3.
Resource and Procurement
COMPUTER APPLICATIONS
CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT
What is Construction Management?
Construction management is
professional service that provides a
project’s owner(s) with effective
management of the project's schedule,
cost, quality, safety, scope, and function.
What is Project Management?
Sequential completion of activities and
tasks given in specific time and cost
parameters with standard specifications.
A capital project is made up of three
parties :
The owner, who commissions the project
and either funds the project directly or
finances it through a variety of methods.
The architect/engineer, who designs the
project.
The general contractor, who oversees
day-to-day operations and manages
subcontractors.
What is Project Management
Information Systems (PMIS)?
• A kind of a system necessary for
integrating multifunctional tasks and for
tying schedules , costs, and work
performance together.
• Modern method of project planning and
control require a system to handle
information efficiently
• Project management software has a
capacity to help plan, organise, and
manage resource
6 Key PMIS Functions
1. Planning & Scheduling
2. Budget and Estimating
IN Management
4. Cost Management and Project
Performance
5. Progress Reporting
a 6. Date and System Integration
Computer Applications Program
- designed to provide the skills
needed in the use of application
software on a computer.
Applications covered include word
processing, spreadsheets,
databases, desktop publishing, the
internet, and the Windows
Operating System.
Computer applications in the design
phase of the project are very helpful.
During construction phase of the project,
computer serves as a powerful tool in
organising the three major areas:
1. logistics and material
● Inventory Management
● Supply Chain Management
● Logistics Planning
2. contract administration
● Document Management
● Communication
● Risk Management
3. project scheduling and cost control.
● Scheduling Software
● Cost Estimation and Control
● Data Analysis
The management of construction projects
is highly demanding and involves a wide
range of tasks. It involves all managerial
functions, forms of organisation,
techniques and tools and the range of
duties expands with the complexity of the
project, as does the amount of data. Tools
are needed to store and process the very
large amounts of information that can be
accumulated and as a result various types
of software are available for managing
construction projects.
Software can support project managers
in all of their tasks:
Coordination. It cannot be assumed that
an effective communication process will
exist in ‘temporary’ construction project
organisations. The division of labour and
responsibilities, as well as the exchange of
information and the workflow within the
project, must be planned, implemented
and controlled.
Documentation. The construction
process has to be documented thoroughly
and in real time. On the one hand, records
may be required for regulatory reasons
and, on the other, they are needed for
monitoring, controlling and accounting
construction processes.
Control. The identification
discrepancies between target and actual
performance is essential to target-oriented
control. All processes need to be
monitored within a narrow timeframe to
ensure effective corrective actions can be
taken, in particular, controlling quality, cost
and programme.
Coordination, documentation and
control are closely related, and project
management software tools have to take
account of joint data uses, exchanging
data between the tools as well as with
other applications, such as design or
tender software. Clear interfaces reduce
unnecessary data collection and prevent
inconsistencies.
There is no completely comprehensive
software tool available to deal with all the
tasks involved in project management, a
suite of systems is usually needed:
Scheduling Software. Construction
scheduling software is used to plan,
monitor and control project progress.
Buffers and the corresponding critical path
can be calculated based on process
durations, deadlines and relationships and
appropriate resources can be assigned.
The results are usually displayed in the
form of a Gantt chart, network plan or list.
By entering current data, the user is able
to automatically generate appropriate
target-performance comparisons
Project Communication System. Project
communication systems support the
coordination of a construction project by
providing a joint platform to all project
members for collaboration and information
exchange. Usually, the platforms are
internet-based and data access can be
governed by different user authorizations
and privileges. The range of functions
varies greatly. Some platforms simply
provide a common data store whilst others
provide comprehensive media and
workflow support.
of
Digital Construction Diary. Digital
construction diaries range from simple
templates for word processors, to
