In Denmark we must learn from our mistakes in large construction projects, otherwise we risk jeopardizing the green transition, says Christian Thuesen, Associate Professor at DTU Engineering Technology. He researches and teaches construction management and project management and has followed the Danish super hospital construction projects closely and carried out analyses of them. Here he answers questions about what often goes wrong in the large public construction projects.
Why do public construction projects often experience delays and increased costs?
One explanation is that projects that attract a great deal of political attention often generate what is known as strategic misrepresentation. This means that you deliberately overestimate the benefits of the project, while at the same time deliberately underestimating the costs. This strategy will ensure political support for the project, and once construction is underway, there is a good chance it will be completed. Other explanations could be that the clients lack the necessary competences.
Are Danes particularly bad at managing public construction projects?
In Denmark, we actually have problems with the management of many public projects within construction, but IT now also has examples of several failed projects. Since the beginning of the 2000s, we have unfortunately more or less drained the public sector of both knowledge of and experience with the client function, partly because politicians at the time decided to outsource it to the private sector.
If we look specifically at the super hospital projects, the regions function as clients. This means that they are responsible for the overall management of the projects and for the budget. But many regions neither have the skills nor the experience needed for large construction projects, and hospitals are one of the most complex constructions you can possibly do.
Another mistake made regarding the hospital projects was to start them all at the same time. Denmark is simply too small to have enough of the right competences for so many simultaneous projects.
Last but not least, the many parallel projects also mean that the experience and knowledge gained in one place cannot be implemented elsewhere in order to avoid repeating those same mistakes.
What’s done is done. Why should we spend time discussing it?
Even though all super hospitals and light rails etc. will eventually be completed, the projects will not disappear. The green transformation of our society will happen through projects - whether we need to electrify our railways, build dams to withstand rising sea levels, or construct energy islands.
So if we become as ‘good’ at delivering green projects as we are at delivering super hospitals, we risk losing popular support for the green transition. The public will either become indifferent or opposed to the transformation.
Furthermore, if we embark on green transition projects without having learned anything from our super hospitals or any of the other construction projects, we risk making the exact same mistakes, ending up once again with delayed, costly, and subpar projects.
What should we do?
We are a group of researchers from all Danish universities who have established the research network Program Denmark, through which we work to change the way we regulate, formulate, and realize large public projects in Denmark. We are particularly inspired by Norway, where they employ a focused learning agenda and for more than 20 years have systematically collected data from construction projects across different sectors. In this way, they have effectively gathered knowledge and experience and continuously learnt from it.
They also apply the ‘Norwegian project model’ where all construction projects amounting to more than NOK 1 billion must be approved in stages by their Ministry of Finance. Experience from Norway shows us that they usually manage to deliver projects on time, within budget, and of the agreed quality.
In Program Denmark, we work towards a national gathering of knowledge and experience from large public projects, so that we can learn from the succesful ones and avoid mistakes that have disastrous consequences. We have to realize that we as a country are not good enough at managing major public construction projects, and that we need to strengthen our ability to carry them out.
What skills do we need?
I see engineering as a key part of the solution. We are a professional group with knowledge of and experience with technology, systems, mathematics, and data, all of which is crucial for managing construction projects. The engineer’s most important skill is basic academic competence - whether within chemistry, IT, or nanotechnology.
The second-most important skill, in my opinion, is project management. Therefore, we must ensure that our students achieve a good understanding of both how to work on and in projects and how to manage them. Construction or not - almost all engineers will be involved in project management at some point during their career.
