Norwegian Projects Research Articles

Delivery planning as a method to increase control over design costs

Delivery planning is a method that determines which deliveries are expected to be delivered at any given time, and the dependency between different deliveries and stakeholders. This study aims to investigate whether the use of the delivery plan increases control over projects’ design costs and how Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are being used to increase the control over the project's design costs. It also identifies the benefits and disadvantages of early involvement of stakeholders in the planning process. The research is a qualitative case study with Livsvitenskapsbygget (LVB) project as the primary case. Supplementary data are collected through interviews from four Norwegian projects and one Dutch project. This study is limited to large construction projects and does not cover other types of projects.The study has documented results that indicate that delivery planning increases control over a project's design costs. The results show that using delivery planning reduces the need for iterations and increases predictability. Similarly, the proactive use of KPIs in delivery planning is found to be beneficial in controlling project design costs. Furthermore, the study identifies the benefits and disadvantages of early-stage broad involvement of stakeholders in the design phase. The researchers underline the need for further research in this area, as it indicates that it will have a positive impact on the productivity of the construction industry.

Approaches to Social Innovation in Positive Energy Districts (PEDs)—A Comparison of Norwegian Projects

The Positive Energy District (PED) concept is a localized city and district level response to the challenges of greenhouse gas emission reduction and energy transition. With the Strategic Energy Transition (SET) Plan aiming to establish 100 PEDs by 2025 in Europe, a number of PED projects are emerging in the EU member states. While the energy transition is mainly focusing on technical innovations, social innovation is crucial to guarantee the uptake and deployment of PEDs in the built environment. We set the spotlight on Norway, which, to date, has three PED projects encompassing 12 PED demo sites in planning and early implementation stages, from which we extract approaches for social innovations and discuss how these learnings can contribute to further PED planning and implementation. We describe the respective approaches and learnings for social innovation of the three PED projects, ZEN, +CityxChange and syn.ikia, in a multiple case study approach. Through the comparison of these projects, we start to identify social innovation approaches with different scopes regarding citizen involvement, stakeholder interaction and capacity building. These insights are also expected to contribute to further planning and design of PED projects within local and regional networks (PEDs in Nordic countries) and contribute to international PED concept development.

Unboxing Buildings: Engaging with Occupants during Design, Testing and Use

Current prioritization within EU funding sees technical requirements for sustainable buildings moving technologies closer to people’s everyday lives, thereby increasing the need for interdisciplinary research, and placing occupant engagement high on the research agenda. This is not always reflected in building research. Results are often black boxed, and occupants are offered few opportunities for participation in design and development processes. The paper considers the unintended consequences of black boxing buildings. A black box is a complex system or object which is viewed in terms of its inputs and outputs, but where knowledge of the internal workings is not required. Using an experienced-based analysis from a social science perspective, we go back and consider the controversies around black boxing the processes and results in three Norwegian building research projects. In the conclusion, we propose that some research projects should remain unboxed, making complexity visible and allowing more focus on the challenges faced by occupants. Not taking time to ask and to learn from those who will use new technical solutions hinders the design process and limits a building’s chances of achieving its sustainable potential. Designing successful building solutions requires collaboration between disciplines and occupants, encouraging an alliance between people, technology, and buildings.

Public funding, perverse incentives, and counterproductive outcomes

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the adverse incentives at the front end of government-funded projects with concentrated benefits and no liabilities for the privileged groups. In particular, the author discusses the risk of perverse incentives of the types typically found in the development aid sector that results in counterproductive outcomes. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses a simple conceptual framework based on agency theory. A qualitative, case-based approach with purposive sampling was chosen for the empirical part of the study. Eight Norwegian projects were selected because incentive problems were to be expected, and one development aid project served as a reference case. Findings The paper finds that low strategic project success corresponded well with the terms of financing. There were clear indications of agency problems, in three cases to the extent that the incentives turned perverse. The paper concludes with a discussion of relevant measures to prevent the emergence of perverse incentives. Originality/value The paper contributes to an improved understanding of the incentives related to public project initiation and selection, which is an under-researched topic and generally not included in formal project governance schemes. The research should therefore be useful to scholars as well as practitioners within the field of project governance.

