Information On The Use Of Value Engineering In Federal Design And Construction

Value engineering as applied in the construction industry is a systematic process for evaluating a project's proposed design and construction methods to identify ways to achieve the lowest possible life cycle cost without impairing the project's functional requirements. For example, a value engineering study could conclude that a building material different from the one originally proposed would be more serviceable and require less maintenance.

It is important to not that value engineering, properly applied, focuses on life-cycle costs, not initial construction costs alone. Consequently, a value engineering study could result in recommendations which would increase construction costs, but reduce costs over the life of the project. We support the use of value engineering in planning, designing, and constructing federal and federally financed facilities.