Informative Essay About My Love For The Outdoors And Canoeing

Riveting Rivers I can recall a memory from my childhood around the age of five or six. In the memory, I am in a yellow lifejacket surrounded by my twin brother and my two cousins. We are all playing and splashing around as we float down the Buffalo River in Arkansas with our family. There is a picture of this sweet moment in one of our photo albums, and every time I look at it, it makes me feel warm and blissful. I would have to say this is the beginning of my love for the outdoors and canoeing. Canoeing is an activity where people sit with two or three people in a long boat. Using a paddle, they have to maneuver their way along the river, encountering rapids, branches, and low water. It is a challenge, but it is the most exhilarating time of my life. Most importantly, canoeing is significant in my life for reminding me of my childhood, allowing me to spend time with the people I love, and enabling me to play a role in my community. It not only is a passion, but a way of living. Canoeing started early in my life because my dad has always had a love for the outdoors, and now we share that quality. Growing up, I received a bright orange kayak for my twelfth birthday. I was in love with that thing, and I still am. After that, a typical day during the summer consisted of making lunches while my dad loaded up his canoe and two kayaks. One for my brother, and one for me. We normally went to a local river or creek to spend the day. The alluring scenery has fascinated me ever

The Compare and Contrast Microsoft DOS with UNIX Free Essays

string(28) " a big influence on MS-DOS\." As is suggestive of its name, an operating system (OS) is a collection of programs that operate the personal computer (PC). Its primary purpose is to support programs that actually do the work one is interested in, and to allow competing programs to share the resources of the computer. However, the OS also controls the inner workings of the computer, acting as a traffic manager which controls the flow of data through the system and initiates the starting and stopping processes, and as a means through which software can access the hardware and system software. We will write a custom essay sample on The Compare and Contrast Microsoft DOS with UNIX or any similar topic only for you Order Now In addition, it provides routines for device control, provides for the management, scheduling and interaction of tasks, and maintains system integrity. It also provides a facility called the user interface which issues commands to the system software. Utilities are provided for managing files and documents created by users, development of programs and software, communicating between users with other computer systems and managing user requirements for programs, storage space and priority. There are a number of different types of operating systems with varying degrees of complexity. A system such as DOS can be relatively simple and minimalistic, while others, like UNIX, can be somewhat more complicated. Some systems run only a single process at a time (DOS), while other systems run multiple processes at once (UNIX). In reality, it is not possible for a single processor to run multiple processes simultaneously. The processor of the computer runs one process for a short period of time, then is switched to the next process and so on. As the processor executes millions of instructions per second, this gives the appearance of many processes running at once. User programs are usually stored on a hard disk and need to be loaded into memory before being executed. This presents the need for memory management, as the memory of the computer would need to be searched for a free area in which to load a users program. When the user was finished running the program, the memory consumed by it would need to be freed up and made available for another user when required (CIT). Process scheduling and management is also necessary, so that all programs can be executed and run without conflict. Some programs might need to be executed more frequently than others, for example, printing. Conversely, some programs may need to be temporarily halted, then restarted again, so this introduces the need for inter-program communication. In modern operating systems, we speak more of a process (a portion of a program in some stage of execution (CIT, 3)) than a program. This is because only a portion of the program is loaded at any one time. The rest of the program sits waiting on the disk until it is needed, thereby saving memory space. UNIX users speak of the operating system as having three main parts: the kernel, the shell and the file system. While DOS users tend not to use the term kernel and only sometimes use the term shell, the terms remain relevant. The kernel, also known as the â€Å"Real Time Executive†, is the low-level core of the OS and is loaded into memory right after the loading of the BIOS whenever the system is started. The kernel handles the transfer of data among the various parts of the system, such as from hard disk to RAM to CPU. It also assigns memory to the various system-level processes that occur whenever the computer does anything. The kernel is also responsible for scheduling the CPU†s operations and for letting the shell access the CPU (PC Mag, 1). The shell is the visible user interface to the OS and is a program that loads on top of the operating system and offers users commands that lets them access the OS. Strictly speaking, the shell is an input utility that offers access to the operating system. Technically speaking, the shell, being a separate program, is not a part of the OS at all. In the UNIX world a number of shells are available, among them the Korn shell, the C-shell, the Bourne shell and the Bourne Again shell (yes, really). In DOS, the standard shell is COMMAND. COM, again nothing more than a program. As different versions of command. com came with different versions of DOS, each added new commands and new things that could be done by the user. For example, DOS 4†³s COMMAND. COM added theP switch to DEL to verify each deletion, and DOS 5†³s COMMAND. COM provided the ability to sort the output of the DIR command. An acronym for disk operating system, the term DOS can refer to any operating system, but is most often used as shorthand for MS-DOS. Originally developed by Microsoft for IBM, MS-DOS was the standard operating system for IBM-compatible computers. The initial version of DOS was somewhat uncomplicated and resembled another operating system called CP/M. Subsequent versions have become increasingly sophisticated, however DOS remains a 16-bit operating system without support for multiple users or multitasking. The earliest forms of DOS were crude and utilized only a few commands, but as computers became more advanced, so did DOS. By keeping up with technology, DOS was implemented into more â€Å"user friendly† operating systems. However, as more sophisticated operating systems were released, DOS became less important. Today, cyberpunks involved with the latest OS trends joke that DOS stands for ‘Dad†s Operating System†Ã¢â‚¬  (Comerford, 23). In 1980, IBM asked the Microsoft Corporation to produce the operating system for its first personal computer, the IBM PC. Prior to this, a company called Seattle Computer Products had sold an operating system called 86-DOS to Microsoft. Microsoft hired the author of 86-DOS, Tim Paterson, in April of 1981 to modify the system, and renaming it MS-DOS (Microsoft Disk Operating System), it was released with the IBM PC. Thereafter, most manufacturers of personal computers licensed MS-DOS as their operating system (Brittanica, 1). Limitations of the early PC†s hardware were a big influence on MS-DOS. You read "The Compare and Contrast Microsoft DOS with UNIX" in category "Essay examples" Although the 8088 model computer had a 1Mb address space, IBM decided to allocate the first 640K of this to RAM, and the rest to ROMs, video boards and other things. Consequently, MS-DOS was set up to support programs whose maximum size was 640K. Version 1. 0 of DOS was released along with the IBM PC in August 1981. It occupied 12K of the systems 640K of memory, was somewhat compatible with CP/M and, much like CP/M, supported only a single directory. By contrast, even the first version of UNIX had a full hierarchical file system. In addition, Version 1. 0 supported only a 160K single sided 51/4-inch floppy diskette. Version 1. 1 was released by Microsoft in October 1982 and supported double sided 320K diskettes. Aside from fixing some bugs, this release was similar to Version 1. 0. Releases such as 1. 1, in which the number to the left of the decimal point is the same as the previous version depict relatively minor changes from the previous release. By contrast, Version 2. 0 was largely a new system. In March 1983, IBM introduced the PC/XT, its first personal computer with a hard disk. It came with a new variant of MS-DOS, Version 2. 0. In this version, Microsoft incorporated many ideas from the UNIX system for which it was also a vendor. For example, incorporating minor changes, the MS-DOS file system was taken largely from UNIX. In addition, the shell was improved, and Version 2. 0 supported a new floppy diskette format, the 360K as well as user installable device drivers, print spooling, system configuration and memory management. At this point, MS-DOS was established as the dominant operating system in PC market. In August 1984, IBM released its first 286 chip based PC, the PC/AT. The PC/AT supported memory up to 16 Mb and had the ability to run multiple programs at once. However, the version of MS-DOS that shipped with the PC/AT was 3. 0, which supported neither of these. Rather, it ran the PC/AT in a mode that simulated the 8088, only faster. Since the PC/AT came with a 1. 2Mb disk drive, battery backup clock, and configuration information in the CMOS, support for these devices was added. What’s more, hard disks larger that 10Mb were now supported. In addition, the command processor (shell) was removed from the operating system and made into a separate program. In November 1984, 3. 0 was replace by 3. 1 which provided the first support for networking. In 1987, IBM came out with the PS/2 line of PC which shipped with MS-DOS 3. 3, providing support for both 720K and 1. 44Mb 31/3 floppy disk drives. With Version 4. 0, Microsoft added the DOS shell, a menu driven shell rather than the previous keyboard driven ones. In addition, it now provided support for hard drives larger than 32 Mb. A major new release, MS-DOS Version 5. 0 was shipped in April 1991. Although this was the first version that made any serious use of the extended memory, it still had the restrictions that programs could not exceed 640K. However, it had the ability to locate most of MS-DOS itself in extended memory, so about 600K of the lower 640K was now available for user programs. Version 5. 0 also came with a useful HELP utility, to aid new users. For the first time, MS-DOS was sold in stores to the public (previous versions were only sold to computer vendors who delivered them with their machines) (CIT, 1-3). The MS-DOS 6 family provided more memory management for applications such as Microsoft Windows. In addition, newer utilities were provided for disk-defragmentation, file compression, file backups and anti-virus checking. Other variations of MS-DOS exist, such as PC-DOS by IBM, DOS-V, Dr. DOS and others. There is even a FREE DOS available on the Internet as an MS-DOS clone. Although it can still be found on many computers, MS-DOS is technically an obsolete operating system, being replaced by Microsoft Windows. For personal computers, MS-DOS is a single user, single tasking operating system. Single user means only one person uses the computer at a time. Single tasking means that it essentially runs one application program at a time, and has no inherent support for running more than one application program simultaneously (CIT, 2). If we want to look at the basic DOS operating system itself, there is no need to look further than three system files, command. com, Io. sys and (in DOS6. x and earlier) Msdos. sys. These files are crucial in DOS versions up to 6. 22. Io. sys represents the lowest level of the interface and contains the routines necessary for interfacing the OS with the system†s BIOS. It implements MS-DOS as seen by the hardware and has default drivers for console display and keyboard, printer, serial communications, clock, and a boot disk drive. Msdos. sys handles the higher-level routines such as converting commands from applications into instructions for Io. sys. It implements MS-DOS as seen by application programs. It supports file and record management, memory management, character device input and output, execution of other programs, and access to a real-time clock (CIT, 3). Both of these files are in the root directory, and both are hidden from view by default. The idea is that you are not suppose to see them, so that you don†t do anything destructive to them (such as deleting them). They are also read-only so that they can†t be deleted accidentally. Command. com is the shell program which interprets user commands, presents the shell prompt, and contains a set of internal commands. The rest of MS-DOS consists of a number of utility programs. Although DOS had cornered the PC market, UNIX was still dominant on the larger workstations. The birth of UNIX in 1969 provided the world with its first modern operating system. An interactive multi-user operating system, UNIX was initially developed by programmers for their own use. Working for Bell Laboratories, Ken Thompson and Dennis Ritchie created UNIX as an operating system for the PDP-7 computer. Designed as a simplification of an operating system named Multics, UNIX was developed in Assembly language, a primitive computer language specific to one type of machine (Osiris, 1). However, Thompson developed a new programming language â€Å"B† which Ritchie enhanced to â€Å"C†, and in 1973 this was used to rewrite UNIX which lended the OS portability (Linux Intl. , 1). The original design philosophy for UNIX was to distribute functionality into small parts, the programs (Theochem, 1). In this way, functionality could be achieved by combining the small parts (programs) in new ways. Moreover, if a new program were to appear, it could be integrated into the system. UNIX was slow to catch on outside of academic institutions but soon was popular with businesses as well. The first five versions were part of an internal research effort of Bell Labs, and it was not until the sixth version, called UNIX Timesharing Sixth Edition V, that UNIX was widely distributed (Osiris, 1). Relatively recent developments are graphical interfaces (GUI) such as MOTIF, X Windows and Open View. UNIX has two major versions. One, jointly developed by UNIX Systems Laboratories (USL) and by ATT researchers together with Bell Labs, generically known as System V, is the commercial version and is the most widely distributed by major manufacturers. The second, developed by the University of Berkley and Berkley Software Distribution (BSD), is the educational version and is completely focused on research. The USL version is now on its fourth release, or SVR4, while BSD†s latest version is 4. However, there are many different versions of UNIX besides these two. The operating system has been licensed to several manufacturers who in turn developed their own versions of UNIX, based on System V or BSD, but adding new characteristics. Most versions of UNIX developed by software companies are derived from one of the two groupings and, recent versions of UNIX actually incorporate features from both of them. However, UNIX has had an unregulated history with over 200 versions (Berson, 16) existing today. The UNIX system is made up of three primary components, the kernel, the shell, and the utilities (which includes the file system). The central part of the OS, the kernel is the first program to start when the system is turned on and the last program to do anything when the system is halted. In addition to scheduling tasks, it manages data/file access and storage, enforces security mechanisms and performs all hardware access. The name â€Å"KERNEL† represents the fact that it is a program designed as a central nucleus, around which other functions of the system were added. The heart of the operating system, it not only interacts directly with the system†s hardware, but presents each user with a prompt, interprets commands typed by a user, executes user commands and supports a custom environment for each user. The two most common shells are the Bourne shell, default for the System V, and the C-shell used mainly with the BSD version (Osiris, 1). The utilities consist of file management (rm, cat, ls, rmdir, mkdir), user management (passwd, chmod, chgrp), process management (kill, ps) and printing (lp, troff, pr). How to cite The Compare and Contrast Microsoft DOS with UNIX, Essay examples

