed start and known finish dates, undertaken to achieve an objective conforming to
specific requirements including constraints of time, cost and resources.

Projects are understood to be parts of the main business of organizations with the following
identifying characteristics:

• Unique, involving innovative characteristics;

• Temporary, for it has a definite ending – constrained by time, finance & other borrowed
resources;

• A component of a certain business, requiring predetermined goals and courses of actions; and

• Complex (if applicable), associated with size, variety, handling difficulty, importance, urgency,
changes or a combination of two or more of them. It is also related to inter related and numerous
activities involved, the context in which their management processes were built in and their
decision making procedures.

Among these characteristics, the first two are most acknowledged in several project
management literatures. For instance, PMIBoK uses these two characteristics as the main
elements to define a project. However, it is also acknowledged that the degree of uniqueness
varies among different projects.

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Three broad categories of projects can be identified (Dennis Lock, 1987) each with its own
characteristics:

A. Manufacturing projects,

B. Projects requiring external organizations, and

C. Management projects.

A. Manufacturing projects:
In this category projects involve the following activities: original design work, prototype
testing, if necessary, manufacturing, assembling, and installation and commissioning.
Except installation and commissioning works, most of the activities are carried out under the
control of the manufacturer. Such projects are often made for a fixed price, promised delivery
dates, and a set of unambiguous data – specifications – that define the performance.

B. Projects requiring external organizations:

Such projects include civil engineering, construction, petrochemical, mining, etc; which aims
to establish buildings or operating plant on required sites requiring external or supplementary
organization to the mother organization on these sites. Such projects need more attention to
the problems of communications and organization than the manufacturing projects.

C. Management projects:
The employment of an external manager or managing teams offering services to

organizations: to ensure effective and efficient management system, to ensure efficient installation and
start up of new approaches, to follow projects of the above nature on behalf of clients and / or financiers,

etc.

In project management the different constraints have been identified as the Triple Constraints
which are managing Quality, Schedule (time) and Cost simultaneously. Projects can better be
managed in ways that balance these constraints as shown in Fig. 3.1. But, overly emphasizing
one of these aspects may compromise another. Changing any of the three without adjusting
one or all of the others may affect the quality of the project outputs.

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 Quality

Balance

Time Cost
Figure 3.1. Triple Constrains
3.2. Construction Project Management

The construction industry by enlarge uses projects to accomplish its tasks. In due time
Construction Management developed as disciple from Project Management as a result of the
growing challenge to complete projects within the allocated budget, time and assumed quality
standard.

The Construction industry is the major and direct beneficiary of innovations from the field of
General and Project Management. For effective and efficient accomplishment of construction
projects and to increase their probability to success, project management concepts are
undoubtedly necessary. The Professional Construction Management (PCM) itself is young and
still is not widely assimilated into the construction industry.

A constant challenge faced by today's project management is change. On the one hand change
represents growth, opportunity and development, and yet on the other hand change represents
threat, disorientation, and upheaval. All management concepts would admit that there is no
single prescription or formula possible for successes of projects. However, by applying the
various new project management concepts, most, if not all, present problems can be solved.

3.2.1. Objectives and Functions of Construction Management

3.2.1.1. Objectives of Construction Management
The main objectives of the construction management team should include:

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  Project completion within the allocated budget and duration,

 Ensure that the production of construction works satisfy the client’s functional
requirements,

 Construction to specified standards,

 Provision of safe and satisfactory working condition.

Accordingly, construction project management may be defined as the overall control of the
total management process to optimize the three attributes of the process: Quality, Schedule
and Cost.

3.2.1.2. Functions of Construction Management

The functions of construction management are the same to that of the five managerial functions
defined by Henry Fayol. The following seven functions can better classify the different
functions: Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Motivating, Communication, Measuring and
Correcting, and Coordinating.

i. Planning
Planning is a function of devising the cause for the future with a vision, formulated for the
future state of the organization or the project. Planning also involves preparation of alternatives
for achieving specified objectives.
In preparation of plans the following questions should be addressed:

 What to do?

 How to do?

 Where to do?

 Who is to do it?

 How much does it cost?

The detailing of the plan depends on:

 Size of the project

 Degree of difficulty

 Knowledge and experience

 Degree and extent of indeterminate operations

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  Extent of internal and external constraints Scheduling:
Scheduling is timing of the work activities. During scheduling questions like when to do it and
how long it takes should be addressed.

Please refer to Chapter 2, Page 17 – 28 of your text book for details and advantage of Planning
Studies.

ii. Organizing
Organizing is required to achieve effective utilization of the people, facilities, equipment and
money available to the Organization. Organizing also involves establishing a workable
organizational structure to divide the work into manageable department/sections and delegate

tasks accordingly. iii. Staffing:

Staffing involves assigning (employing) people to fill the posts created within the organizational
structure. Staffing also involves matching the organization’s needs with each employee’s goals

and desires, and it requires adherence to equal opportunity regulations. iv. Motivating:

Motivation can be defines as follows:

• Motivation is the set of processes that moves a person towards a goal.

