AS 2006 Volume 13 Issue 2

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http://hdl.handle.net/11660/6891

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Browsing AS 2006 Volume 13 Issue 2 by Author "Smallwood, John"

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    Impact of the South African construction regulations as perceived by project managers
    (University of the Free State, 2006) Smallwood, John; Haupt, Theo
    English: International research indicates that construction clients and built environment consultants such as project managers, designers, and quantity surveyors influence and can contribute to construction health and safety (H&S). This article focuses on the influence and contribution of project managers only. Although they are not required to undertake any specific interventions in terms of the South African Construction Regulations (SACR) promulgated in July 2003, project managers by virtue of their unique contributions in the form of managing design delivery, the integration of design and construction, and their monitoring of construction, need to ensure that many of the requirements of the SACR are met. A perception-based survey conducted among member practices of the Association of Construction Project Managers (ACPM) determined the following: the traditional project parameters in the form of time, cost, and, quality are still perceived to be substantially more important than H&S; the manifestations of the impact of the SACR are wide spread, namely in the form of increased consideration for / reference to H&S by project managers and general contractors, increased H&S awareness, and impact of H&S on various project parameters.
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    The practice of construction management
    (University of the Free State, 2006) Smallwood, John
    English: International literature indicates that supervision, communication, motivation and leadership are the top ranked skills required for practicing construction management — the discipline of managing a construction business and/or project(s). Whereas operational and middle management require more skills and knowledge in operational programming, labour forecasting and organisation, top management requires more skills and knowledge in competitive tendering, costing and estimating, and analysis of project risk. The research reported on in the article constitutes phase two of the study ‘The practice of construction management’, which follows two previous surveys conducted to determine knowledge areas and skills required, and their frequency of use. The first study determined that all construction managers (CMs) need: to be able to work with people; to integrate the efforts of people, and technical expertise. Other findings include that the top four subject areas are: programming; quality management; productivity, and industrial relations. The second study determined that administration, oral communication, controlling, co-ordinating, decision making and leadership are skills ranked among the top ten for all levels of management. Other findings include that contract administration, contract documentation, cost control, building methods and quality management are subject areas ranked in the top ten positions for all levels of management. The article concludes that the most frequently used subject areas reflect the focus at the respective levels of management: top — the management of the business of construction; middle — the management of a number of projects and operational — the management of specific projects. The article concludes that construction management undergraduate programmes need to focus on management, and more specifically, the management of resources within defined parameters, along with the requisite technical expertise.