DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION

FACULTY OF EDUCATION

BAYERO UNIVERSITY, KANO.

TED 4203-CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT

PREPARED BY: MAL. AMINU TIJJANI

OCTOBER, 2019

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 INTRODUCTION TO CONSTRUCTION PROJECT MANAGEMENT

What is Construction Project Management?

It is the overall planning, coordination, and control of a project from beginning to

completion. It is aimed at meeting a client's requirement in order to produce a functionally
and financially viable project. The management of construction projects requires
knowledge of modern management principles as well as an understanding of the design
and construction process.

Who hold the responsibility of Construction Project Management?

The Project Manager has the primary responsibility of Construction Management, which
is planning a particular construction job and overseeing its progress along the way. A
Project Manager is responsible for accomplishing the stated project objectives.

Key project management responsibilities include

 creating clear and attainable project objectives,

 building the project requirements, and managing the constraints of the project
management triangle, which are cost, time, scope, and quality.
 Investigate alternative solutions for various construction problems.

What is a Project?

“A project is a unique set of co-ordinated activities with definite starting and finishing
points, undertaken by an individual or organisation to meet specific objectives within
defined time schedule, cost and performance” (BSI, 1996)

Every project is unique in its own way; there are certain basics which define most project
work. These are: objectives, constraints, lifecycle.

Project Objectives are describing what the project is trying to accomplish, or what
business value the project will achieve. Generally, any project objectives can be described
as follows:

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- To ensure finishing and delivering the project on time

- To ensure the delivery of the project within budget.

- To ensure reaching the required level of quality, through reducing errors, improving
effectiveness, and applying the appropriate control.

Project Constraints. Each project needs to be performed and delivered under certain
constraints. These constraints are typically as shown below:

Mainly, project management wishes to provide at the end of the project a product which is
delivered on Time with a high Quality and minimum Cost. However, it is practically
difficult to achieve this.

The reduction of project’s time involves increasing cost (this could mean using extra labour
and equipment), or reducing quality of work.

Project Lifecycle. (Project Development Stages) As shown below, Initiation, Planning &
Design, Execution, and Closing & Maintenance are any project’s development stages,
whatever is its type.

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 Initiation: At this stage, project’s scope is determined. An understanding of the
business environment to make sure that all the project’s key controls are fully
addressed and incorporated into the project. If this stage is not performed well, it is

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 unlikely that the project is going to be successful in meeting the needs for which it
was undertaken.
 Panning & Design: After the initiation stage is performed, the project’s WBS is
designed in addition to all other project’s documents which are prepared pre-
construction. Occasionally, a prototype of the final project’s product is built and
tested.
 Execution: This stage includes the actual procurement of the project’s set plan or
design.
 Closing & Maintenance: The Closing includes handing the final product over to
the owner after the project is finished and the formal acceptance is signed and
published. The Maintenance, which is an ongoing process, includes the correction
of any errors have ever been made during the project’s execution.

The figure shown below describes the activity of work during the project lifecycle:

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 PROJECT RESOURCES

Any project’s resources can be classified as follows:

1. Cost (Money)

2. Labour (Man-power)

3. Materials

4. Equipment (Machines)

1. Cost (Money) – Both man power, materials and machines require financial resources
without which nothing can be executed

2. Labour (Man-power) – Skilled and unskilled, supervising staff and special personnel

3. Materials – Materials such as cement, reinforcement bars, blocks and all other material
resources required for the execution of projects

5. Equipment (Machines) – Such as Truck and dumpers, concrete mixers and vibrators,
road rollers, scrappers, pile driving machines earth moving machineries and all other
mechanical plants used in building construction

HOW TO IMPROVE 4M RESOURCES

In order to improve the application of any of the 4Ms (Money, Man-power, Materials, and
Machines), so that they become more efficient and productive, the following points should
be considered

1. To improve the application of Money, (sources of funds, scheduling, estimating,

and cash-flow) should be improved.
2. To improve Man-power, (motivation, leadership, safety, productivity, and
scheduling) should be improved.
3. To improve the use of Materials, (scheduling, quality, chemical, suitability, and
purchasing/hiring) should be improved.

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 4. To improve the application of Machines, (productivity, Scheduling, construction
method, and contracts) should be improved.