Stakeholder evolution: a study of stakeholder dynamics in 12 Norwegian projects

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of stakeholder dynamics and to show how stakeholders demonstrate their dynamic nature in the power/interest matrix. This, in turn, should assist project management and stakeholder management practitioners predict the behavior of different stakeholder groups in their projects, and strategize their stakeholder management approaches accordingly.Design/methodology/approachThe findings in this paper are based on data collected from 12 diverse projects from five different business sectors executed in Norway by means of an online, closed-question questionnaire, which was analyzed using various statistical approaches.FindingsStakeholder dynamics is a contextual phenomenon, which takes different forms and shapes from one stakeholder group to the other, from one industry or business sector to the other, and even from one project to the other within the same industry or business sector. The stakeholder group of user(s) was the most dynamic in Norwegian projects based on their continuous repositioning on the power/interest matrix from one project phase to the other. Environmental activists/organizations were the least dynamic stakeholder group in the full sample of projects.Originality/valueThis paper presents the first more comprehensive empirically based findings about stakeholder dynamics in projects the authors have been able to find. The study gives project management practitioners insights from various industries and business sectors into how stakeholders change position over time. It also shows that the two attributes of power and interest are strongly connected and affect one another, which might make it possible to control and design a safer and less complex stakeholder environment for future projects.

Best Value Procurement (BVP) in Norwegian Construction Projects

The traditional contractor selection method, based on lowest price, has resulted in conflict, low quality products and a waste of resources. The need for an alternative supplier selection method has resulted in Best Value Procurement (BVP). BVP seeks to increase project value by utilizing the expertise of the contractor, while reducing the client’s management, direction and control. Currently, pilot projects in the Norwegian construction industry are testing the method. This paper addresses 1) how BVP is implemented in practice, 2) what the experiences with BVP are, and 3) how BVP should be performed in future projects. The research was carried out through a literature study and two Norwegian case studies. A building project and a medium-size infrastructure project in the Norwegian public sector were investigated through nine semi-structured, in-depth interviews and document studies. The findings show that the practical use of BVP is in accordance with the theoretical approach. Furthermore, the experiences with BVP are mainly positive. However, some challenges have been identified, such as the clients’ and contractors’ lack of knowledge and experience with the BVP method. This may reduce the potential project value. The conclusion is that BVP is an effective and promising method for contractor selection and project management. However, for the success of future projects using the method, clients and contractors may benefit from more knowledge and experience with BVP. This can be done by training and by being persistent in using BVP in future projects. This paper is a revised version of a paper that has been published in the proceedings of the Creative Construction Conference 2018.

Development of an algorithm to detect hydraulic jacking in high pressure rock mass grouting and introduction of the PF index

Pre-excavation rock mass grouting is a common procedure for reducing water ingress into tunnels during construction in Norwegian tunnelling. The level of grouting pressure is a disputed subject and the knowledge of how the rock mass responds to the high pressure and how this inflicts on the grouting results is sparse and little investigated. For this reason, it is of interest to use data from high pressure grouting performed in Norwegian projects to investigate these matters. This paper presents the development of a method for identifying hydraulic jacking during rock mass grouting and the making of an algorithm to perform computerized detection of hydraulic jacking in grouting logs. The algorithm is the base for a larger study, where screening for hydraulic jacking is performed in over hundred grouting rounds, distributed on several Norwegian tunnels excavated in rock mass. The relation between grout flow and grouting pressure has shown to be vital for the understanding of the grouting progress and events occurring during the grouting. Interpretation of pressure and flow as two separate variables, which are affected by aliasing, caused by low and irregular sampling frequency is a challenging task, and it was found to be helpful to create a parameter to represent this relationship, named the PF index (Pressure Flow index). This parameter has also shown to be useful in other applications such as monitoring the grouting progress on site.