Romeo and Juliet charts Juliets journey from subservient daughter to passionate lover Essay Example For Students

Romeo and Juliet charts Juliets journey from subservient daughter to passionate lover Essay Romeo and Juliet is a play based on a romantic tragedy, written by William Shakespeare. The play is about two star- crossed lovers who are each from two rival families who are in a civil war against each other in the Italian city of Verona. The play charts the journey of many characters whose experiences change them forever and make them different people. So in love are the lovers, Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, who also marry without the consent of their parents, that they actually end up killing themselves thinking it better not living then living separately. The play is based at a time when society was very patriarchal. This meant that men were seen as the heads of the family and the providers, whereas women were expected to cook and look after the house and have children. This is why the situation of Romeo and Juliet being married without their parents knowing, Capulet (Juliets father) wanting her to marry the county Paris, Romeo being banished for killing the Capulets kinsman and Juliets cousin Tybalt so much more difficult for Juliet to handle. Her status in society as a woman is mirrored by her status in her family. Capulet and Lady Capulet see Juliet more of a possession which will eventually work in their advantage when they will want to marry her off to someone rich (Paris). We see this lack of respect for Juliet in Act 3 Scene 5 when Capulet says Ill give you to my friend. Its like he doesnt even care what she wants just what he wants matters and he treats her more like his possession then a daughter. This whole experience of fal ling in love with Romeo, marrying him, losing him, changes Juliet dramatically through the play. The first time we see Juliet in the play is in Act 1 Scene 3. Juliet is alone in her room when Nurse and Juliets mother enter. From our first impression of Juliet we get to see this subservient obeying daughter, Madam, I am here, what is your will? This shows that Juliet and her mother dont exactly have a very close relationship but one where Juliet does all her mother asks and is obedient. Juliet is then asked by her mother whether she will marry Paris. This is a quite a strange question for Juliet as it is out of the blue. She replies It is an honour I dream not of. This is almost a way of letting her mother down in an easy way. This shows she does not want to disappoint her mother. She is simply not ready to get married. She is being cautious because of her inexperience. We then see Juliet in Act 1 Scene 5. This is when she first meets Romeo at the Capulet party. She falls in love with him at first sight which is a new experience for her. She keeps her cool though and engages in a short romantic conversation in which she automatically connects with Romeo. You kiss by th book is Juliets response to Romeos kiss. As the audience we know this is probably Juliets first experience of kissing a member of the opposite sex. This shows Juliet is maybe a bit desperate to make herself look more experienced then she really is. This however already gives a hint of her passion to the audience as oppose to this obedient, well brought up girl we see just a couple of scenes prior. In Act 2 Scene 2 we have the balcony scene. This is a very key part of the story. Romeo climbs into the Capulet courtyard after the party because he wants to see Juliet again risking his own life in the process. Then Juliet appears on a balcony and begins to speak but is not yet aware that Romeo is there listening. Juliet then says O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name; Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, And Ill no longer be a Capulet. Juliet is wondering why his name must be Romeo and why he must be a Montague. She also says that Romeo should not acknowledge his father but if he cannot then Juliet will refuse to be a Capulet. She is already in love with Romeo and is cursing her luck. However although her head is perhaps in the clouds a bit by saying my love is deep , at such an early stage in their relationship, she does seem to be the more mature of the two. Romeo is trying to hint that hed like to enter Juliets room but Juliet is not allowing him, keeping her sexual frustrations under control. She is however very keen on marrying Romeo when it was less than a day ago that she rejected Paris offer claiming she is not ready. Not only does she accept Romeos proposal but she is the one trying to make it as soon as possible, Thy purpose of marriage, send me word tomorrow, where and what time wilt thou perform the rite. She shows her susceptibility to falling in love which shows this vulnerable side of hers. Romeo And Juliet (637 words) EssayThe next day, Act 4 Scene 1, Juliet visits the Friar and complains to him and get to the stage where she is ready to kill herself, Do thou but call my resolution wise, And with this knife Ill help it presently.. Friar Lawrence is now very desperate to come up with something to help Juliet. He gives Juliet a drinking potion which he claims will make Juliet seem dead for about 42 hours so her family will think she is dead. For Juliet to accept this, it directly emphasises her anxiousness. The next key scene is Act 4 Scene 3 where Juliet has her soliloquy before she takes the potion. She is afraid of what will happen if it does not work and if it kills her. She thinks this might be Friars plan as he does not want to marry Juliet to Paris. What if the poison which the Friar Subtly hath ministerd to have me dead. She then begins to panic and wonder what will happen if she wakes before Romeo comes and is locked in a shrine with her ancestors. How if, when I am laid into the tomb, I wake before the time that Romeo come to redeem me? This is a very worried Juliet who does not know what to do. But it is her love for Romeo which gives her hope that it could work. She eventually takes the potion and falls asleep. The potion does work and Juliet escapes marrying Paris and is given a funeral and left in a tomb. Romeo however does not hear word of the plan and when he hears Juliet is dead, he buys some poison and takes it by Juliets body and dies. When Juliet does wake she is shocked that Romeo is dead. Out of her love for Romeo she cannot stand living without him so she picks up a knife and finishes herself of alone. O happy dagger, This is thy sheath; there rust, and let me die. She kills herself, proving her undying love for Romeo. As a conclusion I will just add that Juliets character has changed dramatically and she has most certainly become a passionate lover as she has actually killed herself in preference to living without Romeo. Her passion however does show courage, bravery, determination but above all love and devotion, to her husband, Romeo.

Worldview Paper Essays - Christian Philosophy, Grace In Christianity

Worldview is framework of by which a person views the world around him. In my description it is how you scoped the world with your eyes. One perspective is how you think it to be. It is how one filters the world. In descriptive phrase, ?it is a set of assumptions, concepts, values, or practices that constitutes a way of viewing reality? (Webster Dictionary) The question of origin breaks down for us how life began and where did mankind come from. The Bible gives us all that we need to answer these questions. In Genesis 1:1, it tells us how God created the heavens and the Earth. He created everything on the Earth from the trees to the animals that roam the lands. He put man in charge of all of this. He wants us to keep everything in order on the Earth. In 2 Peter 1:21 it states God as the first cause. If there was no God there would be no Earth and nothing would exist. The question of identity shows us who we are as humans and how much authority do we have. The Bible shows us in Psalm 8:5, that God created us to be ?a little lower than the angels. He made all of us in his image, so that we may glorify his name. Genesis 2:15 show us that God put us over the animals. He wanted us to tend to and take care of the animals. At the same time God wants us to reap the benefits of the Earth and take what we need to survive. The question of meaning or purpose lets us know why we exist. It shows us in Philippians 3:8 shows us that we should be willing to give up anything material so that we will be able to gain Christ as our Lord and Savior. John 17:3 shows us how we are supposed to have an intimate relationship with God through our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. The question of morality and ethics tells us how we should live and the differences between right and wrong. Genesis 3 because of Adam?s disobedience in Genesis 3, by eating the forbidden fruit, mankind is now I the need of redemption. This will also help us to learn what is right and wrong. Ephesians 2:8-10 shows us that the salvation of mankind is only received by grace. God is the only one who can give us that grace through Christ Jesus. The final question is where we will go after we die. This is all about the question of destiny. John 15:1-6 shows us how if we are not connected to Christ we will not bear fruit, therefore we will be cast away. In Revelation 20 and 21 it shows that we will either be going to heaven or hell. What will happen after death depends on the individual. You will either be on the Lord?s side or cast into the lake of fire. On a daily basis I think, treat, and speak to others on a daily basis by building a friendship with them, that I might encourage the gospel without hesitation. Regardless of their belief I will show myself to be friendly with love and care. For I am to be an example for Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 3:15 tells us that we should always be prepared to give an answer to everyone, that all men will hear the truth. In deciding a career I would consider the very possibilities to become a Christian leader, that I will be able to convince a people with evidence that will prove that God is, all supremacy, all powerful and to prove the death burial, and the resurrection power of God.

