• Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.23-33
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• 2004

Internet bid systems have been widely used recently. In those systems, the bid price is provided by the seller. When the bid price is set too high compared with the normal price, the successful bid rate can be decreased. Otherwise, when it is set too low based on inaccurate information, it can result in a successful bid with no profit at all. To resolve this problem, we propose an agent that automatically generates bid prices for sellers based on various costing methods such as the high-low point method, the scatter diagram method, and the learning curve method. Through performance experiments, we have found that the number of successful bids with appropriate profit can be increased using the bid pricing agent. Among the costing methods, the learning curve method has shown the best performance. Also, we discuss about how to design and implement the bid pricing agent.

• The Journal of Society for e-Business Studies
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.55-68
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• 2002

Internet group buying systems have been widely used recently. In those systems, because the reserve price is provided by the buyer, the success rate can be decreased if the reserve price is set too low compared with the normal price. Otherwise, an unsuitable successful bid can be made if the reserve price is set too high based on inaccurate information. Likewise, the seller's providing too high a bid price can deteriorate his/her own successful bid rate, whereas a successful bid with too low a price may make no profit in the sale. Therefore, pricing agents that recommend adequate prices based on the past buying and selling history data can be helpful. In this paper, we propose two kinds of agents. One suggests reserve prices to buyers based on the past buying history database of the system. The other recommends bid prices to a seller based on the past bidding history data of the company using the cost accounting theory. Through performance experiments, we show that the successful bid rate can increase by preventing buyers from making unreasonable reserve prices. Also, we show that, for the seller, the rate of successful bids with appropriate profits can increase. Using the pricing agents, we design and implement an XML-based group buying system.

• Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.35-44
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• 2010

Currently, the unit price of public construction projects are not being evaluated appropriately for several reasons. First, the evaluation of the unit price differ per nature of the bidding process and its estimation process. In fact, pricing is determined to meet the total price in turnkey projects and to pass the low bid price deliberation process in unit price projects, and thus, such prices cannot be said to be reasonable prices per public project. After the contract is awarded, however, the prices determined without taking into consideration the characteristic of each bidding process and price estimate process are used for the valuation of progress payment, design changes, and escalation. Furthermore, this is also being applied to other low bid deliberation process as actual public project unit price, thereby affecting other processes as well. In effect, this system increases the risks for both the owner and the bidder who have determined the unit price. This research examines the risk factor and its extent in order to properly manage it in preparation for the future.

• Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
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• v.6 no.5 s.27
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• pp.102-109
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• 2005

The contract price of successful bidders in domestic public work projects has dropped significantly under lowest bidding process. Furthermore, compared to the U.S. and Japan, the bids are substantially lower. The increasing trend for domestic construction companies to bid projects without considering markup or expected profit, with the purpose of gaining experience for future similar work, has contributed to the overall dumping in bid prices. The government has implemented controls in hopes of reducing the price dropping trend but these have yet to work in the market. This study determines the level of significance of the contract price of the successful bidder in domestic public works projects and identifies factors that cause bid-dropping by comparing to those of the US and Japan. By mirroring advance countries' rules and regulations to prevent an abnormally low bidder, recommendation are provided to keep unrealistically low bidders from winning the work.

• Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.94-105
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• 2010

Recently, resettlement problems of low income groups in the urban regeneration area have been issued in Korea because they have no capability to purchase (or lease) redeveloped housing (or apartment). There are several approaches for supplying affordable housing and one of these is the bidding system which can reduce construction cost. However, the lowest bidding system has many problems such as dumping and substandard quality. In this context, this study proposed bidding system based on technical proposal applying the concept of the lowest total combined bid price for optimization of bid price, reduction of construction cost and period, and maintenance of suitable quality. This bidding system embraces the best value and cost plus time concept on the basis of an improved lowest price bidding system. It consists of the following components: work unit based, project unit based, and period reducing technical proposals. The proposed bidding system for determining bidders are designed to evaluate the adequacy of each technical proposal in the order of the combined minimum price in an effort to effectively optimize bid prices and reduce the construction periods, as well as to maintain a minimum appropriate quality.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.26 no.6D
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• pp.975-983
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• 2006

