{PDF} Pay Now or Pay Later : Controlling Cost of Ownership from Design Throughout the Service Life of Public Buildings National Research Council; Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences; Commission on Engineering and Technical Systems; Committee on Setting Federal Construction Standards to Control Building Life-Cycle Costs

Buildings and other public facilities can have very long and productive service lives, providing efficient shelter and serving a wide range of activities. To do so, however, these facilities must be managed effectively, in a manner consistent with key design decisions. A variety of political and technical obstacles to effective management raise the public’s total cost of ownership for these facilities, particularly when actions to deal with short-term government budget deficits have long-term, high-cost consequences. This book identifies obstacles to controlling the costs of ownership and suggests ways these obstacles can be overcome.