Innovative project delivery methods and project management systems have advanced the world of construction engineering and management, yet the benefits of their applications remain not wholly accomplished without accompanying them with the suitable methods of implementation. As integrated delivery methods have arisen from the need for faster project delivery with early teams’ involvement, their benefits are not attained unless they are executed by the most qualified contracting firms for the job and administered following collaborative approaches. More holistically, integrated project management systems support meeting project guidelines while enforcing the social role played by individuals and teams in addressing challenges that influence their technical performance. Thus, the author was one of the 41 team members that developed an innovative IPM framework which is the Integrated Project/Program Management Maturity and Environment Total risk Rating known as IP2M METRR that helps them review their project team environment and levels of system maturity. Like the integrated delivery methods, an IPM framework is not expected to solve challenges on its own unless supported with guidance for practitioners to efficiently implement the framework. Thus, in this dissertation the author aims to address the challenges by studying the implementation of innovative methods for integrated delivery and integrated management in large government-owned engineering construction projects. The objective is to guide the implementation of (1) design-build (D-B) and construction manager-general contractor (CM-GC) methods in the contractor procurement phase and post-award contract administration phase; and (2) earned value management system (integrated project management application) through a paradigm shift in its assessment, using the IP2M METRR, and focusing on the novel sociotechnical aspect. The author studied data from 128 government-owned projects with total worth of about $46.7 U.S. billion, 11 experts, and 215 practitioners; and used mixed-methods research and industry engaging research techniques, including remote research charrettes which the author supported its development and testing and reported on in this dissertation.The contributions of this dissertation include: (1) identifying best practices for D-B and CM-GC contractor procurement, (2) developing D-B and CM-GC contract administration tool selection framework, (3) gauging lessons learned on IP2M METRR application, (4) identifying issues and recommendations in IPM application implementation, (5) validating IP2M METRR framework, and (6) developing and testing industry-engaging research approach.

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, in Phoenix, Arizona, is currently undergoing an expansion of its Sky Train people mover to extend past the passenger terminal and connect with the Rental Car Center approximately 2.25 miles from the terminal complex. This expansion will allow passengers arriving at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) to transfer to the Rental Car Center in a more efficient and direct way compared to the current bus system. Additionally, the plans incorporate potential future construction. Although the plans for this expansion have been in place for many years, construction only began relatively recently. A construction project of this size is not a commonplace occurrence in the industry, and it requires considerable planning, coordination, research, and cooperation in order to complete successfully. This paper describes the project and explores how project members cooperate with each other and additional project stakeholders, and it explores the multiple elements of making a construction project like this possible.

Water utilities across the United States are facing numerous challenges, such as limited funding and increasing project complexity, in constructing and upgrading their aging infrastructure. One innovative method to overcome these challenges is through the use of alternative project delivery methods (APDM), such as construction management at-risk (CMAR) and design-build (DB). Previous research has shown that APDM have the potential to deliver higher performing water infrastructure projects when compared to the traditional design-bid-build (DBB) method. However, there is a need to further examine APDM practices and develop tools that may support utilities in the delivery of their APDM water infrastructure projects. This study fills the knowledge gap by conducting several studies that may support public and private utilities in improving the delivery of their APDM water infrastructure projects. First, APDM implementation practices for water infrastructure projects are identified by assessing the state of practice, particularly during project procurement and execution. Second, DB project administration best practices are determined to support utilities seeking to add DB to their organization’s project delivery toolbox. Third, a pioneering web-based project delivery method decision-support tool was developed to aid utilities in selecting the appropriate delivery method for their water project. Finally, project-specific factors and attributes that impact project delivery performance are investigated through exploratory modeling and analysis. The study collected data on 75 completed treatment plant projects, conducted interviews with ten utilities that successfully deliver their water projects using DB, and worked closely with several industry experts through industry workshops and panels. Key findings related to water infrastructure project delivery revealed in this study included: (1) guaranteed maximum price (GMP) is the preferred compensation type for APDM projects; (2) utilities statistically having the lowest comfort level with delivering CMAR projects; (3) qualifications-based procurement is an effective DB project delivery practice; (4) the identification of 13 key project delivery method selection factors; and (5) the three highest predictors that impact unit cost performance are project complexity, project team chemistry and communication, and project size.