Public project success as seen in a broad perspective.: Lessons from a meta-evaluation of 20 infrastructure projects in Norway

Infrastructure projects in developed countries are rarely evaluated ex-post. Despite their number and scope, our knowledge about their various impacts is surprisingly limited. The paper argues that such projects must be assessed in a broad perspective that includes both operational, tactical and strategic aspects, and unintended as well as intended effects. A generic six-criteria evaluation framework is suggested, inspired by a framework frequently used to evaluate development assistance projects. It is tested on 20 Norwegian projects from various sectors (transport, defence, ICT, buildings). The results indicate that the majority of projects were successful, especially in operational terms, possibly because they underwent external quality assurance up-front. It is argued that applying this type of standardized framework provides a good basis for comparison and learning across sectors. It is suggested that evaluations should be conducted with the aim of promoting accountability, building knowledge about infrastructure projects, and continuously improve the tools, methods and governance arrangements used in the front-end of project development.

The top 10 universal delay factors in construction projects

PurposeProjects often face delays and unnecessary use of time due to various factors and reasons, and hence suffer from unfavourable consequences. The purpose of this paper is to identify the universal delay factors from an intensive literature review, complemented by delay factors in major Norwegian construction projects based on empirical data.Design/methodology/approachThe study in which this paper is based includes an intensive literature review, and semi-quantitative open survey questionnaires. This paper addresses frequency and type of delay factors in construction projects, in Norway based on the survey, and worldwide based on the previous studies.FindingsFrom the study, the causes of delays facing the Norwegian construction industry are: poor planning and scheduling; slow/poor decision-making process; internal administrative procedures and bureaucracy within project organisations; resources shortage (human resources, machinery, equipment); poor communication and coordination between parties; slow quality inspection process of the completed work; design changes during construction/change orders; sponsor/owner/client lack of commitment and/or clear demands (goals and objectives); late/slow/incomplete/improper design; office issues; and users’ issues. And the top 10 universal delay factors are: design changes during construction/change orders; delays in payment of contractor(s); poor planning and scheduling; poor site management and supervision; incomplete or improper design; inadequate contractor experience/building methods and approaches; contractor’s financial difficulties; sponsor/owner/client’s financial difficulties; resources shortage (human resources, machinery, equipment); and poor labour productivity and shortage of skills.Research limitations/implicationsWhen it comes to the identification of delay factors in major Norwegian projects, the research is based on a sample of 202 respondents from an open survey questionnaire. It should be noted that analysing a large population of respondents that have been asked open questions can be challenging due to the vague findings it might lead to. Also, when it comes to the identification of the universal delay factors, there were different methods used by different authors, within different context. Similar future studies in Norway based on qualitative and quantitative methods will give better verification for the findings.Practical implicationsThis paper has documented the critical delay factors/causes in Norway. The results of this study will help project managers, in Norway and elsewhere, to be aware and know about the potential causes of delay in their construction projects, which will help to identify the possible risks in the early phases of the project. Another practical implication is to make project managers and policy makers conscious that delays are quite universal, making it necessary to identify them as a first step.Social implicationsThe identification of delays factors and causes can permit projects to implement mitigation actions to avoid delays, thus allowing delivering schools, hospitals and other necessary infrastructure on schedule or ahead of schedule to society.Originality/valueThis paper highlights most (almost all) of the studies in the literature, including to the study done in Norway, concerning the delay factors in construction projects and large construction projects in general. This wide review of relevant literature will save time other academicians from having to conduct similar studies. This study will assist both academic and professional experts providing more insight about the delay causes in large-scale construction projects.

