Knowledge management (KM) is a key element for the development of small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) in the construction industry. This is particularly relevant in Chile, where this industry is composed almost entirely of SMEs. Although various KM system proposals can be found in the literature, they are not suitable for SMEs, due to usability problems, budget constraints, and time and connectivity issues. Mobile Cloud Computing (MCC) systems offer several advantages to construction SMEs, but they have not yet been exploited to address KM needs. Therefore, this research is aimed at the development of a MCC-based KM platform to manage lessons learned in different construction projects of SMEs, through an iterative and user-centered methodology. Usability and quality evaluations of the proposed platform show that MCC is a feasible and attractive option to address the KM issues in SMEs of the Chilean construction industry, since it is possible to consider both technical and usability requirements.

The function of project risk management (PRM) is to understand the uncertainty that surrounds a project and to identify the potential threats than can affect it as well as to know how to handle these risks in an appropriate way. Then, the measurement of the performance of PRM becomes an important concern, an issue that has not yet been addressed in the research literature. It is necessary to know how successful the application of the PRM process is and how capable is the process within the organization. Regarding construction projects, it is essential to know whether the selected responses to mitigate or eliminate identified risks were suitable and well implemented after the execution of the project. This paper presents a critical analysis of the relevance of measuring the performance of PRM and the benefits of doing so. Additionally, it presents a preliminary and pioneering methodology to measure the performance of PRM through the evaluation of the adequacy of responses applied to mitigate risks as well as to evaluate the resulting impacts as indicators of the effectiveness of these actions at the end of the project. This knowledge will allow construction companies to incorporate good practices, generate lessons learned, and thereby to promote a continuous improvement of the whole PRM process.

The appropriate selection of construction methods to be used during the execution of a construction project is a major determinant of high productivity, but sometimes this selection process is performed without the care and the systematic approach that it deserves, bringing negative consequences. This paper proposes a knowledge management approach that will enable the intelligent use of corporate experience and information and help to improve the selection of construction methods for a project. Then a knowledge‐based system to support this decision‐making process is proposed and described. To define and design the system, semistructured interviews were conducted within three construction companies with the purpose of studying the way that the method’ selection process is carried out in practice and the knowledge associated with it. A prototype of a Construction Methods Knowledge System (CMKS) was developed and then validated with construction industry professionals. As a conclusion, the CMKS was perceived as a valuable tool for construction methods’ selection, by helping companies to generate a corporate memory on this issue, reducing the reliance on individual knowledge and also the subjectivity of the decision‐making process. The described benefits as provided by the system favor a better performance of construction projects.

El objetivo principal de este trabajo es presentar un análisis técnico de los distintos sistemas de protección de borde (barandas) y aportar al desarrollo de normativa sobre su uso en Chile. La metodología incluye una amplia revisión bibliográfica nacional e internacional para describir el contexto del uso de barandas. Se realiza un levantamiento de información en terreno para describir los principales problemas de uso de estos sistemas, tales como ritmo de avance del proyecto, singularidad de aspectos geométricos y arquitectónicos, requisitos estructurales y uso de soluciones artesanales. Se realizan 16 entrevistas semi-estructuradas a profesionales de la construcción y de empresas proveedoras nacionales para describir las distintas necesidades respecto a temas técnicos en el uso de barandas, destacándose aspectos como calidad de la información, trazabilidad, homologación y estandarización de productos. En conclusión, este estudio contribuye a especificar los criterios necesarios a aplicar en la industria de la construcción para promover el uso adecuado de protecciones de bordes para evitar caídas.