internet-based systems with complex data
structures. By integrating media such as
photo documentation, the cogency of the
construction diary can be increased.
Pictures can prove especially useful to
remote project team members.
Cost Control Software. Cost control
software is based on capacity planning
methods. Resources are assessed
according to cost information, such as the
charge-out rates for workers and
equipment. By linking to the project’s
accounting software, budget figures can
be compared with actual figures. In
addition, reports can be generated
EXAMPLES OF COMPUTER
APPLICATIONS/SOFTWARES IN
CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT
P6 ORACLE PRIMAVERA
- Oracle Primavera P6 is a project,
program and portfolio management
tool that’s used for planning,
managing and executing your
project work. It’s designed to
handle large and small projects in
many diverse industries, such as
construction, manufacturing,
energy, and IT. It’s been doing so
for more than 30 years in projects
across the globe.
- Primavera P6 can trace its origins
to 1983 when it was first
established under the name
Primavera Systems. In the next 15
years, it rapidly gained popularity.
By the late 90s, advancements in
server technology drove the
company to split Primavera
systems into two versions of the
software: a desktop application
(which is preferred by contractors,
suppliers and manufacturing
companies) and a web-based
enterprise option.
- In 2008, Primavera Systems was
bought out by Oracle, which then
developed the tool into the
Primavera software that’s used
today. The modern incarnation,
Oracle Primavera P6, sells itself as
a project portfolio management
tool to increase your efficiency
when planning, which reduces the
risk of schedule overruns. One way
it does this is by providing visibility
into the work, so potential
bottlenecks can be identified and
resolved before they cause delays.
It claims to work on projects of all
sizes.
- Since 1983, Primavera
Systems,Inc. has helped the
engineering and construction
industries deliver more than $4.5
trillion worth of projects to date.
ENR has ranked Privamera as the
most used project management
software in the industry. The
reason for this is trust
P6 ORACLE PRIMAVERA FEATURES
Project timelines: A traditional Gantt
chart to schedule tasks on a bar graph
Risk management: Identify, track and
resolve risks before they become issues
Information dashboard: A dashboard to
track key project metrics
Reporting & analytics: Ability to generate
status reports for stakeholders
Calendar & activity views: View project
tasks set over a calendar view
Scheduling alerts: Keep the project on
track by always knowing what’s due when
Project network view: Project network
diagrams allow users to visualise their
project schedules by sequencing project
activities.
Work breakdown structure: P6 allows
users to create a work breakdown
structure that lets them group related
tasks together and establish a hierarchy.
Critical path method (CPM): Oracle
Primavera lets users find the critical path
of their projects. The critical path method
is an important project scheduling
technique that allows project managers to
estimate the total duration of a project and
determine which project tasks must be
completed on time for the project to be
delivered on schedule.
P6 Professional also includes several
of its own specialised features:
P6 Visualizer application for the
creation, viewing, and modification of
Gantt charts and timescale logic diagrams
(TSLDs). Gantt charts provide a graphical
display of the project's schedule
information in the order determined by
grouping and sorting options.
Reflection Projects for creating a
sandbox area to test different project
scenarios overviewing changes made in
collaboration with other users so you can
review and accept changes before
merging the them back into the source
project
Future Period Bucket Planning to
achieve the most precise resource/role
distribution plan by manually entering the
budgeted or planned resource/role
allocation per assignment in the timescale
unit of choice Import from
Contract Management to import data
from the Contract Management module
and update schedule dates, cost
information, the Activity Code dictionary,
and the Cost Accounts dictionary.
USES OF P6 PRIMAVERA
Project planning & scheduling:
Primavera P6 offers Gantt charts, project
tables and network diagrams as its main
project planning and scheduling tools.
These tools allow users to create scope,
schedule and resource baselines.
Project portfolio management: It can
manage multiple projects in a program or
portfolio at once with the enterprise project
structure (EPS) tool.
Resource management: Keep track and
reallocate resources as needed by using
customizable resource leveling forms.
Risk management: Risk analysis features
allow project managers to identify, track
and resolve risks before they become
issues.
Contract management: Manage multiple
projects, and get info from the database
fast.
