An integrated environment for life cycle costing in construction

Abstract

SUMMARY Life Cycle Costing (LCC) has become increasingly important in construction over the last few years. However, despite its importance, it has found limited application so far. Two of the main barriers in its application are the shortage of LCC data and the complexity of the technique itself. This paper presents a computer-integrated environment, which aims to overcome those barriers by providing a framework/mechanism for collecting and storing the LCC data and a number of tools for assisting and simplifying the application of the technique. The main characteristic of the environment is that it provides a holistic approach to Life Cycle Costing by integrating the collection of the data and the LCC-aware design and management of buildings within a single framework. A database, which is flexible enough to accommodate the needs of any user, is used to store the LCC data. An integrated and interactive design tool is used to assist and simplify the LCC-aware design of buildings. A three-dimensional visualisation tool is used to assist the facilities manager in the LCC-aware management of buildings. Information collected from each building is fed back into the system to update the existing LCC data.