PROJECT PARTICIPANTS/ CONSTRUCTION TEAM

Each project, whatever is its type or what kind of construction involves, requires the
participation of three main parties. These participants are the Owner, Engineer/Designer,
and Contractor. Apart from these three main parties, there are other participants that are
part of the construction team as explained below.

The figure shown below displays the relationship between each of these three main
participants:

1. Owner – Is one who wants to get a work executed as economically and as quickly as
possible and to know in advance his ultimate financial commitments
2. Architect – Is the first person involved in planning stage of construction project. He has
the responsibility of coming up with the architectural drawing of the project, taken into
consideration the need of the client and building regulations
3. Structural Engineer – He is responsible for making the structural drawing of the project
more especially when the building is G+1 and above. The structural engineer will

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 calculate both live and dead load that are to be imposed on the structure, and indicate
the detail reinforcements of columns, beams, slabs, stairways, foundations etc.
4. Quantity Surveyor – He prepares the bills of quantities and value the work from time
to time. QS prepare the bill based on the specification given in both architectural and
structural drawing
5. Builder – In Nigeria, builder has the responsibility of executing construction projects
on site. He follows all the specification given by an architect as well as structural
engineer. He may be assisted by both architect and structural engineer to ensure the
proper execution of the building plan in accordance with the specification
6. Contractor – He get the work done under the supervision of engineers after submission
of tender and approval
7. Special Firms – Firms that are specialized in any one particular function withi the
industry e.g. landscapers, electricians, decorators etc.
8. Material Suppliers – Supply materials to contractors or owner on demand. Materials
cover 60-80% cost of project
9. User – He is not part of the building industry but play significant role in ascertaining
the quality and functionality of the project
10. Surety bondsmen – Help in solving legal complication between owner and contractors

In addition to these main participants, there are other sub-players, such as Consultants,
Suppliers, Sub-contractors, and many others. They are working together under the role of
the Project Manager in order to deliver the project’s final product.

TYPES OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS

Construction work mainly includes anything is built and permanently attached to the
ground. This includes different kinds of structures such as, multi-storey buildings, bridges,
dams, roads, etc.

Generally, construction work is classified under one of the following categories:

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  Building construction work. [For example, residential complex, commercial towers,
hospitals, malls, etc.]
 Engineering construction work. [For example, dams, bridges, airports, highways,
etc.]
 Industrial construction work. [For example, petroleum structures, electric-power
plant, water plants, etc.]
 Specialised construction work. [For example, deep tunnels, wind turbines, etc.]

MAJOR TYPES OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS

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. 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 houses

and high-rise apartments. During the development and construction of such projects, the
developers 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.

The residential housing market is heavily affected by general economic conditions. 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, 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.

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Institutional and Commercial Building Construction – Institutional and commercial
building encompasses a great variety of project types and sizes, such as schools and
universities, medical centers and hospitals, sports facilities, 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 housing construction. 1.5.3 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-builders 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 environmental
protection can also influence decisions on these projects.

Infrastructure and Heavy Construction - Infrastructure and heavy construction includes

projects such as highways, tunnels, bridges, pipelines, drainage systems and sewage
treatment plants. Most of these projects are publicly owned and therefore financed either

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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.

CONSTRUCTION ECONOMY AND THE DESIGN ENGINEER

The cost of a project is determined by the requirements of the contract documents. Prior to
completing the final design, the engineer should give careful consideration to the method
and equipment which may be used to construct the project

The following list indicates methods which an engineer may use to reduce the cost of
construction:

1. Design concrete structures with as many duplicate members as practical in order to

permit the reuse of forms
2. Simplify the design of the structure where possible
3. Design for the use of cost saving equipment and methods
4. Eliminate unnecessary special construction requirements
5. Design to reduce the required labor to a minimum
6. Specify the quality of workmanship that is consistent with the quality of the project
7. Use local materials when they are satisfactory
8. Use standardize specifications
9. All necessary information about the various building elements should be furnished
by the engineer
10. Use contractor who have sufficient experience to understand the project and have
authority to make decision

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 EXAMPLE OF NETWORK DIAGRAM FOR CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES

The table below represent a construction activities A-J, their predecessors and duration for
completing each activity per day. Activities A and B have no predecessors. Construct a
network diagram for the whole activities

Activities A B C D E F G H I J
Predecessors - - A A B B C DE EF GHI
Durations 6 10 8 10 8 7 7 5 8 11

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