 The objective of the planning step is to estimate the total manpower required to perform field construction management functions. Decisions must be made as to how far in advance to plan and what methods to use for planning manpower needs. Planning may be confined to the current year or be done for future years as well. How far in advance effective planning may be done will depend on the reliability of the construction program. Planning for manpower requirements for future years shows the trends for the number of employees needed to handle the work programmed. Knowing the trend allows time for training, transfers, recruiting new employees, or reducing forces through attrition rather than by layoffs. The planning method should relate the work to be done, staking, inspecting, and documenting with the needs in the contracts. The planning methods selected will depend on the amount and reliability of data available. Consideration should be given to the type and size of contracts normally awarded. A recent analysis of selected highway construction contract awards showed that 29% of the contracts were for amounts in excess of $500,000. These contracts represented 84% of the total dollars obligated. These contracts will require the bulk of the construction management staffing. Projects of this size require more lead time for design than smaller ones. Three planning methods have been developed depending upon the level of available data. They are based on defined contract quantities, defined contract limits, or programmed dollar amounts. The methods selected should provide a reasonable degree of accuracy and be based on the best contract information available. First, let's look at planning based on defined contract quantities. This planning method provides the most accurate manpower projections. It should be used when detailed contract quantities, such as tons of asphalt paving, or bridge span lanes, are known. This method relates the contract quantities to specific activities. Next is planning based on defined contract limits. This is the next most accurate method. It should be used when contracts or programs are at least defined in terms, such as roadway miles, but when detailed quantities are not available. This method relates the contract limits to activity groups. The third method is planning based on programmed dollars. It is the least accurate method. It should be used when the only known information is the estimated cost. The dollars are converted to contract limits, such as roadway miles, by means of cost standards for each contract type. Next, you will need to select contract types. The number of contract types used should be the minimum number needed to distinguish contracts. The grouping of contracts should be based on type of construction and contract characteristics. Only those contract staffing similarities representing a major portion of the construction workload need to be identified as contract types. Smaller jobs may be handled by grouping them into a miscellaneous contract type. Each unusual jobs command special considerations in a unique classification. A general guideline may be followed when selecting contract types. The number of significant contract types should represent approximately 75% of the number of contracts and about 90% of the dollars in the construction program. Also, contract characteristics affect the progress of the work and therefore the manpower requirements. Major factors include the difference between rural and urban locations, terrain, mountainous or flat, and working with traffic control through the work zone. Two master lists of contract types have been compiled. One list for planning with detailed contract quantities and the other list for planning when only major characteristics of the contract are known. Both sets include major contract types as well as minor contract types, which represent significant portions of the workload in most areas. Each agency should evaluate and modify these lists in relation to its construction objectives. Only those contract types which best describe the workload should be used. Smaller contract types, which are used infrequently, should be included with miscellaneous contracts to keep the number of types to a minimum. Once contract types have been selected, planning activities must be determined. Planning activities are used to define work that must be performed by field construction personnel. Two sets of planning activities have been developed to define engineering work for any construction contract. They are developed for individual activity or by activity groups. The level of construction detail will determine which set should be used. Individual planning activities should be used whenever detailed contract quantities are known. The number of activities used should be the least number that will provide sufficient detail for reasonably accurate planning of the workload. Over 300 separate activities have been identified in some agencies. However, 80% of the total man hours used in those agencies were on about 35 activities. The remaining 20% can be combined in miscellaneous activities. A master list of typical activities has been compiled. It is intended to cover the significant activities for most agencies. Each agency should modify this list to fit its own work methods. Planning units of measure are used to relate construction work requirements to the scope of the construction contract. Planning units of measure must be selected for each planning activity or activity group. The units define the engineering work required for each activity. Work requirements are related to the characteristics of the contract through the planning units. Most individual staking activities are related to the linear characteristics of the roadway, stations, or roadway kilometers. While inspection activities are generally more dependent on the contract quantities. Quantities should be readily obtainable from contract plans or other existing work documents. For example, if asphalt paving is paid for by the ton, use tons. Roadway kilometer is the linear length of a roadway of independent or relatively independent alignment. Multiple lane, divided, or undivided highways are considered as two roadways. 7500 cubic meters is a bid item quantity, which is used for earthwork inspection and testing on construction contracts. It includes excavation, embankment, sub-base, and all other earthwork on the project. 1,000 metric tons is a bid item quantity, which is used for asphalt paving inspection. 1,000 square meters is a bid item quantity, which is used for Portland cement concrete paving. 100 square meters is a bid item quantity, which is used for joint repair on Portland cement concrete pavement. Span lane is the number of spans multiplied by the number of traveled lanes of each structure with a clear span of 6 meters or more. It is used for structure inspection on major contracts. Bent is the number of substructure abutments or pier locations. It is used for structure staking on major contracts. Span is the number of spans on a structure with a clear span of 6 meters or more. It is used on bridge repair contracts. Lump sum is used for special features on major or unique contracts. Working day is the number of working days estimated for the contract to be completed. It is used on the minor contracts, intersection improvements, and landscaping. There are also recommended planning units of measure for activity groups. For roadway construction, use kilometers. For bridge construction, use 30 linear meters. And others include working days and lump sum. Activity groups should be used when only major contract characteristics are known. Their primary use will be with small contracts. Those which require very little time in the pre-construction stages. The groups consist of the four functions of construction management. They are staking, inspection, office engineering, and project management. In this course, we have covered the planning element of designing a construction management system. The objective of this element is to estimate the total manpower and other resources required to perform field construction management functions. Three planning methods are typically used. They are based on defined contract quantities, defined contract limits, or programmed dollars. When selecting contract types, follow the general guideline, which says the number of significant contract types should represent 75% of the number of contracts. And about 90% of the dollars in the program. When selecting planning activities, keep in mind that typically 80% of total manhours used are used on about 35 to 40 activities. The remaining 20% are best combined in a few miscellaneous activities. For more information on this or other IRF videotapes, write to the International Road Federation or call the numbers on your screen.