1.011
Project Evaluation
Spring 2011
Topics
- Introduction and motivation; Initial discussion of project
- Introduction to public and private projects, evaluation methods and project evaluation checklists
- Excel/spreadsheets refresher
- Stakeholder analysis and multi-attribute analysis
- Project costs and revenues; Stakeholder perspectives (public vs. private)
- A1.1 discussion
- Time value of money; Equivalence relationships
- Discount rates, minimally acceptable rate of return (MARR), rate of return on investment (IRR)
- A1.1 review; A1.2 discussion
- Benefit cost analysis; Comparing alternatives; Financial and economic analysis
- Review of MARR, IRR, discount rates
- Financing
- Case: Panama Canal
- A1.2 review
- High speed rail (HSR) case
- Term projects from previous years
- Term project mini-presentations
- HSR Case (cont.)
- Introduction to uncertainty, stakeholder analysis and Mitchell framework
- A3.1 discussion
- Dealing with uncertainty
- Dealing with uncertainty: Decision trees
- Dealing with uncertainty: Real options
- Case: Spent nuclear fuel, transportation to Yucca Mountain, Nevada
- Review 3.1; A3.2 discussion
- Project evaluation in developing countries, Case: Pure Home Water in Africa
- A3.2 Discussion
- Public private partnerships
- Infrastructure banks
- A3.2 review
- Project presentations
- Project presentations (cont.)
- Work time for written project reports
- Wrap-up and summary
Readings
- Martland, Carl D. Toward More Sustainable Infrastructure: Project Evaluation for Planners and Engineers . John Wiley, 2011. ISBN: 9780470448762.
- [Martland] = Martland, Carl D. Toward More Sustainable Infrastructure: Project Evaluation for Planners and Engineers . Wiley, 2011. ISBN: 9780470448762.
- “Public Perspective: Economic, Environmental, and Social Concerns.” Chapter 4 in [Martland].
- Gawande, Atul. “The Checklist.” Chapter 2 in The Checklist Manifesto . Metropolitan Books, 2009. ISBN: 9780805091748.
- Nakagawa, Manabu. “Macro-engineering: From the Grand Canal of China to the Colonization of the Moon.” Chapter 2 in Macro-Engineering Global Infrastructure Solutions . Edited by Frank P. Davidson, and C. Lawrence Meador. Ellis Horwood, 1993. ISBN: 9780135538760.
- “Introduction.” Chapter 1 in [Martland].
- “Comparing Strategies for Improving System Performance.” Chapter 5 in [Martland].
- Gawande, Atul. “The End of the Master Builder.” Chapter 3 in The Checklist Manifesto . Metropolitan Books, 2009. ISBN: 9780805091748.
- SES #: L5 · TOPICS: Time value of money; Equivalence relationships · READINGS: “Equivalence of Cash Flows.” Sections 7.4-7.8 in [Martland].
- “Choosing a Discount Rate.” Chapter 8 in [Martland].
- “Financial Assessment.” Chapter 9 in [Martland].
- “Rules of the Game: Taxes, Depreciation, and Regulation.” Chapter 10 in [Martland].
- SES #: L8 · TOPICS: Financing · READINGS: “Public-Private Partnerships.” Chapter 12 in [Martland].
- SES #: L9 · TOPICS: Case: Panama Canal · READINGS: “The Panama Canal.” Chapter 6 in [Martland].
- Givoni, Moshe. “Development and Impact of the Modern High-speed Train: A Review.” Transport Reviews 26, no. 5 (2006): 593-611.
- Albalate, Daniel, and Germa Bel. “High-Speed Rail: Lessons for Policy Makers from Experiences Abroad.” Research Institute of Applied Economics Working Paper, Universitat de Barcelona, March 2010.
- SES #: L15 · TOPICS: Introduction to uncertainty, stakeholder analysis and Mitchell framework · READINGS: Mitchell, Ronald K., Bradley R. Agle, and Donna J. Wood. “Toward a Theory of Stakeholder Identification and Salience: Defining the Principle of Who and What Really Counts.” Academy of Management Review 22, no. 4 (1997): 853-886.
- SES #: L20 · TOPICS: Project evaluation in developing countries, Case: Pure Home Water in Africa · READINGS: Nelson, Theresa, Cynthia Ingols, Jennifer Christian-Murtie, and Paul Myers. “Susan Murcott and Pure Home Water: Building a Sustainable Mission-Driven Enterprise in Northern Ghana.” Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice (2011).
- “Public-Private Partnerships.” Chapter 12 in [Martland].
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗Historical OpenCourseWare
- MIT OCW calendar ↗
- MIT OCW syllabus ↗
- MIT OCW readings ↗
- Historical MIT OpenCourseWare offering. Named reading entries and schedule topics are automatically extracted from the linked source pages.