IT in construction - quantifying the benefits (R160)

This report considers the ways in which organisations within the construction industry currently quantify the benefits they expect to obtain from any particular investment in IT. In doing so through case studies, a number of approaches are identified which might be considered or developed by others to improve the way in which decisions regarding IT are taken, and in general promote a more objective investment in IT. The definition of IT has been expanded from hardware and software, to include both the understanding of how technological and human resources interact and how the capabilities of the technology itself have increased.

The report is a summary of a series of case studies, each of which considers a single organisation and describes the approach taken to IT investment and the quantification of benefits. This approach produces snapshots of particular organisations, which are intended to provoke thought and assist in a reappraisal of existing methods within the rest of the industry. The limited number of organisations included in the study necessarily precludes any statistical analysis to generalise on the way the construction industry as a whole operates. The detailed case study analyses are included as appendices.

Key words: IT.

ISBN: 978-0-86017-447-9

Author: D W Churcher, S T Johnson, R W Howard et al

Number of pages: 64 (paperback)

Publisher: CIRIA

Date of Publication: January 1996