Work Breakdown Structures (WBS)

By: AMRIL HADRI BIN JAMALUDIN Faculty of Civil Engineering UiTM Arau, Perlis

In the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

Understands more on the concept of WBS Realize the importance of WBS in the project Identify the WBS and the activities involved in the project

Introduction
Scenario: Imagine you have to construct a multistory office building or a high-tech manufacturing facility. You are going to start by estimating the cost of overall construction project. How?

Introduction (cont)
Solution: Its the same way you eat an elephant ONE BITE AT A TIME!

Introduction (cont)
As large as the task may seem, there actually is a logical method for organizing all of the work activities, materials, and labor associated with a project. This is where we use an organizational tool called as Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

Is a primary organizational tool Establish the basic building blocks of both:

Estimation (Quantity, Cost, etc) Schedule (for planning)

WBS (cont)

Primary purposes:
To organize & identify the work of the project To not overlook any of the steps needed to complete the work How?

By

breaking each division of work into a separate work package. The work package identifies each step in the process of that work item.

WBS (cont)
A sample work package looks something like this:
Work Package 1 Concrete Ground Floor Slab

Excavate the footings Install the edge forms Install under slab fill Install vapor barrier Install the reinforcing Place the concrete Finish the concrete Strip the form work

WBS (cont)
In other word, work package consists of the Main activity & its Sub-activities
Work Package 1 Concrete Ground Floor Slab

Main activity

Excavate the footings Install the edge forms Install under slab fill Install vapor barrier Install the reinforcing Place the concrete Finish the concrete Strip the form work

Sub-activities

WBS (cont)
When all the work packages have been identified and arranged according to their sequences, that is when we have a complete WBS

Work Package - Main activity 1 Sub-activity 1.1 Sub-activity 1.2 Sub-activity 1.n

Work Package 2 - Main activity 2 Sub-activity 2.1 Sub-activity 2.2 Sub-activity 2.n Work Package 3 This is what we called Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

- Main activity 3 Sub-activity 3.1 Sub-activity 3.2 Sub-activity 3.n

Example of various usage of WBS in construction projects

Summary
WBS is an organizational tool which can be used to establishes the basic building blocks of estimate & schedule. Main purposes is to organize & identify the work of the project by breaking each division of work into a separate work package. It also avoids us from overlook any of the steps needed to complete the work.

Conclusion
Remember: ONE BITE AT A TIME!