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Waarde optimalisatie in de bouw : onderzoek naar de her-allocatie van value engineering tussen opdrachtgever en opdrachtnemer

Huiser, M. (2007) Waarde optimalisatie in de bouw : onderzoek naar de her-allocatie van value engineering tussen opdrachtgever en opdrachtnemer.

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Abstract:Construction projects are characterized by temporary, yet complex collaborations between different parties who all have a shared goal of realizing a project. The collaboration is structured by contracts, with specific responsibilities allocated to each party. To achieve optimal project value, it is important that the object functionality meets both the owners' and stakeholders expectations, and that unnecessary costs are avoided. In addition, contractors should be able to execute projects while maintaining acceptable risk and profit margins. Utilizing the Value Engineering methodology can be of assistance to reaching all of these goals. This process management application can be used early in the project development process to identify the functional balance between cost, reliability, and performance of a project, while assuring the owners expectations. The American construction industry effectively utilizes Value Engineering in the traditional design-bid-build delivery strategy, but lacks the efficient use of practical knowledge and performance incentives that are available within a design-build contract. The objective of this study is to analyze the current allocation of Value Engineering techniques in the construction industry. Therefore, the available literature on Value Engineering has been studied and compared to empirical findings in the American construction industry. The literature reveals that the project owner predominantly initiates a Value Engineering (VE) study to ensure optimal project value. The owner's motivation can be explained by his responsibility to design, operate and maintain the finished structure. They often hire an external team of experts to execute a fully objective technical VE study. The increasing popularity of design-build delivery strategies has caused a move in design responsibility towards design-build contractors. While the owners step away from the design phase under this contract, they continued utilizing VE studies, without involving the contractor for their knowledge, which has become available in the design phase. The topic of this research project has been the current application of VE in the United States, which is primarily a technically orientated value approach with a particular emphasis on generating cost reducing alternatives. The American approach is effective when the project objectives are unambiguous and the technical problems are well defined. Complex projects that involve several project stakeholders and large investments ask for a ‘soft’ strategic Value Planning (VP) study in order to reach consensus regarding the project objective that should be executed prior to the ‘hard’ technical Value Engineering approach/workshop. This approach can be achieved by addressing two separate, sequential moments within the construction process where each value study can be utilized separately. The strategic VP study has to be performed prior to the design phase, by the owner and stakeholders, and done to identify the project expectations and ultimate objectives. In the situation of a design-build contract, this exercise also helps the owner to identify the requirement specifications necessary to inform the contractors about the project objective. The technical VE study has to be utilized at the preliminary design phase, in order to create optimal project value by finding value-adding technical solutions. This VE study has to be allocated to whichever party is responsible for the design phase. In the situation of a design-build delivery strategy, which is gaining ground in the construction industry, the bidding contractors utilize a technical Value Engineering study to assure optimal value for the owner at a competitive bid, and meanwhile seek design optimization to avoid faulty design that could cause difficulties during the construction phase. It is expected that combining the technical VE and the strategic VP study into a single project causes a complementary effect, and allows for monitoring and securing the project value at decisive moments during the development of a project.
Item Type:Essay (Master)
Clients:
University of Wisconsin
Faculty:ET: Engineering Technology
Subject:56 civil engineering
Programme:Civil Engineering and Management MSc (60026)
Link to this item:https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/57822
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