Write your choice! Rewriting stories about @typical educational choices

SummaryThis thesis focuses on the phenomenon of atypical educational choices, and builds on a qualitative study. The informants are young women who have chosen STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), as their area of study, in a field where women are underrepresented. This is particularly true for subjects such as mathematics, physics, computer science, and certain fields of engineering. Seventeen young women participated in this study, and their personal stories were collected between 2009 and 2012. The thesis describes the informants’ experiences from their perspective, and lends them meaning. These stories about choices are interpreted within a Norwegian context, yet the topics discussed in the three articles are also relevant outside Norway, since the low number of women in STEM has been an international issue for decades. The overarching objective of the thesis has been to gain a better understanding of women’s atypical educational choices. The study includes narrative analyses of empirical material, as well as theory development inspired by feminist and posthumanist perspectives. In order to gain insight into the phenomenon of atypical educational choices, the following questions were posed: 1) How can empirical analyses of young women’s personal stories of choices provide greater knowledge of atypical educational choices? and 2) How can feminist and posthumanist theoretical approaches to empirical analyses facilitate a rereading of these stories about educational choices? These two questions generated research questions, which are examined in each of thesis’ three articles. Altogether, these articles offer ideas on how research on educational choices, as well as participation in STEM may be informed by feminist scientific theory, and can be understood from sociocultural and sociomaterial perspectives. It is in light of these interdisciplinary, theoretical approaches that the thesis contributes to the research field of science education.Article I examines how a framework inspired by feminist scientific theory may facilitate more nuanced gender stereotypical conceptions and attitudes under recruitment for STEM. This article will provide an understanding of how more recent research on recruitment to STEM can facilitate policymaking, how these measures can be utilised in the discourse on scientific theory, and how a unilateral focus on gender differences may cause the research field to miss nuances that are necessary to ensure greater diversity in STEM. This article incorporates various perspectives from feminist criticism of natural science in its analysis of gender attitudes expressed in one of the largest Norwegian projects directed at increasing recruitment to the natural sciences, particularly among girls. Furthermore, the article raises questions as to whether changing the image of natural sciences is sufficient in improving gender balance in these subjects, or whether more comprehensive changes are needed in gendered practices.Article II examines how personal stories about atypical educational choices may challenge gender stereotypical conceptions of educational choices. This article incorporates the insight from Article I, and further develops this insight, focusing on how women’s stories of educational choices may challenge gender stereotypes of women and STEM. This article problematizes gender stereotypes as a generalisation of girls, and of girls in STEM, and shows how personal stories may challenge conventional discourses on girls in STEM. The conclusion is that research of local stories and experiences may facilitate more nuanced perspectives on girls in STEM, by challenging gender stereotypical conceptions within the natural sciences.Article III (in review) examines how using a sociomaterial perspective in the analyses of stories about educational choices can facilitate an understanding of how both material and personalised experiences are involved in the choice of technology studies. The article develops and applies a sociomaterial framework. These analyses build on previous analyses of personal stories of atypical educational choices, based on the rereading of four stories about choice. These are read and analysed from a posthumanist perspective. The purpose of this article is to examine how sociomaterial and posthumanist perspectives can facilitate a new understanding of young women’s choices of, and participation in STEM.

Causes of Delay and their Cures in Major Norwegian Projects

Several projects encounter delays and unnecessary use of time as a result of to various factors and hence suffer unfavorable consequences. The Norwegian construction industry is no exception. There are factors causing delays in Norwegian construction projects which have many negative effects on all parties, including the projects’ outputs and outcomes. This paper will identify the main time issues (delay factors) in major Norwegian construction projects and the recommended solutions. The methodology on which this paper is based includes an intensive literature review, open questionnaires and unstructured interviews with practitioners. The paper addresses frequency and type of delay factors in major Norwegian construction projects and their solutions. It is based on an open questionnaire, which gave the opportunity to discover new delay factors and possible remedies: thus we encourage similar studies in other countries to uncover other possible delay causes and solutions.

Using Cultural-Historical Activity Theory to Analyze Social Service Practices Evolving from the Norwegian HUSK Projects

The HUSK projects catalyzed innovation in the practices of providing social services that could yield useful insights both within and outside of Norway if analyzed in these two ways: (a) retrospective analysis of the development of individual HUSK projects in light of their cultural-historical contexts, and (b) comparative analysis of the efforts to advance multi-sector collaboration in some of the HUSK projects. Such analyses require a practice-based research approach that takes into account culture and history. In this article the author explains how cultural-historical activity theory provides such an approach, illustrated via several HUSK cases. The author suggests five questions for future analyses of the HUSK projects and argues that insights gleaned from such analyses could contribute significantly to research on—and the provision of—social services.

