Improvement project management system was enforced on July 1, 2003, based on urban residential environment maintenance act, because the act entailed an institutional mechanism that can resolve the union’s lack of specialty, which was a real problem ...
Improvement project management system was enforced on July 1, 2003, based on urban residential environment maintenance act, because the act entailed an institutional mechanism that can resolve the union’s lack of specialty, which was a real problem in urban improvement project, and that can properly supervise construction companies. This new institution was studied for nearly 4 years. Research commitment to Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements, from September 1999 to September 2000, was followed by numerous discussions and conferences until its final enforcement. However, lots of problems arose with regard to improvement project operating companies that were to execute the duties of urban improvement and maintenance under the system of improvement project management. That is, many of these managing companies recently went bankrupt or closed downby the aftereffect of frequent legal amendments, changeable business guides related to revision of enforcement orders, and the slump in urban improvement project and delayed progress on the part of construction companies. Accordingly, this research is intended to studythings to be desired from improvement project operating companies, so that they may be fit for the purpose of the project management system in relation to the project, by analyzing the problems of operating companies and proposing an improvement plan from a practical or institutional viewpoint.
As to research method, the author analyzed via on-site inspection the present status of activity of the improvement project operating companies registered with Busan metropolitan city as of June 2008, from the project districts in the city.
As to researchsystem, chapter 2 studies the indications of foregoing studies and analyzes the limitations of existing studies on improvement project operating companies. Chapter 3 theoretically examines the characteristics of urban improvement project and its operating system. The first section of chapter 4 looks into the present status of urban improvement project in Busan area, section two investigates the present state in registration, activity and operation of its related operating companies, and section three derives problems of the companies.
Chapter 5 proposed an improvement plan, based on the results of investing actual status. Chapter 6 summarized the research result and presented its suggestions, limitations and the direction of further research.
According to this research result, problems highlighted by foregoing studies or every kind of media are largely three kinds: lack of specialty in improvement project operating companies, poor financial structure, insufficient laws and regulations.
First, as an improvement measure on the lack of specialty in the operatingcompanies, state-certified qualification was presented as was mentioned in the foregoing studies.
Second, as for poor financial structure of operating companies, a stricter registration, assurance via the association, and use of credit system were presented. Third, as for insufficiency of legal provisions, standardization and simplification in processing improvement project duties was presented. And finally, as for an improvement in the managing companies, systemizationand dualism in paying compensation to the operating companies was presented.
Under the current circumstances that project committed companies are playing an important role in the urban improvement project, this researchattempted to analyze between problems cleared up some years after the initial enforcement of the urban residential environment maintenance act on the committedcompanies registered, which mostly consist of new-born organizations, and chronic problems, on a real time basis.
Indications of this research are summarized as follows:
First is political measures should be prepared. State-certified qualification, guaranteevia the association and use of loan system are measures to be made by policy changes. This is the assignment that must be resolved and settled by the government in its preparation of legal system so that each party may perform its role faithfully to the purport of the improvement project management system. Especially, state-certifiedqualification will lead to the union members to have confidence in the specialty of the committed companies involved in the improvement project, which is to be achieved in an astronomical amount of scale,by preparing a certain institution, so it can prevent the strife among union men by providing a self-help measure maximizing their interests. At the same time, this kind of qualification will allow pride to the officers and personnel of the committedcompanies, stopping them from being involved in temptation and irrationality. So it can be said that this method provides a theoretical clue to overcome theoretical limitations of similar foregoing studies.
Second is a business-like indication. Standardization and simplification, systemization and dualism of contractor compensation are not theoretical alternatives to be prepared by policy changes, but they can be sufficiently ready in the course of handling actual business by the citizen and government via attention and education focused on actual business in each city, province, and local governments. Especially, systemization and dualism of contractor payments is an alternative to be prepared in top priority, because for the project committed companies to fulfill their roles and represent the rights and interests of union men, their self-survival ability should be preceded. This is the only way we can expect their roles can present a developmental direction for urban improvement project.
Though since March 22, 2008, each urban improvement project district was institutionally forced to introduce home pages, they comprised too few exampled cases that our data collection for investigating the actual status had to turn on wire or wireless, or direct visits, which was an actual limitation. Therefore, using established present and actual status of urban improvement project, with such parts improved, will produce a better result of research henceforth.
Also, it is true that despite aforementioned political alternative preparations and businesslikeindications, this research poses many limitations and need for following studies.
Concrete directions in further studies will be like this:
First, we will need content on organizational structure of project managing companies. Act of urban residential environment improvement is largely divided into preliminary, step 1, step 2 and finishing steps. For each step, duties to be performed by project managing companies, such as licensing union establishment, duty execution, administrative treatment, etc., are separately set forth. According to the case study, it was found that most project committed companies have obese organizational structure, compared to the on-site number of those performing the executive service. To overcome this reality in which avicious circle of monthly requiring a high amount of cash for the operation cost of the progressing committee (Union), staff benefits, etc., we should devise a plan to departmentalize the business of urban improvement project and restructure the obese organization system into an optimal scale.
Second, we need content on improving the performance of project operating companies. Because their duties are mostly administrative, people from an outside angle can be negative about the necessity of project operating companies, concluding that there is little more particular job than simple administrative service. Converting this recognition requires them a constant effort to enhance their own performance ability. According to the content of foregoing studies looked into earlier, compulsory selection of project committed companies appears often. Escaping an agent for the union’s administrative duties or loaning initial funds, the committedcompanies should raise their performance ability themselves in order that they may be accredited by the progressing committee (Union) and further, their compulsory selection by institution may come true earlier.
Henceforth, improvement plans for project operating companies should be studied from diverse angles so that they may substantially cover for the business of the progressing committee (Union), implement their consulting role fully, protect the rights and interests of the union members in the right response to the rapidly changing policies and society and live and let live between themselves. The author thinks that in the current urban improvement project, it is by presenting how these businesslike alternatives will affect the project that can motivate the union (progressing committee) and project operating companies to manage to give and take in the years to come.