International Cost Management Seminar

As global financial markets tighten; enhanced delivery methods, innovative design approaches, improved methodologies, new technologies and globalization provide immense opportunity for mitigating construction costs. Construction projects involve a great deal of time and capital, so effective construction cost management skills are required if projects are to be completed within the established budget requirements. Owners increasingly require that new innovations be integrated into their projects to minimize cost and increase profitability. Each construction project carries inherent opportunities, benefits, risks and pitfalls which can directly impact an owner’s profit. How can the respective parties in the construction cost development process take advantage of the opportunities and benefits available? What steps can each party take to avoid common pitfalls and reduce costs inherent in the construction process?

This two-day program will benefit all construction cost professionals seeking a better understanding of today’s complex construction cost management process. It will examine the roles, responsibilities and perspectives of the parties involved in the construction cost process. It will also provide an overview of construction cost management, identify common contract-related pricing issues and considerations, cost development, identifying and quantifying risk, cost associated with green building and offer practical tips for dispute avoidance and resolution. Attendees will learn the fundamentals necessary to implement a successful cost program – one that helps each party reap the benefits and opportunities while minimizing cost. Participants will acquire an understanding of proven techniques and methods globally recognized as industry best practices to successfully plan and execute cost-efficient projects. In this program, you will learn:

Seminar highlights

  • Effective cost development and management
  • Quantifying green building methodologies
  • Pre-construction cost and budget evaluation
  • Merging technology with your cost management programs

Who should attend?

This two-day seminar is designed for project managers, presidents, vice presidents, owners, engineers, controllers, accountants, contract managers, architects, purchasing professionals, quantity surveyors, facilities managers, contractors, subcontractors, developers, principals, insurance professionals and other construction professionals.

Seminar outline

Session I: Past, Present and Future: Introduction to Construction Cost Management
Review of fundamental construction cost management concepts from the global perspective. From deriving pre-project costs to successfully negotiating and resolving claims and mitigating disputes, this session will address the basic outline of the course and allow attendees the ability to address specific concerns they face within their projects or profession.

  • Overview and objectives of the course
  • International construction cost management
  • Contract pricing
  • Pre-construction cost evaluation
  • Construction cost development & management
  • Identifying & quantifying risk
  • Green building cost
  • Construction claims
  • Construction technology

Session II: Contract Pricing and Equitable Risk Allocation
Developing effective contracts and appropriately allocating risk are the foundation for a successful project. This session includes an overview of project delivery systems with a focus on key contract considerations from a construction consultant perspective. Understanding the impacts of various contract clauses on the overall performance of the project will be addressed. Executives and Construction Managers will benefit from the following:

  • Project delivery systems and contract pricing
  • Defining roles and responsibilities of the parties
  • Identifying and quantifying contingency
  • Performance clause analysis and recommendations
  • Cost specifications

Session III: Pre-Construction Cost Evaluation: Key to Your Project’s Success
Plan to succeed. Pre-project cost evaluation is essential to mitigating risk both during and after construction. This session focuses on the pre-project cost evaluation process for capital facilities. Critical success factors for pre-project cost evaluation are included to improve the performance of any capital project. These concepts will include:

  • Types of cost estimates and their purpose
  • Conceptual estimation methodologies
  • Life cycle costing
  • Additional considerations while evaluating your projects’ cost

Session IV: Construction Cost Development and Management
Cost estimating is one of the keys to any successful project. Accurately defining your project’s scope will assist in developing budgets and controlling costs during construction. Competitive pricing and accurate quantity take-offs are just a portion of what it takes to complete a project under budget. This session will explore beyond these two factors and cover what tools and methodologies are required to deliver a profitable project.

  • Quantity surveying and the bidding process
  • Value engineering techniques
  • Earned value analysis
  • Tracking cost performance
  • Sources of cost estimates and indices

Session V: Identifying & Quantifying Risk
As the complexity of construction and engineering projects changes, the magnitude of risk involved for owners, contractors, architects, and engineers increases the possibility of cost overruns and delays on projects. Recognition of the inherent risk factors during the pre-project planning process is essential to mitigating cost overruns. This session will introduce several techniques that will assist construction and engineering professionals in not only identifying these risk factors but analyzing them to determine the potential cost impact to a project.

  • Identification of risk factors
  • Sensitivity analysis
  • Decision risk analysis
  • Probability assessments

Session VI: Costing a Greener World
Global construction demand has created a tremendous opportunity to introduce alternative energy resources and building technologies to the construction industry. Sustainable development concepts can be utilized to meet present and future needs without exceeding a project’s life cycle cost. Alternative eco-friendly building methods, rating systems and the associated cost benefits will be discussed to identify and quantify the true cost of building a greener world.

  • Introduction to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED™), Energy Efficiency in Buildings (EEB) and other recognized rating systems
  • Performance objectives of building green
  • Identifying eco-friendly materials and methods
  • Cost advantages and disadvantages

Session VII: Identifying, Quantifying & Mitigating Construction Claims
A claim is an unresolved change order, which, if not addressed, can lead to costly disputes that can negatively impact your bottom line. Identifying and addressing claims prior to project completion can mitigate potential disputes from arising. Claims prevention and administration techniques will be addressed to enable you to prevent disputes from taking control of a project.

  • Identification of construction claims
  • Quantifying productivity loss
  • Presenting claims from the owner and contractor perspectives
  • Strategies utilized to mitigate construction claims

Session VIII: Merging Technology with Construction Cost Control.
Effective cost planning, estimating, budgeting, analysis and control can be performed by simple clicks of a mouse. Technology has progressed beyond oral and written directives to include visual communication. Understanding the available technologies and when to use them can determine the level of a project’s success.

  • Overview of cost control technologies
  • Evaluating your project’s technological needs
  • Cost estimating software
  • 3D, 4D and 5D modeling applications
  • Building Information Modeling (BIM)

Disclaimer: These seminars are intended to be a source of general information on specific topics. The interpretation and application of these seminars’ contents may vary from project to project depending upon, but not limited to the executed contract, the parties’ actions or inactions, or other contemporaneous project documents. While the information in these seminars are intended but not guaranteed to be accurate, no representations or warranties are made, express or implied, that this information is correct, complete, or up-to-date.