The book, Location Based Management for Construction - Planning, Scheduling and Control, is now available! We have been working on the book with Prof. Russell Kenley for some years now.
The main challenge has been the amount of new information we learn by continuously implementating more projects. We did two major updates to the content during the writing process, but in January 2009 we decided to stop, freeze the content, and ship the product. Therefore the book contains most of our combined knowledge of location-based management as of December 2008.
The book starts by reviewing the history of both activity-based and location-based planning and control systems. It will be new information for many that location-based systems actually have a longer history than CPM. Activity-based systems were easier to code into computer algorithms so they started to win ground in the 1970s and 1980s.
The second section is a detailed account of how location-based planning works and how it should be used to optimize construction schedules. The third section is about location-based controlling. Typical books about CPM regard controlling as a natural consequence of planning and do not devote too many pages on control methodologies. This book tries to highlight the critical importance of controlling by having the controlling and planning sections of equal length. The controlling section includes information about how to monitor production, manage changes, how baselining works in location-based schedules, and how forecasts are calculated and used.
We also go on to discuss location-based Owner progress reports and running site meetings. In addition to just scheduling, location-based cash flow, cost control, payment systems, design scheduling, procurement, risk analysis and quality control are highlighted to give the reader a comprehensive view about the potential of location-based management to change the way your company does business.
The fourth section is intended for practitioners who want to implement the system and change their organization. It summarizes the required parts of location-based management system and discusses implementation challenges. It also gives some practical site tricks and techniques to make control on site easier. The final section of the book is devoted to case studies.
I will try to use this blog to discuss questions related to the book and to write about new things I have learned after penning the book. Please be sure to order your copy today!
As you wait for your book to arrive, take a look at the software solution that we highlight in the book, as well as the underlying methodology: Vico scheduling solutions and flowline theory. And the BIM 401 webinar illustrates flowline theory and how it compares to CPM.
We also offer a step-by-step guide to our 5D virtual construction workflow with video tutorials. These videos are just 2-5 minutes in length, but illustrate how to use a particular piece of functionality. You can access the video library index and view just what you need, or download the complete set of training videos. We have training levels for Estimators, Schedulers, Supers, and anyone who does CM Reporting.