TITLE:
A Prototype Master Code of Accounting Structure to Facilitate Accurate Measures of Construction Labor Productivity across Multiple Projects
AUTHORS:
Gabriel B. Dadi, Paul M. Goodrum, David Bonham
KEYWORDS:
Construction Industry; Material Tracking; Productivity
JOURNAL NAME:
Theoretical Economics Letters,
Vol.4 No.1,
February
12,
2014
ABSTRACT: The United States
National Academies identified several recommendations for the construction
industry in 2009 to improve industry performance. One of the key
recommendations was the development of reliable productivity measures to
improve the efficiency and support of developing new construction innovations.
Difficulty in measuring real output in the industry is a challenge that has
prevented reliable productivity metrics. An alternative approach would be to
consistently measure activity productivity across multiple construction
projects throughout the United States and develop an aggregate measure
accordingly. However, activity measures are inconsistent across both
construction projects and even projects within the same company. Identifying an
industry standard code of accounting would be a critical first step towards
improving industry performance. The authors collected code of accounts from six
large construction firms to identify the impact that code structure has on the
ability to accurately measure labor productivity on a current along with the
ability to estimate it on future projects as well. This paper focuses on
mechanical piping code structure and productivity comparisons to the widely
used industry estimating manuals produced by RSMeans Building Construction Cost
Data and Richardson’s Process Plan Construction Cost Estimating Standards
(PPCES). The paper’s contribution to the overall body knowledge illustrates the
significance and degree of the impact that piping and conduit code structures related
to diameter size, material type, and installation location have on accurately
measuring productivity rates. The methods can be applied to other trade
activities to develop an industry-wide standard code structure.