Project Reporting: Report on timelines,
resources and costs.
PROS OF USING PRIMAVERA
● Primavera software is flexible
when it comes to managing tasks,
with one platform that allows users
to prioritise, execute and monitor
their work
● A multiuser system lets teams
work at the same time on the same
project across the organisation.
● Real-time reporting provides
meaningful data delivered fast,
either on-demand or scheduled.
● The dashboard allows users to
manage a single project or even a
portfolio, with great flexibility.
● Primavera P6 integrates with
Oracle and other third-party
products.
● P6 can be used on multiple
devices, such as tablets and
mobile devices for access
anywhere and at any time. P6
works on Windows as a desktop
(or web app with the Enterprise
option)
CONS OF USING PRIMAVERA
● Primavera software is very
expensive; you’re going to spend
close to three grand a year for
something you can get elsewhere
for less financial investment.
● The complicated interface of
Oracle’s Primavera P6 also looks
 outdated and not up to the design
and ease of use of its competition.
● There’s a steep learning curve;
unlike other tools, it can take up to
40 hours to get comfortable on the
device and that’s with the use of
specialised trainers.
● Primavera P6 is for Windows only,
which puts Mac users out in the
cold, making the tool immediately
limited and denying whole
industries that run on Apple
products.
● P6 is cumbersome for smaller and
simpler projects, seemingly
interested only in the larger project
sector. The Primavera software
customer service could be better,
at least there’s a lot of chatter
online from customers who feel the
support needs to improve.
● Primavera P6 lacks a portfolio
roadmap, which is a problem for
managing portfolios, even though
the product does have some
features directly targeting this
market.
MICROSOFT PROJECT
- A project management solution
designed for enterprises of all
sizes. It features project
scheduling, which allows project
managers to define project tasks,
assign them to the team, and track
in-progress assignments.
- It also features project budgeting,
which helps managers estimate
the costs for the entire span of a
project. Managers can also
perform “Earned Value Analytics”
and estimate the cost performance
of their projects. The software
provides built in templates,
scheduling tools, and access
across devices increase
productivity for project managers
How to Create a Timeline in Microsoft
Project
1. Create a task list
2. Add start and finish dates to each
task
3. Add tasks to the timeline
How to Set Up Resources in Microsoft
Project
1. Open the resource sheet
2. Add resources
How to Assign Tasks in Microsoft
Project
1. Switch to the gantt chart
2. Open the task form
3. Select a task to assign
How to Schedule Tasks Automatically
in Microsoft Project
1. Access microsoft project settings
2. Change schedule options
How to Create Task Dependencies in
Microsoft Project
1. Switch to Gantt Chart View
2. Select tasks to link
Generate a Cost Report in Microsoft
Project
1. Select the report tab
2. Choose a cost report tab to run
Track the Progress of Your Microsoft
Project
1. Mark tasks that are on track
2. Use predetermined percentages to
track tasks
3. Update tasks.
Microsoft Project:
- Provides interactive dashboards
and reporting functionalities. The
project managers can also prepare
insightful reports and make
decisions about project execution
and staffing levels. Scheduling
features like Gantt charts and
prepopulated pulldown menus help
reduce training time and simplify
the project planning process.
- Can be deployed both on-premise
and in the cloud. The web-based
version allows project managers to
collaborate with their team
remotely using smartphones and
mobile devices
MICROSOFT PROJECT FEATURES
There are plenty of features that project
managers and their teams need to better
manage their work and MSP has a
number of them. However, to get a full
picture, here’s a list of the key features
available to customers who are willing to
pay the price.
Project Planning: Use Gantt charts and
kanban boards to plan work. Microsoft
Project’s planning features are much more
robust than those of Microsoft Planner.
Communication & Collaboration: Teams
can work together on projects.
Alternatively, you can use Microsoft Teams
for a more cost-effective communication
solution.
Coauthoring: Stakeholders and team
members work together to edit and update
task lists and schedules.
Reporting: Pre-built reports that can track
progress, resources, programs and
portfolios.
Roadmap: Track programs and project
portfolios.
Timesheets: Collect project and
non-project time for payroll and invoicing.
Resource Management: Manage
resources by requesting and assigning
tasks.
PROS OF USING MSP
● One of the biggest pros is that it’s
a Microsoft product so it integrates
with the company’s other products
including Office 365, Skype and
Sharepoint.
● It has a similar interface to other
MS products.
● It’s been around for a long time,
