ECI's research to date has been focused around these knowledge areas:
Business environment
Commissioning and operation
Construction
Contracts
Design
Information management
People and team management
Procurement
Project control
Project Definition
Project manangement processes
Safety, health and environment
Most of our research is carried out by task forces (see below).
Task forces
ECI task forces combine the experience and expertise of our industry members, with the research methodology and knowledge of our academic members. The task force may commission further industry research and the results of its work are published as a report, handbook or guide for use by industry.
Current ECI task forces are:
Safety, Health and Environment (SHE) The ECI SHE Task Force mobilises the knowledge and experience of best-in-class operators to develop and refine practice, often ahead of, or parallel to, emerging legislation.
Its next report on Global Safety is now available to purchase from the ECI office.
Task Force Members The 18 members of the SHE Task Force are from the following European and global organisations:
ABB Lummus Global BV
Alstec Ltd
AMEC
British Nuclear Group
CTRL
Costain Oil and Gas Process Ltd
Fluor Daniel
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
Kristiaan Heinen BV
Loughborough University
M W Kellogg
Network Rail
RWE Npower
Siemens
SHAW Stone and Webster Ltd
Technip
Whole Life Value The ECI Whole Life Value Task Force has been developing a methodology to help decision-makers better evaluate project and major purchase options in a way which takes account of all the value drivers through the asset life cycle.
The resulting application products are expected to be launched in mid-2006. They have already been finalist for several innovation awards.
The task force has reviewed the tools and techniques already developed for life cycle costing as defined in ISO standards and elsewhere. It has achieved consistency of approach with other European and national organisations developing standardised approaches to life cycle costing which forms part of the application products.
Participants The ECI Task Force is a collaboration with the following organisations:
The Royal institute of Chartered Surveyors
The Construction Industry Council (DQI)
Constructing Excellence
Faithful and Gould
Task Force Leader - Andrew Green of Faithful and Gould.
Recently the task force has been in discussion with the Value in Design (VALiD) initiative led by Prof Simon Austin in Loughborough University which complements the work done by ECI on whole life value.
The task force has also been supported throughout by ECI member companies who have contributed time and effort and shown great interest in its work.
For further details about this task force, please contact Stephen Weatherley at the ECI Head Office.
Sub-Contract Pricing: Civil Engineering
Some years ago the ECI-Benelux Subcontracting Taskforce took the initiative to develop unit rate pricing structures for the major subcontracts in industrial projects to help avoid disputes. The Civil Engineering Group has been developing one of those pricing structures.
Its published report is due out in mid-2006.
Task Force Members The 11 members of the civils workgroup are from the following companies:
ABB Lummus Global
Ballast Nedam
Fluor Daniel
Kvaerner
MBG
BAM
The workgroup claims that the pricing system meets the following major objectives:
Reduce the bidding time
Better identify and manage risks
Avoid claims by fair cost assessment of scope of work and variations
COMIT (Construction Opportunities for Mobile IT) Initially a UK government funded project with a remit to identify and develop opportunities in construction for the application of mobile wireless technology, COMIT is now an initiative financed and supported by member companies and organisations. ECI has been involved with the COMIT Initiative since it began in 2003 and is now a member of the new COMIT.
Over forty five technology and construction companies have joined the new COMIT organisation. ECI has already been fully involved in helping with the dissemination of the learning from the demonstration projects and case studies but much more remains to be done. ECI is represented on the COMIT Steering Group with the specific remit of continuing the dissemination of learning and encouraging of ECI member companies in the implementation of mobile IT applications. There is little doubt from the trial projects so far that productivity gains on construction activities can be significant.
As part of the forward dissemination programme of COMIT, the Steering Group has approved a series of regional 'roadshows' in 2006 in the UK led by ECI on the application of wireless technology for construction which will help raise awareness of the potential of this technology to dramatically improve construction project execution.