Comparative Analysis of Activities for More Environmental Friendly Urban Freight Transport Systems in Norway and Poland

Negative effects of urban distribution of goods in terms of energy consumption and air pollution are caused mainly by a low level of cooperation between partners in the supply chain, and also the low effectiveness of transport systems. The issues of urban freight transport functioning and effects on the city environment have recently been more and more often taken into account. Many projects on a local, regional, national as well as cross-boundary scale have emerged, with a direct focus on limiting the negative impacts of urban freight deliveries on the environment. In this paper the authors introduce a study performed for Polish and Norwegian cities focused on initiatives concentrated on activities aimed at limiting the negative impacts of freight transport on urban environment. A comparative analysis of the Polish and Norwegian projects was made, taking into account both quantitative and qualitative aspects. This was the first part of the GRASS (GReen And Sustainable freight transport Systems in cities) research project, which is being undertaken by the Maritime University of Szczecin and the Institute of Transport Economics from Oslo through the Polish-Norwegian Research Programme.

SP0040 Collaboration across health service levels - examples of norwegian projects involving primary and specialist health care

In Norway, as in many other countries, there is a need to develop integrated care and smooth collaboration between health care levels. A new health sector reform is recently initiated...

Characteristics of Water Ingress in Norwegian Subsea Tunnels

Water ingress represents one of the main challenges in subsea tunnelling, particularly when this occurs in sections with poor rock mass quality. This paper is discussing the main characteristics of water ingress in subsea hard rock tunnels based on the experience from almost 50 such tunnels that have been built in Norway. Following a brief description of the geological conditions and the basic design of the subsea tunnels, pre-construction investigations and investigations during excavation are discussed with particular emphasis on prediction of water ingress. Two cases with particularly difficult conditions; the Bjoroy tunnel and the Atlantic Ocean tunnel, are discussed in detail. In these cases, large water inflow with pressure of up to 2.4 MPa was encountered at major faults/weakness zones during excavation, and special procedures were required to cope with the problems. Based on the experience from the Norwegian projects, it is concluded that continuous follow-up by experienced engineering geologists, probe drilling with the drilling jumbo and pre-grouting where required are the most important factors for coping with water ingress and ensuring stability.

Bodies and real-time interfaces: in video performance and interactive digital 3D installation art by VALIE EXPORT and Jette Gejl Kristensen

This article considers the interface as the physical interaction of human body and technology inspired by the theories of Maurizio Lazzarato, Brian Massumi, and Anna Munster. Through artworks by VALIE EXPORT (Adjunct Dislocations II) and Jette Gejl Kristensen (Hyperkinetic Kayak) it examines how bodies and advanced technology together perform real-time interfaces in concrete spaces launching complex events of affective encounters.Ulla Angkjær Jørgensen is Associate Professor of Art History, PhD, at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim. Her research interests focus on twentieth-century art, contemporary art, visual culture, new media, feminism, and gender perspectives on art history. She has published extensively on these subjects. She is currently a participant in two Norwegian research council projects, Conflicts and Negotiations on gender and valuation in art and literature, and The Sámi Art Project. Latest publication, «Håkki at Home: the Remediation of a Local Place». IN (eds) B. M. Stavning Thomsen & K. Ørjasæter Globalization Art. Negotiating Place, Identity and Nation in Contemporary Nordic Art. Aarhus: Aarhus University Press, 2011.

Closing the loop – Approaches to monitoring the state of the Arctic Mediterranean during the International Polar Year 2007–2008