Product Life Cycle (PLC) Essays

Product Life Cycle (PLC) Essays Product Life Cycle (PLC) Essay Product Life Cycle (PLC) Essay The concept of Product Life Cycle (PLC) highlights that sooner or Later all products die and that if an entrepreneur wishes to sustain its revenues, he must replace the declining products with the new ones. The advantages of forecasting the life cycle of a product to a firm are as follows: 1. When the PLC is predictable, the entrepreneur must be cautious in taking advance steps before the decline stage, by adopting product modification, pricing strategies, distinctive style, quality change, etc. . The firm can prepare an effective product plan by knowing the PLC of a product. 3. The entrepreneur can find new uses of the product for the expansion of market during growth stage and for extending the maturity stage. 4. The entrepreneur can adopt latest technological changes to improve the product Quality features and design The product moves through the four stages namely, introduction, growth, maturity and decline.As the product moves through different stages of its life cycle, sales volume and profitability change from stage to stage Examples; 1. CRT Televisions; The innovations in the field of technology has made way new models of Televisions in the market like the LED /LCD and it had shown the exit door for the CRT model TV With LCD/LED TV sales in India gaining momentum quickly, 2010 was the last year that Cathode Ray Tubes (CRTs) can lay claim as the leading television display type in the country on a revenue basis, according to a research reportThe above chart shows the s ales of CRT vs LED in the recent years which is quite evident that the CRT model TV is growing through its decline New CRT sets are no longer sold in the United States but are still being manufactured mostly for the Asian market. The CRT demand comes mostly from the world’s developing nations, where inexpensive TV sets using CRTs are one of the first luxury items people tend to buy as soon as they have a little bit of disposable income.CRT television sets are still absolutely the cheapest ways to get a first TV, Personal computers; The other product which is going through its decline is the personal computers, which once were much hype in the recent years the sales of them has been declining and there was considerable difference with the number of units shipment this year when compared with the previous year Personal computer sales decline as consumers turn to smartphones and tabletsWorldwide PC shipments totalled 76 million units in the second quarter, a 10. 9% drop from a y ear earlier, according to Gartner. PC sales have been hurt in recent years by the growing popularity of tablets. The introduction of low-cost tablets had further hurt PC sales, especially in emerging economies In emerging markets, inexpensive tablets have become the first computing device for many people, who at best are deferring the purchase of a PC,

What is the Best Format for a Resume

What is the Best Format for a Resume So you have a resume. Great. Trouble is, you’re not sure exactly which format to send it in. Snail mail? Email? Singing telegram? What is the best format for a resume? We’ll concentrate on the electronic versions, which, nowadays, are usually how you get your foot in the door. It’s always important to have a nicely printed and professional paper copy for the interview or other face-to-face interactions, but an electronic copy is usually your first move. Here are the four types of electronic formats and how to choose between them.Word DocumentThis includes .doc, .docx, etc. Basically: anything made with a word processor. This is the standard format in most business contexts. The formatting should stay the same when opened on another machine with the same program. And it’s easy to send, open, print, and forward.bThere are a few things to be careful of: first, some companies might not accept email attachments due to virus prevention. And second, different ver sions of the software can cause formatting inconsistencies and can sometimes prevent a hiring manager from opening the document.PDFThe best part of sending a PDF is knowing that what you see when you send is exactly what they will see when they open your document. There are no virus risks. PDFs are compatible with both Mac and PC. And no one can alter what you’ve done. It’s an inviolable, perfectly formatted eternal thing.The only downside is if your company doesn’t have PDF reading software like Acrobat Reader (a free download) or cannot otherwise convert your file.HTMLHTML formatting is really useful if you want to put your resume on a website. Your formatting will stay the same when sent via email- your hiring manager will even be able to view it in their browser without downloading the attachment. The downsides are trickier though. Not all browsers work with HTML documents. You might have to download a separate program to convert your document into this form at. And it can sometimes be mistaken for SPAM by recruiters.Plain TextPlain text formatting is a bit dull to the eye (no bold, italic, underline, fancy fonts, etc.), but an undersung hero of the job search world. It can be copied and sent in the body of the email itself if a company won’t accept attachments of any kind. It can be included in a searchable database, if need be. And there are a wide variety of ways to add some creative visual effects if you do a bit of research. The only downside is you lose the control and visual appeal of a more richly formatted document.No matter which format you chose, always send a trial version to yourself or a pal and attempt to open it to see how it will look when opened in a different browser.

PAS Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

PAS - Case Study Example After 6 months, I was asked to run the whole station store and gas pumps. The gas was closed a year after it was closed due to its line expiry. It was due to this reason that Pas Automotive repair decided to acquire a building that was the year 2000, hence the business became steady from then. Pas Automotive is luckily located on one of the busiest  streets in Sydney 500 Prince Street. With a large lot of 20 plus cars and access to the roadways, situated in 3 different directions. In business, Pas automotive repair company is among the automotive repair shop that deals with all repairs on both cars trucks boats as well as lawn mowers. In addition, the company deals with rebuilding various vehicle engines as well as changing engine oil. As the business is at a tender age, the company has a total of seven employees. Our services include; service calls, self service work where customers will be picked from a prevailed position and the problem they are encountering on their vehicle asc ertained just on time and at affordable price. Our prices depend on the  labor  guide, being serviced and provided by all of our service stations. We also give a discount price to students and  seniors. More so we have affordable and special hourly rate of 60.00 dollars an hour and this makes us cheap on the market as compared from our competitors. Research on the Pas Automotive Repair as a sole  proprietor  business is very useful. Firstly, it will aid in making a forecast to affiliate the current situation, therefore supporting the potential increase in service provision. Additionally, while delivering the service, the industry looks forward in growth and developing around the globe. There are several factors that limit their use, which may be reflected later. Moreover, the statistical analysis of the pas automotive repair company and distribution channels, which is very essential in making sound decisions, will be evaluated. Secondly, the study of online and traditional agency services (in terms of understanding consumer needs) is relevant not only for the owners of Pas Automotive Repair Company, but also for the insurance companies, transportation and others. Through the data, a clear analysis of the various factors affecting the industry is evaluated. This leads to increased efficiency and consequently increased returns. Additionally, research of the subject carries a statistical and social nature, which makes it necessary to understand the consumer behavior, as well as their knowledge of the possible opportunities. Increasing Sales and Profits One of the main objectives of advertising is to augment sales and profits. Most companies nowadays employ advertising to impart people regarding their products and services. Some forms of advertising lend themselves more to producing immediate profits. This can be with adverts availed through Billboards. The company will process and markets their services under a brand name of Pas Automotive Repair Compan y. Encourage Trial and Usage Pas Automotive Repair Company will frequently use advertising to hearten trial and convention of new services they unveil to their customer. The company will lope their advertising to bring in their services to the public as well as their customers. The company will initiate public enticements to first-time service consumers and will work based on brand equity among techniques Forms of advertisement In any company as per the requirements of marketing strategies,

The title to be used when submitting this assignment is Materiality in Essay

The title to be used when submitting this assignment is Materiality in Auditing - Essay Example Therefore, an auditor has to set a materiality level for important and vital aspects of the audit in order to concentrate and focus on the areas that are important and necessary. The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) defines materiality as â€Å"the magnitude of an omission or misstatement of an accounting information that, in the light of the surrounding circumstances, makes it probable that the judgement of a reasonable person relying on the information will have been changed or influenced by the omission or misstatement† (Johnstone, et al., 2013 p268) This implies that materiality is about the important issues and matters which when overlooked, will cause the financial statement to be overly misleading. Therefore, in the auditing context, materiality involves a situation whereby the auditor examines and reviews important things in his analysis of the financial statements in order to ensure that the opinion they pass on the financial statement are valid and reliable. Materiality affects sample sizes and determines whether the financial statement needs adjustments or not, and it represents the difference between a qualified and an unqualified report (Bagshaw & Selwood, 2013). This shows how the auditor can estimate the levels of issues that matter and then define the way and manner in which work can be distributed and conducted throughout the entire audit. This therefore means that materiality informs an auditor of which aspects of the financial statement amounts are to be given certain levels of attention. This gives the auditor guidelines on how to evaluate and analyse things and the extent to which focus should be given to certain components of the financial statement. Materiality is to be defined on a case-by-case basis. It involves the integration of professional judgement. It is done by examining the entire financial statement as a whole and this will help the

