Computerized Civil Works Construction Cost Index System: User's Manual.
Abstract
Costs for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers civil works projects are first estimated before concept designs are prepared. These projects are not immediately authorized for construction; in fact, it may be several years before appropriations are made for even the detailed design phase. During this time, inflation usually makes the current costs higher than previously estimated. For programming requirements, the estimates must be updated annually. Corps districts can do this in two ways: (1) performing a detailed reestimate, or (2) applying an inflation factor to the latest estimate. Both methods have advantages and disadvantages. Re-estimating gives results that are at least as accurate as the prior estimate, but it is very time-consuming and is therefore not practical to do annually because of the limited number of personnel available at the district level. Updating using an inflation factor can be done very quickly, with acceptable accuracy. The U.S. Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL) has developed a system of indices -- the Civil Works Construction Cost Index System (CWCCIS) -- specifically for updating civil works construction costs before the official Government estimate for contract award. The Office of the Chief of Engineers asked CERL to computerize this system so that the calculations needed to change index values and update estimates could be done automatically.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 1982
- Accession Number
- ADA121661
Entities
People
- D. Gordon Bagby
- Shahid Siddiqi
Organizations
- Construction Engineering Research Laboratory