Development and implementation of an engineering productivity measurement system (EPMS) for benchmarking

Abstract

Reliable engineering productivity measurement is a critical element of predictable project performance and continuous improvement. Despite the fact that engineering costs have risen to levels approaching 20 percent of total project cost on some industrial projects, engineering productivity is less well understood and has received less study than construction productivity. Furthermore, engineering productivity is a critical determinant of the final cost and schedule performance of a project (Chang et al. 2001). For these reasons, metrics for assessing productivity to drive improvement are essential, especially considering trends toward offshore engineering. Applicable industry standard engineering productivity measurements must first be established and then applied to present day work processes before significant improvement and predictability of performance can be established (CII 2001). Over the years, a number of different approaches for engineering productivity measurement have been proposed. These approaches are discussed and the development of the CII Benchmarking and Metrics approach, a direct measurement approach, is presented for this research. This research: (1) identifies critical issues for the implementation of engineering productivity measurement; (2) develops an Engineering Productivity Measurement System (EPMS) based on real project data; and, finally (3) recommends a framework for future studies.