Belgium Chocolate Industry Essay Example for Free

Belgium Chocolate Industry Essay First introduction is when Spanish conquistadors met Azctec king. 1585 first recorded shipment from veracruz to Sevilla, Spain and spread to Europe from there. The first recorded shipment of chocolate to Europe for commercial purposes was in a shipment from Veracruz to Sevilla in 1585. [17] It was still served as a beverage, but the Europeans added cane sugar to counteract the natural bitterness and removed the chili pepper while retaining the vanilla, in addition they added cinnamon as well as other spices. In Spain, it quickly became a court favorite. In a century it had spread and become popular throughout the European continent. [26] To keep up with the high demand for this new drink, Spanish armies began enslaving Mesoamericans to produce cacao. [27] Even with cacao harvesting becoming a regular business, only royalty and the well-connected could afford to drink this expensive import. [28] Before long, the Spanish began growing cacao beans on plantations, and using an African workforce to help manage them. [29] The situation was different in England. Put simply, anyone with money could buy it. [30] The first chocolate house opened in London in 1657. 30] In 1689, noted physician and collector Hans Sloane developed a milk chocolate drink in Jamaica which was initially used by apothecaries, but later sold to the Cadbury brothers in 189715] For hundreds of years, the chocolate-making process remained unchanged. When the Industrial Revolution arrived, many changes occurred that brought about the food today in its modern form. A Dutch familys (van Houten) inventions made mass production of shiny, tasty chocolate bars and related products possible. In the 18th century, mechanical mills were created that squeezed out cocoa butter, which in turn helped to create hard, durable chocolate. 32] But, it was not until the arrival of the Industrial Revolution that these mills were put to bigger use. Not long after the revolution cooled down, companies began advertising this new invention to sell many of the chocolate treats we see today. [33] When new machines were produced, people began experiencing and consuming chocolate worldwide. [34] At the end of the 18th century, the first form of solid chocolate was invented in Turin by Doret. This chocolate was sold in large quantities from 1826 by Pierre Paul Caffarel in Italy. In 1819, F. L. Cailler opened the first Swiss chocolate factory. In 828, Dutchman Coenraad Johannes van Houten patented a method for extracting the fat from cocoa beans and making powdered cocoa and cocoa butter. Van Houten also developed the so-called Dutch process of treating chocolate with alkali to remove the bitter taste. This made it possible to form the modern chocolate bar. The German company Jordan Timaeus sold the first known chocolate bar made from cocoa, sugar and goats milk in 1839. [35] In England, the company,J. S. Fry Sons discovered a way to mix some of the cocoa butter back into the Dutched chocolate, and added sugar, creating a paste that could be moulded. This led to the first British chocolate bar in 1847, followed in 1849 by the Cadbury brothers. Wikipedia In most cases, the answer will be: chocolate – surprisingly or not. But when and how did Belgium become synonymous for top-quality chocolate? The history of Belgian chocolate reaches back as far as the 17th century, when the country was ruled by the Spanish, whose explorers had brought cocoa back from South America. At the time, cocoa was enjoyed as a luxury drink for the royals, nobility and artists who visited the royal courts in Brussels. Interestingly, the story of Swiss chocolate can also be traced back to Brussels. In the late 17th century, Henri Escher, the mayor of Zurich, visited Brussels and fell in love with the cocoa drinks he was served. He was so over the moon that he introduced the idea to Switzerland. Three centuries later, Switzerland remains Belgium’s main competitor when it comes to chocolate. In the centuries that followed, chocolate became increasingly popular amongst a wide public, but it took until the second half of the 19th century for Belgium to truly indulge in its passion for chocolate. Under the rule of King Leopold II, Belgium colonised Congo, where it found its own unlimited cocoa supply. This put Belgium right at the heart of the cocoa trade. Back in Belgium, in 1857, Jean Neuhaus (funnily enough of Swiss origin) had opened a pharmaceutical sweets shop in Brussels, where he also sold bars of bitter chocolate. The first chocolate shop was born. Some 60 years later, it was Neuhaus’ grandson who invented the praline when creating an empty chocolate shell with a sweet filling. So, what makes Belgian chocolate so special, so very delicious and in a league of its own? The secret is two-fold: ingredients and process. Of course, the origin and orientation of the cacao plantation, as well as the roasting of the beans all help to determine the flavour. But the main reason for the pure and full cocoa flavour is the fact that no vegetable shortening is used. Belgian chocolate traditionally mixes cocoa paste, sugar and cocoa butter in varying proportions. Dark Belgian chocolate uses the most cocoa; milk chocolate mixes in milk; and white chocolate is made be extracting only the butter from the cocoa. On the other hand, there is the process, which to date is steeped in tradition and craftsmanship, and still holds a hint of secrecy.

Eating Disorders :: Anorexia Nervosa

Most people can hardly feel hunger nowadays, and food has very different meaning depends on people. For some people, food will be as an act of nurture, food as memory, and happiness but for other people food will be food as guilty, as sin, and ban. In present time, although their weight is normal, women keep trying to lose their weight, because they want to show thin. And also long time ago, women did not think about their weight, but in present time’s women want to lose their weight. Women need to rethink about losing their weight, because when women cook in kitchen it is the most beautiful looks. Most women think about diet 365days, although she is thin and skinny women. This is nowadays women looks. However I can understand the thinking of present women, because I am a woman. I know food is good, and food always give to happiness and memory, but women could not eat their fill, because they do not want to shock next day. It is responsible for developing of mass media, if media does not develop then, we do not know standard of women, whether is skinny or not. However, mass media has been developed, we cannot stop the diet. When you see a television, all actresses are thin and beautiful. When you buy clothes, there is more choice of buying for clothes, when you are thin. That is why women decide to diet, because all of women’s wish become a thin and skinny girl, and buy clothes whatever they want to. Unfortunately, some people get disease which called eating disorder. From the Wikipedia, the definition of ‘eating disorder’ is a compulsion to eat, or avoid eating, that negatively affects both one's physical and mental health (Wikipedia). Too many people who work in modeling, get this disease, because a model is wearing the designer’s clothes and show the people how look like, so model and designer believe that thin model can show clothes well. Therefore many numbers of designers prefer thin model. However, several models were died from low weight. Therefore, the accusation of modeling said that designer cannot work with low weight of models, but still designers look for skinny model. There is important point as well. One of article shows the data which came from National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Association of Disorders, ‘there are many teenager have disorder.

