Design Planning & Optimization

Knowledge Area Definition

Establishing design requirements is normally performed at the same time as the feasibility analysis. The design requirements control the design of the project throughout the engineering design process. Some design requirements include hardware and software parameters, maintainability, operability, constructability, availability, and testability.

Value Proposition

Design Planning and Optimization entails multiple CII research practices, each striving to improve design effectiveness and project performance.

Constructability is a CII Best Practice where the benefits of an effective Constructability Program will reduce overall project cost by 4.3% on average and reduce overall project schedule by 7.5% on average. Other benefits include improved project safety, quality, security, and environmental impact.

Several research efforts have focused on maximizing engineering value and design effectiveness. It is well understood that effective delivery of engineering is a prime driver of overall project cost and schedule performance. Changes, errors and omissions during the design phase can account for about 80% of the total increased cost of a project.
 

Other CII research has focused on very specific Design Planning areas.

• Design for Flash Track is in response to the industry’s ever-increasing need for speed, therefore it is a time-driven project which requires a heightened degree of concurrrency between Engineering, Procurement, and Construction.
• Design for Fast Track is a systematic process where the procurement and construction phases have an inherent overlap with the design phase to reduce the overall project delivery cycle.
• Design for Maintainablity improves project return on investment through less project rework, smoother project startups, lower maintenance investment and a lower life cycle cost.
• Piping Design focuses on improvement of the piping function through more efficient sequencing and prioritization and P&ID development.
• ADA Design identifies the key Issues for the Design and Construction Industry in support of the American with Disabilities Act introduced into law in 1990.

Topic Summaries

Filter/Sort  

---

See Secondary Topics Summaries