Construction + Engineering Undergraduate Research
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Item Mega-events or hallmark events: Rugby World Cup 2011 on Auckland’s infrastructure(2011) Shahwe, Tutsirai; Unitec Institute of TechnologyThis research report looks at how Auckland has transformed itself in the lead up to the Rugby World Cup 2011 (RWC), and explored briefly the impacts and planning processes. Internationally, mega events have been used by cities to enhance their image and improve urban spaces. Cities have been recently viewed as commodities, so as a commodity they need to sell themselves. To do this often requires some change on the way it looks. As part of the research semi-structured interviews were conducted on seven purposefully selected participants who are key stake holders in the industry. This was considered to be a fair representation of the professions. The interviews established the perceptions of participants on the impact the RWC had on Auckland’s infrastructure, the types of projects that were affected and how they were affected, as well as how not having hosted the RWC would have affected development, how planning processes were affected and whether hosting events of that magnitude was a good idea. The research also briefly looked at the social and economic impacts. The research concluded that the hosting of the RWC did impact Auckland’s infrastructure as well as the planning processes of projects that were undertaken to facilitate the games. It also established that the RWC served as a catalyst for the urban development of Auckland as well as what would have happened if the RWC had not taken place. The RWC gave Auckland a much needed improvement on its image and the transport networks. The decision not to construct the waterfront stadium was considered a missed opportunity by all participants as they believed it could have been a catalyst for the development of better transport networks.Item Sustainable retrofit in the New Zealand residential sector(2010) McKechnie, Stuart; Unitec Institute of TechnologyA large proportion of New Zealand’s existing housing stock performs poorly, particularly in terms of energy efficiency. As homeowners tend to be reluctant to invest in sustainable retrofit activities, policy interventions or initiatives are often introduced in an attempt to improve uptake. The aim of this research was to identify a range of strategies that could be implemented to improve the uptake of sustainable retrofit activities in existing homes in New Zealand. Data was collected from government, industry and homeowners to establish each group’s preferences for different types of sustainable retrofit strategies. The overall objective was to integrate these findings in an attempt to determine whether there was any consensus of opinion. The findings indicate that there was no clear consensus of opinion. In terms of preference for different types of strategies, government appears to prefer market mechanisms and “other” interventions; as evidenced by their support of initiatives such as the residential rating tool, the provision of information and the sponsorship of education and research. Industry believes that regulation and financial incentives have the most potential to improve uptake. Preferred strategies include minimum performance standards and mandatory environmental performance ratings; plus providing subsidies and interest free loans for homeowners undertaking sustainable retrofit. Homeowners appear to favour strategies that are not regulatory, onerous or inequitable. Preferred strategies include financial incentives like interest-free loans; and other initiatives such as fast-tracking building consent processes. As government appears to be willing to let the market decide - and homeowners do not want to be burdened with additional cost - it will be “business-as-usual” unless market transformation occurs. Ultimately, government needs to explicitly realise the benefits of sustainable retrofit, and then proceed to take extensive measures to incentivise it. Homeowners also need to be convinced that the benefits of sustainable retrofit can offset the costs of implementation. Only then will the uptake of sustainable retrofit activity really take off.Item Pricing risks and management strategies for estimators in the residential construction industry(2009) Chang, Steve Chia-Ming; Unitec Institute of TechnologyA construction estimator is responsible for estimating the cost of a construction project. The process itself has many risks involved and has always been an important area of research. Numerous studies have been carried out in the past which only looked at risks in construction project in general; very little research has been done on the topic of ‘pricing risks’ from the construction estimators’ perspective and certainly in New Zealand residential construction context. The aim of this research is to examine the question –What are the perceived pricing risks and practical management strategy amongst construction estimators in the Auckland residential construction sector? Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with questionnaire to collect survey data includes demographic information about the estimator and its company; perception of pricing risks in terms of their level of importance and frequency of occurrence; number, level of details, sources, reliability and purposes of cost data. The result showed that overall, the top pricing risks were ‘site related issues’, ‘project complexity’ and ‘change in scope of work’ and the most common method used to deal with the risks is use of Provisional Sum. Furthermore, it is concluded that the estimators interviewed had low number of cost data because many of the cost items are quoted. This is confirmed by the estimators that the most frequently used cost data is the ‘subcontractors’ / suppliers’ quote’. The result also showed that the most reliable source of cost data is the ‘in-house rate buildups’ and the biggest problem when collecting or applying cost data originate from the subcontractors. Methods such as back costing; ask the subcontractors to include specific items; understand and raise questions on quotation received or make arrangements with the subcontractors to fix the price for a period of time are used to manage those risks. Possible areas for further researches include whether the number of cost items relates to a company’s annual turnover and vice versa; how do large, medium and small construction companies or how do construction companies that specialise in different types of project compared in respond to risk and management of cost data.Item How do Auckland commercial property investors address the changes in office tenants’ requirements?(2011) Zhao, Sheila; Unitec Institute of TechnologyOffice tenants’ requirements have changed over the last decade since they are looking for more flexible office environments in order to minimize their total occupancy costs. Office property investors need to understand the current tenant space requirements and accommodate these needs in their office portfolio investment strategies so that their return on investments can be maximized. This paper aims to explore the perceptions and strategies followed by large-scale property investors in order to address the recent changes in tenants’ requirements for office space and layouts, environmentally sustainable office buildings, and lease terms in the context of the prime office sector in the Auckland market. The research is exploratory in nature and a qualitative research approach has been adopted. Semi-structured in-depth interviews have been conducted with four large-scale listed property trusts who are active players in the Auckland office market. The data was collected using a carefully design interview protocol to obtain an in-depth understanding of the property investors’ perceptions and strategies of meeting their office tenants’ requirements as well as their interpretation of the future market trends. The findings of the study indicate that the main changes in office requirements encompass the needs of efficient and flexible office space and layouts, sustainability requirements, and preference for flexible lease terms. All the interviewed property investors perceived that short lease terms and efficient space usage are more frequently demanded by tenants. The green features of the office building are the least considered aspect, particularly under the current challenging market conditions. The strategies that all the property investors adopt are endeavouring to provide office premises which enable efficient usage of space, efficient operation and short lease term provisions. The property investors realize that the role of property investor is not only to provide physical premises but also services because the relationship between investors and tenants has been developed to a strategic partnership rather than the previous adversarial one.Item Strategies adopted by a property development firm to survive in an economic downturn(2011) Bufton, Scott; Unitec Institute of TechnologyThis research paper addresses the question, ― What strategies can a property development firm adopt to survive in an economic downturn? The methodology used to answer the question was firstly researching the New Zealand economy over the economic downturn and more specifically the Auckland property market, and then interviewing a property development company to form a case study on the strategies they had in place and new strategies adopted to survive the recession. This research topic is being looked at due to the large number of property development companies that went under in the recent economic downturn, so here we have identified strategies adopted by a company that managed effectively throughout the recession. The literature and research found that companies’ strategies entering into a recession are as important as the strategies used to survive. The company researched entered the recession with clear strategies, management lines and risk management techniques in place so was positioned well when the recession occurred. The key findings of this research paper identified the following strategies used to survive the economic downturn were: • Reduction of operation costs • Keeping funding lines in place • Reducing debt exposure • Setting clear strategic goals • Shorter time frame developments • Specialising in preferred market • Growing other parts of the business to increase cash flow • Keeping risk strategies in place o Tenant risk – pre-commitment required o Construction costs – fixed lump sum price o End value – good market understanding