Managerial competencies of female and male managers in the Swedish construction industry

The construction industry is one of the most male dominated industries around the world, not only when it comes to workers, but also as regards managers. Only 5% of the managers in the Swedish construction industry are women. The managerial competencies of individuals working as managers in the Swedish construction industry are researched to get a clearer understanding of the situation, and to investigate if this lack of balance between male and female managers has to do with differences in managerial competence. The management development questionnaire provided by Human Resource Development Press was sent to 143 managers in the Swedish construction industry and 112 respondents (44 women and 68 men) assessed themselves in 20 competencies, resulting in a response rate of 78%. The Mann-Whitney U test showed that female and male managers possess equal managerial competencies in 17 of the 20 competencies. Male managers rated themselves as having better managerial competency than females in two of the 20 competencies, namely ‘resilience’ and ‘decision making’. Female managers rated themselves as having better managerial competency than males in ‘sensitivity’, which follows the social norm of what is expected of a woman. It was also found that both groups scored high in decision making, reflecting traditional virtues of construction managers as decisive and active. The most important result is not the differences but the many similarities between women and men working as managers in the construction industry. Thus, it is concluded that female managers are as competent as male managers in the Swedish construction industry

ALTERNATE PRICING STRATEGIES IN CONSTRUCTION

Recent research findings on pricing strategies both in general and in construction are reviewed and explored. First%2C pricing strategy in general%2C mostly in the manufacturing industry%2C is reviewed. It includes the concepts of pricing strategy%2C predatory pricing%2C price wars%2C and price policy development. Second%2C pricing strategy in construction is explored. It includes various pricing models for bid price determination%2C such as the Friedman-Gates models%2C expected utility models%2C risk-pricing model%2C and the crew-day%2C multiple regression%2C and fuzzy-set pricing models. In conclusion%2C pricing strategies in construction are still predominantly based on a cost-based approach. More recent models try to close the gap between the models and the real life conditions of a bidder%5C%27s decision-making process. It appears that there are more problems in cost-based pricing as opposed to market-based pricing. Consequently%2C it is highly recommended that%2C alternative pricing approach such as that are closer to the proposed market-based pricing model need to be explored and developed for use in the construction industry. Abstract in Bahasa Indonesia : Pricing+strategy%2C+cost-based+pricing%2C+market-based+pricing

Overview of Multi-Objective Optimization Approaches in Construction Project Management

The difficulties that are met in construction projects include budget issues, contractual time constraints, complying with sustainability rating systems, meeting local building codes, and achieving the desired quality level, to name but a few. Construction researchers have proposed and construction practitioners have used optimization strategies to meet various objectives over the years. They started out by optimizing one objective at a time (e.g., minimizing construction cost) while disregarding others. Because the objectives of construction projects often conflict with each other, single-objective optimization does not offer practical solutions as optimizing one objective would often adversely affect the other objectives that are not being optimized. They then experimented with multi-objective optimization. The many multi-objective optimization approaches that they used have their own advantages and drawbacks when used in some scenarios with different sets of objectives. In this chapter, a review is presented of 16 multi-objective optimization approaches used in 55 research studies performed in the construction industry and that were published in the period 2012–2016. The discussion highlights the strengths and weaknesses of these approaches when used in different scenarios

Motivation of civil engineers and architects in Turkey

Motivation is one of the key factors that stimulate individuals to improve their productivity. Therefore, motivation of construction workers has been debated with considerable interest by participants in the construction industry. However, motivating only construction workers, but ignoring the motivation of construction professionals, viz., architects and civil engineers, may not be enough to successfully complete a construction project. Although motivation of construction professionals may also enhance the performance of a construction project, this topic is mostly ignored in the motivation literature. This study attempts to fill this gap by (1) identifying the motivators that are of importance to architects and civil engineers and (2) exploring the statistical difference between architects’ and civil engineers’ motivators. For this purpose, a questionnaire survey was administered to Turkish architects and civil engineers to collect data on their perceptions of the importance of different motivators. The case of Turkey is investigated because several of the larger Turkish contractors undertake construction projects outside their home country. Statistical analysis was performed on the collected data to verify whether there are statistically significant differences in the perception of some motivators by architects and civil engineers. The study demonstrates the existence of a statistically significant difference between architects’ and civil engineers’ motivators. Identifying the architects’ and civil engineers’ motivators may help construction companies in motivating their architects and civil engineers more effectively, thus developing a quality workforce

