Re‐engineering the whole life cycle costing process

Abstract

The application of Whole Life Cycle Costing (WLCC) within the construction industry is rapidly increasing; notwithstanding, the underlying methodology of many WLCC models is variable and inconsistent. The deficiency in detailed recording of decisions based on WLCC analyses is a particular concern and moreover, attempts to capture the data related to these decisions are not evident. Data capture is vital in facilitating the iterative and logical application of WLCC. In an attempt to re‐engineer the WLCC design process, the evolving research described hereinafter reports on the development of the ‘Logbook’, a WLCC model decision‐support software application. The application works simultaneously with a WLCC model to provide the designers of buildings with a repository of decision data (via the WLCC model), and a sequential, chronological record of the decisions made based on this data – from inception through to final design optimization. It is anticipated that the software will encourage the application of WLCC models as an iterative rather than retrospective process.

Keywords:

• whole life cycle costing
• design process
• data collection
• decision‐making
• cost modelling

Acknowledgements

This research is part of EUROLIFEFORM (Contract No G1RD‐CT‐2001‐00497) ‐ Probabilistic approach for predicting life cycle costs and performance of buildings and civil infrastructure, a three‐year European Commission RTD project with 14 partners from eight countries, partly funded by the European Union and Taylor Woodrow Construction under the competitive and sustainable growth (GROWTH) programme.