ABSTRACT
After reading this chapter, you should have an understanding of the future direction of cost studies and building. You should be able to:
the product ■■ appreciate the principles of best-value solutions ■■ recognise the importance of adding value to the process and the product ■■ distinguish other techniques that are important in evaluating construction solutions
25.1 INTRODUCTION
Some argue that there is really no such thing as cost optimisation. To an extent this argument may be true, we can only optimise within the constraints of our current knowledge and experiences. In attempting to discover where the future direction of cost studies in buildings lies, this book follows a similar argument. What is certain is that the discipline will not stand still. But we have not yet acquired all of the knowledge and experiences for all time, and in our lifetime we probably never will.