Supply Management System in Ready-Mixed Concrete Companies: Evidence from Turkey

The ready-mixed concrete industry has gained significance due to the growing global need for mass housing, high-rise buildings, and infrastructure projects. Ready-mixed concrete must be used within two hours of production, necessitating local manufacturing. Turkey stands out as the third-largest producer of ready-mixed concrete globally, after China and the U.S. A better understanding of supply management systems in ready-mixed concrete companies is critical for enhancing operational efficiency, meeting the dynamic demands of clients, and achieving long-term stability and growth in such a competitive market. The main aim of this study is to evaluate ready-mixed concrete companies\u27 supply management systems, focusing on three key aspects: (1) sales, (2) supply, and (3) waste management. A questionnaire was designed and randomly distributed to professionals employed by 150 ready-mixed concrete companies, achieving a 47% response rate with 70 returns. The findings indicate that the established practices among producers include frequent adjustments in unit pricing, offers of flexibility in payments, and the frequent use of discounts. Notably, half of the companies surveyed demonstrated high manufacturing capacity and high-quality production, with 75% supporting R&D operations. A significant portion (65%) employed over 15 technical professionals, and 64% utilized advanced vehicle tracking systems. Challenges in the availability of raw materials were common, and most companies employed waste management systems. These insights help to understand ready-mixed concrete production and distribution better and pave the way for optimizing supply chain dynamics in the ready-mixed concrete industry, offering pathways to improved efficiency and profitability

Desired points at minimum cost in the “Optimize Energy Performance” credit of leed certification

This paper presents a method that guides designers in obtaining the desired number of earned points in the “Optimize Energy Performance” credit of the “Energy and Atmosphere” category of LEED version 4 (v4) certification at minimum cost. The model creates different scenarios, identifies the LEED points and  costs for each scenario. The energy analysis calculations are performed by Sefaira, the quantities of materials are received from Autodesk Revit, and the cost information comes from the RSMeans Database. A macro in Excel automates the process. An office building was used as a case study to illustrate the applicability of the proposed method. The minimum cost necessary to achieve any number of points in the “Optimize Energy Performance” credit were calculated, such as a minimum cost of $842,500 to obtain 16 points, and$476,684 for 5 points. The primary contributions of this research include (1) the development of a tool that allows designers to pick the most economical alternative for the desired points in the “Optimize Energy Performance” credit, and (2) the first time integrated use of an energy simulation software (Sefaira), a cost database (RSMeans), and a BIM software (Autodesk Revit)

Determinants of transaction costs in construction projects

Transaction costs occur when a good or service is transferred across a technologically separable interface, and include the costs of drafting, negotiating and enforcing an agreement, and also the costs of governance and bonding to secure commitments. In the complex and high risk environment of a construction project, questionable decisions can be made in the planning and design phase, and disagreements, conflicts, disputes, change orders, and claims can occur in the construction phase. These problems contribute to an increase in transaction costs. Transaction costs at the pre-contract phase of a project are different from the transaction costs at the post-contract phase. However, there is no consensus on a standard definition of transaction costs in construction projects. In this study, a detailed literature review focusing on transaction costs in construction project management is presented. The factors that affect transaction costs are identified and categorized under the headings of the owner’s and contractor’s roles in the transaction, project management efficiency, and the characteristics of the transaction environment

Modeling information flow in the supply chain of structural steel components

 Accessing the required information in the supply chain of structural steel components is critical for minimiz­ing costly reworks and delays. This paper identifies the information items generated in the different phases of the supply chain related to structural steel components and formalizes the process of producing and using this information. Precise details about different features of the components (e.g., their geometry and weight, connection details, cutting/bending/ punching requirements, and the type and grade of the material) are set in the various tasks performed in the different phases of the supply chain. Regardless of whether one uses paper-based systems or advanced technologies such as smart tags and radio-frequency identification (RFID), a better understanding is achieved of the processes through which a structural steel component passes. The results of this research can be used to streamline the information flow in the supply chain of structural steel components, regardless of the type of tracking technology used, hence reducing delays and reworks