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Building Cost Management
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1.2 Statement of Research Problem
Schade
(2007) stated that WLC had earned acceptance in the construction
industry, but that real-world application of it had decelerated.
Schade’s opinion is similarly buttressed by Aouad et al., (2003) who
define it as a method that ‘persists to suffer in oblivion’; and Bakis
et al. (2003) further assert that WLC has attained restricted use so far
in spite of its significance. However, studies by El-Haram et al.
(2002) believe that the use of total WLC within the construction
industry is rapidly snowballing while Lindholm and Suomala, (2004)
stated that the implementation of WLC thinking has been sluggish despite
the important received by the public sector in many places.
The
skills and knowledge of whole life costing is globally acknowledged to
be low. This is largely attributed to non-application of the tool in
design decision-making in the construction industry (Opoku, 2013).
According to Udeaja, Babatunde and Ekundayo (n.d), low application is
attributed to lack of client’s understanding and this factors is
considered significant inhibiting factor facing the adoption of whole
life costing in the construction industry.
A study by Bello, Ibrahim
and Kolo (2013) conducted in Kaduna state revealed that consultant
quantity surveyors are more conversant with whole life costing than
quantity surveyors in client organisations. The relative knowledge among
consultant quantity surveyors notwithstanding, the need to think
through the project life cycle in terms of cost implication of design
decisions is therefore long overdue (Oduyemi, 2016). According to
Oduyemi (2016), there is limited authoritative investment decision and
cost control framework over the project life cycle (cradle to grave).
The need for related framework is more important now than ever due to
growing impetus for the integration of sustainability concerns in
construction. Decisions towards achieving sustainable built environment
is so much predicated on its cost implications; hence the imperative of
whole life cycle costing in the construction industry. According to
Edwards (2000), growing apprehensions with regards to the long term
environmental effect of buildings have compelled professionals to take
on more all-inclusive approaches and to consider more meticulously the
costs incurred over the entire life cycle, from cradle to grave.
The
foregoing positions mean that construction stakeholders tend to place
significant emphasis on the expenditure on operation and maintenance and
disposal cost of built assets (Dhillion, 2013). A study by Langdon
(2007) revealed that £1 spend on construction means £50 spent on
maintenance and £200 spent on operational costs. This follows the
traditional intuitive ratio-based criteria of 1:50:200. Whilst these
criteria have gained widespread application, it is now more imperative
to understand a more comprehensive and scientific-based yardstick for
understanding the cost of built assets over their life cycle.
The
traditional method of estimating construction projects concentrates and
emphasises largely on initial capital costs. Still, with operating costs
accounting for up to seventy percent of the whole cost of buildings
over its whole life cycle (Boussabaine and Kirkham, 2008), this
mania(obsession) and pre-occupation with initial capital expenses have
resulted in designs that fail to present the client with best value for
money in the long term.
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ABSRACT - [ Total Page(s): 1 ]Lack of in-depth knowledge of whole life costing implication in building design cost management has over the years fueled the increasing bias towards the quantity surveyors estimate. Whole life costing constitutes cost management tool that enhances better understanding of the cost implication of building design over its life cycle. This study investigated the use of whole life costing in the Nigerian construction industry with focus in Imo state. The objectives were to examine the benefits, leve ... Continue reading---
