construction productivity: advances and … productivity: advances and opportunities for improvement...

Construction Productivity: Advances

and Opportunities for Improvement

Paul M. Goodrum, P.E., Ph.D.

Department of Civil Engineering, University of Kentucky

Agenda

Construction Productivity –

The Measurement

Challenge

Improvements through

Technical Change

The Need for Process

Improvement

Agenda

Construction Productivity –

The Measurement

Challenge

Improvements through

Technical Change

The Need for Process

Improvement

Productivity Measures and Industry

Policies

Ref: Teicholtz, P. (2001). “U.S. Construction Labor Productivity Trends,

1970-1998”. ASCE J. Const. Engr. & Mngmt.

Construction Price Indices

Raw Output ($)

Price Index

Real Output ($)

Industry Labor

Productivity

Real Output ($)

Total Work Hours

Single-Family Houses Index

Hedonic Regression Models

1970s Home Modern Home

=?

Case Study: New Home Construction

in Bowling Green, Kentucky

Bowling Green, KY

Population: 54,000

Local Economy: Health Care,

University, Manufacturing,

and Agriculture.

Used new home sales data

for 2005 to 2007 from

Multiple Listing Service to

develop “New” Price Index

for Bowling Green,

Kentucky.

$65,000,000

$70,000,000

$75,000,000

$80,000,000

$85,000,000

$90,000,000

2005 2006 2007New

Ho

usi

ng O

utp

ut

Ad

just

ed

to

$2005

Existing Census Fisher Price Index

Proposed Census Fisher Index

$-

$735

$2,290 Underestimated

value per home

Scope of Study: New Home Sales in Bowling Green, KY 2005-2007.

Data Source: Multiple Listing Service New Home Sales Data

$500

$1000

$1500

$2000

$2500

Case Study: New Home Construction

in Bowling Green, Kentucky

51.5% (1.5%)

28.6% (0.9%)

20.6% (0.7%)

20.4% (0.7%)

15.5% (0.5%)

10.8% (0.4%)

10.0% (0.3%)

6.2% (0.2%)

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

Sitework

Doors & Windows

Finishes

Masonry

Concrete

Thermal Protection

Wood & Plastic

Metals

Evidence of Productivity Improvement

among Construction Activities

Note: (Annual Improvement Rate) Data Source: RS Means

1976 2004

CII RT-240: Leveraging Technology to Improve Construction Productivity

Agenda

Construction Productivity –

The Measurement

Challenge

Improvements through

Technical Change

The Need for Process

Improvement

Technology Impact: A 25 Year Perspective

0.7% Annual Compound

Productivity

Improvement in

Finishes

Advanced

Function

Contributes

to

1.5% Annual Compound

Productivity

Improvement in

Site work

More

Power

Contributes

to

0.5% Annual Compound

Productivity

Improvement in

Concrete

Advanced

ModularityContributes

to

CII RT-240: Leveraging Technology to Improve Construction Productivity

Problem: Site Materials Tracking

on Large Industrial Projects

• Typical Characteristics

– Thousands of

engineered

components

– Long storage periods

– Material movement

– Sequenced erection

– Remote yards

– Inclement weather

Installation area

Lay down yard

CII RT-240: Leveraging Technology to Improve Construction Productivity

Carl Haas (Univ. of Waterloo ) and Carlos Caldas (Univ. of Texas at Austin)

Reliable Material Tracking

“read” event 1 “read” event 2

“read” event 3

2-HPECON1

2-HPECAN2

2-HQECAN4

2-HPECAN3

2-HBBCAN4

2-HCVCAN4

CII RT-240: Leveraging Technology to Improve Construction Productivity

Carl Haas (Univ. of Waterloo ) and Carlos Caldas (Univ. of Texas at Austin)

One Result of Leveraging Technology:

Total Labor-Time per Component Located

Manual Tracking Automated Tracking

Improvement Ratio ~ 8.1:1

36.8 minutes per component 4.6 minutes per component

CII RT-240: Leveraging Technology to Improve Construction Productivity

Carl Haas (Univ. of Waterloo ) and Carlos Caldas (Univ. of Texas at Austin)

Productivity Analysis / Installation Area

Based on:

• Project controls data (work hours)

• Foreman daily surveys (idle work time)

• Engineering data (Tons of installed steel)

Focus on the erection of installed components:

• Including the efficiency of erection crews for installing steel

components

• Not including bolting, torquing, plumbing, painting, and inspection

tasks

4.2% increment in steel erection productivity

CII RT-240: Leveraging Technology to Improve Construction Productivity

Carl Haas (Univ. of Waterloo ) and Carlos Caldas (Univ. of Texas at Austin)

Agenda

Construction Productivity –

The Measurement

Challenge

Improvements through

Technical Change

The Need for Process

Improvement

Best Processes for Electrical

Productivity

0.00

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

No

rmal

ized

Lab

or

Pro

du

ctiv

ity

High level

Low level 52 5049 59 7256

Note: A lower labor productivity measure is better.

** denotes significance at 0.01 level.* denotes significance at 0.05 level.

CII RT-252: Craft Productivity Program

Emerging Productivity Practices

Safety

System Integration

System Automation

Material Management

Team Building

Front End Planning

Safety

System Integration

System Automation

Material Management

Team Building

Constructability

Phase I: Mechanical

Phase II: Electrical

Phase III:Concrete

Phase IV: Steel

Best Productivity Practices Implementation

Index

•Materials Management System

•Receipt and Inspection of Materials

•Procurement Management

Materials Management

•Site Tool Management

•Machinery AvailabilityEquipment Logistics

•Short Interval Planning

•Work Face Planning

•Constructability Review

Craft Information Systems

•Training and Development

•Behavior

•Organizational Structure

•Employment

Human Resource Management

•Sequence and Scheduling of Work

•Start-up, Commission, and Turnover Plan

•New Product Investigation

•Site Layout Plan

Construction Methods

•Job Safety

•Substance Abuse Programs

•Safety Training and Orientation

Environmental Safety and Health

CII RT-252: Craft Productivity Program

Future Tasks – BPPII Model

Weight BPPII

elements based

on their relative

impact on

productivity

Validate and test

Develop

Implementation

Resource

(Roadmap)

CII RT-252: Craft Productivity Program

Conclusion

The challenge of accurately measuring construction

productivity at the industry level remains

Technology has had a positive impact on construction

productivity

…but the swing has to match the club

There is significant variation in construction productivity

from project to project.

Mapping the processes to control productivity should

help reduce the variation and potentially improve it on a

macro scale as well.