Executive Summary

The Anthem House was and still is being presented with many challenges including a constrained schedule, value engineering of many building elements and restrictive site conditions.  These proposed analyses are trying to determine more efficient ways to achieve the same goals. In doing so, there is an effort to reduce costs, increase productivity, reduce the schedule and increase the project’s value. The analyses were conducted in the Spring Semester of 2016 and are described below.

Analysis One- Exterior Enclosure Prefabrication

This analysis will analyze the exterior façade, which is a long critical task that impacts the rest of the project. An analysis will be conducted to determine if off-site prefabricated fiber cement panels are a worthwhile solution to enclosing the building. The reduction in schedule and cost are of main priority, while constructability, panel erection and panel delivery will be of interest of the proposed wall panels.  

Analysis Two- Interior Finishes Short Interval Production Scheduling

Unit turnover is the owner’s main concern and utilizing schedule techniques to achieve that goal faster are of interest. Short interval production scheduling will be used to develop a SIPS schedule of the interior finishes of the apartments in this analysis. Creating a schedule that allows a continuous flow of work, schedule and cost reduction, and quality improvement will create quite a bit of value for the project. Due to the repetitive nature of the project, SIPS is ideal for the Anthem House.

Analysis Three- Scaffolding

Scaffolding is an essential part of a construction project. In this analysis, traditional framed scaffolding will be compared to hydraulic scaffolding lifts for the placement of brick, fiber cement panels and a standing seam metal roofing system. The possible schedule and cost savings, workflow and communication improvements, safety impacts and quality control that can be made to changing the scaffolding will help improve the overall efficiency of constructing the building.

Analysis Four- Collaboration within a Construction Project

The fourth analysis will be the research of collaboration within construction projects. Collaboration is a key aspect of construction and one of the problems facing construction projects is the use of collaboration tools. Many construction projects need to determine useful collaboration tools and techniques to use to enhance the quality, constructability, schedule and cost savings of their projects. The scope of my research includes defining, analyzing and comparing various collaboration tools that can be used on construction projects. In addition, I will be administering surveys to construction office and site personnel to determine how they feel these tools help with collaboration on the construction site.