Communication Management Challenges in Construction Project Execution

Go Up to Table of Contents| | Go To Chapter 2 (Organizing for Project Management)| The Owners' Perspective Introduction The Project Life Cycle Major Types of Construction Selection of Professional Services Construction Contractors Financing of Constructed Facilities Legal and Regulatory Requirements The Changing Environment of the Construction Industry   Ã‚  Ã‚   The Role of Project Managers References Footnotes| | | 1. The Owners' Perspective 1. 1 Introduction Like the five blind men encountering different parts of an elephant, each of the numerous participants in the process of planning, designing, financing, constructing and operating physical facilities has a different perspective on project management for construction. Specialized knowledge can be very beneficial, particularly in large and complicated projects, since experts in various specialties can provide valuable services. However, it is advantageous to understand how the different parts of the process fit together. Waste, excessive cost and delays can result from poor coordination and communication among specialists. It is particularly in the interest of owners to insure that such problems do not occur. And it behooves all participants in the process to heed the interests of owners because, in the end, it is the owners who provide the resources and call the shots. By adopting the viewpoint of the owners, we can focus our attention on the complete process of project management for constructed facilities rather than the historical roles of various specialists such as planners, architects, engineering designers, constructors, fabricators, material suppliers, financial analysts and others. To be sure, each specialty has made important advances in developing new techniques and tools for efficient implementation of construction projects. However, it is through the understanding of the entire process of project management that these specialists can respond more effectively to the owner's desires for their services, in marketing their specialties, and in improving the productivity and quality of their work. The introduction of innovative and more effective project management for construction is not an academic exercise. As reported by the â€Å"Construction Industry Cost Effectiveness Project† of the Business Roundtable: [1] By common consensus and every available measure, the United States no longer gets it's money's worth in construction, the nation's largest industry †¦ The creeping erosion of construction efficiency and productivity is bad news for the entire U. S. economy. Construction is a particularly seminal industry. The price of every factory, office building, hotel or power plant that is built affects the price that must be charged for the goods or services produced in it or by it. And that effect generally persists for decades †¦ Too much of the industry remains tethered to the past, partly by inertia and partly by historic divisions†¦ Improvement of project management not only can aid the construction industry, but may also be the engine for the national and world economy. However, if we are to make meaningful improvements, we must first understand the construction industry, its operating environment and the institutional constraints affecting its activities as well as the nature of project management. Back to top 1. 2 The Project Life Cycle The acquisition of a constructed facility usually represents a major capital investment, whether its owner happens to be an individual, a private corporation or a public agency. Since the commitment of resources for such an investment is motivated by market demands or perceived needs, the facility is expected to satisfy certain objectives within the constraints specified by the owner and relevant regulations. With the exception of the speculative housing market, where the residential units may be sold as built by the real estate developer, most constructed facilities are custom made in consultation with the owners. A real estate developer may be regarded as the sponsor of building projects, as much as a government agency may be the sponsor of a public project and turns it over to another government unit upon its completion. From the viewpoint of project management, the terms â€Å"owner† and â€Å"sponsor† are synonymous because both have the ultimate authority to make all important decisions. Since an owner is essentially acquiring a facility on a promise in some form of agreement, it will be wise for any owner to have a clear understanding of the acquisition process in order to maintain firm control of the quality, timeliness and cost of the completed facility. From the perspective of an owner, the project life cycle for a constructed facility may be illustrated schematically in Figure 1-1. Essentially, a project is conceived to meet market demands or needs in a timely fashion. Various possibilities may be considered in the conceptual planning stage, and the technological and economic feasibility of each alternative will be assessed and compared in order to select the best possible project. The financing schemes for the proposed alternatives must also be examined, and the project will be programmed with respect to the timing for its completion and for available cash flows. After the scope of the project is clearly defined, detailed engineering design will provide the blueprint for construction, and the definitive cost estimate will serve as the baseline for cost control. In the procurement and construction stage, the delivery of materials and the erection of the project on site must be carefully planned and controlled. After the construction is completed, there is usually a brief period of start-up or shake-down of the constructed facility when it is first occupied. Finally, the management of the facility is turned over to the owner for full occupancy until the facility lives out its useful life and is designated for demolition or conversion. Figure 1-1:   The Project Life Cycle of a Constructed Facility Of course, the stages of development in Figure 1-1 may not be strictly sequential. Some of the stages require iteration, and others may be carried out in parallel or with overlapping time frames, depending on the nature, size and urgency of the project. Furthermore, an owner may have in-house capacities to handle the work in every stage of the entire process, or it may seek professional advice and services for the work in all stages. Understandably, most owners choose to handle some of the work in-house and to contract outside professional services for other components of the work as needed. By examining the project life cycle from an owner's perspective we can focus on the proper roles of various activities and participants in all stages regardless of the contractual arrangements for different types of work. In the United States, for example, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers has in-house capabilities to deal with planning, budgeting, design, construction and operation of waterway and flood control structures. Other public agencies, such as state transportation departments, are also deeply involved in all phases of a construction project. In the private sector, many large firms such as DuPont, Exxon, and IBM are adequately staffed to carry out most activities for plant expansion. All these owners, both public and private, use outside agents to a greater or lesser degree when it becomes more advantageous to do so. The project life cycle may be viewed as a process through which a project is implemented from cradle to grave. This process is often very complex; however, it can be decomposed into several stages as indicated by the general outline in Figure 1-1. The solutions at various stages are then integrated to obtain the final outcome. Although each stage requires different expertise, it usually includes both technical and managerial activities in the knowledge domain of the specialist. The owner may choose to decompose the entire process into more or less stages based on the size and nature of the project, and thus obtain the most efficient result in implementation. Very often, the owner retains direct control of work in the planning and programming stages, but increasingly outside planners and financial experts are used as consultants because of the complexities of projects. Since operation and maintenance of a facility will go on long after the completion and acceptance of a project, it is usually treated as a separate problem except in the consideration of the life cycle cost of a facility. All stages from conceptual planning and feasibility studies to the acceptance of a facility for occupancy may be broadly lumped together and referred to as the Design/Construct process, while the procurement and construction alone are traditionally regarded as the province of the construction industry. Owners must recognize that there is no single best approach in organizing project management throughout a project's life cycle. All organizational approaches have advantages and disadvantages, depending on the knowledge of the owner in construction management as well as the type, size and location of the project. It is important for the owner to be aware of the approach which is most appropriate and beneficial for a particular project. In making choices, owners should be concerned with the life cycle costs of constructed facilities rather than simply the initial construction costs. Saving small amounts of money during construction may not be worthwhile if the result is much larger operating costs or not meeting the functional requirements for the new facility satisfactorily. Thus, owners must be very concerned with the quality of the finished product as well as the cost of construction itself. Since facility operation and maintenance is a part of the project life cycle, the owners' expectation to satisfy investment objectives during the project life cycle will require consideration of the cost of operation and maintenance. Therefore, the facility's operating management should also be considered as early as possible, just as the construction process should be kept in mind at the early stages of planning and programming. Back to top 1. 3 Major Types of Construction Since most owners are generally interested in acquiring only a specific type of constructed facility, they should be aware of the common industrial practices for the type of construction pertinent to them. Likewise, the construction industry is a conglomeration of quite diverse segments and products. Some owners may procure a constructed facility only once in a long while and tend to look for short term advantages. However, many owners require periodic acquisition of new facilities and/or rehabilitation of existing facilities. It is to their advantage to keep the construction industry healthy and productive. Collectively, the owners have more power to influence the construction industry than they realize because, by their individual actions, they can provide incentives or disincentives for innovation, efficiency and quality in construction. It is to the interest of all parties that the owners take an active interest in the construction and exercise beneficial influence on the performance of the industry. In planning for various types of construction, the methods of procuring professional services, awarding construction contracts, and financing the constructed facility can be quite different. For the purpose of discussion, the broad spectrum of constructed facilities may be classified into four major categories, each with its own characteristics. Residential Housing Construction Residential housing construction includes single-family houses, multi-family dwellings, and high-rise apartments. During the development and construction of such projects, the developers or sponsors who are familiar with the construction industry usually serve as surrogate owners and take charge, making necessary contractual agreements for design and construction, and arranging the financing and sale of the completed structures. Residential housing designs are usually performed by architects and engineers, and the construction executed by builders who hire subcontractors for the structural, mechanical, electrical and other specialty work. An exception to this pattern is for single-family houses which may be designed by the builders as well. The residential housing market is heavily affected by general economic conditions, tax laws, and the monetary and fiscal policies of the government. Often, a slight increase in total demand will cause a substantial investment in construction, since many housing projects can be started at different locations by different individuals and developers at the same time. Because of the relative ease of entry, at least at the lower end of the market, many new builders are attracted to the residential housing construction. Hence, this market is highly competitive, with potentially high risks as well as high rewards. Figure 1-2:   Residential Housing Construction (courtesy of Caterpillar, Inc. ) Institutional and Commercial Building Construction Institutional and commercial building construction encompasses a great variety of project types and sizes, such as schools and universities, medical clinics and hospitals, recreational facilities and sports stadiums, retail chain stores and large shopping centers, warehouses and light manufacturing plants, and skyscrapers for offices and hotels. The owners of such buildings may or may not be familiar with construction industry practices, but they usually are able to select competent professional consultants and arrange the financing of the constructed facilities themselves. Specialty architects and engineers are often engaged for designing a specific type of building, while the builders or general contractors undertaking such projects may also be specialized in only that type of building. Because of the higher costs and greater sophistication of institutional and commercial buildings in comparison with residential housing, this market segment is shared by fewer competitors. Since the construction of some of these buildings is a long process which once started will take some time to proceed until completion, the demand is less sensitive to general economic conditions than that for speculative housing. Consequently, the owners may confront an oligopoly of general contractors who compete in the same market. In an oligopoly situation, only a limited number of competitors exist, and a firm's price for services may be based in part on its competitive strategies in the local market. Figure 1-3:   Construction of the PPG Building in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (courtesy of PPG Industries, Inc. Specialized Industrial Construction Specialized industrial construction usually involves very large scale projects with a high degree of technological complexity, such as oil refineries, steel mills, chemical processing plants and coal-fired or nuclear power plants. The owners usually are deeply involved in the development of a project, and prefer to work with designers-bu ilders such that the total time for the completion of the project can be shortened. They also want to pick a team of designers and builders with whom the owner has developed good working relations over the years. Although the initiation of such projects is also affected by the state of the economy, long range demand forecasting is the most important factor since such projects are capital intensive and require considerable amount of planning and construction time. Governmental regulation such as the rulings of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in the United States can also profoundly influence decisions on these projects. Figure 1-4:   Construction of a Benzene Plant in Lima, Ohio (courtesy of Manitowoc Company, Inc. ) Infrastructure and Heavy Construction Infrastructure and heavy construction includes projects such as highways, mass transit systems, tunnels, bridges, pipelines, drainage systems and sewage treatment plants. Most of these projects are publicly owned and therefore financed either through bonds or taxes. This category of construction is characterized by a high degree of mechanization, which has gradually replaced some labor intensive operations. The engineers and builders engaged in infrastructure construction are usually highly specialized since each segment of the market requires different types of skills. However, demands for different segments of infrastructure and heavy construction may shift with saturation in some segments. For example, as the available highway construction projects are declining, some heavy construction contractors quickly move their work force and equipment into the field of mining where jobs are available. Figure 1-5:   Construction of the Dame Point Bridge in Jacksonville, Florida (courtesy of Mary Lou Maher) Back to top 1. 