Based on years of research and practical knowledge, Construction Labor Productivity Management and Methods Improvement provides the tools and information for any contractor to effectively manage labor and improve worker productivity. In a labor-intensive industry such as construction, even small improvements in productivity can significantly improve company profits. This book provides a guide to creating a system of productivity, allowing productivity to be measured, quantified and improved.

Thomas and Ellis provide detailed, straightforward management practices to improve construction site activity and reduce losses in labor productivity from the most common site challenges.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Presents construction productivity concepts. This book includes topics such as measuring labor productivity, establishing a field benchmarking program, negotiating loss of labor efficiency, and recommended practices for productivity enhancement. It is suitable for electrical engineers and students.

Thomas and Ellis provide detailed, straightforward management practices to improve construction site activity and reduce losses in labor productivity from the most common site challenges.

Construction productivity-how well, how quickly, and at what cost buildings and infrastructure can be constructed-directly affects prices for homes and consumer goods and the robustness of the national economy. Industry analysts differ on whether construction industry productivity is improving or declining. Still, advances in available and emerging technologies offer significant opportunities to improve construction efficiency substantially in the 21st century and to help meet other national challenges, such as environmental sustainability. Advancing the Competitiveness and Efficiency of the U.S. Construction Industry identifies five interrelated activities that could significantly improve the quality, timeliness, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability of construction projects. These activities include widespread deployment and use of interoperable technology applications; improved job-site efficiency through more effective interfacing of people, processes, materials, equipment, and information; greater use of prefabrication, preassembly, modularization, and off-site fabrication techniques and processes; innovative, widespread use of demonstration installations; and effective performance measurement to drive efficiency and support innovation. The book recommends that the National Institute of Standards and Technology work with industry leaders to develop a collaborative strategy to fully implement and deploy the five activities

The economic situation of the United States has been and still is the subject of severe disputes among many leading economists. Some of these economists argue that the Nation's economy is stronger than ever and it will remain so despite the huge deficit in the Nation's budget. At the same time other economists argue that the economy of the Nation is only temporarily in good standing and that the huge deficit will soon bring the Nation to its knees. Out of the many factors that affect the total economy of the country productivity of its labor force should be singled out as one of the most important. It is therefore very important and necessary to improve productivity in order to give a strong boost to the Nation's economy. Productivity is a term composed by many variables relating inputs to outputs. It is a term that lacks specific definition and general acceptance, and as such it has caused marked confusion among executives and labor leaders. The construction industry is one of the most significant in the total economy of the United States; it employes 4.5% of the nonagricultural labor force. New construction annually accounts for more than 10% of the Gross National Product; the maintenance of existing structures represents on additional 4%. Construction productivity has been steadily on the decline over the last decade and construction labor efficiency has been often cited as poor. Since labor costs comprise between 25-40% of the total project cost, reduced labor costs present a great potential source of increased productivity. Whilea firms productivity is influenced by production factors other than labor, such as equipment, material, methods of construction, and management, these resources are inanimate unless they are tranformed into productive uses by the human element. The quality of human performance depends, in large part, on human motivation a major focus of this paper. So far, little has been done to raise construction labor motivation and thus efficiency In order to increase the productivity of the construction labor it is vital to understand the psychology of these labors. Finally ways to improve construction labor productivity are presented and discussed.

Construction is the country's single largest manufacturing industry. However, it is a sector that lacks benchmarks against which to gauge performance. This modern thinking intends to provide insight to construction productivity improvement. Taking cues from manufacturing sectors such as computer, automobile and chemical companies, this book will apply the lessons learned to building construction. Supported with a range of pedagogical devices, the book will be of equal value to construction managers and civil engineers, and students with different learning methods.