The typical engineering curriculum has become less effective in training construction professionals because of the evolving construction industry needs. The latest National Science Foundation and the National Academies report indicate that industry-valued skills are changing. The Associated General Contractors of America recently stated that contractors expect growth in all sectors; however, companies are worried about the supply of skilled professionals. Workforce development has been of a growing interest in the construction industry, and this study approaches it by conducting an exploratory analysis applied to students that have completed a mandatory internship as part of their construction program at Arizona State University, in the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment. Data is collected from surveys, including grades by a direct evaluator from the company reflecting each student’s performance based on recent Student Learning Objectives. Preliminary correlations are computed between scores received on the 15 metrics in the survey and the final industry suggested grade. Based on the factors identified as highest predictors: ingenuity and creativity, punctuality and attendance, and initiative; a prognostic model of student performance in the construction industry is generated. With regard to graduate employability, student performance in the industry and human predispositions are also tested in order to evaluate their contribution to the generated model. The study finally identifies threats to validity and opportunities presented in a dynamic learning environment presented by internships. Results indicate that measuring student performance during internships in the construction industry creates challenges for the evaluator from the host company. Scoring definitions are introduced to standardize the evaluators’ grading based on observations of student behavior. 12 questions covering more Student Learning Objectives identified by the industry are added to the survey, potentially improving the reliability of the predictive model.

The rate of urbanization has been impacted by global economic growth. A strong economy results in more people moving to already crowded urban centers to take advantage of increased employment opportunities often resulting in sprawling of the urban area. More natural land resources are being exploited to accommodate these anthropogenic activities. Subsequently, numerous natural land resources such as green areas or porous soil, which are less flood-prone and more permeable are being converted into buildings, parking lots, roads and underground utilities that are less permeable to stormwater runoff from rain events. With the diminishing of the natural landscape that can drain stormwater during a rainfall event, urban underground drainage systems are being designed and built to tackle the excess runoff resulting from urbanization. However, the construction of a drainage system is expensive and usually involves massive land excavations and tremendous environmental disturbances. The option for constructing an underground drainage system is even more difficult in dense urban environments due to the complicated underground environments, creating a need for low footprint solutions. This need has led to emerging opportunities for low impact development (LID) methods or green infrastructures, which are viewed as an environmentally friendly alternative for dealing with stormwater runoff. LID mimics the pre-development environment to retain the stormwater runoff through infiltration, retention, detention and evaporation. Despite a significant amount of prior research having been conducted to analyze the performance of runoff volume reduction and peak flow decrement of various green infrastructures, little is known about the economic benefits of using LID practices.

This dissertation fills the gap in the knowledge regarding the life-cycle-cost effectiveness of green infrastructure in current urban developments. This study’s two research objectives are:

(1) Develop a life cycle cost calculation template to analyze the cost benefits of using LID compared to the traditional drainage system

(2) Quantify the cost benefits based on the real-world construction projects

A thorough literature review led to the data collection of the hydrological benefits of using LIDs in conjunction with overviewing three real-world construction projects to quantify the cost benefits of LIDs.

The demand for new highway infrastructure, the need to repair aging infrastructure, and the drive to optimize public expenditures on infrastructure have led transportation agencies toward alternative contracting methods (ACMs) such as design-build (DB) and construction manager/general contractor (CM/GC). U.S. transportation agencies have substantial experience with traditional design-bid-build delivery. To promote ACMs, the Federal Highway Administration and the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCRHP) have published ACM guidance documents. However, the published material and research tend to focus on pre-award activities. The need for guidance on ACM post-award activities is confirmed in NCHRP’s request for a guidebook focusing on ACM contract administration (NCHRP 2016).

This dissertation fills the crucial knowledge gap in contract administration functions and tools for DB and CM/GC highway project delivery. First, this research identifies and models contract administration functions in DBB, CM/GC, and DB using integrated definition modeling (IDEF0). Second, this research identifies and analyzes DB and CM/GC tools for contract administration by conducting 30 ACM project case studies involving over 90 ACM practitioners. Recommendations on appropriate use regarding project phase, complexity, and size were gathered from 16 ACM practitioners. Third, the alternative technical concepts tool was studied. Data from 30 DB projects was analyzed to explore the timing of DB procurement and DB initial award performance in relation to the project influence curve. Types of innovations derived from ATCs are discussed. Considerable industry input at multiple stages grounds this research in professional practice.

Results indicate that the involvement of the contractor during the design phase for both DB and CM/GC delivery creates unique contract administration functions that need unique tools. Thirty-six DB and CM/GC tools for contract administration are identified with recommendations for effective implementation. While strong initial award performance is achievable in DB projects, initial award performance in this sample of projects is only loosely tied to the level of percent base design at procurement. Cost savings typically come from multiple ATCs, and innovations tend to be incremental rather than systemic, disruptive, or radical. Opportunity for innovation on DB highway projects is influenced by project characteristics and engaging the DB entity after pre-project planning.