4 Selection of Professional Services When an owner decides to seek professional services for the design and construction of a facility, he is confronted with a broad variety of choices. The type of services selected depends to a large degree on the type of construction and the experience of the owner in dealing with various professionals in the previous projects undertaken by the firm. Generally, several common types of professional services may be engaged either separately or in some combination by the owners. Financial Planning Consultants At the early stage of strategic planning for a capital project, an owner often seeks the services of financial planning consultants such as certified public accounting (CPA) firms to evaluate the economic and financial feasibility of the constructed facility, particularly with respect to arious provisions of federal, state and local tax laws which may affect the investment decision. Investment banks may also be consulted on various options for financing the facility in order to analyze their long-term effects on the financial health of the owner organization. Architectural and Engineering Firms Traditionally, the owner engages a n architectural and engineering (A/E) firm or consortium as technical consultant in developing a preliminary design. After the engineering design and financing arrangements for the project are completed, the owner will enter into a construction contract with a general contractor either through competitive bidding or negotiation. The general contractor will act as a constructor and/or a coordinator of a large number of subcontractors who perform various specialties for the completion of the project. The A/E firm completes the design and may also provide on site quality inspection during construction. Thus, the A/E firm acts as the prime professional on behalf of the owner and supervises the construction to insure satisfactory results. This practice is most common in building construction. In the past two decades, this traditional approach has become less popular for a number of reasons, particularly for large scale projects. The A/E firms, which are engaged by the owner as the prime professionals for design and inspection, have become more isolated from the construction process. This has occurred because of pressures to reduce fees to A/E firms, the threat of litigation regarding construction defects, and lack of knowledge of new construction techniques on the part of architect and engineering professionals. Instead of preparing a construction plan along with the design, many A/E firms are no longer responsible for the details of construction nor do they provide periodic field inspection in many cases. As a matter of fact, such firms will place a prominent disclaimer of responsibilities on any shop drawings they may check, and they will often regard their representatives in the field as observers instead of inspectors. Thus, the A/E firm and the general contractor on a project often become antagonists who are looking after their own competing interests. As a result, even the constructibility of some engineering designs may become an issue of contention. To carry this protective attitude to the extreme, the specifications prepared by an A/E firm for the general contractor often protects the interest of the A/E firm at the expense of the interests of the owner and the contractor. In order to reduce the cost of construction, some owners introduce value engineering, which seeks to reduce the cost of construction by soliciting a second design that might cost less than the original design produced by the A/E firm. In practice, the second design is submitted by the contractor after receiving a construction contract at a stipulated sum, and the saving in cost resulting from the redesign is shared by the contractor and the owner. The contractor is able to absorb the cost of redesign from the profit in construction or to reduce the construction cost as a result of the re-design. If the owner had been willing to pay a higher fee to the A/E firm or to better direct the design process, the A/E firm might have produced an improved design which would cost less in the first place. Regardless of the merit of value engineering, this practice has undermined the role of the A/E firm as the prime professional acting on behalf of the owner to supervise the contractor. Design/Construct Firms A common trend in industrial construction, particularly for large projects, is to engage the services of a design/construct firm. By integrating design and construction management in a single organization, many of the conflicts between designers and constructors might be avoided. In particular, designs will be closely scrutinized for their constructibility. However, an owner engaging a design/construct firm must insure that the quality of the constructed facility is not sacrificed by the desire to reduce the time or the cost for completing the project. Also, it is difficult to make use of competitive bidding in this type of design/construct process. As a result, owners must be relatively sophisticated in negotiating realistic and cost-effective construction contracts. One of the most obvious advantages of the integrated design/construct process is the use of phased construction for a large project. In this process, the project is divided up into several phases, each of which can be designed and constructed in a staggered manner. After the completion of the design of the first phase, construction can begin without waiting for the completion of the design of the second phase, etc. If proper coordination is exercised. the total project duration can be greatly reduced. Another advantage is to exploit the possibility of using the turnkey approach whereby an owner can delegate all responsibility to the esign/construct firm which will deliver to the owner a completed facility that meets the performance specifications at the specified price. Professional Construction Managers In recent years, a new breed of construction managers (CM) offers professional services from the inception to the completion of a construction project. These construction managers mostly come from the ranks of A/E firms or general contractors who may or may not retain dual roles in the service of the owners. In any case, the owner can rely on the service of a single prime professional to manage the entire process of a construction project. However, like the A/E firms of several decades ago, the construction managers are appreciated by some owners but not by others. Before long, some owners find that the construction managers too may try to protect their own interest instead of that of the owners when the stakes are high. It should be obvious to all involved in the construction process that the party which is required to take higher risk demands larger rewards. If an owner wants to engage an A/E firm on the basis of low fees instead of established qualifications, it often gets what it deserves; or if the owner wants the general contractor to bear the cost of uncertainties in construction such as foundation conditions, the contract price will be higher even if competitive bidding is used in reaching a contractual agreement. Without mutual respect and trust, an owner cannot expect that construction managers can produce better results than other professionals. Hence, an owner must understand its own responsibility and the risk it wishes to assign to itself and to other participants in the process. Operation and Maintenance Managers Although many owners keep a permanent staff for the operation and maintenance of constructed facilities, others may prefer to contract such tasks to professional managers. Understandably, it is common to find in-house staff for operation and maintenance in specialized industrial plants and infrastructure facilities, and the use of outside managers under contracts for the operation and maintenance of rental properties such as apartments and office buildings. However, there are exceptions to these common practices. For example, maintenance of public roadways can be contracted to private firms. In any case, managers can provide a spectrum of operation and maintenance services for a specified time period in accordance to the terms of contractual agreements. Thus, the owners can be spared the provision of in-house expertise to operate and maintain the facilities. Facilities Management As a logical extension for obtaining the best services throughout the project life cycle of a constructed facility, some owners and developers are receptive to adding strategic planning at the beginning and facility maintenance as a follow-up to reduce space-related costs in their real estate holdings. Consequently, some architectural/engineering firms and construction management firms with computer-based expertise, together with interior design firms, are offering such front-end and follow-up services in addition to the more traditional services in design and construction. This spectrum of services is described in Engineering News-Record (now ENR) as follows: [2] Facilities management is the discipline of planning, designing, constructing and managing space — in every type of structure from office buildings to process plants. It involves developing corporate facilities policy, long-range forecasts, real estate, space inventories, projects (through design, construction and renovation), building operation and maintenance plans and furniture and equipment inventories. A common denominator of all firms entering into these new services is that they all have strong computer capabilities and heavy computer investments. In addition to the use of computers for aiding design and monitoring construction, the service includes the compilation of a computer record of building plans that can be turned over at the end of construction to the facilities management group of the owner. A computer data base of facilities information makes it possible for planners in the owner's organization to obtain overview information for long range space forecasts, while the line managers can use as-built information such as lease/tenant records, utility costs, etc. for day-to-day operations. Back to top 1. 5 Construction Contractors Builders who supervise the execution of construction projects are traditionally referred to as contractors, or more appropriately called constructors. The general contractor coordinates various tasks for a project while the specialty contractors such as mechanical or electrical contractors perform the work in their specialties. Material and equipment suppliers often act as installation contractors; they play a significant role in a construction project since the conditions of delivery of materials and equipment affect the quality, cost, and timely completion of the project. It is essential to understand the operation of these contractors in order to deal with them effectively. General Contractors The function of a general contractor is to coordinate all tasks in a construction project. Unless the owner performs this function or engages a professional construction manager to do so, a good general contractor who has worked with a team of superintendents, specialty contractors or subcontractors together for a number of projects in the past can be most effective in inspiring loyalty and cooperation. The general contractor is also knowledgeable about the labor force employed in construction. The labor force may or may not be unionized depending on the size and location of the projects. In some projects, no member of the work force belongs to a labor union; in other cases, both union and non-union craftsmen work together in what is called an open shop, or all craftsmen must be affiliated with labor unions in a closed shop. Since labor unions provide hiring halls staffed with skilled journeyman who have gone through apprentice programs for the projects as well as serving as collective bargain units, an experienced general contractor will make good use of the benefits and avoid the pitfalls in dealing with organized labor. Specialty Contractors Specialty contractors include mechanical, electrical, foundation, excavation, and demolition contractors among others. They usually serve as subcontractors to the general contractor of a project. In some cases, legal statutes may require an owner to deal with various specialty contractors directly. In the State of New York, for example, specialty contractors, such as mechanical and electrical contractors, are not subjected to the supervision of the general contractor of a construction project and must be given separate prime contracts on public works. With the exception of such special cases, an owner will hold the general contractor responsible for negotiating and fulfilling the contractual agreements with the subcontractors. Material and Equipment Suppliers Major material suppliers include specialty contractors in structural steel fabrication and erection, sheet metal, ready mixed concrete delivery, reinforcing steel bar detailers, roofing, glazing etc. Major equipment suppliers for industrial construction include manufacturers of generators, boilers and piping and other equipment. Many suppliers handle on-site installation to insure that the requirements and contractual specifications are met. As more and larger structural units are prefabricated off-site, the distribution between specialty contractors and material suppliers becomes even less obvious. Back to top 1. 