Supply Chains in Construction

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2012:

120 hours

For the purposes of considering requests for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this course are articulated in the Course Description, Course Objectives and Generic Skills of this entry.

The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

The subject explores the network of organizations involved, through upstream and downstream linkages, in the different processes and activities that contribute to the production of construction artifacts.

By following and describing information and material flows in building procurement, students will be put in a position to highlight critical nodes in the structure of work, and consider how the current distribution of roles, tasks and responsibilities relates to their definition.

Organised as an advanced seminar, the subject will give significant insight in the productivity aspects of construction while offering general guidelines on how to analyze, engineer, coordinate, and possibly improve the complete construction supply chain.

On completion of this subject students should be able to:

• Recognise and describe the complex nature of construction supply chains.
• Define and map the socio-technical organisation of construction including information and material flows.
• Use qualitative and quantitative analysis to analyse the construction process and identify important actors and nodes in the construction supply chain.
• Identify and analyse strategies for improving the performance of the construction industry.
• Present a convincing argument for adapting current construction industry practices using supply chain management to improve the performance of individual construction firms.

• Class participation (10%).
• Class presentation (30%).
• Case studies and professional reports equivalent to 3,500 words (60%).

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

On completion of the subject students should be able to:

• Apply theories and principles to specific disciplinary contexts.
• Interpret and analyse information.
• Demonstrate an ability to think critically, solve problems and make informed decisions.
• Critically evaluate the work of others and provide constructive formative feedback.
• Communicate your work in verbal, written and graphic forms appropriate to particular contexts.