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Lifecycle approach to requirements information management in construction projects: state-of-the-art and future trends

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conference contribution
posted on 2010-02-03, 11:48 authored by Abdou Karim Jallow, Peter DemianPeter Demian, Andrew Baldwin, Chimay J. Anumba
Changes in client requirements are most frequent in construction and are known to contribute to budget over-runs and late delivery of projects. Such changes need to be managed adequately to enhance visibility, traceability and linked to the original requirements and communication with all stakeholders throughout the lifecycle of a facility. Traditionally, requirements management has principally been focused at the early stages of the construction process where elicited client requirements information is used as the basis for design and does not extend to the later phases. A life cycle approach is important because client requirements often change dramatically over a facility’s life. This evolution needs to be understood, for example, particularly if the facility is to be refurbished or adapted for uses other than those for which it was originally designed. This paper presents an empirical study to highlight the current state of managing clients’ requirements and to propose the need for a lifecycle approach to requirements information management in construction projects. An ethnographic study was conducted to examine the requirements management process based on participatory observations of construction project meetings and interviews with project managers. The study also details the state-of-the-art of requirements management by presenting a qualitative review of literature on this topic. This review includes industries other than construction. The paper concludes that currently, with no lifecycle insight, very few informal schemes detail the management of requirements beyond the design process into the later stages of the project. It proposes that the management of requirements should extend beyond elicitation and documentation and requires an approach that will enable changeability and impact analysis, accessibility, traceability and communication to all stakeholders.

History

School

  • Architecture, Building and Civil Engineering

Citation

JALLOW, A.K. ... 2008. Lifecycle approach to requirements information management in construction projects: state-of-the-art and future trends. IN: Dainty, A.R.J. (ed.). Proceedings of 24th Annual Conference of Association of Researchers in Construction Management ARCOM, September 1-3, 2008, University of Glamorgan, Cardiff, Wales. Vol.2, pp 769-778.

Publisher

© ARCOM / © The authors

Version

  • AM (Accepted Manuscript)

Publication date

2008

Notes

This paper was presented at the 24th Annual ARCOM Conference: http://www.arcom.ac.uk/publications/proceedings.html

ISBN

9780955239014;095523901X

Language

  • en