Advanced Construction Management - MEC

Course category: B - Basic; C - Core Engineering; E - Specialization; P - Complementary.

T - Lectures; TP - Theory and practice; PL - Lab Work; S - Seminar; OT - Tutorial Guidance.

• Learning outcomes of the curricular unit:

  A. To create specific skills for the implementation of a construction project, considering the various enginnering specialties, the design constraints, constructive solutions and methods of executionion, so that students can relate the consequences of the choices made with issues like costs (initial , operating and maintenance ) , safety, quality, environment and sustainability.
  B. To provide skills in existing methodologies and management trends that integrate the various players of the construction process in all its phases , applied in order to respond adequately and innovatively to the increasing complexity of construction projects.

• Syllabus:

  1. Characterizing construction constraints and identifying the determinant variables that justify the adoption of technical solutions - implementing an integrated approach of design for execution;
  2. Case study, based on a design of a building which will be discussed and analyzed in terms of health and safety , quality, compatibility between design items and cost, considering different possibilities of constructive solutions and methods of execution for its various elements and components.
  3. Advanced Construction Management Methods:
  3.1. Identification of stakeholders in the construction process and their responsibilities, with special emphasis on safety and health .
  3.2. Constraints , conflicts and specificities of construction;
  3.3. Management methods in construction - historical context and developments;
  3.4. BIM - Building Information Modelling
  3.5. Off Site Construction
  3.6. Lean Construction
  3.7. Partnering

   

• Demonstration of the syllabus coherence with the curricular unit's objectives

  The contents 1 and 2 bind directly with the target A.
  The content 3 , complementing the preceding binds directly with the target B.

• Teaching methodologies (including evaluation):

  The teaching methodology includes the following components:
  - General Lectures preceded by distribution of support elements, making them more useful and objective;
  - Practical application of concepts and methodologies to solve real problems, including a detailed discussion of case studies - they are interconnected connect with the lectures for a more effective harmonization and complement;
  The evaluation is made throught project assignment(s) on real cases. Minimum grade required on each assignment is 10 out of 20.

• Demonstration of the coherence between the teaching methodologies and the learning outcomes

  - The Lectures preceded by the distribution of support elements aim at creating the foundations for achieving the various objectives particularly in terms of understanding the basic concepts and procedures;

  - The Practical application of concepts and methodologies to solve real problems, including their detailed discussion through case studies, aim at making more effective and consolidating the contribution of the lectures to which they are interconnected.

  Concerning evaluation, the project assignments allow real cases to be explored in greater detail and complexity.

• Main Bibliography
  • General support elements and applicable standards;
  • Sistemas Integrados de Gestão- Qualidade, Ambiente e Segurança - Manuel Gilberto F. Santos, Delfina Ramos, Luis Almeida, Pedro Vale, Martinha Pereira, Síria Barros, Manuel Rebelo Pires A. Ramos - Qualidade , Ed, Sílabo ,2013
  • Collaborative Construction Information Management - Geoffrey Shen, Peter Brandon, Andrew Baldwin, Routledge, 2009
  • Modern Construction: Lean Project Delivery and Integrated Practices - Lincoln H. Forbes, Syed M. Ahmed, CRC Press, 2010 
  • Application of the New Production Philosophy to Construction - Lauri Koskela, Stanford University, 1992
  • Integrated Management Systems for Construction - Quality, Environment and Safety, Alan Griffith,Routledge – 2010