Capture and Reuse of Project Knowledge in Construction An organisation s competitive advantage lies in the knowledge of its employees and the organisation s ability to harness that knowledge to meet business objectives. Knowledge management is recognised in the construction industry as a potential tool for providing organisational benefits, but for a number of reasons particularly the project based nature of construction, where teams are transient, multidisciplinary and often from different organisations implementation has been only marginally successful. Capture and Reuse of Project Knowledge in Construction describes a methodology for the live capture of reusable project knowledge that reflects both the organisational and human dimensions of knowledge capture and reuse, as well as exploiting the benefits of technology. This methodology was developed in response to the shortcomings of current practices in managing project knowledge, the benefits offered by capturing and sharing knowledge immediately after it is generated, and the organisational benefit of reusing knowledge within a project based environment. Written for all practitioners in project-based industries who have struggled with the capture and reuse of knowledge on their projects, it will also be of interest to students and researchers in construction management and allied disciplines.

Capture and Reuse of Project Knowledge in ConstructionAn organisation's competitive advantage lies in the knowledge of its employees and the organisation's ability to harness that knowledge to meet business objectives. Knowledge management is recognised in the construction industry as a potential tool for providing organisational benefits, but for a number of reasons - particularly the project based nature of construction, where teams are transient, multidisciplinary and often from different organisations - implementation has been only marginally successful.Capture and Reuse of Project Knowledge in Construction describes a methodology for the 'live' capture of reusable project knowledge that reflects both the organisational and human dimensions of knowledge capture and reuse, as well as exploiting the benefits of technology. This methodology was developed in response to the shortcomings of current practices in managing project knowledge, the benefits offered by capturing and sharing knowledge immediately after it is generated, and the organisational benefit of reusing knowledge within a project based environment.Written for all practitioners in project-based industries who have struggled with the capture and reuse of knowledge on their projects, it will also be of interest to students and researchers in construction management and allied disciplines.

Author detailsPreface1 Introduction1.1 Background1.2 The need for live capture and reuse of project knowledge1.3 The objectives and contents of the book2 Knowledge Management - Key Concepts2.1 Defining knowledge2.2 Knowledge management2.2.1 Functionalist vs. interpretivist2.2.2 Information systems vs. human resource management2.2.3 Interdisciplinary perspective2.2.4 Combined soft and hard approaches2.3 Benefits and barriers to KM2.4 KM processes2.4.1 Knowledge capture2.4.2 Knowledge sharing2.4.3 Knowledge reuse - adapting and applying2.4.4 Knowledge maintenance - archiving and retirement2.5 KM in construction2.5.1 Shortcomings of current practice2.5.2 KM research projects in construction2.6 The importance of 'live' capture and reuse of project knowledge3 Reusable Project Knowledge - Generation and Capture3.1 Reusable project knowledge3.1.1 Types of reusable project knowledge3.1.2 Characteristics of reusable project knowledge3.2 Learning situations3.2.1 Formal learning situations3.2.2 Ad hoc learning situations3.3 Current practice on capture and reuse of project knowledge3.3.1 Post project reviews3.3.2 Communities of Practice3.3.3 Training3.3.4 Recruitment3.3.5 Face-to-face interaction3.3.6 Mentoring3.3.7 Succession planning and management3.3.8 Reassignment of people3.3.9 Knowledge bases3.3.10 Intranets3.3.11 Groupware3.3.12 Project extranets3.3.13 Case-based reasoning3.3.14 Text mining3.4 Soft issues in KM3.4.1 People issues3.4.2 Organisational issues3.4.3 Cultural issues3.5 Summary4 Collaborative Learning in Construction4.1 Introduction4.2 Collaborative learning4.3 CL in construction4.4 Previous research in CL4.5 Implementing CL in construction projects4.6 Summary/conclusions5 Methodology for Live Knowledge Capture and Reuse of Project Knowledge5.1 Background of case study companies5.2 Findings from the case studies5.2.1 End-users' requirements for knowledge capture and reuse5.2.2 Analysis of the end-users' requirements for knowledge capture and reuse5.2.3 Current practice for the capture of reusable project knowledge5.2.4 Analysis of current practice for the capture of reusable project knowledge5.3 Structure of the 'live' capture and reuse of project knowledge methodology5.3.1 Integrated workflow system6 The Capri.net System6.1 System architecture of prototype application6.2 Development of the Web-based knowledge base6.2.1 Selection of development environment6.2.2 User interface and programme codes development6.2.3 Database design6.3 Refinement of the IWS and user interface6.4 Operation of the prototype application6.4.1 Logging in6.4.2 Browsing the Summary Page6.4.3 Exploring the content of the system through the 'Index Page'6.4.4 Exploring and validating the details of a knowledge item6.4.5 Add and Edit project details6.4.6 Adding new knowledge category and type6.4.7 Create account for new user6.4.8 Add New Knowledge6.4.9 Conducting a search6.5 Testing and evaluation of Capri.net6.5.1 Prototype testing6.5.2 Prototype evaluation7 Concluding Notes7.1 Summary7.2 Conclusions7.3 Limitations of the research7.4 Further work7.5 Concluding remarksAppendix A Table Comparing the Various Knowledge Management Process ModelsAppendix B Details of the Types of Reusable Project Knowledge IdentifiedAppendix C Additional Learning Situations Related to Change Management, Problem-Solving and InnovationAppendix D Companies' Practice and Requirements on Knowledge RepresentationReferencesIndex