Construction Practice and Management

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Construction Practice and Management
Introduction
The United Kingdom is known to be one of the more developed countries that have
dominated the construction industry for quite some time. Over the years, outstanding structures
have been completed to deliver affordable housing choices for the residents of the UK. With
complex advances coming to play in accordance with green development practices of
sustainability, the UK construction industry has turned Architecture, Engineering and
Construction (AEC) industry into an interesting innovation sphere (Cheng and Li 2012, p.201).
Over the last 20 years, the whole scope of elements in the construction industry environment has
steadily changed in such a way that the collected effect has made the construction company to
move from their conventional task modes to a business method of activity. According to Cheng
and Li (2012), the built environment contribute one third of the greenhouse gases that lead to
climate change. In such manner, Zhang and Fang, (2013) proposes that there is need to create
and present an expansive thinking range and a viable critical thinking to solve various current
and dynamic issues that disturb the construction industry management teams.
The construction industry has started to assume great importance in recent years. There
are more indications that this trend will progress. The competitions for international projects
have become intense and the global marketplace has flooded due to the development of expertise
and capability of firms from numerous emerging countries (Anumba, Baugh, & Khalfan, 2012).
The emerging firms can now export their services and compete effectively with other established
firms. For success in the construction projects, the firms are required to address factors such as
technical expertise, managerial expertise, management of cultural issues and risk management
(Harris & McCaffer, 2013). They must be experts at management. The industry should have a

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team of experts on management in order to control a project of a large scope. The construction
industry must be capable of managing issues of cultural differences so that they work well with
the local people (Levitt & Samelson, 2009).
Some of the requirements they suggested are; alignment of limited physical, technical
and human resources to meet the rapid changes in the construction markets as well as preferred
clients’ procurement methods (Richardson & Storr, 2010). This flexibility needs high problem-
solving aswell as innovative skills combined with organizational structures systems and personal
construct theory that bolster and enhance such skills for development. Due to the rapid
construction industry changes, professional project teams have been established to ensure that
the construction project is build using the specified technology, specified standards and most
cost-effective methods (Wells, Kochan, & Smith, 2012). The construction project team consist of
building engineers, quantity surveyors, electrical expert, architects, interior surveyors and
structural engineers (Ottosson, 2016, p.23).
Task 1: Construction Company Structures
The construction professionals have been established to tackle various major activities
that are needed to administer the project in time with required technology as well as equipment
(Zhang & Fang, 2013). The construction professionals are mandated with organising resources,
sequencing of several work items within the stipulated time, achieving budgets, integrating
organisations and further balancing the conflicting interest of the stakeholders (Kagioglou et al.
2012, p.7). There are various relationships that exist in the construction organisation. The
architect, project manager, civil surveyor and quantity surveyor are the key parties that are
involved in the construction industry.

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The project manager is a key party in the management process of a construction project.
The construction project manager is responsible to manage time, costs, quality and scope of the
construction project (www.ciob.org.uk Chartered Institute of Building). He or she also prepares
time schedule and further monitors the progress against the baseline programme. The
construction manager also ensures that the requirements of the project specifications are adhered
to and fulfil the project scope of works.
The architects have the responsibility to prepare the specifications and technical drawings
to make the vision a reality. The architect advises the client on contract awards supervises
progress and further respond to contractor’s technical questions (Anumba, Baugh, & Khalfan,
2012). However, the roles of the architects are not only limited to technical activities but also on
certain aspects such as business strategy, consulting and leadership. Alongside the architect,
there is a civil engineer who specialises in geotechnical, transportation, hydraulic, environmental
and material engineering. During construction, the civil engineer monitors work to ensure that
standards are being achieved (Harris and McCaffer 2013, p.13). Lastly, the quantity surveyor is
another key individual in the industry who is responsible for project financial aspects. The
quantity surveyor evaluates several design proposals in terms of cost and ensures that the budget
is not exceeded.
Over time, the construction industry has tremendously developed in the UK. Currently,
the construction output is more than 110 billion dollars and contributes 7 per cent of the GDP
peryear on the UK economy (Anumba, Baugh and Khalfan 2012, p. 263). The construction
industry accounts for about 3 million jobs of the total UK jobs. In terms of construction
organisational structures, subcontractors use has risen in the construction industry of UK due to
severe competition. In terms of employees, the current construction industry of the UK has