6 Financing of Constructed Facilities A major construction project requires an enormous amount of capital that is often supplied by lenders who want to be assured that the project will offer a fair return on the investment. The direct costs associated with a major construction project may be broadly classified into two categories: (1) the construction expenses paid to the general contractor for erecting the facility on site and (2) the expenses for land acquisition, legal fees, architect/engineer fees, construction management fees, interest on construction loans and the opportunity cost of carrying empty space in the facility until it is fully occupied. The direct construction costs in the first category represent approximately 60 to 80 percent of the total costs in most construction projects. Since the costs of construction are ultimately borne by the owner, careful financial planning for the facility must be made prior to construction. Construction Financing Construction loans to contractors are usually provided by banks or savings and loan associations for construction financing. Upon the completion of the facility, construction loans will be terminated and the post-construction facility financing will be arranged by the owner. Construction loans provided for different types of construction vary. In the case of residential housing, construction loans and long-term mortgages can be obtained from savings and loans associations or commercial banks. For institutional and commercial buildings, construction loans are usually obtained from commercial banks. Since the value of specialized industrial buildings as collateral for loans is limited, construction loans in this domain are rare, and construction financing can be done from the pool of general corporate funds. For infrastructure construction owned by government, the property cannot be used as security for a private loan, but there are many possible ways to finance the construction, such as general appropriation from taxation or special bonds issued for the project. Traditionally, banks serve as construction lenders in a three-party agreement among the contractor, the owner and the bank. The stipulated loan will be paid to the contractor on an agreed schedule upon the verification of completion of various portions of the project. Generally, a payment request together with a standard progress report will be submitted each month by the contractor to the owner which in turn submits a draw request to the bank. Provided that the work to date has been performed satisfactorily, the disbursement is made on that basis during the construction period. Under such circumstances, the bank has been primarily concerned with the completion of the facility on time and within the budget. The economic life of the facility after its completion is not a concern because of the transfer of risk to the owner or an institutional lender. Facility Financing Many private corporations maintain a pool of general funds resulting from retained earnings and long-term borrowing on the strength of corporate assets, which can be used for facility financing. Similarly, for public agencies, the long-term funding may be obtained from the commitment of general tax revenues from the federal, state and/or local governments. Both private corporations and public agencies may issue special bonds for the constructed facilities which may obtain lower interest rates than other forms of borrowing. Short-term borrowing may also be used for bridging the gaps in long-term financing. Some corporate bonds are convertible to stocks under circumstances specified in the bond agreement. For public facilities, the assessment of user fees to repay the bond funds merits consideration for certain types of facilities such as toll roads and sewage treatment plants. [3] The use of mortgages is primarily confined to rental properties such as apartments and office buildings. Because of the sudden surge of interest rates in the late 1970's, many financial institutions offer, in addition to he traditional fixed rate long-term mortgage commitments, other arrangements such as a combination of debt and a percentage of ownership in exchange for a long-term mortgage or the use of adjustable rate mortgages. In some cases, the construction loan may be granted on an open-ended basis without a long-term financing commitment. For example, the plan might be issued for the construction period with an option to extend it for a period of up to three years in order to give the owner more time to seek alternative long-term financing on the completed facility. The bank will be drawn into situations involving financial risk if it chooses to be a lender without long-term guarantees. For international projects, the currency used for financing agreements becomes important. If financial agreements are written in terms of local currencies, then fluctuations in the currency exchange rate can significantly affect the cost and ultimately profit of a project. In some cases, payments might also be made in particular commodities such as petroleum or the output from the facility itself. Again, these arrangements result in greater uncertainty in the financing scheme because the price of these commodities may vary. Back to top 1. 7 Legal and Regulatory Requirements The owners of facilities naturally want legal protection for all the activities involved in the construction. It is equally obvious that they should seek competent legal advice. However, there are certain principles that should be recognized by owners in order to avoid unnecessary pitfalls. Legal Responsibilities Activities in construction often involve risks, both physical and financial. An owner generally tries to shift the risks to other parties to the degree possible when entering into contractual agreements with them. However, such action is not without cost or risk. For example, a contractor who is assigned the risks may either ask for a higher contract price to compensate for the higher risks, or end up in non-performance or bankruptcy as an act of desperation. Such consequences can be avoided if the owner is reasonable in risk allocation. When risks are allocated to different parties, the owner must understand the implications and spell them out clearly. Sometimes there are statutory limitations on the allocation of liabilities among various groups, such as prohibition against the allocation of negligence in design to the contractor. An owner must realize its superior power in bargaining and hence the responsibilities associated with this power in making contractual agreements. Mitigation of Conflicts It is important for the owner to use legal counselors as advisors to mitigate conflicts before they happen rather than to wield conflicts as weapons against other parties. There are enough problems in design and construction due to uncertainty rather than bad intentions. The owner should recognize the more enlightened approaches for mitigating conflicts, such as using owner-controlled wrap-up insurance which will provide protection for all parties involved in the construction process for unforeseen risks, or using arbitration, mediation and other extra-judicial solutions for disputes among various parties. However, these compromise solutions are not without pitfalls and should be adopted only on the merit of individual cases. Government Regulation To protect public safety and welfare, legislatures and various government agencies periodically issue regulations which influence the construction process, the operation of constructed facilities, and their ultimate disposal. For example, building codes promulgated by local authorities have provided guidelines for design and construction practices for a very long time. Since the 1970's, many federal regulations that are related directly or indirectly to construction have been established in the United States. Among them are safety standards for workers issued by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, environmental standards on pollutants and toxic wastes issued by the Environmental Protection Agency, and design and operation procedures for nuclear power plants issued by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Owners must be aware of the impacts of these regulations on the costs and durations of various types of construction projects as well as possibilities of litigation due to various contentions. For example, owners acquiring sites for new construction may be strictly liable for any hazardous wastes already on the site or removed from the site under the U. S. Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability (CERCL) Act of 1980. For large scale projects involving new technologies, the construction costs often escalate with the uncertainty associated with such restrictions. Back to top 1. 8 The Changing Environment of the Construction Industry The construction industry is a conglomeration of diverse fields and participants that have been loosely lumped together as a sector of the economy. The construction industry plays a central role in national welfare, including the development of residential housing, office buildings and industrial plants, and the restoration of the nation's infrastructure and other public facilities. The importance of the construction industry lies in the function of its products which provide the foundation for industrial production, and its impacts on the national economy cannot be measured by the value of its output or the number of persons employed in its activities alone. To be more specific, construction refers to all types of activities usually associated with the erection and repair of immobile facilities. Contract construction consists of a large number of firms that perform construction work for others, and is estimated to be approximately 85% of all construction activities. The remaining 15% of construction is performed by owners of the facilities, and is referred to as force-account construction. Although the number of contractors in the United States exceeds a million, over 60% of all contractor construction is performed by the top 400 contractors. The value of new construction in the United States (expressed in constant dollars) and the value of construction as a percentage of the gross national products from 1950 to 1985 are shown in Figures 1-6 and 1-7. It can be seen that construction is a significant factor in the Gross National Product although its importance has been declining in recent years. [4] Not to be ignored is the fact that as the nation's constructed facilities become older, the total expenditure on rehabilitation and maintenance may increase relative to the value of new construction. Figure 1-6:   Value of New Construction in the United States, 1975-1995 Figure 1-7:   Construction as Percentage of Gross Domestic Product in the United States, 1975-1995 Owners who pay close attention to the peculiar characteristics of the construction industry and its changing operating environment will be able to take advantage of the favorable conditions and to avoid the pitfalls. Several factors are particularly noteworthy because of their significant impacts on the quality, cost and time of construction. New Technologies In recent years, technological innovation in design, materials and construction methods have resulted in significant changes in construction costs. Computer-aids have improved capabilities for generating quality designs as well as reducing the time required to produce alternative designs. New materials not only have enhanced the quality of construction but also have shortened the time for shop fabrication and field erection. Construction methods have gone through various stages of mechanization and automation, including the latest development of construction robotics. The most dramatic new technology applied to construction has been the Internet and its private, corporate Intranet versions. The Internet is widely used as a means to foster collaboration among professionals on a project, to communicate for bids and results, and to procure necessary goods and services. Real time video from specific construction sites is widely used to illustrate construction progress to interested parties. The result has been more effective collaboration, communication and procurement. The effects of many new technologies on construction costs have been mixed because of the high development costs for new technologies. However, it is unmistakable that design professionals and construction contractors who have not adapted to changing technologies have been forced out of the mainstream of design and construction activities. Ultimately, construction quality and cost can be improved with the adoption of new technologies which are proved to be efficient from both the viewpoints of performance and economy. Labor Productivity The term productivity is generally defined as a ratio of the production output volume to the input volume of resources. Since both output and input can be quantified in a number of ways, there is no single measure of productivity that is universally applicable, particularly in the construction industry where the products are often unique and there is no standard for specifying the levels for aggregation of data. However, since labor constitutes a large part of the cost of construction, labor productivity in terms of output volume (constant dollar value or functional units) per person-hour is a useful measure. Labor productivity measured in this way does not necessarily indicate the efficiency of labor alone but rather measures the combined effects of labor, equipment and other factors contributing to the output. While aggregate construction industry productivity is important as a measure of national economy, owners are more concerned about the labor productivity of basic units of work produced by various crafts on site. Thus, an owner can compare the labor performance at different geographic locations, under different working conditions, and for different types and sizes of projects. Construction costs usually run parallel to material prices and labor wages. Actually, over the years, labor productivity has increased in some traditional types of construction and thus provides a leveling or compensating effect when hourly rates for labor increase faster than other costs in construction. However, labor productivity has been stagnant or even declined in unconventional or large scale projects. Public Scrutiny Under the present litigious climate in the United States, the public is increasingly vocal in the scrutiny of construction project activities. Sometimes it may result in considerable difficulty in siting new facilities as well as additional expenses during the construction process itself. Owners must be prepared to manage such crises before they get out of control. Figure 1-8 can serve to indicate public attitudes towards the siting of new facilities. It represents the cumulative percentage of individuals who would be willing to accept a new industrial facility at various distances from their homes. For example, over fifty percent of the people surveyed would accept a ten-story office building within five miles of their home, but only twenty-five percent would accept a large factory or coal fired power plant at a similar distance. An even lower percentage would accept a hazardous waste disposal site or a nuclear power plant. Even at a distance of one hundred miles, a significant fraction of the public would be unwilling to accept hazardous waste facilities or nuclear power plants. Figure 1-8:   Public Acceptance Towards New Facilities (Reprinted from Environmental Quality – 1980, the Eleventh Annual Report of the Council on Environmental Quality, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC, December 1980. ) This objection to new facilities is a widespread public attitude, representing considerable skepticism about the external benefits and costs which new facilities will impose. It is this public attitude which is likely to make public scrutiny and regulation a continuing concern for the construction industry. International Competition A final trend which deserves note is the increasing level of international competition in the construction industry. Owners are likely to find non-traditional firms bidding for construction work, particularly on large projects. Separate bids from numerous European, North American, and Asian construction firms are not unusual. In the United States, overseas firms are becoming increasingly visible and important. In this environment of heightened competition, good project management and improved productivity are more and more important. A bidding competition for a major new offshore drilling platform illustrates the competitive environment in construction. As described in the Wall Street Journal: [5] Through most of the postwar years, the nation's biggest builders of offshore oil platforms enjoyed an unusually cozy relationship with the Big Oil Companies they served. Their top officials developed personal friendships with oil executives, entertained them at opulent hunting camps- and won contracts to build nearly every major offshore oil platform in the world†¦. But this summer, the good-old boy network fell apart. Shell [Oil Co. awarded the main contract for [a new] platform – taller than Chicago's Sears Tower, four times heavier than the Brooklyn Bridge – to a tiny upstart. The winning bidder arranged overseas fabrication of the rig, kept overhead costs low, and proposed a novel assembly procedure by which construction equipment was mounted on completed sections of the platform in order to speed the completion of the entire structure. The result was lower costs than those estimated and bid by traditional firms. Of course, U. S. firms including A/E firms, contractors and construction managers are also competing in foreign countries. Their success or failure in the international arena may also affect their capacities and vitality to provide services in the domestic U. S. market. Contractor Financed Projects