This new edition provides a comprehensive resource forevaluating the economic performance of investments in buildings,building systems, and other constructed facilities.

Learn how to:
• Decide whether to accept or reject a given investment
• Design and size building systems
• Establish priority when budgets are limited

Section 1 includes four standard guides that (1) identifyfeatures and limitations of the methods that might influence users’choices under various conditions; (2) recommend techniques fortreating uncertainty in input values to an economic analysis of abuilding project and evaluate the risk that a project will have aless favorable economic outcome than what is desired or expected;and (3) describe a generic format for summarizing the economicimpacts of building-related projects. (4) The fourth guide, new tothis edition, provides a generic framework for developing acost-effective risk mitigation plan for new and existingconstructed facilities.

Section 2 provides 12 standard practices. Five aremethods for measuring life-cycle costs, benefit-to-cost andsavings-to-investment ratios, internal rates of return, netbenefits, and payback for investments in buildings and buildingsystems. Six treat value analysis, applying the analyticalhierarchy process, performing and reporting cost analysis,measuring the cost risk of buildings and building systems,constructing FAST Diagrams and performing function analysis duringvalue analysis studies, and organizing and managing building data.A new standard practice added in this edition describes how topresent elemental cost summaries, analyses, and estimations.

Section 3 describes terminology used in thestandards.

Section 4 provides six classifications. The first is theclassification of building elements. The elemental format is basedon major components common to most buildings. The classification,called UNIFORMAT II, serves as a consistent reference for analysis,evaluation, and monitoring of buildings during the planning,feasibility, and design stages. The remaining classifications arefor bridge elements, life-cycle environmental work elements, andnon-functional element costs in construction estimating. The lastone, new to this edition, provides a format for organizing andclassifying cost estimates by major characteristics.

Section 5 discusses two adjuncts. The first, DiscountFactor Tables, is included in its entirety. It is comprised of aset of discount factor tables in support of five standard practicesfor measuring life-cycle costs, benefit-to-cost andsavings-to-investment ratios, internal rates of return, netbenefits, and payback for investments in buildings and buildingsystems. The second adjunct, Environmental Cost Element Structure,is described but not included.. It is a comprehensive supportingdocument for E 2150, the Standard Classification for Life-CycleEnvironmental Work Elements—Environmental Cost ElementStructure.

Section 6 provides a brief introduction to a softwareproduct called "AHP/Expert Choice© for ASTM Building Evaluation."The AHP software product supports Practice E 1765 on applying theanalytical hierarchy process to multiattribute decision analysis ofinvestments related to buildings and building systems. The softwareand companion user's guide are not included in the compilation.