Construction Management – Introduction

Management is synonymous with organization, operation, supervision and administration. Thus, construction management is any activity aimed at supervising construction processes. This is meant to monitor the entire process and make sure that it runs within the limits of the resources mustered for its completion. As in basic economics, resources are scarce and expensive. Each of these should be used for maximum benefit. The resources mobilized for construction are normally referred to as 3M, which stands for:

• Men
• Money
• Machinery / Materials

All three attract a cost at which they are acquired. These are;

Men: This category includes all the human capital required to carry out the construction process. The cost of this resource is in the form of salaries and fees. Salaries are paid to the actual workers involved in the process, while fees are paid for consultancy services, for example, those provided by architects, surveyors, and regulatory and regulatory bodies.

Money: This takes the form of capital. The money for construction is in the form of savings and contributions, as well as loans and mortgages. The cost of capital is in the form of interest or deferred enjoyment in the case of savings.

Machines and materials: materials are the raw material from which the construction is made. It is consumed in construction in its various states. Machines are used to make construction work easier and better. The cost of these is in the form of financing for purchase or rental. Materials can be searched locally or from abroad. In addition to the cost at source, there are a lot of logistics that go into getting such materials used on site for construction. Machines or plants, in the case of larger ones such as excavators, involve acquisition cost and running costs such as fuel, operation and maintenance.

From the breakdown above, it is clear that construction costs money. Money is scarce and, as such, precious. This, together with the fact that construction is a capital intensive activity, requires very strict control measures. Good control, especially of cost, will ensure that the owner of the building in question gets value for their hard-earned money. However, it should be noted that the control of the construction process is not based solely on cost, but implies the following;

• cost
• Time
• Quality

These will be elaborated in our next article.