• Motivation is the internal or external forces that act on a person that arouse enthusiasm
and persistence to pursue a certain course of action.
Motivation is important in management of people because a motivated workforce will “go the
extra mile” to exceed performance expectations on the job. There are a number of theories
which formulate why people are motivated, from those Hertzberg’s two factor theory and
expectancy theory from content and process theories respectively are worth mentioning.

Hertzberg’s Two-Factor Theory:

Considers factors that motivate, and reduce motivation (motivators & de-motivators) and Key
part of this theory is that two separate sets of characteristics affect motivation and employee
performance.

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  It considers Motivators as Achievement, Recognition, Responsibility, Advancement,
the Work Itself, and Job Content.

 And De-Motivators (Hygiene) factors like Salary, Technical Supervision, Company

Policies and Administration, Interpersonal Relations, Working Conditions, and Job
Context.

Expectancy Theory:
A person’s motivation is a multiplicative function of expectancy, instrumentality, and valence:
M=ExIxV
Motivation is sharply reduced when, expectancy, instrumentality, or valence approach zero and
Motivation is high when expectancy and instrumentality are high and valence is strongly
positive.

v. Communication:
Communication is a multifaceted management responsibility. Communication can be formal
and informal; it is both written and oral. It utilizes paper, telephone, face-to-face, and
electronic means. Construction Managers communicate goals and purposes; information,
instructions, and inducements. They also ensure that the messages are sent and received in

the multitude directions. vi. Measuring and Correcting:

Measuring and Correcting involves:

• Measuring the actual performance

• Identify plan and schedule

• Compare plan against performance

• If there is discrepancy, identify the reasons

• Analyze the costs incurred

• Take remedial measures

• Observe quality of work

NB: - “People work for what you inspect, not for what you expect.” vii.
Coordinating:

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Coordinating – conduct regular departmental and section heads meeting for discussion.

3.3. Resource Management – Human Resource Management

Human resource is probably the most important of all the resources involved in the
Construction Industry. Usually Labor in the form of technical and managerial personnel and
work forces in various trades and professions are essential to carryout projects efficiently and
effectively. Thus any construction manager shall have the necessary knowledge on personnel
management.

Any Human Resource management has to be based on the existing Labor and other civil codes
related to worker’s right. Many construction projects face a challenge when it comes to labor
force management as they are not aware of the prevailing laws and decrees. The detail view of
labor management will presented as all construction projects and construction firms are
effective as long as there employees are effective.

3.3.1. Labor Management: -

There are three types’ labor relations:

• Industrial relation: refers to all types of relationships between the parties concerned
within industrial undertakings including construction, agriculture, mining, commerce
finance, transport and other services

• Labor relations: refers to the relationship between the labor union and management

• Employee relation: describes the relationship between management and individual

employee in that light it is some times called “Employee-employee relations.”

3.3.1.1. Objective of Labor Relation Management

Thus the main objectives of Labor Relation management are:

• To bring about healthy relations between employee and employers

• To minimize Industrial disputes

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 • To secure harmonious relations among all who are concerned with production and
operation process

• To increase productivity of workforce

• To give workers their desired place by considering them as partners and associating
them with management

• To give the workers their due share in profit, improve their working conditions and
their by eliminating the possibility Industrial unrest such as strikes, lockout etc.
3.3.1.2. Managing the Labor Relations Process
The labor relation management process has three phases.

• Union Organizing

• Collective Bargaining

• Labor Contract Administration

A. Union Organizing
In this phase the union organization management confronts the issues involved with union
solicitation, election or reelection conduct, and the certification election.

B. Collective Bargaining
Collective bargaining is the phase that management representatives negotiate with union
representatives on terms of workplace. The end result of collective bargaining is the labor
agreement or contract.
Mandatory Bargaining Topics: Wages, Hours and Employment Conditions are usually
mandatory bargaining topics.

Wages: - Base pay rates, Overtime pay rates, Retirement benefits, Health benefits, Travel pay,
and Pay incentives.
Hours: - Overtime, Holidays, Vacation, and Shifts.
Employment Conditions: - Layoffs, Promotions, Seniority provisions, Safety rules, Work rules,
Grievance procedures, Union shop, and Job descriptions.

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Collective bargaining requires negotiating skills such as the understanding of conflict and
conflict management. The principles of negotiation include:

 Honesty: telling the truth

 Working out the essential elements of disputes

 Not to inject considerations that are not relevant to the disputes

 To have patience

 To get prepared to work hard and keeping oneself physically fit

 To empathize

 To be flexible
It is advisable to follow the 9, 9 style for negotiation management. The (9, 9) style is table format
having nine grid lines and plotted on the X- and Y- axis where concern for employees is plotted
on the X- axis and concern for employers is plotted on the Y- axis as shown in Figure 3.2. The
aim to reach at the (9, 9) part and have a win/win result.

Figure 3.2. Negotiation Scenarios by using the 9,9 style.

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C. Labor Contract Administration
The union contract is a collective agreement that spells out the conditions of employment and
work rules that binds the labor union and management. It is the result of collective bargaining.
Top management together with the labor union leaders administer the contract and fulfill its
objects.

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