Exploring Construction Briefing. From Document to Process

Doctoral thesis, 2003

The call for improvement to conventional design and con­struction process in the construction industry is well reported. Essentially, the need for develop­ment is associated with the poor performance of building projects. In this respect, the design and construction briefing process aims to identify the requirements of the client and other relevant stakeholders. The subject for this thesis is design and construction briefing with a specific focus on the construction clients' perspective of the briefing process. In addition, this thesis examines tools that could help improve the briefing process. This thesis is based on four papers reporting on an explorative case study, an interview study and two literature reviews. Focus is on the brief as an information carrier document, the conditions under which a briefing process is carried out, briefing tools and the facilitation of a briefing process. Theories of design, value engineering, and requirements engineering form the basis of the discussion. The studies conclude that there are different types of briefing processes: some briefing processes are intended to satisfy internal objectives of the construction processes, and others strive to meet external efficiency such as satisfying the client's business goals. Furthermore, a trend of increased interest, in Sweden, for process-oriented and strategic briefing is indicated. Moreover, the results shows that the brief acts as a decisive interactive element in which the client's needs and requirements are progressively captured and translated to be incorporated throughout the design and con­struction process. The conditions for the briefing professi­onal – acting as client representative or process facilitator in the dia­logue between the client and the design and construction team ­– needs further study.