Last year, the construction industry contributed $959 billion to the United States’ GDP. This figure is expected to further increase as the economy grows in the coming years.
The construction industry converts blueprints into finished houses, roads, and bridges—but it’s full of inefficiencies. For example, the amount of resources expended in the construction industry is very high, with this sector consuming a lot of water and energy. Unregulated, a lot of these resources can end up going to waste.
Another management problem that affects this industry is poor management. Poor management causes construction delays, which increase the overall cost of construction.
Construction delays are caused by:
- Extreme weather conditions
- Poor feasibility studies
- Unforeseen risks, such as poor soil conditions
- Lack of enough experienced contractors
- Unavailability of some construction materials
With so many pitfalls, certain strategies must be put into place to reduce inefficiencies wherever possible. In this article, we’ll go over what constructibility is and why it’s important.
What is constructibility?
Studies in the 1970s were conducted by the Construction Industry Research and Information Association (CIRIA) to find ways to reduce the inefficiencies found in the construction industry. These studies were conducted in the United States and the United Kingdom.
The concept of constructibility was later defined by the Construction Industry Institute (CII) as the optimal use of construction knowledge to plan, engineer, procure, and construct a structure to meet the project’s objectives.
In other words, constructibility is the ease with which raw materials can be made available to the contractor on time to eliminate delays.
What are constructibility reviews?
Constructibility reviews come in handy when contractors are determining the bid-ability of a project. It’s used to identify challenges before construction begins. The contractor decides whether or not to bid on a project using this information.
Who should conduct a constructibility review?
A constructibility review should be done by independent, third-party professionals, such as builders, engineers, and companies. Additionally, the review should be done when the design is at least 85% complete since the scope of work has already been created at this level.
A constructibility review is essential because the contractor gets a second opinion on whether the project can be implemented as described in the blueprints. The peer reviewer can conduct constructibility reviews either formally or informally.
How to best create a constructibility review
One way to conduct a review is through an access constructibility platform like ALICE. This construction optioneering platform reduces construction risk, using algorithms to determine the best construction approach for contractors to use.
It creates several simulations based on available data sets, and is suitable for use in assessing the constructibility of a building structure. It does this by evaluating the potential costs of changing a structural design.
Another method of review is directly writing recommendations on drawings or creating PDF notes.
The benefits of constructibility
Know whether a design is realistic or not
Constructibility will help with identifying design flaws before they affect the entire construction project. If a design is too complicated, then it will be modified to make it easier to implement.
Determine if a project is feasible
Constructibility allows independent contractors to review blueprints and determine whether the budget set aside for the project is feasible. This is important, as you don’t want to be in a situation where the project stalls.
Through constructibility, project owners will know if their budget is enough or if they will have to abandon the project altogether.
Know when the project will be completed
Another benefit of constructibility is that you’ll have an accurate time frame for when contractors will complete the project. The reviewer will use modern simulation software to create a realistic and workable schedule. By having an accurate construction timeframe, project managers can plan construction activities and develop an accurate budget.
With a known time frame and an accurate construction schedule, it becomes easier for the cost estimator to know how much will be spent on equipment and labor.
Know the best material to use
A lot of construction materials can be used to complete a structure. Reviewing the project will let you know whether to use prefabricated building materials or concrete. The main aim of this is to choose a building material that will reduce the cost of construction, while at the same time ensuring that the envisioned design is achieved.
Equipment review
Constructibility also makes it easy for contractors to know what equipment is required and when it should be rented. Some projects lose money because an owner ends up buying equipment that’s not required. In some cases, the contractor realizes later on that it would have been more economical to rent the equipment rather than buy it.
When a sound decision is made, contractors can save thousands of dollars because renting is always cheaper.
Know the soil composition of the site
Knowing the site’s soil composition is important because it will reduce risks associated with building on unstable soils. If the soil is unstable with no rock bed foundation, the structure can tilt, costing millions of dollars in losses.
Constructibility is crucial
Constructibility enables project managers to review how well contractors implement the project based on the developed schedule. If a contractor is behind schedule, they can use simulation software to identify alternatives or options to salvage the project.
