Larry R. Dysert

1997 AACE International Transactions, EST.04

AACE International, Morgantown, WV, 1997

For those in the business of executing projects, it is widely recognized that one of the most important ingredients to a successful project is the accurate definition and effective control of project scope. Recognizing project scope definition as one of the most important factors influencing project success is certainly not a new concept. In 1982, the Construction Industry Institute (CII) Business Roundtable issued a report stating that "poor scope definition at the (budget) estimate stage and loss of control of project scope rank as the most frequent contributing factors to cost-overruns." Numerous other studies and publications performed over the years state the same conclusions. Nevertheless, obtaining adequate scope definition for estimating purposes continues to be one of the most persistent problems faced by estimators. This paper discusses issues involved in dealing with scope development problems during the preparation of capital cost estimates. Topics covered include the minimum requirements to prepare various levels of estimates, communicating information requirements to project teams, how estimating techniques change with the level of scope provided, how to prod the project teams to produce scope information, and how to present the estimate in relation to scope definition.

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