In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of multitasking. Normally the job is managed by the project manager and supervised by the construction manager, design engineer, construction engineer or project architect.For the successful execution of a project, effective planning is essential. Those involved with the design and execution of the infrastructure in question must consider the environmental impact of the job, the successful scheduling, budgeting, site safety, availability of materials, logistics, inconvenience to the public caused by construction delays, preparing tender documents, etc.The term architecture can refer to a process, a profession or documentation.As a process, architecture is the activity of designing and constructing buildings and other physical structures by a person or a computer, primarily to provide shelter.
A wider definition often includes the design of the total built environment, from the macro level of how a building integrates with its surrounding landscape see town planning, urban design, and landscape architecture to the micro level of architectural or construction details and, sometimes, furniture. Wider still, architecture is the activity of designing any kind of system.As a profession, architecture is the role of those persons or machines providing architectural services.As documentation, usually based on drawings, architecture defines the structure andor behavior of a building or any other kind of system that is to be or has been constructed.Architects have as their primary object providing for the spatial and shelter needs of people in groups of some kind families, schools, churches, businesses, etc. by the creative organisation of materials and components in a land or cityscape, dealing with mass, space, form, volume, texture, structure, light, shadow, materials, program, and pragmatic elements such as cost, construction limitations and technology, to achieve an end which is functional, economical, practical and often with artistic and aesthetic aspects. This distinguishes architecture from engineering design, which has as its primary object the creative manipulation of materials and forms using mathematical and scientific principles.
BUILDING CONSTRUCTION
Building construction is the process of adding structure to real property. The vast majority of building construction projects are small renovations, such as addition of a room, or renovation of a bathroom. Often, the owner of the property acts as laborer, paymaster, and design team for the entire project. However, all building construction projects include some elements in common design, financial, and legal considerations. Many projects of varying sizes reach undesirable end results, such as structural collapse, cost overruns, andor litigation reason, those with experience in the field make detailed plans and maintain careful oversight during the project to ensure a positive outcome.Building construction is procured privately or publicly utilizing various delivery methodologies, including hard bid, negotiated price, traditional, management contracting, construction managementatrisk, design build and designbuild bridging.
Residential construction practices, technologies, and resources must conform to local building authority regulations and codes of practice. Materials readily available in the area generally dictate the construction materials used e.g. brick versus stone, versus timber. Cost of construction on a per square metre or per square foot basis for houses can vary dramatically based on site conditions, local regulations, economies of scale custom designed homes are always more expensive to build and the availability of skilled tradespeople. As residential as well as all other types of construction can generate a lot of waste, careful planning again is needed here.The most popular method of residential construction in the United States is wood framed construction. As efficiency codes have come into effect in recent years, new construction technologies and methods have emerged. University Construction Management departments are on the cutting edge of the newest methods of construction intended to improve efficiency, performance and reduce construction waste.
INDUSTRIAL CONSTRUCTION
Industrial construction, though a relatively small part of the entire construction industry, is a very important component. Owners of these projects are usually large, forprofit, industrial corporations. These corporations can be found in such industries as medicine, petroleum, chemical, power generation, manufacturing, etc. Processes in these industries require highly specialized expertise in planning, design, and construction. As in building and heavyhighway construction, this type of construction requires a team of individuals to ensure a successful project.Building construction is the process of adding structure to real property. The vast majority of building construction projects is small renovations, such as addition of a room, or renovation of a bathroom. Often, the owner of the property acts as laborer, paymaster, and design team for the entire project.
However, all building construction projects include some elements in common design, financial, and legal considerations. Many projects of varying sizes reach undesirable end results, such as structural collapse, cost overruns, andor litigation reason those with experience in the field make detailed plans and maintain careful oversight during the project to ensure a positive outcome.Building construction is produced privately or publicly utilizing various delivery methodologies including hardbid, negotiated price, traditional managementatrisk design build and design build bridging .In the common law, real property or realty refers to one of the two main classes of property, the other class being personal property personalty. Real property generally encompasses land, land improvements resulting from human effort including buildings and machinery sited on land, and various property rights over the preceding.
CONSTRUCTION PROCESSES
In the modern industrialized world, construction usually involves the translation of paper or computer based designs into reality. A formal design team may be assembled to plan the physical proceedings, and to integrate those proceedings with the other parts. The design usually consists of drawings and specifications, usually prepared by a design team including the client architects, interior designers, surveyors, civil engineers, cost engineers or quantity surveyors, mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, structural engineers, and fire protection engineers. The design team is most commonly employed by i.e. in contract with the property owner. Under this system, once the design is completed by the design team, a number of construction companies or construction management companies may then be asked to make a bid for the work, either based directly on the design, or on the basis of drawings and a bill of quantities provided by a quantity surveyor. Following evaluation of bids, the owner will typically award a contract to the lowest responsible bidder.
The modern trend in design is toward integration of previously separated specialties, especially among large firms. In the past, architects, interior designers, engineers, developers, construction managers, and general contractors were more likely to be entirely separate companies, even in the larger firms. Presently, a firm that is nominally an architecture or construction management firm may have experts from all related fields as employees, or to have an associated company that provides each necessary skill. Thus, each such firm may offer itself as onestop shopping for a construction project, from beginning to end. This is designated as a design Build contract where the contractor is given a performance specification, and must undertake the project from design to construction, while adhering to the performance specifications.Several project structures can assist the owner in this integration, including designbuild, partnering, and construction management. In general, each of these project structures allows the owner to integrate the services of architects, interior designers, engineers, and constructors throughout design and construction.
FINANCIAL ADVISORS
Many construction projects suffer from preventable financial problems. Underbids ask for too little money to complete the project. Cash flow problems exist when the present amount of funding cannot cover the current costs for labour and materials, and because they are a matter of having sufficient funds at a specific time, can arise even when the overall total is enough. Fraud is a problem in many fields, but is notoriously prevalent in the construction field. Financial planning for the project is intended to ensure that a solid plan, with adequate safeguards and contingency plans, is in place before the project is started, and is required to ensure that the plan is properly executed over the life of the project.Mortgage bankers, accountants, and cost engineers are likely participants in creating an overall plan for the financial management of the building construction project. The presence of the mortgage banker is highly likely even in relatively small projects, since the owners equity in the property is the most obvious source of funding for a building project.
Accountants act to study the expected monetary flow over the life of the project, and to monitor the payouts throughout the process. Cost engineers apply expertise to relate the work and materials involved to a proper valuation. Cost overruns with government projects have occurred when the contractor was able to identify change orders or changes in the project resulting in large increases in cost, which are not subject to competition by other firm as they have already been eliminated from consideration after the initial bid.Large projects can involve highly complex financial plans. As portions of a project are completed, they may be sold, supplanting one lender or owner for another, while the logistical requirements of having the right trades and materials available for each stage of the building construction project carries forward. In many English speaking countries, but not the United States, projects typically use quantity surveyors.