During the 4th International Polar Year 2007–2009 (IPY), it has become increasingly obvious that we need to prepare for a new era in the Arctic. IPY occurred during the time of the largest retreat of Arctic sea ice since satellite observations started in 1979. This minimum in September sea ice coverage was accompanied by other signs of a changing Arctic, including the unexpectedly rapid transpolar drift of the Tara schooner, a general thinning of Arctic sea ice and a double-dip minimum of the Arctic Oscillation at the end of 2009. Thanks to the lucky timing of the IPY, those recent phenomena are well documented as they have been scrutinized by the international research community, taking advantage of the dedicated observing systems that were deployed during IPY. However, understanding changes in the Arctic System likely requires monitoring over decades, not years. Many IPY projects have contributed to the pilot phase of a future, sustained, observing system for the Arctic. We now know that many of the technical challenges can be overcome. The Norwegian projects iAOOS-Norway, POLEWARD and MEOP were significant ocean monitoring/research contributions during the IPY. A large variety of techniques were used in these programs, ranging from oceanographic cruises to animal-borne platforms, autonomous gliders, helicopter surveys, surface drifters and current meter arrays. Our research approach was interdisciplinary from the outset, merging ocean dynamics, hydrography, biology, sea ice studies, as well as forecasting. The datasets are tremendously rich, and they will surely yield numerous findings in the years to come. Here, we present a status report at the end of the official period for IPY. Highlights of the research include: a quantification of the Meridional Overturning Circulation in the Nordic Seas (“ the loop”) in thermal space, based on a set of up to 15-year-long series of current measurements; a detailed map of the surface circulation as well as characterization of eddy dispersion based on drifter data; transport monitoring of Atlantic Water using gliders; a view of the water mass exchanges in the Norwegian Atlantic Current from both Eulerian and Lagrangian data; an integrated physical–biological view of the ice-influenced ecosystem in the East Greenland Current, showing for instance nutrient-limited primary production as a consequence of decreasing ice cover for larger regions of the Arctic Ocean. Our sea ice studies show that the albedo of snow on ice is lower when snow cover is thinner and suggest that reductions in sea ice thickness, without changes in sea ice extent, will have a significant impact on the arctic atmosphere. We present up-to-date freshwater transport numbers for the East Greenland Current in the Fram Strait, as well as the first map of the annual cycle of freshwater layer thickness in the East Greenland Current along the east coast of Greenland, from data obtained by CTDs mounted on seals that traveled back and forth across the Nordic Seas. We have taken advantage of the real-time transmission of some of these platforms and demonstrate the use of ice-tethered profilers in validating satellite products of sea ice motion, as well as the use of Seagliders in validating ocean forecasts, and we present a sea ice drift product – significantly improved both in space and time – for use in operational ice-forecasting applications. We consider real-time acquisition of data from the ocean interior to be a vital component of a sustained Arctic Ocean Observing System, and we conclude by presenting an outline for an observing system for the European sector of the Arctic Ocean.

Men and women in outdoor play – changing the concepts of caring findings from Norwegian and Austrian research projects

ABSTRACT In many countries there are very few men in professional care for young children. In this paper we will focus on the different perspectives of male and female workers to outdoor play and discuss the role of outdoor activities in recruiting more men to pre‐schools. The article is based on research in Norway and Austria. The results draw the conclusion that men with the opportunity to stay outdoors feel more freedom to work with children in their own way, without the tradition of caring in a ‘mother's home’. We suggest that enhancing the outdoor‐sector within the concept of childcare would increase the number of men in early childhood education and care. RÉSUMÉ: Dans de nombreux pays, peu d'hommes travaillent dans les services d’accueil de la petite enfance. Dans cet article, nous nous centrerons sur les différents points de vue d'hommes et de femmes travaillant dans des structures de jeu en plein air, et nous discuterons du rôle des activités à l'extérieur pour recruter davantage d'hommes dans le préscolaire. L'article s'appuie sur une recherche menée en Norvège et en Autriche. Les résultats conduisent à la conclusion que les hommes ayant l'occasion de rester dehors se sentent plus libres pour travailler avec les enfants, sans la tradition de l'accueil dans une “maison maternelle”. Nous suggérons que mettre en avant le secteur du plein air dans l'accueil de la petite enfance pourrait accroître le nombre d'hommes dans le préscolaire. ZUSAMMENFASSUNG: In vielen Ländern gibt es sehr wenige Männer in der professionellen Kinderbetreuung. Dieser Beitrag befasst sich mit den unterschiedlichen Perspektiven von Männern und Frauen in Bezug auf Spiel im Freien und diskutiert die Rolle von Outdoor‐Aktivitäten in der Anwerbung von mehr Männern in Vorschuleinrichtungen. Der Artikel basiert auf Forschung in Norwegen und Österreich. Die Ergebnisse führen zur Schlussfolgerung, dass Männer mit Gelegenheit im Freien zu arbeiten, mehr Freiheit empfinden mit Kindern auf ihre eigene Art zu arbeiten, ohne die Tradition ‘der mütterlichen Betreuung zu Hause’. Wir schließen, dass die Erhöhung der Bedeutung des Spiels im Freien innerhalb des Konzepts der Kinderbetreuung die Zahl der Männer in der frühkindlichen Erziehung und Betreuung steigern könnte. RESUMEN: En muchos países hay muy pocos hombres en el cuidado profesional para los niños pequeños. En éste artículos queremos focalizar las diferentes perspectivas femininas y masculinas del juego al aire libre y discutir el papel de las actividades al aire libre para el reclutamiento de más varones a la preescuela. El artículo se basa en investigaciones en Noruega y Austria. Los resultados muestran que los varones con oportunidades de trabajar al aire libre sienten mayor libertad de trabajar de manera propia, sin la tradición del cuidado ‘maternal del hogar’. Sugerimos que enfatizar el trabajo al aire libre dentro del cuidado de los niños podría aumentar el número de varones en el cuidado y la educación preescolar.