Planning efforts conducted during the early stages of a construction project, known

as front end planning (FEP), have a large impact on project success and significant

influence on the configuration of the final project. As a key component of FEP, front end

engineering design (FEED) plays an essential role in the overall success of large industrial

projects. The primary objective of this dissertation focuses on FEED maturity and accuracy

and its impact on project performance. The author was a member of the Construction

Industry Institute (CII) Research Team (RT) 331, which was tasked to develop the FEED

Maturity and Accuracy Total Rating System (FEED MATRS), pronounced “feed matters.”

This dissertation provides the motivation, methodology, data analysis, research findings

(which include significant correlations between the maturity and accuracy of FEED and

project performance), applicability and contributions to academia and industry. A scientific

research methodology was employed in this dissertation that included a literature review,

focus groups, an industry survey, data collection workshops, in-progress projects testing,

and statistical analysis of project performance. The results presented in this dissertation are

based on input from 128 experts in 57 organizations and a data sample of 33 completed

and 11 on-going large industrial projects representing over $13.9 billion of total installed

cost. The contributions of this work include: (1) developing a tested FEED definition for

the large industrial projects sector, (2) determining the industry’s state of practice for

measuring FEED deliverables, (3) developing an objective and scalable two-dimensional

method to measure FEED maturity and accuracy, and (4) quantifying that projects with

high FEED maturity and accuracy outperformed projects with low FEED maturity and

accuracy by 24 percent in terms of cost growth, in relation to the approved budget.

The water and wastewater industry in the United States is in dire need of renovation due to dwindling infrastructure and requires substantial reinvestment. Design-bid-build (DBB) is the traditional method of project delivery most widely applied in this industry. However, alternative project delivery methods (APDM) are on the rise and touting the benefits of reduced project schedule and cost. The main purpose of this study is to conduct a qualitative and quantitative performance evaluation to assess the current impact of APDM in the water and wastewater industry. A national survey was conducted targeting completed water and wastewater treatment plant projects. Responses were obtained from 75 utilities and constructors that either completed their projects using DBB, construction manager at risk (CMAR), or design-build (DB). Data analysis revealed that CMAR and DB statistically outperformed DBB in terms of project speed and intensity. Performance metrics such as cost growth, schedule growth, unit cost, factors influencing project delivery method selection, scope changes, warranty and latent defects, and several others are also evaluated. The main contribution of this study was that it was able to show that for the same project cost, water and wastewater treatment plants could be delivered under a faster schedule and with higher quality through the utilization of APDM.

This research explores some of the issues, challenges and dilemmas of existing research found in the construction workforce, it starts with past research that can be found on the current problems in the industry and how it has developed. It covers the distinguishing factors that influence a construction company's success and how it has affected depending on the characteristics of the company. It was to examine the effectiveness of the recruitment and selection practices of entrants in the construction industry workforce and pathways to improve those practices.

Much of the water and wastewater lines in the United States are nearing the end of their useful life. A significant reinvestment is needed in the upcoming decades to replace or rehabilitate the water and wastewater infrastructure. Currently, the traditional method for delivering water and wastewater pipeline engineering and construction projects is design-bid-build (DBB). The traditional DBB delivery system is a sequential low-integration process and can lead to inefficiencies and adverse relationships between stakeholders. Alternative project delivery methods (APDM) such as Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) have been introduced to increase stakeholder integration and ultimately enhance project performance. CMAR project performance impacts have been studied in the horizontal and vertical construction industries. However, the performance of CMAR projects in the pipeline engineering and construction industry has not been quantitatively studied.

The dissertation fills this gap in knowledge by performing the first quantitative analysis of CMAR performance on pipeline engineering and construction projects. This study’s two research objectives are:

(1) Develop a CMAR baseline of commonly measured project performance metrics

(2) Statistically compare the cost and schedule performance of CMAR to that of the traditional DBB delivery method

A thorough literature review led to the development of a data collection survey used in conjunction with structured interviews to gather qualitative and quantitative performance data from 66 completed water and wastewater pipeline projects. Performance data analysis was conducted to provide performance benchmarks for CMAR projects and to compare the performance of CMAR and DBB.

This study provides the first CMAR performance benchmark for pipeline engineering and construction projects. The results span across seven metrics in four performance areas (cost, schedule, project change, and communication). Pipeline projects delivered using CMAR have a median cost and schedule growth of -5% and 5.10%, respectively. These results are significantly improved from DBB baseline performance shown in other industries. To verify this, a statistical analysis was done to compare the cost and schedule performance of CMAR to similar DBB pipeline projects. The results show that CMAR pipeline projects are being delivered with 6.5% less cost growth and with 12.5% less schedule growth than similar DBB projects, providing owners with increased certainty when delivering their pipeline projects.