Cost Engineering Overview

Principles

Definition

Cost engineering is a systematic approach and professional discipline focused on the prediction, planning, and management of costs throughout the lifecycle of projects, programs, and assets. It encompasses techniques for estimating, cost control, and economic analysis to inform decision-making, optimize resource allocation, and ensure the economic viability of technical endeavors.

Ontological type

Core Methods

Project Lifecycle Role

Tools and Standards

Key developments

Key Figures

Lifecycle Cost Integration era

Robin Cooper[1] was associated with University of Wisconsin–Madison[3] and Emory University[4] during the Lifecycle Cost Integration era. His paper Cost & effect: using integrated cost systems to drive profitability and performance[7] demonstrates how integrated cost systems support data-driven cost estimation and lifecycle-oriented decision-making, a crucial advancement for this era. Robert S. Kaplan[2] was associated with Harvard University[5] and Washington University in St. Louis[6] during this era. The paper Cost & effect: using integrated cost systems to drive profitability and performance[7] illustrates how integrated cost systems enable data-driven cost estimation and lifecycle-aligned decision-making, a key contribution for Lifecycle Cost Integration.

Value-driven Project Controls era

Zenonas Turskis[1], affiliated with Vilnius Gediminas Technical University[3] and Klaipėda University[4] in this era, advanced multi-objective contractor ranking and competitive contractor selection as shown in MULTI‐OBJECTIVE CONTRACTOR'S RANKING BY APPLYING THE MOORA METHOD[7], CONTRACTOR SELECTION OF CONSTRUCTION IN A COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT[8], and MULTI‐ATTRIBUTE CONTRACTORS RANKING METHOD BY APPLYING ORDERING OF FEASIBLE ALTERNATIVES OF SOLUTIONS IN TERMS OF PREFERABILITY TECHNIQUE / DAUGIATIKSLIS RANGOVŲ PARINKIMO METODAS TAIKANT ĮMANOMŲ SPRENDINIŲ ALTERNATYVŲ RANGAVIMO PRIORITETO POŽIŪRIU BŪDĄ[9]. The contributions provided structured, criteria-based contractor evaluation capable of supporting value-driven trade-offs and rapid procurement decisions aligned with explicit value targets during the era. Christine Pasquire[2], associated with University of Warwick[5] and Loughborough University[6] in this era, contributed through Benefit evaluation for off-site production in construction[10] and Target value design: using collaboration and a lean approach to reduce construction cost[11]. Together these works helped embed value-centric project controls—integrating cost, schedule, and quality and leveraging lean design, predictive modeling, and cross‑disciplinary collaboration—in the Value-driven Project Controls era (2004–2017).

AI and Data-driven Costing era

Edmundas Kazimieras Zavadskas [1] is a leading scholar in AI and data-driven costing in this era, with affiliations including Sichuan University [3] and the University of Tehran [4]. His key contributions in this era are exemplified by the 2020 paper A New Decision-Making Approach Based on Fermatean Fuzzy Sets and WASPAS for Green Construction Supplier Evaluation [7], which proposes a novel Fermatean fuzzy-WASPAS framework for evaluating green construction suppliers, enabling more robust data-driven supplier decision-making and supporting sustainability goals. Artūras Kaklauskas [2] is another influential figure in this era, linked to Vellore Institute of Technology University [5] and East Asia School of Theology [6]. Through the same paper [7], Kaklauskas [2] helps advance the integration of Fermatean fuzzy sets and WASPAS into supplier evaluation, illustrating how data-driven decision methods can support circular-economy oriented cost estimation and procurement under uncertainty.