Contractors play an integral role in construction projects, and their qualifications directly impact various aspects of a project’s success. The unbiased selection of contractors is a challenge in the construction industry worldwide, particularly in public projects where impartiality in the final selection is essential. Numerous factors must be considered when evaluating contractors, making the selection process challenging for the human brain. This paper introduces and compares two methods for assessing contractor prequalification by applying the fuzzy theory. The idea is to facilitate using human judgments in a mathematical system for decision-making with regard to selecting contractors. The method is based on identifying a fuzzy weight for the selection criteria using the Buckley method. Fuzzy TOPSIS and Fuzzy SAW methods are then used for the qualification ranking of the contractors. The proposed models are assessed using a case study. A sensitivity analysis was also conducted to compare the two models. The introduced method is expected to improve the quality of the qualification-based selection of contractors and prevent possible losses from hiring unsuitable contractors.

The road maintenance workload for transportation agencies increases every year. To maintain roads effectively, one contracting method state Departments of Transportation (DOTs) use to outsource is performance-based contracting (PBC). However, state DOTs are having problems identifying the execution issues with PBCs. This study prepares a framework for execution of the PBC method for chip seals (one of the highest expenditure activities for most states), to help guide state engineers to effectively execute the contracts. This framework was developed by conducting a Delphi study with state engineers. The study found five reasons for selecting PBC chip seal; five performance measures; a range of incentives/disincentives to be provided; and the method of PBC team training. For the procurement phase, this study identified the five personnel to be included in the procurement team, as well as the contract duration and best contractor selection method. Similarly, for the contract implementation phase, the five key personnel to be included in the project implementation team, the best way to manage traffic, the timeliness to fix defects, responsibility, the frequency to complete quality assurance work, and the mobilization payment method were identified. As the primary contribution, this paper identified the critical factors of PBC contract life-cycle phases and developed a framework that will provide an easy-to-follow guide to execute PBC contracts to state DOTs. This study has a limitation with its sample size in the Delphi study due to a lack of experience of state DOTs in using the PBC method. The authors recommend conducting similar studies for other activities (cleaning, culvert cleaning, etc.) with larger sample sizes.

Wastewater manholes are crucial infrastructure components in sewage systems. They provide necessary access points for inspection and maintenance. However, limited studies were conducted on the life-cycle cost analysis of manholes. The primary objective of this study is to compute and compare the Life-Cycle Unit Cost (LCUC) of cement concrete and polymer concrete manholes to identify a cost-effective alternative for public agencies. To achieve the objective, this study analyzed commonly used 1.83 m diameter manhole data; 343 cement concrete manhole and 88 polymer concrete manhole cost data were collected from the Clark County Water Reclamation District (CCWRD), Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. The results show that the initial costs of polymer concrete are higher than those of traditional cement concrete. Statistical tests were conducted to determine the group differences. The findings show that the LCUCs of polymer concrete manholes are significantly cost-effective when compared to traditional cement concrete manholes. Public agencies can utilize polymer concrete manholes to save costs in future water and wastewater pipeline manhole construction projects.

In the United States, state departments of transportation (DOTs) use primarily state force (SF) or private contractors to maintain road systems. Private contractors are contracted under method-based contracting (MBC) or performance-based contracting (PBC). Limited research has been conducted to assess the quality of road-maintenance work performed by private contractors. In this study, with the help of a national survey of state DOTs, questionnaire responses from road users, and on-site visits, the quality of three road-maintenance activities—chip seal, striping, and street sweeping—was assessed. The results show that the quality of chip seal performed by the SF was significantly better than that performed by private contractors. On the basis of the survey of road users, for the activity of striping, the work performed by private contractors was significantly higher in quality than work done by the SF. For the activity of street sweeping, the road user and the nationwide DOT surveys showed that SFs significantly outperformed private contractors. The results of this study will help state DOTs identify the respective maintenance activities that should be performed using SFs and private contractors.

Disputes are prevalent on construction projects. This issue is severe in underdeveloped countries like Nepal. In the year 2015, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake killed over 8,000 people and destroyed thousands of buildings there. For reconstruction of the damaged buildings, a detailed damage assessment survey was conducted, in which data was collected using a digitization application; this was the first time this technology was used in Nepal. In this study, the reconstruction engineers were asked regarding their experience of the novel application. The data analysis shows that, along with other benefits, using the digitization application reduced disputes and legal issues in the reconstruction phase. Based on severity of damage, 31 affected districts were categorized into two groups, Group A and Group B. The $t$ -test results showed that the damage in Group A districts was significantly higher than in the Group B districts. Furthermore, this study collected lessons learned related to the damage assessment survey using the digitization application and reconstruction works.