This study analyzed bidding data for construction projects ordered by the Public Procurement Service under the lowest bidding system since 2001 by using statistical technique in terms of construction types, company sizes, bidding prices. This study brings out construction company's bidding practices and problems caused by the current lowest bidding system and suggests the way to mitigate the problems and to improve the lowest bidding system. The analysis shows the problem of winning a bid in abnormally low price under the lowest bidding system, feared at the start, was realized. As bidding practice has polarized with low and high price, the analysis shows that the lowest bid system's market has a high possibility to be distorted by construction companies' bid strategies. To complement the lowest bidding system's problem, the analysis shows that introduction of the bidding system using particulars where bidders estimate construction quantities and unit prices by themselves is needed.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.26 no.5D
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• pp.849-859
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• 2006

Earnings of domestic enterprises are expected a serious damage because the lowest cost bid system and the current cost estimate system. In 2005 average successful bid rate for the lowest cost bid project is below 60%, this is not reach at the operating budget of enterprise. Many problems such as illegal construction, low price subcontract, chain enterprise loss com in to practice because of low successful bid rate. In addition earnings of the enterprises expected to be the minimum, because of enlarge execution of the current cost estimate system. This study tries to lend assistance by giving alternative for the construction enterprise by presenting the bid system, investigate and compare foreign system with domestic and analyze correlation of the lowest cost bid and the current cost estimate system.

• Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
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• v.7 no.5
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• pp.167-176
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• 2006

It was found that Korean Standard of Estimate which has been used as the only basis of cost estimate of public construction projects had some side effects such as jerry-build construction and over-estimation because it failed to reflect the current price and the state-of-the-art construction methods in a changing construction environment. Therefore, the government decided to gradually introduce historical construction cost into cost estimate of public construction projects from 2004. This paper presents analytic criteria and a process model for deducing more current and reasonable historical construction cost for contract items from not only previous contract prices but also all of the other bid prices that were not contracted. The procedure of estimating actual unit cost proposed in this paper focuses on the removal of abnormal values including strategically too low or high prices and the time correction. In addition, basic research is conducted for the correction of actual unit cost through the analysis of fluctuation of bid price depending on bidding types and rates of successful bid. It is anticipated that the effective use of the proposed process model for estimating actual unit cost would make the cost estimation more current and reasonable.

• International conference on construction engineering and project management
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• 2005.10a
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• pp.417-423
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• 2005

Contractor's opportunistic bidding behavior refers to contractor's deliberate low-bid, which cannot accord with the cost, and expectation for beyond-contractual reward (BCR), the compensation earned through cutting corners or claims after undertaking the construction project. This research applies System Dynamics to develop a model of contractor's pricing with consideration for dimensions of "cost", "market competition", and "BCR". Iterative computer simulations were performed to analyze the effects of contractor's pricing on the market price. The results were then examined by statistical analysis on data collected from 44 highway projects in Taiwan. It is found that the critical force driving the contractors to bid opportunistically is their excessive expectations in BCR under the current environment. Within the price competition mechanism, if the problem of BCR exists, even if the bidding system is further improved, contractors would still prefer opportunistic bidding behavior, and eventually make the whole construction industry operate ineffectively. Therefore, it is crucial to remedy the aforementioned BCR problem by more effective management policy.

• Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.50-57
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• 2009

The Korea Standard of Estimate which has been used as the only basis of Cost estimate of public construction projects is failed to reflect the fluctuation of current construction cost. Therefore, the government decided to gradually introduce historical construction cost into cost estimate of public construction projects from 2004 and to reduce the use of Korean Standard of Estimate. This paper presents a series of process and the methodology for computing Actual Cost and analyzing the fluctuation patterns based on not only previous contract prices which made a successful bid but also all of the other bid prices. Also, this paper mainly handles a device for extracting strategic bid price such as low price bid for assuring reliable data and for predicting the construction cost which is built by Wavelet Analysis of Time series Analysis data and Neural Network. It is anticipated that the effective use of the proposed process for estimating actual unit cost would make the cost estimation more current and reasonable.