and its features have developed
over time.
● It’s part of Microsoft and has the
reliability and support that’s
associated with an established
company.
● It has financial management tools
that help project managers with
estimating budgets.
● It can be licensed as a desktop
application. While this might make
it seem more like a dinosaur, there
are still organisations that prefer
this over a cloud solution.
● It has templates to help users get
started, which saves time.
CONS OF USING MSP
● Though MS Project Online is a
cloud-based solution, it has several
disadvantages. Even with
Sharepoint, which is designed to
take advantage of the cloud, MS
Project has great limitations on the
cloud.
● It’s difficult to learn and use.
There’s a lot of time and effort, and
even intensive training, that must
 first be invested in the software
before project managers and their
teams are comfortable using the
software. This adds time to the
project during the implementation
stage.
● It’s expensive. The prices quoted
above, again, are per person, per
month. This quickly adds up as you
buy licences for team members
who require access to the software
in order to take advantage of its
collaborative features. Otherwise,
it’s more of an expensive tool
solely for the project manager.
● It’s not easily shareable. As
mentioned earlier, files are saved
in an MPP, a proprietary format, so
that if you’re not using MS Project,
you can’t read those files. This
would be less of a problem if the
software was less expensive, but if
you must have an MS Project
licence to view an MPP file, then it
adds up. This creates a lot of
unnecessary hurdles when sharing
project files.
QS PLUS (QS+)
- is cost estimating software for
Quantity Surveyors and Consulting
Construction Estimators. This
advanced software is for
professional estimators and it
allows you to prepare detailed Bills
of Quantities, Cost Plans
(Estimates), Valuations and the
Final Account. • QS Plus has a
module to measure and determine
the cost of a preliminary sketch
designs. This is called a cost plan
or cost estimate. The program
uses a format based on the
Elemental method of estimating to
find out the estimated cost of a
proposed construction project
FAST TRACK
- Available since 1987, it is made by
AEC Software, Inc., a small
business headquartered in the
Washington, D.C. area.
- The application enables users to
organise tasks into project plans,
assign resources to tasks, use
effort driven scheduling, and view
project details in Gantt charts,
monthly calendars, and resource
histograms, and more
Features
● Base and Work Calendars
● Effort Driven Scheduling
● Work Usage Inspector
● Resource Management
● Project Management
CO CONSTRUCT
- It is a web-based and mobile
construction project management
service designed to meet the
specific operating needs of clients,
builders, and design-build firms.
- It helps builders and remodelers
face common challenges related to
their projects, be that budgeting,
client communication, scheduling,
or activity planning.
- It also integrates a comprehensive
financial module used to manage
estimates and proposals, handle
biddings, and pull off summaries
for smarter forecasting.
Features
● Budget & Forecast Project Costs
● Single-Entry Estimating
● Track Change Orders & Expenses
● Custom Mobile Apps With Your
Brand
● Manage and Track Leads
● Keep Track of To-dos
PROCORE- is a widely-used construction often used for large-scale construction
management platform that offers tools for projects and capital programs.
project management, document control,
scheduling, and more. It's known for its
user-friendly interface and cloud-based
accessibility.

AUTODESK BIM 360- is Autodesk's suite

of construction management software,
offering features for project management,
collaboration, and building information
modeling (BIM). It allows teams to
collaborate in real-time and manage
project data from anywhere.
-
PLANGRID- is a construction productivity
software that focuses on managing
blueprints, documents, and tasks in one
place. It enables real-time collaboration
among team members, streamlining
communication and reducing rework.

BUILDERTREND- is a construction
project management software designed
for home builders and remodelers. It offers
features such as scheduling, customer
management, and financial tools to
streamline project workflows.

VIEWPOINT VISTA- is an integrated

construction management software suite
that includes modules for accounting,
project management, and operations. It's
designed to help construction firms
manage finances, projects, and resources
effectively.

CMiC- is a comprehensive construction

management platform that covers project
management, financials, and resource
planning. It's known for its robust features
tailored to the needs of large construction
enterprises.

e-Builder- e-Builder is a cloud-based

construction project management solution
that offers features for cost management,
scheduling, and document control. It's