The X model – a tool for describing and assessing individual projects

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present the X model, which is an inputs – processes – outputs (IPO) model well suited to describing and assessing individual projects. It argues and illustrates that this kind of model is appropriate for project control. It shows that X models can be used on the macro level by presenting the typical Norwegian project of 2008 based on several X models.Design/methodology/approachThe theoretical justifications (systems and socio‐technical theories) for IPO models, and the X model in particular, are presented. Empirical data in the form of X models from 54 Norwegian projects are used to illustrate the application of X models.FindingsThe findings are on two levels. For the single project, the paper demonstrates that the X model provides an insight into the situation of a project and causal relationships usually not available with other forms of project control. On the macro level based on the sample of X models, the paper presents the situation for the typical Norwegian project of 2008, which appears to be sufficiently robust to adopt. It shows that further improvements in project management and leadership, good information and feedback to the team members, and good cooperation with the base organisation will give even better results.Research limitations/implicationsFurther studies are needed to verify the usefulness of X models.Practical implicationsThis paper provides practitioners with an insight into how an IPO model like the X model can be applied to project management. The technique is particularly useful for project owners, and even for project managers, in their control of a project.Originality/valueThe paper presents new ways of looking at project control and describing and assessing both a single project and a community of projects.

Spare parts optimization process and results

PurposeThe paper has two main aims: to focus on how the spare parts optimization process was conducted in the Norwegian Defence procurement projects that had used the system approach based on OPUS10, and whether coordination issues affected the process and results; and to analyse empirical data in order to evaluate whether the theoretical claim of the system approach used through OPUS10, being better than other methods in terms of availability and spare parts investment cost holds up in reality.Design/methodology/approachBoth qualitative and quantitative methods were used in order to answer the different questions of the study.FindingsVery few Norwegian Defence projects have used the system approach through OPUS10. Empirical data however comply with the theoretical claims of potential large savings in spare parts investment cost and/or improvement in operational availability. Several organizational factors can explain the lack of use of OPUS10. The most important being lack of resources, lack of a centralized concept and a somewhat low‐project leader attitude towards the approach.Research limitations/implicationsThe study of Norwegian Defence cases makes generalizations of findings not applicable. The research model could however easily be transferred and utilized in the study of other organizations' spare parts optimization processes.Practical implicationsThe Norwegian Defence should alter their concept for project governance and management in order to gain the full potential of the system approach used through OPUS10.Originality/valueFew research papers have evaluated the promising theoretical findings of system‐based optimization based on empirical operational data. Even fewer, if any, studies have used a combination of factors from organization theory, economic organization theory and operation management theory in order to explain findings based on predefined hypotheses. This research should have value for both practitioners and researchers within the field spare parts optimization in general and systems management in particular.