Increasingly, some owners look to contractors or joint ventures as a resource to design, to build and to finance a constructed facility. For example, a utility company may seek a consortium consisting of a design/construct firm and a financial investment firm to assume total liability during construction and thereby eliminate the risks of cost escalation to ratepayers, stockholders and the management. On the other hand, a local sanitation district may seek such a consortium to provide private ownership for a proposed new sewage treatment plant. In the former case, the owner may take over the completed facility and service the debt on construction through long-term financing arrangements; in the latter case, the private owner may operate the completed facility and recover its investment through user fees. The activities of joint ventures among design, construction and investment firms are sometimes referred to as financial engineering. This type of joint venture has become more important in the international construction market where aggressive contractors often win contracts by offering a more attractive financing package rather than superior technology. With a deepening shadow of international debts in recent years, many developing countries are not in a position to undertake any new project without contractor-backed financing. Thus, the contractors or joint ventures in overseas projects are forced into very risky positions if they intend to stay in the competition. Lean Construction Lean manufacturing† had a revolutionary effect on many industries, especially automotive assembly companies. Characteristics of this approach include: * Improvement in quality and reduction of waste everywhere. Rather than increasing costs, reducing defects and waste proved to improve quality and reduce costs. * Empowering workers to be responsible for satisfying customer needs. In construction, for example, craftsman should ma ke sure their work satisfied the design intent. * Continuous improvement of processes involving the entire workforce. Lean construction s intended to spread these practices within the construction industry. Of course, well managed construction projects already have many aspects of lean construction. For example, just-in-time delivery of materials is commonplace to avoid the waste of large inventory stockpiles. Green building projects attempt to re-use or recycle all construction wastes. But the systematic attention to continuous improvement and zero accidents and defects is new. Back to top 1. 9 The Role of Project Managers In the project life cycle, the most influential factors affecting the outcome of the project often reside at the early stages. At this point, decisions should be based on competent economic evaluation with due consideration for adequate financing, the prevalent social and regulatory environment, and technological considerations. Architects and engineers might specialize in planning, in construction field management, or in operation, but as project managers, they must have some familiarity with all such aspects in order to understand properly their role and be able to make competent decisions. Since the 1970's, many large-scale projects have run into serious problems of management, such as cost overruns and long schedule delays. Actually, the management of megaprojects or superprojects is not a practice peculiar to our time. Witness the construction of transcontinental railroads in the Civil War era and the construction of the Panama Canal at the turn of this century. Although the megaprojects of this generation may appear in greater frequency and present a new set of challenge, the problems are organizational rather than technical. As noted by Hardy Cross: [6] It is customary to think of engineering as a part of a trilogy, pure science, applied science and engineering. It needs emphasis that this trilogy is only one of a triad of trilogies into which engineering fits. This first is pure science, applied science and engineering; the second is economic theory, finance and engineering; and the third is social relations, industrial relations and engineering. Many engineering problems are as closely allied to social problems as they are to pure science. As engineers advance professionally, they often spend as much or more time on planning, management and other economic or social problems as on the traditional engineering design and analysis problems which form the core of most educational programs. It is upon the ability of engineers to tackle all such problems that their performance will ultimately be judged. The greatest stumbling block to effective management in construction is the inertia and historic divisions among planners, designers and constructors. While technical competence in design and innovation remains the foundation of engineering practice, the social, economic and organizational factors that are pervasive in influencing the success and failure of construction projects must also be dealt with effectively by design and construction organizations. Of course, engineers are not expected to know every detail of management techniques, but they must be knowledgeable enough to anticipate the problems of management so that they can work harmoniously with professionals in related fields to overcome the inertia and historic divisions. Paradoxically, engineers who are creative in engineering design are often innovative in planning and management since both types of activities involve problem solving. In fact, they can reinforce each other if both are included in the education process, provided that creativity and innovation instead of routine practice are emphasized. A project manager who is well educated in the fundamental principles of engineering design and management can usefully apply such principles once he or she has acquired basic understanding of a new application area. A project manager who has been trained by rote learning for a specific type of project may merely gain one year of experience repeated twenty times even if he or she has been in the field for twenty years. A broadly educated project manager can reasonably hope to become a leader in the profession; a narrowly trained project manager is often relegated to the role of his or her first job level permanently. The owners have much at stake in selecting a competent project manager and in providing her or him with the authority to assume responsibility at various stages of the project regardless of the types of contractual agreements for implementing the project. Of course, the project manager must also possess the leadership quality and the ability to handle effectively intricate interpersonal relationships within an organization. The ultimate test of the education and experience of a project manager for construction lies in her or his ability to apply fundamental principles to solving problems in the new and unfamiliar situations which have become the hallmarks of the changing environment in the construction industry. Back to top 1. 10 References 1. Au, T. and C. Hendrickson, â€Å"Education in Engineering Planning and Management,† Proceedings of the ASCE Conference on Civil Engineering Education, Columbus, Ohio, 1985. 2. Barrie, D. S. editor), Directions in Managing Construction, John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1981. 3. Lean Construction Institute, http://www. leanconstruction. org/ 4. Bonny, J. B. and J. P. Frein, Handbook of Construction Management and Organization, 2nd Edition, Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. , New York, 1980. 5. Hasagawa, Fumio et. al. , â€Å"Built by Japan,† John Wiley ; Sons, 1988. 6. Lang, J. E. and D. Q. Mills, The Construction Industry, Lexington Books, Lexington, MA, 1979. 7. Walker, N. , E. N. Walker and T. K. Rohdenburg, Legal Pitfalls in Architecture, Engineering and Building Construction, 2nd Edition, McGraw-Hill Book Co. , New York, 1979. Back to top 1. 11 Footnotes 1. The Business Roundtable, More Construction for the Money, Summary Report of the Construction Industry Cost Effectiveness Project, January 1983, p. 11. Back 2. â€Å"Hot New Market Lures A-E Players to Cutting Edges,† Engineering News-Record, April 4, 1985, pp. 30-37. Back 3. See Hendrickson, C. , â€Å"Financing Civil Works with User Fees,† Civil Engineering, Vol. 53, No. , February 1983, pp. 71-72. Back 4. The graph is derived from data in â€Å"Value of New Construction Put in Place, 1960-1983†, Statistical Abstract of the United States, 105th Edition, U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census, 1985, pp. 722-723, as well as the information in earlier editions. Back 5. See Petzinger, Thomas Jr. , â€Å"Upstart's Winning Bid for Offshore Platform Stuns its Older Rivals,† Wall Street Journ al, p. 1, c. 6, Nov. 20, 1985. Back 6. See H. Cross, Engineers and Ivory Towers, McGraw-Hill Book Co. Inc. , New York, 1952. Back Table of Contents| || Next Chapter| Go Up to Table of Contents| | Go To Chapter 2 (Organizing for Project Management)| The Owners' Perspective Introduction The Project Life Cycle Major Types of Construction Selection of Professional Services Construction Contractors Financing of Constructed Facilities Legal and Regulatory Requirements The Changing Environment of the Construction Industry   Ã‚  Ã‚   The Role of Project Managers References Footnotes| | | 1. The Owners' Perspective 1. 1 Introduction Like the five blind men encountering different parts of an elephant, each of the numerous participants in the process of planning, designing, financing, constructing and operating physical facilities has a different perspective on project management for construction. Specialized knowledge can be very beneficial, particularly in large and complicated projects, since experts in various specialties can provide valuable services. However, it is advantageous to understand how the different parts of the process fit together. Waste, excessive cost and delays can result from poor coordination and communication among specialists. It is particularly in the interest of owners to insure that such problems do not occur. And it behooves all participants in the process to heed the interests of owners because, in the end, it is the owners who provide the resources and call the shots. By adopting the viewpoint of the owners, we can focus our attention on the complete process of project management for constructed facilities rather than the historical roles of various specialists such as planners, architects, engineering designers, constructors, fabricators, material suppliers, financial analysts and others. To be sure, each specialty has made important advances in developing new techniques and tools for efficient implementation of construction projects. However, it is through the understanding of the entire process of project management that these specialists can respond more effectively to the owner's desires for their services, in marketing their specialties, and in improving the productivity and quality of their work. The introduction of innovative and more effective project management for construction is not an academic exercise. As reported by the â€Å"Construction Industry Cost Effectiveness Project† of the Business Roundtable: [1] By common consensus and every available measure, the United States no longer gets it's money's worth in construction, the nation's largest industry †¦ The creeping erosion of construction efficiency and productivity is bad news for the entire U. S. economy. Construction is a particularly seminal industry. The price of every factory, office building, hotel or power plant that is built affects the price that must be charged for the goods or services produced in it or by it. And that effect generally persists for decades †¦ Too much of the industry remains tethered to the past, partly by inertia and partly by historic divisions†¦ Improvement of project management not only can aid the construction industry, but may also be the engine for the national and world economy. However, if we are to make meaningful improvements, we must first understand the construction industry, its operating environment and the institutional constraints affecting its activities as well as the nature of project management. Back to top 1. 2 The Project Life Cycle The acquisition of a constructed facility usually represents a major capital investment, whether its owner happens to be an individual, a private corporation or a public agency. Since the commitment of resources for such an investment is motivated by market demands or perceived needs, the facility is expected to satisfy certain objectives within the constraints specified by the owner and relevant regulations. With the exception of the speculative housing market, where the residential units may be sold as built by the real estate developer, most constructed facilities are custom made in consultation with the owners. A real estate developer may be regarded as the sponsor of building projects, as much as a government agency may be the sponsor of a public project and turns it over to another government unit upon its completion. From the viewpoint of project management, the terms â€Å"owner† and â€Å"sponsor† are synonymous because both have the ultimate authority to make all important decisions. Since an owner is essentially acquiring a facility on a promise in some form of agreement, it will be wise for any owner to have a clear understanding of the acquisition process in order to maintain firm control of the quality, timeliness and cost of the completed facility. From the perspective of an owner, the project life cycle for a constructed facility may be illustrated schematically in Figure 1-1. Essentially, a project is conceived to meet market demands or needs in a timely fashion. Various possibilities may be considered in the conceptual planning stage, and the technological and economic feasibility of each alternative will be assessed and compared in order to select the best possible project. The financing schemes for the proposed alternatives must also be examined, and the project will be programmed with respect to the timing for its completion and for available cash flows. After the scope of the project is clearly defined, detailed engineering design will provide the blueprint for construction, and the definitive cost estimate will serve as the baseline for cost control. In the procurement and construction stage, the delivery of materials and the erection of the project on site must be carefully planned and controlled. After the construction is completed, there is usually a brief period of start-up or shake-down of the constructed facility when it is first occupied. Finally, the management of the facility is turned over to the owner for full occupancy until the facility lives out its useful life and is designated for demolition or conversion. Figure 1-1:   The Project Life Cycle of a Constructed Facility Of course, the stages of development in Figure 1-1 may not be strictly sequential. Some of the stages require iteration, and others may be carried out in parallel or with overlapping time frames, depending on the nature, size and urgency of the project. Furthermore, an owner may have in-house capacities to handle the work in every stage of the entire process, or it may seek professional advice and services for the work in all stages. Understandably, most owners choose to handle some of the work in-house and to contract outside professional services for other components of the work as needed. By examining the project life cycle from an owner's perspective we can focus on the proper roles of various activities and participants in all stages regardless of the contractual arrangements for different types of work. In the United States, for example, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers has in-house capabilities to deal with planning, budgeting, design, construction and operation of waterway and flood control structures. Other public agencies, such as state transportation departments, are also deeply involved in all phases of a construction project. In the private sector, many large firms such as DuPont, Exxon, and IBM are adequately staffe